Economic Minerals and Natural Attractions

Many minerals are mined because they have economic value. Metals like copper, lead, and iron is removed from mineral ores such as bornite, galena, and pyrite. Other metals collected from ores are molybdenum (used in metal alloys) and antimony (used in flame retardants and metal alloys). These ores can be refined to isolate the desired economic elements.

Metallic element ores:

Copper

Lead

Lead does not have a native element form, like copper. Instead, lead is found in the mineral, Galena. Minerals that contain economic elements are called ores.

Iron

Iron is the fourth most common element in the Earth’s crust. By mass, it is the most common element on Earth. Iron is usually found as an ore in minerals such as hematite and magnetite.

Zinc

Zinc is an essential mineral for human health, commonly found in cells throughout the body. It is used to help the body build a strong immune system. It also plays a role in cell division, cell growth, wound healing, and the breakdown of carbohydrates. Zinc is usually found as an ore in minerals such as sphalerite, hemimorphite, smithsonite, and zincite.

Other Element Ores:

Antimony

Strontium

Magnesium

Several other minerals are used for a variety of economic products used in the daily lives of people. Minerals like rutile, orpiment, and diopside are utilized as pigments, quartz is melted and formed into glasses, while beryls, like the aquamarine variety, are used as gemstones in jewelry. Products used in our daily lives are built using minerals. Rutile, orpiment, and diopside make pigments, quartz is melted and formed into glasses, and beryls are used as gemstones in jewelry.

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