Researchers from the Advanced Center for Electrical and Electronic Engineering, AC3E, Dr. José Rodríguez and Dr. Samir Kouro were invited as speakers to the Third Seminar on Maintenance and Operation of Electrical Systems in Large-Scale Mining, which took place on November 28th in Iquique, organized by STN – Grupo Saesa, with sponsorship from the Embassy of Canada.
This event brings together experts and leaders from the sector to explore the most innovative trends in the Chilean mining industry, an environment that demands the rapid incorporation of new technologies and innovative solutions to face the sector’s major challenges. The event aims to be a space for dialogue and collaboration around the energy transition of the mining sector, key to advancing towards a more sustainable future.
Dr. Rodríguez was one of the guests of honor and responsible for starting the activity with his keynote lecture “The role of power electronics in the energy transition.” In it, he presented a series of applications where this technology plays a critical role in achieving decarbonization goals in various industrial sectors and mining processes. Dr. Rodríguez placed special emphasis on mining applications such as shovels, trucks, SAG mills, and conveyor belts, showing the latest advances in the electrification of large-scale mining.
Then it was Dr. Samir Kouro’s turn with his presentation “Advanced Center for Electrical and Electronics Engineering and its projects with industry,” through which he shared with attendees part of the Center’s work and its impact on various productive sectors through various scientific-technological base projects, contributing to optimizing their processes and thus to the national economy.
“The mining industry is complex, as it develops in various areas that include the technical, economic, social, and environmental. Currently, it faces various transformational challenges, such as the energy transition, which require innovative and multidisciplinary technological solutions, for which centers like AC3E are key, allowing mining companies to develop them and advance more quickly,” highlighted Dr. Kouro.
The academic stressed the importance of collaboration between mining companies, technology providers, and R&D centers. The latter are the ones that make technological developments possible thanks to their great potential of know-how, advanced human capital, and infrastructure for innovations and technological development, characteristics that allow, in some way, to subsidize part of the risk involved in innovating in technology.
“AC3E has 3 areas of impact in which it develops R&D and knowledge and technology transfer: Smart Industry, Energy, and Technologies for Health. In all of them, but particularly in the first two, we have developed projects that relate to the mining industry, such as sensors for the forecasting and diagnosis of failures in technologies that are critical for mining, such as mining trucks. In the energy area, we are working on various energy transition technologies: charging systems for heavy-duty electric vehicles known as the Megawatt Charging System, as well as new interface systems for the direct current coupling of electrolyzers for green hydrogen production,” concluded the scientist.
