GEO 1111 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Plate Tectonics, Mica, Tungsten Ore

• School: University of Ottawa
• Department: Geology
• Course: GEO 1111
• Professor: Mark Charette

Document Summary

In north america each person uses 20,000 kg of crushed rock, cement, sand and gravel, fertilizer, oil coal, metals and other mined commodities. 54 billion tonnes material dug out of the earth and used each year. Evidence of mining of flint, chert and obsidian for tools more than 160,000 years ago. Metals first used more than 20,000 years ago and gold earliest used: copper, copper was extracted by smelting of sulphide ores (6,000, smelting of lead, tin, zinc and silver began later (5,000) 4,000 years ago technique of mixing metals to make alloys was developed: bronze, pewter composed copper and tin composed of tin, lead and copper. 3,000 years ago smelting of iron ore was introduced: first use of coal instead of wood was introduced by the chinese. Most useful metals in crust are geochemically scarce: present in concentrations <0. 1 wt, occur atomic substitutions in more abundant rock-forming minerals.