HOUSTON, December 12th (Argus) - Australian metal recycling company Metallium and US waste management company ElementUSA will collaborate to recover gallium, scandium and other key minerals from bauxite in Louisiana.
Metallium's proprietary Flash Joule Heating (FJH) technology will be used in the demonstration facility developed by ElementUSA in Gramercy, Louisiana.
The US Department of Defense recently awarded ElementUSA $29.9 million in November to fund the company's critical resources facility and preliminary development work in Cedar Park, Texas.
Through a binding letter of intent, ElementUSA has allocated up to $10.1 million to Metallium at its Anawak plant in Texas for the FJH device, for pilot testing of bauxite raw materials, and expects to increase production capacity at ElementUSA's Gramercy plant in Louisiana subsequently.
ElementUSA stated that under the contract, the company has up to 30 million tons of bauxite raw materials at its alumina refining plant in Gramercy. Gallium and scandium play important roles in defense technology and are listed as key minerals by the US Geological Survey. The supply of these two metals by the West has recently been affected by China's export control policies.
