Module Identifier EA20910  
Module Title ECONOMIC MATERIALS  
Academic Year 2000/2001  
Co-ordinator Dr Ron Fuge  
Semester Semester 2  
Pre-Requisite  
Course delivery Lecture   22 Hours 11 x 2 hours  
Assessment Exam   2 Hours 2 hour written examination (essays). Resit: same format.   100%  

Module Outline (Lecture Themes)
1. What constitutes a mineral deposit? Definition and relation of cut-off grade and how this can vary with demand and economic climate.

2. Minerals which are important economically. The major minerals for the important elements. Other sources of elements such as seawater and the atmosphere.

3. How minerals occur, general brief outline of processes by which metalliferous and non-metalliferous mineral deposits are formed.

4. Geographical sources of the important minerals both current and historical.

5. General methodology of element extraction from ores, etc. Refining techniques. More detailed consideration of some elements such as aluminium, copper, iron, nickel, gold and sulphur.

6. Major uses of the various elements.

7. Some repercussions of the extractive industries. Environmental problems and considerations.

8. Aggregates. Types, sources, uses and alternatives.

9. Limestone and cement.

10. Clays.

Module Aims
To present information and ideas about the use of Earth materials.

Module objectives / Learning outcomes
Students completing this module should know about the origins, sources, mining and refining techniques and uses of the main economic materials extracted by man from the Earth; they should be aware of the main methods and processes of ore extraction; they should understand the implications of the processes both as sources of wealth and of pollution.

Reading Lists
Books
Hutchison, C.S.. (1983) Economic Deposits and Their Tectonic Setting. Macmillan
Kesler, S.E.. (1994) Mineral Resources, Economics and the Environment. Macmillan
Manning, D.A.C.. (1995) Introduction to Industrial Minerals. Chapman and Hall
Smith, M.R. & Collis, L.. (1993) Aggregates. 2nd. Geological Society Engineering Geology Special Publication 9.
Wolfe, J.A.. (1984) Mineral Resources. Chapman and Hall.