Patricio Martínez Bellange: Director of Biomining
Natalia Zúñiga: CSB UNAB Project Leader
Andrés Arroyo: CSB UNAB Internal Bioreactor Consultant
Catalina Lagos: CSB UNAB Internal Consultant
Ítalo Lazcano: CSB UNAB Chemical Researcher
Yéssica Tafur: CSB UNAB Bioleaching Columns Researcher
Gabriel País: Director of Mining Engineering
Gonzalo Montes: Associate Professor, Department of Mining Engineering
Roberto Collao: Mining Processes Advisor
Pamela Salazar: Extremophile Microbiology Advisor
Myriam Ramírez: Hydrometallurgy Advisor
This applied research center at the UNAB Faculty of Life Sciences works with companies and productive sectors to meet their needs with biotechnological solutions that enable them to increase their innovation, competitiveness, and sustainability with economic, environmental, and social impact. Within the project, its research team works on the selection and propagation of microorganisms that are highly efficient in the bioleaching of pyrite and highly resistant to cobalt, the optimization of experimental conditions for cobalt bioleaching, and the design criteria for the implementation of cobalt bioleaching technology at the pre-industrial level.
The Cobalto Verde project involves academics and researchers from the Advanced Mining Technology Center (AMTC) and the Departments of Geology and Mining Engineering of the Faculty of Physical and Mathematical Sciences at the University of Chile. The AMTC is the leading research center for mining technology in Chile. Its work focuses on generating world-class multidisciplinary research, transferring new technologies, and training advanced human capital to respond to the challenges of responsible mining, including tailings management, which is where the Cobalto Verde project comes in.
Pucobre is a Chilean mining company specializing in the exploitation of medium-scale copper deposits. Its operations are mainly located in the Atacama Region, where it has three underground mines and two copper processing plants. It works as a strategic partner within Cobalto Verde, providing its infrastructure for sampling and laboratory testing.