Pilot plants in Odisha set to extract valuable rare earth elements from industrial wastes
The National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO) inaugurated an indigenous pilot plant at its Research and Technology Centre (NRTC) in Bhubaneswar to process bituminous coal fly ash for recovery of multiple value-added products
A separate, first-of-its-kind pilot plant for valorisation of red mud (bauxite residue) — a 50-kg-per-batch facility — is being set up at the same centre, in collaboration with the Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology (IMMT) and Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT)
The red mud facility is designed to recover ferro-titanium alloy, metallic iron, and rare earth elements (REEs) including scandium, using patented indigenous processes
The initiative targets industrial waste streams that were historically stored/landfilled as pollution liabilities, reframing them as sources of critical minerals
Red Mud (Bauxite Residue) as a Rare Earth Source
Red mud is the highly alkaline solid waste generated during the Bayer process, used to refine bauxite ore into alumina (the feedstock for aluminium smelting). Roughly 1–2 tonnes of red mud are generated per tonne of alumina produced, and it has traditionally posed a major environmental disposal challenge due to its causticity and volume. Recent research has shown Indian red mud, including from NALCO's Damanjodi refinery, carries recoverable concentrations of rare earth elements.
Key Details
- A Current Science study found red mud from NALCO's Damanjodi alumina refinery contains up to 433 ppm of REEs such as cerium, neodymium and scandium
- Global red mud stockpiles are estimated in the billions of tonnes, making it a large secondary (unconventional) REE resource
- Recovery pathway: acid/alkaline leaching and selective precipitation to separate iron, titanium and REE-bearing fractions from the residue
- Complements primary REE mining (India's monazite-bearing beach sands in Kerala, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, regulated as a prescribed substance under the Atomic Energy Act, 1962)
The Odisha pilot plant targets red mud precisely because it is both an environmental liability at NALCO's Damanjodi and Angul operations and a documented REE-bearing waste stream, aligning waste management with India's push for domestic critical-mineral supply chains.
Fly Ash Valorisation
Fly ash is the fine particulate residue from burning pulverised coal in thermal power plants, and India — with its large coal-based generation fleet — produces it in enormous volumes. Beyond established uses in cement and brick manufacturing, fly ash from bituminous coal also contains recoverable metals and can be processed for other value-added products, which is the focus of the NALCO pilot.
Key Details
- Fly ash utilisation in India is governed under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change's Fly Ash Notification (first issued 1999, amended periodically), mandating utilisation targets for thermal power plants
- Conventional uses: Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC), fly-ash bricks, road embankments, mine-void filling
- The pilot plant approach extends this to recovery of critical/value-added materials rather than only bulk construction use
NALCO's fly ash pilot plant is part of a broader "waste-to-wealth" and circular-economy push, converting a large-volume industrial residue into a source of recoverable materials rather than a pure disposal cost.
Critical Minerals Policy and Rare Earth Elements
Rare earth elements are a group of 17 chemically similar elements (the lanthanides plus scandium and yttrium) essential for magnets, electronics, defence systems and clean-energy technologies (EV motors, wind turbines). India notified its National Critical Mineral Mission in 2025 to reduce import dependence — India currently imports the bulk of its processed REE/magnet requirements, with global refining capacity concentrated overseas.
Key Details
- Critical minerals include REEs, lithium, cobalt, nickel, graphite and others identified by the Ministry of Mines as essential for economic development and national security
- Domestic secondary recovery (from industrial waste like red mud/fly ash) is one pillar of critical-mineral strategy, alongside primary exploration and overseas asset acquisition (e.g., Khanij Bidesh India Ltd, KABIL)
- Scandium, one of the target elements at the NALCO pilot, is used in aluminium-scandium alloys (aerospace) and solid oxide fuel cells
By targeting scandium and other REEs from industrial waste, the Odisha pilot plants position NALCO — a public-sector aluminium major — within India's broader critical-mineral security push, offering a domestic, low-import-dependence recovery route.
- Red mud generation: roughly 1–2 tonnes per tonne of alumina produced (Bayer process)
- REE content in NALCO Damanjodi red mud (fine fraction): up to 433 ppm (cerium, neodymium, scandium, per published research)
- Red mud pilot plant scale: 50 kg per batch, at NALCO's Research and Technology Centre, Bhubaneswar
- Collaborating institutions: IMMT (Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology) and KIIT
- Target recoveries: ferro-titanium alloy, metallic iron, rare earth elements including scandium (from red mud); multiple value-added products (from fly ash)