VANCOUVER, BC, June 9, 2021 /CNW/ - FPX Nickel Corp. (TSXV:
FPX) ("FPX" or the "Company") is pleased
to report the results of expanded field tests which demonstrate the
potential for significant direct air carbon capture in tailings at
its Baptiste Project in the Decar Nickel District in central
British Columbia. These field tests, from Phase 2 of a
two-part program conducted by researchers from the University of British Columbia ("UBC")
funded by FPX and the Government of Canada, continue to demonstrate that the
Baptiste Project's tailings can sequester significant quantities of
carbon dioxide ("CO2") when exposed to air
through a natural process of mineral carbonation.
Highlights
- The positive results of the 59-day Phase 2 field test
(September to November 2020)
described herein expand upon the 24-day Phase 1 results
(August 2020) described in the
Company's February 16, 2021 news
release
- Significant rates of carbon sequestration were noted on a
continuous basis throughout Phases 1 and 2 under all test
conditions, with the highest rates of sequestration occurring in
tailings subjected to churning at regular intervals to encourage
greater exposure of the crushed material to air
- Measurements during the combined 83-day Phase 1 and 2 field
programs indicate capture of a total of 5.8 grams of CO2
for each kilogram of crushed Baptiste tailings exposed to air by
churning on a regular basis to a depth of 12 cm
- Carbon sequestration rates
observed during these Phases 1 and 2 (3.7 kg
CO2/m2 year) are approximately 50% greater
than the estimated average rates of capture under the dry
conditions at BHP's Mount Keith nickel mine in Western Australia (2.5 kg
CO2/m2 year; see Note 1)
Cautionary Statement: The test results described herein are
preliminary in nature and may not be representative of conditions
or results in an operating environment, particularly as it pertains
to the representativeness of mineralization, moisture content,
changes in weather conditions, process water chemistry and tailings
emplacement configuration, including the rate at which tailings are
covered with fresh material, among other para meters. There
is no certainty that the results reported herein will be realized
in an operating environment. Further studies are recommended
to expand the scale of testing to better understand the potential
for carbon sequestration to be realized in an operating
environment.
"These positive results continue to demonstrate that Baptiste
has unique potential to become the world's first large-scale,
carbon-neutral nickel operation," commented Martin Turenne, FPX Nickel's President and
CEO. "The competitive advantage for FPX is the elevated
content in our Baptiste deposit of the key, highly carbon-reactive
mineral brucite, which is present in higher concentrations at
Baptiste than at typical intrusive-hosted ultramafic nickel
sulphide deposits. The elevated brucite content of the
Baptiste deposit therefore presents us with a unique opportunity to
drive toward carbon neutrality at Baptiste, and we look forward to
expanded testing in 2021 to deliver further evidence to investors
and potential strategic partners alike."
The two-phase test program builds on more than a decade of
research on technologies that maximize the reaction between
CO2 and brucite (mineral form of magnesium hydroxide)
present in the Baptiste mine tailings. In a natural process
called carbon mineralization, CO2 reacts with brucite in
the tailings, binding the CO2 in a benign, solid
magnesium carbonate which is stable on a geological time scale.
The test work summarized herein was completed on a
representative Baptiste mineralized composite of approximately 300
kilograms comprised of core sample reject material crushed to
50-360 µm, consistent with the tailings size anticipated during
mine operation. Analysis of the core material indicated 1-2
wt% content of brucite, a range consistent with the average brucite
content of the Baptiste deposit. The Phase 1 field program
was conducted at an outdoor site in Prince George from August 5-29, 2020. On completion of Phase 1
testing in August, the tailings were moved to Vancouver and a second stage was conducted
outdoors from September 14 to November 12,
2020.
The tailings sample was divided into splits of 37 kilograms
loaded to a depth of 12 centimeters into eight cells in two large
containers, with local water added to achieve a moisture content of
approximately 15 wt%. One container was exposed to local
weather conditions (including precipitation and solar radiation),
while the second was placed under a shade tent to control the water
content of the tailings, which was maintained approximately
constant by the manual addition of water from time to time.
Large rainfall events had no noticeable impact on the rate of
CO2 capture, which is considered a positive finding
given the precipitation rates in central British Columbia.
Two physical manipulations, churning and aeration, were each
applied to four of the eight cells, with the four remaining cells
left undisturbed as controls. In the churned cells, the
tailings were manually overturned to a depth of 12 cm; churning
occurred once per day during the Phase 1 test, and on an
approximately weekly basis during Phase 2. In the aerated
cells, narrow holes with a diameter of 1 cm were bored on a 5 cm
grid from the surface to the bottom of the cell to encourage a
greater exposure of air to the crushed material. Two
methodologies were employed to confirm the amount of carbon
sequestered during the test program, as described in the Company's
February 16, 2021 news release.
In the cells churned to a depth of 12 cm at regular intervals,
carbon absorption measurements demonstrate capture of 5.8 grams of
CO2 for each kilogram of crushed Baptiste tailings in
the cell over the course of the combined 83-day Phase 1 and 2
programs, with no addition of new tailings. Based on this
amount of carbon sequestration, it is estimated that only
approximately 45% of the brucite reacted with carbon dioxide,
leaving 55% of the brucite available for reaction and suggesting
future opportunities to optimize the reaction between tailings and
CO2 in air to achieve even higher rates of carbon
capture.
In the control and aerated cells, an average of 2.5 grams of
CO2 was captured for each kilogram of crushed Baptiste
tailings in the cells over the course of combined Phase 1 and 2
trials, representing approximately 43% of the sequestration rate
observed in the churned cells.
Carbon sequestration rates
observed in the churned cells during Phases 1 and 2 (3.7 kg
CO2/m2 year) are approximately 50% greater
than the estimated average rates of capture at BHP's Mount Keith
nickel mine in Western Australia
(2.5 kg CO2/m2 year), where it is estimated
that approximately 39,800 tonnes/year of atmospheric CO2
are being trapped and stored in tailings (see Note 1).
Note 1: International Journal of Greenhouse Gas
Control, "Offsetting of CO2 Emissions by Air Capture
in Mine Tailings at the Mount Keith Nickel Mine, Western Australia: Rates, Controls and
Prospects for Carbon Neutral Mining", Wilson et al., 2014
Next Steps
In addition to the 2020 direct air capture test results
described herein, UBC researchers have conducted additional testing
to assess the rate and quantity of carbon capture from the
injection of concentrated CO2 gas into Baptiste
tailings. The Company expects to report the findings of the
concentrated injection test program in the coming weeks.
The Company is further expanding the size and scope of carbon
sequestration testing, with two direct air capture experiments to
commence in the third quarter of 2021:
- Six-month experiment at a location in Vancouver on approximately 2.4 tonnes of
tailings material, or approximately eight times the scale of the
2020 experiment
- 1-year experiment at a location in central British Columbia on approximately 300 kg of
tailings material, designed to better understanding the longer-term
carbon sequestration potential of undisturbed tailings.
These two experiments will build off the 2020 experiment and
address several conceptual operating parameters, including:
- Expanding the tonnage footprint to understand sequestration
performance at varying depths of tailings deposition;
- Building an enhanced understanding of the impact of tailings
water content and air temperature (including freezing temperature)
on the rate of carbon sequestration;
- Improving the understanding of the effect of churning frequency
on the rate of carbon capture.
Dr. Peter Bradshaw, P. Eng.,
FPX's Qualified Person under NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved
the technical content of this news release.
About the Decar Nickel District
The Company's Decar Nickel District claims cover 245
km2 of the Mount Sidney Williams ultramafic/ophiolite
complex, 90 km northwest of Fort St.
James in central British
Columbia. The District is a two-hour drive from Fort St. James on a high-speed logging
road.
Decar hosts a greenfield discovery of nickel mineralization in
the form of a naturally occurring nickel-iron alloy called awaruite
(Ni3Fe), which is amenable to bulk-tonnage, open-pit
mining. Awaruite mineralization has been identified in four target
areas within this ophiolite complex, being the Baptiste Deposit,
and the B, Sid and Van targets, as confirmed by drilling in the
first three plus petrographic examination, electron probe analyses
and outcrop sampling on all four. Since 2010, approximately
US $24 million has been spent on the
exploration and development of Decar.
Of the four targets in the Decar Nickel District, the Baptiste
Deposit, which was initially the most accessible and had the
biggest known surface footprint, has been the focus of diamond
drilling since 2010, with a total of 82 holes and over 31,000
metres of drilling completed. The Sid target was tested with
two holes in 2010 and the B target had a single hole drilled
in 2011; all three holes intersected nickel-iron alloy
mineralization over wide intervals with DTR nickel grades
comparable to the Baptiste Deposit. The Van target was not
drill-tested at that time as rock exposure was very poor prior to
more recent logging activity.
As reported in the current NI 43-101 resource estimate, having
an effective date of September 9,
2020, the Baptiste Deposit contains 1.996 billion tonnes of
indicated resources at an average grade of 0.122% DTR nickel,
containing 2.4 million tonnes of nickel, plus 593 million tonnes of
inferred resources with an average grade of 0.114% DTR nickel,
containing 0.7 million tonnes of nickel, both reported at a cut-off
grade of 0.06% DTR nickel. Mineral resources are not mineral
reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability.
About FPX Nickel Corp.
FPX Nickel Corp. is focused on the exploration and development
of the Decar Nickel District, located in central British Columbia, and other occurrences of the
same unique style of naturally occurring nickel-iron alloy
mineralization known as awaruite. For more information, please view
the Company's website at www.fpxnickel.com or contact
Martin Turenne, President and CEO,
at (604) 681-8600 or ceo@fpxnickel.com.
On behalf of FPX Nickel Corp.
"Martin Turenne"
Martin Turenne, President, CEO and
Director
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain of the statements made and information contained
herein is considered "forward-looking information" within the
meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. These statements
address future events and conditions and so involve inherent risks
and uncertainties, as disclosed in the Company's periodic filings
with Canadian securities regulators. Actual results could differ
from those currently projected. The Company does not assume the
obligation to update any forward-looking statement.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of
this release.
SOURCE FPX Nickel Corp.