The goal is clearly defined: 99 percent of the raw materials from old vehicles and from electrical and electronic scrap, such as copper, gold and other precious metals, but also mineral raw materials, are to be recycled using this process. So far, this has not been possible due to a lack of technology, according to a broadcast from Bernegger. With 71 million tons of waste generated in Austria every year, residues always remain despite waste separation and recycling plants. So far, these have mostly ended up in landfills or incinerators.
The family business wants to change that. The “remnant of the remainder” is usually a matter of very fine, dusty residues. Thermal metal extraction, which Bernegger has developed in recent years together with the Montanuniversität Leoben, the Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen and the plant manufacturer Küttner from Essen, makes it possible to split up waste in such a way that raw materials can be recovered. “We have succeeded in closing the raw material cycle here and in recovering even the finest metals,” Bernegger Managing Director Helmut Lugmayr is quoted as saying in a press release.
The process is used at the Bernegger subsidiary TBS (technical treatment systems) in the Enns raw materials park. According to Bernegger, it is the first step in a 200 million euro expansion project at the Enns site. The company employs 900 people at 200 locations and, according to the top 250 ranking of the OÖ Nachrichten, recently had a turnover of 138 million euros.
Source: Nachrichten
