Mining Innovation is an open-access, peer-reviewed international journal launched in 2026. The journal is sponsored by the Chinese Institute of Coal Science, published by Tsinghua University Press, and distributed through SciOpen.

Mining Innovation publishes high-quality research, reviews, perspectives and case studies on transformative technologies and practical innovations across the global mining and extractive resources industries. The journal aims to provide an international platform for interdisciplinary, solution-oriented and industry-relevant research that advances safe, intelligent, efficient, low-carbon and sustainable resource development.

The journal focuses on technological and practical innovations across all forms of mineral and subsurface resource extraction, including coal mining, metalliferous mining, quarrying, industrial minerals, construction materials, oil and gas resources, marine minerals and emerging frontier resources. It welcomes contributions from both underground and surface operations, as well as studies addressing the full value chain from exploration, extraction and processing to environmental management, rehabilitation and resource recycling.

Mining Innovation particularly welcomes studies that connect mining and resource engineering with emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, robotics, automation, digital twins, advanced sensing, new materials, new energy systems, environmental engineering, resource recycling and intelligent decision-making. Contributions with strong industrial relevance, field validation, pilot-scale demonstration, technology transfer potential or clear practical impact are especially encouraged.

Aims and Scope

Mining Innovation covers the full value chain of mining and extractive resources development, from resource exploration and extraction to safety management, intelligent operations, resource utilisation, environmental protection and post-mining rehabilitation. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following areas.

Resource Exploration and Efficient Extraction

• Exploration, development and extraction of coal, metallic minerals, non-metallic minerals, quarry materials, construction materials, industrial minerals, oil and gas resources, and strategic and critical minerals;
• Innovative mining and extraction methods for underground, surface and subsurface resource operations;
• Advanced drilling, excavation, blasting, cutting, ground control and reservoir development technologies;
• Marine mining, deep mining and emerging frontiers such as lunar and space resource utilisation;
• Integrated approaches for improving productivity, resource recovery, operational safety and extraction efficiency.

Mine Safety, Risk Management and Disaster Prevention

• Gas hazards, coal spontaneous combustion, mine fires, explosions and heat hazards;
• Rockburst, coal and rock dynamic disasters, roof falls, slope instability and geotechnical hazards;
• Mine ventilation, dust control, occupational health and emergency response;
• Mine water hazards, groundwater control, tailings dam safety and subsurface fluid-related risks;
• Monitoring, prediction, early warning and risk management technologies for mining and extractive resource hazards.

Intelligent and Digital Mining

• Intelligent mine planning, design and system integration;
• Automation, robotics and unmanned mining technologies;
• Mine Internet of Things, big data analytics and cloud-based mining platforms;
• Artificial intelligence, machine learning and computer vision for mining and resource extraction applications;
• Digital twins, simulation, virtual reality and real-time decision-support systems;
• Intelligent transportation, production scheduling and equipment management;
• Digital transformation, interoperability and standards for intelligent mining and resource operations.

Resource Utilisation, Processing and Recycling

• Mineral processing, sorting, purification and beneficiation technologies;
• Comprehensive recovery and high-value utilisation of associated resources;
• Strategic and critical mineral recovery;
• Mine water treatment, reuse and resource recovery;
• Recycling and utilisation of mining wastes, tailings, coal gangue, quarry waste and industrial solid wastes;
• Low-carbon and circular-economy approaches in mining, mineral processing and extractive resource industries.

Green Mining, Environmental Protection and Post-Mining Rehabilitation

• Mine land reclamation, ecological restoration and biodiversity recovery;
• Subsidence management, goaf stability and post-mining land use;
• Carbon reduction, methane abatement, carbon capture, utilisation and storage, and net-zero mining technologies;
• Pollution control for soil, water and air in mining and extractive resource areas;
• Environmental monitoring, life-cycle assessment and environmental risk management;
• Sustainable mine closure and long-term environmental governance.

Cross-Disciplinary and Emerging Technologies

• Integration of mining and resource engineering with artificial intelligence, materials science, energy systems, environmental engineering and management science;
• Advanced sensing, geophysics, remote sensing and data-driven characterisation of mining and subsurface resource systems;
• New materials and functional materials for mining safety, ground support, sealing, backfilling, environmental control and resource recovery;
• Mining-related energy transition technologies, including electrification, renewable energy integration and low-emission operations;
• Field trials, demonstration projects, standards, policy-relevant studies and industry-led innovation.

Article Types

Mining Innovation publishes the following article types:

• Original Research Articles;
• Review Articles;
• Perspectives;
• Case Studies;
• Technical Notes;
• Industry Perspectives;
• Comments;
• Editorials.

Chinese Institute of Coal Science

Tsinghua University Press (TUP)