Future mineral processing flowsheets will combine evolutionary enhancements to familiar equipment with the next generation of technologies and processes. Discover the innovations already entering the frame and ready to make an impact.
Achieving the MissionZero Mine vision and delivering high-value productivity solutions for the flowsheets of the future is not a job FLS can do on its own. Rather, it’s a collaborative effort that includes partners from academia and other research institutions, other technology suppliers, and customers. Through these long-term partnerships, FLS delivers ground-breaking research and solutions to the market.
FLS is an active leader and investor in critical fundamental research with academic partners including AMIRA Global, the ARC Centre of Excellence for Beneficiation, the University of Newcastle in Australia, RWTH Aachen University, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresen Rossendorf (HZDR), Technological University Dresden (TUD), and Imperial College London, to highlight a few.
As part of the technology innovation cycle, FLS also partners with forward-thinking mining companies for pilot trials and early deployments. These provide critical insight into how the technology will work in real-world applications while allowing the mining company to explore new opportunities to take its process to the next level.
Trials and early deployments are designed to integrate easily into existing operations. Pilot equipment is skid-mounted for easy shipment, set-up, and commissioning at the mine site, where it can be compared side-by-side with conventional processes. This allows mineral processing plants to see how these latest developments can optimise recovery rates while reducing key inputs, such as power consumption, energy costs, plant footprint, and water consumption.
During the pilot phase, FLS works with the client to optimise the system and ensure it delivers the expected improvements. Depending on the results of the pilot phase, FLS can also assist with technology scale-up to production levels.
The commercialisation of the REFLUX Flotation Cell (RFC) technology is a recent example of this process. Achieved via an upscaling project involving several research partners and customers, the RFC revolutionises flotation recovery, delivering enhanced grade and recovery, all with a smaller plant footprint.
Beyond these operational benefits, early adopters position themselves as leaders in responsible mining at a time of increasing pressure to reduce environmental and social impact. They also gain both a critical early voice in the development of mineral flowsheets of the future and a key competitive edge over other operators.
