Aluminum mining: aluminum ore mining and metal production

Today, aluminum is one of the most popular metals, which is used both in many industries and in the everyday life of every person. It is surprising that this metal, which was considered more expensive than gold just a century and a half ago, has taken a strong position in the market and continues to be in great demand.

Industrial importance of aluminum

Aluminum is considered the most common metal. It ranks third in terms of the number of deposits in the earth's crust. Aluminum is also known to everyone as an element in the periodic table, which belongs to light metals.

Aluminum ore is the natural raw material from which this metal is obtained. It is mainly mined from bauxite, which contains aluminum oxides (alumina) in the largest quantities - from 28 to 80%. Other rocks - alunite, nepheline and nepheline-apatite are also used as raw materials for the production of aluminum, but they are of poorer quality and contain significantly less alumina.

Aluminum ranks first in non-ferrous metallurgy. The fact is that due to its characteristics it is used in many industries. Thus, this metal is used in transport engineering, packaging production, construction, and for the manufacture of various consumer goods. Aluminum is also widely used in electrical engineering.

To understand the importance of aluminum for humanity, it is enough to take a closer look at the household things that we use every day. Many household items are made of aluminum: these are parts for electrical appliances (refrigerator, washing machine, etc.), dishes, sports equipment, souvenirs, interior elements. Aluminum is often used to produce various types of containers and packaging. For example, cans or disposable foil containers.

Provision of foreign European countries with mineral resources

Metal ore deposits in Western Europe are unevenly distributed. The Balkans, Kirun (Sweden) and French Lorraine are iron ore mining regions.

Copper, nickel and chromium are predominantly found in Finland and Sweden.

Hungary and Greece are famous for their bauxite - ores of non-ferrous metals.

Rice. 2 Ore mining

Uranium and titanium have their largest deposits in France and Norway.

The richest copper deposits are in Poland.

The Balkan Peninsula, Scandinavia and Spain concentrated deposits of mercury, tin and polymetals.

Northern Europe is rich in bauxite, which is used to produce aluminum. Minerals of Northern Europe are mainly represented by metals, copper and iron ores.

In the south of Europe, in Italy, deposits of zinc and mercury ores are concentrated.

Bosnia and Herzegovina is rich in iron and aluminum ores.

Nickel ore mining is actively carried out in Germany.

Mining of small gold deposits has been discovered in the UK.

The Baltic countries are not known for their rich mineral resources.

Copper and zinc are found in Serbia, as well as gold and silver in small quantities.

Rice. 3. Map of the provision of foreign European countries with mineral resources

The variety of mineral resources of Foreign Europe is great, but the quantity is insignificant. The growth of the region's industry strictly dictates the needs for this type of raw material.

Bauxite ore

Aluminum does not occur in nature in its pure form. It is mainly obtained from aluminum ore - bauxite. It is a mineral that mostly consists of aluminum hydroxides, as well as iron and silicon oxides. Due to the high alumina content (40 to 60%), bauxite is used as a raw material for the production of aluminum.

Physical properties of aluminum ore:

• opaque mineral of red and gray colors of various shades;
• the hardness of the strongest samples is 6 on the mineralogical scale;
• The density of bauxite, depending on the chemical composition, ranges from 2900-3500 kg/m³.

Bauxite ore deposits are concentrated in the equatorial and tropical zones of the earth. More ancient deposits are located in Russia.

Rating of world countries for aluminum production and smelting for 2022

Since 2002, the leader in aluminum smelting in the world has been China . Today China smelts more than half of the world's aluminum production. At the end of 2022, China smelted 36,000 thousand tons , while 64,000 thousand tons of aluminum were produced worldwide. Following China are India and Russia ; they smelt approximately equal amounts of aluminum per year - 3,700 and 3,600 thousand tons, respectively.

For a long time, the United States was the leader in aluminum production in the world, until 2000. Today they are only at the end of the top ten with primary aluminum production at about 1,100 thousand tons. A complete list of countries by primary aluminum smelting can be found in the table below. USGS (United States Geological Survey) data was used as the main source of statistics.

How is bauxite aluminum ore formed?

Bauxite is formed from alumina monohydrate, boehmite and diaspore, trihydrate hydrargillite and associated minerals hydroxide and iron oxide.

Depending on the composition of nature-forming elements, three groups of bauxite ores are distinguished:

1. Monohydrate bauxite – contains alumina in monohydrate form.
2. Trihydrate - such minerals consist of alumina in trihydrate form.
3. Mixed - this group includes the previous aluminum ores in combination.

Deposits of raw materials are formed due to the weathering of acidic, alkaline, and sometimes basic rocks or as a result of the gradual deposition of large quantities of alumina on the sea and lake beds.

Features of mineral resources of the Scandinavian Peninsula

European countries were the earliest to begin large-scale environmental impacts. The Scandinavian Peninsula is an exception. The region's crustal resources remained untapped until the second half of the 20th century. The small population of Scandinavia also played a role in preserving the region's mineral resources.

Zinc and copper are the main elements that are used in almost all European countries. The supply of European countries with this type of raw material is covered by imports.

Alunite ores

This type of deposit contains up to 40% aluminum oxide. Alunite ore is formed in water basins and coastal zones under conditions of intense hydrothermal and volcanic activity. An example of such deposits is Lake Zaglinskoye in the Lesser Caucasus.

The rock is porous. Mainly consists of kaolinites and hydromicas. Ore with an alunite content of more than 50% is of industrial interest.

Nepheline

This is an aluminum ore of igneous origin. It is a fully crystalline alkaline rock. Depending on the composition and technological features of processing, several grades of nepheline ore are distinguished:

• first grade – 60–90% nepheline; it contains more than 25% alumina; processing is carried out by sintering;
• second grade – 40–60% nepheline, the amount of alumina is slightly lower – 22–25%; enrichment is required during processing;
• the third grade is nepheline minerals, which are of no industrial value.

World production of aluminum ores

Aluminum ore was first mined in the first half of the 19th century in the southeast of France, near the town of Box. This is where the name bauxite comes from. At first, this industry developed at a slow pace. But when humanity appreciated which aluminum ore was useful for production, the scope of aluminum application expanded significantly. Many countries have begun searching for deposits on their territories. Thus, the world production of aluminum ores began to gradually increase. The numbers confirm this fact. Thus, if in 1913 the global volume of ore mined was 540 thousand tons, then in 2014 it was more than 180 million tons.

The number of countries mining aluminum ore also gradually increased. Today there are about 30 of them. But over the past 100 years, leading countries and regions have constantly changed. Thus, at the beginning of the 20th century, the world leaders in the extraction of aluminum ore and its production were North America and Western Europe. These two regions accounted for about 98% of global production. Several decades later, in terms of quantitative indicators of the aluminum industry, the countries of Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Soviet Union became the leaders. And already in the 1950s–1960s, Latin America became the leader in terms of production. And in the 1980–1990s. There was a rapid breakthrough in the aluminum industry in Australia and Africa. In the current global trend, the main leading countries in aluminum production are Australia, Brazil, China, Guinea, Jamaica, India, Russia, Suriname, Venezuela and Greece.

Content

1. Mineral resources of foreign Europe in the context of industrialization of the region
2. Provision of foreign European countries with mineral resources
3. Table of mineral resources of Foreign Europe
4. Features of mineral resources of the Scandinavian Peninsula
5. What have we learned?

• Population of Italy
• Cities of Italy
• Italy
• Foreign Europe
• Foreign Europe - countries and capitals
• Foreign European countries with access to the sea
• Subregions of Overseas Europe
• Population of Overseas Europe
• Industries of Foreign Europe
• General characteristics of Foreign Europe
• Overseas Europe Square
• Agglomerations of Foreign Europe
• Monarchical countries of Foreign Europe
• Large countries of Foreign Europe
• Regions of Overseas Europe
• Economic and geographical position of Foreign Europe
• Forms of government of foreign European countries
• Minerals of Foreign Europe
• Peoples of Foreign Europe
• Countries of Foreign Europe with a federal structure
• National composition of Foreign Europe
• Agriculture of Foreign Europe
• Business card of the countries of Foreign Europe
• Population density of Overseas Europe
• Sea ports of Foreign Europe
• Reproduction of the population of foreign Europe
• Transport of Foreign Europe
• Urbanization of Foreign Europe
• Microstates of Foreign Europe
• Tourism of Foreign Europe
• Millionaire cities of foreign Europe
• Hot spots of foreign Europe
• Rivers of Foreign Europe
• Mechanical Engineering of Foreign Europe
• Language families of Foreign Europe
• Religions of Foreign Europe
• Islands and peninsulas of Foreign Europe
• Developed countries of Foreign Europe Mineral resources of Foreign Europe
• UK population
• UK composition
• UK economy
• UK Natural Resources
• France
• Population of France
• Cities of France
• French Parliament
• Geographical location of France
• Agriculture in France

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Ore deposits in Russia

In terms of aluminum ore production, Russia ranks seventh in the world ranking. Although aluminum ore deposits in Russia provide the country with large quantities of metal, it is not enough to fully supply the industry. Therefore, the state is forced to buy bauxite from other countries.

In total, there are 50 ore deposits in Russia. This number includes both places where the mineral is being mined and deposits that have not yet been developed.

Most of the ore reserves are located in the European part of the country. Here they are located in the Sverdlovsk, Arkhangelsk, Belgorod regions, in the Komi Republic. All these regions contain 70% of the country's total proven ore reserves.

Aluminum ores in Russia are still mined from old bauxite deposits. Such areas include the Radynskoye field in the Leningrad region. Also, due to a shortage of raw materials, Russia uses other aluminum ores, the deposits of which are of poorer quality mineral deposits. But they are still suitable for industrial purposes. Thus, in Russia, nepheline ores are mined in large quantities, which also make it possible to obtain aluminum.

Mineral resources of foreign Europe in the context of industrialization of the region

The reserves of mineral resources in Foreign Europe, although varied, are small. The distribution of these resources between the northern and southern parts of Europe is uneven. There are ore deposits in the area of ​​the Hercynian fold of the Baltic Shield in the northern part of Europe. The southern part of Europe is rich in igneous minerals and bauxite.

The increased industrialization of the last two centuries has led to a significant depletion of the mineral reserves of overseas Europe.

Rice. 1 Zones of increased industrialization of foreign Europe