Recycling of high-tech metals (critical raw materials, CRM, https://eitrawmaterials.eu/press-releases/2025-greenland-resources-investment) such as magnesium, indium, germanium, gallium, rhenium, and rare earth elements is crucial for closing material cycles (recycling, upcycling), preventing waste (zero-waste approach), and reducing CO₂ emissions (CO₂ footprint). Slags, hydrometallurgical residues, fly ashes/Flue dusts, and post-consumer scrap can serve as valuable secondary raw materials, with AI-supported sorting playing an increasingly key role in efficient separation. Further efficient pyro- and/or hydrometallurgical treatment by unit operations (UO) as:

• Remelting under protective gases and/or melting+refining fluxes, metallurgical refining (filtration, dilution, distillation,), casting
• Leaching with mineral acids, Precipitation as sulphides, hydroxides, Solvent extraction with organic phases (Kelex 100, D2EHPA), Electrolysis

of these generated fractions to close material cycles requires fundamental technical, physical, and chemical knowledge.