COPPER MINING

Copper Mining in the U.S

Table of Content

Introduction1

Discussion1

Extraction and Shipping Methods1

Extraction1

Shipping Methods2

Countries and Companies Involved3

Amount of Copper Exported3

Environmental and Social Issues4

Solution to Resist Environmental and Social Issues4

Conclusion5

References6

Copper Mining in the U.S

Introduction

The topic under study is based on the Extraction of copper in the United States. The study covers related areas such as extraction and shipping methods, amount of copper exported every year, countries to which it is exported from the United States, impact of extracting copper on the environment and possible solution to these issues.

Since 1840, copper extraction is one of the major industries in the United States. U.S became the third largest copper producer of the world in the year 2007, when its copper production reached 1.19 million metric tons. In United States, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Nevada and Montana are among the largest copper producing states. Altogether, these states produce 99 percent of the total copper produced in the United States every year (U.S Geological Survey, 2008)

Discussion

Extraction and Shipping Methods

Extraction

Copper is naturally found in the rocks in the form of a mixture of copper sulfide ore. For the extraction of copper from the mixture, process of grinding is required. There are various steps that are being followed (Jergensen, 1999). The process is discussed in the following lines.

The process starts with the blasting and hauling of the mixture that contains copper sulfide ore. After blasting, the ore is brought into the mill, where, it is grinded to convert it in the powder form. The powdered mixture consists of different rock substances from which 25 to 30 percent of pure copper is separated through flotation. Then the process of smelting is performed in a furnace. Through this process, iron and sulfur is separated from the copper and results in almost 99 percent pure copper. Finally, using the electrolytic process, process of purification is performed to get 99.9+% of pure copper.

In United States, apart from the copper sulfide ore, copper is also found in copper oxide ores. In order to extract copper from these ores, a different extracting process is required. This process starts with the blasting and hauling of the copper oxide ore to a large pile. These piles are called, “Heaps”. Leak proof surface is used over which these heaps are produced and a solution of sulfuric acid is sprayed over the heaps which separates the copper molecules from the ore. The solution which was sprayed drains to the bottom of the heaps in the pipes which results in separation of around 8 percent pure copper. After this, the last stage of the process starts to get 99.9+ percent copper. This is done through an electrolytic process which is known as the electro-winning portion. In this stage, pure copper is obtained on cathode sheets.

Shipping Methods

In United States, there are specialized agencies that provide domestic and international services for the shipment of copper and other heavy minerals. These agencies have a separate team with excessive knowledge of the shipping of heavy ...