The Earth's crust contains valuable mineral resources, including metallic minerals like gold and silver, and nonmetals like sulfur and quartz. Ores can form through various geological processes such as cooling magma, contact metamorphism, and the movement of water. Mining companies explore for mineral deposits, often employing subsurface or surface mining methods, including placer and undersea mining.

1. MINERAL RESOURCES

2. Earth crust contains useful mineral resources.
Mineral resources can be either metals,
such as gold, Au, Silver, Ag and aluminum,
Al or nonmetals, such as sulfur , S, and
quartz, Sio2 metals can be defined by their
shiny suface

3. ORES
metallic minerals such as gold, silver and
copper, cu are called native elemenets and can
be exist in earth's crust as nuggets of pure
metal.

4. Example of
ores

5. ORES FORM BY COOLING
MAGMA
Ores form in a variety of ways, such as
shown in figure 1. Some ores, such as
chromium, Cr, Nickel, Ni; and lead, Pb
ores from within cooling magma.

6. ORES FORMED BY COOLING
MAGMA

7. ORES FORMED BY CONTACT METAMORPHISM
Some lead, Pb, copper, Cu; and zinc, Zn, ores
form through the process of contract
metamorphism.
Contact metamorphism can also form ore
deposit when hot fluid called hydrothermal
solutions move through small ceack in a large
mass of rock.

8. ORES FORMED BY MOVING
WATER
The movement of water helps to form
ore deposits, First, tiny fragments of
native elements, such as gold, Au, are
released from rock as it breaks down
by weathering.

10. MINERAL EXPLORATION AND
MINING
Companies that mine and recover minerals are
often looking for new areas to mine.
In general, an area is considered for
mining if it has at least 100 to 1.000 times
concentration of minerals that are found
elsewhere.
During mineral exploration, people search for
minedal deposits by studying local geology.

11. SUBSURFACE
MINING
Many minerals
deposits are
located below
earth's surface.
Example of subsurface
mining

12. SURFACE
MINING
When minerals deposits
are located close to
Earth's surface, they may
be mined by using
surface mining methods.
Example of surface

13. PLACER MINING
Minerals in placer
deposits are mined by
dredging. In placer, large
buckets are attached to a
floating barge
Example of Placer mining

14. UNDERSEA MINING
The ocean floors also
contains mineral
resources. Nodules are
lumps of minerals on the
deep- ocean floor that
contains iron, Fe;,
managanese, Mn; and
Example of
Undersea