Minerals Webinar | How AI is Rewriting the Rules of Critical Mineral Processing
Minerals Webinar | How AI is Rewriting the Rules of Critical Mineral Processing
Part of the MDPI Minerals Webinar Series series
7 July 2026
mineral processing, GenAI, critical minerals, smart engineering
Welcome from the Chair
Minerals Webinar
How AI is Rewriting the Rules of Critical Mineral Processing
Welcome, and thank you for joining us for today’s webinar on “How AI is Rewriting the Rules of Critical Mineral Processing.” We are delighted to bring together leading experts to discuss how artificial intelligence is transforming the mining and mineral processing industry.
As demand for critical minerals continues to grow, the need for smarter, more efficient, and more sustainable processing solutions has never been greater. This webinar brings together leading experts who are advancing AI applications across the entire value chain:
- From AI-driven smart and safe mining systems, integrating systems engineering with intelligent automation,
- To AI-accelerated discovery of new flotation chemistry, where quantum mechanics and machine learning are redefining reagent design before laboratory testing,
- And to digital transformation within mineral processing plants, where digital twins enable real-time prediction, optimization, and intelligent process control.
Following their presentations, we will open the floor for an interactive Q&A session to encourage discussion and exchange of ideas.
Date: July 7th, 2026
Time: 3:00 pm CEST | 9:00 am EDT| 9:00 pm CST Asia
Zoom ID: 857 4763 1748
Webinar Secretariat: journal.webinar@mdpi.com
Event Chairs
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA
Dr. Xuming Wang is a Research Professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Utah. His research focuses on mineral processing, coal preparation, hydrometallurgy, and energy materials. He has made significant contributions to flotation chemistry, critical mineral recovery and recycling, and surface chemistry, with expertise in advanced characterization techniques such as SFG spectroscopy, FTIR, and AFM. In recent years, Dr. Wang has expanded his work to address critical mineral recovery from diverse resources and to develop next-generation solid polymer electrolytes for lithium-ion and all-solid-state lithium–sulfur batteries. His interdisciplinary research bridges mineral processing with sustainable energy technologies. Dr. Wang serves as an Editor of the Journal of Physicochemical Problems of Mineral Processing and is on the Editorial Board of Minerals and Carbon Neutral Systems. He was recognized as the SME Henry Krumb Lecturer (2013–2014) and received the Surface Innovation Prize (2016) from the Institution of Civil Engineers.
Keynote Speakers
Dr. Rajive Ganguli is the Malcolm McKinnon Endowed Professor of Mining Engineering at the University of Utah. He is professionally interested in the big challenges related to mining, with his primary expertise being in the application of artificial intelligence and workforce development. He was previously with the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Jim Walter Resources and Hindustan Copper Limited. He has executed industry and government funded projects in USA, Mongolia, Saudi Arabia, Mexico and Greenland.
Earth and Planetary Sciences, Stanford University, USA
Amir is a research scientist at Stanford University Mineral-X. He holds a Ph.D. in Energy and Mineral Engineering, with a minor in Computational Materials, from Penn State. Amir has over 15 years of research and industry experience in mineral processing and extractive metallurgy. His research combines AI, computational materials science, and mineral processing to develop more selective, energy-efficient, and sustainable approaches for critical minerals recovery. He has led projects in process optimization under uncertainty and AI-driven reagent discovery for phosphate and rare earth processing, supported by pilot-scale validation.
OSB Digital, LLC, USA
Member of the Texas Academy of Medicine, Engineering, Science and Technology, USA, 2026. www.tamest.org Member of the National Academy of Engineering, USA, 2025, for applying Phenomelogical and Artificial Intelligence modeling techniques in mineral and industrial plant performance optimization. Received the maximum distinction by the SME Antoine Gaudin Award, 2014. For its Mathematical Modeling of Mineral Processing and Plant Information Systems in the Industry. Mining, Mineral Processing, Extractive Metallurgy, Process Control and Operational Intelligence, Predictive Analytics, Big Data Enterprise Analytics. 10 years at Pennzoil, 25 years at OSIsoft, 6 years at OSB Digital LLC. Bascur’s deep knowledge in the process industry will add instant credibility to an organization. His broad experience and proven track record in leading various industrial software initiatives are key assets for this position, as OSIsoft (Now Aveva) continues to serve as one of the leading software providers in the industry.
Registration
This is a FREE webinar. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information on how to join the webinar. Registrations with academic institutional email addresses will be prioritized.
Certificates of attendance will be delivered to those who attend the live webinar.
Can’t attend? Register anyway and we’ll let you know when the recording is available to watch.
Program
|
Speaker/Presentation |
Time in CEST |
|
Prof. Dr. Xuming Wang (Chair) Chair Introduction |
3:00 - 3:10 pm |
|
Prof. Rajive Ganguli (Speaker 1) The Importance of Process Knowledge in Applying AI To Mineral Processing |
3:10 - 3:30 pm |
|
Dr. Amir Eskanlou (Speaker 2) AI-Driven Reagent Design for Critical Mineral Processing |
3:30 - 3:50 pm |
|
Dr. Osvaldo Bascur (Speaker 3) Rise of AI based strategies to maximize copper production. |
3:50 - 4:10 pm |
|
Q&A |
4:10 - 4:25 pm |
|
Closing of Webinar Prof. Dr. Xuming Wang (Chair) |
4:25 - 4:30 pm |
Sponsors and Partners
Organizers
