The Center for Advanced Separation Technologies (CAST)a consortium of seven universities led by West Virginia University and Virginia Techwill hold its first annual workshop Nov. 19-21 at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Charleston. The theme of the conference is the need to develop advanced separation technologies for the U.S. coal and minerals industry.
WVU and Virginia Tech may be rivals on the football field, but they are on the same team when it comes to promoting an economically and environmentally sound mining industry, said co-directors Richard A. Bajura of WVU and Roe-Hoan Yoon of Virginia Tech.
“To be the most efficient and to have the least environmental impact, every ounce of impurities must be separated from every ton of coal, metal or mineral mined, whether it is from newly mined tonnage or from waste tonnage at older mining operations,”Bajura said.”Developing advanced separation techniques is the mission of CAST .”
Bajura and Yoon point to Mineral Information Institute statistics for 2003 to underscore the importance of CAST s challenge. To enjoy todays high living standard, every American born will need 1,750 tons of minerals, metals and fuels in his or her lifetime. That includes 280 tons of coal for energy, 810 tons of stone, sand and gravel for building and infrastructure, 14.8 tons of salt, and clay, copper, gold, phosphate, aluminum, iron ore and many others, they said.
The CAST workshop will feature technical presentations by researchers investigating techniques for physical separations, chemical-biological extractions and environmental control. The keynote panel session on Thursday afternoon will focus on the role separations technologies play in promoting the overall mining and minerals industry. Panelists include Robert Gentile, managing director of Atlantic Partners and former U.S. Department of Energy assistant secretary for fossil energy under former President George H. Bush; Ken Markel, associate director for major demonstration projects at the U.S. DOE NETL Strategic Center for Coal; Frank Burke, vice president for research and development at CONSOL Energy; and John Marsden, vice president for technology and development at Phelps Dodge Mining Company.
Registration for the CAST meeting will be open from 5-7 p.m. Nov. 19, and re-open at 7 a.m. Nov. 20 and 21. An agenda is available on the CAST Web site: http://www.castconsort.org . The full registration fee is $150. Student and spouse/guest fees are available.