The series of tests approved by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors provide the means of assessing whether mundic is present and an indication of its severity.

In 2002 the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors issued a supplement to the 2nd Edition of the Mundic Guidance Notes, outlining a new Stage 3 test for the classification of mundic concrete to supplement the existing Stage 1 and Stage 2 tests.

There are 3 levels of assessment which can be used. Stages 1 and 2 are visual assessments of the composition and condition of the aggregate in sample cores taken from the property.

Stage 3 is a longer term physical test of the performance of the aggregate under controlled environmental conditions which simulate ageing and weathering.

At each stage samples can pass or fail. Successful completion of a Stage 3 test can in some cases reclassify a previous failure at Stage 2 bringing the subject property back into the mortgage market.

We are able to offer all 3 stages of testing in-house at Wheal Jane and we are the only Company in Cornwall offering the Stage 3 testing service.

The £70,000 Inductive Coupled Plasma (ICP) device will not only increase the laboratory’s capacity but provide high speed, precision and detection down to parts per billion levels of every known element.

The technology analyses electromagnetic waves which are characteristic to each element. The intensity of the waves provides a measure of the concentration of the element in a sample.

This huge diversity of work is a tribute to the high levels of service provided by the Wheal Jane Laboratory to the mining and minerals industry worldwide and to Cornwall’s reputation for expertise in all things mining related which goes back centuries.