GLOBAL GOLD MINING: Is technological learning overcoming the declining in ore grades?

Domínguez, Adriana; Valero, Alicia

doi:10.5890/jeam.2012.01.007

Cited by 11 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…Figure 3 shows the trends of total energy consumption as a function of the ore grade, along with the concentration energy (in GJ/t), for the different mines and commodities (Figure 3a: copper, Figure 3b: zinc, Figure 3c: gold); for clarification purposes, these figures are also represented in log-log scale (Figure 3d-f). New data from the gold mines as well as data from previous papers [41] are presented in Figure 3c. It can be observed that the general trend is that the energy consumption increases when the ore grade decreases.…”

Section: Energy Intensity Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decreasing Ore Grades in Global Metallic Mining: A Theoretical Issue or a Global Reality?

et al. 2016

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Abstract:Mining industry requires high amounts of energy to extract and process resources, including a variety of concentration and refining processes. Using energy consumption information, different sustainability issues can be addressed, such as the relationship with ore grade over the years, energy variations in electricity or fossil fuel use. A rigorous analysis and understanding of the energy intensity use in mining is the first step towards a more sustainable mining industry and, globally, better resource management. Numerous studies have focused on the energy consumption of mining projects, with analysis carried out primarily in one single country or one single region. This paper quantifies, on a global level, the relationship between ore grade and energy intensity. With the case of copper, the study has shown that the average copper ore grade is decreasing over time, while the energy consumption and the total material production in the mine increases. Analyzing only copper mines, the average ore grade has decreased approximately by 25% in just ten years. In that same period, the total energy consumption has increased at a higher rate than production (46% energy increase over 30% production increase).

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Section: Energy Intensity Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decreasing Ore Grades in Global Metallic Mining: A Theoretical Issue or a Global Reality?

et al. 2016

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“…Technological improvement that allows the exploitation of lower-grade deposits might partially offset these higher costs. However, as stated by Domínguez and Valero (2013), where historical data sets of 17 major gold producing countries were analysed, although progress in technology has been made, in most cases, energy requirements are increasing because the primary variable is the ore grade. Hence, if extractive industries continue relying on fossil fuels, it is not clear that decarbonisation will occur at the pace it is expected since this issue has not been sufficiently addressed in current energy transition scenarios.…”

Section: Raw Materials Supply Risksmentioning

confidence: 99%

Resumen y análisis crítico del informe especial de la Agencia Internacional de la Energía: El Rol de los minerales críticos en la transición hacia energías limpias

Valero

Calvo

2021

revmetal

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Este artículo hace una revisión crítica del informe de la AIE titulado El rol de los minerales críticos en la transición hacia energías limpias. El objetivo principal de este informe es identificar los minerales y metales clave que podrían generar problemas de suministro y cuellos de botella en una transición energética limpia. La AIE establece una serie de recomendaciones clave para la seguridad de los minerales, analizando la cantidad de diferentes materiales utilizados en determinadas tecnologías (coches eléctricos, energía solar fotovoltaica, eólica terrestre y marina, nuclear, carbón y gas natural). Dichas recomendaciones incluyen, entre otras, garantizar una inversión adecuada en fuentes diversificadas de nuevo suministro, el fomento de la innovación tecnológica o el almacenamiento estratégico. Este informe es un paso esencial para aumentar la concienciación sobre este tema, que hasta hace poco no había recibido la atención que merecía. Sin embargo, se queda corto en cuanto al impacto que la escasez de minerales puede tener en el desarrollo de las economías y del planeta. Por ello, analizamos el informe sección por sección y aportamos algunos comentarios adicionales sobre aspectos que podrían abordarse más a fondo para evitar sustituir la adicción a los combustibles fósiles por la dependencia de las materias primas.

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“…This way of assessing the exergy of substances, including mineral resources, has been used by different authors including Szargut et al [33,46,47], Ayres [48], or Dewulf et al [49]. Yet, as demonstrated by Domínguez et al [50], assessing minerals solely with chemical exergy disregards important aspects that make minerals valuable. As an example, the chemical exergy of precious metal gold is 60 kJ/mol, whereas that of aluminum is 796 kJ/mol.…”

Section: Research Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exergoecology Assessment of Mineral Exports from Latin America: Beyond a Tonnage Perspective

et al. 2018

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Latin America has traditionally been a raw material supplier since colonial times. In this paper, we analyze mineral exports from an exergoecology perspective from twenty countries in Latin American (LA-20). We apply material flow analysis (MFA) principles along with the concept of the exergy replacement cost (ERC), which considers both quantity and thermodynamic quality of minerals, reflecting their scarcity in the crust. ERC determines the energy that would be required to recover minerals to their original conditions in the mines once they have been totally dispersed into the Earth's crust, with prevailing technology. Using ERC has helped us identify the importance of certain traded minerals that could be overlooked in a traditional MFA based on a mass basis only. Our method has enabled us to determine mineral balance, both in mass (tonnes) and in ERC terms (Mtoe). Using indicators, both in mass and ERC, we have assessed the self-sufficiency and dependency of the region. We have also analyzed the mineral exports flows from Latin America for 2013. Results show that half of the mineral production from LA-20 was mainly exported. High-quality minerals, such as, gold, silver, and aluminum were largely exported to China and the United States. Extraction of high-quality minerals also implies higher losses of natural stock and environmental overburdens in the region.

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GLOBAL GOLD MINING: Is technological learning overcoming the declining in ore grades?

Cited by 11 publications

References 10 publications

Decreasing Ore Grades in Global Metallic Mining: A Theoretical Issue or a Global Reality?

Decreasing Ore Grades in Global Metallic Mining: A Theoretical Issue or a Global Reality?

Resumen y análisis crítico del informe especial de la Agencia Internacional de la Energía: El Rol de los minerales críticos en la transición hacia energías limpias

Exergoecology Assessment of Mineral Exports from Latin America: Beyond a Tonnage Perspective

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