Exxaro Mineralogical Laboratories, Pretoria:

Taking place on: 5 September 2014

The laboratories are situated on the outskirts of Pretoria and form part of the Research and Development Division of Exxaro Resources Ltd. They function as the in-house mineralogical resource for a company whose prime interests lie in the mining of coal, iron ore, heavy minerals and associated commodities such as chars and cokes and as such, applied mineralogy plays a major role as a supporting function for metallurgy. As a result the equipment in use and on display includes 3 Qemscans, one of which is used for the investigation of coal, char and coke, a Panalytical XRD machine and Panalytical XRF instrument. This instrumentation is supported by sample preparation equipment such as milling and sample splitting equipment, polishers and coating machines as well as thin sectioning equipment.

Being a coal mining company, specialised techniques for preparing polished coal blocks for the Qemscan and other petrographic procedures are routinely in use. Various microscopes are available in the microscope laboratory. These include petrographic microscopes for reflected and transmitted light microscopy, a specialised motorised stage for image analysis of cokes and chars, stereomicroscopes and a coal petrographic microscope system for maceral quantification and the rank determination of coals. Three of the mineralogists are internationally certified coal petrographers.

Cost: R 400-00 per person

Cost Includes:

• Transport
• Refreshments

Terms and Conditions:

1. Participation will be confirmed on receipt of payment.

2. Preference will be given to registered IMA delegates and accompanying persons.

3. All cancellations must be received in writing and sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

4. Cancellations received before 30 June 2014 will receive a full refund less a 10% administration fee.

5. Cancellations received between 1 July and 15 August 2014 will receive a 50% refund.

6. No refunds will be issued for cancellations received after 15 August 2014.

7. Refunds are subject to the approval of and at the discretion of the organising committee.

8. The organising committee reserves the right to change or cancel this tour.