Geometallurgy

To sustain the supply of high volume metals such as Al, Fe, and Cu, and fulfill the demand for high tech and critical raw materials, miners are turning their attention to lower grade, more complex ores that represent greater operational cost and demand a modern outlook and the application of technical innovation to meet feasibility criteria. To develop such deposits successfully requires knowledge of the ore body, its structure, geomorphology, and description of the distinct ore types present, their textural characteristics, mineralogy, and chemistry. The mineralogical controls on processing for each ore type must be determined, as well as any minerals that may cause environmental issues further down the line. Key to the study are microscopy techniques developed for the evaluation of mineral samples. Such analytical techniques are performed in 2D and 3D and provide information on, for example, mineralogy, chemical composition of the sample and its components, texture, particle and grain morphology, mineral liberation, and associations.