New Delhi: National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO) has strengthened its research and development efforts in industrial residue valorisation and critical mineral recovery with the commissioning of an indigenous pilot plant for processing coal fly ash.
NALCO Chairman and Managing Director Brijendra Pratap Singh inaugurated the facility at the company’s Research & Technology Centre (NRTC) in Bhubaneswar.
The pilot plant is designed to process bituminous coal fly ash and recover multiple value-added materials, including alumina, calcium silicate, quartz residue and iron hydroxide residue enriched with rare earth elements (REEs), including scandium.
Pilot Plant to Process 50 Kg of Fly Ash Daily
The indigenous facility has a processing capacity of 50 kg of fly ash per day. It has been designed and established by CSIR-IMMT and KIIT with support from NALCO, CSIR and the Ministry of Mines. The technology is based on a jointly patented process developed by CSIR-IMMT and NALCO for the holistic utilisation of coal fly ash.
Key Highlights
- Processing capacity: 50 kg of fly ash per day
- Material processed: Bituminous coal fly ash
- Location: NALCO Research & Technology Centre, Bhubaneswar
- Developed by: CSIR-IMMT and KIIT
- Support: NALCO, CSIR and Ministry of Mines
- Key outputs: Alumina, calcium silicate, quartz residue and REE-enriched iron hydroxide residue
- REE focus: Includes scandium
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Focus on Critical Mineral Recovery
The facility is expected to generate sufficient quantities of rare earth element concentrate to support further research into the recovery and separation of mixed rare earth elements.
Rare earth elements are important inputs for several strategic and high-technology applications, including:
- Permanent magnets
- Electric mobility
- Renewable energy
- Electronics
- Defence
Recovering these materials from secondary resources could improve resource efficiency, supplement primary mineral sources and create additional value from industrial residues.
The pilot-scale work could also support the development of downstream value-added products and integrated recovery pathways for critical minerals.
NALCO Expands Research on Industrial Residue Valorisation
The fly ash facility is part of NALCO’s wider efforts to develop scalable and commercially viable technologies for converting industrial residues into useful resources. The company is also working on a separate pilot plant for the valorisation of bauxite residue, commonly known as red mud. A ground-breaking ceremony for the proposed facility was held on the occasion.
The red mud pilot plant will focus on recovering ferro-titanium alloy, metallic iron and rare earth elements, with the objective of increasing the productive utilisation of bauxite residue.
NALCO CMD Highlights Indigenous Technology and Circular Economy
Speaking at the inauguration, NALCO CMD Brijendra Pratap Singh said the company is focusing on research, innovation and strategic partnerships to convert industrial residues into valuable resources. He highlighted pilot-scale validation of indigenous technologies as an important step towards developing commercially viable solutions for resource efficiency, critical mineral security and the circular economy.
Singh also emphasised that NALCO is working towards integrated resource-recovery pathways through sustained R&D, collaboration with premier national research institutions and pilot-scale validation of emerging technologies.
Ramanuj Narayan, Director of IMMT, said the pilot plant will help extract useful materials from industrial residues instead of treating them merely as waste, potentially creating an additional resource stream for strategically important minerals and metals.
Pilot Validation Could Support Commercial Applications
The successful validation of the technology at pilot scale could provide a pathway for recovering multiple valuable materials from industrial residues while reducing dependence on conventional primary resources.
The fly ash pilot plant will also support further R&D into mixed rare earth recovery and separation, potentially enabling the development of value-added products and integrated critical mineral recovery systems.
Senior Officials Attend the Inauguration
The inauguration was attended by senior officials from NALCO, CSIR-IMMT and KIIT.
Those present included Jagdish Arora, Director (Projects & Technical), NALCO; Tapas Kumar Pattanayak, Director (HR), NALCO; Anil Kumar Singh, Director (Commercial), NALCO; and Jnyana Ranjan Mohanty, Registrar, KIIT, along with other senior officials.
About NALCO
National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO) is a Navratna public sector enterprise under the Ministry of Mines, Government of India. It is one of India’s leading integrated producers of bauxite, alumina and aluminium and has operations across the aluminium value chain. NALCO plays an important role in India’s non-ferrous metals industry and contributes to the country’s mineral and aluminium production capabilities.
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