The chemical exploitation of nickel phytoextraction: An environmental, ecologic and economic opportunity for New Caledonia

Guillaume Losfeld (1) , Vincent Escande (1, 2) , Tanguy Jaffré (3, 4) , Laurent L'Huillier (5) , Claude Grison (1, 6)

1 CEFE - Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive
2 ADEME - Agence de l'Environnement et de la Maîtrise de l'Energie
3 UMR AMAP - Botanique et Modélisation de l'Architecture des Plantes et des Végétations
4 IRD [Nouvelle-Calédonie] - Institut de Recherche pour le Développement
5 IAC - Institut Agronomique Néo-Calédonien
6 ChimEco - Bio-inspired Chemistry and Ecological Innovations

Herein, we explore the outlines of an innovative method based on the chemical recovery of metal-rich biomass produced in phytoextraction technologies. Taking advantage of the adaptive capacity of some New Caledonian plants to hyperaccumulate Ni 2+ cations in their aerial parts, this technique is based on the direct use of metals derived from plants as ''Lewis acid'' catalysts in organic chemistry. Metallic cations contained in New Caledonian nickel hyperaccumulators are recovered through a simple cost-effective process and serve the preparation of heterogeneous catalysts used in synthetic transformations allowing access to molecules with high added-value. The design of all processes is in line with the principles of green chemistry; it is adapted to the new economic constraints; it offers a new relevant outlet for metal-rich biomass; and it represents an alternative to non-renewable mineral materials.

Mots clés: Hyperaccumulator plants; Biomass; Phytoextraction; Trace metals; Heterogeneous catalysis; Green chemistry

Domaines: Autre; Ingénierie de l'environnement

Guillaume Losfeld, Vincent Escande, Tanguy Jaffré, Laurent L'Huillier, Claude Grison. The chemical exploitation of nickel phytoextraction: An environmental, ecologic and economic opportunity for New Caledonia. Chemosphere, 2012, 89 (7), pp.907 - 910. ⟨10.1016/j.chemosphere.2012.05.004⟩. ⟨hal-03177627⟩