Tag Archives: Wits University

DRDGOLD’s Ergo and Wits University researchers to assess alternative leaching tech

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DRDGOLD Ltd’s flagship metallurgical plant, Ergo Mining Proprietary Limited, has entered into a second five-year (2022-2026) research and support agreement with the University of the Witswatersrand (Wits University) through the Gold Research Group in the School of Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering. The agreement will see continuation of research with the objective of enhancing capacity and capability within the field.

The research, DRDGOLD says, will seek to allow for more effective optimisation and improve the probability of increased gold recovery, as well as environmentally-friendly treatment technologies over a period of five years by students under the supervision of their academic staff members. The technological focus areas will comprise of four inter-related and interdependent categories, namely:

  • Alternative leaching technologies;
  • Fluidisation and recovery technology;
  • Environmental treatment technologies; and
  • Chemical measurements and modelling technologies.

Commenting on the agreement, manager of the program, Professor Herman Potgieter, said: “Through the four categories, Wits University will assist Ergo in developing new leaching processes and using alternative leachants and ligands for a wide range of sulphides, develop fluidisation and packed bed technology for a new gas phase technology for a wide range of sulphides. They will also obtain a detailed and thorough understanding of the environmental impact of the Ergo plant operations in terms of energy usage, effluents, and emissions during the liberation of the gold contained in the sulphides.

“The research will also assist Ergo in developing new measurement techniques to reliably quantify small amounts of gold in the leached solutions and predict the optimum reagents to use based on density functional theory calculations and modelling techniques applied to various parts of the process.”

Ergo’s Managing Director, Henry Gouws, said: “At DRDGOLD, we remain committed to engaging with educational institutions within the areas in which we operate to set up programs aimed at upskilling our youth, to empower them to make an active contribution to our economy. We look forward to working with the Gold Research Group within the School of Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering at Wits University as we seek to optimise and improve gold recovery as well as identify and evaluate environmentally friendly treatment technologies.”

Ergo has a vast footprint adjacent to Johannesburg on the central and eastern Witwatersrand of South Africa. Its assets cover an area around 62 km from east to west and 25 km from north to south. This large, single footprint was created as part of a rationalisation process and in order to simplify the structure of DRDGOLD, and focus on the reclamation and treatment of surface tailings deposits.

Wits Mining Institute to start up two new research centres

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The Wits Mining Institute (WMI) at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) says it will boost its contribution to the future of mining by hosting two of the new research centres established through the South African Mining Extraction Research, Development and Innovation (SAMERDI) strategy.

The two SAMERDI Research Centres (SRCs) at the WMI will focus their fundamental research on the themes of Real Time Information Management Systems (RTIMS) and Successful Application of Technology Centred Around People (SATCAP), respectively, and will begin their work in early 2022. These are two of the thematic areas pursued by the Mandela Mining Precinct (MMP) in Johannesburg, which is administered by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

Ingrid Watson (pictured), Acting Director of the WMI, said they are proud to be involved in the foundational stage of this exciting endeavour.

“These two research centres build on the WMI’s existing expertise, and allow for further interdisciplinary research to inform a 21st century model of mining that is both sustainable and competitive,” Watson said. “Integral to the success of these efforts is the development of local capacity.”

Wits University’s roots in the mining sector extend back nearly 125 years, she said, and the establishment of these collaborative research centres is another way that the institution will support the future success of the country’s mining sector.

The SAMERDI strategy focuses on the modernisation pathway for mining to 2030, and the research centres will conduct fundamental research to create new knowledge about mining technology, data systems and processes associated with the sector, as well as a people-centric focus on the impact of modernisation on jobs, skills, environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, and stakeholder inclusivity. Each research centre will be headed by a Research Competence Lead, and will host a post-doctoral student, a doctoral student and up to four master’s students in a three-year cycle.

The outputs from the research centres will inform the applied research at the MMP, the results of which are felt on mine sites, in communities and throughout the mining value chain, the WMI said. These results will in turn inform the next iteration of the strategic focus for the fundamental research. The MMP is also researching longevity of current mines, mechanised mining systems and advanced orebody knowledge.

MMP Executive Director, Johan le Roux, added his support to the collaborative partnership with the WMI.

“As the MMP, we are very glad and proud that we reached the stage of establishing the SAMERDI Research Centres,” le Roux said. “We believe that through these partnerships with universities and industry, we will collectively be able to contribute to the development of relevant research and development capacity in South African mining.”