Metals Flashcards
Where are metals found?
In the earths crust, normally as compounds…
What are ores?
Metal in the ground that are considered economically viable to extract
What are native metals?
Un-reactive metals that are found as elements in the earths crust
How are metals less reactive than carbon extracted?
Displacement reaction when the more reactive metal displaces the metal trying to be extracted eg. copper oxide + carbon –> copper + carbon dioxide
How is iron extracted?
In a blast furnace with carbon…
Why are metals that have impurities not strong and are brittle?
Because the impurities don’t allow the molecules to move over one another and fracture
How is aluminium extracted?
Electrolysis because it is more reactive than carbon or any other cheap metal.
Copper through electrolysis?
electrodes placed in copper sulphate… the negative electrode with attract the positive copper.
Traditional extraction method?
Thermal decomposition where copper sulphate is heated to make copper and sulphur.
Phytomining?
Plants are used to extract the metal from the ground. The plant is then burnt and purified by electrolysis.
Bioleaching?
Bacteria produce a leachate solution which contains the metal compound. This method is slow however…
