Removal of naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) deposited in corrosion scale in mineral processing circuits

The Challenge

Over time, corrosion scale on steel mining infrastructure can absorb and concentrate radioactive materials that occur naturally at low background levels in ore and waste rock. This build-up can pose a risk to mining personnel or the local environment if released, increasing the cost of plant decommissioning and recycling.

Key Findings

Filtration using a patented synthetic polypropylene geotextile material is able to capture over 90% of the radionuclides released by high-pressure water blasting of corrosion scale from contaminated mining equipment.
Measured radioactivity in post-filtration samples was reduced below the environmental reference level for further institutional controls on release.
Once the corrosion scale is removed, approximately 84% of the steel mass in tested infrastructure can be recovered and sold as scrap for re-use, with the volume of waste requiring disposal reduced to 1.9% of the original volume.

Benefits to WA

The geotextile filtration material validated through this research could support efficient removal and capture of naturally occurring radionuclides contaminating ageing mining equipment at sites across WA, significantly reducing the cost and environmental footprint of mine site decommissioning.