Exploring New Dust Solutions & Maximising Your Water-Power

Rain, hail or shine, the resource exploration game never stops. And around the clock, drill rig operators and offsiders hunt for the next multi-million or billion-dollar hit. 

Often overshadowed by the mining industry at large, resource exploration is a complex and dirty job.

But it’s critical in identifying new and prospective locations that could employ thousands of miners and generate mountains of wealth for the local and national economy. Far away from the public eye, in blistering heat, icy cold and the ever-present dust, explorers put in the ‘hard-yakka’ over 12-hour shifts in the hope of unearthing a significant find.

While generally relying on water droplets for dust control.

And, in Australia, absorbing the rising pressure on exploration companies to work harder, drill deeper and put in longer hours.

After all, without the explorers, there’s nothing new to mine.

Mining giants like BHP also offer millions in funding to operators who can discover a safer, more efficient and modern way to play the game. This ultimately benefits their business while helping to advance an industry that’s due for a good dusting off.

Facing Down the Dust Issue in Resource Exploration

Proven to cause Black Lung and Silicosis, dust particles, like those drill and blast crews are exposed to, are a major global health problem. And while water droplets have been solely relied on to control the hazards since the industry began, we now know they’re far from an ideal solution.

And when it comes to overall worker safety and the consideration of landowners and the environment, maximising water’s performance as a dust suppressant is a high priority.

Water and dust particles have a tension problem. 

Namely, water droplets hold surface tension, stopping them from effectively saturating and absorbing airborne dust particles. This regularly leads to inefficiency in water use, as more litres are required to get the desired suppressive result. 

But water only works up to a point, as most dust particles repel it.

(Technically, they’re called hydrophobic.)

Beyond that, polymer solutions are required to truly maximise a water droplet and effectively supercharge its ability to drop dust particles from the air. Thankfully, solutions on the market can help explorers minimise water use while maximising their dust control.

Enter GRT: Activate 12x

As the name suggests, the GRT: Activate product is designed to super-activate water droplets, making them a superior dust eliminator.

Created with explorers and blasters in mind, Activate can be added directly to a drill rig’s water tank, water trucks or fill points for fast and accurate dosing. 

Activate is proven to be 12x more effective than water droplets alone after studies by a leading Australian Uni and also offers other benefits, including:

• It helps with drill hole and bore stability. 
• It holds the potential for water reduction in drilling and blasting alongside mining and quarry environments.
• Robust product attributes allow it to be applied across various industries.
• Improves the efficiency of processing and handling ops, therefore reducing costs.

GRT Activate penetrates ground and water surfaces, saturating and immobilising dust particles while remaining safe for employees, environmentally friendly, and easy on gear.

You can learn more about GRT: Activate 12x by visiting our dedicated product page. 

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Summary

The world of mining exploration is prone to hazards.

But with some help from polymer products, one of those, namely dust pollution, can be mitigated. By super-activating water droplets, GRT 12x can drastically improve the usefulness of water as a dust suppressant while minimising any flow-on effects. 

Because as the world grows hungrier for discoveries of new resources, we must support the people who work long and hard to give them to us.

If dust control is an issue for your exploration or resource business, check out GRT’s tailored solutions, including our industry-leading SMART Dosing Units!