Question

Explain in your own words what is meant by the statement, "This ore consists of a small concentration of chalcopyrite, together with considerable gangue."

Short answer

The given statement describes an ore containing a low concentration of chalcopyrite, which is a valuable copper-iron-sulfide mineral that serves as an essential source of copper. Simultaneously, the ore contains a significant amount of valueless or undesirable minerals, known as gangue. As a result, extracting copper from this ore may involve more complicated and expensive processing methods to separate the chalcopyrite from the abundant gangue minerals.

Step-by-step solution

Understanding chalcopyrite and gangue

Chalcopyrite is a copper-iron-sulfide mineral that is an important ore of copper. It has a chemical formula of \(CuFeS_2\) and is commonly found in sulfide deposits. On the other hand, gangue refers to the valueless or undesirable minerals that are typically mixed with the valuable minerals in an ore deposit. These minerals do not have any commercial value and are generally separated from the useful minerals during the ore processing.

Explaining the statement

The statement, "This ore consists of a small concentration of chalcopyrite, together with considerable gangue," can be explained as follows: This specific ore sample has a low amount of chalcopyrite, the valuable copper-iron-sulfide mineral, which is the primary source of copper. Additionally, it contains a large amount of undesirable or valueless minerals, collectively referred to as gangue. Thus, extracting the valuable copper from this ore might require more complex and costly processing methods to separate the chalcopyrite from the considerable amount of gangue minerals mixed with it.