Mining and minerals processing
Mining and minerals processing equipment and infrastructure are used to target sustainable outcomes through environmental research. From in-house services such as mineral sample analysis and preparation to field equipment such as UAVs and vehicles, The University of Queensland can fulfil your mining and minerals processing needs.
Comminution
Service
Comminution
Equipment
- Bond ball mill work index)
- BBMWi - Lite (CSS > 106 µm)
- Bond Rod Mill Work index
- Drop Weight Test
- DWT Ta abrasion only
- Equotip
- High Pressure Grind Rolls
- Integrated DWT/SMC Test
- Point Load Test
- Rock Breakage Tests
- Rotary Breakage Test (RBT)
- RBT Lite
- SG by He pycnometer
- SG by water immersion
- SMC Test
- Steel wheel abrasion test (SWAT)
Contact
SMI Laboratory Facilities Manager
Stephen Dickinson
Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre
(07) 3346 5883
Indooroopilly Mine Site 40 Isles Road, Indooroopilly QLD, Australia 4068
Ecosystems Research Program - Uninhabited Aerial Vehicles (UAV)
Services
Research using remote sensing technologies. Areas of UAV specialisation include using thermal and multispectral sensors at temporal and spatial sampling intensities that adequately identify changes in ecosystems, and in hydrological and landform processes over time.
Equipment
- DJI M210 quadcopter 3.0kg. Max flight time 20 minutes and approximately 10ha ground coverage per flight.
- Sensors: 20MP Zenmuse X4S RGB, Micasense multispectral sensor 5 band (RGB, RE, NIR); Zenmuse XT2 which pairs the FLIR Tau 2 thermal sensor (-40°C to 160 °C) and 4K visual camera
Contact
Associate Professor Peter Erskine
Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation
(07) 3346 4065
Sustainable Minerals Institute, Level 5, Sir James Foots Building, St Lucia campus
Environmental Research Laboratories
Services
Multidisciplinary research laboratories used primarily for running experiments and sample preparation. Limited analytical capability. Used by disciplines including:
- Soil physics and geohydrology
- Geochemistry
- Chemistry (soil, water, plant, air)
- Microbiology
- Zoology / Myrmecology
- Seed biology
- Plant physiology
- Metallophyte studies
- Ecotoxicology and human health
- Ecological engineering
Equipment
- Ion chromatograph
- ICP-AES
- XRF (portable)
- Spectrophotometer (Cary 60 UV-Vis)
- Respirometer (QBox)
- Custom plant growth chamber; Incubators and growth cabinets
- Microwave and block digesters
- Coldblock digester
- Autotitrator (Metrohm)
- Laminar flow cabinet
- Autoclave
- Dehydrating ovens
- Centrifuge
- Flow cells (columns)
- Soil water retention characterisation
- Multi-parameter water quality meters (including low-volume sensors)
- Various balances, shakers and sample mills (e.g. Retsch PM200 ball mill, Culatti Micro Hammer Mill)
- Olympus BX51 polarising microscope (on loan)
Contact
Vanessa Glenn
Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation
(07) 3346 3138
Herbarium
Services
A research support facility for plant identification, with approximately 5,000 specimens. Many specimens are of plant species related to land rehabilitation in Queensland, New South Wales and the Northern Territory, including one of the most comprehensive collections from the swamps of the Newnes Plateau / Western Blue Mountains region. The online digital herbarium is a database containing high resolution scans of over 1,200 plant specimens.
Equipment
- Leica M205A microscope (high resolution magnification (160x), digital display, image capture, live measurements, multi-focus image stacking)
- Several dissection microscopes
- Specimen digitisation system
- Plant identification library
- Plant presses for fieldwork
- Thermo XLt3-950 handheld X-ray fluorescence (XRF)
- Bruker Trace 5g handheld XRF
- Specim IQ Hyperspectral camera
- Helium cylinder with manometers
Contact
Phill McKenna
Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation
(07) 3346 3135
Centre for Mined Land Rehabilitation Herbarium, Level 5, Sir James Foots Building, St Lucia campus
Mineral Flotation
Service
Mineral flotation
Equipment
- Grind establishment (incl. 3 data points)
- Bulk rougher flotation
- Timed rougher flotation
- Rougher followed by cleaner (open circuit)
- Rougher followed by cleaner followed by recleaner (open circuit)
Contact
SMI Laboratory Facilities Manager
Stephen Dickinson
Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre
(07) 3346 5883
Indooroopilly Mine Site 40 Isles Road, Indooroopilly QLD, Australia 4068
Mineral Sample Analysis
Service
The Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre (JKMRC) is equipped with a range of analytical and sample preparation equipment for mineralogical characterisation that have applications in minerals and materials science.
Equipment
- 2 x MLA600 - FEI Quanta 600 Mk1 Scanning Electron Microsocope equipped with SiLi EDAX detectors
- 1 x MLA650 - FEI Quanta 650 Scanning Electron Microsocope equipped with a Bruker SDD detector
- 1 x Skyscan 1172 - X-ray micro tomography system
- 1 x Skyscan 1072 - X-ray micro tomography system
- 1 x Xradia Versa500M - X-ray micro tomography system
- 1 x Leica digital optical microscope
- 1 x Struers Tegrapol automated polisher
- 1 x Struers Labatom diamond saw
- 1 x JEOL carbon coater
Contact
Dr Elaine Wightman
Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre
(07) 3346 5917
Indooroopilly Mine Site, 40 Isles Road, Indooroopilly QLD, Australia 4068
Mineral Sample - preparation/cutting/crushing/grinding
Service
Sample preparation/cutting/crushing/grinding
Equipment
- Sample preparation
- Core cutting
- Bulk crushing
Contact
SMI Laboratory Facilities Manager
Stephen Dickinson
Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre
(07) 3346 5883
Indooroopilly Mine Site, 40 Isles Road, Indooroopilly QLD, Australia 4068
Mineral Sizing
Service
Mineral sizing
Equipment
- Bulk dry sizing to 3.35 mm using Gilson
- Dry sizing from -5 mm to -106 µm
- Wet sizing from -5 mm to -38 µm
- Wet pre-screen followed by dry sizing from -5 mm to - 38 µm
- Cyclosizing from -38 µm to -C5
- Malvern laser sizing
Contact
SMI Laboratory Facilities Manager
Stephen Dickinson
Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre
(07) 3346 5883
Indooroopilly Mine Site, 40 Isles Road, Indooroopilly QLD, Australia 4068
Vehicles and Field Equipment
Services
Equipment to support a wide range of environmental field work.
Equipment
- Toyota Landcruiser (205 HOY)4WD, compliant with some Australian mine site light vehicle requirements
- Toyota Landcruiser (892 FER) 4WD, non-compliant with Australian mine site light vehicle requirements
- Toyota Troopcarrier 4WD
- Portable multi-parameter water quality meters
- GPS units (Trimble Nomad, Trimble Geo with optional external antenna)
- Various small tools (cameras, clinometers, height sticks, tapes, moisture probe, augers, soil sample corers)
- Field weather stations (Hobo) and data loggers
- Tensiometers
- Rainfall simulator
Contact
Mr Vinod Nath, Research Assistant/Laboratory Technician
Sustainable Minerals Institute
(07) 3346 4018
N/A (via Sustainable Minerals Institute, Environment Centres)
- Analytical and environmental
- Biological resources
- Computation
- Crystallography
- Flow cytometry
- Genomics
- Histology
- Humanities and Business
- Hypersonics
- Imaging
- Mass Spectrometry
- Materials and Fabrication
- Microscopy
- Microwave Engineering and Photonics
- Mining and minerals processing
- Nanofabrication
- Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)
- Recombinant protein production
- Research Stations
- Spectroscopy
Get in touch
For general information about UQ's equipment and infrastructure, contact the Director, Research Infrastructure.
(07) 3443 1033