COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course covers the art and science of assaying for precious metals. It looks at the formation of minerals from elements and the resulting relationship between physical properties, mineral structure and composition: structural and composite classification of minerals. Procedural differences are discussed for various ore types as well as the precious metals being assayed. Field trips to area mines and smelters are included. The course runs for 10 days with practical training in mines over 4 of the 10 days.

CERTIFICATION

At the conclusion of this course, students will receive a Zimbabwe School of Mines certificate as testimony of their hard work and acquired skills gained during their learning experience.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

At the conclusion of this course, students will have covered the following modules:

• Fire Assaying
• Instrumentation
• Sampling