Australia Minerals and Mining Group’s (AMMG) unique aluminous clay to alumina process technology is in its final stages of laboratory development. AMMG’s chemical consultants, TSW Analytical, progressed towards achieving the fourth and final milestone, which involved determining variables such as leach conditions, solid to liquid ratios and filtration. The acid-based processing technology aims at producing high purity alumina (HPA) (99.99%). AMMG’s processing technology poses a number of benefits in the production of alumina, such as minimal environmental footprint; reduced waste; recyclability; and low iron levels. AMMG now plans to test the technology process using a number of different aluminous clay samples in order to confirm the veracity of the unique process.
The HPA projects’ focus currently extends across three project areas – Meckering, Kerrigan, Bobalong and Kellerberrin in Western Australia. The total project area covers approximately 2,934 km2. The project carries a combined resource of 150 Mt of aluminous clay with grades of up to 38% alumina; approximately 83-85% brightness. The resource matches the standards for a high brightness paper filler product, estimating an ISO brightness of 85.1%.
AMMG’s Meckering tenement E70/3923 covers the historical Kelly and Jacobs Well aluminous clay projects, which was previously held by Swan River Kaolin, a wholly owned subsidiary of Minerals Corp (now in administration).
Aluminous clay was discovered in this project area by CRA (Rio Tinto), after the company had surveyed the local area in 1990. SRK’s extensive exploration work found that the aluminous clay was bright and the Meckering clays found was a potentially marketable product. Based on the previous historical work, AMMG recognises that although its resource is suited to the paper, ceramics and industrial fillers markets, it is also highly suited to number of other non-paper filler applications.