9: Ore Deposits and Economic Minerals
- Page ID
- 17518
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KEY CONCEPTS
- We mine many minerals from Earth.
- Some ores are valued for their mineral properties, some for the elements they contain, and others because they contain valuable gems.
- The best ore deposits are those containing large amounts of ore minerals.
- The best metal ore minerals are those that contain large amounts of metals of value.
- Most metallic ore minerals are native elements, sulfides, sulfosalts, oxides, or hydroxides.
- Ore deposits are highly variable in nature and origin.
- The most important kinds of ore deposits are magmatic, hydrothermal, and sedimentary.