In what manner was the gold mined? People’s attention is always drawn to gold. We buy gold as a value-preserving asset in addition to using it as a lux accessory. The metallic qualities of gold have recently been used in a variety of industrial products. I’ll cover more information about gold this time. The specific approaches are described in the sections that follow. Do not leave if you are interested!
The starting point of mining…find out gold veins
The “gold veins” that contain gold must first be identified. The depth is split into “easy to mine” and “not easy to mine” areas based on where the dormant gold veins are located. The most well-known gold-producing nation in the world is South Africa, but due to extensive mining, South Africa’s “easy-to-mine gold veins” have been depleted. To mine gold ore, one must currently go 3000 meters below ground. The mining project will be impacted by geothermal heat at this depth, and mining ore alone is very expensive. Similar to this, even though there are numerous gold veins buried beneath the sea, mining them would be extremely expensive.Taiwan’s gold veins
The Jinguashi and Jiufen regions are where the majority of the gold and copper mines are produced. It once held 95% of Taiwan’s total gold mines and was the largest gold mine in all of East Asia. The history of gold mining in Jinguashi and Jiufen also began with the construction of the eight iron bridges in 1889, following the discovery of gold sand in the river by workers. The mines remained closed until 1971 due to insufficient costs.
Japan has gold veins as well
Although Japan is generally regarded as having “sparse natural resources,” it has previously mined gold in the renowned Sado Kinzan. ( Sado gold mine ). In the present, it is thought that the bottom of the hot springs’ chlorinated waters may contain gold. Therefore, even Japan might be able to produce a lot of gold if you find a gold mine that can produce gold and prepare mining equipment. (For example, there will be the topic of gold mines in Kagoshima and Hokkaido from time to time) Due to their relatively shallow mines that can continue to operate, nations like China, Peru, and Indonesia have recently caught the interest of other nations all over the world.How to separate gold?
First off, gold is not present in the ore that is mined from gold veins. The purported gold is dispersed throughout the ore and is invisible to the naked eye. In order to separate precious metals from a large amount of ore, refining is necessary. According to various nations and regions, different processes are used to extract gold. There are two distinct approaches for you.
Method using copper furnace
Large-scale mines typically extract gold using copper furnaces, which can balance safety and financial advantages. Gold, silver, and copper will be integrated at high temperatures if copper and gold ore are placed in the furnace together. Separate the copper first, refine the silver next at a high temperature, and then electrolyze the gold to separate it.
Method using mercury
Mercury is primarily used in the republic of South Africa to extract the gold from the ore. Mercury transforms into “amalgam” after ingesting both gold and silver. The amalgam containing gold can be separated when mercury is added to the crushed ore, and gold can then be extracted from the amalgam by heating it. It is undeniable that using mercury runs the risk of contaminating both the environment and people’s bodies. However, by doing it this way, gold can be easily separated without the need for heavy machinery. Thus, copper furnaces are used in the majority of modern mines with complete equipment. This method of extraction is only applicable to mines that cannot set up substantial work tools.
Gold refined from 1 ton of gold ore can only create a ring
Rare gold is present in very small amounts in gold ore. Gold extraction from gold ore requires a lot of time and labor. Only enough gold can be extracted from a ton of gold ore to make a gold ring.
Conclusion
Gold can be extracted in a variety of ways, but the process is always risky. Because there is a very limited supply of gold ore, refining it involves a number of steps. It makes sense why gold is always expensive. But regardless of the present or the past, humans will continue to mine gold as long as they have a desire for it. Therefore, the nation should pay close attention to where and how to mine gold. It would be better to pay attention to relevant news next time!
