Why is gold often extracted from ores that contain very small amounts of metal but iron is extracted from ores?
As Lestermount says. I swear, I wish we had a sticky of some sort for this silly myth. It dates to the early 1900s and was a lie then.It still is.
This is largely down to something known as the 'cut off ore grade'. This is the highest concentration of economically and technologically exploitable metal in a rock. Low-grade ores yield less profit as more money is spent quarrying, transporting and processing the bulky ores than is made up for by the profits of the metal within. Because gold has far more value per Kg than iron we can afford to extract it in lower concentrations and still make a reasonable profit. It's also less costly to extract due to the fact it is unlikely to have reacted with other minerals.
Gold is not reactive at all to other metals around it. It doesn't donate electrons easily, so it doesn't form bonds spontaneously. So, it's usually not bonded with other metals in its ore. Iron, on the other hand, is very reactive, and will give up its electrons easily. So, it will spontaneously react with other things around it (with air it forms rust). Iron ore is then found with other metals in it. Google Activity Series, and something will come up to show you the reactive and unreactive metals.
As Lestermount says. I swear, I wish we had a sticky of some sort for this silly myth. It dates to the early 1900s and was a lie then.It still is.
This is largely down to something known as the 'cut off ore grade'. This is the highest concentration of economically and technologically exploitable metal in a rock. Low-grade ores yield less profit as more money is spent quarrying, transporting and processing the bulky ores than is made up for by the profits of the metal within. Because gold has far more value per Kg than iron we can afford to extract it in lower concentrations and still make a reasonable profit. It's also less costly to extract due to the fact it is unlikely to have reacted with other minerals.
Gold is not reactive at all to other metals around it. It doesn't donate electrons easily, so it doesn't form bonds spontaneously. So, it's usually not bonded with other metals in its ore. Iron, on the other hand, is very reactive, and will give up its electrons easily. So, it will spontaneously react with other things around it (with air it forms rust). Iron ore is then found with other metals in it. Google Activity Series, and something will come up to show you the reactive and unreactive metals.
