ASPIRE - Accelerated Supergene Processes in Repository Engineering
Lead Research Organisation:
CARDIFF UNIVERSITY
Department Name: Sch of Engineering
Abstract
The UK faces serious strategic challenges with the future supply of aggregates, critical minerals and elements. At the same time, the UK must sustainably manage multimillion tonne annual arisings of industrial, mining and mineral wastes (IMMWs). The amount of these wastes generated is projected to increase over the coming years, particularly (i) ash from the combustion of biomass and municipal solid waste, and (ii) contaminated dredgings. These wastes will continue to be landfilled despite often containing valuable resources such as high concentrations of critical metals, soil macronutrients and useful mineral components, some of which actively drawdown atmospheric CO2.
The fundamental aim of the ASPIRE (Accelerated Supergene Processes In Repository Engineering) research project is to develop a sustainable method by which ashes, contaminated dredgings and other IMMWs can be stripped of any valuable elements. These stripped elements would then be concentrated in an ore zone for later retrieval and the cleaned residues also returned to use, for example as aggregates, cement additives, or agricultural amendments (including those for carbon sequestration through enhanced mineral weathering). It is a very challenging problem to devise a truly sustainable method to achieve this is an economically viable way, and almost all processes suggested so far in the literature for leaching wastes are themselves carbon and chemical intensive and thus non-sustainable.
We are proposing research that comprises the first steps in developing the "ASPIRE waste repository" concept with accelerated analogues of ore-forming "supergene" processes engineered in, such that the dormant waste undergoes processes to (i) concentrate valuable components (e.g. critical metals, phosphate) as an anthropogenic ore to facilitate their future recovery, and (ii) concurrently decontaminate residual mineral material so as to make it available as a bank of material to drawdown for "soft" uses in agriculture, silviculture, greenspace, landscaping in new developments, habitat creation and/or as a cement/concrete additive or replacement aggregate.
The processes investigated rely on rainwater passing through a vegetated surface layer which releases naturally occurring compounds from the plant roots and/or other natural organic matter which then pass through and strip valuable elements from the IMMW. The mobilised elements will then pass into a capture zone where they will be stripped from solution and concentrated to form an artificial ore. The research project will seek to engineer the internal processes of the temporary storage waste repository to optimise this. At the same time the upper vegetated surface of the waste repository will serve as greenspace with commensurate ecological and amenity value for local populations.
Among the key research challenges is in how to engineer the internal ASPIRE waste repository processes which rely on complex biogeochemical interactions and flow behaviour. Another critical research challenge is to develop an understanding of stakeholder and wider acceptability of this concept which does not fit with current legislation on waste management. With this project we seek to provide a circular technology solution for how we can sustainably manage the future multimillion tonne arisings of IMMW at a critical time as the UK government develops strategies and supporting regulation for the transition to a circular economy.
The fundamental aim of the ASPIRE (Accelerated Supergene Processes In Repository Engineering) research project is to develop a sustainable method by which ashes, contaminated dredgings and other IMMWs can be stripped of any valuable elements. These stripped elements would then be concentrated in an ore zone for later retrieval and the cleaned residues also returned to use, for example as aggregates, cement additives, or agricultural amendments (including those for carbon sequestration through enhanced mineral weathering). It is a very challenging problem to devise a truly sustainable method to achieve this is an economically viable way, and almost all processes suggested so far in the literature for leaching wastes are themselves carbon and chemical intensive and thus non-sustainable.
We are proposing research that comprises the first steps in developing the "ASPIRE waste repository" concept with accelerated analogues of ore-forming "supergene" processes engineered in, such that the dormant waste undergoes processes to (i) concentrate valuable components (e.g. critical metals, phosphate) as an anthropogenic ore to facilitate their future recovery, and (ii) concurrently decontaminate residual mineral material so as to make it available as a bank of material to drawdown for "soft" uses in agriculture, silviculture, greenspace, landscaping in new developments, habitat creation and/or as a cement/concrete additive or replacement aggregate.
The processes investigated rely on rainwater passing through a vegetated surface layer which releases naturally occurring compounds from the plant roots and/or other natural organic matter which then pass through and strip valuable elements from the IMMW. The mobilised elements will then pass into a capture zone where they will be stripped from solution and concentrated to form an artificial ore. The research project will seek to engineer the internal processes of the temporary storage waste repository to optimise this. At the same time the upper vegetated surface of the waste repository will serve as greenspace with commensurate ecological and amenity value for local populations.
Among the key research challenges is in how to engineer the internal ASPIRE waste repository processes which rely on complex biogeochemical interactions and flow behaviour. Another critical research challenge is to develop an understanding of stakeholder and wider acceptability of this concept which does not fit with current legislation on waste management. With this project we seek to provide a circular technology solution for how we can sustainably manage the future multimillion tonne arisings of IMMW at a critical time as the UK government develops strategies and supporting regulation for the transition to a circular economy.
Planned Impact
The proposed research works towards repositories which are engineered not to "store and contain" but to "store, contain, clean and concentrate" resources and enable future mining of the clean residues and anthropogenic ores within. The ASPIRE concept represents a novel overarching paradigm shift in waste management and circular economy (CE) for industrial, mineral and mining wastes (IMMWs). This research will take the first critical steps towards this genuine and fundamental change in the way that high-volume (IMMWs) are managed. As such, the project is likely to have numerous social, economic and environmental impacts affecting a range of stakeholder industries which produce large amounts of IMMWs as well as on local communities and wider society. Based on the model of impact defined by UKRI, our work will contribute to both academic, and economic and societal impact.
As a measure of our Academic Impact, we anticipate developing this new waste management concept, and in so doing deliver the first highly skilled researchers in this area. As a measure of our economic and societal impact, we will (i) contribute towards evidence-based policymaking by influencing public policies and legislation at a local and regional level through our project partners and (ii) contribute towards resource recovery, environmental sustainability and protection. The project's immediate impacts will be felt mainly through the generation and dissemination of new knowledge on the potential to recover resources from a range of wastes through temporary storage in ASPIRE repositories.
In the medium and longer term the project could have significant and wide-reaching benefits for multiple stakeholders (as follows), and these will be elucidated through the work of our impact team:
[1] Industries that generate IMMW will gain a way to convert both their long-term and ongoing liability from their waste generation into a long-term asset through recovering value from IMMW and releasing the land-value when the cleaned material/anthropogenic ore is returned to the CE.
[2] The ASPIRE concept could contribute to the UK's climate targets by providing a technology solution to support both "enhanced terrestrial weathering" which requires a source of clean silicate-based material to apply to agricultural fields and "Bio-Energy with Carbon Capture and Storage" which requires a large-scale solution to manage the ash arisings.
[3] Engineers and other professionals engaged with IMMW repositories design will gain marketable knowledge on management of future and legacy IMMWs.
[4] National and local government who deal with legacy sites of contaminated IMMW will have a new low-cost technology option.
[5] Regulators and policy makers, who will be able, at this critical juncture in the transition to a CE, to develop more effective policies and regulations regarding the management of IMMWs.
[6] Residents and communities, who may benefit from the amenity value provided by new greenspaces as well as other ecosystem services provided by the vegetated surface layer of ASPIRE repositories.
[7] Broader society: which will have more secure access to resources including critical minerals and elements, and aggregates, reduced environmental and landscape impacts (because of reduced mining of virgin ores), waste reuse rather than disposal, and reduced CO2 emissions for the UK.
[8] Future generations: current landfilling continues for many IMMW because of lack of a market at the time of generation, and/or because the materials are too contaminated for reuse. As such the wastes are landfilled, and it is falsely assumed that these wastes will stay safely contained within the repository and not imperil human health or environment. To prevent this the ASPIRE repository concept will ensure that waste is stored and treated in situ until the clean residue and anthropogenic ore are ready for return to the economy.
As a measure of our Academic Impact, we anticipate developing this new waste management concept, and in so doing deliver the first highly skilled researchers in this area. As a measure of our economic and societal impact, we will (i) contribute towards evidence-based policymaking by influencing public policies and legislation at a local and regional level through our project partners and (ii) contribute towards resource recovery, environmental sustainability and protection. The project's immediate impacts will be felt mainly through the generation and dissemination of new knowledge on the potential to recover resources from a range of wastes through temporary storage in ASPIRE repositories.
In the medium and longer term the project could have significant and wide-reaching benefits for multiple stakeholders (as follows), and these will be elucidated through the work of our impact team:
[1] Industries that generate IMMW will gain a way to convert both their long-term and ongoing liability from their waste generation into a long-term asset through recovering value from IMMW and releasing the land-value when the cleaned material/anthropogenic ore is returned to the CE.
[2] The ASPIRE concept could contribute to the UK's climate targets by providing a technology solution to support both "enhanced terrestrial weathering" which requires a source of clean silicate-based material to apply to agricultural fields and "Bio-Energy with Carbon Capture and Storage" which requires a large-scale solution to manage the ash arisings.
[3] Engineers and other professionals engaged with IMMW repositories design will gain marketable knowledge on management of future and legacy IMMWs.
[4] National and local government who deal with legacy sites of contaminated IMMW will have a new low-cost technology option.
[5] Regulators and policy makers, who will be able, at this critical juncture in the transition to a CE, to develop more effective policies and regulations regarding the management of IMMWs.
[6] Residents and communities, who may benefit from the amenity value provided by new greenspaces as well as other ecosystem services provided by the vegetated surface layer of ASPIRE repositories.
[7] Broader society: which will have more secure access to resources including critical minerals and elements, and aggregates, reduced environmental and landscape impacts (because of reduced mining of virgin ores), waste reuse rather than disposal, and reduced CO2 emissions for the UK.
[8] Future generations: current landfilling continues for many IMMW because of lack of a market at the time of generation, and/or because the materials are too contaminated for reuse. As such the wastes are landfilled, and it is falsely assumed that these wastes will stay safely contained within the repository and not imperil human health or environment. To prevent this the ASPIRE repository concept will ensure that waste is stored and treated in situ until the clean residue and anthropogenic ore are ready for return to the economy.
Organisations
- CARDIFF UNIVERSITY (Lead Research Organisation)
- Isle of Man Government (Collaboration)
- Ramboll UK (Project Partner)
- Dauson Environmental Group Limited (Project Partner)
- Vertase Fli (Project Partner)
- Chartered Institution of Wastes Mgt (Project Partner)
- Land and Water Services Ltd (Project Partner)
- LC Energy (Project Partner)
- Boskalis (Project Partner)
- Natural Resources Wales (Project Partner)
- Canal and River Trust (Project Partner)
- Arup Group (Project Partner)
- WSP Group plc UK (Project Partner)
- Forestry England (Project Partner)
- Cardiff Harbour Authority (Project Partner)
- Jacobs UK Limited (Project Partner)
- SUEZ RECYCLING AND RECOVERY UK LTD (Project Partner)
- Mott Macdonald UK Ltd (Project Partner)
- WELSH GOVERNMENT (Project Partner)
Publications

Al-Obaidi S
(2024)
Iron Oxide-Bearing Wastes as Media for Supporting Biodegradation of BTEX
in Minerals

Alshehri K
(2024)
A novel uncertainty assessment protocol for integrated ecosystem services-life cycle assessments: A comparative case of nature-based solutions
in Sustainable Production and Consumption

Alshehri K
(2024)
Nature-Based Secondary Resource Recovery under Climate Change Uncertainty: A Robust Multi-Objective Optimisation Methodology
in Sustainability

Gao Z
(2024)
Can wood waste be a feedstock for anaerobic digestion? A machine learning assisted meta-analysis
in Chemical Engineering Journal

Mohammad A.
(2023)
Effect of Different Physical and Geochemical Parameters on Mobilisation of Metals: A Crucial Step Towards Resource Recovery from Waste
in Proceedings of the International Congress on Environmental Geotechnics

Roberts M
(2023)
Biostimulation of jarosite and iron oxide-bearing mine waste enhances subsequent metal recovery.
in Journal of hazardous materials

Sapsford D
(2023)
Circular economy landfills for temporary storage and treatment of mineral-rich wastes
in Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Waste and Resource Management

SepĂșlveda Olea FE
(2024)
Reuse potential of municipal solid waste incinerator bottom ash as secondary aggregate: Material characteristics, persistent organic pollutant content and effects of pH and selected environmental lixiviants on leaching behaviour.
in Waste management (New York, N.Y.)

Srivastava P
(2022)
Towards passive bioremediation of dye-bearing effluents using hydrous ferric oxide wastes: Mechanisms, products and microbiology.
in Journal of environmental management
Description | The research has led to the development of a new concept in the continued move towards a Circular Economy. To date the role of high-volume mineral wastes (and other large-volume waste arisings) has been neglected in CE thinking. Here we have developed new concepts emphasising the importance of temporary storage of waste and treatment whilst in storage. We have developed conceptually, and via modelling a range of novel approaches to sustainable mobilisation of resources from wastes and capture systems for these resources. In some doing we are contributing a foundational component to the development of a new field in the Circular Economy related to the management of, and recovery of resources from high-volume wastes. |
Exploitation Route | We believe this work has provided a conceptual foundation for a new approach to managing high-volume arisings of mineral-rich wastes and other high-volume waste arisings (for example this was recognised by in 2024 by a prize for our paper outlining the concept in the ICE Waste and Resource Management journal). Our multifaceted approach to value recovery encompasses a range of value propositions including recovery of land value, metalliferous resources and carbon dioxide removal. The work needs to now be taken forward with large-scale demonstration projects with industry to develop sector confidence, alongside work with policy teams to ensure roadblocks are removed. We believe that important UK sectors that could benefit include those sectors involved with the management of contaminated dredgings and soils, mine wastes, and mineral-rich industrial wastes such as steel plant wastes. |
Sectors | Agriculture Food and Drink Construction Energy Environment Leisure Activities including Sports Recreation and Tourism Manufacturing including Industrial Biotechology Culture Heritage Museums and Collections |
Description | Our research findings are being used to inform a change in perspective on what the "art of the possible" is with regard to managing legacy mineral-rich wastes in the UK environment. Whilst it is too early to be able to give specific details - we hope to be able to update this section in the future. |
First Year Of Impact | 2024 |
Sector | Construction,Environment,Leisure Activities, including Sports, Recreation and Tourism,Culture, Heritage, Museums and Collections |
Impact Types | Societal Economic Policy & public services |
Description | Isle of Man Government |
Organisation | Isle of Man Government |
Country | Isle of Man |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | An invited visit to Isle of Man to discuss mine and dredgings related waste has led to a collaboration. |
Collaborator Contribution | Dredgings materials have been provided as a study material for the project along with other relevant information. |
Impact | Not as yet. |
Start Year | 2023 |
Description | International Mine Water Association Conference |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Attended International Mine Water Association conference in Nov, 2022. I delivered a keynote on mine waste and circular economy and introduced the ASPIRE concept. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
URL | https://imwa2022.info/ |
Description | Kick-off Meeting with Canals and Rivers Trust |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | Regional |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | The purpose of this meeting was to share with the Canals and Rivers Trust (Project partners) on the latest version of the ASPIRE concept, and develop our plans for working together as a consortium over period of the ASPIRE project and beyond. Also, to canvass the CRT on what they hope to get from the project. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
Description | Kick-off Meeting with Project Partners |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | The purpose of this meeting was to share with the ASPIRE project partners on the latest version of the ASPIRE concept, and develop our plans for working together as a consortium over period of the ASPIRE project and beyond. Also, to canvass the project partners on what they hope to get from the project. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
Description | MineXchange conference attendance 27-28th Feb 2023 in Aberyswyth University |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | I attended the event to present on another topic but the networking was useful for ASPIRE. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
Description | Stakeholder Presentation and Workshop |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Online presentation to project partners and other newer interested professional practitioners followed by a workshop with the online attendees. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |