Research Projects towards an Innovative, Digitalised, and Responsible Extractive Industry: Examples from the Chair of Mining Engineering and Mineral Economics

The Horizon Europe project S34I¹ is one example of the several EU initiatives aiming at enhancing the applicability of EO methods in the mining industry. By leveraging high-resolution data from various platforms—including satellites, airborne sensors, and drones—and validating with field data, S34I fosters synergies through innovative processing techniques to generate actionable information and support informed decision-making [15]. The S34I consortium is composed of a balanced group of industry and academia partners which seeks to provide solutions that upgrade the EO tools in mining by prototyping new technological developments and finally providing support to the decision-making of the interested stakeholders.

To achieve this goal, S34I focuses on six different pilot sites that cover the entire mining life cycle and exploits multi-scale EO datasets. Based on these datasets, 14 advanced methodologies for analysing EO data are developed, enhancing the capabilities of existing techniques. Figure 3 presents an example of how these advanced methodologies allow the visualisation of, in this case, the normalised difference vegetation index (NDVI) in a post-closure area. Additionally, three prototyped EO-based services are designed to meet the specific needs of mining stakeholders. Finally, a detailed research and innovation roadmap based on the outcomes is expected to guide the future use of EO technologies in the sector, complemented by actionable policy recommendations and best practices to ensure seamless integration of these tools into the industry.

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Within the activities of the project, technical and non-technical outputs are explored. Firstly, high-quality, multi-scale datasets are delivered for each site, along with tailored methodologies. The applications demonstrate their feasibility and benefits in real-world scenarios, and these insights are shared with a wider audience, including key stakeholders such as representatives of mining companies, tech companies with EO expertise, researchers, and policymakers. The main contribution of the Chair in this context, has been the alignment of EO with sustainability, circularity, and social acceptance topics. Various case studies have been analysed to examine how EO contributes significantly to one or more pillars of sustainability. These studies demonstrated the potential of EO to enhance environmental monitoring, optimise resource management, and monitor the ecological footprint of extractive activities. The role of EO in promoting material circularity has also been reviewed, highlighting its utility in tracking and improving the recycling and reuse of tailings via EO, therefore advancing circular economy principles within the sector. Furthermore, the contribution of EO to promoting social acceptance within the mining industry has been assessed, focusing on the circumstances under which public opinion can shift with the use of EO tools.

The DigiEcoQuarry project (DEQ)² is an industry-academia collaboration funded by the Horizon 2020 EU programme. Its main goal is to promote further digitalisation in the aggregate sector in Europe to enhance the competitiveness of quarrying operations, as well as to improve the safety of workers, implement modern tools for monitoring their environmental impact, and engage with communities to increase their social acceptance. It is developed by a consortium of 25 partners from Europe, Colombia, and South Africa.

Within DEQ, a series of innovations and technologies are tested along the quarrying value chain in five pilot sites located near the cities of Lisbon (Portugal), Madrid (Spain), Mammendorf (Germany), Milan (Italy), and Toulouse (France). Three of these are drilling and blasting operations, with production rates above one million tonnes of limestone or andesite per year. A dredge operation producing 200 to 300 thousand tonnes of sand and gravel per year is also part of the project. The last pilot is a minor processing facility that produces aggregates from recycled construction material [16]. The range of products, scale, and extraction methods provide a diverse sample of the aggregate sector, suitable for deploying the solutions developed in the project.

The set of DEQ solutions includes, among others, novel drilling and mobile crushing machinery, technologies for blasting optimisation, mobile fleet monitoring systems, a series of AI-powered tools for preventive maintenance, stock volume calculation, and safety applications (e.g. workers detection in hazardous areas). In this context, the contribution of the Chair has been two-fold. Firstly, as coordinator of the energy and environment-related tasks, it has analysed the integration of renewable energy sources into quarrying operations, the application of machine learning methods to study and optimise fuel consumption, and estimated the impact of digitalisation on the energy efficiency of quarries. Secondly, it has developed two technological innovations aimed at enhancing the drilling and blasting process. As the first technology, MUL’s team has investigated the use of cameras for measuring blast vibrations. Geophones, which are a traditional method in this matter, measure vibrations of one point in three directions, but a camera can measure the vibrations of a continuous surface in two directions. This way, by connecting the measured displacements with material properties, stresses can be estimated. The second technology is a sensor that can be mounted directly on a drill rig to take pictures of the rock mass during the drilling process. These images, combined with computer vision techniques, allow the creation of virtual cores to characterise the geology, offering valuable near real-time insight for blast optimisation.

Besides the individual technologies in the project and their corresponding supporting systems, an IoT system is implemented, including a digital platform, the IQS (Intelligent Quarry System), where the generated operational data is integrated, stored, and analysed [17]. Figure 4 presents, in simple terms, the flow of data between the different components of the DEQ system.

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The completion of this project is expected to give an impulse towards further technology adoption in the aggregate sector, an industry with generally lower levels of digitalisation when compared to other extractive branches such as large-scale metallic mining. Aggregates represent, however, the largest mining activity (by production volume), and therefore, the economic and environmental benefits of enhancing these operations through digitalisation could have a significant impact on both producers and local communities.

The MaDiTraCe project (Material and Digital Traceability for the Certification of Critical Raw Materials)³, developed by a European consortium and funded by the Horizon Europe programme, addresses the challenges of traceability in critical raw materials supply chains, essential for cutting-edge technologies and the energy transition, such as batteries and wind turbines [18]. Its primary objective is to integrate advanced digital and material traceability technologies to establish a robust certification system aligned with the DDP of the European Union, responding to increasing regulatory and societal demands for greater transparency and accountability in the extraction and processing of mineral resources.

The project strategy focuses on five key objectives: (i) identifying gaps in current due diligence practices and assessing industrial needs; (ii) developing technological solutions, such as material fingerprinting and artificial tagging, to improve traceability; (iii) creating a generic certification scheme adaptable to supply chains from extraction to recycling; (iv) integrating these technological solutions into DPPs, such as the battery passport; and (v) fostering the adoption and implementation of these technologies among industrial and social actors, ensuring alignment with global sustainability expectations and regulatory compliance. In this context, the Chair has contributed to establishing the foundational framework of the project through activities such as identifying gaps in due diligence and traceability practices along the supply chain. This includes evaluating existing frameworks, initiatives, laws, projects, and standards related to traceability and sustainability in critical raw material supply chains. Additionally, current standards, such as CERA4in1, IRMA, The Copper Mark, and others, have been analysed using a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis to assess their effectiveness and identify areas for improvement. Furthermore, the Chair has worked on comparing these standards with international regulatory requirements, including the EU Critical Raw Materials Act, the Battery Regulation, and the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, enabling the identification of strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for development in due diligence practices and traceability.

The MaDiTraCe project incorporates several key innovations that position it as a benchmark in traceability and certification of critical raw materials. One of its main innovations is the development of traceability methods based on material fingerprinting, which leverages the unique mineralogical and geochemical properties of materials to track their origin and transformation throughout the supply chain. Additionally, artificial tags (microtaggants), microscopic particles designed to complement intrinsic material information, are being developed to ensure more robust traceability. Finally, MaDiTraCe integrates blockchain-based digital certification, creating a decentralised, verifiable, and secure data flow that connects the various stages of the value chain, promoting transparency and trust [18]. In this context, DPPs stand out as a key tool, providing essential information such as material composition, production and technical data, and compliance with social standards.

In its approach to digitalisation, MaDiTraCe demonstrates how it can be integrated into responsible mining. Advanced technologies such as AI, blockchain, and data analytics enable transparency in supply chains, addressing global demands for sustainability and regulatory compliance.

The success of the project will have significant implications for the future of the industry. MaDiTraCe lays the groundwork for the broader implementation of DPPs, a tool that will provide consumers and industries with reliable access to information about the origin and sustainability of materials. Furthermore, it will contribute to the development and harmonisation of global standards enabling a real-time certification and monitoring of responsible practices along supply chains. This will strengthen corporate transparency and promote a transition towards more ethical and sustainable practices in the critical raw materials sector.