IUC
The latest trends in mechanical hard rock excavation from SANDVIK and EPIROC, machines for use at extremely low mining heights from DOK-ING, innovative blasting methods, as well as insights into research projects around mining with robots and microorganisms.
RIC is glad to support the ERASMUS+ project “EdUp”, coordinated by TU Bergakademie Freiberg, that aims at providing digital course contents and curricula upscaling opportunities for Ukrainian universities during the currently challenging period.
With EdUp, we will increase the already existing support activities that allow Ukrainian HEIs to keep up their study programmes by incorporating digital courses from partners and integrating them into their teaching. The project will offer a digital platform with new courses that cover already identified needs and increase the opportunities for UA partners to create digital courses. Within this project, RIC / Montanuniversität Leoben will provide a selection of education courses during the next two years.
We are excited that EIT RawMaterials selected our project proposal “PRO-SLO” for funding! The aim of the winter school project “PRO-SLO – building PROfessional SLO Competence” is to bridge the gap between Raw Materials operations and economic, social and ethical discourse, and will provide the raw materials industry with future leaders who are competent and confident to master the complex processes of obtaining and maintaining a Social Licence to Operate (SLO) for their raw materials projects. We are very proud to coordinate a highly motivated expert consortium and look forward to collaborating over the coming three years and beyond!
Anja Vujaković joined RIC Leoben in September 2021 as Education Project Manager. She studied at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna and the Vienna University of Technology and will soon obtain her title as MSc in Environmental Technology and International Affairs. Anja has collected over 5 years of working experience in the field of international communication and sustainable development. She worked in the Environment Department of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization where she was tasked with linking the ‘Minamata Convention on Mercury’ to the Sustainable Development Goals and Circular Economy. Before joining the Education Team at RIC Leoben, she spent one year at the United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency where she was responsible for the drafting of daily reports to the Director General on a variety of topics from the field of nuclear science and security.
Minimize sinter degradation and segregation
Duration: 07/2019 – 06/2023
To ensure a sufficient gas distribution in the blast furnace, fine-grained input materials must be agglomerated by sintering.
Between sinter plant and blast furnace the sinter passes through various conveying systems, coolers, sieves, and bunkers. Due to mechanical stress the sinter degrades partly. Before charging the blast furnace the resulting fines <5mm are screened out and are fed to the sinter plant again.
As iron ore sintering is a highly energy consuming process, these return fines cause high costs and emissions. Additionally, segregation effects during transport and storing lead to fluctuations in the particle size distribution, thus to fluctuations of the gas distribution in the blast furnace.
The aim of this project is to reduce costs and emissions by minimizing return fines and segregation. MinSiDeg received funding by the EU and is executed by 6 partners in Austria and Germany.
At first the breakage behavior of sinter, especially the particle size distribution after damaging events is an important aspect for discrete element simulations. Because of great heterogeneity and big differences in particle shapes, a high number of tests was necessary.
Based on test results, a new breakage model was developed to predict bulk material degradation with discrete element simulations. This will be used to optimize critical sections in existing sinter transportation and storage plants. Furthermore, innovative transportation, transfer and storage systems will be tested to save return fines and stabilize particle size distribution.
Austrian Climate Day 2023 in Leoben
The Resources Innovation Center of the Montanuniversität Leoben organizes together with the CCCA the 23rd Austrian Climate Day at the Montanuniversität from April 11 – 13, 2023.