29 Figure 1 – Description of In-Situ Recovery for an ore body though leaching 1.2 In-Mine Recovery (IMR): In-Mine Recovery (IMR) can be considered a practical bridge between conventional mining and full ISR. IMR involves recovering metal from fragmented material within underground stopes, chambers or controlled voids using lixiviant circulation, drainage and solution recovery systems. Because the material has already been accessed or fragmented, IMR can operate in a more controlled mining environment than ISR, while still capturing part of the value proposition associated with recovering metal closer to the orebody. IMR may be applicable to lower-grade, residual or marginal material within conventionally mined zones, redirected to underground leach facilities. Its performance depends on fragmentation, permeability, leach recovery, solution management, cycle time, containment, geotechnical stability and integration with backfill and mine sequencing. Figure 2 – In-Mine Recovery applied to an existing underground stope 1
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