With the continuous development of molybdenum industry, molybdenum raw materials are consumed more and more, and recoverable resources are less and less. In order to protect the environment and improve the utilization rate of molybdenum resources, since the mid-1980s, developed countries have begun to pay attention to the utilization value of its renewable resources, especially molybdenum-containing waste catalysts, such as the United States in 1995 from waste catalysts. The amount recovered has reached 3800 tons, accounting for about 30% of the total supply. In addition, the content of molybdenum in its renewable resources is usually higher than that in ores. The cost of extracting and other metals from its ores is lower than that from ores. The energy consumption is lower and the emission of exhaust gas is smaller. Therefore, the recovery and utilization of molybdenum has become the focus of this kind of industry.

 At present, the secondary resources of molybdenum mainly come from two sources, one is molybdenum-containing slag and waste liquid produced in the process of molybdenum metallurgy, the other is molybdenum-containing chemical products or materials used in the production of metal products. According to the report of the International Molybdenum Association, nearly 80,000 tons of molybdenum were recycled in 2011, accounting for about a quarter of the total consumption , which shows that the recycled molybdenum resources have become an important part of the it supply chain. The International Molybdenum Association predicts that recovery will reach 110,000 tons by 2020, accounting for about 27% of the total supply. By 2030, this proportion will reach about 35%. About 60% of the recovered  is used to make stainless steel, while the rest is used to make alloy tool steel, superalloy, high speed steel, cast steel and chemical catalysts.

  Molybdenum recovery and utilization methods

  At present, there are many ways to recycle molybdenum wastes, but fire method is the main method and wet method is the auxiliary method. The common methods are as follows:

  Sublimation method: This method is based on the capture and recovery of molybdenum oxide which can be oxidized to trioxide at a certain temperature. The recovery rate can reach 98%. The method is mainly used for recycling waste powder, bar, sheet, wire, molybdenum-rhenium alloy and high-speed steel grinding waste.

  Zinc melting method: This method mainly recovers alloy elements from cemented carbide and superalloy waste by heating, distillation and roasting, such as cobalt (recovery rate is 97%), molybdenum (recovery rate is 96.2%) and tungsten (recovery rate is 98.4%).

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