Coal Mining

The goal of coal mining is to economically remove coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s is widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States, United Kingdom, and South Africa, a coal mine and its structures are a "colliery". In Australia, "colliery" generally refers to an underground

coal mine.

History of Coal Mining

The oldest continuously worked deep-mine in the United Kingdom is Tower Colliery in South Wales valleys in the heart of the South Wales coalfield. This colliery was developed in 1805, and its miners bought it out at the end of the 20th century, to prevent it from being closed. Tower Colliery was finally closed on 25 January 2008, although production continues at the Aberpergwym drift mine nearby.

Coal was mined in America in the early 1700s, and commercial mining started around 1730 in Midlothian, Virginia.

Coal-cutting machines were invented in the 1880s. Before the invention, coal was mined from underground with a pick and shovel. By 1912 surface mining was conducted with steam shovels designed for coal mining.

Surface Mining Surface mining (also

commonly called strip mining, though this is actually only one possible form of surface mining), is a type of mining in which soil and rock overlying the mineral deposit (the overburden) are removed. It is the opposite of underground mining, in which the overlying rock is left in place, and the mineral removed through shafts or tunnels.

Surface coal mining in Wyoming in the United States.

Underground mining (soft rock)

Most coal seams are too deep underground for opencast mining and require underground mining, which method currently accounts for about 60% of world coal production. In deep mining, the room and pillar or bord and pillar method progresses along the seam, while pillars and timber are left standing to support the mine roof. Once room and pillar mines have been developed to a stopping point (limited by geology, ventilation, or economics), a supplementary version of room and pillar mining, termed second mining or retreat mining, is commonly started. Miners remove the coal in the pillars, thereby recovering as much coal from the coal seam as possible. A work area involved in pillar extraction is called a pillar section. Modern pillar sections use remote-controlled equipment, including large hydraulic mobile roof-supports, which can prevent cave-ins until the miners and their equipment have left a work area. The mobile roof supports are similar to a large dining-room table, but with hydraulic jacks for legs. After the large pillars of coal have been mined away, the mobile roof support's legs shorten and it is withdrawn to a safe area. The mine roof typically collapses once the mobile roof supports leave an area.

five principal methods of underground mining

Longwall mining- is a form of underground coal mining where a long wall of coal is mined in a single slice

Continuous mining-(also called bord and pillar) is a mining system in which the mined material is extracted across a horizontal plane while leaving "pillars" of untouched material to support the overburden leaving open areas or "rooms" underground.

Blast mining-is the controlled use of explosives to excavate or remove rock

Retreat mining-is a term used to reference the final phase of an underground mining technique known as room and pillar mining. This involves excavating a room or chamber while leaving behind pillars of material for support.

Other Methods of Coal Mining

Area mining Contour mining Mountaintop removal mining Room and pillar mining

Coal mining can result in a number of adverse effects on the environment. Surface mining of coal completely eliminates existing vegetation, destroys the genetic soil profile, displaces or destroys wildlife and habitat, degrades

air quality, alters current land uses, and to some extent permanently changes the general topography of the area mined, This often results in a

scarred landscape with no scenic value. Rehabilitation or reclamation mitigates some of these concerns and is required by Federal Law,

specifically the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977.Mine tailing dumps produce acid mine drainage which can seep into waterways and aquifers, with consequences on ecological and human

health. If underground mine tunnels collapse, this can cause subsidence of land surfaces. During actual mining operations, methane, a known

greenhouse gas, may be released into the air. And by the movement, storage, and redistribution of soil, the community of microorganisms and

nutrient cycling processes can be disrupted.

Ecology of Mining

Coal mining can result in a number of adverse effects on the environment. Surface mining of coal completely eliminates existing vegetation, destroys the genetic soil profile, displaces or destroys wildlife and habitat, degrades air quality, alters current land uses, and to some extent permanently changes the general topography of the area mined, This often results in a scarred landscape with no scenic value. Rehabilitation or reclamation mitigates some of these concerns and is required by Federal Law, specifically the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977.

Problem of air and water pollutions in Mining areas

Air and water are universal resources of multifuncional character. Air is a resource intensively used primarily by industry, transport and public utilities. As a result the quality of air with respect to human health undergoes deterioration in large part of industrial areas. The situation is similar in the case of water sources.

Air Pollution

Worldwide air pollution - contamination of the air by noxious gases and minute particles of solid and liquid matter (particulates) in concentrations that endanger health - is responsible for large numbers of deaths and cases of respiratory disease. According to their chemical characteristics, concentration in the air mass and meteorological conditions, air pollutant substances may have a major or minor impact on air quality. The occurrence of strong winds and rain, for instance, may have a good impact on the pollutants dispersion, and the presence of sunlight can have a negative effect on air quality.

Water pollution in mining areas

In industrial areas available natural resources of water are very poor due to anthropogenic contamination. It is an effect of both wastewater discharge to the environment and improper disposal of pollutants, waste, operational failures, spills to the environment. For instance, in the Katowice Agglomeration most of river’s water don’t fall within any purity classes. Because of contamination, only a small portion of surface waters can be used for economic purposes.

We should LESSEN the usage of coal mining for it can cause devastating damage on our landforms. If Coal Mining could not be lessened, at least pick out a spot were there are no “beautiful” landforms that could be damaged. As stated in Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) which means it has to be approved by the federal government before mining begins.

PhosphatesPhosphates A A phosphatephosphate, an inorganic , an inorganic

chemical, is a salt of chemical, is a salt of phosphoric acid. In organic phosphoric acid. In organic chemistry, a phosphate, or chemistry, a phosphate, or organophosphate, is an organophosphate, is an ester of phosphoric acid. ester of phosphoric acid. Organic phosphates are Organic phosphates are important in biochemistry important in biochemistry and biogeochemistry or and biogeochemistry or ecology. Inorganic ecology. Inorganic phosphates are mined to phosphates are mined to obtain phosphorus for use obtain phosphorus for use in agriculture and industry. in agriculture and industry. At elevated temperatures At elevated temperatures in the solid state, in the solid state, phosphates can condense phosphates can condense to form pyrophosphates. to form pyrophosphates.

History of PhosphatesHistory of Phosphates

According to author Arthur Toy, elemental According to author Arthur Toy, elemental phosphorus was discovered accidentally phosphorus was discovered accidentally in 1669 while an impoverished German in 1669 while an impoverished German chemist was trying to make gold. Today chemist was trying to make gold. Today phosphorus is an important part of many phosphorus is an important part of many of the products that are indispensable to of the products that are indispensable to modern living and good health.modern living and good health.

Geochemistry of Phosphates

Phosphates are the naturally occurring form of the element phosphorus, found in many phosphate minerals. In mineralogy and geology, phosphate refers to a rock or ore containing phosphate ions. Inorganic phosphates are mined to obtain phosphorus for use in agriculture and industry.

The largest phosphorite or rock phosphate deposits in North America lie in the Bone Valley region of central Florida, United States, the Soda Springs region of Idaho, and the coast of North Carolina. Smaller deposits are located in Montana, Tennessee, Georgia and South Carolina near Charleston along Ashley Phosphate road. The small island nation of Nauru and its neighbor Banaba Island, which used to have massive phosphate deposits of the best quality, have been mined excessively. Rock phosphate can also be found in Egypt, Israel, Morocco, Navassa Island, Tunisia, Togo and Jordan, countries that have large phosphate mining industries.

Ecology of Phosphates

In ecological terms, because of its important role in biological systems, phosphate is a highly sought after resource. Once used, it is often a limiting nutrient in

environments, and its availability may govern the rate of growth of organisms. This is generally true of

freshwater environments, whereas nitrogen is more often the limiting nutrient in marine (seawater)

environments. Addition of high levels of phosphate to environments and to micro-environments in which it is

typically rare can have significant ecological consequences. For example, blooms in the populations of some organisms at the expense of others, and the collapse of populations deprived of resources such as

oxygen can occur. In the context of pollution, phosphates are one component of total dissolved

solids, a major indicator of water quality.

Ecology of Phosphates

Although phosphorus is a naturally occurring nutrient, human impacts have increased its availabilityMost waste water treatment plants cannot take phosphorus out of the water

Chemical Properties

The phosphate ion is a polyatomic ion with the empirical formula PO3−4 and a molar mass of 94.973 g/mol. It consists of one central phosphorus atom surrounded by four oxygen atoms in a tetrahedral

arrangement. The phosphate ion carries a negative three formal charge and is the conjugate base of the hydrogen phosphate ion, HPO2−4, which is the conjugate base of H2PO−4, the dihydrogen

phosphate ion, which in turn is the conjugate base of H3PO4, phosphoric acid. It is a hypervalent molecule (the phosphorus atom

has 10 electrons in its valence shell). Phosphate is also an organophosphorus compound with the formula OP(OR)3. A phosphate salt forms when a positively-charged ion attaches to the negatively-charged oxygen atoms of the ion, forming an ionic compound. Many

phosphates are not soluble in water at standard temperature and pressure. The sodium, potassium, rubidium, caesium and ammonium

phosphates are all water soluble. Most other phosphates are only slightly soluble or are insoluble in water. As a rule, the hydrogen and

dihydrogen phosphates are slightly more soluble than the corresponding phosphates. The pyrophosphates are mostly water

soluble.

PHOSPHATES IN EVERYDAY LIVING

Phosphorus is a nutrient vital to human, animal, and plant life. It is one of the most common substances in our environment, naturally occurring in our food, our water and our bodies. In your body, phosphorus is present in your genes, your teeth, and your bones -- even your muscles work because of the phosphorus in adenosine triphosphate.

1. Phosphoric acid-based chemical polishes are used primarily to chemically polish (brighten) aluminum and aluminum alloys.

2. Many phosphorus-containing materials are used as flame-retardants for textiles, plastics, coatings, paper, sealants and mastics.

3. "Phosphates and phosphoric acid have many uses in the treatment of potable (drinking) water.

4. Cleaning solutions with phosphates help clean mildew and stubborn stains on vinyl siding.

There are a few characteristics that define phosphate properties, mainly molecular structure and pH (generally in a 1% solution). These determine the functionality of phosphates that in turn determine how the phosphates are used. They contribute buffering strength, sequestering (or chelating) power, dispersion and absorptive capabilities, and solubility. Phosphates are usually used as compounds of phosphate ions in combination with one or more common elements, such as sodium, calcium, potassium, and aluminum. They also offer benefits as nutrient sources.

Phosphates are classified into several primary groups based on the number of phosphorus (P) atoms. Each of these groups have functional properties ideal for many applications.

Number of P Atoms Ion Usual Name

1 PO4-3 Orthophosphates

2 P2O7-4 Pyrophosphates

3 p3O10-5 Tripolyphosphates

>3 PnO(3n+1)-(n+2) Polyphosphates

Orthophosphates                   Buffering - detergents, baking

Pyrophosphates                   Sequestering - water treatment, metal cleaning

Tripolyphosphates                   Dispersant - meat processing, dish detergent

Polyphosphates                   Dispersant - kaolin production, processed cheese

Phosphate products are a significant part of everyday living. In addition to their versatility, government authorities also recognize them as safe for worker exposure and handling and for use in the home. In addition to their versatility, phosphates are recognized by government authorities as safe for worker exposure and handling and for use in the home.In many water bodies, phosphorus is the limiting nutrient and controlling its level is an important step in preventing eutrophication. In most areas, most of the phosphorus comes from the environment itself, and only a fraction (about a third) from consumer products.

Phosphates are important in our daily lives, as Phosphates are important in our daily lives, as well as in Geology, Chemistry, etc. We should well as in Geology, Chemistry, etc. We should use it properly, don’t abuse the use of it for it use it properly, don’t abuse the use of it for it will cause us more than the money we used to will cause us more than the money we used to

get itget it

Manganese

is a chemical element, designated by the symbol Mn. It has the atomic number 25. It is found as a free element in nature (often in combination with iron), and in many minerals. As a free element, manganese is a metal with important industrial metal alloy uses, particularly in stainless steels.

History of Manganese

The origin of the name manganese is complex. In ancient times, two black minerals from Magnesia in what is now modern Greece were both called magnes, but were thought to differ in gender. The male magnes attracted iron, and was the iron ore we now know as lodestone or magnetite, and which probably gave us the term magnet. The female magnes ore did not attract iron, but was used to decolorize glass. This feminine magnes was later called magnesia, known now in modern times as pyrolusite or manganese dioxide. Neither this mineral nor manganese itself is magnetic. In the 16th century, manganese dioxide was called manganesum (note the two n's instead of one) by glassmakers, possibly as a corruption of two words since alchemists and glassmakers eventually had to differentiate a magnesia negra (the black ore) from magnesia alba (a white ore, also from Magnesia, also useful in glassmaking). Michele Mercati called magnesia negra Manganesa, and finally the metal isolated from it became known as manganese (German: Mangan). The name magnesia eventually was then used to refer only to the white magnesia alba (magnesium oxide), which provided the name magnesium for that free element, when it was eventually isolated, much later.

Environmental effects of manganese

Manganese compounds exist naturally in the environment as solids in the soils and small particles in the water. Manganese particles in air are present in dust particles. These usually settle to earth within a few days.Humans enhance manganese concentrations in the air by industrial activities and through burning fossil fuels. Manganese that derives from human sources can also enter surface water, groundwater and sewage water. Through the application of manganese pesticides, manganese will enter soils.

For some animals the lethal dose is quite low, which means they have little chance to survive even smaller doses of manganese when these exceed the essential dose. Manganese substances can cause lung, liver and vascular disturbances, declines in blood pressure, failure in development of animal foetuses and brain damage.

In plants manganese ions are transported to the leaves after uptake from soils. When too little manganese can be absorbed from the soil this causes disturbances in plant mechanisms. For instance disturbance of the division of water to hydrogen and oxygen, in which manganese plays an important part.

History of Manganese (the year type) 1771-Manganese recognized as an element by Swedish chemist Scheele 1774-First isolated by J.G. Gahn. 1799-patents granted in U.K. for using manganese in steelmaking 1808-Patents granted in U.k. for using manganese in steelmaking 1816-A German researcher observed that manganese increased the

hardness of iron, without reducing its malleability or toughness. 1826-Prieger in Germany produced a ferromanganese containing 80%

manganese in a crucible. 1840-J.M. Heath produced metallic manganese in England. 1841-Industrial-scale production of "spiegeleisen", a pig-iron containing a

high percentage of manganese began. 1875-Commercial production of ferromanganese with a 65% manganese

content. started 1860-Beginning of modern steel industry. 1868-Invention of dry cell using manganese dioxide

Facts About manganese

Plays central role in blood clotting Helpful in milk manufacturing for nursing mothers Helps eliminate fatigue Aids in good muscle reflexes Improves the memory Reduces nervous irritability Improves weakness by stimulating transmission impulses between

the nerves and muscles Aids proper food metaboliazation and proper thyroid functioning

(thus weight loss assistance) Helps with good digestion The Discoverer of the Manganese element was Johann Gahn in

1774

Uses of Manganese

Manganese is used most commonly in steel production to help improve strength, durability, and toughness.

It can be used in medicine to help support the immune system, regulate your blood sugar, and maintain bone regulation and reproduction.

It is also used in gasoline to reduce engine knock, and is used in alkaline batteries.

Health and Biology Uses

In humans, a manganese deficiency causes defective ovulation and ovarian degeneration in females and testicular degeneration in males. Increased infant mortality occurs when the mother lacks manganese during pregnancy.

The use of manganese in the personal health of humans and in medicine today is still as important as ever. Although many people may be wary of the importance to consume important minerals along with vitamins, many are not too familiar with the importance of the consumption of Manganese in the human diet. The existence of Manganese in the body is vital to processes on the cellular level. Without it, enzymes that are vital to life are disrupted and can cause complications in health. For example, manganese aids in the formation of connective tissue in our bodies, without it or with minimal amounts, ligaments and muscles for example are less flexible and injuries can occur more readily. However, if too much manganese is consumed then health problems such as weakness, drowsiness and even paralysis may occur.  Luckily, consuming too much manganese is very rare and usually occurs to those working in mines or factories that may inhale manganese dust.

SAFETY precautions

Manganese compounds are less toxic than those of other widespread metals such as nickel and copper. However, exposure to manganese dusts and fumes should not exceed the ceiling value of 5 mg/m3 even for short periods because of its toxicity level. Manganese poisoning has been linked to impaired motor skills and cognitive disorders.

Conclusion

Manganese, Coal and Phosphates are all quite the same, there achieved by the process of mining, they devastate our landforms, they destroy the ozone layer, for short…. bad for our mother earth (why do they call it mother earth? Why not father?.... Just a silly joke…).But all of these are used to make our lives better….But the mining we pick is phosphate mining because it is the least poisonous and as a great profit value.