Programme

Session 1 - Mining in the Trump Era

Session 2 - Mining in the Age of Trump 2

Session 3 - Maximising your Bang for Bucks

Mineral resources are crucial to meet the immediate and forecasted needs of the Battery Revolution. This is driven by vehicle electrification, changes in energy generation and the reduction in the burning of conventional fossil fuels (oil, gas and coal) to mitigate the impacts of climate change.

The objective of this presentation is to consider the future supply of battery minerals required for critical components of batteries including for example; lithium, cobalt, nickel, cadmium, copper, manganese, tin, tantalum, vanadium, magnesium, aluminium and graphite. Mining is the most obvious source for battery minerals. However, conventional mineral exploration programmes, resources estimation, mining and mineral processing may take several years or in some cases decades. Additionally, there are huge financial investments required and high risks. Is mining alone sufficient to meet future mineral demands for batteries? An alternative source for battery minerals may be generated by the circular economy and from so called, ‘black mass’.

Black mass is the industry term for crushed and recycle batteries that comprises a mixture of metals, which potentially could provide the short-fall from conventional geological commodities. This presentation provides the observations and results for the phase characterisation of black mass on samples sourced from different streams in Australasia, China, Europe, UK and USA. These were investigated using conventional geological methodologies that include, visual examinations, binocular microscopy, automated scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectrometry (SEM-EDS), using the Advanced Mineral Identification and Characterization System (AMICS system), manual scanning electron microscopy, X-ray tomography (X-CT) and laser ablation inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS).

The results show significant heterogeneity and variability in chemistry, phases, textures, payable and penalty components. These observations permitted appropriate standard operating procedures (SOP) to be developed to ensure the samples were unbiased and aligned with the ‘Theory of Sampling’. These results also permitted assays to be completed for the trading of international black mass, to be representative of the original mass. The conclusions reached also were relevant for hydrometallurgical or pyrometallurgical treatment of the black mass and production of the refined metal commodities for trading.

Session 4 - The Importance of Technical and Commercial Communications