The chemical analysis of an ore, mineral, concentrate of metal to-determine the amount of valuable species. Precious metals are usually given in ounces per short ton or grams per metric tonne, while base metals are given in percentage.

Bornite is an important copper ore mineral. It ranks up there with many of the other copper ores such as chalcocite, chalcopyrite, covellite, digenite, cuprite and tetrahedrite. Bornite copper content is 50% atomic ratio.

Chalcopyrite (or copper pyrite), is one of the minerals refered to as "Fool's Gold" because of its bright golden color. As a copper ore, the yield of chalcopyrite is rather low in terms of atoms per molecule. It is only 25%, compared to other copper minerals such as chalcocite, Cu2S - 67%; cuprite, Cu2O - 67%; covellite, CuS [..]

A method of sampling a rock exposure whereby a regular series of small chips of rock is broken off along a line across the face.

Mined ores have to be crushed and milled into a fine powder to liberate the economic mineral particles in a number of stages. The primary crushers are used for the initial phase after the ore is conveyed to stockpiles. Conventional milling circuits takes the coarse ore through secondary, and possibly tertiary, crushing which produces pebble-sized f [..]

A drill using small diamond chips embedded on the head of the drill bit to cut the rock and the drill turns.

The cylindrical piece of rock, usualy between one and three inches in diameter brought to surface by diamond drilling.

A written report, compiled prior to a production decision, that examines the effects proposed mining activities will have on the natural surroundings.

A process whereby valuable metals (usually gold and silver) are leached from a heap, or pad, of crushed ore by leaching solutions percolating down through the heap and are collected from a sloping, impermeable liner below the pad.

Mineralization which does not have demonstrated economic viability.