Mining, process of extracting useful ​minerals​ from the surface of the Earth, including the

seas. A mineral, with a few exceptions, is an inorganic substance occurring in nature

that has a definite chemical composition and distinctive physical properties or molecular
structure. (One organic substance, ​coal​, is often discussed as a mineral as well.) ​Ore​ is
a metalliferous ​mineral​, or an aggregate of metalliferous minerals and gangue
(associated rock of no economic value), that can be mined at a profit. ​Mineral deposit
designates a natural occurrence of a useful mineral, while ​ore deposit​ denotes a mineral
deposit of sufficient extent and concentration to invite exploitation.

When evaluating mineral deposits, it is extremely important to keep profit in mind. The
total quantity of mineral in a given deposit is referred to as the mineral inventory, but
only that quantity which can be mined at a profit is termed the ​ore reserve​. As the
selling price of the mineral rises or the extraction costs fall, the proportion of the mineral
inventory classified as ore increases. Obviously, the opposite is also true, and a mine
may cease production because (1) the mineral is exhausted or (2) the prices have
dropped or costs risen so much that what was once ore is now only mineral.

William Andrew Hustrulid

History
Archaeological discoveries indicate that mining was conducted in prehistoric times.
Apparently, the first mineral used was flint, which, because of its conchoidal fracturing
pattern, could be broken into sharp-edged pieces that were useful as scrapers, knives,
and arrowheads. During the ​Neolithic Period​, or New Stone Age (about 8000–2000
bce), shafts up to 100 metres (330 feet) deep were sunk in soft chalk deposits in France
and Britain in order to extract the flint pebbles found there. Other minerals, such as red
ochre and the copper mineral ​malachite​, were used as pigments. The oldest known
underground mine in the world was sunk more than 40,000 years ago at Bomvu Ridge
in the Ngwenya mountains, Swaziland, to mine ochre used in burial ceremonies and as
body colouring.
Gold​ was one of the first metals utilized, being mined from streambeds of sand and
gravel where it occurred as a pure metal because of its chemical stability. Although
chemically less stable, ​copper​ occurs in native form and was probably the second metal
discovered and used. ​Silver​ was also found in a pure state and at one time was valued
more highly than gold.

According to historians, the ​Egyptians​ were mining copper on the ​Sinai Peninsula​ as
long ago as 3000 bce, although some ​bronze​ (copper alloyed with ​tin​) is dated as early
as 3700 bce. ​Iron​ is dated as early as 2800 bce; Egyptian records of iron ore smelting
date from 1300 bce. Found in the ancient ruins of ​Troy​, ​lead​ was produced as early as
2500 bce.

One of the earliest evidences of building with quarried stone was the construction (2600
bce) of the great ​pyramids​in Egypt, the largest of which (​Khufu​) is 236 metres (775 feet)
along the base sides and contains approximately 2.3 million blocks of two types of
limestone​ and red ​granite​. The limestone is believed to have been quarried from across
the Nile. Blocks weighing as much as 15,000 kg (33,000 pounds) were transported long
distances and elevated into place, and they show precise cutting that resulted in
fine-fitting masonry.

One of the most complete early treatments of mining methods in Europe is by the
German scholar ​Georgius Agricola​ in his ​De re metallica​ (1556). He describes detailed
methods of driving shafts and tunnels. Soft ore and rock were laboriously mined with a
pick and harder ore with a pick and hammer, wedges, or heat (fire setting). Fire setting
involved piling a heap of logs at the rock face and burning them. The heat weakened or
fractured the rock because of thermal expansion or other processes, depending on the
type of rock and ore. Crude ventilation and pumping systems were utilized where
necessary. Hoisting up shafts and inclines was done with a windlass; haulage was in
“trucks” and wheelbarrows. Timber support systems were employed in tunnels.

Great progress in mining was made when the secret of ​black powder​ reached the West,
probably from China in the late Middle Ages. This was replaced as an ​explosive​ in the
mid-19th century with ​dynamite​, and since 1956 both ​ammonium nitrate​ fuel-blasting
agents and slurries (mixtures of water, fuels, and oxidizers) have come into extensive
use. A steel drill with a wedge point and a hammer were first used to drill holes for
placement of explosives, which were then loaded into the holes and detonated to break
the rock. Experience showed that proper placement of holes and firing order are
important in obtaining maximum rock breakage in mines.

The invention of mechanical ​drills​ powered by compressed air (pneumatic hammers)

increased markedly the capability to mine hard rock, decreasing the cost and time for
excavation severalfold. It is reported that the Englishman ​Richard Trevithick​ invented a
rotary steam-driven drill in 1813. Mechanical piston drills utilizing attached bits on drill
rods and moving up and down like a piston in a cylinder date from 1843. In Germany in
1853 a drill that resembled modern air drills was invented. Piston drills were superseded
by hammer drills run by compressed air, and their performance improved with better
design and the availability of quality steel.

Developments in drilling were accompanied by improvements in loading methods, from

handloading with shovels to various types of mechanical loaders. Haulage likewise
evolved from human and animal portage to mine cars drawn by electric locomotives and
conveyers and to rubber-tired vehicles of large capacity. Similar developments took
place in surface mining, increasing the volume of production and lowering the cost of
metallic and nonmetallic products drastically. Large stripping machines with excavating
wheels used in surface coal mining are employed in other types of open-pit mines.

Water​ inflow was a very important problem in underground mining until ​James Watt
invented the ​steam engine​ in the 18th century. After that, steam-driven pumps could be
used to remove water from the deep mines of the day. Early ​lighting​ systems were of
the open-flame type, consisting of candles or oil-wick lamps. In the latter type, coal oil,
whale oil, or kerosene was burned. Beginning in the 1890s, flammable acetylene gas
was generated by adding water to calcium carbide in the base of a lamp and then
released through a jet in the centre of a bright metal reflector. A flint sparker made these
so-called carbide lamps easy to light. In the 1930s battery-powered cap lamps began
entering mines, and since then various improvements have been made in light intensity,
battery life, and weight.

Although a great deal of mythic lore and romance has accumulated around miners and
mining, in modern mining it is machines that provide the strength and trained miners
who provide the brains needed to prevail in this highly competitive industry. Technology
has developed to the point where gold is now mined underground at depths of 4,000
metres (about 13,100 feet), and the deepest surface mines have been excavated to
more than 700 metres (about 2,300 feet).

George B. Clark

William Andrew Hustrulid