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

Azurite
Azurite
Bornite
Bornite
Chrysocolla
Chrysocolla

 

Malachite
Malachite
Native Element Copper
Native Element 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.

Galena
Galena
Wulfenite
Wulfenite

 

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.

Hematite
Hematite
Magnetite
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.

Sphalerite
Sphalerite

 

Other Element Ores:

  • Antimony
Stibnite
Stibnite

 

  • Strontium
Celestine
Celestine

 

  • Magnesium
Dolomite
Dolomite

 

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.

Things that shine

Silver uses: coins, jewelry, tableware, mirrors Silver
Quartz uses: glass, mirrors, abrasives, jewelry Quartz

Beryl var. Aquamarine

uses: jewelry  Beryl var. Aquamarine

 

Pigments

Rutile uses: jewelry, white pigment Rutile
Orpiment uses: yellow pigment Orpiment
Dioptase uses: blue-green pigment Dioptase

 

Health, Beauty, and Household

Fluorite uses: toothpaste Fluorite
Muscovite uses: cosmetics, plastics, paint Muscovite
Zeolites uses: pet litter, water softening/purification Zeolites