Aeramine, together with Phoenix Scientific Industries (PSI), the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC), and other partners, has announced the successful completion of the Pure CuRE (Pure Copper Resource Efficiency) project.
Funded by Innovate UK, this £1 million, 16-month programme has made important progress in recycling waste copper. The project developed a way to turn waste copper into high-purity copper powder. This powder can be used in valuable manufacturing industries. The work supports building a sustainable, UK-based manufacturing supply chain.
Key Achievements
The project demonstrated new processes to consolidate, refine, and atomise waste copper. It then reduced oxygen levels in the powder to improve quality. Some of the major results include:
- Cost-effective consolidation: The MTC developed a briquetting method to compress copper waste. This is the most economical way to consolidate copper. It allows high-purity copper (99.9%) to be sold at competitive prices of £15-£20 per kilogram.
- Refinement: Aeramine used vacuum induction melting to purify copper to 99.997%. This method saves more than 50% energy compared to traditional refining.
- Atomisation: PSI successfully atomised copper feedstock, cutting the oxygen content by 60%—from 250 parts per million (ppm) down to 100 ppm. This powder is suitable for advanced manufacturing.
- Fluidised bed processing: PSI used a new powder processing technique to reduce oxygen further, from 100 ppm to 40 ppm. This creates ultra-low oxygen powders needed for demanding applications.
- Additive manufacturing (AM): MTC demonstrated that recycled high-purity copper powder works well with Laser Powder Bed Fusion (PBF-LB) and Cold Spray Additive Manufacturing (CSAM). These methods are used in making heat exchangers, aerospace, and automotive parts.
Sustainable Copper Recycling
The high-purity copper produced by Pure CuRE is ideal for advanced electronics, medical devices, and cryogenic systems. This success positions the UK as a leader in sustainable copper recycling. There is also potential to expand the technology to recycle rare earth metals and other valuable materials.
Alex Lapis, co-founder and managing director at Aeramine, said: “Our vacuum refinement technology has shown it can produce ultra-high purity copper efficiently. We are excited to scale this innovation and apply it to other metals.”
Dr Tom Rehaag, research and technology manager at PSI, added: “PSI’s fluidised bed technology produces ultra-low oxygen powders for the toughest uses. It also helps powder users restore old powders to as-new quality.”
Dr Steven Hall, materials technology specialist at MTC, commented: “Pure CuRE is a big step forward in turning scrap copper into high-purity materials. This supports building a fully circular supply chain in the UK. It offers great opportunities for industries working on electrification and nuclear fusion. Ultimately, it will help reduce carbon emissions by enabling clean energy technologies.”
Next Steps
The Pure CuRE team is now working to increase production, improve processes, and find commercial partners to bring these innovations to market. Over the next ten years, the project aims to transform copper recycling and expand into other high-value materials.
