Chemistry Assignment
Metals are mined from ores, considering yield to see if it is economically viable for a business to mine at a particular site. However, due to environmental damage and global warming, recycling has increased globally to create a sustainable future. By examining the cost and energy expenditure of recycling and extracting aluminium we can understand why recycling is a better choice than extracting metal from its ore.
Discuss the importance of predicting yield in the identification, mining and extraction of commercial ore deposits
Yield is the amount of product obtained or in mining terms how much (amount) a particular metal can be extracted from an ore (a deposit of minerals in which a commercial metal can be extracted from). Predicting yield in the processes of identification, mining and extraction is vital to the success of a business. For a business to compete with the global markets, the investment must be profitable and in some cases sustainable to last year’s into the future.
Percentage composition is used widely in the mining industries to calculate and measure the yield of particular metal from an ore. For example, haematite (Fe2O3), a compound consisting only of iron and oxygen, can theoretically produce around 70% iron while chalcopyrite (CuFeS2), consisting only of copper, iron and sulphur can produce theoretically 35% copper. However if we express yield as a percentage of the ore dug out, an iron ore would only contain about 16% iron and for a copper ore only contain 1-5% copper. This is because an ore dug out of the ground contains unwanted minerals like dirt, rocks and other waste products which add to the mass of the required mineral ;giving a low yield percentage. Since compounds like chalcopyrite and haematite have uniform composition, ores are mixtures of useful minerals and other waste products which have variable composition (different location will yield different amounts of metals). This will affect if it is economical to mine the ore
Discuss the importance of predicting yield in the identification, mining and extraction of commercial ore deposits
Yield is the amount of product obtained or in mining terms how much (amount) a particular metal can be extracted from an ore (a deposit of minerals in which a commercial metal can be extracted from). Predicting yield in the processes of identification, mining and extraction is vital to the success of a business. For a business to compete with the global markets, the investment must be profitable and in some cases sustainable to last year’s into the future.
Percentage composition is used widely in the mining industries to calculate and measure the yield of particular metal from an ore. For example, haematite (Fe2O3), a compound consisting only of iron and oxygen, can theoretically produce around 70% iron while chalcopyrite (CuFeS2), consisting only of copper, iron and sulphur can produce theoretically 35% copper. However if we express yield as a percentage of the ore dug out, an iron ore would only contain about 16% iron and for a copper ore only contain 1-5% copper. This is because an ore dug out of the ground contains unwanted minerals like dirt, rocks and other waste products which add to the mass of the required mineral ;giving a low yield percentage. Since compounds like chalcopyrite and haematite have uniform composition, ores are mixtures of useful minerals and other waste products which have variable composition (different location will yield different amounts of metals). This will affect if it is economical to mine the ore
Bibliography: Smith. R (2004), Conquering Chemistry, 4th edition, Mc Graw Hill Education, North Ryde This textbook is useful for the assignment as it answers the relevant dot point with examples and diagram