Vanadium recovery from spent iron sorbent
Collaboration between the Kolarctic CBC “SEESIMA” project and the Interreg Nord “VanProd” project has resulted in an article published in the Resources, Conservation and Recycling Journal. The article is entitled “Vanadium recovery from spent iron sorbent used for the treatment of mining influenced water” with Tiina Leiviskä from the University of Oulu as a co-author.
When mining influenced wastewater that contains vanadium is cleaned with an iron sorbent the sorbent eventually becomes saturated with vanadium and needs to be replaced. This study examined how the sorbent can be treated to recover the vanadium and regenerate the sorbent to allow it to be used again. The treatment was a two-step process involving regeneration of the sorbent with sodium hydoxide, followed by precipitation of the vanadium as calcium vanadate. Vanadium is an important additive in steelmaking, to improve the hardness and wear resistance.