Chapter 14: Nonrenewable Mineral Resources

geology

the science devoted to the study of dynamic processes taking place on the Earth's surface and its interior.

core

Earth's innermost zone, it is extremely hot, composed mostly of nickel and iron, and has a solid inner part surrounded by a liquid core of molten or semisolid material.

mantle

a thick layer with two zones, solid rock zone and a zone that can be soft and pliable at high temperatures, this surrounds the Earth's core.

asthenosphere

a zone in the mantle of hot, partly melted rock that flows and can be deformed like soft plastic

convection cells

hot melted rock rises toward the upper mantle and cools as it rises, the now cool rock sinks toward the lower mantle, and warms as it sinks; forming a current of rock that move very slowly in the mantle

magma

molten rock in the asthenosphere that flows upward into the crust

crust

the outermost and thinnest zone of the Earth.

lithosphere

a combination of the crust and the rigid, outermost part of the mantle above the asthenosphere.

mineral

an element or inorganic compound that occurs naturally in teh earth's crust as a crystalline solid or one that has regularly repeating internal arrangement of its atoms.

mineral resource

a concentration of naturally occurring material from the earth's crust that we can extract and process into raw materials and useful products at an affordable cost.

rock

a solid combination of one or more minerals found in the earth's crust.

sedimentary rock

is a rock made of sediments- dead plant and animal remains and tiny particles of weathered and eroded rocks.

sediments

dead plant and animal remains and tiny particles of weathered and eroded rocks

granite and lava

examples of igneous rock, one formed above ground and one formed below, result of cooling magma

metamorphic rock

a rock that forms when a preexisting rock is subject to high temperature, high pressures, chemically active fluids, or a combination of these agents.

weathering

an external geologic process that is physical, chemical, and biological in nature that breaks down rocks into smaller particles that help to build soil.

rock cycle

the interaction of physical and chemical processes that change rock from one type to another, involves three processes: erosion, melting, and metamorphism

igneous rock

rock that forms below or on the earth's surface when magma wells up from the earth's upper mantle or deep crust and then cools and hardens.

depletion time

the time it takes to use up a certain proportion (usually 80%) of the reserves of a mineral at a given rate of use.

strategic metal resources

four metals which are essential for the countries economic and military strength: manganese, cobalt, chromium, and platinum

depletion allowances

permission to deduct from taxable incomes the cost of developing and extracting mineral resources

hydrothermal ore deposits

superheated mineral rich water shoots out of vents creating a mineral source in volcanic regions of the ocean floor

black smokers

chimney like structures that accumulated black particles rich in minerals such as copper, lead, zinc, silver, gold, and rare-earth metals

manganese nodules

potato size chunks of manganese found on the floor of the Pacific Ocean and small areas of the Atlantic/Indian Oceans

life cycle of a product

mining, manufacturing, disposal (recycling).

grade

ore's percentage of metal content

surface mining

where materials (soil, vegetation and rock) that are lying over a deposit are removed to expose the resource for processing.

overburden

soil and rock overlying a useful mineral deposit that is removed.

spoils

piles of overburden waste material.

open-pit mining

a type of surface mining where machines dig very large holes and remove metal ores, as well as sand, gravel, and stone.

strip mining

a way to extract mineral deposits that lie in horizontal beds close to earth's surface.

area strip mining

a type of strip mining used when the area is fairly flat. The overburden is removed, the ore taken, then another cut is made and so on.

contour strip mining

a type of strip mining used mostly to mine coal on hilly or mountainous terrain. Machines are used to cut series of terraces into the side of a hill, overburden is removed and placed as a "highwall" on the previous terrace, then the ore is removed.

mountaintop removal

a type of surface mining that uses explosives, earth movers, large power shovels, and other machines with huge buckets, called draglines to expose seams of coal under a mountain.

subsurface mining

a way to mine deep deposits (too deep to extract by surface mining) by using tunnels and shafts.

subsidence

the collapse of land above some underground mines

acid mine drainage

when rain water that seeps through an underground mine or a spoils pile from from a surface mine carries sulfuric acid to nearby streams and groundwater

tailings

waste material from ores that are left in piles or put into tailings ponds where they settle out

materials revolution

silicon and other materials are replacing some materials for common use

ore

is a rock that contains a large enough concentration of a particular mineral- often a metal -to make it profitable for mining and processing.

nanotechnology

tiny tech, uses science and engineering to manipulate and create materials out of atoms and molecules at the ultra-small scale

tectonic plates

huge rigid plates of lithosphere that move extremely slowly atop the asthenosphere.

high-grade ore

ore that contains a large enough concentration of the desired mineral.

volcano

where magma reaches the earth's surface through a central vent.

low-grade ore

ore that contains a small concentration of the desired mineral.

fissure

a central vent or long crack in a volcano

lava

magma that reaches the Earth's surface

earthquake

an abrupt movement on an existing fault that releases accumulated energy in the form of vibrations (seismic waves).

fault

fracture in the Earth's crust

magnitude

measure of ground motion (shaking) caused by an earthquake

amplitude

size of the seismic waves when they reach a recording instrument (seismograph)

Richter scale

insignificant- less than 4.0

minor- 4.0-4.9

damaging- 5.0-5.9

destructive- 6.0-6.9

major- 7.0-7.9

great- over 8.0

9.5 being the highest recorded in Chile, 1960

tsunami

a series of large waves generated when part of the ocean floor suddenly rises or drops

tidal wave

large waves in the ocean that can travel the speed of a jet plane

reserves

identified resources from which we can extract the mineral profitably at current prices.

smelting

heating ores to release metals.