Extraction Processes of Elements

Keywords

Extraction, mining, metals, ore, reduction, phytomining, electrolysis, compound, reactive, ash, electrons.

Introduction

We have an abundance of materials that we can process using extraction processes, because most metals are found combined with other elements that form compounds. But how do we extract them to get the pure element?

Methods of Extraction

There are several ways in which we can extract metals from the ore we mine. They include the following.

Electrolysis

An expensive method of extraction, molten compounds that have the pure elements can then be separated. All metals can be extracted, but the price goes up if they are harder to remove. If a metal is less reactive than carbon, it can be heated with carbon to remove.

Interesting fact: the name metal comes from the ancient Greek word 'metallon', which means to mine or excavate.

Phytomining

Plants often soak up minerals and metal compounds when planted near to a mine, for example, and are in higher concentration of these precious metals. When they have grown enough with the metal compounds, such as copper, they are then burned to the ground (under controlled conditions), and turned to ash. This ash is then processed, as it is easier to remove this way.

Phytomining is a slower process, as you have to wait for the plants to grow, but it reduces the need to obtain new ore by mining, plus it conserves limited supplies of more valuable ores that have a higher content of metal.

Reduction

The reduction process is where more electrons are gained by a substance. It is also the result of the loss of oxygen from the same substance.

An example of this is copper oxide. Through the reduction process, it can be reduced down with the removal of oxygen to form its pure elements (copper and oxygen). The addition of hydrogen to copper oxide creates a reaction that then sees the copper and oxygen split, and creates pure copper and water.