From an early robotic exploration, through an AI supported ore processing to the novel bioleaching remediation approaches - Geology and mining related innovations funded by EU

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Marko Komac, International Raw Materials Observatory, Vice-President of the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS)

Abstract

Europe’s transition towards clean energy, digital technologies and greater industrial resilience depends on secure access to critical raw materials (CRMs). At the same time (and when EU engages again into raw materials extraction), mining and mineral processing must become safer, more efficient and environmentally responsible, while reducing energy consumption, greenhouse-gas emissions and dependence on imported raw materials. The presentation will illustrate how EU-funded research is addressing these challenges through new technologies covering the full mineral value chain—from exploration and extraction to processing, waste recovery and environmental remediation.

The PERSEPHONE project focuses on the exploration and extraction of deeper and difficult-to-access mineral deposits. It combines smaller autonomous mining machines, advanced navigation, robotic drilling, real-time sensing and three-dimensional geological models with a data-driven digital twin of the mine. Technologies such as laser-based chemical analysis and spectral imaging allow rocks and ores to be characterised directly underground. The goal is to make deep mining more precise, efficient and safer for workers while improving the quality of information used for mining decisions.

Further, the presentation will show how similar digital approaches can support mining in particularly sensitive environments. BOREAS, for example, applies autonomous aerial and ground robots, advanced sensors and an AI-supported digital twin at the Malmbjerg molybdenum and magnesium deposit in Greenland. The technology is intended to detect and selectively remove mineral contamination, predict environmental risks such as acid rock drainage, and integrate environmental monitoring and traceability into mine operations.

Further along the value chain, the BLOOM project develops a smart modular mineral-analysis system combining Mineral Liberation Analysis with artificial intelligence. Near-real-time information about mineral composition and particle characteristics can be used to automatically optimise grinding, concentration and flotation processes, potentially reducing energy use and processing costs while making lower-grade or smaller deposits economically viable. Finally, INSOKA demonstrates how microorganisms can help recover copper and cobalt from mining waste in Zambia through low-cost bioleaching. This turns mine tailings from an environmental liability into a potential secondary source of valuable metals.

Together, these examples will present to students how novel technologies, such as robotics, artificial intelligence, digitalisation, advanced mineral processing and biotechnology are changing modern mining. Rather than viewing mining simply as extracting and processing ore, the projects demonstrate an increasingly integrated approach in which geology, engineering, computer science, environmental science and resource management are integrated to optimise mining-related processes and provide the raw materials EU society needs while reducing environmental impacts and improving safety and resource efficiency.