AN Australian engineer working to reduce energy consumption in mineral processing was selected by The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society (TMS) as the first recipient of the Vittorio de Nora Prize for Environmental Improvements in Metallurgical Industries.
Zeljka Pokrajcic, a senior process design engineer for WorleyParsons — Mineral and Metals Division, in Melbourne and doctoral candidate at Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre (JKMRC), University of Queensland in Brisbane, earned the inaugural prize for developing a methodology to minimise the energy usage of comminution circuits, which are typically the largest consumers of electrical energy in a mineral processing plant.
"I am delighted by the selection of Zeljka Pokrajcic for her work and congratulate her," TMS President Ray Peterson said.
"As the first of many future creative individuals to reduce our industrial impact on the environment, she shows that every human being can have a positive influence on our world."
The Vittorio de Nora Prize was established this year by the TMS Foundation to honor this pioneer in the materials processing field and one of the great Italian technologists of the 20th century.
"Not only does the de Nora Prize honor the career of an outstanding industrialist, it also shows our TMS commitment to building the path towards a sustainable future that contains a strong and vibrant metals and materials industry," Peterson said.
Pokrajcic’s approach involves reducing the mass of material in the comminution circuit by rejecting coarse-sized, commercially worthless material before milling, as well as using more efficient crushing and grinding equipment.
Partially funded by the Centre for Sustainable Resource Processing, Pokrajcic’s research utilised modelling and ore characterisation technology that had been developed at JKMRC.
Pokrajcic said she was honored to be the first winner of the Vittorio de Nora Prize.
"I feel strongly about the environment and the choices we can be making as individuals and professionals to ensure the sustainability of our planet," she said.
"Improvement to comminution circuit design is an area where the benefits and reduction in energy usage can be greatest."
Pokrajcic will receive the award and present her winning technology at the TMS 2010 Annual Meeting & Exhibition in Seattle, Washington February 14-18, 2010.
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