Allonnia technology demo with SGS boosts critical metal grade

With the requirements for electrification and AI data centres, demand is soaring for critical materials such as nickel, copper, lithium, and rare earth elements, and the mining industry is facing increasing challenges to efficiently and sustainably provide supplies. Today’s miners must produce these materials with ore of declining grade – all while trying to achieve their goal of being more efficient with a lower CO₂ footprint.

The fact is, there are challenges to supplying the metals for the next generation of batteries, turbines, and magnets. Traditional approaches to increasing metal production face significant hurdles: declining ore grade, lengthy permitting timelines, high upfront capital costs, ESG requirements, and fluctuating market conditions. To meet these challenges, Allonnia, a bio-ingenuity company dedicated to extracting value where others see waste, has been developing technologies for recovering critical materials, all while decreasing the carbon footprint.

The company recently announced a demonstration of its latest innovation, Allonnia D-Solve™, which decarbonises mining with biology to boost mineral production and provide access to low-grade ores. This process harnesses the power of biology to transform the mineral processing flowsheet, removing impurities, boosting production, and reducing waste. At its heart is the Allonnia Biosolution™, a powerful, naturally derived solution generated by microbes that selectively dissolves unwanted gangue from mineral concentrates.

This bolt-on technology has been designed to sustainably upgrade mineral concentrates. A recent demonstration at SGS’ metallurgical lab in Lakefield, Ontario, using nickel-sulfide concentrate, validated the efficacy of Allonnia’s biologically generated solution, or Biosolution, in a continuous process. The innovation arm of BHP, Think & Act Differently (TAD), supplied the nickel concentrate for the demonstration at SGS’s facility.

This demo achieved a 40% reduction in magnesium impurities from nickel-sulfide concentrate, and an 18% increase in nickel grade. Once the solution is fully implemented across a flowsheet, the removal of the impurities is also expected to reduce downstream costs and carbon emissions.

Building on the success of this demonstration, Allonnia plans to invest in a mobile pilot unit in 2025. The pilot unit will enable onsite validation of D-Solve’s performance at mining sites where similar challenges exist.

The mining industry is at a crossroads, confronting the competing pressures of increasing demand for critical materials, and the need for more sustainable, efficient extraction processes. Innovations like Allonnia D-Solve™ highlight the potential of biology to transform traditional mineral processing, offering a pathway to access lower-grade ores, while reducing waste and emissions. As the industry continues to evolve, adopting novel approaches will be key to meeting the world’s growing electrification needs, while minimising environmental impact.

Read the article online at: https://www.globalminingreview.com/mining/27022025/allonnia-technology-demo-with-sgs-boosts-critical-metal-grade/