Metals and Ores For PSC

Ores are naturally occurring materials that may be mined to extract a mineral or minerals of commercial worth. Minerals, particularly metals, are often mined in ore form first, then processed.

Ore is derived from the combination of two Old English words: Ora, which means '

unworked metal,

Oxides and sulphidesare the most prevalent metal ores.

Sulphides are the earliest ores, having developed when there was a lot of sulphur in the Earth's past due to volcanic activity. Later, when photosynthesis in plants released significant amounts of oxygen into the atmosphere, oxides developed.

Iron oreis the most prevalent element on the planet, accounting for over 5% of the Earth's crust. As a result, it is one of the most plentiful rock components.Metals and their ores are an important topic that is included in the syllabus of the upcoming 10th preliminary and other preliminary and main exams of Kerala PSC.

The table below covers some of the most important metals, as well as their ores and chemical formulae. You can use the search function below to look for a certain metal and its ore.

MetalOreChemical FormulaAluminium(Al)BauxiteCorundumCryoliteFeldsparAluniteKaolin (clay)Al₂O₃ 2H₂OAl₂O₃Na₃AlF₆KAlSi₃O₈KAl₃(SO4)2(OH)₆.Al₂O₃ 2SiO₄·2H₂OAntimony(Sb)StibniteSb₂S₃Barium(Ba)BarytesBaSO₄Beryllium(Be)BerylBe₃Al₂Si₆O₁₈Bismuth(Bi)BismuthateBiO₃Cadmium(Cd)GreenockiteCdSCalcium(Ca)DolomiteLimestoneCalciteGypsumFluorspar/FluoriteAsbestosKaolinite(a form of clay)MgCO₃CaCO₃CaCO₃CaCO₃CaSO₄⋅ 2H₂OCaF2CaMg₃(SiO₃​)₄Al₂O₃ 2SiO₂·2H₂OChromium(Cr)Chromite(Fe, Mg)Cr₂O₄Cobalt(Co)CobaltiteSmeliteCoAsSCoAsS₂Copper(Cu)CupriteMalachiteBornite /Peacock OreChalcociteCopper pyritesCopper glanceCu₂H₂OCu₂CO₃(OH)₂Cu₅FeS₄Cu₂SCuFeS₂Cu2SGold(Au)CalaveriteSylvaniteAuTe₂(Ag,Au)Te₂Iron(Fe)HaematiteMagnetiteSideriteIron pyritesLimoniteFe₂O₃Fe3O4FeCO₃FeS₂FeO·nH₂OLead(Pb)GalenaAnglesitePbSPbCl₂Manganese(Mn)PyrolusiteManganateMnO₂MnO₄Magnesium(Mg)MagnesiteDolomiteEpsom salt/Magnesium sulfateKieseriteCarnalliteMgCO₃MgCO₃·CaCO₃MgSO₄MgSO₄·H₂OKMgCl₃·6(H₂O)Mercury(Hg)CalomelCinnabarHg₂Cl₂HgSNickel(Ni)PentlanditeMilarite(Fe, Ni)₉S₈K₂Ca₄Al₂Be₄Si₂₄O₆₀ · H₂OPotassium(K)Nitre/SaltpetreCarnaliteKNO₃KClMgCl6H2OPhosphorous(P)Floreopetite3Ca₃(PO₄)CaFe₂PhosphoriteCa₃(PO₄)CaFe₂Tungsten (W)WolframiteScheelite(Fe, Mn)WO₄CaWO₄Silver(Ag)ArgentiteRuby silver /PyrargyriteHorn silver /ChlorargyriteAg₂SAg₂S⋅Sb₂S₃AgClSodium(Na)Chile saltpetreTronaBoraxCommon saltNaNO₃Na₃H(CO₃)₂·2H₂ONa₂[B₄O₅(OH)₄]·8H₂ONaClStrontium(Sr)StrontianiteSrCO₃Uranium(U)CarnotitePitchblende /UraniniteK₂(UO₂)₂(VO₄)₂3H₂OUO₂Zinc(Zn)Zinc blend/SphaleriteCalamineZinciteZnSZnCO₃ZnO

The process of extracting metals from their ores and purifying them is calledMetallurgy.The process utilised to extract a certain metal from its ore is determined by the metal's reactivity and hence the ore's stability.The main three steps involved in metallurgy are:Ore Concentration.Metal extraction from concentrated ore.The purification of the metal.Gangue/matrixrefers to the undesired impurities and earthy things found in the ore, such as sand, limestone, and rocky materials.Fluxis a chemical that is applied to ore to eliminate impurities.Slagis formed when gangue and flux in ores combine to generate a fusible substance.The process of extracting gangue from the ore is determined by the ore's physical and chemical qualities.For example: Aluminium.Aluminium is one of the most abundant elements in the Earth's crust, and it may be found in a variety of silicate ores, which are frequently a type of clay.Bauxite is an ore of aluminium. Two techniques are used to extract aluminium from bauxite ore industrially. They are as follows:Bayer Process:It refines bauxite ore(through concentrated sodium hydroxide)to generate alumina(aluminium oxide)and the remainder is a combination of silica, different iron oxides, and titanium dioxide(gangue).Hall–Héroult Process:It involves the smelting of aluminium. The alumina(aluminium oxide)produced by the Bayer method then is electrolyzed with molten cryolite and feldspar to produce pure aluminium.Thanks for reading!!!