Escondida’s project has significantly reduced a key potential health risk for employees at the operation’s electrowinning tankhouse.

The process of electrowinning is used to recover metals from a liquid solution using an electrical current. The process generates acid mist, potentially exposing people working inside the tankhouse to a carcinogenic health risk if not controlled.

The team developed a sustainable solution by adopting a combination of engineering controls and personal protective equipment, improving existing technologies and identifying new technologies, and implementing a simple, systematic maintenance schedule. In doing so, they have significantly reduced the potential level of acid mist exposure.