Vale OreSand Project
Over the course of 2021, in collaboration with The University of Geneva, our team sampled, tested and evaluated sandy co-products of the iron ore operation in Brucutu (Minas Gerais, Brazil), developed potential resource substitution strategies, and interviewed stakeholders in the mining and construction sectors to understand the uptake and scalability of the innovation.
As we worked through technical testing, we engaged in constructive dialogue with major stakeholders including artisanal, large- and small-scale miners, construction and manufacturing industries, standard setting institutions and regulatory bodies. We also mapped and matched mine tailings generation sites with sand consumption markets around the world.
This early work demonstrated the potential environmental benefits of co-producing this alternative sand in mineral processing circuits compared to conventional sands from a holistic Life Cycle Assessment perspective. It was also instrumental in generating some key insights which inform our work today:
OreSand is a product of the ore body, not the waste. It is not tailings and that opens up some new opportunities;
The work of developing OreSand co-production technical and commercial activities within or adjacent to mining companies can best be understood as an entrepreneurial innovation activity, even with it takes place within large multinational firms.
Circular economy alternative materials are niche innovations in a marketplace dominated by linear materials production and consumption systems. As such, OreSand is novel as a source of sand and should be approached innovation adoption challenge in developing pathways-to-market.
Vale’s OreSand case study was profiled in UNEP’s sand and sustainability report as part of a series of recommendations to promote resource efficiency and circularity by substituting the use of naturally sourced sand with alternative products. The outcomes of this research were also presented at the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) and received extensive international media coverage, reaching audiences worldwide.
Project resources and media
- OreSand: A potential new solution to the mine tailings and global sand sustainability crises – Final report
- Eos VOL. 104, NO. 3 | Grains of Sand: Too Much and Never Enough
- Mining Magazine, 30 May 2022 |Vale on its 'OreSands' revolution
- Australian Mining, 19 April 2022 | "OreSand” kills two birds with one grain
- International Mining, 30 April 2023 | Vale’s Sustainable Sand to impact tailings generation plans
- Sustainable Minerals Institute, 15 November 2021 | New step in mineral processing could help prevent sand sustainability crisis