Fluctuating commodity prices in today’s volatile economic landscape demand that the mining industry find innovative and sophisticated ways to optimize throughput and reduce costs. Traditional testing methods are time consuming and costly, offering limited testing opportunity and thereby leaving the operation vulnerable to potentially high risks of out-of-spec product and waste from over or under processing.

The ability to more accurately determine the concentration of metallurgical and mineralogical properties of ore and precious metals prior to chemical treatment is vital to optimizing extraction process efficiency. Ore properties such as acid consumption, abundance of swelling clays, and production of fines are important for maximizing heap leach operations. Real-time feedback of mineral concentration levels can help operators at a copper heap leach operation immediately optimize the agglomeration process by matching acid and water addition to the acid consumption, total clay and swelling clay abundance in the ore entering the agglomerator. Knowledge of the presence and amount of problem gangue minerals such as talc allows for improving the flotation process, as well as for making blending decisions or determination of ore grade.

Near infrared (NIR) technology is an environmentally friendly analytical method which has been used for many years for testing and modeling in natural resource materials studies. ASD’s measurement solutions provide state-of-the-art NIR technology ideally suited to real-time analysis of the composition and quality of large volumes of samples per day. ASD’s systems analyze a wide range of sample sizes including feeds, from raw drill chips to metallurgical pulps, all requiring little or no sample preparation. ASD’s systems provide multiple configurations, including field-portable, benchtop, and online options, allowing for streamlined analyses at any number of sites and facilities. ASD’s mineral analysis equipment can determine a wide variety of metallurgical and mineralogical properties, including:

• Abundances of iron (and other transition element) oxides and hydroxides
• Rare Earth Element (REE) minerals
• Total swelling clays
• Detailed clay mineralogy
• Micas
• Carbonates
• Sulfates
• Acid consumption

 ASD analyzers offer several key advantages to the modern production line:

• Real-time sample analysis
• Non-contact, non destructive analysis
• Real-time feedback that moves at the pace of your production line
• Continuous feedforward or feedback data
• Easy integration with your site’s information and control systems
• Energy efficient and environmentally friendly

Experience the power of increased efficiency, improved quality, and higher profitability with ASD!