University of Queensland (UQ) drone experts have played a role in delivering new aerial imaging technology that the European Union has touted as a game changer for mineral exploration.
Geoscience and remote sensing researchers from UQ’s Sustainable Minerals Institute (SMI) were part of the European-led mining consortium that delivered a hyperspectral imaging system capable of mapping surface patterns of minerals, soils, and plants from the air in real-time, aiding exploration and mining activities.
Steven Micklethwaite, UQ Drone Collaborative Research Platform lead associate professor, says the drone-mounted imaging system harnessed remote sensing technology and complex physics to provide users with a near-instant 3D mesh of a survey area, and clues as to what might lie underground.
“SMI was recruited to provide the consortium with a bridge to the resources industry and to interpret data captured during case studies in regional Queensland before a final validation flight in Brisbane,” Micklethwaite says.
“We confirmed the processing power of the Norwegian-engineered technology allowed for near-immediate access to complex aerial mapping data, instead of users having to wait weeks or even months to see results.”
Horizon Europe-backed project
The consortium was seeded with $7.3 million from Horizon Europe to develop a system to boost material characterisation during exploration, extraction, re-mining, and environmental impact monitoring.
The group is led by Norwegian research centre NORCE and imaging company Norsk Elektro Optikk, which produces technology under the HySpex brand.
Micklethwaite says SMI’s reputation for industry-facing research and existing relationship with HySpex were key to bringing UQ to the consortium.
“This meant establishing a minerals advisory board within the project and receiving feedback from industry during the development of the technology to make changes and improvements where needed,” Micklethwaite says.
In its general review of the mining project, evaluators for the European Commission lauded the group for delivering a fully integrated, validated, and market-ready technological solution for the mining industry.
HySpex has since integrated the mining technology into a commercial hyperspectral imaging product called BiFrost, which it plans to launch to the public in the coming months.
The UQ Drones Collaborative Research Platform provides researchers, industry partners, and government agencies with access to remote sensing, direct sampling, geophysics and operational expertise, along with bespoke applications.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
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