Home | Gypsum recycling as an opportunity for the southern Harz region - Overview
Research question / project object:
As part of the energy transition, the availability of gypsum from flue gas desulphurisation will decrease. One alternative is to return to the increased extraction of natural gypsum.
Project name: | Gypsum recycling as an opportunity for the southern Harz region |
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Currently, around 55 per cent of the gypsum required in industry is covered by the use of flue gas desulphurisation plant gypsum (FGD gypsum). Due to the move away from fossil fuels, the available quantities of FGD gypsum will decrease significantly in the future. This will have to be compensated for by increased extraction of natural gypsum unless alternatives are found. The Alliance is therefore endeavouring to develop an overall concept for the recycling of material flows containing calcium sulphate.
As part of the energy transition, the availability of gypsum from flue gas desulphurisation will decrease. One alternative is to return to the increased extraction of natural gypsum.
In order to partially compensate for the reduction in the availability of this important raw material, the alliance has set itself the goal of realising existing potential in the innovation field of "gypsum recycling" in the southern Harz region and thus making an effective contribution to the conservation of natural gypsum reserves: The "Gypsum recycling" innovation field focuses on the collection and recycling of gypsum-containing material flows (both stockpile and demolition material), the individual processing of these calcium sulphate-containing material flows and the generation of products based on recycled gypsum. The aim is to increase the return rate of gypsum building materials and their recyclability, improve the quality of recycled gypsum after processing and increase the marketing of recycled gypsum building materials. To achieve a long-term effect, it is also necessary for an intensive exchange to take place with the gypsum industry, interest groups in the region and nature conservation organisations.
The largest and most important sulphate deposits in Germany are found in the southern Harz Zechstein, which stretches like a narrow band no more than 7 kilometres wide and around 60 kilometres long from Bad Lauterberg in Lower Saxony to Sangerhausen in Saxony-Anhalt. Raw materials of generally high quality are characteristic here - with purity levels of more than 90 per cent gypsum content - which is why the Harz is a favoured mining area for gypsum.
Thuringia in particular plays an important role in gypsum mining in Germany. The construction industry in particular is highly dependent on the supply of raw materials containing gypsum.
The main players in the project are located within a radius of 30 kilometres: the company CASEA GmbH, based in Ellrich, and Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences (HSN). As the Bauhaus University Weimar (BUW) already has many years of experience in the field of building materials research, the research expertise was strengthened by integrating this partner, which is not based in the region.
As coordinator of the alliance, HSN is responsible for the organisational, methodological and strategic management of the project. In cooperation with BUW and Casea GmbH, the sub-projects "recycling", "processing" and "utilisation" are being worked on. The BUW and HSN have many years of experience and strong research expertise in the field of processing and building materials research. In addition, the logistics management department at HSN is a competent partner for the recycling processes. Casea GmbH is an expert partner for recycling, as it has been processing recycled gypsum since 2014. Casea GmbH is also a hub for the gypsum processing industry, which is essential for economic sustainability.
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