Prof. Dr. William Skinner Appointed Section Editor-in-Chief of the Section “Mineral Processing and Extractive Metallurgy” in Minerals

We are pleased to announce that Prof. Dr. William Skinner has been appointed Editor-in-Chief of the “Mineral Processing and Extractive Metallurgy” Section of Minerals (ISSN 2075-163X) as of June 2022. 

Professor William (Bill) Skinner is a research professor in minerals and resource engineering at the Future Industries Institute (FII) at the University of South Australia (UniSA). He graduated from the University of Melbourne (B.Sc. 1981) and the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (Ph.D. 1991), including a period spent with the Australian Antarctic Division (1990-1992). With a background in applied physics—solid state surface science and associated spectroscopies—he has worked in minerals processing and extractive metallurgical research for 30 years at UniSA. His major focus has been on flotation, physical separation and hydrometallurgical processes, and the role of surface chemistry in beneficiation mechanisms. This has included the use of surface analytical spectroscopies (XPS, ToF-SIMS) and various synchrotron radiation techniques, coupled with close collaboration with theoretical modeling groups for the fundamental study of specific mineral surface behavior in processing environments. 

A large percentage of Professor Skinner’s research is direct, applied investigations with industry, focused on processing plant issues and solutions, via long-term, multi-company projects. This includes the flagship AMIRA P260 Flotation series of projects, which has delivered in excess of USD 1.2 billion in returns on investment through process improvements and savings. Professor Skinner has also mentored more than 50 Ph.D. students. 

Professor Skinner is currently the Deputy Director of two major national Australian Research Council (ARC) Centres—the ARC Centre for Enabling the Eco-Beneficiation of Minerals (2020–2027)  (https://coeminerals.org.au/) and the ARC Training Centre for Integrated Operations for Complex Ores (2020–2024) (https://iocr.com.au/). He has published more than 330 refereed book chapters, articles, and conference proceedings. 

The following is a short Q&A with Prof. Dr. William Skinner, who shared his vision for the journal with us, as well as his views of the research area and open access publishing: 

1. What appealed to you about the journal that made you want to take on the role as its Section Editor-in-Chief?

Minerals processing, together with the underpinning chemical and physical mechanisms involved in valuable mineral beneficiation, is quite lacking in the open access journal space. The main challenge in making this a reality is in the quality and relevance of articles that are able to contribute to impacts in the industry to meet their challenges in meeting metal demand. Being Section Editor-in-Chief of “Mineral Processing and Extractive Metallurgy” gives me an opportunity to ensure article quality and contribute to the success of the journal and give confidence to researchers that Minerals is the first choice for publishing and exposure of their work. 

2. What is your vision for the journal?

Minerals’ raised visibility in recent years opens an opportunity for it to become the leading journal—open access or otherwise—in minerals processing. Quality, through rigorous review processes and appropriate reviewer selection, is the key to elevating Minerals in the journal landscape. Quality of articles leads to enhanced relevance and citations, with associated metrics following. 

3. What does the future of this field of research look like?

The world needs minerals and metals like never before to meet current demand and to fuel the transition to renewable energy, advanced technology, agriculture, health and infrastructure. These minerals and metals must be extracted from ever-diminishing ore grades with finer-grained, more complex mineralogy. Moreover, physical, environmental, energy and water consumption footprints must be reduced in order to acquire a license to operate a mine. Our role as researchers is to focus on the technical challenges and underlying science of achieving these goals. I would certainly hope to see many more submissions to Minerals that are closely linked to such desired outcomes. 

4. What do you think of the development of open access in the publishing field?

I fully believe that the open access model is the surest way to ensure quality research is maximally exposed to academia and industry alike. Moreover, timelines for the real implementation of processing and extractive breakthroughs will be shorter. Open access compliance is also fast becoming the norm for research funding compliance, ensuring that the outcomes of publicly funded research, for example, are freely available to the taxpayer. 

We wish Prof. Dr. William Skinner every success in his new position, and we look forward to his contributions to the journal.