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The ESM contributed with a tutorial to Junior EUROMAT 2016, the leading conference for young materials scientists taking place in Lausanne on July 10-14, 2016.

The aim of the tutorial encouraged materials scientists and engineers to learn and discuss about the influence and impact of the materials value chain in view of their research activities. Materials in innovative products are classified as “critical” due to their confined availability caused by resource limitations, expensive extraction methods, geopolitical factors, and a variety of further influences. Other factors of criticality link to high price volatilities, and impact on the political, social or ecological environment of the mining region.

Apart from these questions, also issues regarding the final product are important when talking about critical materials: recycling, re-use and economical engineering. Invited speakers from Academia and Industry discussed these topics in the afternoon of July 14.

Programme

Thursday, 14.7.2016 Tutorial 6: Critical Materials in Design, Manufacturing and Recycling

TimeInvited Speaker & Title
13:30Welcome
Dr. Margarethe Hofmann, CEO ESM
13:45 – 14:15Raw materials: An ancient business with many current questions
Luis Tercero Espinoza, Competence Center Sustainability and Infrastructure Systems, Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI, Karlsruhe, Germany
14:15 – 14:45Strategic Resources for emerging energy technologies
Armin Reller,  Institut für Materials Resource Management, University Augsburg, Germany
14:45 – 15:15Break
15:15 – 15:45Improving metal supply security through recycling – the case of WEEE
Christian Hagelüken, Umicore AG & Co KG,  Hanau, Germany
15:45 – 16:15Mining Critical Raw Materials in the Anthroposphere
Amund Loevik, Empa St. Gallen, Switzerland
16:15-16:40Conflict Minerals
Alessandra Hool, MatSearch Consulting Pully and ESM Foundation Zurich, Switzerland
16:40 – 17:00Discussion and Farewell
Margarethe Hofmann, ESM