800 kW torque up to
100 kNm ratios range
10- 31.5
AUSTRALIAN METS
lithium sector, and particularly spodumene miners.
Back in February, Beal reported to IM that the company had partnered with“ a major group” and CSIRO on the development of a detection system tuned specifically to spodumene. By this point, NextOre and CSIRO had completed a series of lab tests with a“ large conveyor-style, lab-based prototype, with the next stage being a full-scale industrial system”, with NextOre nearing the point of industrialising and commercialising the system.
Speaking in early-September, Mayer said:“ We now know that the system can sense accurately and it’ s able to sense very quickly – quickly enough that the data can be acted on. We’ re in the process of defining that a bit further in conversation with a lot of household spodumene mining company names, especially here in Australia.”
This is an interesting market proposition considering many of the spodumene miners are already using ore sensing and sorting solutions at a particle scale in an attempt to remove deleterious elements from the run of mine feed. Should NextOre make a breakthrough, there could potentially be operations featuring both bulk and particle sorting streams.
At the same time as this, NextOre is working with a precious metals miner whose metal is“ intricately tied” to pyrrhotite, where
MR sensors may allow the company in question to use the pyrrhotite readings as a proxy for the payable metal grade, Mayer said. Such data could be used to improve recoveries – upstream – and amend mining patterns – downstream.
“ We’ re also investigating the potential for sensing and providing data on magnetite,” he added.
This isn’ t the first time the NextOre name has been associated with iron ore and, specifically, magnetite. All the way back in 2020, Magnetite Mines entered into an agreement with NextOre to supply a mobile bulk ore sorting plant using a MR sensor for a trial of the technology at the Razorback iron ore project, in South Australia.
From online measurement to operating value
Mining companies are increasingly expecting online analysers to do more than generate another trend on a control-room screen, according to Adelaide-based Scantech International, with the measurement needing to provide enough warning for the operation to act before value is lost. With more than 1,400 analyser installations across over 80 countries, Scantech’ s current work is focused on combining continuous elemental, moisture and particle-size information to answer three operational questions: What material
is moving? How is it changing? What should the operation do about it?
At the mine-to-plant interface, GEOSCAN-M and GEOSCAN GOLD analyse the conveyed material stream rather than relying solely on intermittent samples.“ Laboratory analysis remains essential for calibration and verification, but continuous measurement provides the coverage and speed needed for grade reconciliation, material classification, stockpile management and blending control,” the company explained.
At several copper, nickel and platinum group metal operations, Scantech analyser data is assigned to short parcels of conveyed material, with results available as frequently as every 30 seconds. The results can be used to control diverters and separate waste or lower-grade parcels from plant feed, the company claimed.
The value begins before the material reaches the process plant. Avoiding the unnecessary milling of waste or marginal material can reduce energy, water and reagent consumption, lower tailings production and release processing capacity for higher-value ore.
“ Where all material proceeds to the plant, the same information can support feedforward control,” Scantech said.“ Changes in elemental composition can indicate changing ore domains, gangue mineralogy,
Reliable Drives for Flotation Cells
Extended Maintenance Intervals
High External Load Capacity
Built-in Oil Filtration
Dry Well, Grease- Lubricated Lower Bearing
Low Operating Oil Temperatures power up to
800 kW torque up to
100 kNm ratios range
10- 31.5
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