Research Opportunity
Project title: Slime Cement-Cematte Project
Eligibility: Open to both MSc & PhD students in Materials Chemistry, Material Science, Civil & Structural Engineering and related fields
Collaborating Institution: University of Pretoria, South Africa and Cardiff University, United Kingdom
1 Project Summary
Minerals mined as heavy mineral sand usually consists of Titanium – laden mineral such as rutile, ilmenite, leucoxene, zircon and monazite among others. These minerals coexist as minor constituents. Huge quantities of fine tailings are generated annually during the mineral sand mining process which typically involves 1) clearing the vegetation ahead of the area to be mined, 2) separating and stockpiling the topsoil for further use in the rehabilitation process, 3) mining the deposit using a hydraulic mining method, and 4) mixing water with the sand to create a slurry for pumping to a reservoir.
In the mineral processing components, two streams of tails result from the wet processing of heavy mineral sands, namely fine tailings and coarse sand tailings. The coarse sand tailings are usually directed to the mine void left in the as backfill. The fine tailings undergo thickening before being impounded in the tailing storage facility and left to consolidate over time. Potential ecological and economic benefits could be realized through the utilization of slimes in the construction industry.
The present study involves investigating the potential for use of slimes in the production of either clinker, blended cement (s), hydraulic road binder, soil stabilizers, concrete additives and /or fillers. The project is expected to run for one year beginning 1st January, 2023.
2 Scope of funding
The project aims to fund postgraduate research expenses excluding tuition and administrative fees within the project duration. Interested applicants are expected to submit their proposals in any of the listed potential product(s).
1.3 Required Documents
- Scanned certified copies of undergraduate and /or postgraduate academic transcripts and certificate(s)
- Maximum of two-page curriculum Vitae
- Motivation letter
- Proposal
- Copy of the biometric passport (e-passport/ digital passport / East African Community format e-Passport)
1.4 Proposal Format
The proposal should not exceed thirty (30) pages excluding references, Itemized budget and work plan. Times New Roman, font size 12, and spacing of 1.5 to be used. It must contain the following sections: (i) Title of the project (ii) Abstract (iii) Background (iv) Problem Statement (v) Justification of the study (vi) Hypotheses (vii) General objective and specific objective(s) (viii) Literature review (x) Materials and Methods (ix) Data Analysis Statement (x) Expected outputs and outcomes (xi) References (xii) Itemized budget (xiii) Work plan
1.5 Application Procedure
Applicants are required to submit all the required documents listed in section 1.3 in soft copy to: materialsproject@must.ac.ke
Further, applicants are required to indicate the contacts (email and telephone) for three referees in their C.V. Applications should be submitted by December 24th, 2022.
For inquiries, please contact Dr. Joseph Mwiti; jmarangu@must.ac.ke
