Mineral beneficiation. A concise basic course / Обогащение полезных ископаемых. Краткий базовый курс

The Earth’s Crust is the topmost solid layer of the Earth which has a thickness of 30–35 km in the continents and 5–6 km in the oceans (the Mantle and the Core being the other two inner parts of the earth). According to F.W. Clarke, the abundance of Chemical elements in the earth’s crust is shown in Table 1.1. The chemical elements that occur in the earth’s crust in compound forms are known as minerals. However, certain elements like Gold, Silver, Platinum and Copper often occur in native form.
The use of minerals has been instrumental in raising the standard of living of mankind. The sophisticated world of today is largely the result of the enlarged use of minerals for various purposes. All engineering and structural materials, machinery, plants, equipments and anything from a pin to a plane are manufactured from metals extracted from minerals. Some minerals form the starting point for basic industries like cement, fertilizer, ceramic, electrical, insulating, refractory, paint and abrasive materials and a host of chemicals. There is not a single industry which can do without minerals or their products. Minerals, thus, form part and parcel of our daily life. <...>