Urban mining: origin of the concept and stakes for strategic metals
- Authors
- F. Tedjar
- Journal
- Modern Concept in Materials
- Year
- 2020
Abstract
Founding article setting out the urban mining concept, first published in 2004 and taken up here. It starts from an observation made during a study carried out for the European Commission under the 5th Framework Programme (1999-2002): the lithium content of spent batteries exceeds the concentration found in ore extracted from natural mines. The article draws the consequences for where metals sit among a country’s critical resources, and for recycling policy.