Utilization of Accelerated CO₂ Mineralization in Hydrometallurgy: A Review

Integrating accelerated CO₂ mineralization with hydrometallurgical processes offers a promising strategy to reduce industrial carbon emissions while improving the sustainability of metal extraction. Mineral carbonation converts CO₂ into stable carbonates using divalent metals like magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca), and iron (Fe). Although naturally slow, the reaction rate improves significantly under high-temperature, high-pressure conditions and with fine particle sizes—though industrial-scale implementation remains challenging. In hydrometallurgy, these same metals are often treated as impurities during extraction. Their reactivity with CO₂ creates an opportunity for sequestration, turning a waste stream into a carbon sink. Moreover, mineral carbonation can unlock low-grade critical metals like nickel and cobalt embedded in the rock, enabling their recovery as valuable by-products. By aligning CO₂ capture with metal extraction, this integrated approach improves economic viability, supports a circular resource model, and offers a scalable solution to decarbonize the metal industry. This review provides an in-depth analysis of this strategy, addressing current technological challenges and outlining necessary future research.