Electrochemical recovery of metals in deep eutectic solvents

Ionic liquids have been subject of many researches in the electrodeposition area in the last decades. It is known that this kind of liquids show some advantages when compared to the traditional aqueous media. The electroplating industry traditionally uses aqueous solutions, because of the high solubility of metal salts, resulting in highly conducting solutions. In hydrometallurgy, aqueous acids or alkalis are predominantly used to dissolve the metal oxides, sulphides, or silicates and further metal recovery processes require strong compounds which can be hazardous for the environment. This work will discuss the use of ionic liquids as deep eutectic solvents as solution for metal recovery and how such solvents can be used for different metals from their mineral matrix.