Astute Metals (ASX:ASE) says it has further unlocked the potential of its Red Mountain Lithium Project in Nevada after completing an initial round of metallurgical testwork.
The program — conducted using six samples from the company’s maiden reverse circulation drilling program in June — was designed to assess lithium leachability, how leachability changes with temperature, acid concentration, and time, while simultaneously evaluating bulk sample mineralogy.
The results indicated lithium leachability of up to 98%. Lithium grades were also found to increase with the content of clay, suggesting future exploration work at areas of higher clay concentrations could be a priority.
Astute Metals, which has a market capitalisation of $12.19 million, says additional metallurgical testwork will include assessing beneficiation potential, optimising each condition in terms of acid concentration, time and temperature, and assessing leaching with other acids.
Chairman Tony Leibowitz says this is another encouraging step in the company’s journey to unlock Red Mountain’s potential.
“Achieving high leachability results of up to 98% is a great outcome which shows that we can successfully liberate lithium from the clays into a pregnant leach solution,” Leibowitz says.
Pregnant leach solution is a liquid-solid separation that is generated from stockpile leaching and heap leaching. It is recovered from the solids so that the residue be safely disposed of, as well as to increase the yield of values.
Leibowitz adds that the leachability testwork is an important piece of baseline work that sets a strong foundation for the company moving forward.
“We are now looking forward to receiving assay results from our recent diamond drilling program as the next key catalyst for the Red Mountain Project,” he says.
Astute is expecting assay results for the two October 2024 diamond drillholes completed at Red Mountain in the coming weeks.
Though it’s subject to the coming assay results, the remaining drill core could be available for use in future metallurgical testwork aimed at de-risking the processing characteristics of the project.
The Red Mountain Project is located in Nevada, US. Astute says the project has attractive characteristics, including close proximity to infrastructure, with the project being immediately adjacent to the Grand Army of the Republic Highway, which links the regional cities of Ely with Tonopah.
Astute Metals is a mineral explorer focused on the discovery and development of critical minerals projects located in tier one jurisdictions globally.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: Astute Metals
