Key Stage 3
Meaning
An ore is rock that has a large enough amount of a mineral to be worth extracting the metal from that mineral.
About Ores
- Ores are found in different places on the Earth's Crust.
- All rocks have minerals in them but most do not have them in a large enough fraction to be worth the money it would take to extract a metal from them.
Key Stage 4
Meaning
An ore is rock that has a large enough amount of a mineral to be worth extracting the metal from that mineral.
About Ores
- An ore may be referred to as a low grade ore which contains a small percentage of the mineral by mass or a high grade ore which contains a high percentage of the mineral by mass.
- The grade of an ore determines whether it is worth the cost and effort to extract the mineral.
- Low grade ores are usually extracted using phytomining or bioleaching which are cheap but take a long time.