The MinExTarget project’s aim to develop a new exploration tool is in its final stages. MinExTarget provides enhanced targeting capabilities for early stage mineral exploration based on secondary footprints of ore deposits preserved by heavy minerals in glacial, stream and shallow marine sediments. The project is funded by EIT RawMaterials.
Participation at the Cluster Event and FEM
The MinExTarget team was present at the SuperCluster Geoconference on October 30-31 in Rovaniemi and the following Fennoscandian Exploration and Mining conference in Levi, Finland. It was a pleasure to present the newest MinExTarget results and our service concept to an audience of seasoned professionals in the raw materials sector.
Base of Till Sampling Results – the hotBoT
Base-of-till (BoT) drilling is an established mineral exploration technique used in terrains covered by glacial deposits. In BoT drilling, the surficial glacial till is penetrated with a percussion flow-through drill bit, and a sample is collected from the base of till or top of the weathered bedrock. A typical BoT sampling campaign includes hundreds to thousands of samples of which the fine grain size fractions are analyzed for chemical composition. The coarse fractions of the BoT samples, the BoT rejects, are usually visually inspected and stored, but not further utilized.
This Autumn, we tested the MinExTarget-developed mineral separation, identification, and analysis techniques for BoT rejects with excellent results. The test samples were selected from Aurion Resources Ltd’s BoT samples, originating from the Central Lapland Greenstone Belt, by using sample sulfur content as a sulfide proxy. Significant pyrite and other sulfide minerals were acquired from nearly all samples, and pyrite trace element compositions were analyzed for the source (ore)type identification.
The MinExTarget service works perfectly as an extension to a BoT campaign, giving advanced petrogenetic information on the detected BoT geochemical anomalies. Additionally, the possibility of selecting samples using the BoT geochemistry improves the likelihood of acquiring sufficient heavy mineral grains for the MinExTarget analysis. The ability to use BoT samples as study material substantially widens the potential customer base of the MinExTarget service.
Completion of the final pilot project
In 2022-2023, a pilot study was carried out with Agnico Eagle Ltd. to validate the MinExTarget service in development. From an initial set of 112 heavy mineral samples, 23 selected samples were brought to heavy mineral separation by MinExTarget-developed methods at CRS Laboratories Oy. Our methods produced heavy mineral concentrates of very high quality, and eight of the produced concentrates were found to contain pyrite grains.
To distinguish the genetic environment producing the acquired sedimentary pyrite grains, all pyrite-bearing samples were analyzed for a suite of pyrite trace element contents and five samples were analyzed for pyrite sulfur isotopic composition. We found that the glacial till pyrite grains had trace element contents similar to orogenic gold deposits and varying sulphur isotope fingerprints. Interestingly, a distinct pyrite trace element signature of Suurikuusikko-type refractory gold was seen in some glacial till pyrite grains, and glacial till at one location had pyrite grains with extremely heavy sulfur isotope composition, potentially implying evaporitic rocks in the bedrock.
Our final meeting
The projects final online meeting and wrap-up presentations will be held online on the 15th of December.
Friday 15th December 2023 – MinExTarget Final meeting
Times given are CET
08.30 – 08.40 Introductory words – Hugh O´Brien & Juha Kaija, GTK
08.40 – 09.00 MinExTarget Academic Report – Pertti Sarala
09.00 – 09.20 MinExTarget in glaciated terrains: the Finland perspective – Paavo Nikkola, GTK
09.20 – 09.40 The MinExTarget Sample and Mineral Reference Library Database: Structure and future possibilities – David Whitehead
09.40 – 10.00 Cassiterite and scheelite in East-Greenland – Nynke Keulen & Tonny Thomsen
10.00 – 10.20 Cassiterite as a tool in exploration: case study from the Karkonosze-Izera Massif, SW Poland – Krzysztof Foltyn, Władysław Zygo, Adam Piestrzyński
10.20 – 10.35 Coffee break
10.35 – 10.55 Heavy minerals in marine sediments – Can we use them in mineral exploration of sediment-hosted Cu deposits? – Yulia Mun
10.55 – 11.15 Geochemical fingerprints of Cu deposits – Importance of the primary ore characterization – Sabina Strmic Palinkas
11.15 – 11.35 Next Steps for MinExTarget Business – Petri Ahokangas
11.35 – 11.55 Machine learning-assisted pyrite indicator mineral approach in mineral exploration – Sara Raiĉ
11.55 – 12.15 MinExTarget Oy – New services and the outlook for the future – Paavo Nikkola, Hannu Ahola, Ville Anttila
12.15 – 12.35 The MinExTarget project: Expectations and Achievements – Ferenc Molnar
12.35 – 12.50 Final Comments – Juha Kaija and Hugh O’Brien
About MinExTarget
The project is led by the Geological Survey of Finland. Members of the consortium are: Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, University of Oulu (Mining School and Business School), UiT The Arctic University of Norway, AGH University of Science and Technology, CRS Laboratories Oy, Palsatech Oy and Mawson Oy.
About EIT RawMaterials
EIT RawMaterials is developing raw materials into a major strength for Europe. Minerals, metals and advanced materials are key enablers to achieve the objectives of the European Green Deal. Our ambition is to secure a sustainable raw materials supply by driving innovation, education and entrepreneurship along the value chain. We create a collaborative environment for breakthrough innovations by connecting business with academia, research and investment. We are strengthening Europe’s industrial competitiveness, innovation capacity and human capital basis. Our company is committed to supporting Europe’s transition to a circular, green and digital economy whilst strengthening its global competitiveness. On this foundation, EIT RawMaterials has been mandated by the European Commission to lead and manage the European Raw Materials Alliance (ERMA).
EIT RawMaterials is an Innovation Community within the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), which drives innovation across Europe to find solutions to pressing global challenges.
