Ores of metals. What is an ore? What types of ore are there? How are they mined? Leading countries in ore mining Countries rich in ores

Iron ore began to be mined by man many centuries ago. Even then, the advantages of using iron became obvious.

Finding mineral formations containing iron is quite easy, as this element makes up about five percent of the earth's crust. Overall, iron is the fourth most abundant element in nature.

AT pure form it is impossible to find it, iron is contained in a certain amount in many types rocks. Iron ore has the highest iron content, the extraction of metal from which is the most economically profitable. The amount of iron contained in it depends on its origin, the normal proportion of which is about 15%.

Chemical composition

The properties of iron ore, its value and characteristics directly depend on its chemical composition. Iron ore may contain varying amounts of iron and other impurities. Depending on this, there are several types of it:

  • very rich when the iron content in ores exceeds 65%;
  • rich, the percentage of iron in which varies from 60% to 65%;
  • medium, from 45% and above;
  • poor, in which the percentage of useful elements does not exceed 45%.

The more side impurities in the composition of iron ore, the more energy is needed for its processing, and the less efficient is the production of finished products.

The composition of the rock may be a combination of various minerals, waste rock and other impurities, the ratio of which depends on its deposit.

Magnetic ores are distinguished by the fact that they are based on an oxide that has magnetic properties, but with strong heating they are lost. The amount of this type of rock in nature is limited, but the iron content in it may not be inferior to red iron ore. Outwardly, it looks like solid crystals of black and blue.

Spar iron ore is an ore rock based on siderite. Very often it contains a significant amount of clay. This type of rock is relatively hard to find in nature, which, given the small amount of iron content, makes it rarely used. Therefore, it is impossible to attribute them to industrial types of ores.

In addition to oxides, other ores based on silicates and carbonates are found in nature. The amount of iron content in the rock is very important for its industrial use, but the presence of beneficial by-products such as nickel, magnesium, and molybdenum is also important.

Application industries

The scope of iron ore is almost completely limited to metallurgy. It is used mainly for the smelting of pig iron, which is mined using open-hearth or converter furnaces. Today cast iron is used in various fields human life, including in most types of industrial production.

To a lesser extent, various iron-based alloys are used - the most wide application acquired steel due to its strength and anti-corrosion properties.

Cast iron, steel, and various other iron alloys are used in:

  1. Mechanical engineering, for the production of various machine tools and apparatus.
  2. Automotive industry, for the manufacture of engines, housings, frames, as well as other components and parts.
  3. Military and missile industries, in the production of special equipment, weapons and missiles.
  4. Construction, as a reinforcing element or erection of load-bearing structures.
  5. Light and food industry, as containers, production lines, various units and devices.
  6. Mining industry, as special machinery and equipment.

Iron ore deposits

The world's iron ore reserves are limited in quantity and location. The areas of accumulation of ore reserves are called deposits. Today, iron ore deposits are divided into:

  1. Endogenous. They are characterized by a special location in the earth's crust, usually in the form of titanomagnetite ores. The forms and locations of such inclusions are varied, they can be in the form of lenses, layers located in the earth's crust in the form of deposits, volcano-like deposits, in the form of various veins and other irregular shapes.
  2. Exogenous. This type includes deposits of brown iron ore and other sedimentary rocks.
  3. Metamorphogenic. Which include quartzite deposits.

Deposits of such ores can be found throughout our planet. The largest number deposits are concentrated on the territory of the post-Soviet republics. Especially Ukraine, Russia and Kazakhstan.

Countries such as Brazil, Canada, Australia, the USA, India and South Africa have large iron reserves. At the same time, almost every country on the globe has its own developed deposits, in case of a shortage of which, the breed is imported from other countries.

Enrichment of iron ores

As stated, there are several types of ores. The rich can be processed immediately after being extracted from the earth's crust, others must be enriched. In addition to the beneficiation process, ore processing includes several stages, such as sorting, crushing, separation and agglomeration.

To date, there are several main ways of enrichment:

  1. Flushing.

It is used to clean ores from side impurities in the form of clay or sand, which are washed out using high-pressure water jets. This operation allows you to increase the amount of iron content in poor ore by about 5%. Therefore, it is used only in combination with other types of enrichment.

  1. Gravity cleaning.

It is carried out using special types of suspensions, the density of which exceeds the density of the waste rock, but is inferior to the density of iron. Under the influence of gravitational forces, the side components rise to the top, and the iron sinks to the bottom of the suspension.

  1. magnetic separation.

The most common enrichment method, which is based on a different level of perception by the ore components of the impact of magnetic forces. Such separation can be carried out with dry rock, wet rock, or in an alternate combination of its two states.

For the processing of dry and wet mixtures, special drums with electromagnets are used.

  1. Flotation.

For this method, crushed ore in the form of dust is lowered into water with the addition of a special substance (flotation agent) and air. Under the action of the reagent, iron joins the air bubbles and rises to the surface of the water, and the waste rock sinks to the bottom. Components containing iron are collected from the surface in the form of foam.

Man uses one way or another all the minerals and rocks of the Earth. Ferrous and non-ferrous metals how minerals are part of the earth's crust in the form ores. According to scientist A. Vinogradova the following elements prevail in the deposits of the earth's crust (their content is given as a percentage): magnesium (2.2), potassium (2.5), sodium (2.8), calcium (3.7), iron (5.5), aluminum (8.5), silicon (27), oxygen (48). These elements are part of the silicates and aluminosilicates that make up the earth's crust.

Iron

Iron is a common element. Its amount in the earth's crust is estimated at a few percent, however, iron is mined from rich ores with a content of at least 25 percent of the metal.

Iron ores

The types of iron deposits are very diverse. The most important are the so-called ferruginous quartzites- thin-banded rocks, in which black stripes are iron minerals magnetite - magnetic iron ore and less hematite - hematite- interleaved with ribbons of light quartz. Such deposits contain many billions of tons iron ores and are known mainly in the most ancient strata aged two or more billion years! They are developed in ancient crystalline shields and platforms. They are widespread in Northern and South America , in the West australia, in Africa, in India. The reserves of iron ores of this type are practically unlimited - more than 30 trillion tons, a truly astronomical figure! It is assumed that ferruginous quartzites were formed under the action of iron bacteria in ancient basins due to iron supplied in solutions from the surrounding hills, and possibly in hot deep solutions.
Deposition sedimentary iron ores takes place in lakes, seas - modern "natural laboratories". AT last years allocations are open iron nodules(nodules) at the bottom of the oceans. They contain huge reserves not only of iron, but also of related products. manganese, nickel and other elements. The types of iron deposits include the so-called contact or skarn deposits located on the border granite rocks and limestone and formed due to solutions brought from the magmatic body. Deposits of this type are composed of rich ores. There seems to be few iron minerals. The main ones are: magnetite, hematite, as well as various types brown iron ore, siderite(iron carbonate). These minerals provide a wide variety of deposit types.

Manganese

It is similar to iron in terms of formation conditions and technical application. manganese.

Sedimentary ores

It usually accompanies iron in sedimentary ores and ancient metamorphic deposits. He, like iron, basis of ferrous metallurgy, used for the production of high-quality steels.

Chromium

The ferrous metals include chromium. Its main mineral is chromite- forms black solid masses and inclusions of crystals in ultrabasic rocks.

Chromite deposits

Chromite deposits, as well as the enclosing massifs of ultramafic rocks, occur in zones of deep faults. Ore-bearing magma came from the subcrustal depths, from the mantle. Chromite deposits are known in South West Africa, on the Philippines, on the Cuba, on the Ural. Chromium is used in metallurgical production for making steel especially hard, in chrome plating of metal surfaces and in the production of paints, it gives the compounds a green color.

To the same technical group belongs titanium. It is mined from basic igneous rocks in the form of ilmenite and from placers, terrestrial and very widespread on sea beaches and shelves ( Brazil, Australia, India), where its source is titanomagnetite, ilmenite, and rutile.
Titanium is used in the production special steel grades. it heat resistant, light metal.


Also important is vanadium- a frequent companion of titanium in deposits and placers, used for the manufacture extra strong steel grades used in the production of armor and shells, in the automotive industry, in nuclear power. Everybody is here big role acquire new combinations of elements in alloys. For example, an alloy of vanadium with titanium, niobium, tungsten, zirconium, aluminum is used in the manufacture of rockets and in nuclear technology. Composite new materials are also prepared from mineral raw materials.

Nickel and cobalt

Nickel and cobalt, also elements of the iron family, occur more frequently in mafic and ultramafic rocks, especially nickel.

Nickel ores


It forms large deposits in South West Africa, on the Kola Peninsula and in the area Norilsk. These are magmatic deposits. Nickel sulfides crystallized from magmatic melt coming from the mantle or from hot aqueous solutions. Of a special type are residual nickel deposits formed as a result of the weathering of nickel-bearing base rocks, for example basalts, gabbroids. In this case, oxidized nickel minerals appear in the form of loose greenish masses. These same residual nickel ores enriched with iron, which allows them to be used for the manufacture of iron-nickel alloys. Such deposits are found in Ural, but they are especially widespread in the tropical zone - on the islands Indonesia, on the Philippines, where intense oxidation of rocks on the surface occurs.

Non-ferrous metals

Important for the industry are non-ferrous metals. Many of them geochemically belong to the group of chalcophiles related to copper (chalkos - copper): copper, lead, zinc, molybdenum, bismuth. In nature, these metals form compounds with gray, sulfides. Minerals of non-ferrous metals were deposited for the most part from hot aqueous solutions; the main ones are for copper chalcopyrite- golden mineral bornite- a lilac mineral, a constant companion of chalcopyrite, as well as black sooty chalcosine, which is found at the top of many copper deposits.

copper ores

Copper deposits are very diverse. In recent years, very great importance acquired poor disseminated ores of the so-called porphyry type, which often occur in volcanic vents. They were formed from hot solutions coming from deep magma chambers. The reserves of such ores are enormous, especially in South and North America.
Reservoir deposits are also of great importance. copper ores formed during volcanic eruptions at the bottom of the seas. This is the so-called pyrite type, in which copper pyrite - chalcopyrite- occurs together with iron pyrites - pyrite. These deposits for a long time served as the main source of ores in the Urals. Finally, the role of the so-called cuprous sandstones containing copper minerals. This type includes deposits in Chita region, and abroad the largest deposits Katanga in Africa.

Lead and zinc

Deposits have their own characteristics lead and zinc, these inextricably linked metals. The main mineral of lead is lead luster, or galena, a silver-white mineral in cubic crystals.

lead ores

Extracted from lead concentrates silver, bismuth, antimony. The latter form only an insignificant impurity in the lead sheen, however, with a huge scale of smelting lead ores they constitute a very important supplement to the extraction of these valuable elements from their own minerals. The main mineral of zinc is sphalerite(zinc snag). It is called a snag because it has a diamond luster rather than a metallic one, like ore. Its color is different: from brown to black and cream. These two minerals, galena and sphalerite, are said to be constantly found together.

Zinc concentrates

From zinc concentrates mined germanium, indium, cadmium and gallium. They form a very small impurity in zinc blendes, where they replace zinc atoms in the crystal lattice, taking their place. And, despite the insignificant content, it is the extraction of these small impurities from zinc blende that is the main source of their production. They are of great value! For example, cadmium is used in the production nuclear reactors, batteries, low-melting alloys. Gallium, due to its low melting point (melting point of only 30 degrees Celsius), is used as a substitute for mercury in thermometers. Cadmium with tin and bismuth gives Wood's alloy with a melting point of 70 degrees. Indium, added to silver, gives the latter a great brilliance, and in an alloy with copper protects ship hulls from corrosion in sea ​​water. Germanium is used in the production of semiconductors.

Sulphide ore

Often found together with lead and zinc in ores silver, bismuth, arsenic, copper Therefore, lead-zinc deposits are called polymetallic. These deposits are formed from hot aqueous solutions and are especially common in the form of deposits and veins among limestone, which are replaced sulfide ore.

Tin and tungsten

Tin and tungsten belong to rarer metals and represent special group(in practice they are now classified as "colored"). The use of non-ferrous metals is very wide: in mechanical engineering, other areas of technology, in military affairs.
Imagine for a moment that the resources of such a metal as tin were depleted, all life would immediately stop: after all, tin alloys go to the bearings necessary in any mechanism, without tin alloys it would be impossible to produce cars, electric locomotives, machine tools, the production of canned food would fall (tin – metal cans). It would seem that such an inconspicuous metal as tin is an extremely necessary link in all technology.

Rare metal minerals

These metals are found in the form of oxygen compounds: tin - in oxide, cassiterite, or tin stone, tungsten - in salts of tungstic acid: wolframite and scheelite. Minerals these elements are often found in quartz veins among or near granites. Shiny black or brown wolframite crystals stand out sharply against white quartz. Sometimes they are found in other types of deposits: scheelite on contacts of granites with limestones in skarns, cassiterite in sulfide veins. Oxygen compounds form many so-called rare metals: lithium, rubidium, cesium, beryllium, neobium, tantalum - they are often found in pegmatite veins. The ancient Precambrian pegmatites are especially rich in them ( Africa, Brazil, Canada).

Light metals are gaining importance at the present time - aluminum and its even lighter counterparts - magnesium and beryllium. These metals are competitors of the all-powerful iron, designed to replace it in many areas. These metals and their alloys are widely used in engineering, especially in aircraft construction, rocket science, in the production of drill pipes - wherever a light metal is needed.

Raw materials for aluminum - bauxite

Aluminum is known to be very widespread in the earth's crust, and in the future it will be possible to obtain it from any aluminosilicate rocks rich in this element. While traditional raw material for aluminum are bauxites. They consist of aqueous alumina compounds formed both by sedimentation during deposition in marine basins and during weathering of aluminosilicate rocks. AT recent times developed a method for obtaining aluminum from ancient schist, formed during the metamorphism of clay deposits, as well as from alkaline igneous rocks. Thus, the problem of sources for obtaining aluminum will never confront a person: this metal will be enough in abundance for all subsequent generations. It is only a matter of the technology of its extraction and electricity to create powerful energy-intensive industries.


Another thing beryllium. It is a relatively rare metal. It is part of beryl and other minerals that are found in high-temperature deposits, in pegmatites, as well as in veins formed from hot aqueous solutions. This valuable metal is used in special alloys for the manufacture of X-ray tubes.


Increasing complex use mineral. For example, rare elements are extracted from coal, mainly extremely valuable germanium.


An element like selenium, is not often found in independent minerals, but is present in pyrite and others sulfides in the form of an insignificant impurity, taking the place of sulfur; it is used to create semiconductors, optical devices, in particular binoculars, telegraph equipment, colorless glass.

Iron ore is the main raw material for the world metallurgical industry. The economy of different countries largely depends on the market for this mineral, so the development of mines is given increased attention all over the world.

Ore: definition and features

Ores are rocks that are used to process and extract the metals they contain. The types of these minerals differ in origin, chemical content, concentration of metals and impurities. The chemical composition of the ore contains various oxides, hydroxides and carbonic salts of iron.

Interesting! Ore has been in demand in the economy since ancient times. Archaeologists managed to find out that the manufacture of the first iron objects dates back to the 2nd century BC. BC. For the first time this material was used by the inhabitants of Mesopotamia.

Iron is a common chemical element in nature. Its content in the earth's crust is about 4.2%. But in its pure form, it is almost never found, most often in the form of compounds - in oxides, iron carbonates, salts, etc. Iron ore is a combination of minerals with a significant amount of iron. AT national economy economically justified is the use of ores containing more than 55% of this element.

What is made from ore

iron ore industry— the metallurgical industry, which specializes in the extraction and processing of iron ore. The main purpose of this material today is the production of iron and steel.

All products made from iron can be divided into groups:

  • Pig iron with high carbon concentration (above 2%).
  • Cast iron.
  • Steel ingots for the manufacture of rolled products, reinforced concrete and steel pipes.
  • Ferroalloys for steel smelting.

What is ore for?

The material is used for smelting iron and steel. Today there is practically no industrial sector that does without these materials.

Cast iron It is an alloy of carbon and iron with manganese, sulfur, silicon and phosphorus. Cast iron is produced in blast furnaces, where high temperatures ore is isolated from iron oxides. Almost 90% of the iron produced is marginal and is used in steel smelting.

Various technologies are used:

  • electron-beam smelting to obtain pure high-quality material;
  • vacuum processing;
  • electro-slag remelting;
  • steel refining (removal of harmful impurities).

The difference between steel and cast iron is the minimum concentration of impurities. For purification, oxidative smelting in open-hearth furnaces is used.

The highest quality steel is smelted in electric induction furnaces at extremely high temperatures.

Ore differs in the concentration of the element contained in it. It is enriched (with a concentration of 55%) and poor (from 26%). Poor ores should be used in production only after enrichment.

By origin, the following types of ores are distinguished:

  • Magmatogenic (endogenous) - formed under the influence of high temperature;
  • Surface - the settled remains of the element at the bottom of sea basins;
  • Metamorphogenic - obtained under the influence of extreme high pressure.

The main compounds of minerals with iron content:

  • Hematite (red iron ore). The most valuable source of iron with an element content of 70% and with a minimum concentration of harmful impurities.
  • Magnetite. Chemical element with a metal content of 72% or more is distinguished by high magnetic properties and mined in magnetic iron ore.
  • Siderite (iron carbonate). There is a high content of waste rock, the iron itself in it is about 45-48%.
  • Brown ironstones. A group of aqueous oxides with a low percentage of iron, with impurities of manganese and phosphorus. An element with such properties is distinguished by good reducibility and porous structure.

The type of material depends on its composition and the content of additional impurities. The most common red iron ore a high percentage iron can be found in different state- from very dense to dusty.

Brown ironstones have a loose, slightly porous structure of brown or yellowish color. Such an element often needs to be enriched, while it is easily processed into ore (high-quality cast iron is obtained from it).

Magnetic iron ore is dense and granular in structure and looks like crystals interspersed in the rock. The shade of the ore is a characteristic black-blue.

How ore is mined

Iron ore mining is a complex technical process that involves diving into the earth's interior in order to search for minerals. To date, there are two ways to extract ore: open and closed.

Open (quarry method) is the most common and safest option compared to closed technology. The method is relevant for those cases when working area there are no hard rocks, and there is no nearby settlements or engineering systems.

First, a quarry is dug out up to 350 meters deep, after which iron is collected and removed from the bottom by large machines. After mining, the material is transported by diesel locomotives to steel and iron factories.

Quarries are dug by excavators, but such a process takes a lot of time. As soon as the machine reaches the first layer of the mine, the material is submitted for examination to determine the percentage of iron content and the feasibility further work(if the percentage is above 55%, work in that area continues).

Interesting! Compared to the closed method, mining in quarries costs half as much. This technology does not require the development of mines or the creation of tunnels. At the same time, the efficiency of work in open pits is several times higher, and material losses are five times less.

Closed mining method

Mine (closed) ore mining is used only if it is planned to preserve the integrity of the landscape in the area where ore deposits are being developed. This method is also relevant for work in highlands. In this case, a network of tunnels is created underground, which leads to additional costs - the construction of the mine itself and the complex transportation of metal to the surface. The main drawback is the high risk to the lives of workers, the mine can collapse and block access to the surface.

Where is the ore mined

The extraction of iron ore is one of the leading areas of the economic complex of the Russian Federation. But despite this, Russia's share in world ore production is only 5.6%. World reserves are about 160 billion tons. The volume of pure iron reaches 80 billion tons.

countries rich in ores

The distribution of fossils by country is as follows:

  • Russia - 18%;
  • Brazil - 18%;
  • Australia - 13%;
  • Ukraine - 11%;
  • China - 9%;
  • Canada - 8%;
  • USA - 7%;
  • other countries - 15%.

Significant deposits of iron ore are noted in Sweden (the cities of Falun and Gellivar). Found in America a large number of ore in Pennsylvania. In Norway, metal is mined in Persberg and Arendal.

Ores of Russia

The Kursk magnetic anomaly is a large iron ore deposit in the Russian Federation and in the world, in which the volume of crude metal reaches 30,000 million tons.




Interesting! Analysts note that the scale of mining at the KMA mines will continue until 2020, and then there will be a decline.

The mine area of ​​the Kola Peninsula is 115,000 sq. km. Iron, nickel, copper ores, cobalt and apatite are mined here.

The Ural Mountains are also among the largest ore deposits in the Russian Federation. The main area of ​​development is Kachkanar. The volume of ore minerals is 7000 million tons.

To a lesser extent, metal is mined in the West Siberian basin, in Khakassia, the Kerch basin, in Zabaikalsk and the Irkutsk region.

Ore

Chipmunk ore- local, Siberian, the name of the banded lead-zinc ore from the polymetallic deposits of Eastern Transbaikalia. It is characterized by frequent alternation of thin strips of sulfide minerals and carbonates. It is formed by selective replacement of crystalline limestones and banded dolomites with sphalerite and galena.

Stone ore- consisting of boulders or fragments of a useful component (for example; brown iron ore, bauxite, phosphorite) and loose barren host rock.

Disseminated ore- consisting of a predominant, empty (enclosing) rock, in which ore minerals are more or less evenly distributed (interspersed) in the form of individual grains, clusters of grains and veinlets. Often, such inclusions accompany large bodies of solid ores along the edges, forming halos around them, and also form independent, often very large deposits, for example, deposits of porphyritic copper (Cu) ores. synonym: Scattered ore.

Ore galmeynaya- secondary zinc ore, consisting mainly of calamine and smithsonite. It is typical for the oxidation zone of zinc deposits in carbonate rocks.

Pea ore- a kind of legume ores.

Soddy ore- loose, sometimes cemented, partly porous formations, consisting clay formations from limonite with an admixture of other hydrates of iron oxide (Fe) and a variable amount of iron compounds with phosphoric, humic and silicic acids. Soddy ore also includes sand and clay. It is formed by subsoil waters rising to the surface with the participation of microorganisms in swamps and wet meadows and represents the second horizon of marsh and meadow soils. Synonym: meadow ore.

Nodular ore- represented by ore nodules. It occurs among sedimentary iron (limonite), phosphorite and some other deposits.

Ore cockade (ringed)- with cockade texture. See the texture of the ores cockade

Complex ore- a complex ore from which several metals or useful components are extracted or can be economically extracted, for example, copper-nickel ore, from which, in addition to nickel and copper, cobalt, platinum group metals, gold, silver, selenium can be extracted , tellurium, sulfur.

Meadow ore- a synonym for the term Soddy ore.

Ore is massive- a synonym for the term Solid ore.

Metal ore- ore, in which the useful component is any metalused by industry. Contrasted with non-metallic ores, such as phosphorus, barite, etc.

Mylonitized ore- crushed and finely ground ore, sometimes with a parallel texture. It is formed in crushing zones and along thrust and fault planes.

Mint ore- accumulations of small flat-shaped concretions of iron oxides or oxides of iron and manganese at the bottom of lakes; used as iron ore. Mint ores are confined to the lakes of the taiga zone in the areas of distribution of ancient eroded (destroyed) igneous rocks and wide development of flat-undulating relief with many swamps.

Lake ore- iron (limonite) ore deposited at the bottom of lakes. Similar to swamp ores. Distributed in the lakes of the northern part of Russia. See bean ore.

Oxidized ore- ore of the near-surface part (oxidation zone) of sulfide deposits, resulting from the oxidation of primary ores.

Oolitic ore- consisting of small rounded concentric-shelly and silt of radially radiant formations, the so-called. ooliths. Common structural type iron ores, in which ore minerals are silicates from the chlorite group (chamoisite, thuringite) or siderite, hematite, limonite, sometimes magnetite, often present together, sometimes with a predominance of one of these minerals. The oolitic composition is also characteristic of the ores of many bauxite deposits.

Sedimentary ferruginous ore- see Sedimentary ferruginous rock

Smallpox ore- a variety of disseminated magnetite ores in syenite rocks in the Urals. local term.

Ore primary- not subjected to later changes.

Ore recrystallized- undergone the transformation of the mineral composition, textures and structures during the processes of metamorphism without changing the chemical composition.

Polymetallic ore- containing lead, zinc and usually copper, and as permanent impurities silver, gold and often cadmium, indium, gallium and some other rare metals.

Banded ore- consisting of thin layers (bands) that differ significantly in composition, grain size or quantitative ratio of minerals.

Porphyry copper ore (or porphyry copper)- formation of sulfide disseminated and vein-disseminated copper and molybdenum-copper ores in highly silicified hypabyssal moderately acidic granitoid and subvolcanic porphyry intrusions and their enclosing effusive, tuffaceous and metasomatic rocks. Ores are represented by pyrite, chalcopyrite, chalcocite, more rarely bornite, fahlore, molybdenite. The copper content is usually low, on average 0.5-1%. In the absence or very low content of molybdenum, they are developed only in the zones of secondary sulfide enrichment, with a content of 0.8-1.5% copper. Elevated molybdenum content makes it possible to develop copper ores of the primary zone. In view of the large size of ore deposits, porphyritic ores are one of the main industrial types of copper and molybdenum ores.

Naturally alloyed ore- lateritic iron ore with a higher than usual content of nickel, cobalt, manganese, chromium and other metals, which give an increased quality - alloying - to cast iron smelted from such ores and its processing products (iron, steel).

Ore radioactive- contains metals radioactive elements(uranium, radium, thorium)

Ore collapsible- from which manual disassembly or elementary enrichment (screening, washing, winnowing, etc.) can be used to isolate a useful component in a pure or highly concentrated form.

Scattered ore- a synonym for the term disseminated ore.

Ore ordinary- 1. Usual average ore of this deposit, 2. Ore as it comes from mine workings before ore sorting or beneficiation. 3. Ordinary ore as opposed to collapsible ore.

Sooty ore- finely dispersed loose masses of black color, consisting of secondary oxides (tenorite) and copper sulfides - covelline and chalcocite, formed in the zone of secondary sulfide enrichment, and representing rich copper ore.

Ore- pieces (ores) of ordinary rich ore that do not require enrichment.

Ore endogenous- see endogenous minerals (ores).

Some of the ore minerals

  • Beryl , Be 3 Al(SiO 3) 6
  • Chalcopyrite (copper pyrites), CuFeS 2

see also

Literature

Geological Dictionary, T. 1. - M .: Nedra, 1978. - S. 193-194.

Links

  • Definition of ore on the Mining Encyclopedia website

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010 .

Synonyms:

See what "Ore" is in other dictionaries:

    The struggle and clash of homonyms did not always end with the elimination of one of them. In these cases, the inconvenience of homonymy was eliminated by the withering away of the corresponding word, its disappearance. The question of the reasons that caused the decay of some ... ... History of words

    Dial. also in meaning. blood, arch. (Sub.), Ukrainian. ore ore; blood, blr. ore dirt, blood, art. glory. road μέταλλον (Supr.), Bolg. ore ore, Serbohorv. ore - the same, Slovenian. ruda - the same, Czech, Slavic, Polish. ruda ore, c. puddle, n. puddles… … Etymological dictionary Russian language by Max Fasmer

    1. ORE, s; ores; and. Natural mineral raw materials containing metals or their compounds. Zheleznaya r. Mednaya r. polymetallic ores. Percentage of copper in ore. ◁ Rudny, oh, oh. R th fossils. R ye deposits. R ye galleries. R o… … encyclopedic Dictionary

In addition to the well-known oil and gas, there are other equally important minerals. These include ores that are mined for ferrous and by processing. The presence of ore deposits is the wealth of any country.

What are ores?

Each of natural sciences answers this question in its own way. Mineralogy defines ore as a set of minerals, the study of which is necessary to improve the extraction of the most valuable of them, and chemistry studies the elemental composition of ore in order to identify the qualitative and quantitative content of valuable metals in it.

Geology considers the question: "what are ores?" from the point of view of the expediency of their industrial use, since this science studies the structure and processes occurring in the bowels of the planet, the conditions for the formation of rocks and minerals, and the exploration of new mineral deposits. They are areas on the surface of the Earth, on which, due to geological processes, a sufficient amount of mineral formations has accumulated for industrial use.

Ore formation

Thus, to the question: “what are ores?” The most complete answer is this. Ore is a rock with an industrial content of metals in it. Only in this case it has value. Metal ores are formed when the magma that contains their compounds cools. At the same time, they crystallize, distributing according to their atomic weight. The heaviest ones settle to the bottom of the magma and stand out in a separate layer. Other minerals form rocks, and the hydrothermal fluid left from the magma spreads through the voids. The elements contained in it, solidifying, form veins. Rocks, being destroyed under the influence of natural forces, are deposited at the bottom of reservoirs, forming sedimentary deposits. Depending on the composition of rocks, various ores of metals are formed.

Iron ores

The types of these minerals vary greatly. What are ores, in particular, iron? If the ore contains enough industrial processing amount of metal, it is called iron. They differ in origin, chemical composition, as well as the content of metals and impurities that may be useful. As a rule, these are associated non-ferrous metals, for example, chromium or nickel, but there are also harmful ones - sulfur or phosphorus.

The chemical composition is represented by its various oxides, hydroxides or carbonic salts of iron oxide. The developed ores include red, brown and magnetic iron ore, as well as iron luster - they are considered the richest and contain more than 50% metal. The poor are those who useful composition less - 25%.

Composition of iron ore

Magnetic iron ore is iron oxide. It contains more than 70% pure metal, however, it occurs in deposits together with and sometimes with zinc blende and other formations. is considered the best of the used ores. Iron shine also contains up to 70% iron. Red iron ore - iron oxide - one of the sources of extraction of pure metal. And brown analogues have up to 60% metal content and are found with impurities, sometimes harmful. They are hydrous iron oxide and accompany almost all iron ores. They are also convenient for the ease of mining and processing, but the metal obtained from this type of ore is of low quality.

According to the origin of iron ore deposits, they are divided into three large groups.

  1. Endogenous, or magmatogenic. Their formation is due to geochemical processes that took place in the depths of the earth's crust, magmatic phenomena.
  2. Exogenous, or surface, deposits were created as a result of processes occurring in the near-surface zone of the earth's crust, that is, at the bottom of lakes, rivers, and oceans.
  3. Metamorphogenic deposits were formed at a sufficient depth from the earth's surface under the influence of high pressure and the same temperatures.

Iron ore reserves in the country

Russia is rich in various deposits. The largest in the world is containing almost 50% of all world reserves. In this region, it was noted already in the 18th century, but the development of deposits began only in the 30s of the last century. The ore reserves in this basin are high in pure metal, they are measured in billions of tons, and mining is carried out by an open or underground method.

The Bakchar iron ore deposit, which is one of the largest in the country and the world, was discovered in the 60s of the last century. The ore reserves in it with a concentration of pure iron up to 60% are about 30 billion tons.

In the Krasnoyarsk Territory there is the Abagasskoye deposit - with magnetite ores. It was discovered back in the 30s of the last century, but its development began only half a century later. In the North and Southern zones in the basin, open-pit mining is carried out, and the exact amount of reserves is 73 million tons.

Discovered in 1856, the Abakan iron ore deposit is still active. At first, the development was carried out in an open way, and from the 60s of the XX century - by an underground method at a depth of up to 400 meters. The content of pure metal in the ore reaches 48%.

Nickel ores

What is nickel ores? Mineral formations that are used for the industrial production of this metal are called nickel ores. There are sulfide copper-nickel ores with a pure metal content of up to four percent and silicate nickel ores, the same indicator of which is up to 2.9%. The first type of deposits is usually of the igneous type, and silicate ores are found in the weathering crust.

The development of the nickel industry in Russia is associated with the development of their location in the Middle Urals in the middle of the 19th century. Almost 85% of sulphide deposits are concentrated in the Norilsk region. The deposits in Taimyr are the largest and most unique in the world in terms of richness of reserves and variety of minerals, they contain 56 elements of the periodic table. In terms of the quality of nickel ores, Russia is not inferior to other countries, the advantage is that they contain additional rare elements.

About ten percent of nickel resources are concentrated in sulfide deposits on the Kola Peninsula, and on the Middle and Southern Urals silicate deposits are being developed.

The ores of Russia are characterized by the quantity and variety necessary for industrial applications. However, at the same time, they are complex natural conditions production, uneven distribution on the territory of the country, discrepancy between the region where resources are located and the density of the population.

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