6. Conclusion

The recycling of industrial waste containing zinc in the form of hydroxides or oxides, which used to be landfilled, is a major concern for producers of this type of waste, due to the increasing cost of landfilling them in class 1 landfill sites and the growing economic interest in recovering zinc metal (the LME price is around 2620 e/t zinc ingot – average at the beginning of 2007). This is why processes for recycling zinc-bearing scrap have recently been developed, including an innovative process for extracting metals in an alkaline medium: the REZEDA process. This process produces a high-purity, high-surface-area zinc powder that has no equivalent on the world market, but which meets the specifications of certain industries, such as anti-corrosion paint manufacture and the chemical sector.

In addition, this process incorporates a demanding environmental approach,...