Ore Bodies - Revision history

Miros1: Removed annoying horizontal lines not part of h2 format

2018-11-29T22:14:08Z

Removed annoying horizontal lines not part of h2 format

206.174.182.84: /* How are Earth Ore deposits made */

2015-11-11T13:54:32Z

How are Earth Ore deposits made

Strangelv: removing long forgotten fork request; tweaking top of layout

2013-04-28T03:34:27Z

removing long forgotten fork request; tweaking top of layout

72.160.6.231: /* Polar Deposits */

2012-11-15T11:16:34Z

Polar Deposits

Farred: /* Making Ore Deposits on the Moon */ removing unhelpful links

2012-04-10T22:33:50Z

Making Ore Deposits on the Moon: removing unhelpful links

Farred: /* Making Ore Deposits on the Moon */ fixing link

2012-04-10T22:30:50Z

Making Ore Deposits on the Moon: fixing link

Farred: /* How are Earth Ore deposits made */ fix typo

2012-04-10T22:25:56Z

How are Earth Ore deposits made: fix typo

Farred: /* The Solar wind */ fixing link

2012-04-10T22:06:33Z

The Solar wind: fixing link

Farred: Undo revision 16898 by 59.49.79.220 (talk) undo vandalism

2011-12-08T16:13:19Z

Undo revision 16898 by 59.49.79.220 (talk) undo vandalism

59.49.79.220: /* Ore Concentration */

2011-12-08T12:01:18Z

Ore Concentration

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 ----
-For a [[mineral]] to be recoverable at a reasonable cost it must be found in large enough quantities and concentrated enough that commercial extraction is profitable.  Such a concentration is an ore body.
+For a [[mineral]] to be recoverable at a reasonable cost it must be found in large enough quantities and concentrated enough that commercial extraction is profitable.  Such a concentration is an ore body.<!-- align=right -->
 ==Where is Ore==
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 Another possible source of lunar ore deposits is meteorite strikes.  This is the predominately geologic process on the Moon. One to two percent of the strikes are by [[iron]] and [[stony iron meteorites]].  One would think these would create ore bodies.  Unfortunately they do not.  The iron is converted totally to vapor by the energy of the strike and then condenses to extremely fine metal spheres that mix in with the [[regolith]] over a wide area.
 ==The [[Solar wind]]==
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 [[image:TerranesTh.jpg|thumb|300px|Thorium as a ''tracer'' for KREEP deposits on the Moon.  Note the high concentrations around the Procellarum KREEP Terrane.  Compiled from [[Lunar Prospector]] Data]]
 {|
-| COLSPAN="2" | ''Contents of [[KREEP]]''
+| colspan="2" |''Contents of [[KREEP]]''
 |-
-| STYLE="width:2in;"| [[Chlorine]]
+| style="width:2in;" |[[Chlorine]]
-| [[Zirconium]]
+|[[Zirconium]]
 |-
-| [[Fluorine]]
+|[[Fluorine]]
-| [[Thorium]]
+|[[Thorium]]
 |-
-| [[Potassium]]
+|[[Potassium]]
-| [[Uranium]]
+|[[Uranium]]
 |-
-| [[Phosphorus]]
+|[[Phosphorus]]
-| [[Rare Earth Elements]]
+|[[Rare Earth Elements]]
 |-
-| [[Sodium]]
+|[[Sodium]]
 |}
 Due to lunar geological processes (see [[KREEP|Here]]) these elements have been concentrated and may prove cheaper to harvest from the moon than other [[NEO]]s.  KREEP may prove profitable, or it may simply be used for cost reduction (not having to pay shipping from other sources).
 ==Ore Concentration==
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 Still, smaller operations might provide critical materials for off Earth missions much earlier.
 ==Polar Deposits==
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 The Lunar day-night "terminator" sets up a powerful voltage differential capable of causing electrostatic dust transport. However, the voltage affects different substances differentially. In particular, metals will have a greater propensity to be transported. Electrostatic separation is an analogous process used in the mining industry to separate metals from ore. In this way, metal particles of elements like gold can be transported many kilometers until they land in permanently shaded craters located at the poles. Since such craters are never exposed to the Sun, any electrostatically transported metals will tend to get concentrated. LCROSS found surprising concentrations of gold, silver and other metals within Cabeus Crater.
 [[Category:Business]]

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 ==How are Earth Ore deposits made==
-On the Earth the vast majority of ore bodies were formed by geologic processes not at play on the Moon.  The most important of these are hydrology, the effects of water, and plate tectonics.
+DONE.
 ==Making Ore Deposits on the Moon==

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-[[Image:OrangeApollo17.jpg|thumb|400px|Orange Soil discovered by [[Apollo 17]]]]<BR clear="all"/>
+[[Image:OrangeApollo17.jpg|thumb|400px|Orange Soil discovered by [[Apollo 17]]]]
+'''<BIG>What Ore Bodies can be found on the Moon?</BIG>'''
 ----
 For a [[mineral]] to be recoverable at a reasonable cost it must be found in large enough quantities and concentrated enough that commercial extraction is profitable.  Such a concentration is an ore body.
 ==Where is Ore==

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 We do not currently know the extent or the physical form of these deposits.  Finding this information will be one of the first goals of our new lunar explorations.
-The major draw back to exploiting this resource is simply that there is no [[Solar Power]] available in this area.  It is not clear how we will mine these regions.
+The polar regions also contain plateaus that are illuminated 80% or more of the time, thus there will be abundant [[Solar Power]] available in this area.  It is not clear how we will mine these regions.
 ----

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 ==Making Ore Deposits on the Moon==
-The [[Moon]] has never been wet.  The Moon has never had plate tectonics.  The surface of the Moon has been continently gardened by [[Geologic Processes on the Moon/Cratering on the Moon|meteorites]].  This mixing dilutes any natural [[ore]] concentrations.  Valuable ore bodies on the Moon will be very hard to find.
+The [[Moon]] has never been wet.  The Moon has never had plate tectonics.  The surface of the Moon has been continently gardened by [[Geologic Processes on the Moon/Cratering on the Moon|meteorites]].  This mixing dilutes any natural ore concentrations.  Valuable ore bodies on the Moon will be very hard to find.
-The Moon has been subject to [[volcanism]] and [[volcanoes]] can sometimes create ore bodies.  The most interesting of which would be [[volatile materials]] associated with [[vents]].  The orange regolith found in Apollo-17 was this type of deposit.  It turned out to be volcanic glass of little interest but it did prove that veins of minerals can occur in the lunar regolith.  There were many volcanoes on the Moon and a few vents are suspected of still being active.  These warrant detailed investigation.
+The Moon has been subject to [[volcanism]] and volcanoes can sometimes create ore bodies.  The most interesting of which would be [[volatile materials]] associated with [[vents]].  The orange regolith found in Apollo-17 was this type of deposit.  It turned out to be volcanic glass of little interest but it did prove that veins of minerals can occur in the lunar regolith.  There were many volcanoes on the Moon and a few vents are suspected of still being active.  These warrant detailed investigation.
 Another possible source of lunar ore deposits is meteorite strikes.  This is the predominately geologic process on the Moon. One to two percent of the strikes are by [[iron]] and [[stony iron meteorites]].  One would think these would create ore bodies.  Unfortunately they do not.  The iron is converted totally to vapor by the energy of the strike and then condenses to extremely fine metal spheres that mix in with the [[regolith]] over a wide area.

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 On the Earth the vast majority of ore bodies were formed by geologic processes not at play on the Moon.  The most important of these are hydrology, the effects of water, and plate tectonics.
-On Earth, water often passes deep under ground where it is subject to both great heat and pressure.  Under these conditions it can dissolve may minerals that are insoluble at the surface.  The hot water subsequently raises and the pressure is released.  The dissolved minerals come out of solution and accumulate near the vents.  This process can go on for millions of years.  The black smokers in ocean trenches are a good example.
+On Earth, water often passes deep under ground where it is subject to both great heat and pressure.  Under these conditions it can dissolve many minerals that are insoluble at the surface.  The hot water subsequently raises and the pressure is released.  The dissolved minerals come out of solution and accumulate near the vents.  This process can go on for millions of years.  The black smokers in ocean trenches are a good example.
 [[Plate tectonics]] can move mineral deposits from deep down to near the surface were people can use them.  The gold deposits of Australia, California, and Alaska are a good example.  Oddly enough these were all once the same formation.
 ==Making Ore Deposits on the Moon==

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 There are some strong points.  First the regolith rock is available on the surface and already ground up.  The volatiles stick best to small particles. This eliminates the difficult processes of mining the rock and grinding it up ourselves.  Second some types of regolith have held on to their volatiles better than others and these can be identified by their mineral content from low lunar [[orbit]].  Those rich in [[Titanium]] are particularly attractive.
-The biggest advantage however, is that the volatiles can be removed by simple heating, i.e. [[Volatile Scavenging]].  First simply sifting the regolith to sort out the [[fines]] greatly concentrates the ore.  No chemical process is then necessary.  The levels and amounts of heat required should be achievable by concentrating [[solar energy]].  See [[Sandworms]].
+The biggest advantage however, is that the volatiles can be removed by simple heating, i.e. [[Volatile Scavenging]].  First simply sifting the regolith to sort out the [[Dust|fines]] greatly concentrates the ore.  No chemical process is then necessary.  The levels and amounts of heat required should be achievable by concentrating [[solar energy]].  See [[Sandworms]].
 ==[[Ilmenite]] (FeTiO3) ore concentrate==

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-Wonedrful explanation of facts available here.
+==Ore Concentration==
 ==Metal Reduction==