Mining of non-ferrous metals. Metal mining: past, present, future
Russia has large reserves of non-ferrous metal ores. Their distinctive feature is their multicomponent nature and an extremely low percentage of metal content in them. Therefore, the ores of almost all non-ferrous metals are enriched. Russia occupies a leading place in the world in terms of reserves of non-ferrous metal ores. The value of reserves of non-ferrous and rare metal ores is 1.8 trillion. US dollars. The main reserves are located in the Urals, Western and Eastern Siberia, the Far East and other regions of the country.
Copper ore deposits . In terms of explored reserves of copper ore, Russia ranks third in the world and is inferior to the United States and Chile. Copper resources have been explored in 120 deposits. Copper is the most important non-ferrous metal. It is characterized by a low metal content in the ore (1-2%) and often occurs in combination with zinc, lead, gold, and silver. Large deposits of iron ore have been explored in Eastern Siberia, the Urals and the North Caucasus.
In the Urals, the largest deposits - Deggyarskoye, Krasnouralskoye, Kirovogradskoye, Revdinskoye - are located in the Sverdlovsk region. The Karabashskoye field is located in the Chelyabinsk region, and the Gaiskoye and Blavinskoye fields are in the Orenburg region.
In the Republic of Bashkortostan, the richest deposits are Sibay and Uchalinskoye. In the North Caucasus - Urupskoye and Khudesskoye in the Stavropol Territory.
There are deposits in Western Siberia and Altai. The largest reserves of copper ores are concentrated in Eastern Siberia in the complex copper-nickel ores of the Norilsk, Oktyabrsky and Talnakh (Krasnoyarsk Territory) and cuprous sand ores of the Udokan (Zabaykalsky Territory) deposits. The Udokan deposit is the largest deposit of copper ore in Russia (reserves of 1.2 billion tons). Reserves of copper-nickel ores are available in the North, in the Murmansk region.
Deposits of polymetallic ores. Polymetallic lead-zinc ores of Russia are concentrated in Eastern Siberia - the Nerchinsk group (in Transbaikalia), Western Siberia - the Salair group (Altai Territory), the Gorevskoye deposit in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, in the Far East - the Tetyukhinsky group (Primorsky Territory).
Deposits of nickel and cobalt. The main deposits of nickel ores are located in the Murmansk region (Kaula), Orenburg (Buruktalskoye) and Chelyabinsk (Cheremshanskoye) regions, Krasnoyarsk Territory (Norilskoye, Talnakhskoye).
The bulk of cobalt produced in the country is obtained by processing complex ores.
Tin deposits. The main area for tin deposits is the Far East. The largest deposits are located in the areas of the Lesser Khingan and Sikhote-Alin ridges, Southern Primorye and the river basin. Yana.
Deposits of light metals. Of the light metals, aluminum and magnesium play an important role in industry. The leading role in industrial production belongs to aluminum , whose alloys are widely used in the aviation and space industries. Magnesium is widely used in pyrotechnics, photography, the aviation and nuclear industries, as well as in ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy. To obtain aluminum, three main types of feedstock are used - bauxite, nepheline and alunite.
Bauxite is a sedimentary rock that contains alumina, silicon and ferrous oxide. The alumina content in bauxite ranges from 40-70%. Bauxite deposits are located in the Urals (in the Sverdlovsk region - North-Uralskoye, in the Chelyabinsk region - South-Uralskoye), in the North-West (in the Leningrad region - Tikhvinskoye), in the North (in the Arkhangelsk region - North-Onega), as well as in Eastern Siberia (in the Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Republic of Buryatia).
Nephelines are found in many areas of the country. The largest deposit located in the Murmansk region is the Khibinsky apatite nepheline deposit (reserves - 60 million tons), in Western Siberia (Kemerovo region) - the Kiya-Shaltyrskoye deposit), in a number of areas of Eastern Siberia - deposits in the Irkutsk region and the Republic of Buryatia.
Deposits of magnesium ore (magnet) are being developed in the Urals (Satka) and in the Eastern Sayan Mountains.
Deposits of precious metals and diamonds. Noble metals include gold, silver, platinum, palladium, iridium, osmium and ruthenium. The Russian Federation is one of the largest producers of precious metals and precious stones. The country ranks fifth in the world in gold production, there are about 1.5 thousand gold deposits on its territory, and it accounts for 6-7% of world production. The main gold deposits are found in bedrock in the form of quartz-gold veins and placers. They are located in the Urals, in Eastern Siberia (Krasnoyarsk Territory and Irkutsk Region), in the Far East (in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) and the Magadan Region), as well as in Western Siberia and the North of the country. In addition to gold, many deposits contain silver, bismuth, arsenic, antimony and other elements.
The Russian Federation ranks second in the world (after South Africa) in the production of platinum group metals. Platinum ore deposits are located in the Norilsk ore region in Eastern Siberia, Kamchatka and Khabarovsk territories, the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), on the Kola Peninsula (Monchegorsk deposit), as well as in the Urals.
Russia has large deposits diamonds Russia accounts for more than 50% of the world's diamond reserves. Their reserves are estimated at 200 million carats (a carat is a unit of mass used when weighing precious stones). Our country ranks second in the world in their production after South Africa. Russia accounts for 20-25% of global production. The depths of Yakutia contain 83% of the proven reserves and 38% of the predicted resources of Russia's reserves.
Large diamond deposits are concentrated in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) in the middle part of the Lena and Vilyuya river basin. Along the upper reaches of the Aldan River and in the Vishera River basin in the Perm Territory. The most industrially important are the Mir, Aikhal, and Udachnaya kimberlite pipes, located in the middle reaches of the Vilyui River. Large diamond deposits have also been explored in the Arkhangelsk region, 100 km north of Arkhangelsk. Diamond-bearing areas have been explored in the Leningrad region and the Republic of Karelia.
Mining involves the use of the bowels of our Earth. People extract various minerals from it, which are necessary for use as fuel or raw materials. This area arose in ancient times and developed according to the socio-economic situation on earth. People improved tools with which it was possible to extract minerals, methods for discovering deposits, and also came up with new uses for the materials found. The area of research into sources of raw materials was constantly increasing and spreading to different countries. With each period, people improved their skills, tools, thereby developing the area in which they lived, as well as their socio-economic status.
One of the important and necessary minerals is metal, which is part of ores. Metals have several properties: they are hard and dense (with the exception of mercury), and they are conductors of electricity and heat, as well as sound. The melting and boiling points of solid metals are quite high (from 28 to 3000 ºС and higher). Having such a useful set of properties, they are widely used in various areas of human activity. They are used to make electrical cables, jewelry, dishes, and various parts in construction, as well as in the aviation and automotive industries. And this is not a complete list of areas where people use metal. The main advantage of such products is their strength, as well as its ability to take any shape under the influence of a tool pressing on it.
Structure of metals
All metals are composed of particles between which there is a chemical bond. The number of electrons between them is very small and in the outer shells they have a very weak connection with the nucleus. The atoms of this material are arranged in a certain order and form a crystal lattice. If we mentally draw a line through each atom, we will end up with a set of regular geometric shapes. But as for the distance between them, it is not the same, and it depends on the metal itself, its temperature, and pressure.
Types of metals
According to their industrial use, metals are divided into ferrous and non-ferrous. As the name suggests, they differ in color. But in addition to color shades, they have other distinctive properties: ferrous metals are harder and denser, while non-ferrous metals are more ductile and soft in structure. The first group includes iron, its alloys, as well as manganese and sometimes chromium. They are used in industry by more than 90%, unlike non-ferrous ones. Ferrous metals are mainly used to make cast iron and steel. An alloy of iron and carbon is used to make them, but in different proportions. Steel contains less carbon than cast iron, no more than 2.14%. But this percentage may vary. Sometimes it is necessary to produce steel with a carbon content of less than 1%. In this case, in production, this mixture is boiled until the carbon evaporates to the required amount.
Non-ferrous metals include all other non-ferrous metals. These include copper, aluminum, nickel, lead, zinc, tin and many others. In addition, non-ferrous metals are divided into two groups: light and heavy. The production of both involves the expenditure of energy. The lungs require much more. Light metals usually include magnesium, aluminum, titanium, and heavy metals include lead, tin, copper, nickel, and zinc. Since the method of producing these materials differs, it was decided to divide the industry into heavy and light metallurgy. Moreover, the factories of the first industry are located directly near the source of production of such raw materials, and the second are located near sources of inexpensive energy.
Ore deposits in Russia
Our country ranks first in iron ore reserves. There are many deposits of this raw material in Russia. Such areas are the Kursk anomaly, which is the most powerful iron ore basin in the world, the Karelian and Kostomuksha deposits, Mount Magnitnaya (Chelyabinsk region), Kuzbass, Krasnoyarsk Territory, etc. In these areas, minerals are mainly mined for ferrous metallurgy. As for non-ferrous, their deposits are concentrated in the Ural region, the North Caucasus, the Far East, Western and Eastern Siberia. As a rule, bases for processing such raw materials are located close to each deposit.
Ore mining methods
Various types of ore are used to make metal. For each type of such raw material, there are different ores in nature. There are copper-nickel, iron, lead-zinc ores and others. In addition, for example, not only iron, but also other metals are extracted from iron ore, since it may contain their impurities.
Since metals are extracted in nature from ores, several mining methods are used to determine their location: open-pit (quarry) and underground (mine). Sometimes you can find a combined approach - open-underground. Open pit mining occurs on the surface of the earth in the open air. Before starting the mining itself, the rocks are prepared for excavation. During this process, these rocks are separated from the massifs, and then loosening occurs. If mining is carried out from rocks, then drilling and blasting operations are used. For the explosion, gramonites, granulated ammonium nitrate granulites and water-filled explosives are used. The extracted mass is then loaded into vehicles using various lifting and transport mechanisms and transported, and the land used is reclaimed.
Underground mining operations are carried out without disturbing the surface of the earth. They are carried out in its depths. Despite the popularity of open-pit mining, underground mining remains an important method of finding minerals. First, the deposit is opened, then, as in open-pit mining, the minerals are prepared for extraction. After all this, cleaning work is carried out, which consists of extracting raw materials in bulk, or separately, which is called selective extraction. In this way, minerals are extracted from the depths of the earth.
In addition to heavy equipment in the modern world, computer technologies are used for metal mining, with the help of which it becomes possible to plan and design all types of future work.
Metal processing
Once the location is established, the mined ores are processed. This is a method of separating formations into metals and minerals. The minerals are then sorted by quality. After the beneficiation process, the metal is extracted from the ore using electrolytic and chemical reduction. Next, the metals are processed and often polished to a shine.
All side activities with raw materials are carried out at special metallurgical plants. There are a lot of such enterprises in Russia. There are main plants, as well as their branches, located both near the main plant and further away in other regions. Each large industry is divided into several workshops in which various operations are performed with metal. First it is processed and pressed into large ingots. In another workshop it is rolled to a smaller size. After that, if the metal is used, for example, for making wire, it is rolled to such a diameter that it meets the ordered requirements. Then it is sent to special laboratories for quality testing. In these laboratories, specialists examine the chemical composition of the product using spectral equipment. The material is tested for strength, tensile, ductility, fracture, bending, bending, upset, mandrel and much more. If a defect is detected, then metal of this kind is not used. For parts, wire, spare parts and other things, only high-quality products without impurities are used. Next, this material is sent to other workshops for the production of everything possible where it may be needed. Since Russia has large reserves of iron ore, the processed material is distributed not only throughout our country, but also throughout other countries. This product is very popular, because it is used in the manufacture of most machines, equipment, machines and other things.
The current situation in the metallurgy market
If we look at specific enterprises, we will notice that their work is not always consistently directed in only one direction. Much depends on ore reserves and the needs of people. For example, in places where large reserves of ore have been depleted, enterprises often have to close due to lack of need for them.
In addition, there are cases when a plant is decided to be repurposed. For example, they planned to do this with the Nadvoitsky aluminum smelter. But, due to the unstable situation in the aluminum foil market, this project was postponed.
The market situation, among other things, affects not only the volume of production, but also the cost of manufactured materials. An example is the Berezitovy Mine enterprise, located in the Amur region. At the moment, factories are forced to reduce the cost of gold mining, but at the same time they manage to maintain their financial stability. In addition, this enterprise plans to expand its production. This company wants to start cutting metal using laser equipment.
As for the production of certain types of metals, for example, gold, this year in Russia the production of these raw materials has increased significantly. The main areas with rich reserves of the yellow metal are the Krasnoyarsk Territory and the Kemerovo region. This material was obtained not only through mining, but also during the manufacture of other metals, through the processing of scrap and waste.
As a rule, developing industries that the country and the whole world need do not stand still. Many companies are expanding their production and building new enterprises. One of such companies at the present stage is Atomredmetzoloto OJSC (ARMZ), which plans to begin mining lead-zinc ores in 2019. This enterprise intends to direct its forces to the Arctic archipelago of Novaya Zemlya. It is also planned to begin construction of a plant that will process the extracted material.
Thus, metal mining is the most important industry in our world. This material has been used since ancient times and continues to be popular, because metal products surround each of us. Therefore, mining is a leading area in the manufacture of many products.
Aluminum.
Aluminum.
The main raw material of the aluminum industry is bauxite. Bauxite is processed into alumina. Aluminum is then produced from the cryolite-alumina melt. Bauxite is predominantly found in the humid tropics and subtropics. Where processes of deep chemical weathering of rocks occur.
Forty-two percent of the world's bauxite reserves are located in Guinea. Next comes Australia - 18.5%, Brazil - 6.3%, Jamaica - 4.7%, Cameroon -3.8% and India - 2.8%. Australia ranks first in terms of production scale - 42.6 million tons in 1995. The main producing areas are Western Australia, northern Queensland and the Northern Territory.
In Russia, bauxite is mined in the Leningrad region, the Urals, and Timman.
Bauxite mining in the United States is carried out by open pit mining in Alabama, Arkansas and Georgia. The total volume is 35 thousand tons per year.
Magnesium.
Relatively recently, magnesium began to be used in industry. A significant part of the magnesium produced during the Second World War was used to make incendiary shells, bombs, flares and other ammunition. Its main area of application in peacetime is the production of light alloys based on magnesium and aluminum (magnalin, duralumin). According to their physical properties, magnesium-aluminum alloys - cast (4-13% magnesium) and wrought (1-7% magnesium) - are excellent for producing forged parts and shaped castings in various branches of mechanical engineering and instrument making.
In 1935 global magnesium production amounted to 1.8 thousand tons. In 1943 - 238 thousand tons, in 1988 - 364 thousand tons. . In addition, in 1995 About five million tons of magnesium compounds were produced. The reserves of raw materials suitable for the production of magnesium and its numerous compounds are practically unlimited and are confined to many regions of the globe. Magnesium-containing dolomite and evaporites (carnallite, bischofite, kainite, etc.) are widespread in nature. Established world reserves of magnesite are estimated at twelve billion tons. Brucite - several million tons. Magnesium compounds in natural brines can contain billions of tons of this metal.
In 1995, about forty-one percent of world production of magnesium metal and twelve percent of its compounds came from the United States. Türkiye and North Korea are major producers of magnesium metal. Large producers of magnesium compounds are Russia, China, North Korea, Austria, Turkey and Greece.
In the US, magnesium metal is produced in the states of Texas, Utah and Washington. Magnesium oxide and other compounds are obtained from seawater in California, Florida, Delaware, and Texas. From underground brines in Michigan. Also by processing olivine in North Carolina and Washington. Inexhaustible reserves of magnesium salts are contained in the brine of the Kara-Bogaz-Gol Bay.
Copper
One of the most common and most valuable non-ferrous metals and the most valuable is copper. The electrical industry is the largest consumer of copper. It uses copper for power cables, telegraph and telephone wires, and in generators, electric motors and switches. Copper is also used in the automotive industry and construction. It is spent on the production of bronze, brass and copper-nickel alloys.
For the production of copper, the most important raw materials are chalcopyrite and bornite (copper and iron sulfides), chalcocite (copper sulfide). Also native copper. Oxidized copper ores primarily consist of malachite (copper carbonate). Mined copper ore is often beneficiated on site. The ore concentrate is then sent to a copper smelter. Next - for refining to obtain pure red copper. A common and cheap method of processing many copper ores is hydrometallurgical: liquid extraction and electrolytic refining of blister copper.
Five regions of the world have predominantly copper deposits. They are located: in the US Rocky Mountains; Precambrian (Canadian) shield within the state of Michigan (USA) and the provinces of Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba (Canada); on the western slopes of the Andes, especially in Peru and; Chile on the Central African Plateau - in the copper belt of Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Also in Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Armenia. In 1995, the main copper producers: Chile - 2.5 million tons, USA - 1.89 million tons, Canada -730 thousand tons, Indonesia -460 thousand tons, Peru 405 thousand tons, Australia 394 thousand tons, Poland - 384 thousand tons, Zambia - 342 thousand tons, Russia - 330 thousand tons.
Copper ores in the United States are mined mainly in Arizona, New Mexico, Michigan, Utah and Montana. 77 thousand tons of copper ore are mined and processed per day at the largest Bingham Canyon mine in Utah.
The main mining industry in Chile is copper mining. About twenty-two percent of its world reserves are concentrated there. The Chuquicamata deposit produces the most copper ore. In the Atacama Desert in the north of the country, the world's largest undeveloped copper ore body, Escondida, was discovered in 1981 (with ore reserves of 1.8 billion tons and a copper content of 1.59%).
Lead
Lead is primarily used in the manufacture of automobile batteries and lead tetraethylate additives for gasoline. Recently, the use of toxic lead additives has been reduced. Due to restrictions on the use of leaded gasoline. About a quarter of the mined lead is spent on the needs of communications, construction, electronic and electrical industries, for the production of ammunition, dyes (lead white, red lead, etc.), crystal and lead glass and ceramic glazes. Lead is used in antifriction alloys, as ballast weights or weights, in ceramic production, and for the production of typographic fonts. It is used to make pipes and containers for radioactive materials. For protection against ionizing radiation, lead is the main material. Most lead is recyclable. The exceptions are glass and ceramic products, chemicals and pigments. The need for lead can be covered to a large extent by recycling scrap metal.
Galena (lead luster), which is lead sulfide, is the main ore mineral of lead. It often also contains an admixture of silver, which is recovered along the way. Forming polymetallic ores, galena is usually associated with sphalerite, a zinc ore mineral, and often with chalcopyrite, a copper ore mineral.
Lead mining is carried out in forty-eight countries. In 1995, the leading producers of world production were Australia - 16%, China - 16%, USA - 15%, Peru - 9% and Canada 8%. Mining is also carried out in significant volumes in Kazakhstan, Russia, Sweden, Mexico, South Africa and Morocco. In the USA, in 1995, the main producer of lead ore was Missouri. Where in the Mississippi River Valley, eight mines account for 89% of the nation's total lead production. Other mining areas include Colorado, Montana and Idaho. Lead reserves in Alaska are associated with silver, zinc and copper ores. In Canada, most of the developed lead deposits are located in the province of British Columbia.
Lead is always associated with zinc in Australia. The main deposits are Broken Hill (New South Wales) and Mount Isa (Queensland).
Kazakhstan has large lead-zinc deposits. This is Rudny Altai, Kazakh small hills. Also available in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan. The main lead deposits in Russia are concentrated in Altai, Transbaikalia, Yakutia, Primorye, the North Caucasus and the Yenisei.
Zinc
Zinc has been known since antiquity as a bluish-white metal. It is widely used for the production of brass and other alloys. Zinc is also used for galvanizing - applying galvanic coatings that protect the surfaces of steel and iron sheets, pipes, wires, metal meshes, and shaped connecting parts of pipelines from rusting. Its compounds serve as pigments, phosphors, etc. The main mineral of zinc ores is sphalerite (zinc sulfide). It is often associated with galena or chalcopyrite.
Canada ranks first in the world in zinc production and reserves. In 1995, this amounted to 16.5% of world production, 1113 thousand tons. Significant zinc reserves are concentrated in China - 13.5%, Australia - 13%, USA - 10%, Peru -10% and Ireland about three percent. Zinc mining is carried out in fifty countries.
Zinc is extracted in Russia from copper pyrite deposits in the Urals. Also from polymetallic deposits in the mountains of Southern Siberia and Primorye. Large zinc reserves are concentrated in Rudny Altai (Eastern Kazakhstan - Leninogorsk, etc.), which accounts for more than fifty percent of zinc production in the CIS countries. Zinc is also mined in Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan (Almalyk deposit) and Tajikistan. In the USA, the state of Tennessee occupies a leading place in zinc production - 55%. It is followed by New York and Missouri. Other significant zinc producers are Montana, Colorado, Idaho and Alaska. The most important zinc mines in Canada are located in British Columbia, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba and the Northwest Territories.
Nickel
About 64% of all nickel produced in the world is used to produce nickel steel. Machine tools, tools, armor plates and plates, stainless steel utensils and other products are made of nickel steel. Sixteen percent of nickel is used for electroplating (nickel plating) of steel, brass, copper and zinc. Nine percent for superalloys for turbines, aircraft mounts, turbochargers, etc. Nickel is used in coinage. For example, the American five-cent coin contains twenty-five percent nickel and seventy-five percent copper. Nickel is present in primary ores in combination with sulfur and arsenic. In secondary deposits (weathering crusts, laterites) it forms dispersed dissemination of hydrous nickel silicates.
Russia and Canada account for half of the world's nickel production. Large-scale mining is also carried out in Australia, New Caledonia, Indonesia, South Africa, China, Cuba, the Dominican Republic and Colombia.
Taking first place in the production of nickel ores (22% of world production) in Russia, the bulk of the ore is extracted from copper-nickel sulfide deposits in the Norilsk region (Taimyr) and partly in the Pechenga region (Kola Peninsula). A silicate-nickel deposit is also being developed in the Urals. Canada, which previously produced eighty percent of the world's nickel from one of the largest copper-nickel deposits in Sudbury (Ontario). Now it is inferior to Russia in terms of production volume. Nickel deposits in Canada are also being developed in Manitoba, British Columbia and other areas. There are no nickel ore deposits in the United States. Nickel is recovered as a by-product from a single copper refinery. Also produced from scrap (scrap metal).
Cobalt
For industrial and aviation gas turbine engines, cobalt forms the basis of exceptionally high strength alloys (superalloys). Also for the production of powerful permanent magnets. World cobalt reserves are estimated at approximately 10.3 million tons. Most of it is mined in Congo (DRC) and Zambia. Significantly less in Canada, Australia, Russia (in the Urals), Kazakhstan, and Ukraine. Cobalt is not produced, although non-commercial reserves (1.4 million tons) are found in Minnesota (0.9 million tons), Idaho, California, Missouri, Montana, Alaska and Oregon.
Tin
Tin is used to make white (tinned) tin. This tin (steel coated with a thin film of tin) is ideal for food storage due to its non-toxicity. In the United States, twenty-five percent of tin is used to make tin cans. There are also other aspects of the use of tin - fast ice, the production of putties, bronze, babbitts, tin foil and other alloys. The main, and until recently the only, ore mineral of tin is cassiterite (tin stone). It occurs mainly in quartz veins associated with granites. Also in alluvial placers.
Alluvial deposits in Southeast Asia account for almost half of the world's tin production. The belt is 1600 km long and up to 190 km wide from Bank Island (Indonesia) to the extreme southeast of China. One of the world's largest producers of tin is China. In 1995 it amounted to 61 thousand tons. Next come Indonesia - 44 thousand tons, Malaysia - 39 thousand tons, Bolivia - 20 thousand tons, Brazil - 15 thousand tons and Russia - 12 thousand tons.
Mining is also carried out on a significant scale in Australia, Canada, Congo (DRC) and the UK.
Molybdenum
Molybdenum is used in the production of alloy steels for machine tool construction, oil and gas, chemical and electrical industries and transport engineering. It is also used to produce armor plates and armor-piercing projectiles.
Molybdenite (molybdenum sulfide) is the main ore mineral of molybdenum. He
soft black with a bright metallic sheen. This mineral is often associated with copper sulfides (chalcopyrite, etc.) or wolframite, less commonly with cassiterite.
The United States ranks first in the world in molybdenum production. Production in 1995 increased to 59 thousand tons (1992 - 49 thousand tons). Primary molybdenum is mined in Colorado (at the world's largest mine, Henderson) and Idaho. Molybdenum is recovered as a by-product in Arizona, Montana, California, and Utah. In terms of production, Chile and China share second place - 18 thousand tons each. Canada is in third place - 11 thousand tons. These three countries account for eighty-eight percent of global molybdenum production. In Transbaikalia, Kuznetsk Alatau and the North Caucasus, molybdenum ores are mined in Russia. There are small copper-molybdenum deposits in Armenia and Kazakhstan.
Tungsten
The composition of super-hard wear-resistant tool alloys, mainly in the form of carbide, includes tungsten. It is used in incandescent filaments of electric lamps. Wolframite and scheelite are the main ore metals. Forty-two percent of the world's tungsten reserves (mostly wolframite) are concentrated in China. Russia ranks second in the production of tungsten (in the form of scheelite). In 1995 it amounted to 4.4 thousand tons. The main deposits are located in the Caucasus, Transbaikalia and Chukotka. In Canada, USA, Germany, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan. There are large deposits in the USA. There is also one active tungsten mine in California.
Bismuth
Bismuth is used to produce low-melting alloys. In nuclear reactors, liquid bismuth serves as a coolant. Bismuth compounds are used in medicine, optics, electrical engineering, textiles and other industries. Bismuth is mainly obtained as a by-product from lead smelting.
Bismuth minerals are bismuthine sulfide, native bismuth, bismuth sulfosalts. They are present in ores of copper, molybdenum, silver, nickel and cobalt, and in some uranium deposits. Bismuth is mined directly from bismuth ore only in Bolivia. The world leaders in 1995 in the production of bismuth are Peru - 1000 tons, Mexico - 900 tons, China - 700 tons, Japan - 175 tons, Canada - 126 tons. Significant reserves of bismuth ore were discovered in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Bismuth is extracted in significant quantities from polymetallic ores in Australia. Bismuth in the United States is produced only at one lead refinery in Omaha, Nebraska.
Antimony
Antimony is a shiny silvery brittle metal. Antimony is used in semiconductors, the chemical industry, and in the manufacture of ceramics and glass. It is used as a lead hardener in car batteries. The main area of application of antimony is flame retardants (anti-ignition agents) - compositions (mainly in the form of Sb2O3 oxide) that reduce the flammability of wood, fabrics and other materials.
Antimonite (stibnite), antimony sulfide, is the main ore mineral very often associated with cinnabar (mercury sulfide), sometimes with wolframite (ferberite).
World antimony reserves are estimated at six million tons. They are concentrated mainly in China (52% of world reserves). Also in Bolivia, Kyrgyzstan and Thailand (4.5% each), South Africa and Mexico. Antimony deposits in the USA are found in Idaho, Nevada, Montana and Alaska. Industrial deposits of antimony in Russia are known in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), Krasnoyarsk Territory and Transbaikalia.
Mercury
The only metal and mineral that is liquid at ordinary temperatures. It hardens at a temperature of 38.9 C. Thermometers, barometers, pressure gauges and other instruments that use mercury. It is used in electrical equipment - mercury gas-discharge light sources: fluorescent lamps, mercury lamps. Also for making dyes, in dentistry, etc. Cinnabar, a bright red mercuric sulfide, is the only ore mineral of mercury. After its oxidative roasting, condensation of mercury vapor occurs in the distillation unit. Mercury and especially its vapors are very toxic. The hydrometallurgical method, which is less harmful, is used to obtain mercury. Cinnabar is transferred to a solution of sodium sulfide, after which the mercury is reduced to metal by aluminum.
World mercury production was 3049 tons in 1995. Identified mercury resources were estimated at 675 thousand tons, mainly in Spain, Italy, Yugoslavia, Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine and Russia. The largest producer of mercury is Spain -1497 tons. Then China -550 tons, Algeria -290 tons and Mexico - 280 tons. The main source of mercury is the Almaden deposit in southern Spain. It has been known for almost two thousand years. Some mercury is recovered as a byproduct of gold mining in Utah and Nevada. In the United States, cinnabar is mined at one mine in Nevada. There are small deposits in Chukotka, Kamchatka and Altai in Russia. The Khaidarkan and Chauvay fields in Kyrgyzstan have been developed for a long time.
Source of information: www.grandresurs.ru
Ore minerals:
Ferrous metals - iron, manganese, chromium, titanium, vanadium);
Non-ferrous metals - all others (aluminium, copper, tin, lead, zinc);
Noble – gold, platinum, silver;
Radioactive - radium, uranium, thorium.
They usually accompany the foundations and ledges (shields) of ancient platforms, as well as folded areas, where they form huge ore belts, associated by their origin with deep faults in the earth’s crust (Alpine-Himalayan, Pacific). They serve as raw material bases for the mining and metallurgical industries and determine the economic specialization of countries and regions.
World iron ore reserves are estimated at around 200 billion tons, of which about 1/3 lie in the CIS.
The following have large reserves:
Iron ore in countries, billion tons: Russia - 33, Brazil - 21, Australia - 18, Ukraine and China 15 each, Canada - 12, USA and India - 7, and Kazakhstan and Sweden - 4, Venezuela - 2. Iron content in industrial ores 16-70%.
Manganese - China, Ukraine, South Africa, Brazil, Australia, India;
Chroma - South Africa, Kazakhstan, India, Türkiye.
Aluminum is the most common metal in the earth's crust; the alumina content in bauxite is 40-60%. The main bauxite-bearing provinces are: Caribbean-Amazonian, Gulf of Guiana, Australian, Indian, Mediterranean. Reserves by country: Guinea - 42%, Australia - 18.5%, Brazil - 6.3%, Jamaica - 4.7%, Cameroon - 3.8% and India - 2.8%. Heavy non-ferrous metals are typically characterized by their low content in ores (less than 1%), the main reserves are concentrated in North America, Africa, and Asia (Russia, Kazakhstan, China).
One of the most common and most valuable non-ferrous metals and the most valuable is copper. The electrical industry is the largest consumer of copper. It uses copper for power cables, telegraph and telephone wires, and in generators, electric motors and switches. Copper is also used in the automotive industry and construction. It is spent on the production of bronze, brass and copper-nickel alloys.
Five regions of the world have predominantly copper deposits. They are found: in the US Rocky Mountains, the Canadian Shield, on the western slopes of the Andes, especially in Peru and Chile; on the Central African Plateau - in a copper belt Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Also in Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Armenia.
The tin belt is 1600 km long and up to 190 km wide from Bank Island (Indonesia) to the extreme southeast of China, through Malaysia and Thailand.
World antimony reserves are estimated at six million tons. They are concentrated mainly in China (52% of world reserves), as well as in Bolivia, Kyrgyzstan and Thailand (4.5% each), South Africa and Mexico, the USA, Russia - in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), Krasnoyarsk Territory and Transbaikalia.
Identified mercury resources were estimated at 675 thousand tons, mainly in Spain, Italy, Yugoslavia, Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine and Russia. The largest producers of mercury: Spain, China, Algeria and Mexico.
The largest reserves of non-ferrous metals are:
Lead – China, Australia, USA, Canada, Peru;
Zinc: in China - 13.5%, Australia - 13%, USA - 10%, Peru -10% and Ireland - 3%.
Tin – Brazil, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Bolivia;
Vanadium – South Africa, Russia, China, USA;
Tungsten - China, Russia, Uzbekistan, Republic of Korea;
Cobalt - only 10.3 million tons, most of it in Congo (DRC) and Zambia, as well as in Canada, Australia, Russia, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine.
Molybdenum - to Canada, USA, Germany, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan.
In a broad sense, “non-ferrous metals” refers to the industrial name for all metals and their alloys with the exception of iron, manganese, chromium and their alloys. In a narrow sense, non-ferrous metals - the main raw materials of non-ferrous metallurgy - include aluminum, bismuth, tungsten, cobalt, magnesium, copper, molybdenum, nickel, tin, mercury, lead, antimony and zinc.
In terms of scale of production and consumption, aluminum ranks second after iron and first among non-ferrous metals. Currently, the whole world annually smelts more than 20 million tons of primary aluminum. Alumina, from which the metal is obtained, is produced throughout the world from bauxite. In terms of its reserves it ranks only tenth. Moreover, only bauxite can be considered high quality. For this reason, part of our alumina is produced from nepheline ores. In 2003, 5.1 million tons of bauxite were mined. Russia is the world's second largest producer of aluminum (14–15% of world production) after (17%).
In terms of proven copper reserves, our country is in third place in the world after the United States and or. Russia's share in world reserves is less than 10% (in 2003 - 83.1 million tons). Over 10 years, proven reserves in the country decreased by 6.5%. The industry is provided with proven reserves of developed deposits for 58 years (120 explored deposits). The world's largest deposits include the Oktyabrskoye, Talnakhskoye, Gaiskoye and Udokanskoye deposits, which account for about 70% of Russian copper reserves. In 2003, production reached 752 thousand tons (4.7% of the world level). The main mining enterprises in Russia are located in the Norilsk region (about 66% of production) and in the Urals.
In Russia, 88 deposits of lead and 124 deposits of zinc have been explored; the share of large deposits (Kholodninskoye, Ozernoye, Korbalikhinskoye, Uzelginskoye, Uchalinskoye, Gaiskoye, Gorevskoye, Kyzyl-Tashtygsky, Podolsky, Yubileiny and Nikolaevsky) accounts for three quarters of the explored reserves. More than half of the reserves are concentrated in Eastern Siberia. Resources and reserves of lead in the ground are estimated at 29.2 million tons, zinc - 78 million tons, which is respectively 2.2% and 5.3% of world resources (sixth and third places in the world). The main part of them is concentrated in the Republic of Buryatia, Krasnoyarsk Territory, Chita Region, Altai and Primorsky Territories and in the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania. An analysis of the state of the mineral resource base suggests that in the coming years, problems with meeting the country’s internal needs with domestic zinc will not arise, but Russia will be forced to import lead on an even larger scale.
Russia ranks first in the world in terms of proven nickel reserves (more than 25% of world reserves), and third in terms of cobalt reserves (over 7%). Nickel and cobalt reserves are accounted for in the ores of 28 deposits. Most of the nickel resources are predicted in the north of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, in the Murmansk region, in the Middle and, that is, in the areas of operating enterprises. The overwhelming majority of cobalt in Russia (about 1 million tons) is associated with nickel deposits, where cobalt is a by-product. Our country is a leader in the extraction of nickel ores and the production of primary nickel (20–25% of world production). In 2002, the production level exceeded the level of 1992, and metal smelting amounted to 98.9%. In terms of production of refined cobalt, Russia is in fifth–sixth place in the world (15–17% of global production). The volume of primary cobalt production in 2002 was 94% of the 1991 level.
In terms of explored reserves of tin, Russia ranks one of the first in the world, but in terms of the quality of ores it is inferior to foreign producers. In addition, in Russia, 90% of tin is extracted from primary deposits, while in the main tin-mining countries more than 75% of tin is extracted from placers. The supply of tin reserves that are profitable for mining is about 35 years. The resource potential of the Russian tin mining industry is 1037 thousand tons of metal (eighth place in the world). Over the past 10 years, Russia has moved from fourth to eighth place in the world in the production of tin in concentrate.
Russia ranks first in the world in terms of proven tungsten reserves; in terms of predicted resources - third (854 thousand tons). 94 tungsten deposits were taken into account, including 52 primary and 42 placer deposits, of which 25 deposits where tungsten is an associated component, and 17 with off-balance reserves. 72% of reserves come from low-grade ore deposits (average tungsten oxide content - 0.15%). Among deposits with rich ores, only Vostok-2 and Lermontovskoye (Primorsky Territory) are competitive, where the tungsten oxide content in the ores is 0.8–0.9% and 1.7–2.1%, respectively. The largest reserves of tungsten are concentrated in and in.
In terms of proven reserves of molybdenum, Russia ranks third after the United States and Chile. 42.5% of confirmed molybdenum reserves are located in developed deposits, in the areas of these deposits - 3.8%, in other developed areas - 16%, in undeveloped territories - 37.7%. Reserves suitable for profitable development (economic) account for 50% of explored ones, including 32% in mining areas, 18% in undeveloped areas. The predicted resources amount to 1,580 thousand tons, the bulk of them are concentrated in the eastern regions, where there are prospects for discovering new deposits.
In Russia, 237 gold ore and 123 gold-bearing complex deposits have been explored, of which about one third is exploited. Total: gold reserves of categories A, B, C1 - 5.7 thousand tons; reserves of category C2 - 2.4 thousand tons. The main resources, reserves and main production enterprises are concentrated in the North-Eastern, East Siberian, Far Eastern and Ural regions. In Russia, almost half (45%) of the metal is mined from placers, the share of which in total gold production before 2000 exceeded 60%. The future of the domestic gold mining industry is connected with the development of primary deposits.
In terms of primary gold production, our country is in 5th place (after the USA, Australia and Canada). In 2000, Russia produced 144 tons of gold, in 2005 - 168 tons worth 73 billion rubles. (0.39% of gross domestic product; 6% of world production). Of the 29 gold-mining subjects of the Russian Federation, only 13 produce more than 1000 kg per year. Domestic gold consumption in the country is 1.5% of the world.
In terms of the number of forecast resources and proven reserves of silver, Russia ranks first in the world. 245 deposits have been taken into account, licenses have been issued for 153 of them (78% of reserves), 88 objects are being developed. More than 75% of resources and reserves are concentrated in the east of the country. Prospects for discovering large deposits of silver ores are associated with the Okhotsk-Chukotka and Verkhoyansk regions. Expansion of the mineral resource base is possible due to the silver deposits of non-ferrous metals in the Ural, Transbaikal, Norilsk-Talnakh regions.
In terms of reserves of platinum group metals, Russia ranks second in the world after South Africa. Almost all explored reserves of platinum group metals (up to 96–97%) are concentrated in the Norilsk-Talnakh mining and industrial region. The predominant part of the ores explored here are high-grade - the content of the main platinum group metals in them is higher than in the ores of the Stillwater deposit (USA), where it is 22.5 g/t. Less than 1% of the reserves of platinum group metals are located in the exploited copper-nickel deposits of the Pechenga region, the rest is in other deposits in (Fedorovo-Panskoye, Gory Generalskaya and Monchegorsk), in (Burakovsky), as well as in placers in the north of the Khabarovsk Territory and the Koryak Highlands .
Russia ranks second in the world after South Africa in the production of platinum group metals. We receive four times less platinum than in South Africa, and one and a half times more palladium. Currently, Russia produces 18% of the world's platinum; in the future, this share will decrease as new mines are commissioned in South Africa, the USA, and. Russia's share in global palladium production (including production from recycled materials) is 45% (in 1997 - 60%).
The Norilsk-Talnakh mining region provides 83–85% of domestic production of platinum group metals.