Cyclic Materials and Green Graphite Technologies receive a total of $6 million in funding.
The Canadian Government seeks to boost domestic recycling of critical minerals by awarding two companies in Ontario a total of $6 million (CAD$8.4 million). Cyclic Materials, a recycling company mainly focusing on the recovery of rare earth elements, will use the funding to advance the construction of a demonstration plant to produce mixed rare earth oxide and cobalt–nickel mixed hydroxide from recycled materials. Green Graphite Technologies on the other hand, specializes in the recovery of its namesake, graphite, from various sources to produce battery-grade graphite.
The investments cover a wide array of end products that could be supplied by recycled sources. While rare earth elements are used in wind turbines, electric vehicles, and electronics in the form of permanent magnets, battery-grade graphite is mainly used to produce lithium-ion batteries but also has some applications in solar panels.
Cyclic Materials has made headlines recently by signing multiple overseas supply agreements. The company inked a deal with UK-based vehicle salvaging company Synetiq, which will supply Cyclic Materials with EV motors and auxiliary motors present in all cars. Cyclic Materials will then recover the magnets from these motors and extract a rare earth oxide mixture. The second deal, signed with Solvay, sees Cyclic Materials supplying the chemical company with the rare earth oxides mix for Solvay to separate and refine into individual rare earths that can eventually resupply the European automotive industry.
Photo: iStock/Captured by Keeleigh
