Episode 7: Critical Resources

06/15/20 • 41 min

There are many different aspects of ‘critical resourcing’ that mining and geology play a part in.

For example, as we look to de-carbonize our economies, renewable energy will become even more important. Dr. Mark Coughlan, a Post Doctoral Researcher at the Irish Centre for Research in Applied Geosciences, talks about his time at sea – working on research cruises to map the subsea floor for offshore wind farms in Ireland, and the mineral resources needed to build them.

But what about storing that offshore wind energy? That’s where batteries come in. Lucy Crane, Exploration Geologist at Cornish Lithium, takes us through the importance of lithium, new technologies available in that area, and what it means to give back to your local communities.

Lastly, perhaps the most important part of resourcing is being able to staff our future geoscience industry. Nicole Tardif from Laurentian University talks us through challenges with current demands for geoscientists, and how we can provide our students with the best education going forwards.

Theme music is Confluence by East Winds. www.eastwindsmusic.com

There are many different aspects of ‘critical resourcing’ that mining and geology play a part in.

Previous Episode

Episode 6: Metals for the Future

Join us for system-scale thinking in geoscience and a view of a more sustainable world from magmatic -sulfide sources of PGEs and Ni to innovative mineral processing work and technology metals.

Steve Barnes (CSIRO) has spent a career working on magmatic sulfide deposits, leading him to some big thinking over multiple length and time scales. He talks about how his ideas were formed by key individuals and circumstances and where the multi-scale system thinking might lead us in studying other geological processes. We also talk to Steve about the supply of PGEs and what might affect the market in the future, from the impact of lower grade deposits to co-production of other base metals.

Our second story centres on the one hundred-year old process used to extract metals from sulfides – froth flotation. Kathryn Hadler from Imperial College London introduces the key concepts and then poses some important questions about what the next steps are in mineral processing. How can we address the issues of what mineral processing needs to look like in 30 or 40 years, and not just the immediate challenges?

Thinking about the future leads to a wide ranging discussion with Frances Wall, Professor at the Cambourne School of Mines - from the definition of critical metals to the more descriptive technology metals, sourcing REEs from carbonatites, life cycle assessment and how it all can come together in the circular economy, if geoscientists are involved.

For Steve Barnes lecture - check out the Ore Deposits Hub: oredepositshub.com

Technology Metals for a Green Future can be found on: futurelearn.com

Theme music is Confluence by East Winds. www.eastwindsmusic.com

Next Episode

8. Gold in the Abitibi - New System-Scale Research

The world class gold deposits in Superior Province in the Canadian Precambrian Shield are being studied with in a broad and comprehensive research program called ‘Metal Earth’ at Laurentian University. In this episode we delve into their multidisciplinary and system-scale approach to learn some of the insights coming from this innovative program.

To set up the framework we talked to Richard Goldfarb, world-renowned orogenic gold expert, who introduces the orogenic gold model and the importance of understanding this model to assist in future exploration efforts for deposits under cover.

We explored the research and ideas being generated by Metal Earth with several post-doctoral researchers and Ph.D. students. They discuss the fundamentals of gold endowment and why some regions of the Superior may be more prospective than others.

Kate Rubingh takes us into the well-endowed Larder Lake area in the Abitibi subprovince and Ben Frieman compares the Abitibi and Wabigoon subprovinces and speculates on gold endowment in the Wabigoon. David Mole discusses his post-doctoral research on craton-scale isotopic mapping and what insights can be gained regarding the location of world-class mineral deposits.

We then move from the subprovince scale down to the microanalytical scale and discuss trace element mapping and gold fingerprinting in the Swayze greenstone belt with Ph.D. candidate Evan Hastie.

All of these researchers discuss where they see exploration in the Superior in 20 years and the potential for new world-class gold discoveries coming out of the research being conducted by the Metal Earth.

Learn more about the Metal Earth program
merc.laurentian.ca/research/metal-earth

Theme music is Confluence by Eastwinds
eastwindsmusic.com

Come join us in Brisbane, Australia for SEG 2025, September 26-29th. This will be a dynamic conference with cutting edge science, new discoveries, technology and more. Opportunities for networking and learning include several workshops and field trips before and after the event, relaxed social events and of course the conference itself. See you there!