Sheffield Forgemasters regains ASME accreditation

19 April 2024

The UK's Sheffield Forgemasters has been awarded accreditation by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) as a supplier of heavy forgings and castings to the civil nuclear market. The company originally gained ASME accreditation as a Nuclear Material Organisation in 1992, but that had lapsed, with the lack of nuclear new-build in the following years.

(Image: Sheffield Forgemasters)

The company's nuclear qualification came after an ASME Section III Division I NCA 3300 (NCA 3800), NCA 4000 and NQA-1 Code survey and audit recommended it for Material Organisation (MO), and welding (NPT) accreditations. ASME MO and NPT status means it can supply castings and forgings (material) for civil nuclear applications and also be qualified to carry out weld construction activities on these materials.

As well as being the sole UK supplier of large, nuclear-grade forgings and castings, Sheffield Forgemasters' MO and NPT status now makes it one of the only UK companies qualified for fabrication of the main components within a civil nuclear power plant.

The company said that, following the accreditation, it "will now continue its work to advance manufacturing technologies for the next generation of small modular reactor (SMR) civil nuclear power plants". It added that its status as the only company in the UK capable of manufacturing reactor vessel components for SMRs, coupled with its ASME status, make it "a crucial capability in delivery of this advanced power-generation technology".

"We undertook the ASME audit in November and have now received confirmation that the audit recommendation has been approved by the committee," Sheffield Forgemasters Group Technical Director Ian Nicholls said. "The accreditation is a huge development with heightened requirements and protocols embracing all our processes, employees and selected sub-suppliers.

"The ASME accreditation, coupled with our development of Electron Beam Welding for large diameter, nuclear-grade vessels, places Sheffield Forgemasters at the pinnacle of development for SMRs and presents significant possibilities for the UK's domestic nuclear new-build programme."

In February, Sheffield Forgemasters announced it had completed weld-assembly of a full-sized SMR nuclear vessel demonstrator assembly using Local Electron-Beam Welding (LEBW). It said the technique took less than 24 hours to complete four, thick, nuclear-grade welds, typically requiring a year of work to complete.

The company has signed memorandums of understanding with a number of SMR developers in the UK, including Rolls-Royce SMR, NuScale, GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy, Holtec Britain and X-energy.

Second tier of containment installed for BREST-OD-300

19 April 2024

The 184-tonnes tier - the second of three - has been lifted into place for the lead-cooled fast neutron reactor under construction at the Siberian Chemical Combine site in Russia.

(Image: SCC)

The steel reactor base plate and lower tier of the containment were installed at the turn of the year, the third enlarged unit is planned to be installed in the reactor shaft in December 2024. The final height of the structure will be 17 metres.

According to ​Rosatom: "The containment structure is the outer part of the reactor vessel. It provides retention of heat-insulating concrete, forming an additional localising barrier of protection, which surrounds the boundary of the coolant circuit. On its surface, the temperature should not exceed 60 degrees Celsius, and the radiation background is actually equal to the natural background."

The BREST-OD-300 fast reactor is part of Rosatom's Proryv, or Breakthrough, project to enable a closed nuclear fuel cycle. The 300 MWe unit will be the main facility of the Pilot Demonstration Energy Complex at the Siberian Chemical Combine site. The complex will demonstrate an on-site closed nuclear fuel cycle with a facility for the fabrication/re-fabrication of mixed uranium-plutonium nitride nuclear fuel, as well as a used fuel reprocessing facility.

(Image: SCC)

Last week, Russian nuclear regulator Rostechnadzor issued a licence which will allow the production of mock-ups of fuel assemblies with depleted uranium for the BREST-OD-300 reactor. The fuel fabrication/refabrication unit is the first of the PDEC facilities to be commissioned, with all the works scheduled to be completed by the end of 2024. TVEL said that "at the next stage, after obtaining the appropriate permission from Rostechnadzor to handle plutonium" the equipment will be used to directly produce fuel developed for the reactor - a mixed dense nitride uranium-plutonium fuel (MNUP) based on depleted uranium - a by-product of uranium enrichment for nuclear reactors - and plutonium extracted from irradiated nuclear fuel.

The target for the BREST-OD-300 reactor is to start operation in 2026.

According to the World Nuclear Association information paper on fast neutron reactors, "the BREST fast neutron reactor, of 700 MWt, 300 MWe has lead as the primary coolant, at 540°C, and supercritical steam generators. It is inherently safe and uses a mixed uranium and plutonium nitride fuel... no weapons-grade plutonium can be produced, since there is no uranium blanket - all the breeding occurs in the core ... fuel cycle is quoted at 5-6 years with partial refuelling at about 10 months. The initial cores can comprise plutonium and used fuel - hence loaded with fission products, and radiologically 'hot'. Subsequently, any surplus plutonium, which is not in pure form, can be used as the cores of new reactors. Used fuel can be recycled indefinitely, with onsite facilities. The nitride fuel has been successfully tested in the BN-600 reactor to a burn-up of 7.4%".

Initial operation of the demonstration unit will be focused on performance and after 10 years or so it will be commercially oriented. The plan has been that if it is successful as a 300 MWe unit, a 1200 MWe (2800 MWt) version will follow - the BR-1200.

Production to begin of innovative fuel for German research reactor

19 April 2024

France's Framatome and Germany's Technical University of Munich (TUM) have agreed to establish the industrialisation process for the manufacture of monolithic molybdenum-uranium (U-Mo) fuel for the university's FRM II research reactor. Framatome noted this low-enriched fuel will benefit from the highest uranium fuel density ever realised in Europe for research reactor operations.

The signing of the agreement (Image: Christoph Kreileder, FRM II / TUM)

The 20 MWt FRM II, operating since 2005, is one of the most effective and modern sources of high-flux neutrons in the world. The reactor is not used to generate electricity, but to provide a neutron source for industrial and scientific use. Its neutrons are also used to produce medical radioisotopes and for the doping of high-purity silicon for the semiconductor industry, and the reactor has a facility for teletherapy of malignant tumours using fast neutrons.

TUM's FRM II research reactor (Image: B Ludewig / Framatome)

However, FRM II currently uses fuel enriched to over 95% uranium-235 to generate its dense neutron flux - and such high-enriched uranium (HEU) is seen as a nuclear proliferation risk. TUM has agreed with the German government and the Bavarian State - who finance the reactor - to work towards converting it to fuel with lower enrichments when a suitable fuel is available. This is also a condition of the reactor's operating licence, which was issued in 2003.

Monolithic U-Mo is the only fuel which can enable the reactor to perform as intended while using a low enrichment of less than 20% uranium-235, according to TUM. This is possible due to the high uranium density in the fuel, Framatome said.

In 2019, TUM contracted Framatome to develop the U-Mo foils manufacturing technique to support the existing technology of embedded foils in a cladding of aluminum. The first U-Mo foils were successfully manufactured in 2022 at Framatome's CERCA Research and Innovation Laboratory (CRIL) at Romans-sur-Isère in France. Inaugurated in 2019, CRIL is dedicated to developing uranium-based fuel for international research in physics and nuclear medicine.

CRIL, in cooperation with TUM, developed the key steps of the manufacturing process for a high-quality U-Mo fuel, including the manufacturing of small-scale prototypes, established a qualification procedure, and installed a pilot line in its research facility in Romans.

Irradiation of the first monolithic U-Mo fuel plate prototype is scheduled for late 2024.

"We have been working on this project since 2019 and we are proud to celebrate this important milestone with our client," said François Gauché, Vice-President of CERCA. "Our teams rose to the challenge of developing a high-tech fuel to meet the needs of research reactors and ensure their sustainability. We are now ready to take this to the next level and manufacture this innovative fuel."

"FRM II and Framatome have been working since 2019 to set up a European production line for monolithic U-Mo fuel," added Christian Pfleiderer, scientific director of the FRM II. "The hard work of our teams has paid off. This new fuel is the guarantee for a reliable and sustainable supply of neutrons for research and innovation."

Super module installed at first Lianjiang unit

18 April 2024

The CA01 'super module' has been installed at unit 1 of the Lianjiang nuclear power plant in China's Guangdong province, the Shanghai Nuclear Engineering Research and Design Institute (SNERDI) announced. It is the first of two CAP1000 reactors planned for the first phase of the plant.

The CA01 module is hoisted into place (Image: SNERDI)

Weighing 1066 tonnes and measuring more than 27 metres long, 29 metres wide and 24 metres high, the concrete and steel CA01 module - composed of 47 sub-modules - sits inside the unit's containment module where it will house the plant's reactor pressure vessel, steam generators and other components. It is referred to as a super module because it is too large to be transported by road and rail, and was constructed on site.

The module was hoisted into place at Lianjiang 1 on 13 April in a process lasting 3 hours and 18 minutes.

The module in place within the containment building (Image: SNERDI)

The CAP1000 reactor design - the Chinese version of the AP1000 - uses modular construction techniques, enabling large structural modules to be built at factories and then installed at the site.

The largest and heaviest module - the cuboid-shaped CA20 - was installed at Lianjiang 1 in November.

The construction of the first two 1250 MWe CAP1000 reactors at the Lianjiang site was approved by China's State Council in September 2022. Excavation works for the units began in the same month, with the pouring of first concrete for the foundation of unit 1 completed at the end of September last year. Lianjiang unit 1 is expected to be completed and put into operation in 2028.

Once all six CAP1000 units at the site are completed, the annual power generation will be about 70.2 TWh, which will reduce standard coal consumption by more than 20 million tonnes, and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 52 million tonnes, sulphur dioxide by about 171,000 tonnes and nitrogen oxides by about 149,000 tonnes.

State Power Investment Corp says the Lianjiang plant will be the first nuclear power project in China to adopt seawater secondary circulation cooling technology as well as the first to use a super-large cooling tower.

Framatome, KHNP to cooperate on medical isotope production

18 April 2024

Framatome and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) are to assess the feasibility of producing medical isotope lutetium-177 in the Candu pressurised heavy water reactors at the Wolsong nuclear power plant in South Korea.

The signing of the MoU (Image: KHNP)

Under a memorandum of understanding signed in Paris on 17 April, Framatome and KHNP will jointly perform a technical assessment at the plant using Framatome's isotope production technology. This technology has been successfully implemented on a commercial production level at the Bruce nuclear power plant in Ontario, Canada.

Lutetium-177 is a beta-emitting radioisotope used in targeted radionuclide therapy to treat prostate cancer by destroying cancer cells while leaving healthy cells unaffected.

"Framatome has been working with KHNP for decades to support the safe, reliable and sustainable operation of its nuclear fleet," said Catherine Cornand, Senior Executive Vice President of the Installed Base business unit at Framatome. "We are actively engaged in supporting the long-term operation of the Hanul 1 and 2 units for which Framatome is the Original Equipment Manufacturer. I am very happy to extend our cooperation through this new initiative at the Wolsong nuclear plant."

The Wolsong plant (Image: KHNP)

"We anticipate that commercial nuclear reactors will have an increasing role to play to backup and complement research reactors in the production of cancer-fighting radioisotopes," François Gauché, Director of Framatome Healthcare, said. "This cooperation will support the future supply chain readiness to make lutetium-177 treatments massively accessible across the world."

"With this initiative, KHNP stays consistent with its social responsibility commitment, by supporting the development of modern nuclear medicine treatments in South Korea while continuing its contribution to stable energy supply and carbon neutrality," said Chang Hee-Seung, Executive Vice-President, Quality and Technology Division at KHNP.

"We expect nuclear power to become a positive example of not only producing electricity but contributing to people's health and welfare," said KHNP CEO Hwang Joo-ho. "We will do our best to promote the project so that it can provide hope to many people fighting cancer."

In November last year, Framatome signed a similar cooperation agreement with Romania's Nuclearelectrica on exploring the production of the lutetium-177 at the Cernavoda nuclear power plant.

Framatome Healthcare, through its Isogen joint venture with Canada's Kinectrics, was involved in an international collaboration with Bruce Power and ITM Isotope Technologies Munic SE to produce lutetium-177 from a commercial nuclear power reactor for the first time in October in 2022 at Bruce unit 7. Like Wolsong and Cernavoda, Bruce 7 is a Candu pressurised heavy water reactor.

Constellation applies to renew Dresden licence

17 April 2024

US utility Constellation Energy Corporation has submitted a subsequent licence renewal application with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for its two-unit Dresden nuclear power plant in Illinois. The plant's operating licence was first renewed by the NRC in 2004.

Dresden (Image: Constellation)

Filing the licence renewal application with the NRC kicks off a comprehensive, multi-year regulatory review process which will proceed along two tracks, one for the review of safety issues and another for environmental issues. The process involves site inspections, environmental reviews and public participation.

US reactors are initially licensed for up to 40 years of operation. The Dresden units - two boiling water reactors (BWRs) which began commercial operation in 1970 (unit 2) and 1971 (unit 3) - have previously received a first licence renewal from the NRC and are currently licensed to operate until 2029 and 2031, respectively. With the subsequent licence renewal, the units could operate until 2049 and 2051.

The Dresden units had been slated for early permanent closure in November 2021 had Illinois not passed policy reforms to support their continued operation.

Illinois in September 2021 passed legislation recognising the zero-carbon benefits of nuclear, and the plants both receive credits under Illinois state laws that prevented their early retirement and preserved the clean energy they provide, Constellation said. In addition, the federal Inflation Reduction Act which was passed the following year will also help support continued operation of the US nuclear fleet for at least nine years.

Constellation President and CEO Joe Dominguez said: "Extending the operating licences of the nation's nuclear fleet for an additional 20 years will add more clean megawatts to the grid than all the renewables ever built in this country, and those nuclear plants will continue operating long after the wind and solar facilities under construction today are retired.

"Nuclear produces half of America's clean energy, but many still take it for granted and wrongly assume it will always be there. In reality, Constellation reinvests hundreds of millions of dollars each year in its industry-leading nuclear fleet to keep these massive economic engines running, providing thousands of family-sustaining jobs, preserving energy security and delivering the unmatched reliability we need to grow our economy while addressing the climate crisis."

In February, the company applied for a 20-year licence renewal for its Clinton nuclear power plant, also in Illinois. This would be this first licence renewal for the single-unit BWR unit, which entered commercial operation in 1987 and is currently licensed to operate until April 2027.

Researched and written by World Nuclear News

 

IAEA's Grossi explains why blame is not being attributed for Zaporizhzhia attacks

19 April 2024

With a third report of a drone attack in two weeks around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant area, International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi has urged restraint from all sides - and explained why the agency has not pointed the finger of blame for the incidents.

The IAEA's Grossi addressing the UN Security Council (Image: UN Photo/Loey Felipe)

The six-unit nuclear power plant has been under Russian military control since early March 2022 and is on the frontline of Ukrainian and Russian forces. It has had IAEA experts stationed at the site since September 2022 and the United Nations Security Council has backed Grossi's five key safety and security principles, including that no-one should store heavy military equipment at, or fire weapons from, a nuclear power plant, and no-one should fire at a nuclear power plant.

The Russian operators reported to the IAEA team at the plant that an attempted drone attack on the nuclear power plant's training centre had been "neutralised" on Thursday. The IAEA said its experts did not get access to the training centre, which is just outside the nuclear power plant site's perimeter to assess the incident.

Grossi said that the drone attack, if confirmed, would be the third in less than two weeks, saying: "It would be an extremely worrying development. Whoever is behind these incidents, they appear to be ignoring the international community’s repeated calls for maximum military restraint to avert the very real threat of a serious nuclear accident, which could have significant health and environmental consequences and benefit absolutely no one.

"So far, the drone strikes have not compromised nuclear safety at the site. But, as I told the United Nations Security Council a few days ago, these reckless attacks must cease immediately."

Following that address to the United Nations Security Council on Monday, Grossi was asked at a press conference why he did not say who he thought was responsible for the incidents.

He said: "You raise a very important point and it's a point that everybody is talking about, this issue of attribution and pointing a finger and saying 'it's this country or that country'. We are not commentators. We are not political speculators or analysts, we are an international agency of inspectors. And in order to say something like that, we must have proof, indisputable evidence, that an attack, or remnants of ammunition or any other weapon, is coming from a certain place. And in this case it is simply impossible."

He said that the recent attacks had been carried out by drones, which have a diverse range of trajectories and can hover and circle, and can be easily obtained: "Remember this plant is at the front line, it can go to the Russian occupied territory, it can come from different places. It could be manned from one side and belong to another side. So for us, it would be impossible ... to say it is, indisputably something coming from here, or from there. This is why we keep the information as accurate as we can. And we do not trade into speculating."

In response to a question which used the analogy of a yellow card and red card system such as that used in football and asked if he was ready to use them, he replied: "I have the red card, I have the yellow card, I have them ready in my hands. The thing, the most important thing, is that they see that the referee is there on the pitch."

Grossi said that if there was definitive proof "the IAEA would not be in the business of hiding anything ... if we have evidence of something, we do not have a problem in reporting, but we have to be extremely measured in what we do".

He also warned that in a war "there are sometimes operations leading the observer to believe that something is happening in a certain sense, while it is happening in a different sense, intelligence operations, and many other things. And the voice of the IAEA is very important, the credibility of the IAEA ... must be preserved. I am the guardian of this institution and I have to measure the words, so that when we put something on the public domain, it's something that is concrete and proven."

In a statement issued on Thursday, Grossi said that the 18th rotation of IAEA experts at Zaporizhzhia NPP had taken place on Tuesday, reaffirming his view that their presence was helping to reduce the changes of a nuclear accident.

In these extremely difficult and challenging times, I’m very encouraged by the strong support and unanimous appreciation of the IAEA’s important work expressed by the members of the Security Council. Everybody agrees that the IAEA’s role is indispensable as we do everything in our power to keep the plant safe and secure," he said.

I sincerely hope that our calls for maximum military restraint - both at the IAEA Board of Governors and the United Nations Security Council - will be heeded before it is too late. The dangers facing the plant have not gone away ... as we saw on 7 April, the situation can take a sudden and dramatic turn for the worse at any time."

He reported that the IAEA experts at the site had heard several rounds of outgoing artillery fire early in the week "as has been an almost daily occurrence in recent weeks and months". IAEA teams stationed at Ukraine's other nuclear power plants - Khelmitsky, Rivne and South Ukraine - as well as the Chernobyl site report that nuclear safety and security is being maintained despite the effects of the ongoing conflict "including air raid alarms on most days over the past week".

Researched and written by World Nuclear News

 

Geothermal Energy: A Win-Win for Democrats and Republicans?

By Haley Zaremba - Apr 18, 2024

• Geothermal energy has the potential to provide significant clean energy, but currently accounts for only a small portion of the global energy mix.
• 
  
• Enhanced geothermal systems and deep-drilling technologies are making geothermal energy more cost-effective and accessible.
• 
  
• Political divisions in the United States may hinder the rapid development of geothermal energy, despite its potential as a bipartisan solution to climate change.
• 
  

Geothermal energy is at the precipice of a major breakthrough in the United States. As technology rapidly advances, it’s seeming more possible than ever that the once niche energy production method could soon scale up for mass deployment in nearly any environment. Pilot projects are taking off across the country as federal funding rolls in for research and development of these new methods, but the future of geothermal remains mired in political uncertainty. While it currently enjoys bipartisan support, many pundits worry that a lack of cooperation could lead to geothermal’s demise before it even has a chance to get started at a commercial level.

Currently, geothermal energy accounts for just a tiny sliver of the world’s overall energy mix, representing just 0.5% of renewable energy globally. This is because traditional methods of geothermal energy production only take advantage of unusual geologic locations where heat from the Earth’s core bubbles up to the surface and is readily accessed, such as geysers or hot springs. But the Earth’s heat can be accessed from anywhere on Earth if you’re willing to dig for it. 

The issue, of course, is profitability. “To grow as a national solution, geothermal must overcome significant technical and non-technical barriers in order to reduce cost and risk,” says the introduction to a 2019 U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) report — GeoVision: Harnessing the Heat Beneath Our Feet. “The subsurface exploration required for geothermal energy is foremost among these barriers, given the expense, complexity, and risk of such activities.” 

Drilling deep enough to access sufficient heat to run a power plant is no small feat. But experimental ‘enhanced geothermal energy systems’ have made incredible leaps and bounds in recent years by adopting deep-drilling technologies from the fossil fuel industry, among other novel approaches. Using hydraulic fracking technology has been a major boon to the emerging sector’s bottom line, and investors are eagerly funding research into whether nuclear fusion could provide the next big geothermal tech breakthrough. 

The Biden Administration is particularly bullish about geothermal’s potential to contribute to the country’s decarbonization goals as a reliable baseload energy with zero carbon emissions. As such, the feds have introduced a sweeping initiative to speed up the development of enhanced geothermal systems (ESG). A 2019 Department of Energy report projected that if ESG progresses as planned, geothermal power could represent around 60 gigawatts of installed capacity in the United States by 2050 and 8.5 percent of the nation’s electricity – more than 20 times higher than current levels. 

There’s only one problem: politics. Currently, geothermal enjoys relatively bipartisan support, but there is some cause for concern that that spirit of cooperation won’t last, or won’t be strong enough to push geothermal investment forward quickly or intensely enough to make a dent in the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. “While [geothermal energy] has begun to attract significant investment from oil companies and the Biden administration, political and ideological divisions are fueling tensions between its supporters,” The Hill recently reported.

In theory, geothermal energy is a win-win for everyone, on both sides of the aisle. The Democrats get forward movement on expanded and diversified clean energy deployment, and the Republicans get a novel form of energy production that stands to enormously benefit the fossil fuels industry and its considerable workforce that risks being orphaned by the clean energy transition. As geothermal energy tech fits perfectly with existing fossil fuel extraction methods, the oil and gas industry has a huge leg up on existing infrastructure and a trained workforce that could easily transition to geothermal production without skipping a beat. 

The only problem with a win-win solution in the United States is that neither party wants to see the other one win, regardless of their own benefit. And with the upcoming elections, a politicized geothermal strategy could soon be dead in the water. According to Jamie Beard, the head pro-geothermal nonprofit Project InnerSpace, the geothermal industry and its supporters have to do “some really fast, really hard work to figure out how to agree on a path — so geothermal doesn’t get stuck in lawsuits and friction and fail to launch, and we, you know, burn up the planet.”

By Haley Zaremba for Oilprice.com 

Valero, Chevron Tap Trans Mountain Pipeline for West Coast Crude

By Julianne Geiger - Apr 19, 2024, 

Valero Energy Corp. and Chevron Corp. have entered the fray of buyers for oil traversing Canada's expanded Trans Mountain Pipeline system, signaling a potential shift in the West Coast's oil-sourcing landscape.

Anonymous Bloomberg sources revealed on Friday that these refineries in California are set to receive cargoes of Cold Lake crude, a heavy grade from Canada's oil sands, loaded onto Aframax tankers out of the Westridge Terminal near Vancouver last June. This development marks the first sales off the expanded pipeline to Western US refiners, following earlier transactions with Asian buyers Sinopec Group and Sinochem Group.

The expanded Trans Mountain Pipeline, slated to commence commercial operations on May 1, has faced a litany of hurdles, including construction delays, cost overruns, and regulatory challenges. Despite yet-to-be-obtained approvals from the Canadian Energy Regulator, the pipeline's capacity is set to nearly triple to 890,000 bpd, catering to a growing demand for oil transport from Alberta to Canada's Pacific Coast. This expansion, originally valued at $33 billion, ballooned to $53 billion, reflecting the complexities and uncertainties of large-scale energy infrastructure projects.

While the pipeline expansion promises to open up international markets for Canadian oil producers, tensions have simmered between environmentalists and stakeholders advocating for increased pipeline capacity. The project's approval sparked protests and political divisions, ultimately prompting the Canadian federal government's intervention to ensure its realization. However, analysts caution that despite the expanded capacity, rising oil production, particularly from the oil sands, may swiftly fill the available pipeline space, underscoring ongoing challenges in balancing energy demand, environmental concerns, and market dynamics.

Back in February, when Trans Mountain first began filling the expanded pipeline, Canadian crude oil prices jumped to the narrowest discount to WTI since August 2023, eating into what once was cheap Canadian crude oil for U.S. refiners.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

Dry Andes more sensitive to lithium mining than previously thought – study

US-based researchers conducted the widest-ever hydrological tracer analysis of the Dry Andes region in Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia 

By Mining.com Staff April 8, 2024 

Water in the Andes. Credit: David Boutt, University of Massachusetts Amherst

US-based researchers conducted the widest-ever hydrological tracer analysis of the Dry Andes region in Chile, Argentina, and Bolivia and found that the area is more sensitive than previously thought to activities such as mining, which may disrupt the presence, composition and flow of both surface and subsurface water.

In a paper published in the journal PLOS Water, the team explains that until now there has been no reliable, comprehensive understanding of exactly how the hydrological systems in extremely arid landscapes work, which means that environmental regulators don't have the information they need to best manage the mining industry and the transition to more environmentally sustainable future.

“We've been thinking about water all wrong,” Brendan Moran, the paper's lead author and a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, said in a media statement. “We typically assume that water is water, and manage all water the same way, but our research shows that there are actually two very distinct pieces of the water budget in the Dry Andes, and they respond very differently to environmental change and human usage.”

Water is crucial for lithium mining, which isn't often found in solid form and tends to occur in layers of volcanic ash—but it reacts quickly with water. When rain or snowmelt moves through the ash layers, lithium leaches into the groundwater, moving downhill until it settles in a flat basin where it remains in solution as a briny mix of water and lithium.

Because this brine is very dense, it often settles beneath pockets of fresh surface water, which float on top of the lithium-rich fluid below. These fresh and brackish lagoons and wetlands often become havens for unique and fragile ecosystems and iconic species such as flamingos, and they are also composed of different kinds of water. Thus, Moran and his co-authors developed a method to differentiate types of water apart.

The technique allows researchers to determine how old any given sample of water is and trace its interaction with the landscape by using 3H, or tritium, and the ratio between the oxygen isotope 18O and the hydrogen isotope 2H. Tritium occurs naturally in rainwater and decays at a predictable rate.

“This lets us get the relative age of the water,” Moran said. “Is it 'old,' as in, did it fall a century or more ago, or is it 'contemporary' water that fell a few weeks to years ago?”

The ratio between 18O and 2H additionally allowed the team to trace how much evaporation the water had been subject to.

“The 18O/2H ratio is like a specific fingerprint because different water sources—streams or lakes—will have different ratios. This lets us know where the water came from and how long it has been near the surface and out of the ground,” Moran noted.
Old and young water

Together with co-author David Boutt, the postdoc met with stakeholders in the Dry Andes to sample nearly every water source in the entire region—an unprecedented feat, given how inhospitable and sparsely inhabited the region is—and to measure their various isotopes.

Doing so allowed them to discover that old and young waters don't really mix and behave very differently.

“The deep, old groundwater sustains the hydrological system throughout the Dry Andes,” Boutt said. “Only 20%–40% of the water is contemporary surface water—but that's the water that is most sensitive to climate change, storm cycles and anthropogenic uses like mining. Scientists used to think that surface water was the most stable water because it was constantly being recharged by runoff but in extremely arid places like the Dry Andes, that isn't true. And the problem is, this new understanding of how water works hasn't been incorporated into any management system anywhere.”

In Moran's view, the implications of these findings are immediate, which means that it is urgent to protect the various conduits—streams, rivers, seeps, and so on—by which fresh, young rainwater flows into the lagoons and wetlands that are so environmentally critical. It also means that managers need to develop different methods for managing young and old waters; there is no one-size-fits-all approach that will work.

"What we see in the Dry Andes is representative of hydrology in all extremely arid regions—including the US West. It's not limited to lithium mining either,” Boutt pointed out.

THIS ARTICLE WAS ORIGINALLY POSTED ON MINING.COM,

BHP says first stage of Jansen mine almost halfway complete

Global miner BHP  revealed on Thursday that the first phase of its massive potash mine in Saskatchewan, Canada

By Jackson Chen 

 April 18, 2024

BHP’s first production at Jansen is expected in 2026. (Image courtesy of BHP.)

Global miner BHP (ASX: BHP) (NYSE: BHP) revealed on Thursday that the first phase of its massive potash mine in Saskatchewan, Canada, is ahead of schedule and near the halfway point of completion at 44%.

Located 140 km east of Saskatoon, the Jansen project is set to become one of the world's largest producers of potash, a commodity considered to be a pillar of future growth for the company. It also represents the single largest private economic investment in the province's history.

Since giving the project its go-ahead in 2021, BHP has been injecting capital to speed up its development even when potash prices were falling. Even before its approval, the group had spent US$4.5 billion on the project.

The proposed potash mine is being built in four stages, with US$5.7 billion already spent on the first stage alone. The aim, according to BHP, is to start Phase 1 production in late 2026, with expected potash production of 4.2 million tonnes a year.

In its quarterly update Thursday, the Australian mining group also said that the second stage, which was approved last year and is expected to cost another US$4.9 billion, will start in 2029. This will add another 4.4 million tonnes of annual production.

The entire four-phased development could have annual production of between 16-17 million tonnes, BHP previously stated.

EMP Metals throws switch on first Koch DLE pilot plant in Canada

EMP Metals has begun commissioning its direct lithium extraction (DLE) pilot plant in Estevan, Sask. 

By Marilyn Scales April 18, 2024

EMP is focused on the lithium potential of the Duperow formation in Saskatchewan. 

Credit: EMP Metals


EMP Metals (CSE: EMPS; OTCQB: EMPPF)has begun commissioning its direct lithium extraction (DLE) pilot plant in Estevan, Sask. This is the first Koch Technology Solutions DLE pilot skid in Canada.

EMP owns 75% of and operates the Viewfield lithium brine project in the Duperow formation. The project will produce 12,175 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) per year over an estimated life of 23 years. ROK Resources owns 25%.

"The commencement, commissioning, and continuous run time at the pilot facility is a substantial milestone for EMP Metals and ROK Resources,” said EMP COO Paul Schuh. “The data set we will collect over the next few months is expected to add significant value to our detailed engineering work for the initial stage 1 commercial facility located in southern Saskatchewan."

The operation of the pilot plant has been designed to closely resemble field operation conditions. The plant features pre-filtration and heater circuits designed by Saltworks Technologies to deliver brine at 60°C to the plant. The pilot plant will operate 24/7 over the next few months. Performance data will be collected and used to advance detailed engineering work on the stage 1 commercial facility.

EMP says the plant will treat brine averaging 185 mg/L at a rate of 4,500 L/d. This rate is lower than the planned commercial rate because the feed is of higher grade than it will be over the long-term. Combined, the total project contains approximately 338,843 tonnes of elemental lithium in-situ or 1.8 million tonnes of LCE.

Additional information is posted on www.EMPMetals.com.

Western Copper and Gold raising $29 million for Casino project in Yukon

Staff Writer | April 17, 2024 |

The Casino exploration camp in Yukon. Credit Cathie Archbould via Western Copper and Gold

Western Copper and Gold (TSX: WRN; NYSE: WRN) is making a C$40 million ($29m) upsized bought deal offer that will be spent at its Casino copper-gold-molybdenum project 150 km northwest of Carmacks and 300 km northwest of Whitehorse, Yukon.


The company has an arrangement with Eight Capital, on behalf of a syndicate of underwriters, who have collectively agreed to purchase approximately 21.1 million common shares of Western at a price of C$1.90 per share. The underwriters have been granted a 15% overallotment. The offer is expected to close about April 30, 2024.

The Casino property lies within the Whitehorse mining district and consists of 1,136 full and partial quartz claims and 55 placer claims acquired in accordance with the Yukon Quartz Mining Act. In mid 2019, Western Copper acquired the adjacent property to the west referred to as the Canadian Creek property.

Casino has resources suitable for milling and for leaching. The measured and indicated resource suitable for milling is 2.3 million tonnes grading 0.15% copper 0.18 g/t gold, 0.016% molybdenum and 1.4 g/t silver (0.31% copper equivalent). That equates to 7.4 million lb. of contained copper and 12.9 million oz. of gold.

The inferred resource for the mill is 1.3 million tonnes grading 0.10% copper, 0.14 g/t gold, 0.009% molybdenum and 1.1 g/t silver (0.21% copper equivalent).

Material suitable for heap leaching include 2.5 million tonnes in the measured and indicated category grading 0.14% copper, 0.18 g/t gold and 1.5 g/t silver (0.27 g/t gold equivalent), containing 7.6 million lb. of copper, 14.8 million oz. gold and 117.2 g/t silver. The leachable inferred resource is 1.4 million tonnes grading 0.10% copper, 0.14 g/t gold and 1.5 g/t silver.

A feasibility study was prepared in 2021 that considered an open pit a 120,000 t/d concentrator, and a 25,000 t/d heap leach facility.

The project lies within the Traditional Territory of the Selkirk First Nation (SFN). A small portion in the north of the project area also lies within the Traditional Territory of the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in. The Traditional Territory of Little Salmon Carmacks First Nation lies south of the project area.

The project is wholly within the asserted Traditional Territory of the White River First Nation, and upstream of the Kluane First Nation Traditional Territory.

MSHA issues final rule to better protect miners from silica dust exposure

Staff Writer | April 17, 2024 | 3:13 pm Careers Education Suppliers & Equipment USA Coal
Stock image.

The US Department of Labor announced Tuesday that its Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) has issued a final rule to better protect the nation’s miners from health hazards associated with exposure to respirable crystalline silica, also known as silica dust or quartz dust.


The final rule lowers the permissible exposure limit of respirable crystalline silica to 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air for a full-shift exposure, calculated as an 8-hour time-weighted average.

If a miner’s exposure exceeds the limit, the final rule requires mine operators to take immediate corrective actions to come into compliance.

“It is unconscionable that our nation’s miners have worked without adequate protection from silica dust despite it being a known health hazard for decades,” Acting Secretary Julie Su said in a media statement.

“Today, the Department of Labor has taken an important action to finally reduce miners’ exposure to toxic silica dust and protect them from suffering from preventable diseases,” she said.

The rule also requires mine operators to use engineering controls to prevent overexposures to silica dust and use dust samplings and environmental evaluations to monitor exposures.

It also compels metal and non-metal mine operators to establish medical surveillance programs to provide periodic health examinations at no cost to miners. The exams are similar to the medical surveillance programs available to coal miners under existing standards.

The final rule also replaces an outdated standard for respiratory protection with a new standard reflecting the latest advances in respiratory protection and practices. This update will better protect miners against airborne hazards, including silica dust, diesel particulate matter, asbestos and other contaminants.

Inhalation of respirable crystalline silica, a carcinogen, can cause serious lung and other diseases, such as silicosis, lung cancer, progressive massive fibrosis, chronic bronchitis and kidney disease.

Exposure to mixed coal mine dust containing respirable crystalline silica can lead to the development of black lung disease and progressive massive fibrosis. These diseases are irreversible and can be fatal. They are also preventable.

The rule will result in an estimated total of 1,067 lifetime avoided deaths and 3,746 lifetime avoided cases of silica-related illnesses, MSHA estimates.

Congo copper mine suspended amid radiation concerns

Bloomberg News | April 19, 2024 | 

Credit: La Compagnie Minière de Musonoie

Operations at a Zijin Mining Group Ltd. copper and cobalt mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo have been suspended due to worries about excessive radiation in its cobalt, according to people familiar with the matter.


The La Compagnie Minière de Musonoie project, known as COMMUS, has been closed since earlier this week, the people said, asking not to be identified because they aren’t authorized to speak on the matter.

Government officials present at COMMUS are overseeing the suspension of production and testing cobalt shipments that were blocked and returned after being exported, the people said. Congo has some deposits of uranium in its southeastern Katanga region and some contamination occurs occasionally.

Cobalt is mined as a byproduct of copper production and the COMMUS mine produced 129,000 tons of copper last year, about 4.2% of total output in the world’s second largest source of the metal. It also produced 2,200 tons of cobalt last year.

The shutdown at the project comes during a period of supply disruption in the global copper market, driven by the surprise closure of First Quantum Minerals Ltd.’s giant Cobre Panama mine. Anglo American Plc also downgraded production guidance and Codelco has seen output slump to quarter century lows.

China’s Zijin owns 72% of COMMUS and the project is in the mining hub of Kolwezi in Lualaba province. The state-owned Gecamines controls the balance. Zijin also holds an interest in Congo’s largest copper project, Ivanhoe Mines Ltd.’s Kamoa-Kakula.

Zijin, Congo’s Mines Minister Antoinette N’Samba Kalambayi and Lualaba’s Mining Minister Jacques Kaumba didn’t respond to requests for comment. Gecamines declined to comment.

(By William Clowes and Michael J. Kavanagh)