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In NKS-R COCOS project, the role and properties of sulphide films on copper surface were studied. This is the third annual and final report of the project. OFP-copper samples were exposed to sulfide-containing (0-640 mg/L) anoxic simulated groundwater for different durations between 2 to 9 months. A pre-oxidation procedure was used to simulate the effect of oxic period of repository to copper surface. The corrosion behaviour was studied using mass loss determination, electrochemical measurements and several modern material characterisation methods after the exposure. In addition to sulphide concentration the chemistry of test solution was varied by additions of chloride and hydrogen carbonate. Specimens and surface deposits were studied with electron microscopy (SEM+EDS, EBSD). In-depth characterisation was done using GD-OES analysis, HE-XRD techniques and SIMS analysis. During the project, also several other analysis methods were used. The measurable corrosion was not proportional to sulphide concentration. The corrosion was not always uniform. The corrosion rates were 0-12.3 µm/a, depending on the sulphide concentration, temperature and other variables of the environment. EBSD results suggested that both the pre-oxidation treatment and the exposure to sulphide environment introduced the strain localization in the near-surface areas of samples. HE-XRD results showed significant heterogeneous structure deformation in the copper lattice after the exposure to test environment, both in the near surface region and deep inside the microstructure. The sulphide-copper interactions and formation of sulphide film on copper surface were found complex processes. In this project, the world-class analytical techniques were used to investigate the penetration of chemical species into the copper microstructure. More work is needed to define the role of these chemical species as well as the nature and chemistry of the surface films that develop on copper surfaces in repository conditions.

The importance of the circular economy is growing due to unresolved global challenges, such as climate change and resource scarcity. As defined and shown in the report by the POLICE project, the circular economy is an economic system that creates value by catching and reusing the limited raw material and energy resources by slowing, narrowing and closing their loops. The circular economy is expected to provide significant benefits in terms of improved resource efficiency, reduced extraction, reduced processing, and the disposal of scarce natural resources. Additionally, the circular economy also relates to the new types of business opportunities for existing and new stakeholders. Despite these potential benefits, the process of transition towards a circular economy has been quite slow. The knowledge of policy instruments and incentives are available is essential to overcome the barriers of the circular economy. Additionally, the knowledge on how to implement such policy instruments and incentives that boost the circular economy is needed. Therefore, it is important to survey what kind of incentives aiming to support circular economy already exist and analyse their positive and negative influences on promoting the circular economy. This will result in as a significant source of information for policymakers, to better understand the impacts of various types of incentives. At the same time, the results of the analysis would generate valuable input for the formulation of a new kind of advanced incentives. The POLICE report looks into the reasons why the implementation of the circular economy principles is hindered.A new multi-disciplinary and comprehensive approach to the implementation of the circular economyThe aim of the POLICE project supported by EIT RawMaterials and led by VTT was to identify and describe different types of incentives to promote and boost the implementation of the circular economy concept, considering relevant policy instruments and incentives and their mixes. Another key objective of the project was to compare positive versus negative policy instruments and incentives. Furthermore, the third target of the project was to evaluate and analyse the effectiveness of incentives based on the information on circular economy barriers and drivers.The report presents the key findings of the POLICE project. The report is structured as follows:Chapter 1 provides the introduction to the topic by defining the key terms and describing the motivation behind the work.Chapter 2 presents the objectives of the study.Chapter 3 introduces materials and methods.Chapter 4 forms the core of the work, i.e., covers the results.Chapter 5 is devoted to discussion and conclusions of the work.

Tribocorrosion behaviour of passivating alloys and coatings, such as stainless steels, titanium alloys and hardmetals (WC-CoCr) has received considerable attention in a range of environments of industrial importance. In such cases, the passive film is typically removed from any areas subjected to wear, i.e., the wear track, enabling their activation with respect to surrounding passive areas that are not exposed to tribological contact. Thus, the material undergoes wear-induced corrosion in the wear track, the contribution of which to material losses may be easily assessed through the measured electrochemical data and Faraday’s law, as the increase in corrosion rate of the material as the activation in the wear track is evident. Tribocorrosion studies on alloys that do not experience passivation in the environment of interest are much less frequent and require a different approach to wear-corrosion synergy determination, as a slight increase in the corrosion rate within the wear track does not necessarily yield dramatic changes in the overall electrochemical response of the materials. This research gives insights into the tribocorrosion behaviour of non-passivating alloys (bronzes and low-alloy steels) under conditions of industrial importance and alternative approaches to define the wear-corrosion interactions are considered.

This report provides an overview of substitution trajectories assessment in economic terms in order to identify the relevance of CRMs substitution for the European economy and future opportunities for European actors. The economic assessment is based on an application-led/value chain approach (as opposed to material-led). The work presented in this report follows the logic of previous work performed in CRM_InnoNet project.

The Comments by Martino et al.1 on the original manuscript2 criticize our interpretation of the existence and properties of the Cu2S barrier layer of the passive film that forms on the surface of copper in SRB-bearing groundwater at 10°C. First, it is necessary to recognize that this discussion involves two forms of copper, which we refer to as “pure copper (P-Cu)” (nominally > 99.999%) and “oxygen-free phosphorous copper (OFP-Cu)”. P-Cu has been used in the majority of our work3–6 with only some of our later work employing OFP-Cu,2 a point that does not seem to be appreciated by Martino et al.1 On the other hand, the Shoesmith group appears to have concentrated exclusively upon OFP-Cu, at least in recent years.7–11 This difference is of crucial importance in responding to the critique by Martino et al.1

This deliverable reports the survey done in SCRREEN project in Task 4.3 relating to environmental trends and Circular Economy (CE) aspects of CRM production. For each CRM, the Circular Economy aspects were addressed in order to identifythe gaps that limit performance of the processing chains, hinder closing the loop and hinder a zero-waste CRM production. Information on processes, production, solutions and eco-design principles for closing the loop of raw materials in order to support the zero-waste point-of-view, resource efficiency and energy efficiency simultaneously were gathered. In addition, the aspects supporting Circular Economy were evaluated trying to resolve the identified challenges. Lastly, the environmental issues e.g. toxicity related to CRMs production were reviewed.

This deliverable reports the survey done in SCRREEN project in Task 4.3 relating to environmental trends and CircularEconomy (CE) aspects of CRM production. For each CRM, the Circular Economy aspects were addressed in order to identifythe gaps that limit performance of the processing chains, hinder closing the loop and hinder a zero-waste CRM production.Information on processes, production, solutions and eco-design principles for closing the loop of raw materials in order tosupport the zero-waste point-of-view, resource efficiency and energy efficiency simultaneously were gathered. In addition, theaspects supporting Circular Economy were evaluated trying to resolve the identified challenges. Lastly, the environmentalissues e.g. toxicity related to CRMs production were reviewed. Work Package WP4. Document number D4.3SCRREEN Coordination and Support Action (CSA). This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programmeunder grant agreement No 730227.Start date : 2016-12-01 Duration : 30 Months www.scrreen.eu