Hi all, have put the question to Dean about the narcissistic...

Hi all, have put the question to Dean about the narcissistic siderite issue.

We all know nothing because we are inferior; apparently is the message inferred, but that is a major trait proven right there about the ore So... I ask Dean in order to gain a reasonable answer.

"Although carbonate iron ores, such as siderite, have been economically important for steel production, they are far from ideal as an ore.So that much is true.

I have gone to the source as always and suggest you do the same. Are the Mangaroon REE's worthless because of this cutting edge brilliance? I bow down to the Prophet "Musthavaleak". Or is this more gaslighting? We need to know, seeing as we don't know anything. Maybe Dean does? Maybe a successful exploration geologist knows something we don't; with the assistance of leading academic geologists, chemical engineers, and other specialists in Australia as a back up?

Siderite ores
"The recovered ore also has drawbacks. The carbonate ore is more difficult to smelt than a haematite or other oxide ore. Driving off the carbonate as carbon dioxide requires more energy and so the ore 'kills' the blast furnace if added directly. Instead the ore must be given a preliminary roasting step. Developments of specific techniques to deal with these ores began in the early 19th century, largely with the work of Sir Thomas Lethbridge in Somerset.
There is that cutting no, bleeding edge technology from the early 1800's for you.

But the process of REE's themselves is "far from ideal". Yet mankind learns to deal with rapidly increased demand for and processing issues of REE's. If prices of REE's stay low it could be a make or break issue for sure; that is IF solutions are not found. A bit like the refractory ores left behind be early miners of gold - and the old toxic piles left around Australia. Methods came along to extract the gold from those ores; and mankind is on a serious mission to solve "far from ideal" processing of REE's right now.

Maybe the Chinese already have IP in this area? Energy technology is set for a breakthrough or should I say release of technologies postulated and tested long ago. Cheap fossil fuel energy (if that classification is actually true) changed the West and launched and economic boom. A cheap energy solution changes everything.

I also found this:
"Significant academic research and moderate commercial process innovation on rare-earth element (REE) processing have been underway for decades. The last several years have seen exponential growth in research due to growth in demand of REE that is threatened by supply risks and environmental obstacles. The REE industry appears to be at the intersection of strong, but conflicting forces, including public and political support for a Green Revolution and sustainability, as well as the need for a clean, reliable, and socially responsible supply chain. REE recoveries from ore are limited by current technology and plant practice to 50–80 percent. Increasing demand can be partially satisfied by recycling, but reliable and continuous increases in supply will also require new mineral resources, improved process efficiency, and lower production costs."

I wait for Dean, as there are various forms of siderite, but that differentiation is not supplied. REE's come in hundreds of various ore types apparently. What exactly are we dealing with at Mangaroon?

The thing I like about asking DRE these questions is that they are regulated, professional, employed, successful folk; with resources to identify characteristics of the ore they are drilling / testing, like the presence of a Ni keel or not - and so on.

DYOR CW