Iron ore processing research and development at CSIRO in Australia

The high demand for Australian iron ore in China has triggered a rapid expansion in Australian iron ore production. It is predicted that Australian iron ore production will increase from the current 213 million tonnes per annum to about 400 million by 2008. Australia's CSIRO(Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization) plays an important role assisting the Australian iron ore industry in meeting current production challenges. The Iron Ore Processing group in CSIRO was established in the 1980s to support the Australia iron ore industry. Initially the focus of the research was primarily on iron ore sintering, pelletising and quality control, but this was subsequently expanded to incorporate ore and beneficiation to provide a more comprehensive coverage of the research needs of the industry and address a number of key knowledge gaps. Of the current research areas, the group' s mineralogical/petrological and agglomeration expertise and facilities are especially notable and have been built up to the extent that they are now world class. New methods for on-line analysis and improving quality control are also being developed. This paper summarizes CSIRO's iron ore processing R&D activities in the areas of mineralogy,beneficiation,sintering,pelletising and ISO standards development.