IM 2017 April | Page 75

AUSTRALIAN TECHNOLOGY CVL is an innovative mechanical leaching system that involves cyclical gravity discharge of a lixivant to fluidise and leach metals from ore contained within a vat by environmental experts and meteorologists with over 30 years of experience, it is an integral part of mining operations around the world for Leaching “there are in excess of 400 Mt of accumulated copper slags around the water, noise, weather and odour. EnviroSuite can identify potentially costly and damaging environmental incidents at a glance to world, with grades ranging from 0.6% to as high as 1.7% Cu, as well as significant grades of gold and silver. deliver warnings 72 hours in advance to operational teams and risk managers. “The system’s ground-breaking methods of incident Slag is costly and problematic to retreat by conventional process technology, so it tends to be indefinitely stockpiled or sold off as a construction material. new type of lixivant to leach base and precious metal ores. The lixivant is a breakthrough in this form of leaching as it is highly selective on metals taken into solution (simpler downstream extraction of metal), operates in an alkaline set of conditions (no special materials of construction), is regenerated as part of the process (low operating costs), and is completely biodegradable (environmentally benign reagent). Tim Newton and Frank Trask report in the ALTA paper The Recovery of Copper and Precious Metals from Smelter Slags by Alkali Glycine Alkali glycine leaching technology offers a new approach to retreatment of this slag. Glycine can selectively extract copper, gold and other valuable components while ignoring iron-rich gangue minerals. Metals can be recovered from leach solutions by conventional downstream methods. Glycine losses are minimised by recycling of barren liquor to the leach circuit.” clients such as BHP Billiton, Anglo American, Vale and Rio Tinto. It provides real-time monitoring and predictive risk forecasting for air, analysis based on environmental modelling make it faster to manage, investigate and even avoid complaints from the community. With a highly interactive display for real-time data management, EnviroSuite also predicts and visualises the activity of the captured substances, assisting with key operational planning decisions for utility and mining organisations.” EnviroSuite’s primary clients are mining and utility sites worldwide. The solution has been applied to mines in Australia, South America, North America and Europe. EnviroSuite has been implemented at the world's largest coal mine in Environmental risk by cloud Colombia, and the company says has received overwhelmingly positive feedback at a number of mining conferences and trade shows. Sydney-based Managing Director, Robin EnviroSuite is a cloud-based environmental risk management technology. Developed in Australia Ormerod says of EnviroSuite’s further applications in mining: “EnviroSuite is gaining