Manganese Ore: What for; Where found; How much; Environmental-friendly?

Hi manilaman,

Manganese minerals like Manganite or Pyrolusite are not dangerous, and the largest mine for these minerals is at Kuruman in South Africa.

As for the environment after the ore is extracted from the ground you should take a leaf out of the mining companies here in the UK, they cover the huge hole in the ground with 6 to 12ins of top soil, they then sow grass and wild flower seeds.

Spencer.

Thanks.

Manganese content in common steel grades ranges from 0.30- to 1 or 2% depending on the grade. Maybe a bit higher in certain alloys.

So the global demand for manganese for steel making can be approximated by taking say 1% of steel demand or production. (there is a recyclable manganese content in most steel scrap.)

Manganese is used to tie up the sulfur chemically so that it does not chemically bond to the the iron in the steel. If the sulfur bonds to the iron it forms iron pyrite, which has no ductility at rolling temperatures. This is described by us in the mills as "hot short" and literally the billet will break into pieces during rolling. So Managanese will continue to be an important constituent of wrought steels.

Control of stormwater runoff from mining sites, overburden piles, and processing sites, as well as dust control are among the more important steps to be taken from an environmental point of view in the short run. In the long run site remediation as was described is a "Best Practice."

The Judgment of Environmental friendly is just that a judgement. I prefer to live in a world that has steels and stainless steel products that keep us safe, provide us with modern safety and medical devices, and modern ways of life. The folks living downwind of the mine with no dust controls may have a different point of view, particularly if they are not living "the good life."

But with out steel or stainless steels, well, I guess they called those days the stone age. I'll pass.

milo

Thanks for your Technical Inputs.

Environmental groups say that ALL Mining and Oil / Gas Wells are "bad" and "evil", even with full-scale reclamations and restorations. I know, having been involved with a few successful reclamation of mines, and then getting bad mouthed by environmentalists who were mad that the reclamations did what they were supposed to do. The environmentalists told us that successful reclamations would lead to more mining, and that's not what they wanted.

Sadly, so-called "Environmentalists" who refuse to see the value of Science would want Present-day World to go back to Pre-Historic Times. I hold the view that "responsible" Science should be used to balance contesting claims of Modernity vs. History.