30 October 2019
In a partnership across universities, industry and government, UniSA will play an important role in the new ARC Training Centre for Complex resources – building a greener and more productive future for Australian mining.
With Adelaide and Curtin Universities, UniSA will be educating postdoctoral researchers and PhD candidates in sensing and data science as it relates to the minerals processing sector, to ensure more efficient and effective mining operations.
It has been supported with $3.7 million from the Australian Research Council and a further $8.8 million in cash and in-kind from company and university stakeholders across the mining and technology sector, including BHP, OZ Minerals, Boart Longyear, Bureau Veritas, Datanet, Eka, Roqsense, Magotteaux, Manta Controls, Maptek, MZ Minerals, Orica, Petra Data Science, Sandvik and SRA IT.
Five key staff from UniSA’s Future Industries Institute (FII) will be involved with the Centre and its goal to develop the Australian industry as one of the most environmentally advanced, efficient and productive in the world.
Foundation fellow at FFI, Dr Marta Krasowska says the goal is to increase the value in mining by developing leaner and cleaner processing capabilities.
“A major part of our role is to bring our work in advanced sensors for mineral processing into this centre, to connect with data analytics and process control. The students and researchers we train will learn how to apply cutting edge science, engineering, and mathematics to an industry that will underpin the transition to clean energy in the global economy,” Dr Krasowska says
Prof William Skinner (FII) will lead UniSA’s engagement as Deputy Director of the Training Centre and Co-CIs.
“South Australia has long been an innovator in the mining and minerals processing sector and our research success has been driven by a sector-wide goal of increasing efficiencies and output but at the same time developing practices that minimise the impact on the environment,” Prof Skinner says.
“The South Australian Universities, together with Curtin, can bring relevant R&D training outcomes across the mining value chain.
“The rapid developments in new technologies and scientific innovation in the sector we have seen in South Australia are some of the best in the world, and this new Centre will ensure that culture of sustainable and best practice innovation continues.”
He will be joined in the Centre by Prof David Lancaster from Engineering, Prof David Beattie (FII), Dr Jixue Liu (ITMS), and Dr Marta Krasowska (FII).
Hosted at the University of Adelaide under Director Prof Peter Dowd, the new training centre builds on an existing collaboration between UniSA and the University of Adelaide, through the State Government Research Consortia Program grant, Unlocking Complex Resources through Lean Processing and on previous industry links between UniSA and Magotteaux Australia through a recent Australia-China Science and Research Fund Joint Research Centre, In-line chemical and mineral sensing for sustainable mineral processing.
UniSA media contact: Michèle Nardelli phone: +61 418 823 673 or +61 8 8302 0966 email: michele.nardelli@unisa.edu.au
