Mineral Raw Materials Research Articles

Mineralization and productization of valuable metals in copper telluride slag by sulfurization selectivity and vacuum distillation

Copper telluride slag is a sparsely distributed precious metal slag that is produced during copper smelting. In addition to recovering tellurium from copper telluride slag, it is necessary to maximize the recovery of other valuable metals, but the sulfurization-vacuum treatment process of copper telluride slag lacks fundamental research to guide all-metal recovery. This paper experimentally studies the comprehensive sulfidation selectivity and vacuum distillation of valuable metals (Cu, Te, Se, Ag, Sb, and As) in copper telluride slag. The results demonstrate that sulfidation broke the chemical bonds between Cu-Te and Cu-Se, which removed oxygen from Cu, Sb, and As without reacting with Ag. Under a vacuum, the volatility of Sb2S3, As2S3, Se, and Te was significantly greater than that of Ag2Te, Ag2Se, Ag2S, and Cu2S. The experimental results showed that 95.91% of Te, 43.50% of Se, 94.59% of As, and 68.77% of Sb entered the volatiles, while more than 99% of Cu and Ag remained in the residue. The economic potential indicated that processing 1 ton of copper telluride slag can save $200 in chemical costs, and the residue can be directly used as a mineral raw material for copper smelting. This study offers a practical reference for recovering valuable metals from copper telluride slag via selective sulfuration and vacuum distillation.

OBTAINING POTASSIUM-CONTAINING FERTILIZERS FROM WASTES OF THE PHOSPHORUS INDUSTRY

The integrated use of mineral raw materials based on the processing of industrial waste is one of the most important tasks of modern technologies. In the phosphorus industry, such a problem is the disposal of toxic phosphorus-containing waste for fertilizers. The purpose of this work is to obtain potassium-containing fertilizers from phosphogypsum and сotrel “milk” filtrate. Results and discussion.Analysis of the results showed that from the technogenic waste of the phosphorus industry -filtrate of сotrel "milk" and gypsum using the acid method under ammoniation and drying conditions, it is possible to obtain fertilizers with a high potassium content, in which the sum of the nutritional components is represented by P, K and N. In terms of properties, the optimal fertilizers are products containing total P2O5at the level of enriched superphosphate and simple superphosphate. Conclusion.The possibility of obtaining potassium-containing phosphorus fertilizers with a high content of K2O (6.9%) from the filtrate of сotrel “milk” and phosphogypsum, in which practically P2O5is in a water-soluble form (97.5-97 rel.%), has been shown. It has been established that during the complex processing of сotrel “milk” by the acid method under drying conditions to obtain potassium-containing phosphorus fertilizers, the sum of the nutritional components is P2O5+ K2O+N 17.29-77.3%. Thus, from the filtrate of сotrel “milk” and phosphogypsum, potassium-containing phosphorus fertilizers were obtained containing total P2O5at the level of simple and enriched superphosphate, the phosphate part of which is represented almost entirely by the citrate-digestible form of P2O5.

Mineral Resource Abundance: An Assessment Methodology for a Responsible Use of Mineral Raw Materials in Downstream Industries

The sustainability of mineral resources and, in particular, their abundance is a topic of growing interest. Nevertheless, the abundance of mineral raw materials is an extremely complex notion as it not only encompasses geological considerations but also environmental, technical, economic, and social constraints. In addition, to the best of our knowledge, no tools are currently available to allow a comprehensive evaluation of mineral raw material abundance. This research paper, therefore, aims to present an innovative and unique methodology to evaluate the abundance of non-energy mineral resources and determine a mineral abundance index (MAI). Based on a multicriteria analysis, MAI considers the natural abundance of a mineral raw material in the Earth’s crust and its availability on the market and integrates the influence of factors that could constrain or promote future market changes. This new index ranging from 0 (very scarce) to 100 (very abundant) aims to qualify the abundance of mineral resources in a simple and rapid manner based on published and reliable data. This new methodology could be a powerful decision-making support tool for any downstream industrials and end-users making use of mineral raw materials.

A battery value chain independent of primary raw materials: Towards circularity in China, Europe and the US

As the production of batteries for electric vehicles continues to grow, so does the demand for primary battery raw materials. Against the supply risks and environmental issues associated with raw material mining and transportation, battery material circularity has become a burgeoning topic in academia, policy, and industry. While prior research has explored secondary supply and demand, an important gap remains regarding the break-even points (BEPs) where full circularity is reached (secondary supply = demand). Using a material flow analysis, this study offers two contributions: First, it calculates the BEPs for critical raw materials (lithium, cobalt, nickel) in different regions. The results show that China will realize full circularity more than ten years earlier than Europe and the US for lithium and nickel and seven years earlier for cobalt. Second, it identifies levers (e.g., earlier full electrification) that can accelerate full circularity, thereby demonstrating how independence from primary raw materials can be achieved earlier.

ВЛИЯНИЕ ДЛИТЕЛЬНОСТИ МЕХАНОХИМИЧЕСКОГО СИНТЕЗА НА СТРУКТУРНО-МОРФОЛОГИЧЕСКИЕ ХАРАКТЕРИСТИКИ СИЛИКАТ-КАЛЬЦИЕВОЙ ДИСПЕРСИИ

Mechanochemical synthesis of sucrose-modified calcium hydrosilicates as precursors of calcium silicate dispersions – polyfunctional additives for cement systems was carried out on a fine grinding vibromill VM-20. The influence of duration of mechanochemical synthesis of modified hydrosilicates on the phase composition of calcium silicate dispersions, morpho-structural characteristics of the nanostructured calcium silicate xerogel particles, as well as technological features of the reaction mass of mechanochemical synthesis was studied. It was found that the viscosity of the reaction mass of mechanochemical synthesis changes non-monotonically during synthesis: in the first 2 hours of mechanochemical synthesis, the viscosity decreases; subsequently, the viscosity of the mixture increases slightly; the reaction mass maintains high fluidity throughout the entire synthesis process; the presence of raw mineral materials in the reaction mass continues to be fixed throughout the synthesis (up to 7 hours); recrystallization processes of synthesized weakly crystallized phases are activated after 6 hours of grinding.
 The volume of the synthesized xerogel was estimated from the specific surface area of the calcium silicate dispersion. It was found that the processes of recrystallization of weakly crystallized phases synthesized during mechanochemical synthesis do not affect the volume of xerogel in the composition of calcium silicate dispersion, the specific surface area of the calcium silicate dispersion increases in proportion to the duration of the mechanochemical synthesis of modified calcium hydrosilicates. The duration of mechanochemical synthesis does not affect the morpho-structural characteristics of coagulation xerogel particles.

ИССЛЕДОВАНИЕ СТРУКТУРООБРАЗОВАНИЯ ВЯЖУЩЕЙ СИСТЕМЫ НА ОСНОВЕ ТЕРМИЧЕСКИ АКТИВИРОВАННОЙ КЕРАМЗИТОВОЙ ПЫЛИ

The production of Portland cement is associated with a high consumption of mineral raw materials and significant emissions of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Therefore, the partial replacement of cement with technogenic mineral additive in cement compositions is a rational way of utilizing production waste. Besides, the use of industrial waste products as mineral additives allows solving environment problems and reducing the consumption of primary natural resources.
 This paper presents the study on the hydraulic activity of thermally activated expanded clay dust used as an active mineral additive in cement compositions. Expanded clay dust is an industrial waste formed during the production of ceramsite gravel, and captured in the dust cleaning systems of kilns: dust chambers, cyclones, filters.
 A comprehensive study of the composition, containing expanded clay dust and water, was carried out using the IR spectral analysis, differential scanning calorimetry and scanning electron microscopy with X-ray microanalysis.
 It was established that the strength of baked samples increased by 80% after immersion in water. The main hydration products of baked expanded clay dust are three types of compounds - fibrous crystals of calcium hydrosulfoaluminate, calcium hydroaluminates in the form of cruciform twins, amorphized spherulite-like formations based on low-base calcium silicate hydrates.

Influence of Pricing Environment on the Production Efficiency of Rare Earth Metals during Processing of Mineral Raw Materials from Various Deposits

Influence of Pricing Environment on the Production Efficiency of Rare Earth Metals during Processing of Mineral Raw Materials from Various Deposits

The 4th International Conference of Geoscience and Earth Resources Engineering (ICGERE) 2022: Sustainable Energy and Future Development Through Geoscience and Earth Resources Engineering (Preface)

The 4th International Conference on Geoscience and Earth Resources Engineering is being organized by the Faculty of Mining and Petroleum Engineering, Institut Teknologi Bandung. The conference’s theme focuses on “Sustainable energy and future development through geoscience and earth resources engineering,” covering a range of new insights and techniques in these fields. Subtopics include mining engineering, drilling engineering, oil and gas production management, earth resources exploration, seismology, metallurgical engineering, applied geophysics & exploration, and geothermal engineering. The conference aims to bring together experts and researchers from various disciplines to exchange knowledge and discuss the latest advancements in geoscience and earth resources engineering.The conference took place from November 8-9, 2022 in Bandung, Indonesia. It was held in a hybrid format due to the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.The conference was held in a hybrid format from November 8-9, 2022 in Bandung, Indonesia due to the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.The conference was attended by 13 invited speakers from various institutions and countries, including:1. Ir. Nenny Miryani Saptadji, Ph.D (Outlook on Indonesia Geothermal Energy Technology)2. Prof. Peyman Mostaghimi (Applied Machine Learning for Fluid Flow in Porous Media)3. Prof. Andri Dian Nugraha (Seismic Tomography Outlook for Exploration and Earth Hazard Mitigation)4. Prof. Dr. Frank Melcher (The European Green Deal: The Role of Mineral Raw Materials)5. Prof. Suleiman Omeiza Eku Sadiku (The Current Flood Disaster in Nigeria)6. Prof. Johnson Kayode Adewumi (The impact of Flooding on Agricultural production and Food Security: Nigeria Context)7. Assoc. Prof. Vamegh Rasouli (Petroleum Geomechanics and its Application in Carbon Geosequestration)8. Prof. Doddy Abdassah, M.Sc., Ph.D (Unconventional Oil and Gas in Indonesia)9. Dr. Aryo P. Wibowo10. Prof. Jean Phillpe Metaxian (DAS for Volcano monitoring)11. Dr. Ing. Zulfiadi, S.T., M.T., IPM (Sustainability in the Production of Nickel, Iron, and Aluminum)12. Engr. ThankGod Egbe (Integrated Petroleum Engineering Practice: Niger Delta Mature Assets Experience)13. Prof. Mukhtar AbdulkadirAnd more than 65 contributed presenters. The output of the conference is well documented in the extended abstract of 37 reviewed papers and 33 paper are accepted. The conference proceeding can be beneficial for the authors, institutions, and worldwide scientific communities.List of The Organizing Committee are available in this pdf.

A Study of Banded Hematite Quartzite (BHQ) in Mallasamudra Area, Gadag Schist Belt, Karnataka, India

Mineral raw material plays a very important role in the manufacturing industry as well as the country's economic growth. The iron ore, especially the Banded Iron Formations (BIFs) are unique rock formations in geological history. The Mallasamudra area, Gadag Schist Belt (GSB), is having good exposures of iron ores. Most of the outcrops of BHQ are located on the top of the hills whereas metabasalts occur on either side of the hills in the area. The BHQ were delineated during field mapping. In the Banded Hematite Quartzite (BHQ) of Mallasamudra area, SiO2 varies from 48.22% to 52.12% and Fe2O3 varies from 29.23% to 33.21% indicating that the BHQ is of low-grade.

Obtaining and investigation of a heat-resistant binder with the additive of metakaolin in the conditions of Uzbekistan

The purpose of the work is to obtain a heat-resistant binder with the addition of metakaolin from mineral and man-made raw materials of the Aral Sea region. The results of obtaining alumina cement using kaolin, limestone and alumina-containing waste are presented. Effective compositions of alumina cement in the kaolin-limestone-alumina-containing waste system have been developed. To improve the physico-mechanical properties of a heat-resistant binder, the preparation of metakaolin with its subsequent addition during clinker grinding was investigated. The reliability of the obtained results is confirmed by the use of modern physico-chemical methods.

Фосфатное минеральное сырьё: запасы, производство и горнорудные проекты

The paper presents the results of analyzing the reserves of phosphate mineral raw materials, their involvement in mining and processing activities both globally and in the Russian Federation. It is demonstrated that the reserves available for high-margin development have currently declined, the volumes of mining and processing of phosphate minerals have decreased, and the mining conditions have become more complicated with a corresponding deterioration in extracted ore grades. The issues with fertilizer production predefined the transformation of geopolitical conditions and manifestations of the pre-crisis food situation in the world. We have made forecast calculations of the countries' supply of phosphate mineral reserves based on the current mining and processing volumes. We reviewed the global experience of implementing large-scale mining projects to draw new phosphate mineral deposits into economic activities. It is already required to identify potentially investment-attractive phosphate deposits using various methods of their investment assessment in order to meet the needs of rural households both in the world and in the Russian Federation. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to develop methodological approaches to investment analysis of prospective phosphate mineral reserves in the Russian Federation based on the identified specific features of phosphate mining and production in the context of pre-crisis global food situation. A methodological approach to expert scoring of phosphate mineral deposits is proposed. An investment analysis of the prospective apatite ore deposits has been made, the results of which were used as the basis for selecting the most investment-attractive ones.

World’s barite resources as critical raw material

The relevance of the work is connected with the status of barite as a critical mineral raw material, as accepted in most industrialized countries.Purpose: to study the dynamics of commodity flows (production, import, export, consumption) of barite throughout the countries, its world prices, sources of barite raw materials and the prospects for its production and consumption.Methods: statistical, graphic, logical.Results. The production of barite raw materials from 0,3 Mt/year in 1920s grew intensively and reached 8.0–9.6 Mt/year in the 2010. Initially, both the mining and processing of barite raw materials industries were located directly in the USA, Germany, Britain, Italy, and France. These countries accounted for over 90% of world production and 80–95% of world consumption. In the 1950s, a sharp increase in the consumption of barite as a weighting agent for drilling fluids began. This led to an increase in its production in large oil and gas producing countries (the USA, the USSR, Mexico, Canada), export flows (from Morocco and other countries), and cessation of exports from Germany, Britain and France. The share of international trade in barite also increased from 0,3–0,5 Mt/year in the 1950s to 4.2–6.0 Mt/year (55–70% of his income) in the 2010s. The cumulative world production of barite between 1920–2020 is expected to be 550 Mt. World barite resources in deposits prepared for exploitation are estimated at 740 Mt. The group of critical countries importing barite raw materials (imports over 50%) represents 38.8% of the GDP of the world economy (USA, European Union, Germany, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Kuwait, Norway, Oman, Algeria, Malaysia, Indonesia, UAE, Azerbaijan, Argentina). The group of countries exporting barite raw materials includes 31.0% of the GDP of the world economy (India, Morocco, China, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Iran, Laos, Mexico, Pakistan, Bulgaria. A decrease in the criticality of barite raw material supply is possible as a result in reducing consumption (Japan, France, Italy and the Czech Republic), increasing world barite production with the commissioning of new deposits, given the significant prepared resources of this raw material in Iran, Kazakhstan and Pakistan, as well as the search for new barite deposits, including chemogenic marine bottom sediments.

Study on properties and soil solidification mechanism of alkali - activated cementitious materials

Due to the low strength and poor durability of soil, it is limited in engineering application. To improve its strength and durability, the alkali-activated (AA) cementitious materials were prepared using industrial wastes, and experiments were performed on AA cementitious materials and solidified soil, including mechanical properties tests, water stability tests, and microscopic properties tests. The results indicate that the content ratio of fly ash and slag can significantly affect the properties of AA cementitious materials, and the maximum 28d compressive strength reaches 36.1 MPa. With increasing AA cementitious materials content (up to 50%) and age, both the compressive strength and tensile strength of AA solidified soil enhance. The microstructure evolution process of soil after solidification includes four stages, including mineral material dissolution, silicon aluminum diffusion, polymerization of low polymer silicon aluminum salts, and polymer soil particle cementation and hardening. The mineral raw material particles and soil particles are effectively bonded due to the adhesion between the reaction products and the mineral material, which improves the performance of the AA solidified soil. The maximum 28d compressive strength of AA solidified soil was 3.6 MPa, the maximum tensile strength was 1.05 MPa, and the maximum water stability coefficient was 0.89.

Development of a multifunctional installation of fine dispersed irrigation

The intensification of the processes of mining and processing of mineral raw materials, characteristic of the modern development of mining production, is associated with significant dust pollution of the atmospheric air. As an economical and mobile means of dust suppression, it is recommended to use the developed impulse fine-dispersed irrigation system "Ustimor". The principle of operation of the installation is based on the pulsed displacement of water from the water-air tank by the combustion products of the fuel-air mixture under high pressure (>5 MPa). Experimental and industrial tests of the installation were carried out at the tailings storage facility of PJSC "Ingulets Mining and Processing Plant". The range of the installation is on average 120-130 m. The area of the irrigated surface in one cycle of operation is from 500 m2 to 750 m2. Fine spraying was observed along the entire length of the jet flight. In one hour of operation, the installation can release from 5 to 30 tons of water into the atmosphere in the form of drizzle. The intensity of watering for one work cycle is on average 0.85 l/m2. The possibility of autonomous operation of the installation and its remote control through the SCADA system has been confirmed. The installation of pulse fine-dispersed irrigation is recommended for use as a means of spraying liquid by the method of fine-dispersed irrigation on open areas of surfaces where dust is intensively swept and suspended. It can be used for dust suppression and humidification at tailings storage facilities, warehouses of bulk materials, landfills, technological highways. The "Ustimor" installation can also be used for fine-dispersed irrigation of plantations, vineyards, gardens, etc. Irrigation of leaf cover and soil surface will lower their temperature by 7 - 10 °C in the sun and by 6 - 6.6 °C in the shade.

GENETIC FEATURES AND FLOTATION PROPERTIES OF THE PORPHYRY COPPER–GOLD ORE (MALMYZH DEPOSIT, KHABAROVSKY DISTRICT, RUSSIA)

The material composition, structural and textural features of porphyry-copper-gold ore reflect the conditions of ore formation and are of decisive importance for predicting the technological properties of ore and increasing the complexity of the use of mineral raw materials. The sequence of ore formation with three stages identified: greisen, sulfide (productive) and explosive microzones within the studied interval of the ore body is presented. Features of ore and rock-forming minerals that determine their flotation behavior and properties that hinder the selectivity of flotation were revealed. The complex composition of the studied ore was established.

REMOVAL OF CADMIUM IONS FROM AQUEOUS SOLUTIONS USING BURNT ROCK

Adsorption treatment of industrial wastewater and reservoir water from toxic metals can reduce the anthropogenic load on water bodies. The efficiency of using an adsorbent obtained on the basis of local mineral raw material, namely burnt rock from the Erunakovskoe coal deposit in the Kemerovo Region, to remove heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions is shown. The kinetics of cadmium ion extraction from aqueous solutions, the adsorption models of Freundlich, Langmuir and Dubinin-Radushkevich, and their significance for the description of heavy metal ion recovery from aqueous solutions using burnt rock were studied. The dependence of adsorption on the acidity (pH) of the medium has been established. A maximum adsorption capacity of 30 to 40 mg/g was achieved at pH 12.0. Chemical modification with alkali (NaOH) at pH 12 leads to an increase in the degree of cadmium ions extraction. Within the studied concentration range, the Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms are more consistent with the experimental data on the equilibrium adsorption of metal ions on burnt rock, compared to the Dubinin-Radushkevich model.

Specific features of preparation of natural and technogenic mineral raw materials for the manufacture of photocatalytic composite materials

Specific features of preparation of natural and technogenic mineral raw materials for the manufacture of photocatalytic composite materials

Integrated methodology to link geochemical and geophysical-lab data in a geophysical investigation of a slag heap for resource quantification

The increasing need to find alternative stocks of critical raw materials drives to revisit the residues generated during the former production of mineral and metallic raw materials. Geophysical methods contribute to the sustainable characterization of metallurgical residues inferring on their composition, zonation and volume(s) estimation. Nevertheless, more quantitative approaches are needed to link geochemical or mineralogical analyses with the geophysical data. In this contribution, we describe a methodology that integrates geochemical and geophysical laboratory measurements to interpret geophysical field data solving a classification problem. The final aim is to estimate volume(s) of different types of materials to assess the potential resource recovery. We illustrate this methodology with a slag heap composed of residues from a former iron and steel factory. First, we carried out a 3D field acquisition using electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) and induced polarization (IP), based on which, a sampling survey was designed. We conducted laboratory measurements of ERT, IP, spectral induced polarization (SIP), and X-ray fluorescence analysis, based on which, 4 groups of different chemical composition were identified. Then we carried out a 3D probabilistic classification of the field data, based on 2D kernel density estimators (for each group) fitted to the inverted data collocated with the samples. The estimated volumes based on the classification model were: 4.17 × 103 m3 ± 12 %, 1.888 × 105 m3 ± 12 %, 59.4 × 103 m3 ± 19 %, and 2.30 × 104 m3 ± 21% for the groups ordered with an increasing metallic content. The uncertainty ranges were derived from comparing the volumes with and without considering the probabilities associated to the classification. We found that a representative sampling and the definition of the KDE bandwidths are defining elements in the classification and ultimately the estimation of volumes. This methodology is suitable to quantitatively interpret geophysical data in terms of the geochemical composition of the materials, integrating uncertainties both in the classification and the estimation of volumes. Furthermore, several crucial elements in the investigation of metallurgical residues could be applied in a real case study, e.g., geophysical field acquisition, sampling and lab measurements.

Saturation Influence on Reduction of Compressive Strength for Carbonate Dimension Stone in Croatia

Dimension stone is a valuable mineral raw material whose importance is increasing worldwide. According to its mineralogical and petrographical composition, Croatian dimension stone belongs to the carbonates, primarily limestones. As saturation influences the reduction of compressive strength, in this study, the relationship between the uniaxial compressive strength in the dry and saturated states is shown, which has a coefficient of determination of 0.9605. Models were created to estimate the compressive strength based on the values of water absorption, total porosity, and real density of the material from 26 sites, all determined according to the European standards EN 1936:2006 and EN 13755:2008. Thirty varieties of dimension stones were tested, and 150 values were collected from different tests. A dependence between the uniaxial compressive strength in the saturated state was established, including the explanation in which cases the correlation can be used to estimate the uniaxial compressive strength of carbonate dimension stones with a remarkably high degree of confidence (0.994 and 0.9374). In addition, the limitations of geomechanical estimation of the uniaxial compressive strength of rock material and its unsuitability for estimating of dimension stones construction are described.

Effects of Mineral Raw Materials on Melting and Crystalline Properties of Mold Flux and Mineralogical Structures of Flux Film for Casting Peritectic Steel Slab

Effects of Mineral Raw Materials on Melting and Crystalline Properties of Mold Flux and Mineralogical Structures of Flux Film for Casting Peritectic Steel Slab