Sunday, September 26, 2010

The Four Different Types of Metals and Their Contribution to Metallurgy



The earth is indeed an amazing and perfect place to live. It has the things that are necessary for us to survive. It provides with the enough resources for our needs. There is no place like earth. Humans are the highest level of organism living on this planet. We are even termed as the stewards of this place. Although plants and animals are also considered as living organisms, humans are given the chance and the will to utilize the natural resources that can be found on earth.

These natural resources include plants, wood and minerals. Metal is one of the oldest minerals on this planet. It has been used in different reasons. During the early civilizations metal has been used as a weapon. It is very much known for its hardness and durability.

Most of the people nowadays are confused about the properties and functions of metal. Metal is not just actually iron. There are different types of metals that can be found on the surface of the earth and even on its inner core. The different types of metals have their own characteristics and properties.

The most expensive type of metal is gold. Gold has been one of the finest materials used in making jewelries. Gold has become the sign of wealth for most of the people. It could be found on the crust of the earth. The process of extracting gold from ordinary rocks is very difficult. It would take time before you can have it as jewelry. During the early periods the main significance of gold is for decoration. Gold is also very popular to be the most malleable of all the metals.

Next to the value of gold is silver. Silver has been also used as a form of jewelry. It can be made into anklets, bracelets, earrings, necklaces and rings. However unlike gold, silver has a lower value in terms of money. The presence of silver rarely occurs, however it is the most active of all the metals. You will know more about the properties of metals using a periodic table.

The third and unusual type of metal is mercury. It is the only metal that can be found on the earth which is purely liquid at a room temperature. Mercury has been noted to be the most dangerous type of all metals. The main process used to extract mercury is through distillation. It is also used during the extraction of gold because of its capacity to attract gold.

The last type of metal is iron. Iron became synonymous of metal for some individuals. It is because they thought that the main property of characteristics of metal is its hardness. Iron is the most useful and valuable type of metal. It is often used to create nails, construction equipments and railings. Iron is very versatile in terms of making things out of it because of its malleability. The history of metallurgy can be fully traced using the periodic table of elements. It will provide you the basic knowledge about how metals became useful to humans.

www.made-from-india.com maintains a database for Metals Products manufacturers, exporters, suppliers, importers and wholesalers of mineral & metal products. This consists of asbestos & asbestos products, aluminum, aluminum products, copper & copper products, diamonds-polished, ferroalloy & products, iron & steel castings, iron & steel products, lead & lead products, magnetic materials, metal waste, mining machinery, wire mesh, wire ropes and zinc & zinc products, copper mineral, aluminum mineral, mineral properties, titanium mineral, mineral gemstones, industry metals, Mineral & metals buyers, mineral & metals seller, global minerals and metals, etc.

Friday, September 24, 2010

Geology And Mineral Wealth



Mineral wealth is the natural occurrence of minerals, rock, or chemical compounds that might be economically exploited. It includes oil, natural gas, coal, salt, and ores.

People's need of large amounts of coal, gas, and oil is continually increasing, so that the growing population may maintain its high living standards. The question is, how long the required supply will last? What will happen, when the resources are exhausted? Where are these fuels located and what kind of burden on the environment do they represent? Our reserves at this time are deposits (exploitable accumulations of naturally occurring raw materials), which have been discovered and may be exploited.

The total occurrence of raw materials is called resources. Resources include known deposits, which are being exploited, then deposits, which may be exploited but need large investment of capital or new technology to do so, and deposits that have not been yet discovered, but according to estimates probably exist.

A great part of our resources is non-renewable, because these resources need many millions of years to form, but they may be exhausted within a few centuries. They are, in particular, solid fuel, such as coal and gas. For people, salt deposits, ores, and natural rock are also very important raw materials.

Since the beginning of the20th century, people have been trying to find alternate sources of these resources. Some of the examples is providing energy utilising the sunlight, or developing industrial manufacture of minerals.

Ore Deposits

Places containing a sufficient amount of minerals, which may be used to obtain metals, are called ore deposits, and minerals containing metals are called ore minerals. They are chemical compounds of metal elements combined with sulphur or oxygen. Ore in pure form is found very seldom, especially in larger pieces, they are combined generally with rock minerals, which are also important for us. Some precious or heavy metals, for example gold, occur naturally in the form of elements.

A valuable raw material is obtained by separating the ore from the host rock. A deposit is economically viable only if a certain element occurs in a substantially higher concentration than in the average rock of the earth's crust.

Deposits are formed by various geological processes. There are sedimentary, igneous, and hydrothermal deposits.

Sedimentary deposits are among the most important raw material resources on earth. Through chemical and physical action during the sedimentation process, many economically important minerals were separated. The most important factor in this case is the dissolving property of water. An example of this process are the silica sands. The water currents and waves change sands to such a degree, that only pure quartz is left behind. Quartz is an important raw material in the glass industry and for the telecommunications technology (fibre optics).

Copper, iron, and other metals are also important sedimentary ore deposits. The most important ores are found in the Precambrian sedimentary rock. There are large deposits of this type in Brazil, India, Australia, and North America.

Ore deposits with a high content of gold or other heavy metals, for example titanium minerals, are called placer deposits.

A well-known method of obtaining gold is the panning. By swirling a pan filled with fluvial deposits, one first separates the lighter minerals, because the heavy gold settles on the bottom of the pan.

Diamond, one of the most valuable minerals, comes to the earth's surface through thin, long tubes. Diamonds form in the depth of the upper earth's mantle, because only there the pressures are such as to allow the formation of this mineral.

Igneous deposits often occur in layers. They form, when minerals crystallise from the molten magma, sink, and are enriched on the bottom of the igneous chamber. In southern Africa, important deposits of platinum and chromium were find in this type of deposits.

Hydrothermal deposits form thanks to the action of hot solutions during magma melting processes, or in the hot underground water.

Minerals are separated by the hot liquids from the rock and when they are transported to cooler rocks, they settle in the cracks and cavities. This is how iron sulphides, zinc, and copper form.

If the hydrothermal solutions reach the earth's surface, it gives rise to hot springs and geysers containing mercury and zinc. Large hydrothermal deposits are found for example in the Mississippi river basin in Kansas and Oklahoma.

www.made-from-india.com maintains a database for Metals Products manufacturers, exporters, suppliers, importers and wholesalers of mineral & metal products. This consists of asbestos & asbestos products, aluminum, aluminum products, copper & copper products, diamonds-polished, ferroalloy & products, iron & steel castings, iron & steel products, lead & lead products, magnetic materials, metal waste, mining machinery, wire mesh, wire ropes and zinc & zinc products, copper mineral, aluminum mineral, mineral properties, titanium mineral, mineral gemstones, industry metals, Mineral & metals buyers, mineral & metals seller, global minerals and metals, etc.

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

The Mineral Wool Insulation Material Types By Patrick Ault Platinum Quality Author



To speak of mineral wool insulation is to speak of beautifying your home. This is basically a job relegated to the professionals. If you are into the construction or remodeling of your home and intend to have some wool insulation done, there is no better service provider to get the job done but Owens Corning Basement Finishing System. The company happens to be a leading manufacturer and installer of a wide range of wool products that are sure to suit whatever insulation need you have in your home. The company is easily the leader in Industrial Insulation market.

To those who are not familiar with it, mineral wool is a man-made fiber that originates from either natural or synthetic metal oxides or minerals. Aside from insulation, mineral wool is also used in other industrial applications such as soundproofing, filtration, radiant barriers installation and even germination of seedlings to name a few.

www.made-from-india.com maintains a database for Metals Products manufacturers, exporters, suppliers, importers and wholesalers of mineral & metal products. This consists of asbestos & asbestos products, aluminum, aluminum products, copper & copper products, diamonds-polished, ferroalloy & products, iron & steel castings, iron & steel products, lead & lead products, magnetic materials, metal waste, mining machinery, wire mesh, wire ropes and zinc & zinc products, copper mineral, aluminum mineral, mineral properties, titanium mineral, mineral gemstones, industry metals, Mineral & metals buyers, mineral & metals seller, global minerals and metals, etc.

There are only two types of materials that come to mind if you refer to mineral wool: the rock wool and the slag wool. The former is a synthetic material that is made up of natural minerals such as diabase and basalt. The latter is also a synthetic material that is made out of blasted furnace slag. A slag is the scum that forms on a molten metal's surface. Typically, this wool has about 75% post industrial recycled materials in it. It is fire resistant and it does not need any additional chemical to make it so. Mineral wool may be used in loose fill or blanket insulation forms. Now that you have a basic understanding of such wools, it would be easier to imagine where in your home it should be placed.