Copper is a key component to civilization’s infrastructure, however, unrestricted extraction has led to environmental devastation, and it will only continue to get worse in the future. Scientists in London are trying to combat this outcome by creating a greener method to extract the vital metal for humanity’s benefit.
The Rio Tinto Center for Future Materials, based at Imperial College London, is focusing research on creating a greener method to extract copper from the Earth. Copper is the key ingredient in bronze, a material that has been vital to the infrastructure of the world as we know it.
Copper is one of the key materials that allowed the world to advance technologically, and with just how much electrical devices are evolving, finding a more environmentally conscious way to extract the metal is integral.
Manufacturers around the world are planning to expand the use of things like electric cars and renewable power plants to help combat the damages done to our environment, specifically from technological advancements.
Copper is an essential resource for electrical wiring, plumbing, and industrial machinery in general, it’s a major building block of what makes our world what it is. This is why it’s been so important to the scientists at the Rio Tinto Center to formulate a more environmentally efficient way to mine the material. Thanks to a partnership with several international university groups, the team has $150 million for its first 10 years of operations, according to reports.
Professor Mary Ryan, materials scientist and one of the founders of the center, spoke with the Observer last week regarding the amazing work the group is doing to create a greener form of extraction.
“The world needs to electrify its energy systems, and success will absolutely depend on copper.”
“The metal is going to be the biggest bottleneck in this process. So, in setting up the center, we decided copper would be the first challenge that we dealt with – though we will turn our attention to other materials in the future,” Professor Ryan said.
Dr. Sarah Gordon, co-director of the center, said: “Our first aim is to find new, responsible ways to source metals – in particular copper. Can we extract it without disturbing rocks at all? Or could we use viruses and bacteria to harvest copper? These are the first crucial questions the center aims to answer.”
Copper, when used for electricity, transmits electrical currents with a minimal loss of power and is resistant to corrosion. This is why it’s such an important part of powering a multitude of devices such as smartphones and electric vehicles.
Analysts report that about 22 million tons of copper were mined in 2023, which is a 30% increase from 2010. Based on this increase, annual demand for the metal will hit about 50 million tons by 2050.
In order to mine copper, certain acids are used. These acids poison rivers, contaminate soils, and pollute the air, leading to detrimental long and short-term environmental consequences. Copper producers such as Peru, Chile, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have all stated that they’ve seen natural habitats and wildlife populations decimated, with human health for populations near mining sites also deteriorating.
“We typically extract it from minerals that have crystallized out of very saline, copper-rich brines,” said Professor Matthew Jackson, chair in geological fluid dynamics at Imperial College.
“This [mining] process requires huge amounts of energy to break open the rocks and bring them to the surface and also generates a lot of waste as we extract copper from its source ores.”
One of the main objectives of the center is to look at the current issues of how copper is mined and work around them to provide a new means of accessing the metal without damaging the environment and the living beings within those environments.
The Guardian reported that the work is being done in partnership with the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, the University of California, Berkeley, the Australian National University and the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.
Professor Jackson and the international partners of the center are looking for underground mining sites where copper-rich brines are still in their liquid form. Jackson explained that the brines are created by volcanic systems that provide geothermal energy for extraction.
“That means we can extract the copper by pumping the brines to the surface via boreholes – which is relatively easy – and also use local energy to power the mine itself and possibly provide excess energy for nearby communities,” Jackson stated.
“Essentially, we are seeking to build self-powered mines and have already pinpointed promising sites in New Zealand, and there is potential to explore conventionally barren areas such as Japan.”
Another project from company RemePhy is utilizing technology to develop plant-bacterial systems that have a heightened way of extracting copper, and metal in general, from soil. The project is being started by Imperial PhD students Franklin Keck and Ion Ioannou.
“Essentially, you will be able to grow these crops on land contaminated by waste left over from the mining of metals such as copper, and they will extract that metal,” said Keck.
Professor Ryan stated: “The world will need more copper in the next 10 years than has been mined in the whole of the last century. Currently, we do not have enough in circulation to meet this demand.
We therefore need to both reduce our demand for copper and work out how to extract it in the most sustainable way possible, and that is what we aim to help to achieve at the center.”
Eric Mastrota is a Contributing Editor at The National Digest based in New York. A graduate of SUNY New Paltz, he reports on world news, culture, and lifestyle. You can reach him at eric.mastrota@thenationaldigest.com.
