Mining, rocks, soil and Energy resources

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Mining, rocks, soil and Energy resources
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Mining

• Why do we mine? To get ore
• Ore A rock containing a mineral
• A places with a concentration of ore is referred
  to as a deposit

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Possible uses of some minerals mined in Quebec

• Gold jewellery, trade, electronic equipment
• Copper pipes for plumbing, electrical wire
• Zinc galvanized steel (to prevent corrosion)
• Nickel stainless steel manufacture, coins,
  magnets
• Iron steel manufacture

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Rocks

• Types of rocks
• Igneous (formed when magma cools and solidifies)
• Sedimentary (formed by the accumulation/compaction
  of debris)
• Metamorphic (formed when igneous or sedimentary
  rocks have been transformed by heat and/or
  pressure)

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Uses of rocks

• Granite ornamental stone
• Sandstone building materials
• Marble interior design, decorative objects

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Soil

• Naturally occurring, loose covering on the
  earth's surface.
• Made up of broken rock particles that have been
  altered by chemical and environmental conditions.
  
• Soil can be altered by interactions between the
  lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and the
  biosphere.

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Soil Horizons (Layers)

• A specific layer in the soil which measures
  parallel to the soil surface and possesses
  physical characteristics which differ from the
  layers above and beneath.

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Layers

• O- composed mainly of humus, organic layers of
  plant and animal residue
• A- mixture of humus and minerals soluble in
  water, support plant life (Topsoil)
• B- composed of small particles of minerals, dense
  (tree roots get their nutrients here)
• C- degradation of rocks, unconsolidated soil
  parent material
• R- partially-weathered bedrock at the base of the
  soil profile. (starting point of soil formation)

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Permafrost

• Permafrost is ground whose temperature has been 0
  degrees Celsius for at least two years.
• 50 of the land in Canada is covered in
  permafrost.

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Energy resources

• Other than minerals the lithosphere also contains
  much of the worlds energy resources

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Fossil fuels

• Fossil fuels result from the transformation of
  organic residue. These energy sources consists of
  oil, natural gas and coal.
• Non-renewable source of energy.

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Fossil fuels

• When fossil fuels burn they emit thermal energy.
• Often the thermal energy is converted into
  electrical energy or mechanical energy ( i.e. to
  make an engine work)
• Combustion also gives off by-products
• CO2 (greenhouse gase)
• NOx and SO2 are responsible for acid rain
• - CH4 (21x more powerful than CO2 as a
  greenhouse gas)

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Uranium

• Uranium is used as a source for nuclear energy.
• Nuclear energy the energy stored in the bonds
  between the particles in the nucleus of an atom.
• Quebec has on nuclear plant, the Gentilly-2
  Nuclear Generating Station.

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Geothermics

• Geothermal energy is the energy that comes from
  the internal heat of the Earth.
• It is a renewable source of energy.

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In class work

• P. 215
• Questions 10 to 19