Resource World Magazine

50 www.resourceworld.com F E B R U A R Y / M A R C H 2 0 1 5 Québec-based GéoMéga resources Inc. [GMA-TSXV] is betting that the world may soon face a shortage of Rare Earth Elements and is busy positioning itself to become a producer of these high-tech metals. In addition, this innovative company is also developing a proprietary solvent-free REE separation process which, if proven com- mercially viable, could provide GéoMégA with an immense processing advantage. Typically, miners produce and sell a mineral concentrate to end users but in the case of REE production the most expen- sive step is separating the individual REEs from the concentrate. Currently there is a shortage of separation capacity outside of mainland China. Rare Earth Elements are a group of 15 specific elements known as lanthanides on the periodic table. In addition, the elements scandium and yttrium are com- monly added to this list since they often associated with most REE deposits. REEs are often further subdivided into "Light" (LREEs) and "Heavy" (HREEs). REE-bearing minerals are first separated from mined ore via a crushing and grind- ing process. They are then concentrated via a hydrometallurgical process. These first two steps are straightforward but the most critical (and expensive) process involves separating the individual Rare Earth Elements from the minerals in which they are contained. This is difficult since each of the lanthanides have very similar chemical and physical properties. The current, most effective and reliable extraction method involves a hydrometal- lurgical solvent extraction process. It is necessary to prepare an aqueous solution containing the REEs and extract this solu- tion repeatedly with an organic solvent. This method requires multiple stages and one stream in this process can require hundreds of steps, involving a cascade of dozens of different tanks and machines for mixing, settling, filtering and evaporating all the various solutions. This naturally is a very expensive and time consuming pro- cess. Adding another layer of complexity is the fact that many of the chemicals used as well as some by-products are extremely hazardous and must be handled and dis- posed of carefully. GéoMégA reports that it has a made a breakthrough in REE separation process that involves electricity as opposed to the standard organic solvent chemical pro- cess. The company's proprietary process harnesses the electrical properties of the lanthanide series in order to bypass the use of solvents. "REE ions in solutions move at dif- ferent speeds," commented Simon Britt, President and CEO of GéoMégA Resources. This is based on the phenomenon of elec- trophoresis which is commonly used to separate proteins, peptides, cells and particles based on their different electric charges. Basically, charged particles and ions in solution migrate perpendicular to the flow, under the effect of an electric field. So the particles will separate based on the strength of their electric charge. Last May, GéoMégA announced that it had used its new process to successfully separate all of the REEs and impurities from a commercial concentrate in a single separation step (using a solution of con- centrate with a concentration of 1g/L). That includes the separation of the HREEs, LREEs and impurities. Efforts have now shifted towards optimizing the process by increasing the concentration of REEs in solution and developing a pre-treatment step prior to the separation process to remove the less valuable and abundant LREEs, (cerium), from the commercial concentrate. What is exciting about this new process is the fact that has the potential to achieve géoméga looking to unlock rees in a solvent free separation process by Thomas Schuster Continued on page 57 MINING Dr. Hajiani, inventor of the REE Separation technology, at the GéoMéga Resources lab at NRCC facilities. Photo courtesy GéoMéga Resources Inc.

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