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Welcome to Minerals to Metals

The Minerals to Metals initiative is an interdisciplinary research, education and engagement platform which aims to play a leading role in the global minerals industry.

Working together to promote premier, multi-disciplinary research and development in the area of minerals beneficiation

Minerals and metals fundamentally underpin every aspect of modern society. However, the global mining industry is facing increasingly complex, multi-faceted internal and external challenges which require innovative, integrated and interdisciplinary approaches to address them. The Minerals to Metals (MtM) Initiative aims to do just that.

The Minerals to Metals initiative is an interdisciplinary research, education and engagement platform which aims to play a leading role in the global minerals industry. We aim to contribute to Africa’s sustainable development through minerals beneficiation research, nurturing the future leaders of the minerals industry as well as bridging the gap between academia and industry via partnerships and collaboration.

About us...

Duke University, UCT make tangible investment recommendations ahead of lithium, rare earths boom

The most credible research and development opportunities for lithium and rare earth processing were mapped by a team comprising academics from Minerals to Metals Initiative and Duke University.

Beneath the Bottleneck: An R&D and Technology Readiness Review of Lithium and Rare Earth Processing

This report maps the production baseline and active R&D across the lithium and rare earth value chains (four processing routes in total)and assigns technology readiness levels (TRLs)1 to each technology.

Sulfur shortage due to tensions in the Middle East can be relieved by recovering coal waste

With the oil trade under pressure, the global sulfuric acid industry is also under pressure. To alleviate economic impacts, sulfur produced from coal waste can be used to replace oil-derived sulfur in sulfuric acid production.

South Africa is moving away from coal – how mines and power stations could be used for green energy and farming

When coal is phased out and green energy phased in, coal assets can either be abandoned or turned into something that is useful for communities.

Resilient Futures Community of Practice project (CoP)

The policy briefs and working paper outputs arising from the Resilient Futures Community of Practice project are now available on http://www.resilientfutures.uct.ac.za/CoP-outputs-list

This project explored the potential application of fibre-based plants (hemp, kenaf and bamboo) to simultaneously restore degraded mine land and stimulate post-mining economic development, and was conducted as a collaboration between Minerals to Metals, the Centre for Bioprocess Engineering, the Development Policy Research Unit and Mineral Law in Africa.