Copper Mining and Manufacturing From the Largest Deposits in the World

coins electric wiring and bits of cars all have one thing in common yes you've probably guessed it right they are all made up of copper it is also dubbed as one of the best conductors of electricity and heat which is why it is a favorite material in terms of wiring heat sinks and cookware in fact around 26 million tons of copper are consumed globally each year but do you have any idea where all of these come from well that is what we will be exploring in today's Lord Gizmo video looking deeper into this location you will start to see huge and Tall machines getting prepped for their job this is to prepare the ground for underground mining construction of mining site ameni such housing quarters for Laborers offices and warehouses is also included copper is found in the Earth's crust and the only way to extract it is through mining the workers are already aware of the dangers and risks of mining so they make sure sure to plan the steps they take especially since it includes explosions and a lot of drilling here you can see holes that are Meers long and positioned strategically these holes will then be filled with explosives to open up the surface of the Earth now what happens here are all monitored in a control center usually on top of a tower their experts are able to see all of the factors they need to consider when mining like movements water level pressure and so much more once all the conditions are done and the area is already blasted off with explosives the workers start extracting the copper ores these huge machines you see here are tasked to gather all the debris and materials from the explosion since they handle such heavy jobs these machines are also manufactured to have sturdy reliable and robust designs a single mining site requires multiple of these machines in order to have an efficient and smooth smooth workflow you can also see how machines are not the only thing that keep this mining site together since they work with explosives and dig holes they also need some mechanism that will keep the stability of the ground they work with this is where special shafts are used once they have gathered the debris they begin to transfer it to another specialized vehicle most of the time these are load Hall dump trucks that are specifically made to carry heavy stones and ores they are filled with broken rocks and ores then after they are filled they will be driven by the workers so that they can transfer the debris to the processing facility after extracting the copper ore it needs to be processed to separate the Copper from waste rock and impurities this can involve crushing grinding flotation and electrolysis the resulting copper is then refined and purified for use in various applications fun fact the Statue of Liberty a symbol of freedom and democracy is made of copper and has developed its iconic green patina over the years due to Copper's reaction with the environment now that they have the ORS the next process is going to be about breaking them down into smaller pieces this is to ensure that the next processes will be much easier and smoother inside a usual processing facility you can see either a jaw Crusher or cone crusher that helps with this whole process the ore is crushed by two enormous Stone Jaws in a jaw Crusher and the particles are broken up by a rotating cone in a cone crusher The Ore is ground by both devices into pieces no bigger than 10 mm in diameter ball Mills are used to grind the coarse ore into a fine powder after it has been crushed steel balls are placed within a revolving drum to form a ball mill the steel balls strike the ore particles as the drum rotates fragmenting them into smaller pieces until the required particle size is reached which is typically around 100 microns this process is repeated the ball mill may also have lifters classifiers and diaphragms in order to guarantee uniform grinding these characteristics Aid in controlling the material flow within the drum and guard against excessive or insufficient grinding the waste rock and copper mineral are both present in the resulting slurry and will be separated during the flotation stage the process of extracting ore does not end there it still has to be separated from other minerals and impurities most of the time this is done through the process of flotation but how do they do this first of all the ground ore will be mixed with water and chemical collectors these chemicals are responsible for selectively binding to The Copper minerals while the flocculant are used to remove impurities after that this mixture will be transferred to this enormous tank which is often called the flotation cell if you look closely you will see how there are air bubbles forming in the mixture but do not worry because all of these are part of a plan these bubbles cause the copper minerals to float making it easier to separate them the particles are skimmed off and gathered in a concentrated State as soon as they reach the surface while the waste rock or sludge descends to the bottom and is removed through the bottom of the cell the froth holding the copper minerals is removed via the top of the cell there could be as much as 30 to 40% copper in the foam after that these separated copper will be transferred to another facility where they can be refined what this facility does is electrolytic refining mining now that they have the blister copper they will then slice it into thin plates these plates will be turned over to this machine that delivers it to this area of the [Music] [Music] facility fun fact copper is antimicrobial meaning it has the unique ability to kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria and other microorganisms this property has made copper incredibly useful in health care settings for example Hospital door knobs handrails and even bed rails are sometimes made with copper or copper Alloys to reduce the spread of [Music] infections [Music] [Music] [Music] this is where they will start immersing the copper plate into a tank with an electrolyte solution of sulfuric acid and dissolved copper sulfate when electricity is introduced into the tank an interesting process begins copper ions are released into the solution as the blister copper plates partially disintegrate simultaneously pure copper plates positioned across from the anodes draw in and deposit these copper ions becoming thicker by the hour the pure copper that is left on the cathodes after the contaminants in the blister copper dissolves over a few days or sink to the bottom of the tank these cathode plates are the valuable result of electrolytic purification they now contain 99.99% pure [Music] copper an interesting and important process for sculpting copper into the exact wires and tubes we come into contact with in daily life is cold drawing this method turns thick rods or tubes into fine elongated forms by utilizing Copper's extraordinary malleability and ductility with a hole in the middle somewhat smaller than the diameter of your initial copper Rod or tube picture a robust dye made of a donut-shaped piece of hard material such as diamond or Tong ksten carbide this die is positioned in the center of the cold drawing setup prepared to direct the transformation of the metal with tremendous Force the copper Rod or tube is drawn through the dye by a strong mechanism there is a considerable plastic Distortion of the metal when it moves through the narrower aperture its interior grains align in the direction of the pull causing it to get compressed and stretched the copper gets longer and thinner with each Tri R through the D first diameters can shrink by up to 80% a substantial fall in size but the cold drawing method does more for the copper than just make it thinner it improves its qualities as well then it also undergo wire drawing thick copper rods are made into thin lengthy wires using this method as the rod is drawn through a sequence of dyes with ever tinier holes the metal is stretched made longer and its diameter is decreased the precise control of the wi's final diameter and cross-sectional shape is largely dependent on each die this makes it possible to create wires that meet particular mechanical or electrical requirements by using different profiles and thicknesses wire drawing not only shapes the copper but also enhances its strength and conductivity the pulling process aligns the Metal's grains making it more resistant to breaking and improving its thickness [Music] [Music] [Music] the whole process will be done by putting all these wires into a big roll then these rolls will be transported and stored inside the facility through the help of this autonomous robot even without direct help from Human operators it can do its job pretty [Music] well [Music] [Music] fun fact copper is renowned for its durability and longevity in many environments copper can last for hundreds of years it's not uncommon to find Copper artifacts and structures that have remained in attacked for centuries the natural patina that forms on copper surfaces over time actually helps protect it from corrosion so whether it's copper pipes roofs or ancient sculptures Copper's ability to withstand the test of time is one of its remarkable [Music] qualities [Music] [Music] the copper is placed into this treatment furnace to make sure its quality is not affected [Music] [Music] [Music] after they have checked and confirmed that it is good to go they wrap it in this plastic as a preparation for distribution [Music] that ends our video on copper Mining and processing before we say our goodbyes please do not forget to give this video a thumbs up subscribe to our Channel and share this video to your friends we would love to hear from you in the comments section too thank you for watching

Channel: Lord Gizmo

Views: 358,568

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Id: AgRYHT6WFV0

Length: 14min 6sec (846 seconds)

Published: Sat Jan 27 2024