Scandium (Sc) applications in solid oxygen fuel cells, aeronautics and heat exchange systems are forecasted to increase significantly without a sufficient continuous Sc supply for Europe. ScaVanger is an EU project for upscaling Sc extraction and purification technologies from various TiO2 pigment production residues. High purity Sc2O3 and ScF3 will be produced at competitive prices for the EU market. The ScaVanger process is expected to result in a 10% higher production rate and higher product purity as processing starts with a unique cleaning process of actinides. The first plant at a major European TiO2 pigment production site will be supplying about 30 t/a of Sc2O3.

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Electricity generation in Europe is undergoing fundamental change. The aim is to increase sustainability by reducing emissions. Each country has a different electricity mix, and there is no established method for measuring environmental impacts of electricity production with a single indicator, in a uniform manner and with country-specific data. To address this gap, we have developed a model that measures costs of 19 environmental externalities (usually types of emissions). Using country-specific technologies, electricity mixes and external cost rates, we assess and analyse the development of external costs of generating electricity in 27 European countries between 2010 and 2030. Our simulation results show that despite the initiated transformation of the energy systems in many EU countries, external costs per kWh are decreasing in only eight of these countries. This fact underlines the need for a drastic change in national energy strategies. Particularly striking are the developments of the energy mixes in six countries. Overall, the results show that more far-reaching policy measures are needed in order to significantly reduce the external costs of the energy sector in Europe.

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