In view of the increasing global demand for cobalt and nickel, which has led to increased mining of laterite ores, BioProLat is developing an environmentally friendly alternative to conventional methods such as pyrometallurgy or high-pressure acid leaching, which are associated with high costs. The project used acidophilic bacteria (Acidithiobacillus) to dissolve specific mineral phases in laterite ores. Experiments in bioreactors resulted in a maximum extraction rate of 83 per cent for both metals after 15 days. Subsequent processing of the leach solution allowed full exploitation of the ore by precipitation and separation of cobalt, nickel, iron, aluminium, manganese and magnesium.

The results of BioProLat have already been presented at several conferences and published in peer-reviewed journals, underlining the importance and success of this sustainable innovation. The innovative process could make a significant contribution to more environmentally friendly extraction of raw materials and change the industry in the long term.

The Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR), the project coordinator, also reports on the success of the project in its latest newsletter. The article can be found here (in German). 

Further information on BioProLat can be found on the project page.