The University of Queensland’s coarse particle processing research program is entering its next phase at a time when the mining sector is under growing pressure to extract more value from lower-grade ore bodies while reducing energy use, waste and emissions.
Led by researchers from the university’s (UQ) Sustainable Minerals Institute, the Collaborative Consortium for Coarse Particle Processing Research, or CPR Program, has moved into a second five-year phase running from 2025 to 2030.
The program brings together major mining companies and technology partners to advance pre-competitive research into coarse particle flotation technologies.
The second phase includes Eriez Flotation Division, Newmont, Hudbay Minerals, Rio Tinto Technological Resources, Capstone Copper Corporation, BHP Group Operations, Vale Technology Development, Northparkes Mining Services and Codelco.
The work is focused on understanding and expanding the capabilities of coarse particle flotation, including fluidised bed flotation. These technologies are designed to separate valuable minerals from waste rock without requiring the rock to be ground as finely as conventional processing routes.
The cruciality here is on comminution, the crushing and grinding of rock, which is one of mining’s most energy-intensive processes.
According to UQ, comminution is estimated to consume around 2% of all electrical energy generated globally, meaning advances in coarse particle flotation could help reduce both energy requirements and mine waste.
The research also fits into a wider processing challenge facing the copper industry. As demand rises from electrification, renewable energy systems and infrastructure development, miners are facing declining ore grades and growing pressure to recover more metal from existing resources rather than relying only on new discoveries.
A study published in Nature Geoscience, researchers from Monash University revisited chalcopyrite, the mineral responsible for roughly 70 per cent of global copper supply, and the long-standing difficulty of processing it efficiently.
That study highlighted how more targeted extraction methods could reduce energy use, chemical intensity and waste while improving recovery from the same resource base.
While the UQ program is focused on coarse particle processing rather than chalcopyrite leaching specifically, both point to the same industry-wide issue: the next phase of mineral supply will depend not only on building new mines, but on improving how existing and future ore bodies are processed.
CPR Program director and Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre associate professor Liza Forbes said one of the major outcomes from the first phase of the consortium was the JKHFmini, a bench-scale fluidised bed flotation device developed at UQ.
“With just 1–2 kilograms of sample rock, it can help predict the performance of full-scale coarse particle mineral processing,” Forbes said.
“We’ve developed this specific technology, but now we can use it to generate more knowledge about any part of the flotation process.”
For mining companies, the appeal of the consortium model lies in its pre-competitive structure, rather than each company trying to solve the same technical problems separately. The CPR Program allows partners to share knowledge and accelerate the development of technologies that could later support commercial deployment.
“Our partners are getting a great return on their investment: for the price of one research project, they are getting the outcomes equivalent to eight research projects,” Forbes said.
Vale Base Metals head of mineral processing technology and innovation Manqiu Xu said coarse particle flotation has the potential to support earlier separation and reduce energy use, costs and tailings volumes.
“Our collaboration with industry peers and the University of Queensland is playing an important role in progressing this technology toward productive industrial use,” Xu said.
The copper backdrop makes that work increasingly relevant.
Fortescue’s acquisition of Alta Copper, Glencore’s copper-led growth strategy and BHP’s target of around 2 million tonnes per annum of copper production by 2035 all point to a sector positioning itself for long-term demand growth. But higher production ambitions will also require more efficient processing pathways if miners are to manage costs, grades and emissions.
The state government has recently moved to streamline major resources projects, including the Corvus Metallurgical Coal Project and Big Vein South Gold Project, underscoring the role Queensland continues to play in Australia’s resources sector.
Professor Rick Valenta, director of the Sustainable Minerals Institute, said the CPR Program shows how strategic partnerships between industry and research institutions can shape the future of mineral processing globally.
The CPR Program has also collaborated with the ARC Centre of Excellence for Enabling Eco-Efficient Beneficiation of Minerals, an Australian Government-funded research centre, further extending the link between university research, public funding and industry application.
For Forbes, broad industry participation will be critical if the sector is to develop and deploy the processing technologies needed to support future copper supply.
“We need all the industry players on board if we’re going to develop and roll out the technologies needed to have enough copper to drive the energy transition,” she said.
The CPR Program’s second phase reflects a broader shift in mining innovation, where collaboration, energy efficiency, and smarter mineral recovery are becoming central to how the sector plans for future demand.
