Sustainable Use of a Complex Salt Deposit

Development of concepts for a more sustainable use of a complex salt deposit by increasing the primary resource efficiency

As part of an interdisciplinary study at the Institute of Mineral Resources Engineering the exploration data of a rock salt mine of the K + S AG, which is in production for over 100 years now, are converted into a 3D geological deposit model. Currently, only the very pure “Kristallsalz” is being mined.

However, the complex internally deformed salt deposit also bears relatively pure rock salt horizons that are not mined yet or only in very small amounts, due to high product standards and a lack of possibilities to remove impure fractions. Therefore, in addition to geological issues, such as the question of the origin of the internal deformation structures and their relation to rock salt quality, also mining and production-specific issues are addressed in this study.

Based on the results of the 3D geological deposit model, holistic concepts, regarding the entire process chain, are developed to establish a more sustainable use of the deposit.