Funded by European Commission

Project Leader at TUM
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Xiaoxiang Zhu

Project Scientists at TUM
Dr. Matthias Kahl, Dr. Yuanyuan Wang, Mr. Yang Mu

Project Coordinator
GEOLOGIAN TUTKIMUSKESKUS (GTK)

Cooperation Partner
TEKNOLOGIAN TUTKIMUSKESKUS VTT OY (VTT)
YARA SUOMI OY (YARA)
ELLINIKI ARCHI GEOLOGIKON KAI METALLEFTIKON EREVNON (HSGME)
FONDATION EUROPEENNE DE LA SCIENCE (ESF)
CESKA GEOLOGICKA SLUZBA (CGS)
MONTANUNIVERSITAET LEOBEN (MUL)
BUNDESANSTALT FUER GEOWISSENSCHAFTEN UND ROHSTOFFE (BGR)
VEITSCH-RADEX GMBH & CO OG (RHI)
GEOLOGISCHE BUNDESANSTALT (GBA)
HELLAS GOLD (HG)
EFTAS FERNERKUNDUNG TECHNOLOGIETRANSFER GMBH (EFTAS)

Runtime
2023 – 2026

The European Union (EU) is dependent on imports of raw materials and is susceptible to disruptions caused by various factors such as war, pandemics, changes in China's power supply, and shifts in US monetary policy. To increase its strategic autonomy, the EU aims to increase domestic production through successful mineral exploration projects. At the same time, the EU Green Deal sets a goal of a sustainable, carbon-neutral EU economy by 2050. To achieve these objectives, the entire mining life cycle must adopt minimal-impact exploration and monitoring technologies that provide accurate and reliable data.

Current methods of earth observation (EO) data analysis and interpretation in the mining industry are heavily reliant on expert knowledge and in situ data, which can disrupt mining activities and reduce cost-efficiency. The MultiMiner project seeks to address this challenge by developing novel data processing algorithms for efficient utilization of EO technologies in mineral exploration and mine site monitoring. This project focuses on developing a multi-scale, weakly supervised/unsupervised approach for detecting minerals of interest, allowing for semi-automated interpretation of remotely sensed data by experts and non-experts. The algorithm will process available data sources at multiple spatial, temporal, and spectral resolutions and can be easily adapted for various monitoring tasks, including vegetation, Acid Mine Drainage (AMD), water quality, ground stability, ground moisture, and dust, throughout the entire mining life cycle.

The MultiMiner project prioritizes the development of EO-based exploration technologies for critical raw materials (CRM) to increase the likelihood of finding new sources within the EU and enhance the EU's autonomy in the raw materials sector. The project's EO-based exploration solutions have a low environmental impact and are socially acceptable, economically efficient, and improve safety. Additionally, the solutions for mine site monitoring increase transparency in mining operations by detecting environmental impacts as early as possible and preserving digital information for future generations.