Mari Lundström

Host

Bjorn Glaser

Mari Lundström received her PhD from Aalto University in 2009. After working at Outotec
for some years she returned to Aalto University as an Assistant Professor in 2015. Since 2021,
she is an Associate Professor. Furthermore, since 2022 she is the Vice-Dean for Research and
Innovation.
Professor Lundström´s research is focused on supporting the green transition and renewable
energy production, which is fully dependent on several metals, such as copper, nickel, cobalt,
lithium, rare earth metals etc. Her research in enabling metals recycling from e.g. electronic
waste waste batteries, solar cells waste, permanent magnets, and several other fractions
enhances sustainable development and decreases the environmental impacts of these green
technology metals production and recycling.
Mari Lundström has a strong knowledge in the area of sustainable metals processing with the
focus on hydrometallurgy. Her research interests include e.g. recycling of lithium batteries as
well as electrochemical recovery of critical catalyst metals from industrial waste streams,
where her research has opened a totally new research direction on EDRR application on
hydrometallurgical solutions. Her research group is also dedicated on interdiciplinary
research, as simulation-based life cycle analysis allows to evaluate environmental
competitiveness of newly developed metals refining and recycling processes. Her scientific
international activity for example can be exemplified with her three ongoing EU Horizon
projects in battery metals refining and recycling where she is principal investigator of Aalto
University; Respect, Helios, ENicon. On top of international research projects, she is the PI of
Finland-based battery metals ecosystem (BATCircle1.0 – 2.0) as well as has actively
contributed in national and international organizations to boost circular economy of metals
needed for electrification.

Research question

The focus of my research is the role of raw materials in the green transition. More specifically, my area of expertise is hydrometallurgy, a branch of metallurgy that uses aqueous solutions to recover metals from ores, concentrates, and recycled materials.

The decarbonization of our society requires large quantities of metals: for instance, electrification depends on copper, while lithium-ion batteries rely on lithium, cobalt, nickel, and graphite. As demand for these and other materials grows, it is vital to scale up metal production in a smart and sustainable way: integrating principles of the circular economy from the very beginning. 

For example, when developing new battery chemistries, we must also ask whether recycling processes for those materials exist or can be designed. In my group, we address these challenges through process modeling and circular economy tools, helping to ensure that resource use in the green transition is both efficient and sustainable.

 Sustainability Aspects

Materials science can never be done in “vacuum.” By this I mean that sustainability and circular economy must be considered from the very beginning, and this requires collaboration. No one can be an expert in everything. We cannot focus solely on performance. Instead, we need to shift our mindset –when an invention emerges or even in the earlier stages of the design, we should immediately ask questions such as, how will we recycle these materials? Or can we use more abundant and accessible alternatives? 

I am deeply passionate about this: to develop a raw materials’ plan from the outset. This includes asking whether the materials are scalable and whether their use aligns with long-term sustainability goals.