Wednesday 20 October 2021 - 8 UniLaSalle students present at the SIM 2021 Congress

UniLaSalle is once again present at the Congress of the Mineral Industry Society on the occasion of its 70th edition, organized this year in Lille. UniLaSalle is present on a stand held by 8 5th year students of the Mines and Careers deepening course. We look forward to seeing you at our stand to present and promote the various courses offered by the school.

It is also an opportunity for us, the students, to meet actors of the mineral and recycling industry and to learn more about the job opportunities in the sector. In this sense, we hope that these meetings will lead to future professional opportunities for some of us.

Finally, it will also be the possibility for the Alumni to meet around this stand to exchange and share experiences.

Antoine BAYLE

Friday, October 22, 2021 - SIM (Société de l'Industrie Minérale) Congress in Hauts-de-France: very technical visits for UniLaSalle students!

The students of UniLaSalle's Mines and Careers specialization went to Lille, where the 70th annual SIM congress is taking place. They were able to take part in the technical visits organized in the surrounding area. And the conclusion is clear: the mineral industry is not only about quarries anymore!

Indeed, the program of the visits gave pride of place to recycling activities, whether in their social dimension, or in the field of building materials or metals. And it is partly in this sector that UniLaSalle students will be working.

For if today we commonly speak of urban mining, it is because more and more metals are being produced in our cities, as is the case with the Recytech SME site in Fouquières-les-Lentz. The visit allowed the students to discover the methods and techniques of zinc extraction, and to see the 50m long rotary kiln in operation. The company presented the treatment process to the students and explained the environmental footprint of its activity.

The resulting zinc oxides are then sold to foundries, such as the Nyrstar Group's foundry in Auby, which was also visited. It is the only zinc smelter in France. The metal is treated using hydrometallurgical processes, which consume less energy. The site has also diversified into indium refining and markets copper, lead, zinc and gold concentrates.

These sites are therefore perfectly integrated into the circular economy, and if the mine has not left the memories of the inhabitants of Hauts-de-France, it has not left their daily lives either.

Arthur CHATELIN