Introduction
Copper is thought to be one of the first metals to be use by mankind and has been mined for thousands of years. Copper contains the properties of being very malleable as well as ductile. This makes a very great conductor for electricity and heat. Copper mining has exploded in the last 100 years as about 94% of the mined copper in the world has been mined during this period. The mining and extraction process of copper, although necessary for many of the worlds electronics, cars and water systems have a negative effect on the environment, affecting both animals and humans.
Mining and Extraction Process
The mining process of copper mostly comes from underground or open pit mines where copper ore is extracted. The copper is then extracted from the copper ore by mixing it with sulfuric acid to
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During the smelting process, gases such as sulphur dioxide gas is emitted. This gas is a serious air pollutant and can lead to severe impacts on the health of the wildlife as well as humans. When the sulphur dioxide gas reacts with the atmosphere, it creates sulphuric acid. This acidic mist falls back to the earth in the form of acid rain. Acid rain can decrease the pH levels in the soils as wells as the lakes and rivers, impacting on the health of aquatic animals and the vegetation in the affected area.
Flora and soil
Copper mining contributes to the growing issue of deforestation and land degradation. When a site is cleared for mining the habitat of many animals are destroyed forcing them to leave. The destruction of vegetation also impacts the water flow from the site to other ecosystems, possibly spreading contaminated water to a larger area. This can also lead to flooding as the water has lost its natural breaks, and will runoff at rapid speeds. Erosion and the increase in sedimentation in the waterbeds also impacts the area by moving nutrient
To meet the growing demand for copper in Australia, mining is necessary but there is still a huge supply of recycled copper, as it plays a vital part in the conservation of the supply of chalcopyrite ore, which reduces energy consumption, decreases waste disposal, and conserves the environment. It is estimated that such recycling supplies 50% of copper used in the Australian copper industry. In 2010, it was reported that 770,000 metric tons of copper were recycled, at an estimated value of nearly six billion Australian dollars. First, the copper has to be reduced to a reusable form through baling. This form differs depending on the use of the copper. When the copper has gone through a process reducing it to a reusable form for industry, the final process is to transport the recycled copper to a smelter where it goes through melting, and is eventually smoothed into flat sheets for new industry
This report presents an evaluation of the Ely copper mines system found in Vermont Alaska. This report is associated with the Ely Copper Mine Superfund site in Vershire, Orange County, The Ely Copper Mine Super¬fund site was placed on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) National Priorities List in 2001. Results of detailed mine-waste investigations show that the mine, which operated intermittently from the early 1800s until 1905,
Reagan also ran for re-election in 1984. He ran against Walter Mondale and won in a landslide electoral college victory. One campaign ad that was very successful was his "Morning in America" commercial. The phrase "It's morning again in America" is used both as a literal statement (people are shown going to work as they would in the morning), and as a metaphor for economic revival and renewal. His supply-side economic policies, also known as "Reaganomics", advocated tax rate reduction to spur economic growth, control of the money supply to curb inflation, economic deregulation, and reduction in government spending.
Copper is a metal that has been used by humans essentially since the beginning of existence as it is said to be only the second metal used by man after gold. Therefore, copper production has been an important part of life for thousands or years and still is today. The copper cycle is an important because it provides a basis for how copper can be recovered from various compounds that it exists in during its so-called “life-cycle” . The life cycle of copper conserves this now scarce metal by allowing the recovery of the pure substance at any point through experimental means. While copper is much more, scare in earths natural environment today it is still an incredibly important product. Copper is used in manufacturing wiring for electricity as
Purpose: The purpose of this experiment was to observe the many physical and chemical properties of copper as it undergoes a series of chemical reactions. Throughout this process, one would also need to acknowledge that even though the law of conservation of matter/mass suggests that one should expect to recover the same amount of copper as one started with, inevitable sources of error alter the results and produce different outcomes. The possible sources of error that led to a gain or loss in copper are demonstrated in the calculation of percent yield (percent yield= (actual yield/theoretical yield) x 100.
The name copper and the symbol Cu derive from the Latin word “Cuprum”, which by definition means the island of Cyprus. Copper is the 29th element and is located amongst the transition metals in the periodic table. Copper is one of the first elements both known and to be utilized by humans. It is believed that the reason for its early discovery was due to the element being able to naturally occur in its relatively pure form. Archaeological evidence has suggested that it was in fact the Mesopotamians somewhere between 5000 and 6000 years ago, which were able to fully utilize both extracting and making use of the element itself. A copper pendant was found in the Middle East and is dated 8700BC. There are many ways that copper can be used, as
To extract copper from the ores, which is a group of minerals, from which a valuable material can be pulled out for economic benefits, workers in the Chuquicamata mine mainly use two metallurgy processes: Smelting and Electrolysis. First and foremost, the ores are heated with carbon as the matter of fact that copper is a reactive element. For the smelting process, smelters use blast furnaces in the mine. Copper matte, which is a mixture of copper, iron and sulfur that is enriched in copper, is the product of this process. Subsequently, the impure copper is purified by electrolysis in which the cathode is pure copper, the anode is impure copper, and the electrolyte is a copper sulfate solution. To be more specific, pure copper, which is purified
4. Describe the procedure for extracting copper from one of its ores. Include relevant chemical reactions, equations and energy considerations involved. Extraction of copper from chalcopyrite (CuFe2) occurs using processes such as: mining & crushing, froth flotation, roasting & smelting and electrolytic refining. Mining the ore
The mining process involves many big vehicles and other technology that release huge amounts of pollution into the atmosphere speeding up global warming and causing climate change.
During lab, we put the metal copper under different circumstances so that we could gain a better understanding as to what goes on in the copper cycle. Throughout each stage of the copper cycle, we deduced what type of chemical reaction took place based on observation, made observations about the state of the metal and what type of environment it was subjected to, and determined what the net ionic equation was for each stage. Following the experiment, we calculated what the percent yield was and compared the changes in mass from the initial stage to the final stage.
The main goal of this experiment was to observe series of reactions that convert a piece of copper metal, via several different copper-containing compounds, back into its original elemental form. The data collected was the striking color changes along with their relevant chemical equations. The data was collected while keeping a close eye on the experiment the whole time. The data recorded was used to see the different changes involved with a piece of copper metal. The copper was weighed and heated multiple times throughout the experiment
Copper is usually extracted from sulphide ores such as Chalcopyrite. Since these ores contain low amounts of copper, they have to be concentrated through froth flotation before refining. The sulphate ore is first mined underground, and then bought to the surface to be crushed. Pine oil is then applied to the crushed copper ores, binding copper compounds together, but not the rocky material remaining. The ore is then put in a tub of water through the feed consisting of a foaming agent. Air is then released bit by bit in the agitator, causing bubbles to form. The water repellent copper compounds are picked up with the bubbles, making them float, letting the excess froth flow over the sides, creating concentrated copper in the concentrate launder.
The effect of copper exposure upon mine workers has been studied to a great extent. The mechanisms by which the body incorporates copper are relatively well understood. There are two genetic disorders, Wilson’s Disease (WD) and Menkes Disease (MD) that result from mutations in enzymes that are involved in the transport of copper into cells of the body (Figure 3, Ref’s
Strip mining is terrible for the earth.” In the US, from 1930 to 2000, coal mining altered about 2.4 million hectares (5.9 million acres) of natural landscape, most originally forest.”
One positive impact of copper mining is that it has a great impact on the economy, as it is a multi purpose metal. It can be used for infrastructure, motor vehicle radiators and heating systems. In addition, it can also be used in electrical generators and motors for electrical wiring. As copper has many uses, more establishments will purchase the metal. Although it’s not as costly as gold, copper is sought out for its versatility.