Various Options for Mining and Metallurgical Waste in the Circular Economy: A Review

Abstract

In the last few years, the mining and metallurgy industry has made concerted efforts to improve waste management through a byproduct recovery strategy, mainly focusing on developing innovative technologies to provide sustainable solutions. This strategy has seen the metallurgy industry exploit more natural resources in waste streams while reducing its environmental impact, making the ‘zero-waste’ goal possible. As such, the concept of circular economy emerged, which seeks to improve the environmental sustainability of mining operations by recycling and reusing the generated waste as raw materials for producing other new products. This paper aims to analyze the findings from published studies on the treatment and stabilization technologies of metallurgical waste or byproducts for the construction industry. Furthermore, the paper synthesizes information on processes and treatment strategies to beneficiate the waste materials for application in the building and construction sector. Finally, the paper identifies knowledge gaps in the literature, using a comprehensive overview of the superior results achieved by the metallurgical industry and potential synergies with other industrial sectors. In conclusion, the paper presents future opportunities while highlighting specific areas that may be further explored. This review paper is helpful to researchers in the mining waste management discipline to have an aerial view of what has already been achieved in the field to improve the existing processes for environment preservation.