VANCOUVER, April 20, 2015 /CNW/ - Commerce Resources
Corp. (TSXv: CCE, FSE: D7H) (the "Company" or "Commerce") is
pleased to announce the completion of the flotation
pilot(1) plant, the first phase in a series of flowsheet
pilot plant tests on material from the Company's 100% owned Ashram
Rare Earth Deposit.
The primary objective of the pilot plant was to produce
sufficient bulk quantities of flotation concentrate for downstream
processing through to production of several kilograms of mixed rare
earth concentrate, with a secondary objective of demonstrating
flotation performance at the pilot level on a continuous basis. The
Company is pleased to report that both of these objectives were
achieved.
Approximately 4.3 tonnes of Ashram Deposit bulk sample material,
collected in 2012, was processed through a 6 inch flotation column
on a continuous basis to produce approximately 1.4 tonnes of
flotation concentrate for downstream processing. The pilot plant
was operated at Hazen Research Inc, in Colorado, USA, in collaboration with Eriez
Flotation Division, based in Pennsylvania.
Company President Chris Grove
states, "The completion of the flotation pilot plant for the
Ashram Deposit is a significant milestone for the project. We now
look forward to the downstream piloting that will begin shortly, as
well as to the production of several kilograms of mixed rare earth
concentrate."
The pilot plant was comprised of three main circuits: grinding,
reagent conditioning, and flotation.
Grinding Circuit
The flowsheet utilized a
simple grinding circuit comprised of a primary and secondary ball
mill. No desliming stage was required to achieve the target grind
specifications. The circuit also produced on-spec grind material
using several different blends of feed, and operated continuously
for up to 10 hours at a time.
Conditioning Circuit
As the primary objective was to
produce flotation concentrate, the flotation pilot used batch
conditioned grind material.
Flotation Circuit
The 6 inch column flotation pilot
plant operations were divided into two phases: a development phase
where parameters were modified to accommodate the fact that the
plant was operating at pilot scale, and a production phase where
the flotation column ran continuously for extended periods of time
(up to 13.3 hours per run for a total operating time of 98.7 hours)
using the conditions determined during the development phase.
In total, approximately 1.4 tonnes of flotation concentrate was
produced from approximately 4.3 tonnes of conditioned grind
material (mass pull of approximately 33%(2)) over the
entire 6 inch column flotation pilot program; development plus
production phases. ICP-MS analysis of all the samples is pending.
However, samples collected regularly during daily operations, and
analyzed by Fusion XRF for Ce, La, and Y, indicate favourable total
rare earth oxide (TREO) recoveries generally varying between 70%
and +80% .
The pilot plant therefore achieved both its primary and
secondary objectives through successful production of bulk
flotation concentrate, as well as demonstrated continuous pilot
operation for extended periods of time, with good flotation
performance observed.
Currently, a continuous conditioning circuit is being built and
will be tested with column flotation in the coming months.
Additional work will include bench optimization tests with reduced
reagent dosages (see news release dated March 24, 2015) and will potentially be
incorporated into a short 3 inch column flotation pilot run with
continuous conditioning. The flotation concentrate will be dried,
blended, and characterized for downstream processing through the
HCl pre-leach and WHIMS flowsheet stages.
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(1)
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This 4.3 tonnes of
throughput is sometimes referred to as a 'mini pilot plant' as
opposed to a 'pilot plant'.
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(2)
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Mass Pull is the
relative percentage of feed material that reports to the
concentrate during upgrade. For example, if 100 kg of feed material
undergoes flotation with 20 kg reporting to the concentrate and 80
kg reporting to the tails, then the mass pull would be
20%.
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NI 43-101 Disclosure
Darren L.
Smith, M.Sc., P.Geol., Dahrouge Geological Consulting Ltd.,
a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101,
supervised the preparation of the technical information in this
news release.
Eric Larochelle, Eng., and Alain Dorval, Eng., Manager-Process,
Mining and Mineral Processing, of Roche Ltd., Consulting Group,
Qualified Persons as defined by National Instrument 43-101,
reviewed the technical information presented in this news
release.
About Commerce Resources Corp.
Commerce Resources
Corp. is an exploration and development company with a particular
focus on deposits of rare metals and rare earth elements. The
Company is focused on the development of its Ashram Rare Earth
Element Deposit in Quebec and the
Upper Fir Tantalum and Niobium Deposit in British Columbia.
On Behalf of the Board of Directors
COMMERCE RESOURCES CORP.
"Chris Grove"
Chris
Grove
President
Tel: 604.484.2700
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its
Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the
policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for
the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains
forward-looking information which is subject to a variety of risks
and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events
or results to differ from those projected in the forward-looking
statements. Forward looking statements in this press release
include but are not limited to downstream piloting will begin
shortly; production of several kilograms of mixed rare earth
concentrate; indication of favourable total rare earth oxide (TREO)
recoveries; references to further processing of flotation
concentrate. These forward-looking statements are
subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors
that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from
those projected in the forward-looking information.
Risks that could change or prevent these statements from coming to
fruition include changing costs for mining and processing;
increased capital costs; the timing and content of upcoming work
programs; geological interpretations based on current data that may
change with more detailed information; potential process methods
and mineral recoveries assumption based on limited test work and by
comparison to what are considered analogous deposits that with
further test work may not be comparable; the availability of
labour, equipment and markets for the products produced; and
despite the current expected viability of the project, conditions
changing such that the minerals on our property cannot be
economically mined, or that the required permits to build and
operate the envisaged mine can be obtained. The forward-looking
information contained herein is given as of the date hereof and the
Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise such
information to reflect new events or circumstances, except as
required by law.
SOURCE Commerce Resources Corp.