Unlocking the full potential of mineral exploration at depth: borehole logging methods and analysis for increased exploration efficiency

释放深度矿产勘探的全部潜力：提高勘探效率的钻孔测井方法和分析

• 批准号: RGPIN-2014-04637
• 负责人: Dupuis, Jerome
• 金额: $ 2.55万
• 依托单位: Université Laval
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2014-01-01 至 2015-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=566648
• 关键词: Unlocking; full; potential; mineral; exploration

Availability of mineral resources underpins all sectors of our economic activity. Continued development of emerging countries places a greater strain on these resources and thus our ability to discover and renew reserves is likely to be outstripped by demand. In order to meet this societal challenge, the mineral exploration industry must innovate. Since future reserves are likely to be found at depth, overlain by barren or transported cover and without surface expressions we must establish cost effective programs that allow for mineral prospection at depth. This research program provides solutions to increase the efficiency of these type of mineral exploration programs. The first, is to leverage the full potential of the investment made when the borehole is drilled by systematic acquisition of in-situ physical properties and transformation of these data into information that impacts exploration. The second is to limit cases where boreholes fail to intersect the target or run into expensive drilling hazards. As an analogy, the advent of systematic measurement of in-situ rock properties and transformation of the data into useful exploration information proposes a paradigm shift similar to what happened to photography. Digital photography eradicated the costs related to film and reduced significantly processing costs by allowing us to print only the good ones. This technology is now ubiquitous in our lives and has allowed us to use photography in ways unthinkable more than a decade ago. Automatic capture of metadata that identifies the time and place where the photograph was taken can be augmented by facial recognition. Thus, far from old shoe boxes and dusty albums, novel digital albums allow for rapid sorting and efficient retrieval of photographs base on these metadata. The nature of the digital information also means that it can backed-up and distributed freely. Not so for the rock-cores stored in traditional core-sheds that are unique. Core samples suffer from degradation as they age by being exposed to air and moisture that can cause oxidation. Only geological description and sparse assay data may remain from particular drilling programs. Systematic measurement of physical properties in-situ provides a quantitative assessment of the rock mass intersected by the borehole. These data are a source of quantitative information that is free from interpretational bias, can endure the passage of time without any degradation and can easily be stored, retrieved and shared amongst working groups throughout the life of a mining project. The digital nature of these data also provides an opportunity add value to the raw information by identifying spatial relationships between physical properties that may otherwise go un-noticed. Similar to what has been achieved for facial recognition in digital photography, it will enable rapid identification of prospective deposits. These data will allow for a better understanding of the rock mass, drilling hazards and provides information to steer drilling towards mineralisation. They will also provide a backdrop for integration of the information that describes the geology throughout life of mine planning and contribute to enhanced recovery, reduced environmental footprint and reduced energy requirements. The outcomes of this research program have the potential to be far-reaching and will promote a step-change in the way mineral exploration is done in Canada and abroad. It will provide an opportunity for the training of highly qualified personnel that is unique in Canada and for most of the world. These graduates will be able to engineer tomorrows exploration strategies and apply the innovations developed to meet the mineral exploration challenge faced by the industry and our society.

矿产资源的供应是我国经济活动所有部门的基础。新兴国家的持续发展对这些资源造成了更大的压力，因此我们发现和更新储量的能力可能会被需求所超越。为了应对这一社会挑战，矿产勘探行业必须创新。由于未来的储量很可能在深处被发现，覆盖在贫瘠或运输的覆盖层上，并且没有地表表达，因此我们必须建立具有成本效益的计划，以便在深处进行矿物勘探。本研究项目为提高这类矿产勘探项目的效率提供了解决方案。首先，通过系统地获取现场物理属性，并将这些数据转化为影响勘探的信息，充分利用钻孔时投资的潜力。二是限制钻孔不能与目标相交或遇到昂贵的钻井危险的情况。作为一个类比，对原位岩石性质进行系统测量并将数据转化为有用的勘探信息的出现，提出了类似于摄影的范式转变。数码摄影消除了与胶片相关的成本，通过允许我们只打印好的照片，大大降低了处理成本。这项技术现在在我们的生活中无处不在，并使我们能够以十多年前无法想象的方式使用摄影。自动捕获元数据，识别拍摄照片的时间和地点，可以通过面部识别增强。因此，与旧鞋盒和满是灰尘的相册不同，新颖的数字相册允许基于这些元数据对照片进行快速分类和有效检索。数字信息的本质也意味着它可以自由备份和传播。但对于储存在独特的传统岩芯棚里的岩芯来说，情况就不同了。岩心样品暴露在空气和湿气中会导致氧化，随着时间的推移，它们会退化。特定钻探计划可能只留下地质描述和稀疏的分析数据。系统的现场物理性质测量提供了井眼相交岩体的定量评估。这些数据是定量信息的来源，没有解释上的偏见，经得起时间的流逝而不会有任何退化，并且可以在采矿项目的整个生命周期内很容易地在工作组之间存储、检索和共享。这些数据的数字特性还提供了一个机会，通过识别物理属性之间的空间关系来增加原始信息的价值，否则这些信息可能会被忽视。与数码摄影中的面部识别所取得的成就类似，它将使潜在矿床的快速识别成为可能。这些数据将有助于更好地了解岩体、钻探危险，并提供信息，引导钻探朝着矿化方向发展。它们还将为综合描述矿山规划整个生命周期的地质情况的资料提供背景，并有助于提高采收率、减少环境足迹和减少能源需求。这一研究项目的成果有可能影响深远，并将促进加拿大和国外矿产勘探方式的逐步改变。它将提供培训高素质人才的机会，这在加拿大和世界大多数国家都是独一无二的。这些毕业生将能够设计未来的勘探策略，并应用开发的创新来应对行业和社会面临的矿产勘探挑战。