The “Hunan Nonferrous Metal Smelting Environmental Materials Innovation Consortium” led by Hunan Silver Co., Ltd., made the list of pilot projects for the construction of innovation consortia in 2025 recently. This marks a zero breakthrough  for Chenzhou in the construction of provincial-level innovation consortia in the field of science and technology.

Innovation consortiums are an organizational model in which the government provides guidance, industry leaders take the lead, and universities, research institutions, and enterprises on the industrial chain collaborate to jointly tackle key core technologies based on market-oriented mechanisms. It aims to break through key common technologies in the industry and promote the efficient transformation of scientific and technological achievements by integrating once scattered innovation resources, which serves as an important carrier for implementing the innovation-driven development strategy.

The Hunan Nonferrous Metal Smelting and Environmental Materials Innovation Consortium is led by Hunan Silver and jointly established with Central South University and Xiangnan University, as well as six upstream and downstream enterprises in the industrial chain in Chenzhou City.

Focusing on green smelting of non-ferrous metals, efficient utilization of resources, and advanced material preparation, it mainly conducts technological research on the clean production and high-value utilization of non-ferrous metals such as silver, bismuth, and tellurium. As of now, the consortium has accumulated 177 valid intellectual property rights (including 161 invention patents), undertaken multiple provincial-level major scientific research projects, and invested a total of over 118 million yuan in research and development.

It has effectively overcome many industry challenges such as high arsenic and high sulfur gold concentrate smelting, small metal high-purity preparation (5N) technology, and comprehensive recovery of valuable metals from arsenic waste.

It has effectively promoted the clean upgrading and efficient resource utilization of the non-ferrous metal industry, promoted the transformation of the non-ferrous metal industry towards green, low-carbon, and environmentally friendly directions to achieve industrial upgrading and sustainable development.

This honor is not only due to the strong technological accumulation and innovation strength of each enterprise, but also due to the systematic support provided by the park in the construction of industrial ecology, capital investment, and exploration of green development paths.

As the main battlefield for the development of the non-ferrous metal industry in Chenzhou, the park has gathered more than 1,000 non-ferrous enterprises such as Hunan Silver, Gaoxing Nonferrous, and Gaoxin Copper Industry.

At the same time, the park has multiple national innovation platforms such as the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology's green manufacturing system, forming a complete innovation chain covering smelting technology upgrading, new material preparation, and solid waste resource utilization.

By providing special science and technology innovation funds, supply chain funding guarantees, pilot transformation platforms, and related supporting technological services, it has provided a desirable venue for the establishment and operation of the innovation consortium.

Chinese source: rednet