WO2024259540A1 - Procédés et systèmes d'exploitation minière par lixiviation in situ - Google Patents

Procédés et systèmes d'exploitation minière par lixiviation in situ Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2024259540A1
WO2024259540A1 PCT/CA2024/050843 CA2024050843W WO2024259540A1 WO 2024259540 A1 WO2024259540 A1 WO 2024259540A1 CA 2024050843 W CA2024050843 W CA 2024050843W WO 2024259540 A1 WO2024259540 A1 WO 2024259540A1
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Prior art keywords
orebody
leachate
lixiviant
wells
well
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English (en)
Inventor
Roman A. Bilak
Maurice B. Dusseault
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Terralog Technologies Inc
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Terralog Technologies Inc
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Priority to AU2024312723A priority Critical patent/AU2024312723A1/en
Publication of WO2024259540A1 publication Critical patent/WO2024259540A1/fr
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    • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
    • E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
    • E21B43/00—Methods or apparatus for obtaining oil, gas, water, soluble or meltable materials or a slurry of minerals from wells
    • E21B43/28—Dissolving minerals other than hydrocarbons, e.g. by an alkaline or acid leaching agent
    • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
    • E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
    • E21B43/00—Methods or apparatus for obtaining oil, gas, water, soluble or meltable materials or a slurry of minerals from wells
    • E21B43/28—Dissolving minerals other than hydrocarbons, e.g. by an alkaline or acid leaching agent
    • E21B43/283—Dissolving minerals other than hydrocarbons, e.g. by an alkaline or acid leaching agent in association with a fracturing process
    • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
    • E21—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; MINING
    • E21B—EARTH OR ROCK DRILLING; OBTAINING OIL, GAS, WATER, SOLUBLE OR MELTABLE MATERIALS OR A SLURRY OF MINERALS FROM WELLS
    • E21B2200/00—Special features related to earth drilling for obtaining oil, gas or water
    • E21B2200/20—Computer models or simulations, e.g. for reservoirs under production, drill bits

Definitions

  • Heap leaching is an extraction approach wherein a leachate is dripped on to heaps of crushed low-grade ores stacked at the surface of a mining operation, thereby dissolving the metals, and the pregnant liquor is collected and processed to recover the metals.
  • Uranium may have been precipitated within the sandstone long after it was originally deposited.
  • the sandstone comprises essentially pure quartz and feldspar, and the Uranium is present as a grain coating in an oxide form.
  • An acidic leaching solution is created and injected under matrix flow conditions, usually in such a way as to make a sweep front in the sandstone, if possible.
  • the leaching solution is treated at the surface to remove the dissolved Uranium, recharged, and recirculated.
  • Contributing to the success of conventional leach mining of Uranium is that sandstones have inherent permeability, are relatively flat-lying in aspect, and are shallow (less than 1-2 km), thereby making the sandstone easier to access.
  • DLM seeks to chemically leach the mineral values of commercial interest through the process of lixiviation, leaving behind the gangue.
  • Surface impacts are small, compared to conventional mining approaches, as nonvaluable minerals (gangue) such as quartz, feldspar and hornblende remain in-situ.
  • gangue nonvaluable minerals
  • Continued development drilling can take place while preliminary chemical leaching is occurring, reducing initial outlay of capital.
  • DLM involves a rock mechanics approach where the orebody, usually in an igneous or metamorphic geological environment, is essentially impermeable and may be ameliorated before a circulation pattern is implemented. There is no inherent limitation to the geometry of the orebody, from vertical to horizontal, and of any thickness or shape.
  • the geometry of the orebody dictates in part the wellbore array design and the rock mass stimulation strategy. In principle, there are no limitations to depth, provided that the borehole array can be successfully emplaced to access the orebody. Circulation of leachate may be vertical, horizontal, or inclined, depending on the nature of the orebody and the rock mechanics properties of the host rock.
  • the DLM method can also be used for mining minerals containing rare earth metals/elements and deposits of metallic minerals that contain values such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, and copper.
  • the empirical process measurements corresponding to the leachate or the recovered first amount of dissolved mineral values comprises at least one of: a flow rate of the leachate; a concentration of the leachate; or a mass of the recovered first amount of dissolved mineral values.
  • applying the modification to the injection and production strategy of the leachate process comprises: modifying a restimulation strategy for restimulating the first portion of the orebody or other portions of the orebody.
  • applying the modification to the injection and production strategy of the leachate process comprises: modifying a well configuration design of the plurality of wells.
  • applying the modification to the injection and production strategy of the leachate process comprises: adjusting a volume, flow rate, and/or pressure of lixiviant flowing through the lixiviant flow network.
  • applying the modification to the injection and production strategy of the leachate process comprises: modifying a lixiviant composition.
  • applying the modification to the injection and production strategy of the leachate process comprises: drilling a plurality of new wells using directional drilling to intersect a second portion of the orebody, based on the updated model; and generating an expanded lixiviant flow network in communication with the plurality of new wells by stimulating and/or restimulating at least the second portion of the orebody using a third stimulation process.
  • the first stimulation process and the second stimulation process is a hydraulic fracturing stimulation process
  • the hydraulic fracturing stimulation process is conducted via the plurality of wells.
  • the plurality of wells includes at least one injection well and at least one production well.
  • the method further comprising: receiving the leachate at the at least one production well disposed at the target depth in the subterranean orebody and extending to the surface level, the production well for transporting the leachate to the surface level.
  • the plurality of wells may have at least one well that is both and injection and production well.
  • the present disclosure describes a system for extracting mineral values from a subterranean orebody using a cyclic leaching process including: one or more processor devices; and one or more memories storing machine-executable instructions, which when executed by the one or more processor devices, cause the system to: generate a lixiviant flow network of the subterranean orebody by stimulating a first portion of the orebody using a first stimulation process, the first stimulation process causing enhanced fluid flow conductivity via a plurality of fractures or fluid flow pathways generated in the first portion of the orebody, the lixiviant flow network in fluid communication with a plurality of wells extending from a surface level to a target depth in the subterranean orebody; receive a lixiviant flow into the lixiviant flow network of the subterranean orebody via at least one well of the plurality of wells, with effect that a leachate is produced; update a model corresponding to the cyclic leaching process,
  • FIG. IB is a schematic block diagram of an in-situ leach mining system suitable for implementation of examples described herein.
  • FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example computing system suitable for implementation of examples described herein.
  • FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an example cyclic deep leach mining optimization system, in accordance with example implementations described herein.
  • FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing operations of a method for extracting a mineral value from a subterranean orebody, in accordance with example implementations described herein.
  • a model is updated based on empirical process monitoring data obtained during the extraction of mineral values and the first portion of the orebody is restimulated using a second stimulation process, based on the updated model, for enhancing a conductivity of the lixiviant flow network.
  • the cyclic leaching process is repeated to progressively develop other portions of the orebody.
  • a "lixiviant flow network” or a “lixiviant circulation pattern” can mean: an induced network of flow pathways in a target orebody through which a lixiviant can flow.
  • flow pathways in the orebody may be generated by stimulation of the orebody for creating in situ conductivity in the orebody .
  • the lixiviant flow network can include an injection well, disposed at the earth's surface, extending into the subterranean orebody and in fluid communication with the flow pathways, for receiving a lixiviant, and a production well, disposed at the earth's surface, extending from the subterranean orebody and in fluid communication with the flow pathways, for the production of recovered leachate flow at the surface.
  • fracturing fluid e.g., slurry
  • a network of multiple fractures may be induced around the injection well, for example, defining a stimulated reservoir volume (SRV), where the near-wellbore hydraulic fracture development occurs in multiple directions (azimuth, orientations).
  • RSV stimulated reservoir volume
  • proppant may or may not be added to the slurry for emplacement in the generated fractures, for propping the fractures open and maintaining developed conductivity, for example, after the stimulation is complete.
  • the liner or sections of the liner can have fluid flow openings (e.g. slots in a slotted liner, or another fluid flow communication structure) through which fluid can be exchanged between the wellbore string and the subterranean orebody 102 or sections of the liner can be solid.
  • the liner can be made of metal, plastic or a composite material.
  • sections of the wellbores can be open-hole. For example, if the rock mass is extremely competent, fully casing the injection well 112 and/or the production well 114 may not be necessary, and only the upper 100- 200 m need be cased and cemented in competent rock.
  • steel tubing may be inappropriate due to leachate reactivity (e.g., highly acidic), and a low-chemical-reactivity carbon fibre-epoxy casing may be installed, or a polymeric tubing string (e.g., PVC tubing) used to circulate fluids.
  • a wellhead 116 can be fixed to the injection well 112 and a wellhead 118 can be fixed to the production well 114.
  • development of an induced fracture network within the orebody 102 may create in situ conductivity and surface area exposure to better access the mineral values via a leachate, thereby promoting inter-well communication and providing effective fluid flow and/or circulation pathways for the leachate within the orebody.
  • various stimulation and formation conditioning methods may be used for generating flow pathways (enhanced fluid conductivity) or for achieving a desired level of internal surface area exposure for leaching.
  • production tubing may transport the pregnant leachate from the subterranean orebody 102 to the surface level 104, where the mineral value can then be recovered, for example, the mineral value may be extracted chemically at a production facility 132, before the lixiviating fluid is reconstituted and re-injected or circulated in a continuous process.
  • the pregnant leachate can be produced by artificial lift, for example, using an electrical submersible pump (ESP) assembly (not shown) disposed at a subsurface intake location near the heel of the production well 114.
  • ESP electrical submersible pump
  • FIG. IB shows an in-situ leach mining system 100b for extracting a target mineral or "value" from a subterranean orebody 102, in accordance with example implementations described herein.
  • the in-situ leach mining system 100b is an illustrative example of a system to which the systems, methods, and processor- readable media described herein can be applied, in accordance with examples of the present disclosure.
  • the in-situ leach mining system 100b comprises a multiwell configuration (e.g., multi-well array) including at least one parent well pair 110 and one or more child wells 122 (or infill wells) for optimized extraction of the target ore.
  • a well pad on the surface 104 provides access to the child wells 122 through respective wellheads 126 of the child wells 122.
  • the parent well pair 110 in FIG. IB is shown as a horizontal well pair and the child wells 122 in FIG. IB are shown as deviated wells (e.g., S-shaped), is it understood that the parent well pair 110 and the child wells 122 can be in any configuration, such as horizontal, vertical, or deviated.
  • the child wells 122 may be configured to intersect a portion of the orebody 102 corresponding to a height 124 of the orebody 102.
  • the parent well pair 110 and the one or more child wells 122 may represent either injection wells or production wells, for example, in various combinations according to the multi-well configuration design, and that the injection wells and production wells may be interchangeable, for example, by reversing the flow direction in the well, for example, as directed by an injection-production strategy.
  • the multi-well array configuration includes a plurality of injection wells 112 for receiving a lixiviant flow 128 and a plurality of production wells 114 for receiving a recovered leachate 130 and transporting the recovered leachate 130 to the surface for processing.
  • the injection wells 112 may be stimulated to generate induced fractures 120, for example, forming a fracture network within the orebody 102.
  • the lixiviant flow may be directed through the fracture network, causing leaching of the mineral values to produce the leachate 130.
  • the leachate 130 may propagate toward one of the production wells 114 and may be received through openings of the production 114 for transportation to the surface 104.
  • FIG. ID shows a perspective view of an example multi-well array configuration for developing an inclined (dipping) orebody 102, in accordance with example implementations described herein.
  • the design of the wellbore array depends on the geometric disposition of the mineral values in the orebody 102, the existence and nature of natural fracture systems, the orientations of the compressive stresses in the orebody, and the outcomes of the formation stimulation undertaken to create surface area and interconnectivity, among other possibilities.
  • FIG. ID shows an inclined orebody 102 with a dip 154 measured from a horizontal plane, for example, where a dip angle 150 is measured with respect to a dip direction 152.
  • the inclined orebody may be developed by a series of vertical (or substantially vertical) wellbores 140, or the inclined orebody may be developed by a series of horizontal (or substantially horizontal) wellbores 142 placed within the inclined orebody at different depths, or a combination of wellbore orientations may be used.
  • a multi-well array configuration including horizontal wellbores for example, where horizontal production wells are positioned below injection wells, may present advantages for leachate production, for example, associated with a higher density of pregnant leachate compared to lixiviant.
  • higher density leachate may flow preferentially downwards in the lixiviant flow network, for recovery via production wells positioned deep in the multi-well array configuration.
  • the local stress state in a near-wellbore region may be altered in response to a stimulation or restimulation process, for example, causing fracture rotations as the stress system changes.
  • a changing local stress state responsive to multiple stimulation processes may contribute to the generation of different fracture orientations and/or induced fracture network complexity.
  • the shape and/or geometry of the stimulation zone as well as regional and/or local stress orientations may impact the desired wellbore placement (e.g., spacing, orientation, length etc.) in the wellbore array.
  • placement of wells in zones of good connectivity that have been established by the stimulation process may enable a wider well spacing (e.g., with interwell spacing of up to several hundred meters between the wellbores, or more conservatively, with interwell spacing of 30-100 metres), where closer well spacing may enable better control of fluid flow in the stimulation zone over the extraction life.
  • wellbores that are oriented along less favorable stress orientations may require a closer wellbore spacing, for example, to account for the poorer fluid flow interconnectivity between wells in that direction.
  • FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example hardware structure of a computing system 200 that is suitable for implementing example embodiments.
  • computing system 200 can be an electronic computing device, such as a networked server.
  • the computing system 200 can be a distributed computing system including multiple devices (such as a cloud computing platform) or a virtual machine running on one or more devices in mutual communication over a network.
  • devices such as a cloud computing platform
  • FIG. 2 shows a single instance of each component, there can be multiple instances of each component in the computing system 200.
  • the computing system 200 includes at least one processor 202, such as a central processing unit, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a dedicated logic circuitry, a dedicated artificial intelligence processor unit, a graphics processing unit (GPU), a tensor processing unit (TPU), a neural processing unit (NPU), a hardware accelerator, or combinations thereof.
  • processor 202 such as a central processing unit, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a dedicated logic circuitry, a dedicated artificial intelligence processor unit, a graphics processing unit (GPU), a tensor processing unit (TPU), a neural processing unit (NPU), a hardware accelerator, or combinations thereof.
  • processor 202 such as a central processing unit, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (F
  • the computing system 200 can include one or more network interfaces (collectively referred to as network interface 206) for wired or wireless communication over a network.
  • the network interface 206 can include wired links (e.g., Ethernet cable) and/or wireless links (e.g., one or more antennas).
  • the computing system 200 can communicate with one or more user devices (such as user workstation computers) via the network interface 206.
  • the computing system 200 can also communicate with various sensors or other data sources to obtain data used in monitoring the resource extraction system 100.
  • the sensors can include sensors located within the in-situ leach mining system 100a, 100b. For example, monitoring of various rates, concentrations, locations, flow paths, and other variables may be carried out continuously to understand how the orebody 102 is responding to the DLM process and to maximize the return rate of dissolved mineral value.
  • the computing system 200 may include one or more memories 204 (individually or collectively referred to as "memory 204"), which may include a volatile or non-volatile memory (e.g., a flash memory, a random access memory (RAM), and/or a read-only memory (ROM)).
  • the non-transitory memory 204 may store instructions for execution by the processor 202, such as to carry out example embodiments.
  • the memory 204 may store instructions for implementing any of the methods of the examples and example embodiments.
  • the memory 204 may include other software instructions, such as for implementing an operating system (OS) and other applications/functions.
  • OS operating system
  • the computing system 200 may also include one or more electronic storage units (not shown), such as a solid state drive, a hard disk drive, a magnetic disk drive and/or an optical disk drive.
  • one or more data sets and/or modules may be provided by an external memory (e.g., an external drive in wired or wireless communication with the computing system 200) or may be provided by a transitory or non-transitory computer-readable medium. Examples of non-transitory computer readable media include a RAM, a ROM, an erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), a flash memory, a CD-ROM, or other portable memory storage.
  • EPROM erasable programmable ROM
  • EEPROM electrically erasable programmable ROM
  • the memory 204 can also store information or data used in executing the cyclic deep leach mining optimization system 300, for example, a numerical model 320 and a leachate flow simulator 340.
  • the components of the computing system 200 may communicate with each other via a bus, for example.
  • FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an example cyclic deep leach mining optimization system 300 of the present disclosure.
  • the cyclic deep leach mining optimization system 300 can be a software that is implemented in the computing system 200 of FIG. 2, in which the processor 202 is configured to execute instructions of the cyclic deep leach mining optimization system 300 stored in the memory 204.
  • the cyclic deep leach mining optimization system 300 in this example includes a numerical model 320, a leachate flow simulator 340 and a DLM process evaluator 360.
  • different functions of the cyclic deep leach mining optimization system 300 can be performed on different devices other than the computing system 200. For example, computationally intensive functions such as building a 3D numerical model (e.g., numerical model 320) and executing the numerical model 320 or the flow simulator 340 can be performed on a cloud computing platform in communication with a local computing system 200.
  • computationally intensive functions such as building a 3D numerical model (e.g., numerical model 320) and executing the numerical model 320
  • the cyclic deep leach mining optimization system 300 can receive as inputs 301, numerical model inputs 310, flow simulator inputs 312 and empirical process monitoring data 314 and can output a proposed DLM process modification 370.
  • Analytical or numerical models are commonly employed in resource extraction operations for predicting rock behavior and for designing efficient and safe operations.
  • Flow simulators are often used in resource extraction operations (e.g., hydrocarbon extraction, among others) to model fluid flow and predict recovery volumes.
  • these models can be complex, and they are dependent on the quality and resolution of input data.
  • wellbore monitoring or well and formation testing methods may be applied prior to development of the orebody and continually throughout development of the orebody 102, to gather and/or refine inputs for analytical or numerical models or flow simulators.
  • the continuous monitoring may provide feedback regarding the orebody response to lixiviation and may inform future modifications to the cyclic DLM process, for example, the drilling of child offset (or infill) wells in appropriate locations, for example, to reduce the well spacing and achieve higher recovery factors, among other modifications.
  • the numerical model inputs 310 may include information associated with well configuration, geology (e.g., mapped orebody geometry, richness etc.), drilling information obtained during the drilling of wells during exploration or pre-production phases, such as exploration wells, a parent well pair 110, or any injection wells 112, production wells 114 or monitoring wells, geophysical measurements (e.g., seismic data, geophysical logs etc.), rock mechanics information (e.g., elastic properties, permeability, porosity, conductivity, in-situ stress etc.), well completions data (e.g., pressures, flow rates, volumes, concentrations etc.) or production data (e.g., flow rates, volumes, concentrations etc.) among other data.
  • geology e.g., mapped orebody geometry, richness etc.
  • drilling information obtained during the drilling of wells during exploration or pre-production phases, such as exploration wells, a parent well pair 110, or any injection wells 112, production wells 114 or monitoring wells
  • geophysical measurements
  • determining an in-situ stress state during the delineation of the orebody is important for optimal wellbore array design.
  • mathematical (e.g., numerical) modeling may be used to evaluate potential stimulation strategies for optimizing the orebody leaching.
  • the numerical model 320 (e.g., such as continuum models, among other possibilities) may first be generated, based on the numerical model inputs 310.
  • the numerical model 320 can be a software that is implemented in the computing system 200 of FIG. 2, in which the processor device 202 is configured to execute instructions of the numerical model 320 stored in the memory 204.
  • the numerical model 320 may be generated for a geological environment, including the orebody or a portion of the orebody, for example, based on lithology, geological structures etc., and associated material properties and in-situ stress conditions.
  • the leachate flow simulator 340 may also first be generated, based on flow simulator inputs 312 and information provided by the numerical model 320, for example, corresponding to wellbore configurations and induced fracture networks, among other data, to model the lixiviant flow network.
  • the flow simulator inputs 312 may include information associated with well testing (e.g., for assessing the degree of interwell interconnectivity and preferred spatial flow directions), including pressure migration testing, tracer tests, and formation testing (e.g. injectivity testing and analysis, step-rate flow tests) or other methods to delineate the nature of the flow patterns created with respect to the orebody geometrical and mineral value distribution information.
  • the flow simulator inputs 312 may also include other information, such as the wellbore configuration, orebody parameters (e.g., mapped orebody geometry, richness etc.), drilling information obtained during the drilling of wells during exploration or pre-production phases, such as exploration wells, parent well pair 110, or any injection wells 112, production wells 114 or monitoring wells, geophysical measurements (e.g., seismic data, geophysical logs etc.), rock mechanics information (e.g., elastic properties, permeability, porosity, conductivity, in-situ stress etc.), well completions data (e.g., pressures, flow rates, volumes, concentrations etc.) or production data (e.g., flow rates, volumes, concentrations etc.) among other data.
  • the wellbore configuration e.g., mapped orebody geometry, richness etc.
  • drilling information obtained during the drilling of wells during exploration or pre-production phases, such as exploration wells, parent well pair 110, or any injection wells 112, production wells 114 or monitoring
  • the leachate flow simulator 340 may model the lixiviant flow network (e.g., fluid flow or circulation pattern of lixiviant and/or leachate through the induced fracture network) between a plurality of wells, for example, between one or more injection wells 112 and one or more production wells 114.
  • continual data collection, analysis and interpretation may inform updates to either the numerical model 320 or the leachate flow simulator 340, for example, empirical process monitoring data 314 may include concentrations of the exiting leachate may be continually measured, along with the distribution of input and outflow, reflecting changes in fluid circulation pattern(s) as they develop in-situ, among other data associated with the cyclic DLM process that is measured during the process, for example, through experimentation or observation.
  • periodic mapping of the disposition of the process in the orebody may be undertaken to determine the shape and position of leached zones, in order to continue to develop and optimize the deep leach mining process.
  • these activities may include seismic methods (3D surface seismic, cross-hole seismic tomography, vertical seismic profiling, and others), resistivity mapping, interwell hydraulic tests, wellbore logging (temperature logs, tracer logs, etc.) and mathematical modeling of the leaching process in the subsurface.
  • seismic methods (3D surface seismic, cross-hole seismic tomography, vertical seismic profiling, and others)
  • resistivity mapping 3D surface seismic, cross-hole seismic tomography, vertical seismic profiling, and others
  • interwell hydraulic tests 3D surface seismic, cross-hole seismic tomography, vertical seismic profiling, and others
  • wellbore logging temperature logs, tracer logs, etc.
  • mathematical modeling of the leaching process in the subsurface may be continually acquired and fed into the numerical model 320 or the leachate flow simulator 340 during cyclic DLM process operations, for updating the numerical model 320 and the leachate flow simulator 340.
  • the numerical model 320 and the leachate flow simulator 340 may interact, for example, in an iterative process, to evaluate the effect of potential modifications to the cyclic CLM process, for example, including modifications to well configuration, wellbore stimulation and/or restimulation, slurry composition, injection-production strategy etc. on the predicted recovery of mineral values.
  • the numerical model 320 may output a simulated DLM process modification 330 (e.g., where the simulated DLM process modification 330 may include a stimulation and/or a restimulation of an existing well in the in-situ deep leach mining system lOOa/lOOb, such as an injection well 112 or a production well 114, or the drilling of a new well, such as a child offset well 122, among other modifications) and the leachate flow simulator 340 may generate a predicted recovery 350 associated with the simulated DLM process modification 330.
  • a simulated DLM process modification 330 e.g., where the simulated DLM process modification 330 may include a stimulation and/or a restimulation of an existing well in the in-situ deep leach mining system lOOa/lOOb, such as an injection well 112 or a production well 114, or the drilling of a new well, such as a child offset well 122, among other modifications
  • the leachate flow simulator 340 may generate a
  • the leachate flow simulator 340 may perform a flow simulation for a well configuration that incorporates the simulated DLM process modification 330, to evaluate the effect of the modification on the predicted flow dynamics for the lixiviant flow network (e.g. predicted rate of lixiviant flow, predicted leaching rate, predicted recovery of leachate, etc.) on the predicted recovery 350.
  • the leachate flow simulator 340 may feed information back to the numerical model 320 to inform future simulated DLM process modifications 330.
  • simulated DLM process modifications 330 can be iteratively provided to the leachate flow simulator 340 and evaluated until a predicted recovery meets a predetermined threshold value, among other criteria.
  • a DLM process evaluator 360 may receive the predicted recovery 350 associated with the simulated DLM process modification 330 and may compare the predicted recovery 350 to empirical process monitoring data 314, for example, including a measured recovery, among other information, to determine a DLM process modification 370.
  • the DLM process modification 370 may be implemented within the in-situ leach mining system lOOa/lOOb, for example, by stimulating or restimulating a portion of the orebody 102 (e.g., performing a hydraulic fracture stimulation on an injection well 112 and/or a production well 114), by drilling one or more new wells for targeting additional portions of the orebody (e.g., drilling a new offset or infill well using directional drilling to intersect a second portion of the orebody, such as adjacent portions of the orebody) for expanding the lixiviant flow network, by optimizing a slurry (e.g., lixiviant) design, by adjusting flow rates and/or pressures through the lixiviant flow network or altering flow paths in the lixiviant flow network (e.g., by adjusting injection rates and/or pressures and/or production rates and/or pressures), according to an injection-production strategy, among other possibilities.
  • a slurry e.g., lixiviant
  • DLM process modifications may occur repeatedly through the life of the orebody development, for example, in a cyclic manner until the orebody is exploited.
  • an example process modification can be to adjust a valve of the production well 114 to reduce the production rate from the wellbore.
  • reducing a production rate may cause the lixiviant flowing through the lixiviant flow network to flow in an alternate path, for example, toward other production wells 114, for increasing the amount of dissolved mineral values in the produced leachate and maximizing recovery.
  • a modification can be to adjust a slurry design, for example, a concentration or composition of the injected lixiviant for increasing the amount of dissolved mineral values in the produced leachate and maximizing recovery.
  • process modifications may be made at each wellhead individually.
  • the DLM process may be guided by empirical data analyses and mathematical modeling to interpret what is happening at depth.
  • the numerical model and 320 and leachate flow simulator 340 may be repeatedly recalibrated, for example, based on empirical process monitoring data to optimize the DLM process.
  • Example implementations of methods for extracting mineral values from a subterranean orebody will now be described, with reference to the cyclic deep leach mining optimization system 300 executed by the example computing system 200 in co-operation with the in-situ leach mining system 100a or 100b.
  • Method 400 begins at step 402 in which a lixiviant flow network of the subterranean orebody is generated by stimulating a first portion of the orebody using a first stimulation process, the first stimulation process causing enhanced fluid flow conductivity via a plurality of fractures or fluid flow pathways generated in the first portion of the orebody, the lixiviant flow network in fluid communication with a plurality of wells extending from a surface level to a target depth in the subterranean orebody.
  • the first stimulation process may cause an increase in the surface area within a stimulated volume of a near-wellbore region.
  • the first stimulation process may generate interconnectivity between adjacent wellbores to enable fluid circulation in the lixiviant flow network (e.g., generating enhanced fluid flow conductivity via a plurality of fractures or fluid flow pathways generated in the first portion of the orebody).
  • the stimulation process may involve some combination of hydraulic fracturing, hydroshearing, blast detonations, rocket propellant stimulation, acid stimulation, or other techniques.
  • a lixiviant flow is received into a lixiviant flow network of the subterranean orebody via at least one well of the plurality of wells, with effect that a leachate 130 is produced.
  • mineral "values" may leached from the subterranean orebody 102 into the leachate 130.
  • the well may be a production well 114 and the leachate 130 is received at the production well 114, where the production well 114 is disposed at the target depth 106 in the subterranean orebody 102 and extending to the surface level 104, the production well 114 for transporting the leachate 130 to the surface level 104.
  • a model corresponding to the cyclic DLM process may be updated based on empirical process monitoring data 314.
  • empirical process monitoring data 314 corresponding to the leachate 130 or the recovered first amount of dissolved mineral value, among other sources of empirical data associated with the DLM process.
  • measurements may include flow rate of the leachate, concentration of the leachate or a mass of the recovered first amount of mineral value, among other possibilities.
  • the DLM process represents a cyclic process or iterative process, where monitored data is used to optimize and improve the DLM process using an engineered and/or data-driven approach.
  • a DLM process modification 370 may be applied to the cyclic DLM process, for example, the first portion of the orebody may be restimulated using a second stimulation process, based on the updated model, for enhancing a conductivity of the lixiviant network.
  • the second stimulation process may be performed based on the updated numerical model 320 and/or the updated leachate flow simulator 340.
  • the cyclic DLM leaching process may be repeated to progressively develop other portions of the orebody.
  • the second stimulation process may be repeated and/or performed multiple times on the first portion of the orebody or on other portions of the orebody, among other possibilities.
  • DLM process modifications 370 may be implemented or repeated in a progressive manner within the in-situ leach mining system lOOa/lOOb, for example, by drilling one or more new wells for targeting additional portions of the orebody (e.g., drilling a new offset or infill well using directional drilling to intersect a second portion of the orebody, such as adjacent portions of the orebody) for expanding the lixiviant flow network, by optimizing a slurry (e.g., lixiviant) design, by adjusting flow rates and/or pressures through the lixiviant flow network or altering flow paths in the lixiviant flow network (e.g., by adjusting injection rates and/or pressures and/or production rates and/or pressures), according to an injection-production strategy, by stimulating or restimulating another portion of the orebody 102 using a stimulation process or a restimulation process, among other possibilities.
  • a slurry e.g., lixiviant
  • continuous monitoring of the cyclic DLM process regarding the orebody response to lixiviation may inform repeated future modifications to the cyclic DLM process and DLM process modifications may occur repeatedly through the life of the orebody development, for example, in a cyclic manner until the orebody is exploited.
  • the present disclosure is described, at least in part, in terms of methods, a person of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the present disclosure is also directed to the various components for performing at least some of the aspects and features of the described methods, either by way of hardware components, software or any combination of the two. Accordingly, the technical solution of the present disclosure can be embodied in the form of a software product.
  • a suitable software product can be stored in a pre-recorded storage device or other similar non-volatile or non-transitory computer readable medium, including DVDs, CD-ROMs, USB flash disk, a removable hard disk, or other storage media, for example.
  • the software product includes instructions tangibly stored thereon that enable a processing device (e.g., a personal computer, a server, or a network device) to execute examples of the methods disclosed herein.
  • a processing device e.g., a personal computer, a server, or a network device
  • the software improves the operation of the hardware in one or more ways.

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  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Geology (AREA)
  • Mining & Mineral Resources (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Environmental & Geological Engineering (AREA)
  • Fluid Mechanics (AREA)
  • General Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Geochemistry & Mineralogy (AREA)
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Abstract

L'invention concerne des procédés et des systèmes pour extraire des minéraux de valeur d'un gisement souterrain à l'aide d'un processus de lixiviation cyclique. Un réseau d'écoulement de lixiviant du gisement souterrain est généré par stimulation d'une première partie du gisement à l'aide d'un premier processus de stimulation, ce qui provoque une conductivité d'écoulement de fluide améliorée par l'intermédiaire d'une pluralité de fractures ou de voies d'écoulement de fluide générées dans la première partie du gisement. Un écoulement de lixiviant est reçu dans le réseau d'écoulement de lixiviant par l'intermédiaire d'au moins un puits de la pluralité de puits, ce qui a pour effet de produire un lixiviat. Un modèle est mis à jour sur la base de données de surveillance de processus empiriques obtenues pendant l'extraction de minéraux de valeur et la première partie du gisement est à nouveau stimulée à l'aide d'un second processus de stimulation, sur la base du modèle mis à jour, afin d'améliorer une conductivité du réseau d'écoulement de lixiviant. Le processus de lixiviation cyclique est répété de sorte à développer progressivement d'autres parties du gisement.
PCT/CA2024/050843 2023-06-22 2024-06-21 Procédés et systèmes d'exploitation minière par lixiviation in situ Ceased WO2024259540A1 (fr)

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Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2026011212A1 (fr) * 2024-07-09 2026-01-15 LJF Consultants Pty Ltd Procédé et système de récupération in situ de métaux

Citations (4)

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US6644848B1 (en) * 1998-06-11 2003-11-11 Abb Offshore Systems Limited Pipeline monitoring systems
US20100224365A1 (en) * 2009-03-06 2010-09-09 Carlos Abad Method of treating a subterranean formation and forming treatment fluids using chemo-mathematical models and process control
WO2012090174A2 (fr) * 2010-12-30 2012-07-05 Schlumberger Canada Limited Système et procédé d'exécution d'opérations de stimulation de fond de puits
US20210131255A1 (en) * 2019-11-01 2021-05-06 102062448 Saskatchewan Ltd. Processes and configurations for subterranean resource extraction

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6644848B1 (en) * 1998-06-11 2003-11-11 Abb Offshore Systems Limited Pipeline monitoring systems
US20100224365A1 (en) * 2009-03-06 2010-09-09 Carlos Abad Method of treating a subterranean formation and forming treatment fluids using chemo-mathematical models and process control
WO2012090174A2 (fr) * 2010-12-30 2012-07-05 Schlumberger Canada Limited Système et procédé d'exécution d'opérations de stimulation de fond de puits
US20210131255A1 (en) * 2019-11-01 2021-05-06 102062448 Saskatchewan Ltd. Processes and configurations for subterranean resource extraction

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2026011212A1 (fr) * 2024-07-09 2026-01-15 LJF Consultants Pty Ltd Procédé et système de récupération in situ de métaux

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