OREAS 86 was prepared from Ni-Cu-Co ore grade drill core samples sourced from the Nova Mine in Western Australia. The Nova Mine, owned and operated by Independence Group (IGO), is located in the Fraser Range, approximately 160km east-northeast of Norseman, 360km southeast of Kalgoorlie and 380km from the Port of Esperance in Western Australia. OREAS 86 is one of two Ni-Cu-Co ore CRMs prepared (the other is the higher grade ‘OREAS 85’).

Twenty-one laboratories participated in the program to certify:

• Au, Pd and Pt by 25-50g Pb collection fire assay with ICP-MS, ICP-OES or AAS finish;
• Au by 15-50g aqua regia digestion with ICP OES/MS finish or AAS finish;
• Al2O3, CaO, Co, Cu, Fe2O3, K2O, MgO, Na2O, Ni, P2O5, S, SiO2 and TiO2 by lithium borate fusion with XRF finish;
• Loss on ignition at 1000° Celsius;
• Total Sulphur by infrared combustion furnace;
• 4-acid digestion for full elemental suite ICP-OES/MS finish;
• Aqua regia digestion for full elemental suite ICP-OES/MS and AAS finish;
• Au by instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) on 20 x 85mg subsamples to confirm homogeneity.