OPTIMIZING CRITICAL RAW MATERIAL RECOVERY THROUGH THERMODYNAMIC MODELLING: LESSONS FROM THE EURO-TITAN PROJECT *M.T. Bellver-Baca1, P. Piehl2, C. Laborda-López3, B. Orberger4, C. Adam2 1Sika Services A.G., Switzerland, (*Presenting author: bellverbaca.teresa@sika.ch.com) 2 Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM), Germany 3University of Jaén, Spain 4Catura Geoprojects, France ABSTRACT As Europe intensifies its efforts to secure critical raw materials and decarbonize metal production, projects like EURO-TITAN are pioneering new pathways. The project aims to recover titanium from bauxite residues from alumina production and residues from Titanium dioxide production, targeting a 90% reduction in CO₂ emissions compared to the conventional Kroll processes. In this scope, BAM (the German Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing) plays a technical backbone role, using simulations and advanced materials testing to inform and validate the core processing strategies in the EURO-TITAN project. Sika’s primary role in the project lies in closing the loop through valorization of slag-waste into construction materials. Sika especially evaluates the properties of residual slags as a binder and thus, a strategic side initiative has focused on thermodynamic modelling to accelerate and optimize the experimental phase for achieving optimal Ti-metal separation and slag properties. This work explores the use of Perple_X, a free thermodynamic modelling software developed at ETH Zürich, as a predictive tool to optimise the complex experimental workflows of the EURO-TITAN project. Traditionally used for geoscientific applications, Perple_X was adapted to simulate non-natural, process-driven environments, modeling mineral phase stability across a wide range of temperatures and pressures. By integrating mineralogical and chemical data from different samples with known experimental conditions, thermodynamic phase diagrams were constructed. This enabled the prediction of stability fields of key phases relevant for titanium and iron recovery (e.g., magnetite, hematite, iron metal, etc.), as well as phases desired in binder systems, such as larnite. The modelling results helped identify the temperature-pressure domains most likely to yield target phases, offering valuable insights for experimental work.
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