Expectations for Geochemistry from the Perspective of Separation Engineering Research for Building a Sustainable Society

Abstract

Along with carbon neutrality, interest in circular economies is growing. The essence of the circular economy is the economic implementation of "resource efficiency improvement, which achieves functional enhancements such as longer life, miniaturization, intensification, higher functionality, and multifunctionality, while conserving resources and energy. To achieve this, impurity control is necessary to create high-purity materials, regardless of primary or secondary resources, and separation engineering research is being conducted for this purpose. To achieve highly efficient separation, it is necessary to control various reactions, including the sorption of trace elements at the solid-gas-liquid interface, such as reaction rate control under various external forces that cause changes in heat and pressure. Although the time scales are generally very different, such separation phenomena can be regarded as accelerated processes of various reactions that are well understood in geochemistry. It is expected that the knowledge gained from geochemistry will lead to the creation of innovative separation technology processes.