MSc. in Geological and Mining Engineering, professional focus in geometallurgy (EMERALD) (Erasmus mundus)

Programme content

The Master's programme in Georesources Engineering (referred to as EMERALD) is coordinated by 4 European universities:

• the University of Liège (principal coordinator),
• the University of Lorraine - Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Géologie de Nancy (France),
• Luleå University of Technology (Sweden),
• the Technical University Bergakademie Freiberg (Germany).

The course was set up at a time when Europe was becoming aware of its dependence on the import of raw materials and of its weakening presence in the sector. It therefore meets the need of reinvesting in programmes focusing on raw materials in Europe.

The EMERALD Master's programme is taught entirely in English and in the original spirit of the programme in geological engineering offered by the University of Liège, building bridges between knowledge of resources and the mastery of processing techniques ( for minerals). Since the aim is to take and learn from the best that each partner has to offer, students spend one semester at each of the universities for a total of 120 ECTS credits.

• Semester 1 University of Liège - refresher courses (mineral resources, geostatistics, mineral processing, process mineralogy, recycling, etc.)
• Semester 2 University of Lorraine - more advanced courses (advanced characterisation of mineral surfaces, advanced mineral processing, geomodelling, etc.)
• Semester 3 Luleå University of Technology - more advanced courses (mineral processing 2, mining geology, geometallurgy, etc.)
• Semester 4 at the University of Liège, the University of Lorraine, the Luleå University of Technology or the Technical University Bergakademie Freiberg - internship and Master's thesis

EMERALD is also supported by a series of international academic partners such as the University of Cape Town and the University of Oulu. The other strength of the programme lies in its close collaboration with industry. During the two years of the Master's, students develop their network of international contacts thanks to the many professional seminars, site visits and the Master's thesis project. Many companies are now partners of the programme. Lhoist, LKAB, Umicore, Imerys and ZEISS, to mention but a few. At the end of the programme, students are awarded three degrees:

• Civil Engineer in Mining and Geology specialising in geometallurgy (University of Liège);
• Master in Geosciences; Planets, Resources and the Environment. (University of Lorraine - Ecole Nationale de Géologie de Nancy);
• Master's of Science: Major: Geosciences (Luleå University of Technology). More information about the EMERALD programme.

More information on the joint Erasmus Mundus Master's at ULiège.

Learning outcomes

The georesources engineer bridges the gap between the natural environment and the engineering processes. As an expert in mineral resources s/he is capable of understanding geological processes that lead to economic concentrations of metals and industrial minerals, while as an engineer s/he is familiar with designing and running mineral processing operations to recover and concentrate valuable materials.

His/her training as a resource geologist means s/he is familiar with the strong heterogeneity of orebodies. S/he is experienced in using advanced mineralogical characterization techniques at all scales from electron microscopy to core-scanning and online sensing techniques. S/he is perfectly aware of the intrinsic variability of deposits in terms of minerals and textures and makes sure this variability is well accounted for in so-called geometallurgical models. As a creative engineer s/he is capable of developing new techniques to map and track valuable minerals. S/he is also capable of innovating in mineral separation techniques to improve the recovery of metals all along the value chain. His/her main concern is to look for innovative technologies to contribute to a more resource- and process-efficient society.

Thanks to his/her cross-disciplinary training s/he knows his/her role in the raw materials value chain and is a privileged interlocutor for mining operators, product designers or manufacturing industries.

S/he has developed an entrepreneurial mindset by being regularly in contact with industrial partners through seminars, visits and internships. s/he knows about health safety environment (HSE) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) issues and is familiar with the basic principles of management and entrepreneurship in his/her sector.