TABLE OF CONTENTS More than 170 copper-containing minerals are known and only 10-15 of these minerals have any economic value. The most important economic copper minerals are chalcopy-rite, chalcocite, bornite and covellite. Table 12.1 lists the copper minerals of economic value.
| Mineral | Chemical formula | Copper content (%) | Specific gravity (g/cm 3) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Native copper | Cu | 100.0 | 8.8 |
| Bornite | Cu 5FeS 4 | 63.3 | 5.0 |
| Chalcocite | Cu 2S | 79.8 | 5.7 |
| Chalcopyrite | CuFeS 2 | 34.6 | 4.2 |
| Covellite | CuS | 66.4 | 4.6 |
| Digenite | Cu 2S | 79.8 | 5.7 |
| Enargite | Cu 3AsS 4 | 48.3 | 4.4 |
| Tennatite | 3Cu 2S As 2S 3 | 57.5 | 4.4 |
| Tetrahedrite | 3Cu 2S Sb 2S 3 | 52.1 | 4.8 |
From a processing point of view, copper ores could be divided into:
Copper sulfide ores, where the pyrite content can vary from 10% to 90%. The predominant sulfide mineral in this ore is pyrite, but may also contain pyrrhotite and mar-casite. Some copper sulfide ores also contain significant quantities of gold and silver. According to the mineral compositions, these ores can be sub-divided into three main groups including (a) copper-gold ore, (b) copper sulfide ore with moderate pyrite content and (c) massive sulfide copper ores.
Copper porphyry ores are the most abundant copper ores; more than 60% of the world's copper production is from these ores. They most often contain molybdenum, which is recovered as a by-product. There are several major areas in the world where copper mineralization occurs, known...
