Researchers at the University of Guanajuato (UGTO) in Mexico have developed an extraction column which recovers metals companies use in their production processes to avoid environmental pollution and lighten economic losses.

The column operates under the principles of liquid-liquid extraction which seeks to recover metals with high added value. The technology is at laboratory prototype stage and is in the process of obtaining a patent.

Carlos Benito Martínez Pérez, PhD student of Science in Chemical Engineering at UGTO and project participant says, ”The process begins with the extraction. The influent enters the top of the column and makes contact with an organic formulation containing the extracting agent. This agent is highly selective for the metal it seeks to recover. When leaving the column, the effluent is virtually free of metal”.

The concentrated metal in the solution could be re-incorporated into a production process or sold to other companies with little waste.

The technology could have applications in the production of automotive parts, electronics, tannery and painting, among others.

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