For the second consecutive year, a team of Missouri University of Science and Technology students won the Metallic Student Design Competition at the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME) Annual Conference and Exhibition.
“Since we were the returning champions, we were able to come to this year’s competition with more confidence and a strong drive to stay on top,” said Garrett Bell, a senior in mining engineering and the team’s captain. “Missouri S&T has an incredible legacy as one of the best universities for mining and metallurgy, and I feel extremely proud to be captain of a team that keeps that tradition of excellence going.”
The contest was broken into two phases, with 18 teams from around the world competing in Phase 1 on their own campuses in fall 2024. Eleven of those teams saw Phase 1 to completion. Then, the top six teams were invited to participate in Phase 2 in late February as part of the SME conference.
For this year’s competition, the teams designed a lithium hard rock mine for the Pilbara region of Western Australia. In Phase 1, they evaluated potential mineral deposits and developed flowsheets and processes for the mine. For Phase 2, they were presented with changes in the market forecasts and determined the mine’s economic feasibility with the different conditions.
Dr. Alexander Douglas, an assistant teaching professor of mining and explosives engineering at S&T, was the team’s advisor. Other members of the team were Patrick Hatfield, a senior in mining engineering; Toby Lonning, a senior in mining engineering; Thomas Barnes, a sophomore in mining engineering; Evan Barth, a senior in metallurgical engineering; and Ayden Yahn, a senior in metallurgical engineering.
Source: Missouri S&T