Cost, productivity and occupational health improvement for base metal
Project Number: P705D
Status: Active
Amira Program Manager: Brad Atkinson
Overview:
Innovation in base metals electrowinning can lead to increased throughput in tankhouses, reduced operating costs and better product quality. This project is aimed at helping the industry to achieve these outcomes. The work program focuses on improving the performance of anodes of both current and new compositions, and the quality of cathodes produced.
Commodities covered will be copper, nickel and zinc. Work will be undertaken at laboratory and pilot plant scale complete with in-plant studies. Specific areas for improvement will be reduced acid mist, improved electrode lifetime and reduced energy consumption.
Benefits from sponsoring this project include:
- Improvements to base metal electrowinning facilities through online services, innovative research and professional training
- Deliver tools for improvement of existing operations leading to a greater understanding of parameters to enable improved future technologies
- Research and operational learnings from Cu, Zn and Ni to be shared to facilitate cross-commodity adoption
- Opportunities to visit operating facilities
- Enables suppliers to present and discuss their technologies – focused on improvements, cost savings and improved efficiencies for operations