2. Mineral Resources
• Backbone of modern societies
• Availability of mineral resources as a measure of
the wealth of a society
• Important in people’s daily life as well as in
overall economy
• Processed materials from minerals account for 5%
of the U.S. GDP
• Mineral resources are nonrenewable
3. Mineral Value
• Direct value
– Raw, recycles
– Import, export
• Indirect value
– Processes
• Value added
– E.g., agriculture
4. Common Use of Mineral
Products
METALLIC
HYDROCARBON
NON-METALLIC
5. Mineral Resources and Reserves
• Mineral resources: Usable economic commodity
extracted from naturally formed material
(elements, compounds, minerals, or rocks)
• Reserve: Portion of a resource that is identified
and currently available to be extracted legally and
profitably
• Defining factors: Geologic, technological,
economic, and legal factors
6. Reserves vs. Resources
• Reserves • Resources
– Natural resources that – Deposits that we know
have been discovered & or believe to exist, but
can be exploited that are not exploitable
profitably with existing today because of
technology technological,
economical, or political
– Oil – 700 billion barrels reasons
– Oil – 2 trillion barrels
7.
8. Mineral Resources Problems
• Nonrenewable resources
– Finite amount of mineral resources and growing demands for
the resources
• Supply shortage due to global industrialization
– More developed countries consuming disproportionate share of
mineral resources
• Erratic distribution of the resources and uneven
consumption of the resources.
– Highly developed countries use most of the resources; supply
varies
9. Major Import Sources (Table 14.2)
• Friends
– Canada: Metals
– United Kingdom: platinum, rare earths
• Other
– China: graphite, tin, tungsten…
– South Africa : platinum, fluorspar
– Chile: arsenic, iodine
10. Responses to Limited
Availability
• Find more sources
• Find a substitute
• Recycle
• Use less and make more efficient use of
what is available
• Do without
12. Geology of Mineral Resources
• Metallic ore: Useful metallic minerals that can be
mined for a profit
• Technology, economics, and politics
• Concentration factor: Concentration necessary
for profitable mining
– Variable with types of metals
– Variable over time
14. Some Important Minerals and there Uses
• Galena [PbS] – source of lead – car batteries
• Magnetite, Hematite [FexOy] – iron ore
• Bauxite [Al2O3*2H2O] – aluminum ore
• Chalcopyrite [CuFeS2] – copper ore
• Quartz [SiO2] – glass and electronic components
• Gypsum [CaSO4*2H2O] – sheetrock, plater of paris
• Sphalerite [ZnS] – zinc ore
• Calcite [CaCO3] – portland cement, soil conditioner, antacids
• Garnet [Al2(SiO4)3+other metals] – abrasives
• Olivine [(Fe,Mg)2SiO4] – silicon chips for computers
• Sulfur [S] – insecticides, rubber tires, paints, papermaking, etc.
• Halite [NaCl] – Table salt
• Graphite [C] – lubricant, pencil lead
• Feldspars [K,Ca,Na,Al, silicates] – porcelain, source of K
• Any other element that is not a major component of a mineral
• Gold [Au], Silver [Ag], Platinum [Pt], Titanium [ Ti], Tin [Sn], etc .
15. Plate Tectonics and Mineral
Resources
• Plate boundaries are related to the origins of
many ore deposits
• Plate tectonic processes (high temperature, high
pressure, and partial melting) promote release
and enrichment of metals along plate
boundaries
• Common metal ores along plate boundaries are
Fe, Au, Cu, and Hg, etc.
16. Daily Questions
• Within your groups, identify one task you
all have completed today. Collectively
think about the task and brainstorm.
Produce a list of all of the mineral resources
that were used in that task.
17. Geochemically Abundant Elements
(GAE)
• Elements comprise > 0.1% (by
weight) of the crust
• Form as principal component
in minerals within common
rocks – i.e. iron (Fe) Fe2O3
• Form very large deposits
• Form rock deposits
18. Geochemically Scarce Elements
(GSE)
• Elements that comprise < 0.1% (by weight) of the
crust
• Do not form as principal component in minerals
within common rocks, usually occur as a
substitute in rock forming minerals
• Form small deposits
• Ore minerals include sulfides, native elements, etc.
19. Mineral Deposits
• Elements need to be concentrated
• Minimum Grade - minimum amount of element
necessary to economically mine element
• Minimum Concentration Factor (MCF) –
Minimum Grade divided by the Crustal
Abundance
– GAE have MCF < 100
– GSE have MCF > 100
20. Comparison of Concentrations of Elements in the
Earth’s Crust with Concentrations needed to operate
a Commercial Mine
Element Natural Concentration Required Enrichment
Concentration in to Operate a commercial Factor
Crust (% by Weight) mine (% by Weight)
Aluminum 8 24-32 3-4
Iron 5.8 40 6-7
Copper 0.0058 0.46-0.58 80-100
Nickel 0.0072 1.08 150
Zinc 0.0082 2.46 300
Uranium 0.00016 0.19 1200
Lead 0.00010 0.2 2000
Gold 0.0000002 0.0008 4000
Mercury 0.000002 0.2 100,000
21. Process that concentrate elements
• Igneous Processes
– Hydrothermal
– Magmatic
• Sedimentary Processes
– Mechanical
– Chemical
• Metamorphism Processes
• Groundwater Processes
22. Hydrothermal Processes
• Precipitation of metallic
ions from hot, ion-rich
fluid
• Fluid could be
– Magmatic
– Groundwater
– Oceanic water
• Magmas heat up the water
• Water flows into fractures,
faults, joints, etc. where it
cools and precipitates
(deposits) the metals
23. Magmatic Processes
• Gravity Settling
– Dense, early-crystallizing
minerals sink to the bottom
of the magma chamber
• Filter Pressing
– Tectonic force compress a
magma chamber and force
the still-liquid portion into
fractures, creating large
crystals
• These processes have
produced large bodies of
iron, chromium, titanium,
and nickel
24. Sedimentary Processes
• Clastic
– Weathering of
rock also weathers
out elements of
interest
– Generally, the
elements are heavy
and are deposited
when a streams
competence is low.
– Placer deposits,
i.e. gold
26. Sedimentary Processes
• Chemical
Precipitates
– Water with high
concentrations of
elements is
evaporated
– Evaporation of
water leaves the
elements
– Ex. Salts, Iron,
etc.
27. Metamorphism
• Alteration of rock
concentrates the
elements
• The heat and
pressure force out
the GSE
(“impurities”)
28. Weathering
• Chemical weathering removes
soluble material.
• Ore material (elements of
interest) are left behind in a
concentrated residue.
29. Groundwater
• Secondary enrichment
• Groundwater dissolves and carries elements in
solution
• Chemical conditions change and the elements are
precipitated (deposited) out.
• Ex. Lead
30. Groundwater
• Secondary enrichment
• Groundwater dissolves and carries
insignificant elements in solution
• Insoluble elements of interest remain.
• Ex. Aluminum
31. Ore Mineral
• Ability to separate and readily process the
metal (element) from the ore material.
• Need to look at
– The energy to process the material
– The cost to process the material
– The value of the metal
• Basically, is it profitable to mine the metal?
32. Mineralogical Barrier
• Increase in energy and cost associated with
the production of GSE
Metals trapped in
minerals (silicates)
Energy and Cost
per mass of
metal Mineralogical Barrier
Metals the have been
GSE concentrated
$ GAE
Fixed
Costs
Low Grade of metal (element) in rock High
33. Ways to overcome the
mineralogical barrier
• Improve technology
• Recycle
• Come up with cheap energy to break
silicate bonds
34. Daily Assignment
Place the following on
the Venn Diagram
1.Gold
2.Oil
5 4 3.Coal
1
4.Iron
5.Copper
2, 3, 6
6.Gravel
