Minerals Down Under is developing robust, industry-proven technologies that address major online measurement challenges in the mining and processing of commodities including alumina, coal, copper, gold, iron ore, platinum and uranium. These technologies underpin the process optimisation needed for ‘precision processing’.
Radio frequency researchers through CSIRO’s Minerals Down Under Flagship have built sensors capable of electronically ‘eavesdropping’ on bulk ore deposits to detect the crystalline structure of valuable minerals.
The sensors work in real-time and are designed for deployment onsite at mines and processing plants where they can deliver measurements that allow improved control of processing.
Dr David Miljak, who is heading up the project, says the technology under development is related to medical MRI – the non-invasive ‘magnetic resonance imaging’ technology used to image the body. Unlike MRI, however, the CSIRO sensors do not require a powerful magnetic field, eliminating the requirement for huge magnets.
‘With some crystalline structures we can get a response without a magnetic field,” he says. “We use radio waves at specific frequencies that penetrate deep into rock. Advanced radio receivers are used to listen for faint electronic ‘blips’ that allow us to obtain accurate information about the mineral mix,” Miljak says.
There are both economic and environmental benefits associated with adopting this real-time sensing technology in the minerals industry. CSIRO researchers have recently demonstrated the measurement of selected copper minerals in bulk ore samples. The initial results hold promise for online copper mineralogy measurement at various stages of production, from mine to flotation, and will aid in process optimisation.
“For example, if mining could get mineral and textural parameters before the ore goes to stockpile, that would be quite transformational for the industry,” he says. “It would allow for greater mining efficiency while providing opportunity for precise control of processing,” Miljak says.
“There are many potentially exciting applications out there for this technology, so we are at this interesting R&D stage where we have the potential to ramp up the technology for particular mineral measurement applications.”
CSIRO has engaged with several mining companies to develop specific online analysers for measurement of copper mineralogy in bulk ore.
