Toward a more sustainable mining future with electrokinetic in situ leaching

Evelien Martens; Henning Prommer; Riccardo Sprocati; Jing Sun; Xianwen Dai; Rich Crane; James Jamieson; Pablo Ortega Tong; Massimo Rolle; Andy Fourie

doi:10.1126/sciadv.abf9971

Toward a more sustainable mining future with electrokinetic in situ leaching

Evelien Martens, Henning Prommer, Riccardo Sprocati, Jing Sun, Xianwen Dai, Rich Crane, James Jamieson, Pablo Ortega Tong, Massimo Rolle, Andy Fourie

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

48 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Metals are currently almost exclusively extracted from their ore via physical excavation. This energy-intensive process dictates that metal mining remains among the foremost CO₂ emitters and mine waste is the single largest waste form by mass. We propose a new approach, electrokinetic in situ leaching (EK-ISL), and demonstrate its applicability for a Cu-bearing sulfidic porphyry ore. In laboratory-scale experiments, Cu recovery was rapid (up to 57 weight % after 94 days) despite low ore hydraulic conductivity (permeability = 6.1 mD; porosity = 10.6%). Multiphysics numerical model simulations confirm the feasibility of EK-ISL at the field scale. This new approach to mining is therefore poised to spearhead a new paradigm of metal recovery from currently inaccessible ore bodies with a markedly reduced environmental footprint.

Original language	English
Article number	eabf9971
Journal	Science Advances
Volume	7
Issue number	18
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abf9971
Publication status	Published - Apr 2021

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abstract = "Metals are currently almost exclusively extracted from their ore via physical excavation. This energy-intensive process dictates that metal mining remains among the foremost CO2 emitters and mine waste is the single largest waste form by mass. We propose a new approach, electrokinetic in situ leaching (EK-ISL), and demonstrate its applicability for a Cu-bearing sulfidic porphyry ore. In laboratory-scale experiments, Cu recovery was rapid (up to 57 weight % after 94 days) despite low ore hydraulic conductivity (permeability = 6.1 mD; porosity = 10.6%). Multiphysics numerical model simulations confirm the feasibility of EK-ISL at the field scale. This new approach to mining is therefore poised to spearhead a new paradigm of metal recovery from currently inaccessible ore bodies with a markedly reduced environmental footprint.",

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AU - Martens, Evelien

AU - Prommer, Henning

AU - Sprocati, Riccardo

AU - Sun, Jing

AU - Dai, Xianwen

AU - Crane, Rich

AU - Jamieson, James

AU - Ortega Tong, Pablo

AU - Rolle, Massimo

AU - Fourie, Andy

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Toward a more sustainable mining future with electrokinetic in situ leaching

Abstract

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