Minerals and Energy Resources-

Where do these metals come from?

The earth’s crust is made up of different minerals embedded in the rocks.
Various metals are extracted from these minerals after proper refinement.

Importance of minerals—
 Minerals are an indispensable part of our lives. Almost everything we use, from a tiny pin to a
towering building or a big ship, all are made from minerals.
 The railway lines and the tarmac (paving) of the roads, our implements and machinery too
are made from minerals. Cars, buses, trains, aeroplanes are manufactured from
minerals and run on power resources derived from the earth.
 Even the food that we eat contains minerals.
 In all stages of development, human beings have used minerals for their livelihood,
decoration, festivities, religious and ceremonial rites.

What is a mineral?
A homogenous, naturally occurring substance with a definable internal structure is s known as
mineral.
Minerals are found in varied forms in nature, ranging from the hardest diamond to the softest talc.
Why are they so varied?

 Rocks are combinations of homogenous substances called minerals.

 Some rocks consist of a single mineral only, for example limestone.
 Majority of the rock consist of several minerals in varying proportions.
 Although, over 2000 minerals have been identified, only a few are abundantly found in most of
the rocks.
 A particular mineral that will be formed from a certain combination of elements depends
upon the physical and chemical conditions under which the material forms.
 This is the reason that a wide range of colors, hardness, crystal forms, luster and density that a
particular mineral possesses.

Fig.
5.1
MINERALS AND ENERGY 43
Minerals are usually found in “ores”. RESOURCES
The term ore is used to describe an accumulation of any mineral mixed with other elements.
The mineral content of the ore must be in sufficient concentration to make its extraction
commercially viable.
The type of formation or structure in which they are found determines the relative ease with which
mineral ores may be mined.
This also determines the cost of extraction.
It is, therefore, important for us to understand the main types of formations in which minerals occur.

Where are these minerals found? / What are the main types of formations in which minerals
occur?

Minerals generally occur in these forms:

1. In igneous and metamorphic rocks minerals may occur in the cracks, crevices,
faults or joints.
The smaller occurrences are called veins and the larger are called lodes.
In most cases, they are formed when minerals in liquid/ molten and gaseous forms are forced
upward through cavities towards the earth’s surface.
They cool and solidify as they rise.
Major metallic minerals like tin, copper, zinc and lead etc. are obtained from veins and lodes.

2. In sedimentary rocks a number of minerals occur in beds or layers.

They have been formed as a result of deposition, accumulation and concentration in
horizontal strata.
Coal and some forms of iron ore have been concentrated as a result of long periods under great
heat and pressure. Another group of sedimentary minerals include gypsum, potash salt and
sodium salt.
These are formed as a result of evaporation especially in arid regions.

3. Decomposition of surface rocks, and the removal of soluble constituents, leaving a

residual mass of weathered material containing ores.
Bauxite is formed this way.

4. Minerals may occur as alluvial deposits in sands of valley floors and the base of hills.
These deposits are called ‘placer deposits’ and generally contain minerals, which are not
corroded by water. Gold, silver, tin and platinum are most important among such minerals.

5. The ocean waters contain vast quantities of minerals, but most of these are too widely diffused to
be of economic significance.
Common salt, magnesium and bromine are largely derived from ocean waters. The ocean beds,
too, are rich in manganese nodules.
 Rat-Hole Mining-
Most of the minerals in India are nationalised and their extraction is possible only after
obtaining due permission from the government.
But in most of the tribal areas of the north-east India, minerals are owned by individuals or
communities.
In Meghalaya, there are large deposits of coal, iron ore, limestone and dolomite etc.
Coal mining in Jowai and Cherapunjee is done by family member in the form of a long narrow
tunnel, known as ‘Rat hole’ mining. The National Green Tribunal has declared such
activities illegal and recommended that these should be stopped forthwith.
What is the difference between an open pit mine, a quarry and an underground mine with
shafts?

Open Pit Mine Quarry Underground Mine with

Shafts

Minerals are removed Minerals are removed from a Minerals are removed through
from a pot dug in the shallow pit dug in the ground deep shafts dug in the ground
ground

Used where commercially Generally, used for extracting Used where the mineral
useful minerals are found building materials like occurs as veins in hard rock
near the surface dimension stone deep below the surface of the
Earth

Extracted using Extracted using Earth moving Extracted using elevators that
Earth moving machinery machinery can carry minerals, extraction
equipment as well as persons
into the area where the
mineral is available

India is fortunate to have fairly rich and varied mineral resources.

These are unevenly distributed.- (Examples)

 Peninsular rocks- coal, metallic minerals, mica and many other non-metallic minerals.

 Sedimentary rocks on the western and eastern flanks of the peninsula, in Gujarat and Assam -
petroleum deposits.

 Rajasthan -non-ferrous minerals.

  The vast alluvial plains of north India - no economic minerals.

Why the minerals are unevenly distributed?

Due to differences in-

 the geological structure

 processes

 Time involved in the formation of minerals.

The economic viability of a reserve depends on—

 The concentration of mineral in the ore
 The ease of extraction
 Closeness to the market

Thus, to meet the demand, a choice has to be made between a number of possible options. When
this is done a mineral ‘deposit’ or ‘reserve’ turns into a mine.

Ferrous Minerals
 Ferrous minerals account for about three- fourths of the total value of the production of
metallic minerals.
 They provide a strong base for the development of metallurgical industries.
 India exports substantial quantities of ferrous minerals after meeting her internal demands.
Iron Ore
Iron ore is the basic mineral and the backbone of industrial development.
Magnetite -the finest iron ore- with a very high content of iron up to 70 per cent- has excellent
magnetic qualities, especially valuable in the electrical industry.
Hematite ore - the most important industrial iron ore in terms of the quantity used, - has a slightly
lower iron content than magnetite (50-60 per cent).
(97%) accrued from Odisha, Chhattisgarh, (3%) was from other states.
Karnataka and Jharkhand

 Kudre in Kannada means horse. The highest peak in the western ghats of Karnataka
resembles the face of a horse.
 The Bailadila hills look like the hump of an ox, and hence its name.
The major iron ore belts in India are:
• Odisha-Jharkhand belt: (haematite iron ore is found)
 Odisha- Mayurbhanj and Kendujhar districts (Badampahar mines)
 Jharkhand - Singbhum district ( Gua and Noamundi mines)

• Durg-Bastar-Chandrapur belt: (haematite iron ore is found)- lies in Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra.
 Chhattisgarh - Bastar district (Bailadila range of hills)
Iron ore is exported to Japan and South Korea via Vishakhapatnam port.

• Ballari-Chitradurga-Chikkamagaluru- Tumakuru belt:

 Karnataka - Kudremukh mines located in the Western Ghats of Karnataka .

The ore is transported as slurry through a pipeline to a port near Mangaluru.

Maharashtra-Goa belt:
 Goa
 Maharashtra- Ratnagiri district
Iron ore is exported through Marmagao port.

Manganese
Manganese is mainly used in the manufacturing of steel and ferro-manganese alloy.
Nearly 10 kg of manganese is required to manufacture one tonne of steel.
It is also used in manufacturing bleaching powder, insecticides and paints.
Madhya Pradesh is the leading producer followed by Maharashtra and Odisha.

Superimpose the maps showing distribution of iron ore, manganese, coal and iron and
steel industry. Do you see any correlation? Why?
Most of the iron and steel industries are located in the same region as these minerals act as raw
material for Ion-and steel industries.
Non-Ferrous Minerals (copper, bauxite, lead, zinc and gold)

Copper
Characteristics—
 malleable, ductile and a good conductor, copper
uses—
 electrical cables, electronics
leading producers of copper –
 in Madhya Pradesh-- The Balaghat mines
  in Rajasthan -- Khetri mines
 Jharkhand -- Singhbhum district of are leading producers of copper.
Bauxite (aluminium is obtained)

Characteristics—
 Combines the strength of metals such as iron,
 Extreme lightness
 Good conductivity
 Great malleability
India’s bauxite deposits are mainly found in the
 Odisha (largest producer)--Panchpatmali deposits in Koraput district
 Chhattisgarh & Madhya Pradesh-- Amarkantak plateau, Maikal hills and the plateau region of
Bilaspur-Katni

Why Chhota Nagpur is a storehouse of minerals?

Chota Nagpur plateau is a store house of minerals like mica, bauxite, copper, limestone, iron ore and
coal.
(i) Iron ore is found in abundance and about 40% of iron ore in India is found in this area.
(ii) Over 50% of manganese in India is found in this region.
(iii) Almost 60% of copper in India is found here.
(iv) Almost 60% of bauxite in India is found here.
(v) The region is also rich in coal.

Non-Metallic Minerals
Mica
Characteristics—
 made up of a series of plates or leaves.
 splits easily into thin sheets
 clear, black, green, red yellow or brown.
 excellent di-electric strength, low power loss factor, insulating properties and resistance
to high voltage, mica is one of the most indispensable minerals used in electric and
electronic industries.

Distribution—
 Jharkhand --Koderma Gaya – Hazaribagh belt
 Rajasthan -- around Ajmer
 Andhra Pradesh -- Nellore mica belt
 Rock Minerals
Limestone

found in sedimentary rocks

Uses--
 The basic raw material for the cement industry
 Essential for smelting iron ore in the blast furnace.

Distribution—
Rajasthan is the leading producer followed by Andhra Pradesh , Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh

Hazards of Mining
What are the impacts of mining on the health of the miners and the environment?
 The dust and noxious fumes inhaled by miners make them vulnerable
to pulmonary diseases.
 The risk of collapsing mine roofs, inundation and fires in coalmines
are a Constant threat to miners.
 The water sources in the region get contaminated due to mining.
 Dumping of waste and slurry leads to degradation of land, soil, and increase in
stream and river pollution.

Stricter safety regulations and implementation of environmental laws are essential to prevent
mining from becoming a “killer industry”.
CONSERVATION OF MINERALS
Need to conserve minerals---
strong dependence of industry and agriculture upon mineral deposits and the substances
manufactured from them.
The total volume of workable mineral deposits is an insignificant fraction i.e. one per cent of the
earth’s crust.
We are rapidly consuming mineral resources t h a t required millions of years to be created and
concentrated.
The geological processes of mineral formation are so slow that the rates of replenishment are
infinitely small in comparison to the present rates of consumption. Mineral resources are,
therefore, finite and non-renewable.
Rich mineral deposits are our country’s extremely valuable but short-lived possessions.
Continued extraction of ores leads to increasing costs as mineral extraction comes from greater
 depths along with decrease in quality.

Measures to conserve minerals---

 Concerted effort has to be made in order to use our mineral resources in a planned and
sustainable manner.
 Improved technologies need to be constantly evolved to allow use of low grade ores at low
costs.
 Recycling of metals,
 using scrap metals
 other substitutes

Energy Resources
Uses/ Need of energy resources—
Energy is required for all activities. It is needed—
 to cook
 to provide light and heat
 to propel vehicles
 to drive machinery in industries.

Energy can be generated from fuel minerals like coal, petroleum, natural gas, uranium and
from electricity.
Energy resources can be classified as –
 conventional
 non-conventional sources
Conventional sources Non-conventional sources
firewood, cattle dung cake, coal, petroleum, solar, wind, tidal, geothermal, biogas and atomic
natural gas and electricity (both hydel and energy
thermal)
Firewood and cattle dung cake are most common in rural India. more than 70 per cent energy
requirement in rural households is met by these two.
Drawback of using firewood and cattle dung cake—
 continuation of firewood is increasingly becoming difficult due to decreasing forest area
 using dung cake too is being discouraged because it consumes most valuable manure which
could be used in agriculture.

Conventional Sources of Energy

Coal: (the most abundantly available fossil fuel)
used for—
 power generation
  to supply energy to industry
 for domestic needs.

Quality of coal depends on the degrees of compression and the depth and time of burial.
 Peat--Decaying plants in swamps produce peat, which has a low carbon and high moisture
contents and low heating capacity.
 Lignite --is a low grade brown coal, which is soft with high moisture content. The principal lignite
reserves are in Neyveli in Tamil Nadu and are used for generation of electricity.
 Bituminous-- Coal that has been buried deep and subjected to increased temperatures is
bituminous coal. It is the most popular coal in commercial use. Metallurgical coal is high grade
bituminous coal which has a special value for smelting iron in blast furnaces.
 Anthracite is the highest quality hard coal.

In India coal occurs in rock series of two main geological ages, -

 Gondwana(200 million years in age)--- metallurgical coal, are located in Damodar valley (West
Bengal-Jharkhand). Jharia, Raniganj, Bokaro are important coalfields. The
Godavari, Mahanadi, Son and Wardha valleys also contain coal deposits

 Tertiary deposits ( about 55 million years old)-- north eastern states of Meghalaya,
Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland.

Petroleum
provides fuel for—
 heat and lighting
 lubricants for machinery
 raw materials for a number of manufacturing industries.

Petroleum refineries act as a “nodal industry” for synthetic textile, fertilizer and
numerous chemical industries.
1. Most of the petroleum occurrences in India are associated with anticlines and
fault traps in the rock formations of the tertiary age.
2. In regions of folding, anticlines or domes, it occurs where oil is trapped in the
crest of the upfold.
3. The oil bearing layer is a porous limestone or sandstone through which oil may
flow.
4. The oil is prevented from rising or sinking by intervening non-porous layers.
5. Petroleum is also found in fault traps between porous and non-porous rocks.
Gas, being lighter usually occurs above the oil.

Mumbai High, Gujarat and Assam are major petroleum production areas in India.
  Ankeleshwar is the most important field of Gujarat.
 Assam is the oldest oil producing state of India. Digboi, Naharkatiya and Moran-
Hugrijan are the important oil fields in the state.
Natural Gas
Natural Gas is found with petroleum deposits and is released when crude oil is
brought to the surface.
 It can be used as a domestic and industrial fuel.
 It is used as fuel in power sector to generate electricity,
 for heating purpose in industries,
 as raw material in chemical, petrochemical and fertilizer industries,
 as transport fuel and as cooking fuel.

Natural gas –
 transport fuel (CNG) Compressed natural Gas
 cooking fuel (PNG) at homes Piped natural Gas

India’s major gas reserves –

 Mumbai High and allied fields along the west coast
 Cambay basin
 Along the East Coast, new reserves of natural gas have been discovered in
the Krishna-Godavari basin.

Pipelines—
Hazira-Vijaipur- Jagdishpur (HVJ) –
The first 1,700 km long Hazira-Vijaipur- Jagdishpur (HVJ) #cross country gas
pipeline#constructed by GAIL (India)# linked Mumbai High and Bassein gas fields
#with various fertilizer, power and industrial complexes in #western and northen
India.
This artery (HVJ)provided impetus to Indian gas market development.

Electricity
Electricity – per capita consumption is considered as an index of development.

Hydro electricity –
 generated by fast flowing water
  a renewable resource.
Bhakra Nangal, Damodar Valley corporation, the Kopili Hydel Project etc.
producing hydroelectric power.
Thermal electricity
 generated by using coal, petroleum and natural gas
 use non-renewable fossil fuels for generating electricity.

Non-Conventional Sources of Energy

Need to use renewable energy –
1. The growing consumption of energy has resulted in the country becoming increasingly
dependent on fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas.
2. Rising prices of oil and gas and their potential shortages have raised uncertainties about
the security of energy supply in future, which in turn has serious repercussions on the growth
of the national economy.
3. Moreover, increasing use of fossil fuels also causes serious environmental problems.
Hence, there is a pressing need to use renewable energy sources like solar energy, wind, tide,
biomass and energy from waste material. These are called non-conventional energy sources.
India is blessed with an abundance of sunlight, water, wind and biomass.

Nuclear or Atomic Energy

It is obtained by altering the structure of atoms.
When such an alteration is made, much energy is released in the form of heat and this is used to
generate electric power.
Distribution—
 Uranium and Thorium in Jharkhand and the Aravalli ranges of Rajasthan
 The Monazite sands of Kerala is also rich in Thorium

Solar Energy
 India is a tropical country.
 It has enormous possibilities of tapping solar energy.
 Photovoltaic technology converts sunlight directly into electricity.
 Solar energy is fast becoming popular in rural and remote areas.
 Some big solar power plants are being established in different parts of India which will
minimize the dependence of rural households on firewood and dung cakes, which in
turn will contribute to environmental conservation and adequate supply of manure in
agriculture.
Wind power
India has great potential of wind power.
Distribution-
  The largest wind farm cluster is located in Tamil Nadu from Nagarcoil to Madurai.
 Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Gujarat, Kerala, Maharashtra and Lakshadweep have
important wind farms.
Nagarcoil and Jaisalmer are well known for effective use of wind energy in the country.

Biogas
 Shrubs, farm waste, animal and human waste are used to produce biogas for domestic
consumption in rural areas.
 Decomposition of organic matter yields gas, which has higher thermal efficiency in
comparison to kerosene, dung cake and charcoal.
 Biogas plants are set up at municipal, cooperative and individual levels.
 The plants using cattle dung are known as ‘Gobar gas plants’ in rural India.
 These provide twin benefits to the farmer in the form of energy and improved quality of
manure.
Advantage- Biogas is by far the most efficient use of cattle dung. It improves the quality of
manure and also prevents the loss of trees and manure due to burning of fuel wood and cow
dung cakes.

Tidal Energy
 Oceanic tides can be used to generate electricity.
 Floodgate dams are built across inlets.
 During high tide water flows into the inlet and gets trapped when the gate is closed.
 After the tide falls outside the flood gate, the water retained by the floodgate flows back to the
sea via a pipe that carries it through a power-generating turbine.
Distribution—
 the Gulf of Khambhat
 the Gulf of Kuchchh in Gujarat on the western coast
 Gangetic delta in Sunderban regions of West Bengal
Geo Thermal Energy
Geo thermal energy refers to the heat and electricity produced by using the heat from the interior of
the Earth.
Geothermal energy exists because, the Earth grows progressively hotter with increasing depth.
Where the geothermal gradient is high, high temperatures are found at shallow depths.
Groundwater in such areas absorbs heat from the rocks and becomes hot.
It is so hot that when it rises to the earth’s surface, it turns into steam.
This steam is used to drive turbines and generate electricity. There are several hundred hot springs in
India, which could be used to generate electricity.
 Two experimental projects have been set up in India—
1. One is located in the Parvati valley near Manikarn in Himachal Pradesh
2. in the Puga Valley, Ladakh.

Conservation of Energy Resources

Energy is a basic requirement for economic development.
Every sector of the national economy – agriculture, industry, transport, commercial and
domestic – needs inputs of energy.
The economic development plans implemented since Independence necessarily required
increasing amounts of energy to remain operational.
As a result, consumption of energy in all forms has been steadily rising all over the country.

In this background, there is an urgent need to develop a sustainable path of energy

development.
Promotion of energy conservation and increased use of renewable energy sources are the twin
planks of sustainable energy.

Steps to conserve energy resources or energy saved is energy produced —

1. using public transport systems instead of individual vehicles
2. switching off electricity when not in use
3. using power-saving devices
4. using non-conventional sources of energy