Technology
OPTIMINER introduces state‑of‑the‑art technologies to address Europe's mining challenges, enabling efficient, smart, and sustainable CRM recovery processes.
Increase in water recovery
Improved sorting accuracy
Reduction in mine waste
Higher metal extraction yields
Increase in tungsten uptake
Decrease in soil toxicity levels
Technologies
Self‑Trained Ore Sorting Mechanism
Real‑time identification and separation of magnesite from low‑grade ore streams, leveraging expertise gained from Horizon Europe projects like MASTERMINE and TERRAVISION.
Coking coal enrichment technology
A two-stage classification and crushing process to enhance coking coal recovery using sorting systems.
Bioleaching
Utilising acid-tolerant microorganisms for sulfuric acid production and microbial oxidation of ferrous iron for efficient CRM recovery.
Phytomining
A sustainable, eco-friendly technique for CRM recovery from tailings, often considered waste.
Membrane-based recovery processes for metals, water and chemicals
Shifting from energy-intensive thermal‑metallurgical processes to energy‑efficient hydrometallurgical technologies.
Increase in system uptime
Improvement in process efficiency
Improved resource utilisation
Adoption of sustainable practices
Increased accuracy in classifying anomalous detections
Production of meaningful outputs based on users' interactions
Increased proactive notification response rate
Technologies
Digital Twin with 3D Visualisation
Monitors and simulates processes for proactive optimisation. The digital twins environment will be linked with the MASTERMINE project and the METAMINE module.
PHYSICS-BASED DIGITAL TWINS AND REDUCED ORDER MODELS (ROMs)
The physical-chemical processes involved in material recovery are complex and influenced by numerous variables. Physics-based models will be used to simulate and analyse different REMINER processes, although challenges exist. To address these challenges, two techniques are proposed: (i) Reduced Order Modeling (ROM) and (ii) hybrid model generation.
AI-enabled Decision Support System
Offering advanced capabilities for monitoring, insight generation, and process optimisation.
Data-driven Digital Twins
AI-enhanced models trained on operational and historical data for deeper process insights.
Virtual miner
A conversational AI assistant providing real-time personalized information to mining stakeholders.
The OPTIMINER Digital Platform
A cloud-based orchestration platform integrating AI tools and modular technologies for a flexible digital ecosystem.
Decrease in energy consumption during production
Exploration of solar and wind energy sources in mining processes
Development of a toxicity control and management plan for each use case and recovered CRM
Improvement in performance
Development of a rigorous environmental assessment
Technologies
AI-augmented market observatory
A deep learning-based tool for short- and long-horizon market forecasting.
Life Cycle Analysis (LCA)
Detailed environmental impact assessment throughout the CRM processing life cycle.
Resource Management & Efficiency Toolkit
A framework for analysing mining by-products, waste valorisation, renewable energy integration, and overall mining sector optimisation.