MINERAL RESOURCESMINERAL RESOURCES

The earth’s crust is the The earth’s crust is the storehouse of all materials that we storehouse of all materials that we

can use can use

““If you can’t grow it, you If you can’t grow it, you gotta mine it”gotta mine it”

Mineral ResourceMineral Resource

• Mineral Resource – earth’s storehouse of useful minerals that can be extracted

• Basically, all the minerals in the crust that can be realistically dug up for human use

Mineral ReservesMineral Reserves

• Reserve – the already identified mineral deposits that can be recovered profitably

• How is this different from mineral resources?• They are still in the ground, but have not

been dug up because they don’t need to be extracted at this time

• (the market may already be flooded with these elements or there may be other deposits that are easier to get to at this time)

Did you say Oar or Ore?Did you say Oar or Ore?

• Ores – useful metallic minerals that can be mined for a profit

• Metals include things such as Iron, Magnesium, Cobalt, Nickel, Titanium, Manganese, Zinc, etc…

$$$$$$ Chah-ChingChah-Ching $$$$$$

• How do we know if a mineral resource is going to be profitable for a mining company to dig it out of the ground?

• It must be found in concentrations above its average crustal abundance

• The value of the mineral must outweigh the cost of digging it up

Example for the CEOsExample for the CEOs

• If the average crustal abundance of cinnabar is 0.93% and you discover a chunk of rock which contains 2.5% cinnabar, should you mine it?

• Absolutely!!!

• ps – cinnabar is a mineral that contains the liquid metal mercury (HgS)

Is it worth it?Is it worth it?

• Digging it up is more complicated than all that though…

• First you have to find the deposits• Then you have to extract them• Then you have to transport them• Then, isolate the elements you want• And then you have to pay everyone involved• Finally, you can then sell the elements for profit

And one mAnd one moreore thing to consider thing to consider

• Not only does the crustal % of the deposit play into the equation of a profit

• But, also economic demand (do we all of a sudden need more of a particular mineral)

• Extracting technology (are we waiting for new tools to get at harder to reach places)

How do we mine resources?How do we mine resources?

• Surface Mining – Above ground mines that are nothing more than a big hole in the ground…sometimes called open-pit mines

• Underground mines – exactly that; mines where the surface is not touched and all the mined material comes up via railways, shafts, and elevators

Some Some BIGBIG Toys of Open-Pit Mines Toys of Open-Pit Mines

Huge Earth Mover World’s Largest Dump Truck

Some more BIG ToysSome more BIG Toys

World’s Largest Dragline The Bucket of the Dragline

Large CATS at WorkLarge CATS at Work

An Open-Pit MineAn Open-Pit Mine

OK, Let’s go UndergroundOK, Let’s go Underground

Remote controlled continuous miner

Longwall Mining Machine

Diagram of an Underground MineDiagram of an Underground Mine

Do they just leave a hole there?Do they just leave a hole there?

STEP 1:Mining in progress

STEP 2: Empty Mine with rain water in it

STEP 3: Reclaiming begins

STEP 4: Reclaiming complete

Mining & Reclaiming TogetherMining & Reclaiming Together

Mining & Reclaiming TogetherMining & Reclaiming Together

GemsGems

• Gemstones - Minerals that are beautiful, rare, valuable, polished, and cut into specific reflecting shapes

• Gems are nothing more than pretty, pure minerals

Rough Sapphire Stones

Cut & Polished Sapphires

To Review:To Review:

• Know the difference between a resource, a reserve, and an ore

• Several factors go into determining whether or not a mineral will be profitable to mine: location, technology, supply/demand, size and percentage of deposit

• Gemstones are minerals that are rare, pretty, polished, and cut