Rehabilitation strategies for metalliferous mine wastes using native metallophytes from Pb-Zn-Ag gossans, northwest Queensland. The global area covered with mine waste is in the order of 100 million hectares containing several 100,000 million tonnes of mine wastes. The long-term sustainable rehabilitation of metal mine sites is inhibited by our lack of knowledge of metal resistance and uptake by Australian native plants. This project will evaluate metallophytes naturally growing on metal-rich so ....Rehabilitation strategies for metalliferous mine wastes using native metallophytes from Pb-Zn-Ag gossans, northwest Queensland. The global area covered with mine waste is in the order of 100 million hectares containing several 100,000 million tonnes of mine wastes. The long-term sustainable rehabilitation of metal mine sites is inhibited by our lack of knowledge of metal resistance and uptake by Australian native plants. This project will evaluate metallophytes naturally growing on metal-rich soils, northwest Queensland, for their capabilities and revegetation potential when grown in mine wastes of the Cannington Ag-Pb-Zn mine. Outcomes will include practical, innovative methods of mine site rehabilitation that are low-cost and environmentally-friendly.Read moreRead less
Reverse engineering nature: metal extraction through mineral replacement. This project aims to find new methods of copper recovery from low grade copper ores, which are currently uneconomic to mine. In nature, at the top of ore deposits and just below the water-table, is a region known as the supergene zone. Here mild oxidizing reactions take place causing primary ore minerals such as chalcopyrite to be replaced by more copper-rich, less refractory minerals. These processes are driven by disso ....Reverse engineering nature: metal extraction through mineral replacement. This project aims to find new methods of copper recovery from low grade copper ores, which are currently uneconomic to mine. In nature, at the top of ore deposits and just below the water-table, is a region known as the supergene zone. Here mild oxidizing reactions take place causing primary ore minerals such as chalcopyrite to be replaced by more copper-rich, less refractory minerals. These processes are driven by dissolution re-precipitation reactions (CDR reactions) and in many CDR reactions, the reaction mechanism, rather than intensive properties such as pressure and temperature, control the nature of the products and the overall reaction process. This project will explore the mechanism and controls on these reactions to see if they can be utilized in the mining industry to economically extract copper from low grade ores.
Read moreRead less
Unravelling the rhizosphere redox-cycling of iron, sulphur and carbon in re-flooded acidic wetlands. This project will reveal how major re-flooding will influence the cycling of iron, sulphur and carbon in re-flooded acidic, freshwater wetlands. By resolving current biogeochemical uncertainties, this project will generate the necessary knowledge platform to underpin wise long-term management of these sensitive and unique landscapes.
Geochemical, physical and microbiological controls on zinc mobility and implications for bioremediation strategies in Western Tasmanian acid mine drainage. We propose to study heavy metal pollution (e.g., zinc, arsenic, iron, tin) and biogeochemical processes operating in acid mine drainage at the abandoned Mt Bischoff tin mine in Western Tasmania. The drainage waters at this site have pH values as low as 2, but contain an extensive and thriving natural biological community. We will evaluate w ....Geochemical, physical and microbiological controls on zinc mobility and implications for bioremediation strategies in Western Tasmanian acid mine drainage. We propose to study heavy metal pollution (e.g., zinc, arsenic, iron, tin) and biogeochemical processes operating in acid mine drainage at the abandoned Mt Bischoff tin mine in Western Tasmania. The drainage waters at this site have pH values as low as 2, but contain an extensive and thriving natural biological community. We will evaluate whether the natural biogeochemical processes operating at Mt Bischoff have the potential to remediate mine waters under the full gamut of climatic conditions, so as to evaluate whether the biota could be exported to other mine sites to help in ameliorating acid drainage problems.Read moreRead less
Elemental release and oxidant production from mixed coal mine dusts. The aim of this project is to understand the implications of physical and chemical characteristics of mixed coal mine dusts to their elemental release and oxidant production. The re-emergence of occupational lung diseases in recent years has revealed a major knowledge gap in the area of respirable particle reactivity. This research will examine the role between coal mine dust and their capacity to produce reactive oxygen specie ....Elemental release and oxidant production from mixed coal mine dusts. The aim of this project is to understand the implications of physical and chemical characteristics of mixed coal mine dusts to their elemental release and oxidant production. The re-emergence of occupational lung diseases in recent years has revealed a major knowledge gap in the area of respirable particle reactivity. This research will examine the role between coal mine dust and their capacity to produce reactive oxygen species, with the focus being on the role of physical and chemical properties of particles and how they transform with age. The findings will be used to develop screening protocols and develop novel monitoring / mitigation strategies for coal mine workers.Read moreRead less
Unsaturated zone functioning in a semi-arid flash flood driven climate. Groundwater is the only perennial water source in arid and semiarid zones, which encompass 1/3 of the global landmass and 70 % of Australia. We still do not fully understand how the unsaturated zone contributes to groundwater recharge in semi-arid zone floodplains. We will study the dynamics of soil moisture, and its contribution to groundwater recharge respective to hydrological regimes and weather patterns. We will measure ....Unsaturated zone functioning in a semi-arid flash flood driven climate. Groundwater is the only perennial water source in arid and semiarid zones, which encompass 1/3 of the global landmass and 70 % of Australia. We still do not fully understand how the unsaturated zone contributes to groundwater recharge in semi-arid zone floodplains. We will study the dynamics of soil moisture, and its contribution to groundwater recharge respective to hydrological regimes and weather patterns. We will measure direct responses to flood events using loggers and compare them to indirect measurements inferred from hydrochemical and isotope tracer models to better understand recharge patterns, evaporative losses, and interactions between surface runoff, floodplains, and aquifers at different positions in the landscape.Read moreRead less
Polymetallic phytoextraction applied to mine waste. Phytoextraction involves the use of hyperaccumulator plants to grow and concentrate a metal. Subsequently, the crop is harvested and the metal extracted. The aim of this research is to investigate the uptake and chemically induced uptake of heavy metals (Ni, Co, Au, Ag, Cu, Pb, Zn, Pt, Pd, Cr) by plants grown on mine tailings and mine waste materials. Outcomes will include practical methods of metal extraction that are cheap to employ where met ....Polymetallic phytoextraction applied to mine waste. Phytoextraction involves the use of hyperaccumulator plants to grow and concentrate a metal. Subsequently, the crop is harvested and the metal extracted. The aim of this research is to investigate the uptake and chemically induced uptake of heavy metals (Ni, Co, Au, Ag, Cu, Pb, Zn, Pt, Pd, Cr) by plants grown on mine tailings and mine waste materials. Outcomes will include practical methods of metal extraction that are cheap to employ where metal concentrations are subeconomic and of potential environmental impact during mining and after mine closure.Read moreRead less
Development of biosensors and bioindicators for gold exploration and processing in Australia. In times of increasing demand for gold and shrinking rates of discovery in Australia, biosensor and bioindicator techniques deliver significant advantages to the Australian mining industry and allow it to retain its international competiveness. The new understanding of the biogeochemical behaviour of gold in soils and other weathered materials developed in a previous ARC Linkage Project enables the deve ....Development of biosensors and bioindicators for gold exploration and processing in Australia. In times of increasing demand for gold and shrinking rates of discovery in Australia, biosensor and bioindicator techniques deliver significant advantages to the Australian mining industry and allow it to retain its international competiveness. The new understanding of the biogeochemical behaviour of gold in soils and other weathered materials developed in a previous ARC Linkage Project enables the development of biosensor and bioindicator technology that will allow mineral explorers to differentiate mineralised from non-mineralised zones using specific (meta) genomic community responses. The new technology will provide cost-efficient and environmentally sustainable techniques for improving exploration success and optimising ore processing.Read moreRead less