Jeonbuk National University (JBNU) Professor Junmo Ahn (College of Engineering, Department of Resources and Energy Engineering) received the 'Young Engineer Award' from the Korean Resources Recycling Association. 

This award is the society's most prestigious early-career researcher award. It is presented to researchers aged 40 or under who have conducted active research and made scholarly contributions in the field of resources recycling.

Professor Ahn has focused on developing environmentally friendly recycling technologies for end-of-life lithium-ion batteries. He has conducted research on organic acid-based alternative leaching agents and bioleaching processes using microorganisms, presenting new possibilities in the field of resource recycling.

He proposed alternative technologies that reduce the environmental burden and hazardousness of conventional chemical leaching processes while improving metal recovery efficiency. His work has attracted attention in the academic community.

In particular, he has worked on recycling secondary resources to secure strategic materials such as precious metals and rare earth elements. He has systematically studied technologies to recover valuable metals from spent batteries and electronic waste and has delivered numerous academic presentations at the society's conferences.

Professor Ahn said, 'In an era when resource depletion and environmental problems are intensifying simultaneously, recycling technologies are not optional but essential. This award is not an individual's achievement but the result of efforts by the members of my laboratory and our collaborators.' He added, 'I will concentrate my research efforts on further advancing recycling technologies for spent batteries and critical metals, and on developing environmentally friendly processes that can be applied in industrial settings.'