Download - MINERALS AND MINING IN SOUTH AFRICA (PART 1)
MINERALS AND MINING IN SOUTH AFRICA (PART 1)
MINING AND COAL RESOURCES OF SOUTH AFRICA
Watch the following video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bosiffFrRw8
What are minerals?
A mineral is a substance formed in the earth. Minerals are not made by animals or plants. Minerals that you will probably have about are gold, silver and iron. Salt is also a mineral.
Some minerals like calcium are very important for our health. This is because our bones are made up of calcium.
The earth contains minerals These minerals were formed at the same time as the earth was formed. Some minerals like iron are common. Other minerals like gold and platinum are very rare. There is so little gold and platinum in the earth that it would not be worth trying to mine it in most places. The places where a mineral is mined are places where that mineral is most common.
Because no new minerals are
being made in the earth, once
all the minerals have been
dug out of the earth there will
be no more left. We need to
think carefully about this
when we are thinking about
the future.
Minerals are called non-
renewable resources because
once they are used up, we
cannot get or make anymore
THE MAIN MINERALS MINED IN SOUTH AFRICA
GOLD
Gold has been mined in South Africa
for a very long time. The golden rhino
found at Mapungubwe is over 800
years old. Gold has been mined in the
Johannesburg area since the 1880s.
A one time South Africa produced
more gold than any other country in
the world. However, most of the gold
has been mined and South Africa is
now only the fourth largest producer
of gold in the world.
Gold has a number of uses:
- It is something people can buy
which keeps its value.
- It is used to make jewellery.
- It is used in computers.
- It is used as a medicine.
Gold is very heavy…
This is the HEAVIEST gold
bar in the world!!
It weighs 250 kilograms!
SILVER
We do not have any silver mines in South Africa.
The silver produced in South Africa comes from the
same mines as the gold.
Silver has many uses:
- It is used to make jewellery.
- It is used in computers and cell phones.
- Dentists use silver in fillings for teeth
PLATINUM
PLATINUM
Platinum is the most expensive mineral mined in South Africa. South Africa has the largest amount of platinum in the world.
Platinum has many uses:
- It is used to make jewellery.
- It is used in cars to change poisonous exhaust gases into gases that are not poisonous
- It is used to make medicines to treat cancer
The rich platinum reefs in South Africa were formed
about two billion years ago. At that time a very large
amount of hot, melted rock came pushing up towards
the surface of the earth. Because there was so much
hot, melted rock it took hundreds of years to cool down
into solid rock. This allowed platinum, which is heavy,
to settle in layers towards the bottom of the melted
rock. This means that there is enough platinum in
these reefs to be able to be mined.
DIAMONDS
Diamonds are made from carbon. This is
the same substance that coal and braai
charcoal are made out of.
Diamonds are formed in volcanoes. In the
volcanoes the bits of carbon are made
very hot. They are also placed under a
huge amount of pressure. This changes
the little bits of carbon into diamonds.
Diamonds have two main uses:
1. Gemstone diamonds are used in jewellery.
2. Industrial diamonds – diamonds are so hard
that they are used in tools that cut and polish.
Only a diamond can polish another diamond.
IRON ORE & CHROME
Iron ore has iron in it. It is one of the most
common minerals in the earth. South Africa has
large amounts of iron ore.
The main use of iron ore is to make steel. Steel
is iron with a small amount of carbon added to
it. Most of the metal things you come across in
your everyday life are made of steel.
In case you did not know:
Ore – the rocks or soil in which a mineral is
found.
Chrome: South Africa has the largest
amount of chrome in the world. This
mineral was formed in the same way as
platinum.
Chrome is used to cover metal with a silver
surface. This is called a chrome plating.
Chrome is mixed with iron to form stainless
steel. Stainless steel has a silvery look. It is
very strong and cannot rust like ordinary
steel.
COPPER & MANGANESE South Africa has large amounts of copper. Copper is a
very useful metal.
Electricity travels very easily through copper. Electrical
cables are made out of copper.
Thieves steal copper because it is a useful and valuable
metal.
Most water pipes used in buildings are made from
copper.
Copper is also used to make cooking pots and other
household goods.
South Africa has the largest amount of manganese
in the world.
It is mixed with steel to make it stronger and stop it
from rusting.
It is mixed with aluminium to form a metal that is
not damaged by such things as the rain and sun.
It is used to make lead replacement petrol. South
Africa no longer uses lead in its petrol because lead
is a very poisonous mineral which is bad for
people’s health. However, some older cars cannot
run on unleaded petrol as it damages their engines,
so they have to run on lead replacement petrol
which has manganese in it
ACTIVITYIN YOUR GEOGRAPHY WORKBOOK, WRITE TODAY’S DATE AND HEADING ‘MINERALS AND MINING
IN SOUTH AFRICA’. UNDERLINE BOTH.
List the ways in which each of the following minerals are used:
1. Gold:
2. Silver:
3. Platinum:
4. Diamonds:
5. Iron ore:
6. Copper:
7. Manganese: