1. Minerals and Ores
Chapter 9

2. 9A Describing Minerals What is a mineral?
Naturally occurring
Inorganic
Crystalline
A solid (under normal conditions)
A chemical element or compound
The Earth transformed during and after the flood creating new minerals and ores
Minerals, have mass and volume, they are made of atoms
Most known minerals are compounds, which are pure substances
Compound minerals are complicated, mineralogists work within families of minerals
Native Minerals – made of one elements
Minerals are never Mixtures
Rocks are a mixture of two or more minerals

3. 9B Identifying Minerals
Mineralogy
Mineralogists
Physical Properties
Use more than one test
Color
Streak
Luster
Shape and Growth
Accretion
Facets
Cleavage and Fracture
Hardness
Specific Gravity
Special Properties
Flame Test
Acid Test
Magnetism
Radioactivity
Luminescence
Refraction

4. 9C Minerals as Resources
Native Minerals
Veins
Placer deposits
Metal Elements
Conductors
Nonmetals
Diamonds
Sulphur

5. 9C Minerals as Resources
Compound Minerals
Silicates
Mainly silicon and oxygen (SiO₂)
Major rock forming minerals
Used for glass, jewelry, ceramics, computer chip manufacturing
Feldspar and Quartz most common
Oxides
Oxygen and another element, usually a metal
Chief source of metals used in industry
Sulfides
Sulphur and one or more metals
Contain metals economically important to us
Opaque with characteristic colors and colored streaks
Carbonates
One or more metal ions and the carbonate ion (CO3-2)
Another major rock forming mineral
Used in manufacturing cement, paper and steel
Halides
Mineral salt compounds
Sodium, potassium, magnesium or calcium combine with fluorine, chlorine, bromine or iodine
Used in fertilizers, metal production, photographic chemicals

6. 9C Minerals as Resources
Mining & Dominion
We use different methods to separate minerals from other earth materials
Mining is the most common method
Deep mining
Surface mining
Strip mining
Problems with mining
Destructive to environment
Removes habitats for animals and flora necessary for their survival
Destroys watersheds
Changes the earth's surface
Byproducts can be poisonous to the environment
Can endanger workers
Landslides, shaft collapse, cave ins

7. 9C Minerals as Resources
Bingham Canyon Mine
Rio Tinto Kennecott
Tautona Gold Mine, South Africa
Bone Valley, Florida
Kennecott is the second largest copper producer in the United States, providing approximately 25 percent of the country's copper needs. Kennecott produces approximately 275,000 tons of refined copper each year. This copper is used in electrical wiring, plumbing, roofing, coin making and more. In addition to copper, the mine also produces about 400,000 ounces of gold, 4 million ounces of silver and 25 million pounds of molybdenum.
Located in the West Wits region of South Africa, the TauTona ranks as the world’s second deepest underground mine in the world. The mine goes miles under the earth’s surface at depths ranging from 1.14 to 2.14 miles. In 2008, the company added a secondary shaft that reaches almost two and a half miles underground.
The Bone Valley is a region of central Florida, in which phosphate is mined for use in the production of agricultural fertilizer. Florida currently contains the largest known deposits of phosphate in the United States.