Profile
Elif Emil Kaya
Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway
Dr. -Ing. Elif Emil Kaya is a Researcher and Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Fellow at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Resources, Energy & Environment Group.
Her research focuses on sustainable process metallurgical solutions for the recycling of critical and valuable materials from secondary resources, including batteries, solar panels, electronic waste, and industrial residues. Her work combines experimental investigations with thermodynamic modelling and process analysis.
She leads a start-up initiative focused on the recycling of precious and critical materials from solar panels, aiming to develop scalable and industry-relevant solutions. In addition, she is actively involved in multiple EU- and Horizon Europe–funded research projects, with strong collaboration with industry partners and pilot-scale applications.
She holds PhD degrees from RWTH Aachen University and Istanbul Technical University. Her doctoral research on rare earth element recycling from NdFeB magnets was recognized with a Best PhD Thesis Award.