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96-484: The Ranger Uranium Mine was a uranium mine in the Northern Territory of Australia . The site is surrounded by, but separate from Kakadu National Park , 230 km east of Darwin . The orebody was discovered in late 1969, and the mine commenced operation in 1980, reaching full production of uranium oxide in 1981 and ceased stockpile processing on 8 January 2021. Mining activities had ceased in 2012. It

192-559: A 'competent person' (defined by the norms of the relevant mining code; usually a geologist ) has declared them to be an acceptable estimate, at a high degree of confidence, of the grade (or quality), quantity, shape, densities, physical characteristics of the mineral occurrence. The Canadian legislation ( NI 43-101 ) concerning mineral projects within Canada appears to be similar to the CRIRSCO based reporting codes and standards. Generally,

288-802: A budget of AUD $ 220 Million dollars. In 2012, ERA and the Mirarr traditional owners represented by the Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation (GAC), conducted a jointly facilitated independent expert review of the quality of surface water around the Ranger Project Area. The Independent Surface Water Working Group consisted of representatives from ERA, GAC, the Supervising Scientists Division and the Northern Land Council. Over

384-587: A cancer cure, which fostered a spa business for that town. In 1913, the Shinkolobwe , Katanga Province, was discovered. In 1931, the Port Radium deposit was discovered. Other significant discoveries included Beira Province , Tyuya Muyun , and Radium Hill . In 1922, Union Minière du Haut Katanga started producing medicinal radium from the Shinkolobwe mine, but closed down in the late 1930s as

480-523: A final feasibility study at Ranger 3 Deeps, which is an extension of the Ranger orebody. ERA today said it now expects to begin work to close the 2.2 km, 400-500 m deep Ranger 3 Deeps decline, excavated as part of those studies, during the first-half of this year." Ore was crushed, ground, then leached with sulphuric acid . Uranium was removed using kerosene with amine then stripped with ammonium sulphate solution and gaseous ammonia . Ammonium diuranate

576-504: A functional group ( amidoxime group ) that selectively adsorbs heavy metals, and the performance of such adsorbents has been improved. Uranium adsorption capacity of the polymer fiber adsorbent is high, approximately tenfold greater in comparison to the conventional titanium oxide adsorbent. One method of extracting uranium from seawater is using a uranium-specific nonwoven fabric as an adsorbent. The total amount of uranium recovered from three collection boxes containing 350 kg of fabric

672-542: A large spike in gamma radiation when passing over Mount Brockman, known as Djidbidjidbi to the Mirarr traditional owners of the area. The instrument that detected the anomaly was a Nuclear Enterprises gamma ray spectrometer using a Thallium doped Sodium Iodide cylindrical crystal. At time of discovery the aircraft was flying at an altitude of 100 metres (330 ft). The anomaly could still be detected at almost 915 metres (3,000 ft). The crew members on board were Bill Hay,

768-436: A method of extraction that does not produce the same occupational hazards, or mine tailings, as conventional mining. With regulations in place to ensure the use of high volume ventilation technology if any confined space uranium mining is occurring, occupational exposure and mining deaths can be largely eliminated. The Olympic Dam and Canadian underground mines are ventilated with powerful fans with radon levels being kept at

864-455: A sandstone body. Peneconcordant sandstone uranium deposits, also called Colorado Plateau –type deposits, most often occur within generally oxidized sandstone bodies, often in localized reduced zones, such as in association with carbonized wood in the sandstone. Precambrian quartz-pebble conglomerate-type uranium deposits occur only in rocks older than two billion years old. The conglomerates also contain pyrite. These deposits have been mined in

960-591: A six-month period, the working group examined the impacts, monitoring and reporting of surface water flowing from the Ranger mine. The working group agreed in findings released in March 2013 that the surface water management and regulatory systems in place at the Ranger mine were of a very high standard. Going forward, the Group agreed an action plan to ensure that surface water management systems at Ranger remained "best leading practice". Environment Australia (an agency of

1056-467: A very low to practically "safe level" in uranium mines. Naturally occurring radon in other, non-uranium mines, also may need control by ventilation. Heap leaching is an extraction process by which chemicals (usually sulfuric acid ) are used to extract the economic element from ore which has been mined and placed in piles on the surface. Heap leaching is generally economically feasible only for oxide ore deposits. Oxidation of sulfide deposits occurs during

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1152-438: Is also reliability. Indicated resources are simply economic mineral occurrences that have been sampled (from locations such as outcrops, trenches, pits and drill holes ) to a point where an estimate has been made, at a reasonable level of confidence, of their contained metal, grade, tonnage, shape, densities, physical characteristics. Measured resources are indicated resources that have undergone enough further sampling that

1248-472: Is based on UNFC. A 'Mineral Resource' is a concentration or occurrence of material of intrinsic economic interest in or on the Earth's crust in such form, quality and quantity that there are reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction. Mineral Resources are further sub-divided, in order of increasing geological confidence, into inferred, indicated and measured as categories. Inferred Mineral Resource

1344-459: Is concluded. Land reclamation after mining takes different routes, depending on the amount of material removed. Due to the high energy density of uranium, it is often sufficient to fill in the former mine with the overburden, but in case of a mass deficit exceeding the height difference between the previous surface level and the natural water table, artificial lakes develop when groundwater removal ceases. If sulfites, sulfides or sulfates are present in

1440-435: Is extensively used to suppress airborne dust levels. Groundwater is an issue in all types of mining, but in open pit mining, the usual way of dealing with it – i.e. when the target mineral is found below the natural water table – is to lower the water table by pumping off the water. The ground may settle considerably when groundwater is removed and may again move unpredictably when groundwater is allowed to rise again after mining

1536-453: Is home to approximately 500 mineralized breccia pipes and Cripple Creek, Colorado, also is a site that contains breccia pipe ore deposits that is associated with a volcanic pipe. Olympic Dam mine , the world's largest uranium deposit, was discovered by Western Mining Corporation in 1975 and is owned by BHP . Uranium prospecting is similar to other forms of mineral exploration with the exception of some specialized instruments for detecting

1632-399: Is in principle no different from any other hard rock mining and other ores are often mined in association (e.g., copper, gold, silver). Once the ore body has been identified a shaft is sunk in the vicinity of the ore veins, and crosscuts are driven horizontally to the veins at various levels, usually every 100 to 150 metres. Similar tunnels, known as drifts, are driven along the ore veins from

1728-450: Is mined by in-situ leaching (57% of world production) or by conventional underground or open-pit mining of ores (43% of production). During in-situ mining, a leaching solution is pumped down drill holes into the uranium ore deposit where it dissolves the ore minerals. The uranium-rich fluid is then pumped back to the surface and processed to extract the uranium compounds from solution. In conventional mining, ores are processed by grinding

1824-432: Is now the accepted leading technique for uranium prospecting with worldwide applications for geological mapping, mineral exploration & environmental monitoring . Airborne gamma-ray spectrometry used specifically for uranium measurement and prospecting must account for a number of factors like the distance between the source and the detector and the scattering of radiation through the minerals, surrounding earth and even in

1920-441: Is practically limitless with respect to world-wide demand. That is to say, if even a portion of the uranium in seawater could be used the entire world's nuclear power generation fuel could be provided over a long time period. Some proponents claim this statistic is exaggerated. Although research and development for recovery of this low-concentration element by inorganic adsorbents such as titanium oxide compounds has occurred since

2016-586: Is the economically mineable part of a Measured Mineral Resource. It includes diluting materials and allowances for losses which occur when the material is mined. A Proved Mineral Reserve represents the highest confidence category of Mineral Reserve estimate. It implies a high degree of confidence in the geological factors and a high degree of confidence in the Modifying Factors. The style of mineralization or other factors could mean that Proved Mineral Reserves are not achievable in some deposits. Generally

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2112-437: Is the economically mineable part of an Indicated Mineral Resource, and in some circumstances, a Measured Mineral Resources. It includes diluting material and allowances for losses which may occur when the material is mined. A Probable Mineral Reserve has a lower level of confidence than a Proved Mineral Reserve but is of sufficient quality to serve as the basis for decision on the development of deposit. A Proved Mineral Reserve

2208-435: Is the part of a mineral resource for which quantity, grade (or quality) and mineral content can be estimated with a low level of confidence. It is inferred from geological evidence and assumed but not verified geological or grade continuity. It is based on information gathered through appropriate techniques from locations such as outcrops, trenches, pits, workings and drill holes which may be of limited or uncertain quality and it

2304-524: Is the public legal confrontation over releases into Magela Creek in the 1995 wet season. More recently, the ARRAC report from 2002 details a major leak of about 2 megalitres of potentially polluted water, over a number of months. In 2007, water breached a retention pond, overflowing back into the pit. The original authorisation required that this water be contained at all times. In 2006, water management systems were disrupted by Cyclone Monica . In May 2010, it

2400-434: Is used for thinner, flatter ore bodies. In this method the ore body is first divided into blocks by intersecting drives, removing ore while so doing, and then systematically removing the blocks, leaving enough ore for roof support. The health effects discovered from radon exposure in unventilated uranium mining prompted the switch away from uranium mining via tunnel mining towards open cut and in-situ leaching technology,

2496-691: The Blind River – Elliot Lake district of Ontario, Canada, and from the gold-bearing Witwatersrand conglomerates of South Africa. Unconformity-type deposits make up about 33% of the World Outside Centrally Planned Economies Areas' (WOCA) uranium deposits. Hydrothermal uranium deposits encompass the vein-type uranium ores. Vein-type hydrothermal uranium deposits represent epigenetic concentrations of uranium minerals that typically fill breccias, fractures, and shear zones. Many studies have sought to identify

2592-742: The Eldorado Mine (Northwest Territories) . According to Richard Rhodes , referring to German uranium research, " Auer , the thorium specialists ... delivered the first ton of pure uranium oxide processed from Joachimsthal ores to the War Office in January 1940. In June 1940 ... Auer ordered sixty tons of refined uranium oxide from the Union Miniére in occupied Belgium." While the Soviet Republics of Kazakhstan and

2688-1334: The Elkon mine at 71,300 tU, the Brazilian Itataia complex at 67,240 tU, the Marenica project at 62,856 tU, the Langer Heinrich Mine at 60,830 tU, the Dominion mine at 55,753 tU, the Inkai Uranium Project at 51,808 tU, the Kiggavik project at 51,574 tU, the Rössing mine at 50,657 tU, the Australian Yeleerie project at 44,077, and the Trekkopje mine at 42,243 tU. Many different types of uranium deposits have been discovered and mined. There are mainly three types of uranium deposits including unconformity-type deposits, namely paleoplacer deposits and sandstone-type, also known as roll front type deposits. Uranium deposits are classified into 15 categories according to their geological setting and

2784-568: The Government of Australia ) have documented over 200 environmental incidents since 1979. The great majority of these were minor, but the significant ones are detailed below. In 2013, a spokesperson from the Public Health Association of Australia claimed that there had been a hundred safety incidents linked to the mine in the thirty years prior. In May 2005 the company was convicted for breaching environmental guidelines -

2880-712: The International Reporting Template , developed by the CRIRSCO - Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards, like the Australian Joint Ore Reserves Committee - JORC Code 2012, the P an- E uropean Reserves & Resources R eporting C ommittee' – PERC Reporting Standard from 2021, the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum - CIM classification and

2976-1114: The Olympic Dam mine at 2981 tU, the Arlit mine at 1808 tU, the Rabbit Lake mine at 1400 tU, the Akouta mine at 1435 tU, and the McClean Lake mine at 1400 tU. The world's largest deposits include the Olympic Dam mine at 295,000 tU, the Imouraren mine at 183,520 tU, the McArthur River mine at 128,900 tU, the Streltsovsk mine at 118,341 tU, the Novokonstantinovka mines at 93,630, the Cigar Lake Mine at 80,500 tU, Uzbekistan mines at 76,000 tU,

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3072-739: The RSFSR would later become some of the leading uranium producers in the world, immediately after the end of World War II the availability of large uranium deposits in the USSR wasn't yet known and thus the Soviets developed immense mining operations in their satellite states East Germany and Czechoslovakia which had known uranium deposits in the Ore Mountains. The deliberately opaquely named SDAG Wismut (the German term "Wismut" for Bismuth should give

3168-802: The South African Code for the Reporting of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves ( SAMREC ) . A more detailed description of the historical development concerning reporting about mineral deposits can be found on the PERC web site. In 1997, the United Nations Framework Classification for Resources (UNFC) was development by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). The Pan African Resource Reporting Code (PARC)

3264-472: The western US ), Precambrian unconformities (in Canada), phosphate , Precambrian quartz -pebble conglomerate , collapse breccia pipes (see Arizona breccia pipe uranium mineralization ), and calcrete . Sandstone uranium deposits are generally of two types. Roll-front type deposits occur at the boundary between the up dip and oxidized part of a sandstone body and the deeper down dip reduced part of

3360-400: The "cut and fill" or "open stoping" method, the space remaining following removal of ore after blasting is filled with waste rock and cement. In the "shrinkage" method, only sufficient broken ore is removed via the chutes below to allow miners working from the top of the pile to drill and blast the next layer to be broken off, eventually leaving a large hole. The method known as "room and pillar"

3456-561: The $ 220 million Brine Concentrator Project. Brine Concentrators use thermal energy to evaporate water, which is subsequently condensed and discharged as clean distilled water. The Brine Concentrator had the capacity to produce 1.83 gigalitres of clean water per year through the treatment of process water. Hatch was appointed EPCM contractor for the Brine Concentrator project. It was successfully commissioned in November 2013 with

3552-696: The 1960s in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Japan, this research was halted due to low recovery efficiency. At the Takasaki Radiation Chemistry Research Establishment of the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI Takasaki Research Establishment), research and development has continued culminating in the production of adsorbent by irradiation of polymer fiber. Adsorbents have been synthesized that have

3648-640: The Cahill Formation , consisting of Lower Proterozoic metasediments , located in the Alligator Rivers Uranium Field. The mine commenced operation in 1980, reaching full production of uranium oxide in 1981. Owing to the environmental sensitivity of the site, a special statutory authority , the Supervising Scientist , was created to provide oversight of the operation and conduct environmental research in

3744-536: The GSC built a lighter weight, more practical unit in 1934. Subsequent models were the principal instruments used for uranium prospecting for many years, until geiger counters were replaced by scintillation counters . The use of airborne detectors to prospect for radioactive minerals was first proposed by G. C. Ridland, a geophysicist working at Port Radium in 1943. In 1947, the earliest recorded trial of airborne radiation detectors (ionization chambers and Geiger counters)

3840-568: The Gundjeihmi Aboriginal Corporation as a component of a broader social impact assessment. ERA formally commenced the statutory approval process for the proposed Ranger 3 Deeps underground mine in January 2013 with the submission of a referral to the Commonwealth Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water Population and Communities under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Control Act 1999. At

3936-461: The May, 2008 exchange rate, this was about $ 240/kg-U. In 2012, ORNL researchers announced the successful development of a new adsorbent material dubbed "HiCap", which vastly outperforms previous best adsorbents, which perform surface retention of solid or gas molecules, atoms or ions. "We have shown that our adsorbents can extract five to seven times more uranium at uptake rates seven times faster than

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4032-531: The Sinkolobwe mine with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers ' resources, and a $ 13 million investment from the United States. Sengier reported that uranium ore had been extracted from the mine down to a depth of 79 meters, but that another 101 meters of ore was available for extraction. This amounted to 10,000 tons of up to 60% triuranium octoxide . The project also acquired most of the production from

4128-540: The South Terras mine, St Stephen-in-Brannel , Cornwall, producing most of the 300 tU from that area in the 19th century. In 1898, carnotite was first mined in the Uravan Mineral Belt , yielding 10 tU annually. In 1898, Pierre Curie and Marie Skłodowska-Curie took delivery of 1 t of pitchblende from St. Joachimsthal, from which Marie identified the element radium . Pierre advocated its usage as

4224-423: The United States. A large mass of breccia is called a breccia pipe or chimney and is composed of the rock forming an irregular and almost cylinder-like shape. The origin of breccia pipe is uncertain but it is thought that they form on intersections and faults.  When the formations are found solid in ground host rock called rock flour, it usually is often a site for copper or uranium mining. Copper Creek, Arizona,

4320-399: The advances made in the efficiency of seawater uranium extraction, it was suggested that it would be economically competitive to produce fuel for light water reactors from seawater if the process was implemented at large scale. Uranium extracted on an industrial scale from seawater would constantly be replenished by both river erosion of rocks and the natural process of uranium dissolved from

4416-500: The air. In Australia, a Weathering Intensity Index has been developed to help prospectors based on the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) elevation and airborne gamma-ray spectrometry images. A deposit of uranium, discovered by geophysical techniques, is evaluated and sampled to determine the amounts of uranium materials that are extractable at specified costs from the deposit. Uranium reserves are

4512-436: The amounts of ore that are estimated to be recoverable at stated costs. As prices rise or technology allows for lower cost of recovery of known, previously uneconomic, deposits, reserves increase. For uranium this effect is particularly pronounced as the biggest currently uneconomic reserve – uranium extraction from seawater – is bigger than all known land based resources of uranium combined. From 2008 through at least 2024,

4608-606: The arduous task of rehabilitating the land impacted by mining was begun. The seventeen towns and mines under Wismut's control contributed 50 percent of the uranium used in the Soviet's first atomic bomb, Joe-1 , and 80 percent of the uranium used in the Soviet nuclear program. Of the 150,000 laborers, 1281 were killed in accidents and 20,000 suffered injuries. After Stalin's death in 1953, the Red Army turned over control of production to SDAG, and prison laborers were released, reducing

4704-658: The classification of mineral deposits bases on an increasing level of geological/mineralogical knowledge about a mineral deposit. According to the CRIRSCO International Reporting Template mineral deposits are classified as Mineral Resources or Mineral Reserves . A Mineral Reserve is the economically mineable part of a Measured Mineral Resource and/or Indicated Mineral Resource . Mineral Reserves are subdivided in order of increasing confidence into Probable Mineral Reserves or Proved Mineral Reserves . A Probable Mineral Reserve

4800-402: The construction of the exploration decline, ERA began a $ 57 million project to prepare a Prefeasibility Study into the potential development of a Ranger 3 Deeps underground mine. This Study determined the economic viability of the project, optimal mining methods, and metallurgical performance and production rates. Environmental studies were also conducted and published. ERA consulted further with

4896-421: The crosscut. To extract the ore, the next step is to drive tunnels, known as raises when driven upwards and winzes when driven downward, through the deposit from level to level. Raises are subsequently used to develop the stopes where the ore is mined from the veins. The stope, which is the workshop of the mine, is the excavation from which the ore is extracted. Three methods of stope mining are commonly used. In

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4992-698: The disseminated uranium deposit at Rossing , Namibia; uranium-bearing pegmatites , and the Aurora crater lake deposit of the McDermitt Caldera in Oregon. Disseminated deposits are also found in the states of Washington and Alaska in the US. Breccia uranium deposits are found in rocks that have been broken due to tectonic fracturing, or weathering. Breccia uranium deposits are most common in India, Australia and

5088-572: The early 2010s, ERA constructed a $ 120 million Ranger 3 Deeps exploration decline (tunnel) to conduct close spaced underground exploration drilling and explore areas adjacent to the Ranger 3 Deeps resource. This was never developed as of 2024. The Ranger 3 Deeps mineralised zone contains an estimated resource of 32,620 tonnes (72,000,000 lb) of uranium oxide, comprising measured, indicated and inferred categories totalling 11.9 million tonnes of ore grading 0.274% U 3 O 8 . New permissions would have been needed to mine this resource. In parallel with

5184-466: The element, uranium compounds produced included nitrate, sulfate, phosphate, acetate and potassium- and sodium- diuranate . Klaproth detected the element in pitchblende from the George Wagsfort mine, Ore Mountains , and established commercial use as glass coloring. Pitchblende from these mountains was mentioned as early as 1565, and 110 t of uranium was produced from 1825 until 1898. In 1852,

5280-504: The extensive ground water monitoring programme. In addition, ERA completed a 2.3-metre life of the Tailings Storage Facility, constructed a new pond water retention pond to store up to one gigalitre of pond water, and installed contingency water pumping system between the Tailings Storage Facility and Pit 3. From 2012 to 2014, ERA expected to expend a total of $ 316 million in various water management projects including

5376-491: The first such prosecution of a mining company in the Northern Territory, relating to accidental radiological exposure to ERA employees. Radioactively contaminated process water had entered the drinking water supply and some workers drank and washed in it. Dozens of mine employees were found to have showered in and consumed water containing 400 times the legal limit of uranium. The maximum radiation exposure of workers

5472-653: The form of uranium dioxide ), the vast majority of commercial nuclear power plants and many research reactors require uranium enrichment , which raises the content of U from the natural 0.72% to 3–5% (for use in light water reactors ) or even higher , depending on the application. Enrichment requires conversion of the yellowcake into uranium hexafluoride and production of the fuel (again usually uranium dioxide, but sometimes uranium carbide , uranium hydride or uranium nitride ) from that feedstock. Before 1789, when Martin Heinrich Klaproth discovered

5568-500: The geological process called weathering. Therefore, oxide ore deposits are typically found close to the surface. If there are no other economic elements within the ore a mine might choose to extract the uranium using a leaching agent, usually a low molar sulfuric acid. If the economic and geological conditions are right, the mining company will level large areas of land with a small gradient, layering it with thick plastic (usually HDPE or LLDPE ), sometimes with clay, silt or sand beneath

5664-542: The illusion of prospection for a metal the Soviets definitely weren't after) became the biggest employer in the Saxon Ore Mountains and remote mining towns like Johanngeorgenstadt swelled to ten times their population in a few years. The mining cost immense amounts of money and miners were on the one hand subject to heavier repression and surveillance but on the other hand allowed more generous supply with consumer goods than other East Germans. While production

5760-544: The mine began operating. This ore had been already included in stated reserves. The laterite processing plant contributed 400 tonnes of uranium oxide per year from 2008 until closure. Water management is a critical component of ERA's business, and between 2009 and 2012, it completed water management projects for a total cost of $ 82 million. This included surface water interception trenches around stockpiles to protect local waterways, installation of continuous real-time monitoring stations, and additional ground water bores to augment

5856-479: The mine plant processed some stockpiled ore until January 2021. ERA has tenure and access to the site, principally for rehabilitation activities, until 8 January 2026. The Ranger uranium orebody , the richest in the southern hemisphere, was discovered in late 1969, when an aerial radiometric survey conducted by Geophysical Resources Development Co., a company based in Sydney, on contract to Noranda Aluminum , detected

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5952-574: The mine. In the past mining companies would sometimes go bankrupt, leaving the responsibility of mine reclamation to the public. 21st century additions to US mining law require that companies set aside the money for reclamation before the beginning of the project. The money will be held by the public to insure adherence to environmental standards if the company were to ever go bankrupt. In-situ leaching (ISL), also known as solution mining, or in-situ recovery (ISR) in North America, involves leaving

6048-423: The more efficient acid leach. The Australian government has published a best practice guide for in situ leach mining of uranium, which is being revised to take account of international differences. The uranium concentration in sea water is low, approximately 3.3 parts per billion or 3.3 micrograms per liter of seawater. But the quantity of this resource is gigantic and some scientists believe this resource

6144-415: The native groundwater in the orebody which is fortified with a complexing agent and in most cases an oxidant. It is then pumped through the underground orebody to recover the minerals in it by leaching. Once the pregnant solution is returned to the surface, the uranium is recovered in much the same way as in any other uranium plant (mill). In Australian ISL mines ( Beverley , Four Mile and Honeymoon Mine )

6240-512: The now-exposed rocks acid mine drainage can be a concern for those newly developing bodies of water. Mining companies are now required by law to establish a fund for future reclamation while mining is ongoing and those funds are usually deposited in such a way as to be unaffected by bankruptcy of the mining company. If the uranium is too far below the surface for open pit mining, an underground mine might be used with tunnels and shafts dug to access and remove uranium ore. Underground uranium mining

6336-734: The only four countries that have reported non-domestic uranium exploration and development expenses are: China, Japan, France, and Russia. The U.S. is investigating whether China is circumventing a ban on Russian uranium imports by exporting its uranium to the U.S. while importing enriched uranium from Russia. This inquiry follows a spike in Chinese uranium exports to the U.S. after the December 2023 ban, which aimed to cut off funding for Russia's war in Ukraine. As with other types of hard rock mining there are several methods of extraction. In 2016,

6432-486: The ore materials to a uniform particle size and then treating the ore to extract the uranium by chemical leaching . The milling process commonly yields dry powder-form material consisting of natural uranium, " yellowcake ", which is nowadays commonly sold on the uranium market as U 3 O 8 . While some nuclear power plants – most notably heavy water reactors like the CANDU – can operate with natural uranium (usually in

6528-429: The ore where it is in the ground, and recovering the minerals from it by dissolving them and pumping the pregnant solution to the surface where the minerals can be recovered. Consequently, there is little surface disturbance and no tailings or waste rock generated. However, the orebody needs to be permeable to the liquids used, and located so that they do not contaminate ground water away from the orebody. Uranium ISL uses

6624-514: The oxidant used is hydrogen peroxide and the complexing agent sulfuric acid. Kazakh ISL mines generally do not employ an oxidant but use much higher acid concentrations in the circulating solutions. ISL mines in the USA use an alkali leach due to the presence of significant quantities of acid-consuming minerals such as gypsum and limestone in the host aquifers. Any more than a few percent carbonate minerals means that alkali leach must be used in preference to

6720-546: The percentage of the mined uranium produced by each mining method was: in-situ leach (49.7 percent), underground mining (30.8 percent), open pit (12.9 percent), heap leaching (0.4 percent), co-product/by-product (6.1%). The remaining 0.1% was derived as miscellaneous recovery. In open pit mining, overburden is removed by drilling and blasting to expose the ore body, which is then mined by blasting and excavation using loaders and dump trucks. Workers spend much time in enclosed cabins thus limiting exposure to radiation. Water

6816-570: The pilot, Harvey Morton, the navigator and Frank Lanza, the instruments operator, who first recognised the significance of the anomaly. In 1975, Gough Whitlam appointed Justice Russell Fox , a judge of the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory , to lead an inquiry into the environmental dangers posed by mining uranium in the Northern Territory and the associated risks of exporting it, including those of nuclear proliferation . The inquiry produced two reports, published in 1976 and 1977. The Ranger No. 1 and Ranger No. 3 ore bodies occur in

6912-458: The plastic liner. The extracted ore will typically be run through a crusher and placed in heaps atop the plastic. The leaching agent will then be sprayed on the ore for 30–90 days. As the leaching agent filters through the heap, the uranium will break its bonds with the oxide rock and enter the solution. The solution will then filter along the gradient into collecting pools which will then be pumped to on-site plants for further processing. Only some of

7008-668: The population of laborers to 45,000. At its peak in 1953, the St. Joachimsthal mines had 16,100 inmates, half of whom were Soviet political prisoners. By 1975, 75% of global uranium ore production came from quartz - pebble conglomerates and sandstones located in the Elliot Lake area of Canada , Witwatersrand , and the Colorado Plateau . In 1990, 55% of world production came from underground mines, but this shrank to 33% by 1999. From 2000, new Canadian mines again increased

7104-461: The presence of radioactive isotopes. The Geiger counter was the original radiation detector, recording the total count rate from all energy levels of radiation. Ionization chambers and Geiger counters were first adapted for field use in the 1930s. The first transportable Geiger–Müller counter (weighing 25 kg) was constructed at the University of British Columbia in 1932. H.V. Ellsworth of

7200-740: The proportion of underground mining, and with Olympic Dam it is now 37%. In situ leach (ISL, or ISR) mining has been steadily increasing its share of the total, mainly due to Kazakhstan. In 2009, top producing mines included the McArthur River uranium mine at 7400 tU, the Ranger Uranium Mine at 4423 tU, the Rössing uranium mine at 3574 tU, the Moiynkum Desert mines at 3250 tU, the Streltsovsk mine at 3003 tU,

7296-636: The radium market diminished. In May 1940, the Nazis invaded Belgium and seized Union Minière's uranium ore stored there. On 18 September 1942, 1250 t of Shinkolobwe uranium ore for the Manhattan Project was purchased from Union Minière's Edgar Sengier , who had stockpiled the ore in an Archer Daniels Midland warehouse near the Bayonne Bridge , Staten Island . In 1943, the Sengier reopened

7392-646: The region. Ranger mine covers two of a line of uranium orebodies that extend from near Nourlangie Rock in Kakadu north-eastwards to Koongarra, underneath Mount Brockman, then northwards through the Ranger One line of orebodies (in order Number 2, Number 1, and Number 3), then via Hades Flat, where there is uranium mineralisation, to Jabiluka where the line turns westward through the Barote and Ranger 4 orebodies. The mine covers No 1 Orebody and No 3 Orebody. No 2 Orebody

7488-659: The same time, ERA separately lodged a notice of intent with the Northern Territory Environment Protection Authority under the Northern Territory Environmental Assessment Act. However, as reported by World Nuclear News in 2021, "Traditional owners of the land covered by the Ranger uranium project informed ERA in 2015 that they did not support any extension of the authority to mine in the project area. ERA decided not to proceed with

7584-485: The series of discoveries made by Geopeko, the exploration arm of Peko-Wallsend , in the period 1969 to 1972, was thought up by Judy Ryan, the wife of the geologist in charge of the program. Koongarra and Jabiluka were retained by the companies that found them: Noranda Australia and Pancontinental Mining respectively, although since sold to other parties. The other discoveries were enclosed in the National Park. ERA

7680-490: The source of uranium with hydrothermal vein-type deposits and the potential sources still remains a mystery, but are thought to include preexisting rocks that have been broken down by weathering and force that come from areas of long-term sediment build up. The South Chine Block is an example of a region that has been relying on vein-type hydrothermal uranium deposit demand for the past half century. Igneous deposits include nepheline syenite intrusives at Ilimaussaq , Greenland;

7776-404: The sulfuric acid. Heap leach is significantly cheaper than traditional milling processes. The low costs allow for lower grade ore to be economically feasible (given that it is the right type of ore body). US environmental law requires that the surrounding ground water is continually monitored for possible contamination. The mine will also have to have continued monitoring even after the shutdown of

7872-455: The surface area of the ocean floor, both of which maintain the solubility equilibria of seawater concentration at a stable level. Some commentators have argued that this strengthens the case for nuclear power to be considered a renewable energy . Mineral resource classification#Mineral Resources There are several classification systems for the economic evaluation of mineral deposits worldwide. The most commonly used schemes base on

7968-491: The type of rock in which they are found. This geological classification system is determined by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Uranium is also contained in seawater but at present prices on the uranium market , costs would have to be lowered by a factor of 3–6 to make its recovery economical. Uranium deposits in sedimentary rocks include those in sandstone (in Canada and

8064-415: The uranium (commonly about 70%) is actually extracted. The uranium concentrations within the solution are very important for the efficient separation of pure uranium from the acid. As different heaps will yield different concentrations, the solution is pumped to a mixing plant that is carefully monitored. The properly balanced solution is then pumped into a processing plant where the uranium is separated from

8160-582: The uranium mineral autunite from the Massif Central was identified. Around 1850, uranium mining began in Joachimsthal, Bohemia , where more than 620 t of uranium metal (tU) was produced from 1850 and 1898, with 10,000 tU produced before closure in 1968. In 1871, uranium ore mining began in Central City, Colorado , where 50 t were mined before 1895. In 1873, the uranium mining began in

8256-406: The world's best adsorbents," said Chris Janke, one of the inventors and a member of ORNL's Materials Science and Technology Division. HiCap also effectively removes toxic metals from water, according to results verified by researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory . In 2012 it was estimated that this fuel source could be extracted at 10 times the current price of uranium. In 2014, with

8352-399: Was >1 kg of yellowcake after 240 days of submersion in the ocean. The experiment by Seko et al. was repeated by Tamada et al. in 2006. They found that the cost varied from ¥15,000 to ¥88,000 depending on assumptions and "The lowest cost attainable now is ¥25,000 with 4g-U/kg-adsorbent used in the sea area of Okinawa, with 18 repetitionuses [ sic ]." With

8448-401: Was an incident at a mine site inside Kakadu National Park, with about a million litres of slurry, comprising crushed ore and acid, believed spilled, workers evacuated and production shut down. A leaching tank containing the slurry burst at about 1am. The spilled material was entirely contained within the safety bunds and no material leaked into the wider ecosystem. Uranium mine Uranium

8544-448: Was conducted by Eldorado Mining and Refining Limited . (a Canadian Crown Corporation since sold to become Cameco Corporation ). The first patent for a portable gamma-ray spectrometer was filed by Professors Pringle, Roulston & Brownell of the University of Manitoba in 1949, the same year as they tested the first portable scintillation counter on the ground and in the air in northern Saskatchewan . Airborne gamma-ray spectrometry

8640-507: Was excluded from the mining lease at the request of the traditional owners and included in Kakadu National Park. From Ranger 4 the line again turns northwards and then swings westward round an Archaean basement dome before turning south towards Nourlangie Rock again. Uranium mineralisation is known at several other places along this line but has never been explored in detail because of the creation of Kakadu. The name 'Ranger' for

8736-626: Was likely to have been much less than the regulatory limit, and no harmful long-term health effects are likely. Other incidents involving decontamination of vehicles have been identified. When the work-for-welfare mechanic in Jabiru opened the engine bay, he was unaware of the nature of the mud and dirt which fell on the floor. The court heard that in the following weeks, after he had swept the material outside his shed, his children played and built sandcastles in mud contaminated with uranium. Another significant controversy over Ranger's environmental impact

8832-461: Was named Explorer of the Year at the sixth annual Australian Mining Prospect Awards held in Sydney in November 2009. During 2008, ERA's exploration programme identified a significant mineral resource adjacent to the operating Ranger 3 pit. The area, known as Ranger 3 Deeps, ranked among the world's most significant new uranium discoveries of recent years. As production from the existing mines declined in

8928-473: Was never able to compete with global uranium market prices, the dual use nature of the mined material as well as the possibility to pay miners in soft currency but sell uranium for hard currency or substitute imports which would have had to be paid for in hard currency tipped the scales in favor of continuing mining operations throughout the Cold War. After German reunification , mining was wound down and

9024-628: Was owned and operated by Energy Resources of Australia (ERA), a public company 86.33% owned by Rio Tinto Group , the remainder held by the public. Uranium mined at Ranger was sold for use in nuclear power stations in Japan, South Korea, China, UK, France, Germany, Spain, Sweden and the United States. The original Ranger 1 orebody was mined out by the end of 1995, although some ore remained stockpiled. A second orebody, Ranger 3, began mining in 1997. Both were open-pit mines. Mining finished at Ranger in late 2012, efforts to exploit Ranger 3 Deeps failed, and

9120-427: Was precipitated by increasing the pregnant solution pH , and converted to uranium oxide (U 3 O 8 ) in a furnace. In early 2006, ERA announced an expansion to the processing plant which allowed production to extend into lower-grade ore and in November 2006 the company announced plans to invest in a laterite processing plant, which would allow it to process ore with a high clay content that has been stockpiled since

9216-500: Was reported that a tailings dam may have released millions of litres of radioactive water into world heritage-listed wetlands in Kakadu National Park , home to about 500 Aboriginal people. In November 2013, four drums previously used to transport yellowcake were found in a rural area of Darwin. The company recovered the drums amid concerns about the potential spread of radioactive contamination. On 7 December 2013 there

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