Tickers: XTSX:STS, PINX:STSBF
Tags: #Mining
Vancouver, B.C. - TheNewswire - September 23, 2019 - South Star Mining Corp. ("South Star" or the "Company") (TSXV:STS) (OTCQB:STSBF) is pleased to provide an update for the advanced testing program on concentrates from its Santa Cruz Graphite Project located in the state of Bahia, Brazil. The test work is being carried out by Urbix Resources, LLC ("Urbix") at its cutting-edge R&D facility in Mesa, Arizona and incorporates Urbix's advanced purification and exfoliation technologies.
Last year, the Company submitted four different flake-size concentrates, previously produced during the Company's pilot plant program, to Urbix for advanced testing. Phase 1 was a detailed characterization of each sample, including QEMSCAN, XRay Diffraction, Raman Spectroscopy and SEM among others. The results indicated a very high-quality graphite with minimum impurities and excellent suitability for further purification and value-added processing. The Second Phase has been focused on determining the ideal parameters for utilizing Urbix's low-cost and environmentally friendly purification methodologies to achieve best results. A Design of Experiment ("DoE") protocol with four key variables (time, temperature, chemical and reagent ratio) was developed based on a Six Sigma approach.
A total of 17 individual purification runs were conducted with results quantified by both % Loss on Ignition Carbon and Change in Burn Rate (dM%/dT) measurements. With the DoE results now in hand, the best combination of variables has been determined and samples from each of the four concentrates (+50#, +80#, +140# and -140#) will be tested utilizing the optimum purification procedure. Dr. Palash Gangopadhyay, CTO of Urbix, stated "We are thrilled to have completed a key step in the purification process optimization with South Star flakes and are happy to report that with an optimized batch time of only 20 minutes, it is possible to produce up to 16,000 metric tonnes a year of 99.9%+ pure +50 mesh flake in URBIXs commercial production-sized reactor currently in construction. This is extremely encouraging for the massively growing expanded and expandable graphite market. Once purified, crytallinity and flake morphology of the Santa Cruz graphite make them ideal candidates for lithium ion battery applications." Final results from the four runs, along with the expandability characterization of one of the purified samples, will be available in the coming weeks. In addition, one of the Santa Cruz samples has also qualified under part of a US Department of Energy sponsored initiative at Urbix and these results continue to confirm its potential use for nuclear grade graphite.
Company CEO Richard Pearce stated "The results from this independent testing with Urbix supports our conviction that graphite potentially produced from Santa Cruz will be conducive for use in many new and exciting high-tech growth areas including lithium ion batteries. It also confirms that our production will be very similar to the high-quality flake graphite that has been continuously produced from this region in Brazil for over 70 years."
South Star Mining Corp. is focused on the selective acquisition and development of near-term mine production projects in Brazil to maximize shareholder value. STS has an experienced executive team with a strong history of discovering, developing, building and operating profitable mines in Brazil.
The Santa Cruz Graphite Project is located in Southern Bahia in the third largest graphite producing region in the world with over 70 years of continuous mining. The Project has at surface mineralization in friable materials, and successful large-scale pilot plant testing (>30t) has been completed. The results of the testing show approximately 65% of Cg concentrate is +80 mesh with good recoveries and 95-99% Cg.
To learn more, please visit the Company website at www.southstarmining.ca.
ABOUT URBIX RESOURCES, LLC
Urbix Resources, LLC is an advanced natural graphite processor with expertise ranging across low-cost environmentally friendly graphite purification, nuclear graphite, graphene, and other advanced carbon derivatives. Urbix is also an expert in li-ion battery cell design and boasts next generation high voltage electrolyte and fast charging electrode nanoarchitecture.
On behalf of the Board,
Mr. Richard Pearce
Chief Executive Officer
Ph: +1 (314)266-0793 (US)
Ph: +55 (11) 2308-6839 (Brazil)
Email: richard@southstarmining.ca
For additional information, please contact:
Mr. Dave McMillan
Chairman
Ph: +1 (778) 773-4560
Email: davemc@telus.net
Mr. Eric Allison
Director
Ph: +1 203 918-3098
Email: eric@southstarmining.ca
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.
This news release and the PEA contain references to inferred resources. The PEA is preliminary in nature and includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves. There is no certainty that the PEA will be realized.
Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Generally, any statements that are not historical facts may contain forward-looking information, and forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or indicates that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be" taken, "occur" or "be achieved". Although the Company believes in light of the experience of its officers and directors, current conditions and expected future developments and other factors that have been considered appropriate, that the expectations reflected in this forward-looking information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on them because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Actual results and developments may differ materially from those contemplated by these statements.
Copyright (c) 2019 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
