Rare earth elements and uranium in Minjingu phosphate fertilizer products: Plant food for thought, Resources, Conservation and Recycling - Mines Saint-Étienne
Journal Articles Resources, Conservation and Recycling Year : 2024

Rare earth elements and uranium in Minjingu phosphate fertilizer products: Plant food for thought, Resources, Conservation and Recycling

1 NMAIST - Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology
2 MEWES - the School of Materials Energy Water & Environmental Sciences Institution
3 Td Lab Sustainable Mineral Resources
4 Danube University Krems
5 TAEC - Tanzania Atomic Energy Commission
6 TORITA - Tobacco Research Institute of Tanzania
7 TAEC - Tanzania Atomic Energy Commission
8 Institute for Medical Research and Occupational Health
9 institute of meat hygiene and technology
10 AGH UST - AGH University of Science and Technology [Krakow, PL]
11 FPACS - Faculty of Physics and Applied Computer Science [Kraków]
12 Łukasiewicz Research Network–New Chemical Syntheses Institute
13 Łukasiewicz Research Network
14 Suez University
15 SPIN-ENSMSE - Centre Sciences des Processus Industriels et Naturels
16 EVS - Environnement, Ville, Société
17 IST&I - Institute of Science, Technology & Innovation
18 UM6P - Université Mohammed VI Polytechnique [Ben Guerir]
19 CEPH - Expertise Center for Phosphate
20 Chemistry Department
21 University of Pretoria [South Africa]
22 UFS - University of the Free State [South Africa]
23 Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences
24 Department of Chemical Engineering
25 CSHV - Complexity Science Hub Vienna
26 TU Bergakademie Freiberg - Technishe Universität Bergakademie Freiberg
27 Institute of Chemical Technology
28 Fraunhofer IKTS - Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems
29 Fraunhofer - Fraunhofer Technology Center for High-Performance Materials THM
30 ICT - Indian Institute of Chemical Technology Mumbai
31 Department of Chemical Engineering
32 Technical University of Liberec
33 Institute for Nanomaterials, Advanced Technologies and Innovation
Ali Maged
  • Function : Author

Abstract

Minjingu phosphate ore is Tanzania's sole domestic supply of phosphorus (P). The ore contains medium to high concentrations of naturally occurring P2O5 (20–35 %) and relevant concentrations of uranium and rare earth elements (REEs) are also suspected to be present. Currently, neither uranium nor REEs are recovered. They either end up in mine tailings or are spread across agricultural soils with fertilizer products. This work provides a first systematic review of the uranium and REE concentrations that can be expected in the different layers of Minjingu phosphate ore, the way the ore is presently processed, as well as a discussion on alternative processing pathways with uranium/REE recovery. The study analyzed ten distinct Minjingu phosphate ore layers, four mine tailings, and five intermediate and final mineral fertilizer products from the Minjingu mine and processing plant located in northern Tanzania. The results confirm that the uranium concentrations and to a lesser degree, the REE concentrations are indeed elevated if compared to concentrations in other phosphate ores. The study does not identify a significant risk resulting from this. The development of techno-economic solutions for more comprehensive utilization of Minjingu ore is, however, strongly encouraged and suggestions on such processes are provided.
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emse-04585731 , version 1 (29-05-2024)

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Nils Haneklaus, Dennis A. Mwalongo, Jacob B. Lisuma, Aloyce I. Amasi, Jerome Mwimanzi, et al.. Rare earth elements and uranium in Minjingu phosphate fertilizer products: Plant food for thought, Resources, Conservation and Recycling. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, In press, 207, pp.107694. ⟨10.1016/j.resconrec.2024.107694⟩. ⟨emse-04585731⟩
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