The trial of the OLGA on the flotation feed stream is a success, with the OLGA providing accurate, real-time readings of the gold in the streams. This represents a significant milestone in the ability to read gold grades in real-time and unlocks significant potential for real-time control and automation of gold plants.
The figures show a seven-day timeline of the hourly moving average (data points are shown every 10 minutes) OLGA measurements, with shift composite assays and instant grab samples overlaid. From the graph, there are discrepancies between the spot (grab) and shift composite samples, and that OLGA tracks small changes in the flotation feed grade with better resolution than the spot samples while remaining consistent with the shift composite samples.
During the trial, continuous operation and monitoring of the OLGA was ongoing with daily validation samples collected and assayed to build an ongoing database. The great relationship and open communication between Gekko and CSIRO has been crucial for further information and fine-tuning and development of the OLGA.
Additionally, further testing is underway to validate the simultaneous measurement of copper and arsenic in the targeted streams. From this excellent start, further advancements to the technology are being made to increase the mineral suite, simplify the mechanical components, and to optimise the operating system.
