Earth Science - 3rd Monthly Exam

Geologist

is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets

Mineralogy

the study of minerals

Minerals

the building blocks of rocks; non-renewable because it is finite

Resource

amount of material we can use; discovered or undiscovered

Reserve

fraction or portion of a resource that are feasible to be extracted and used

Renewable Resources

can be replenished over a fairly short period of time

Non-Renewable Resources

cannot be re-made or re-grown; require millions of years to accumulate

Mineral Resources

concentration of naturally occurring material from Earth's crust

Mining

the process of extracting useful materials from the earth.

Milling

involves a combination of grinding and crushing

Concentration

ore slurry is then separated by a wet flotation process

Smelting

requires metallurgy, commonly by operating high-temperature furnaces fed with ore, fuel and additives to produce the environment for a chemical process in which metal compounds are reduced to metals.

Smelting

Also known as Pyro Metallurgy

Refining

involves a process miner called electro refining; the metal from smelter is placed in an electrolytic solution and hooked up to a voltage source

Gravimetric

potential field technique; measures variations in the Earth's gravitational field

Self-Potential

ground water can act on metals to produce a weak electric charge

Induced Polarization

a geophysical imaging technique used to identify the electrical chargeability of subsurface materials, such as ore.

Exploratory Drilling

final proof of mineralization; short of actual mining

Metallic Minerals

composed of metals; hard substances; good conductor of heat and electricity

Non-Metallic Minerals

do not comprise of metals; used in electrical and electronics industry

Underground Mining

involves digging down into the Earth and creating tunnels and shafts; expensive and dangerous

Surface Mining

involves removal of plant life, soil and potentially bedrock

Open-pit mining and strip mining

2 types of surface mining

Open-pit mining

It is a type of mining where the excavation at the surface of the ground and machines digs very large holes and remove metal ores.

Strip Mining

Type of mining useful and economical for extracting mineral deposits that lie in horizontal beds close to the earth's surface.

Placer Mining

formed by weathering via water or wind action; unconsolidated deposits of resources

In-Situ Mining

referred to as solution mining; pumping chemicals underground to dissolve resource containing ore

Pollution

Mining operations often pollute the atmosphere, surface waters and ground water.

Destruction of Land

Mining activity can cause a considerable loss of land because of chemical contamination, destruction of productive layers of soil, and often permanent scarring of the land surface.

Subsidence

The presence of old, deep mines may cause the ground surface to subside in a vertical or horizontal direction.

Noise Disturbance

Blasting and transport cause ___________ to local residents and to wildlife.

Energy Exploitation

Extraction and transportation requires huge amounts of energy which adds to impacts such as acid rain and global warming.

Fossil Fuels

non-renewable energy sources

coal, natural gas, petroleum

3 types of fossil fuels

Coal

a black or brownish rock.

Carbon

The main element present on Fossil Fuels

Carbonization

the process that ancient organisms undergo to become coal. About 3 meters (10 feet) of solid vegetation crushed together into .3 meter (1 foot) of coal.

Carboniferous Period

The time period that fossil fuels formed (about 360-300 million years ago).

Peat, Lignite, Bituminous, Anthracite

The formation of Coal

Peat

The first step in creating Coal wherein vegetable matter is oxidized to water and carbon dioxide

Lignite

It is the second stage, is formed when peat is subjected to increased vertical pressure from accumulating sediments.

Bituminous

Also known as "soft coal" wherein added pressure made it compact

Anthracite

It is the fourth stage in coal formation, is also known as "hard coal" because it is hard and has a high lustre.

Petroleum

a liquid fossil fuel. It is also called oil or crude oil

Natural Gas

is another fossil fuel that is trapped underground in reservoirs. It is mostly made up of methane

Hydraulic

means they use water

Fracturing

means to split apart

Nuclear Energy

usually considered another non-renewable energy source.

Nuclear Energy

harvests the powerful energy in the nucleus, or core, of an atom.

Uranium

Element that is commonly used on nuclear power plants

Biofuel, Hydroelectric, Geothermal, Wind, Solar

5 alternative energy sources

Solar Energy

comes from the sun; energy that gives us light and heat

Wind Energy

wind blows directly onto the blade of the turbine > built in windy areas

Hydroelectric Energy

produced by moving water

Biofuel

It comes from plants wherein it is made in two ways; use plants that are high in sugar or starch and make them into ethanol and use plants that contain lots of vegetable oil and use them to make biodiesel

Geothermal Energy

from the Earth's hot interior

Geo; Thermal

Means Earth; Means Heat

Dry Steam Plant

oldest type of geothermal plants; directly uses steam from the reservoir

Flash Steam Plant

commonly employed; operate on the geothermal reservoirs

Binary Steam Plant

the recent development; produce electricity from geothermal reservoirs

Water Resources

90% is ocean water with high concentration of salt; 3% fresh water with low concentration of sail

Water Cycle

It is responsible for the continuous recharge and replenishment of water on land and as groundwater.

Water Table

It reflects the overall amount of groundwater present in a given area.

Surface Water

These water reservoirs are habitat to a wide variety of organisms and food resources for higher forms of organisms

Pond

Smaller bodies of water without any outlet.

Wetland

Areas of standing water that support aquatic plants classified as swamps, mashes and bogs.

Lake

It is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, These are the large inland bodies of fresh or saline water. Its upper part surface is exposed to the atmosphere and is essentially flat.

Stream or Brook

It is a small body of water and the sources is spring

River

It is a wide body of water that flows toward the sea

Ground Water

It is the water trapped between the spaces of sediments

Aquifers

are bodies of rock or sediment through which groundwater is able to move or flow.

Porosity

the ratio of the total volume of water that an aquifer can hold

Permeability

the measure of how voids are interconnected.

Springs

formed when groundwater comes in contact with the stream.

Wells

created by drilling or digging through the rock layers to reach the groundwater.

Oceans

play a major role in regulating Earth's temperature

Desalination

process that removes salt and minerals from salt water

Soil

the skin of the Earth; contains chemical solutions, gases, organic refuse, flora and fauna

Pedosphere

from Greek word pedon, ground

Pedologist

soil expert

Organic Materials

are defined as chemical compounds that contain no carbon

Soil Fertilization

is the process of adding nutrients or other constituents in order to meet the soil conditions that certain plants require.

Inorganic Materials

are is anything that was alive and is now in or on the soil.

Precipitation

Original source of Soil Water

Soil Water

both an ingredient and a catalyst for chemical reactions that sustain life and influence soil development.

Capillary Water

rounded beads formed from small water droplets.

Hygroscopic Water

a very thin film, invisible to the naked eye, bound to the surfaces of soil particles by strong electrical particles

Gravitational Water

it dissolves soluble minerals and carries them into deeper levels of the soil,

Leaching

depicting nutrients in the soil by the through flow of water

Eluviation

downward removal of soil components with water

Illuviation

deposition by water in the subsoil

Stratification

the characteristic layered changes with depth

Soil Air

approaching 50%-consists of spaces between soil particles and between dumps.

Color

the most visible soil characteristic, but it might not be the most important attribute.

Texture

refers to the particle sizes (or distribution of sizes) that make up a soil.

Clay, Silt, sand, and Loam

4 types of Soil Texture

Structure

particles clump into distinctive masses known as soil peds, which give a soil a distinctive structure.

Soil Peds

Particles clump of distinctive masses.

Soil Profile

the vertical cross section of a soil from the surface down to the parent material

O Horizon

Layer of organic debris and humus