Researchers from the University of Toronto – in collaboration with a group of mining firms – are using acid-loving bacteria to design new processes for recovering nickel, a critical mineral in growing demand around the world.
Researchers from the University of Toronto – in collaboration with a group of mining firms – are using acid-loving bacteria to design new processes for recovering nickel, a critical mineral in growing demand around the world.
The research partnership with the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering includes the following companies: Vale, Glencore, Metso-Outotec, BacTech, MIRARCO and Yakum Consulting. The insights gained could enable these companies to reduce their environmental footprint while at the same time gaining access to new sources of nickel, which is used in everything from stainless steel to next-generation batteries for electric vehicles.
Supported by $2 million in funding through Ontario Genomics from Genome Canada and another $2 million from the Government of Ontario, the industrial partners will also provide approximately $2 million in funding and in-kind contributions, bringing the total up to $6 million.
Read more at University of Toronto
Photo: A new research partnership between U of T Engineering and companies in the mining sector uses micro-organisms to recover nickel from tailings ponds, like this one in Ontario (photo by Patrick Diep)
