Recent Advances in Indium Recovery

Abstract

Though indium has been removed from the fifth list (2023) of critical raw materials for the European Union list of critical metals, its recovery is still of paramount importance due to its wide use in a series of high-tech industries. As its recovery is closely associated with zinc mining, the recycling of In-bearing wastes is also of interest, for both profitable and environmental reasons. With unit operations (in hydrometallurgy and pyrometallurgy or extractive metallurgy) playing a key role in the recycling of indium, the present work reviewed the most recent innovations (2024) regarding the use of these operations in the recovery from this valuable metal from different solid or liquid wastes.

Keywords

• indium
• leaching
• adsorption
• liquid–liquid extraction
• recovery
• hydrometallurgy