LiNiCo produces lithium carbonate and graphite from recycled lithium-ion batteries.

Comstock Mining Inc., Virginia City, Nevada, has increased its overall ownership of LiNiCo Corp., a McCarran, Nevada-based producer of lithium carbonate and graphite from recycled lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), from 45 percent to 90 percent. The company announced its acquisition of an additional 3,129,081 common shares in LiNiCo from that company’s founder, Michael Vogel, in exchange for 3,500,000 restricted Comstock common shares. Comstock also acquired an additional 4,075 Series A Preferred shares.

Aqua Metals, also based in McCarran, has a 10 percent ownership stake in LiNiCo Corp.

Comstock and Aqua Metals announced they will work together to accelerate decarbonization by producing renewable electrification products that support the increasingly high demand for electric vehicles. LiNiCo and Aqua Metals signed a collaboration agreement in November of last year to process black mass from LIBs into high-purity nickel, cobalt and other metals.

LiNiCo has developed proprietary extraction technologies, and its first production facility is being retrofitted and is scheduled to begin initial production with a feedstock crushing capacity of more than 35,000 tons per year during the second half of 2022. The ultimate facility capacity will be designed and permitted to handle more than 100,000 tons per year, Comstock says in a news release announcing the transaction.  

“Increasing our investment in LiNiCo was a natural extension of our plan to build high-cash generating processes that tap into massive markets and decarbonize the supply chains of increasingly scarce natural resources,” says Corrado De Gasperis, Comstock executive chairman and CEO. “We believe that LiNiCo’s pioneering extraction technologies will quickly prove to be the best, most sustainable and most valuable process for the production of lithium and other electrification products from both recycled batteries and virgin natural resources. Increasing our stake to approximately 90 percent will allow us to fully consolidate and control LiNiCo’s business plans, revenue and earnings while enabling our shareholders to participate in the expected significant positive impact of LiNiCo’s business and related proprietary technologies on Comstock’s valuation.

“LiNiCo’s partnerships and propriety technologies differentiate us from our peers by enabling the up-front extraction of lithium and the direct refining of nickel, cobalt and other metals. We are looking forward to incorporating these new processes into our facility and offering best-in-class, sustainable electrification products at a fraction of the costs,” De Gasperis adds.

Toronto-based company says it will build pilot plant for separation technology that can be used in recycling applications.

Toronto-based Innovation Metals Corp. (IMC) says it expects to start construction of a demonstration-scale pilot plant for its RapidSX rare earth metals separation process in the first quarter of this year.

IMC says its pilot plant for RapidSX technology for the separation and purification of rare earth elements (REEs) will be located at its Commercialization and Development Facility in Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

“Following a comprehensive, independent techno-economic study and the subsequent design of a commercial-scale REE separation facility, IMC anticipates that the RapidSX technology will be ready for commercial adoption and implementation by IMC’s customers via revenue-producing licensing agreements by the end of 2022,” the company adds.

“I am particularly pleased with the significant progress that the IMC team has made in recent months, as we work towards the key objective of constructing and commissioning the demo plant,” says IMC Chair, CEO and co-founder Gareth Hatch. “Interest in the RapidSX technology for the separation of REEs and other critical metals is as strong as ever, and we continue to actively engage and to progress discussions with a number of third parties.”

IMC says it is commercializing its RapidSX technology to capture “a number of metals, to help enable mining and metal recycling companies to compete in today’s global marketplace” for rare earth elements.

The company says it has completed the initial design and layout of the individual RapidSX column assemblies for the RapidSX demo plant, as well as the pump and piping networks and other physical hardware required. The company describes itself as being in the final stages of selecting and subsequently procuring the components of the instrumentation and control system for the plant.

The current target for the completion of construction is the end of March, with commissioning and operation during an initial test campaign to commence shortly thereafter.

In addition to its ongoing RapidSX development work, IMC says it has been working with researchers at the University of Toronto to develop and evaluate “proprietary, cost-effective methods of reducing the quantity of yttrium in heavy-REE-rich feedstocks, prior to separation using RapidSX.

ICM describes yttrium as a low-value REE. Reducing the quantity of it in HREE feedstocks prior to subsequent separation has the potential to reduce operating costs, as well to reduce the plant size required, thus reducing capital costs, says the firm. “The work has progressed very well to date and IMC looks forward to reporting on further developments in early 2022,” states the company.

IMC says it has developed the RapidSX process to enable the low-cost separation and purification of rare earth elements, plus nickel, cobalt, lithium and other metals “via an accelerated form of solvent extraction.” IMC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada-based Ucore Rare Metals Inc.

Technology from Belgium-based Ad Rem NV has been designed to extract metal from shredded ELV fractions.

Belgium-based Ad Rem NV is providing technology to a heavy media separation plant in Polykastro, Greece, designed to help separate more than 10 metric tons per hour of mixed plastics and metals from shredded end-of-life vehicles (ELVs). 

According to Ad Rem, as of late December, trucks are driving on and off the site of Greek recycling company Konstantinidis Bros. SA, delivering “structures and components of their new separation plant: a Heavy Media Separation (HMS) system, built by Ad Rem, aimed to deal with their automotive shredder residue.”

Ad Rem calls the new plant a high-tech, state-of-the-art installation “doing much more than just separating materials.” The technology provider says the plant’s owner, Konstantinidis Bros., was established in 1971 and is Greece’s largest recycling company.

In 2018, Ad Rem installed what it calls “Scavenger” system at the Konstantinidis Bros. main production facility in Thessaloniki, Greece. The Scavenger is a compact machine, combining several sieving and wind sifting steps, according to Ad Rem.

Using the device, a fines fraction is created, as well as a light fraction that is suitable for waste-to-energy applications. The remaining fraction is called SHF (shredder heavy fraction) and contains all the plastics and metals. Free from fines and light materials, the SHF fraction will enter into the new HMS system. 

The HMS system is the result of many years of innovations by Ad Rem and its parent company, Galloo, which processes scrap and operates shredders. Galloo started developing flotation plants for metal recovery more than 30 years ago and continues to do so, now via Ad Rem.

The new plant in Greece includes a washing system designed to comply with local regulations and to keep the sorting media clean, so “the separation process remains stable, and pollutants are concentrated in a single sludge output,” according to the firm. Ad Rem tapped into the knowledge base of Galloo and sister company Trevi Environmental Solutions to design the system.

Instead of vibratory rinsing screens, rinsing drums are added at both output sides of the separation drum, designed to enable cleaning of the sieves while in operation. Not only does this prevent frequent maintenance stops, it also prevents media material losses, says Ad Rem. “By using this innovation, the plant will consume the lowest possible amount of medium, while remaining operational on a 24/7 basis, except one shift per week for cleaning and general maintenance,” the company adds.

A double medium storage system enables the operator to switch the density of the system in a very short amount of time, according to Ad Rem. “This way, plastics can be separated from metals on a lower density, while magnesium or aluminum can be floated from heavy metals on higher densities using the same system.”

The separation drum itself is the result of a study done in coordination with the university of KU Leuven in Belgium. In that study, a computer model of the separation process was created, and the process and drum geometry were simulated for varying circumstances. The results of the study were implemented in the physical design of the plant: When floating aluminum from heavy metals, the misplacement observed in both outputs approaches zero, says Ad Rem.

A patented system was added to extract water from the medium, ensuring “perfect control over the medium density and avoiding the need to add fresh medium every time the density needs to be increased,” Ad Rem says.

A focus on automation means these stages work largely without any operator involvement, says the firm. Frequency drives for most motors and pumps, sensors measuring the tank levels, automatic density measurement help ensure the plant can operate efficiently. “Pump clogging up? The increased current will be visible for the operators so they can unclog it before the system stops. Density dropping? The automatic medium dewatering system will keep it up and stable,” the company says.

Additionally, an interactive visualization and analytics system will store all plant data for years and display it in custom-made graphs.

The plant is scheduled for completion in early 2022, according to Ad Rem, which describes itself has having been founded in 2008 as a joint venture between machine-building group Valtech and recycler Galloo.

The Fond du Lac, Wisconsin-based company continues to grow under the direction of its third generation of family leadership.

Sadoff Iron & Metal, a scrap metal company headquartered in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, is celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2022.

In addition to its Fond du Lac headquarters, which features an auto shredder and nonferrous downstream system, the company operates a second location in Fond du Lac, three additional yards in Green Bay, Manitowoc and Sheboygan, Wisconsin, as well as two scrap yards in Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska, and Sadoff E-Recycling & Data Destruction processing locations in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and La Vista, Nebraska. In addition to metals and electronics recycling, Sadoff provides auto salvage.

In 1947, Sadoff’s founder, Edward H. Rudoy, purchased Block Salvage Co. in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. In 1964, he purchased the Sadoff Iron & Metal Co. in Fond du Lac. Rudoy’s son-in-law, Sheldon Lasky, joined the business in 1972. In 1991, Rudoy retired, and Lasky took over. 

Today’s leadership team includes Sheldon Lasky’s sons, CEO Mark Lasky and Executive Vice Presidents Jason Lasky and Bradford Lasky. They work together to carry on the company’s legacy and to ensure the business remains focused on its customers.

“Edward and Sheldon’s philosophy was that our best method of growth was to grow with our customers,” Mark Lasky says. “That was the foundation of how the company started and it continues through today.”

Recycling Today profiled the company in its August 2021 issue. At that time, Jason Lasky said, “We’re a relationship-based company, and we’re a foundry-pointing company. When customers buy into that, then we have the ability to work with them and partner on their cost savings, whether it’s producing different product blends or different things like that. Something that I think we do really well is to work with our customers, listen to our customers and, at times, to provide really out-of-the-box solutions for them, without being too specific for competitive reasons.”

Sadoff also prides itself on being a safe and sustainable company. “We went from believing in safety to really having safety as a value,” Jason Lasky says.

The company says its employees also embrace the culture, atmosphere and their purpose to contribute to the company. 

When reflecting on Sadoff’s future, the Laskys say they are prioritizing sustainability, focusing on taking actionable steps. In 2016, the company began its newest recycling expansion with the addition of Sadoff E-Recycling & Data Destruction, an R2 (Responsible Recycling) certified electronics recycler.

The company says it is honored to share this milestone with its employees and the community. “When you have successes, you celebrate, reward, recognize and respect the people that got you there,” Mark Lasky says.

Dan Mihuc will serve as director of engineering for the company’s recycling group.

Houston-based Industrial Service Solutions (ISS) – Recycling Technologies has announced the addition of shredding and recycling industry veteran Dan Mihuc as director of engineering.

With almost two decades of experience in the metal recycling industry, Mihuc served as director of metal sales/project manager at Engineered Recycling Systems in Atlanta. Previous to this role, he was the project engineer for OmniSource Corp., which is owned by the Fort Wayne, Indiana-based Steel Dynamics Inc.

“We are very fortunate to add someone with Dan’s experience and qualifications to our organization,” says Bill Tigner, vice president of ISS – Recycling Technologies. “With new nonferrous plants, complete automobile shredder systems and AmeriMex AC and DC motors and controls, as well as overseeing the other areas we are bringing to the scrap metal industry, such as shredder emissions and controls, Dan will be able to lead us to the forefront of one of the fastest growing divisions within ISS.”

Mihuc will be based in Chicago. His responsibilities will include taking over the management of the new 7090 shredder being installed in Houston in the first quarter of this year.

ISS has 45 locations nationwide and provides field services, fully equipped service shops and supply shops with available parts. In support of the scrap metal industry, ISS offers complete stationary shredders, including castings and wear parts, AmeriMex motors and controls, emission controls, shredder explosion mitigation and the Taurus US line of scrap shears and balers.