Exploration and characterization
Conventional mineral exploration techniques are often costly, time-consuming, and, in some cases, have a significant environmental footprint. That is why researchers at HIF are developing environmentally and socially responsible exploration technologies that, for example, minimize the number of drill holes required for exploration. At the same time, methods are being developed that enable rapid and comprehensive mapping of drill cores, extracting as much information as possible from each raw material sample. Using the information obtained, researchers create geometallurgical models to assess the raw material potential of deposits and estimate the efficiency of processing and extraction processes.
This extensive knowledge of exploration and characterization is also applied to complex streams of secondary raw materials. Analytical techniques, multisensor systems, and data processing methods help in the rapid and efficient identification of complex raw materials.
Research topics
Method and sensor development
Through method and sensor development, we enable rapid and accurate raw materials’ exploration and characterization. Our research covers the following topics:
- Mineral mapping
- Remote sensing with autonomous platforms
- Optimized materials characterization
- 3D Computer-Tomography
- Real-time resource characterization
Data integration
How to make use of the vast data collected during exploration and characterization is being investigated in the topics:
Applications and transfer
With all our workflows being open-source and our datasets published as open benchmark data, we encourage the dissemination and collaborative development in the wider research community. Through industry cooperation and case studies, we transfer our extensive knowledge, novel methods and tools into practice as for example in:
- the Silver City project in cooperation with Excellon Resources
- the Car2Car project in cooperation with partners from the automotive and recycling sector
Through our spin-offs companies, we demonstrate a successful transfer of our extensive knowledge from science to industry:
