Bioleaching has been a well-established technique for the extraction of various metals since the 1990s. In particular, leaching in continuously stirred tank reactors (CSTR) facilitates the rapid and environmentally friendly extraction of different metals. This work investigates the economic feasibility of this technology when carried out using a suitable process and sulphide concentrate from a mining operation in the Erzgebirge region of Germany. The process is based on assumptions and tests are pending. The focus is on recovering zinc, copper and, in particular, indium from zinc sulphide. Based on the defined process characteristics of the bioleaching step as well as down- and upstream processes, investment costs and operating costs of the necessary plant structure were determined. After determining the potential profits based on given metal concentrations and current market prices of zinc, copper and indium, a net present value (NPV) and the corresponding internal rate of return (IRR) were calculated to ensure comparability with other investments. Both values are positive, showing that an investment in the proposed bioleaching plant pays off even with low process volumes.

Today, car sharing represents a generally accepted and widespread mode of individual transport. Car sharing providers operate their fleets effectively in many cities around the world. Surprisingly, rural areas don’t seem to have been considered in provider’s current expansion strategies. However, studies suggest that car sharing would have the greatest impact on improving sustainability and reducing traffic if it were offered nationwide. In this paper, we analyze the factors that prevent car sharing enterprises from developing their services in rural regions. Supported by a simulation model, we elaborate strategic implications on how to deal with potential hindrances such as lower demand or longer driving distances. For this purpose, a symbiosis of urban and rural car sharing services was analyzed. Our findings indicate a certain feasibility of rural car sharing development, while highlighting the positive effect it could have on car sharing demand in urban areas.

Lithium is used in a variety of everyday objects. The most important field of application is as components of battery electrolytes and electrodes. Next to salar brines, commercial lithium production relies on mineral ore sources such as spodumene, petalite, and lepidolite. This study provides an economic comparison of two processes for the extraction of lithium from zinnwaldite concentrate, a lithium mineral that can be found along the Czech/German border at Cinovec/Zinnwald. In contrast to the state-of-the-art lithium extraction from siliceous ores, which is a hydrometallurgical extraction process with sulfuric acid, the novel direct-carbonation process is based on digestion using supercritical carbon dioxide. An assessment of the capital and operating expenditures was also carried out.

Decreasing optimization potential concerning the weight reduction in aircraft and automotive components boost the demand for lightweight materials and new technologies. An opportunity to achieve considerable weight-savings is the application of magnesium strips produced by the novel Twin-roll casting and hot rolling technology. During the production the quality of magnesium strips can be reduced by segregations, which also influence the distribution of the mechanical properties. Exploring the formation of segregations is one research objective of this paper using the partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).

Ensuring the supply of strategic metals is crucial for the growth of industrialised countries. One of these strategic metals is lithium, which is used in a variety of high tech product and everyday objects. In this study the lithium market is analysed including areas of application, drivers of demand as well as lithium price development. A demand forecast up to 2020 is given in four different scenarios, including the increasing demand in electric mobility, forced by political driven influences. To meet the growing demand of lithium huge lithium projects are planned or under construction. The projects are summarised with a completion up to 2020 and a capacity of more than 20,000t lithium carbonate equivalents (LCE).

Phytomining is an extraction process in which metallic substances in soils or sediments are absorbed by plants. This process has become very popular in the last decades because of its low costs and environmental friendliness. “PhytoGerm” is part of the German r3-initiative for strategic tech metals and resource efficiency and focuses on a method to extract germanium from ribbon grass. This paper analyzes the economic pre-feasibility of the process introduced by the PhytoGerm project. At first, the economic importance of germanium is shown by analyzing its demand and supply. The second part deals with the plants that accumulate germanium and the boundary conditions for cultivation. The economic aspects of harvesting germanium are shown by means of a case study, whereby the necessary machinery, equipment and infrastructure for the process are demonstrated. Finally, the two major leverage factors, i.e. the accumulated amount of germanium and the market price, are examined in order to derive a conclusion concerning the economic feasibility of the PhytoGerm process.

Summary. In Germany roughly 15.000 tonnes of batteries are recycled every year. New challenges arose as more and more lithium-based batteries entered the market. This article deals with thereverse logisticsof lithium-based device batteries and is part of the research project “HybrideLithiumgewinnung” from 2011 to 2013 1 . Especiallylogistical requirements and safety issues of battery recycling are discussed. In addition, technical and ecological constraints as well as regulatory frameworks for storage and handling of used lithium batteries are portrayed. To ensure the fulfilment of regulatory requirements, technical and organizational actions and personal behaviour of the participants need to be examined. The stated conditions are compared with the actual situation to determine the weak spots and to show the rooms for improvements.

In dem Beitrag wird ein Newsvendor-Ansatz zur Kapazitätsdimensionierung von Informations- und Kommunikations (IuK)-Techniken, insbesondere der dazugehörigen Hardwarekomponenten, vorgestellt. Im Unterschied zu den bestehenden Vorgehensmodellen der Wirtschaftsinformatik, die hauptsächlich an technischen Größen und einer hohen Auslastung des Systems ausgerichtet sind, ist es das Ziel des Ansatzes, die IuK-Systemkapazität wirtschaftlich an die unsichere Technologie- und Nachfrageentwicklung anzupassen. Das Vorgehen des Planungsansatzes wird am Beispiel der Implementierung eines Sprachdialogsystems in einem Call Center veranschaulicht.