Dr Gordon M Ritcey, Independent Consultant and Adjunct Professor of Hydrometallurgy at Curtin University's Western Australian School of Mines, is a leading international authority in hydrometallurgy, specializing in solvent extraction and tailings management. His professional experience spans five decades, which include work in the academe, research and development, and industry. He is the author of the authoritative texts, Solvent Extraction (1st edition, 2 Volumes) and Tailings Management. He has presented more than 75 short courses on solvent extraction and tailings management, and consulted in the same disciplines through 6 continents. Secondments to the UN and CESO resulted in successful projects in Brazil, Burundi, Egypt, China, Cuba.

Dr. Ritcey has developed numerous solvent extraction processes, secured 17 patents, published about 150 papers, chaired and lectured at numerous international conferences. He is a recipient of many prestigious honours  and awards including Sherritt Gordon Hydrometallurgy Medal, Mendeleev Medal (Russia), the University of Leige Medal (Belgium), the ALCAN Medal, the CIM Silver Medal, and the Carl Hanson Medal. He is a Fellow of CIM and CIC, and  Member of TMS.

In 1993, Dr. Ritcey received a Doctorate of Applied Science from the University of Melbourne, Australia, following submission of a thesis on Separation Processes in Extractive Metallurgy.

Following early retirement from CANMET in 1988, Dr. Ritcey has been consulting, lecturing and teaching internationally. Projects have included uranium, copper, cobalt, nickel, cadmium, manganese, vanadium in the following countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Cuba, Egypt, Greece, Japan, Norway, Spain, USA.