Mirarco, Canadian Light Source agreement focuses on greener mining

Vancouver, BC – Canadian Light Source (CLS) and Mirarco Mining Innovation’s Centre for Environmental Monitoring have formed an agreement to develop collaborative research projects with partners from the minerals industry. The agreement focuses on using synchrotron-based X-ray analytical techniques to identify the chemical forms of potentially toxic elements encountered by industry in resource extraction, processing and waste management.

Knowledge gained from such research can be used by industry to validate safety standards, satisfy regulatory requirements and develop remediation strategies.

The first project being conducted under the agreement is already underway with Vale Inco, using the CLS to determine the amounts and chemical forms of nickel and other heavy metals that are encountered in air filter particulates during mineral processing. Mirarco researchers are providing detailed mineralogical, chemical and electron optical information to assist in the interpretation of the synchrotron data.

“Mirarco prides itself in building bridges between researchers from a variety of institutions and industry,” says Steve Hall, president of Mirarco. “This collaboration will undoubtedly be of tremendous benefit, not only to us, but to the entire resource sector.”

“The Canadian Light Source is excited about the research opportunities that will come from this agreement,” says Jeffrey Cutler, CLS’s associate director of research for industrial science. “The CLS is known internationally for the pioneering work we’ve done in applying synchrotron techniques to environmental issues in the natural resources sector that can’t be answered any other way. We look forward to partnering our capabilities with Mirarco’s expertise and experience.”