Mineral heaps can be covered with liner material to protect the minerals from weather and/or strong winds. However, using conventional liners with weights on top presents risks that make it not feasible.
Entrants are challenged to design an automatic or semi-automatic system to place and remove the protective covering in a simple, innovative way. A liner, or a similar material, is needed, since it forms a physical barrier to the wind. Either a commercial solution can be adapted for this application, or the design and basic engineering of a new solution can be submitted.
This online competition is open worldwide to any engineering professional, company, university, or technology centre.
Participants who submit the best solutions in the first round will share €3,000 when they submit their detailed solutions in round 2. The best solution in the second round will receive €12,000, and might collaborate on the development of a pilot and a subsequent complete implementation.
Interested participants should sign up here and submit their solution before August 3.
Ennomotive announced the results of another challenge 18 months ago, in which it asked for solutions to the problem posed by the presence of dust in various work environments.
(This article first appeared in the Canadian Mining Journal)
