Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Earth Systems 3209 Unit: 5 Earth’s Resources Reference: Chapters 21; Appendix A & B

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Processing Ore Minerals Unit 5: Topic 2.3 Focus on....  identifying and describing techniques used in processing ore deposits.

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador 1)Floatation 2)Gravity Separation 3)Heap Leaching 4)Pyromet 5)Hydromet Ore Processing Techniques

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador 1)Flotation  Floatation involves mixing grounded ore with water, oil, and chemicals. The grounded ore becomes suspended in the water and is subjected to bubbles of air. This causes the minerals and/or elements of value to float to the top where they can be skimmed off. Ore Processing Techniques

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador 2)Gravity Separation  Gravity separation involves feeding grounded ore into a pulsating body of water, which serves to settle out the heavy material while floating away the light material. If the heavy material is what you wish to keep, then it is taken from the bottom. If the light material is what you wish to keep, then it is taken from the top. Ore Processing Techniques

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador 3) Heap Leaching  Heap leaching commences by placing the grounded ore as a layer onto impermeable material. The “heap” of material is sprayed with a liquid, which percolates down through dissolving away the valuable minerals and/or elements. This liquid (leachate) is then collected in a reservoir. The leachate is processed to extract desired materials. Ore Processing Techniques

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador 4)Pyromet  Pyromet involves using heat to separate the minerals and/or elements of value from the ore. Heating separates the materials by density and the desired minerals and/or elements can be removed. Ore Processing Techniques

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador 5)Hydromet  Hydromet is a chemical method that involves oxidation and acid leaching to separate out the desired minerals and/or elements. Ore Processing Techniques

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Example 1: Which involves heating the ore for the purpose of separating materials based on density? (A) floatation (B) heap leaching (C) prospecting (D) pyromet

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Example 2: Which technique involves percolation and dissolving away the valuable minerals from the ore? (A) distillation (B) gravity separation (C) heap leaching (D) remote sensing

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Your Turn... Take the time and complete the following questions... (Solutions to follow) Questions: Which mineral processing technique involves oxidation and acid leaching? (A) floatation (B) gravity separation (C) heap leaching (D) hydromet

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Solutions... Questions: Which mineral processing technique involves oxidation and acid leaching? Answer: (A) floatation (B) gravity separation (C) heap leaching (D) hydromet

Copyright © 2014 All rights reserved, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador Summary... Overview of Points covered: Techniques used to process ore deposits include: 1)Floatation 2)Gravity Separation 3)Heap Leaching 4)Pyromet 5)Hydromet