Introduction:

1. Copper is one of the most widely used metals on the planet and has been for over
10,000 years. There are virtually zero substitutes for copper in its many applications and
it has become indispensable in modern society. Copper can acquire new characteristics
when alloyed with other metals, such as zinc (brass), aluminum or tin (bronzes) or nickel,
for use in highly specialized applications. It can be shaped, molded and bent into various
forms including sheets and wire which are used in a variety of applications. Copper is one
of the most recycled of all metals making it a highly sustainable metal of choice.
2. The global demand for copper continues to grow from emerging economies. Both India
and China are rapidly urbanizing by improving infrastructure and upgrading power grids
as well as building more homes, automobiles, and appliances. Insufficient copper is being
found, developed and mined to meet the current projections of 4% growth a year in
global demand. The supply of copper from mining companies continues to lag behind
usage and the shortfall is being offset by secondary supplies and recycled scrap. The
world uses more copper each year that the Bingham Canyon (world’s largest copper
mine) has produced in 150 years of operation.
3. Copper is a well-known, pinkish and softer non- ferrous base metal. It occurs as a native
metal. It is both ductile and malleable. It can be made in to various shapes without
fracturing. It can be beaten into thin sheets. It is a soft metal. It has a high electrical and
thermal conductivity(next to silver). It was used prior to iron by mankind, since ancient
past. Hence, copper has high cultural significance. On record, this metal was known to
the people of the oldest civilizations. Copper has a history of at least 10,000 years.
Copper-bearing ores, in India, fall into three main classes i.e. oxides, carbonates and the
sulfides. There are more than 150 ore minerals of copper. The total copper metal
resources in India are about 12.29 million tonnes. Largest resources of copper ore to a
tune of 777.17 million tonnes (49.86%) are found in the state of Rajasthan. It is followed
by Madhya Pradesh with 377.19 million tonnes (24.2%) and Jharkhand with 288.12
million tonnes (18.49%). The Copper resources in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana,
Karnataka, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Odisha, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand and
West Bengal accounted for about 8% of the total all India resources.

1. The important oxide ores include cuprite (Cu2O) and tenorite (CuO). The carbonate ores
are malachite (Cu2CO3(OH)2) and azurite (Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2). The common sulfides of
copper include chalcopyrite (CuFeS2), covellite (CuS), chalcocite (Cu2S) and bornite
(Cu5FeS4).

Copper deposits occur in sedimentary and volcanogenic rocks within a wide variety of
geologic environments where there may be little or no evidence of hydrothermal
alteration. Some deposits may be hypogene and have a deep-seated source for the ore
fluids, but because of rapid cooling and dilution during syngenetic deposition on the
ocean floor, the resulting deposits are not associated with hydrothermal alteration. Many
of these deposits are formed at or near major tectonic features on the Earth's crust,
including plate boundaries, rift valleys, and island arcs. The resulting ore bodies may be
stratabound and either massive or disseminated. Other deposits form in rocks deposited in
shallow-marine, deltaic, and nonmarine environments by the movement and reaction of
interstratal brines whose metal content is derived from buried sedimentary and volcanic
rocks. Some of the world's largest copper deposits were probably formed in this manner.
This process we regard as diagenetic, but some would regard it as syngenetic, if the ore
metals are derived from disseminated metal in the host-rock sequence, and others would
regard the process as epigenetic, if there is demonstrable evidence of ore cutting across
bedding. Because the oxidation associated with diagenetic red beds releases copper to
ground-water solutions, red rocks and copper deposits are commonly associated.
However, the ultimate size, shape, and mineral zoning of a deposit result from local
conditions at the site of deposition - a logjam in fluvial channel sandstone may result in
an irregular tabular body of limited size; a petroleum-water interface in an oil pool may
result in a copper deposit limited by the size and shape of the petroleum reservoir; a
persistent thin bed of black shale may result in a copper deposit the size and shape of that
single bed. The process of supergene enrichment has been largely overlooked in
descriptions of copper deposits in sedimentary rocks. However, supergene processes may
be involved during erosion of any primary ore body and its ultimate displacement and
redeposition as a secondary deposit. Bleached sandstone at the surface may indicate
significant ore deposits near the water table.