Earth Systems 3209

Unit: 5

Earths Resources
Reference:
Chapters 21; Appendix A & B
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Newfoundland and Labrador

Unit 5:
Topic 2.3

Processing Ore
Minerals
Focus on . . .
identifying and describing techniques used in
processing ore deposits.

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Newfoundland and Labrador

Ore Processing Techniques

1) Floatation
2) Gravity Separation
3) Heap Leaching
4) Pyromet
5) Hydromet

Copyright 2014 All rights reserved, Government of

Newfoundland and Labrador

Ore Processing Techniques

1) Flotation
) Floatation involves mixing grounded
ore with water, oil, and chemicals.
The grounded ore becomes
suspended in the water and is
subjected to bubbles of air. This
causes the minerals and/or
elements of value to float to the top
where they can be skimmed off.

Copyright 2014 All rights reserved, Government of

Newfoundland and Labrador

Ore Processing Techniques

2) Gravity Separation
) Gravity separation involves feeding
grounded ore into a pulsating body
of water, which serves to settle out
the heavy material while floating
away the light material. If the heavy
material is what you wish to keep,
then it is taken from the bottom. If
the light material is what you wish to
keep, then it is taken from the top.

Copyright 2014 All rights reserved, Government of

Newfoundland and Labrador

Ore Processing Techniques

3) Heap Leaching
Heap leaching commences by placing the grounded ore as a layer
onto impermeable material. The heap of material is sprayed with a
liquid, which percolates down through dissolving away the valuable
minerals and/or elements. This liquid (leachate) is then collected in a
reservoir. The leachate is processed to extract desired materials.

Copyright 2014 All rights reserved, Government of

Newfoundland and Labrador

Ore Processing Techniques

4) Pyromet
) Pyromet involves using heat to separate
the minerals and/or elements of value from
the ore. Heating separates the materials by
density and the desired minerals and/or
elements can be removed.

Copyright 2014 All rights reserved, Government of

Newfoundland and Labrador

Ore Processing Techniques

5) Hydromet
) Hydromet is a chemical method that
involves oxidation and acid leaching
to separate out the desired minerals
and/or elements.

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Newfoundland and Labrador

Example 1:
Which involves heating the ore for the purpose of
separating materials based on density?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

floatation
heap leaching
prospecting
pyromet

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Newfoundland and Labrador

Example 2:
Which technique involves percolation and dissolving
away the valuable minerals from the ore?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

distillation
gravity separation
heap leaching
remote sensing

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Newfoundland and Labrador

Your Turn . . .
Take the time and complete the following
questions . . .
(Solutions to follow)
Questions:

Which mineral processing technique involves

oxidation and acid leaching?
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)

floatation
gravity separation
heap leaching
hydromet
Copyright 2014 All rights reserved, Government of
Newfoundland and Labrador

Solutions . . .
Questions:

Which mineral processing technique involves

oxidation and acid leaching?
Answer:
(A) floatation
(B) gravity separation
(C) heap leaching
(D) hydromet
Copyright 2014 All rights reserved, Government of
Newfoundland and Labrador

Summary . . .
Overview of Points covered:
Techniques used to process ore deposits include:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)

Floatation
Gravity Separation
Heap Leaching
Pyromet
Hydromet

Copyright 2014 All rights reserved, Government of

Newfoundland and Labrador