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The rocks of the Earth's crust contain ores, from which metals can be extracted economically.

Chemistry - Extracting Reactive Metals (AQA)

Reactive metals are tricky to extract. Explore how carbon, electrolysis and even bacteria help us separate useful metals from ores that would otherwise be too poor to mine.

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Fascinating Fact:

Bioleaching uses bacteria to dissolve metal compounds. The leachate is processed to recover the metal.

In GCSE Science (Chemistry), you compare different ways to extract metals from their ores. Bioleaching is one method that can recover metals from low-grade ores using naturally occurring bacteria.

Key Terms

Reactive metal: A metal high in the reactivity series that easily forms compounds, for example magnesium or aluminium.
Bioleaching: Using bacteria to convert metal compounds in ores into a solution that contains dissolved metal ions.
Leachate: The liquid produced during bioleaching that contains dissolved metal compounds and can be processed to obtain the metal.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What is bioleaching in GCSE Chemistry?

Bioleaching is a biological extraction method that uses bacteria to turn solid metal compounds into a liquid solution. The dissolved metal can then be recovered from this solution.

Why is bioleaching used for low-grade metal ores?

Bioleaching is useful for low-grade ores because it can extract metal where the concentration is too low for traditional methods. It usually uses less energy than high-temperature smelting.

What are disadvantages of bioleaching compared with smelting?

Bioleaching is slower than smelting and the leachate can contain toxic substances. The liquid must be carefully treated, which can increase costs and environmental management needs.

Try These Related Quizzes

1 .

What is an ore?

Something you use for rowing a boat

A rock made from metal

A substance from the ground from which a metal can be economically extracted

Aluminium oxide

Ores of reactive metals need to be purified before they can be reduced

2 .

What is the usual method of extracting a reactive metal from its purified ore?

Electrolysis of the molten ore

Displacement by carbon

Pyrolysis

Filtration

The ore needs to be molten in order for it to conduct electricity

3 .

What is the correct order of these sentences which briefly describe the process used to extract a reactive metal like aluminium?

1. Electrodes are placed into the molten ore.
2. The ore is purified and melted.
3. The molten metal can be tapped off and cast into ingots.
4. The metal ions are deposited as molten aluminium.

1, 2, 4, 3

2, 1, 4, 3

3, 2, 1, 4

4, 3, 1, 2

Once the ingots have cooled and solidified, they can be shaped into useful objects or melted and mixed with other metals to make alloys

4 .

Why do the ores of reactive metals need to be molten during the extraction process?

So that they can be stirred

So that the metal can be poured off the top

So that more ore can easily be added when metal is removed

So that the electricity can pass through the ore

Metal compounds are ionically bonded so electricity can only pass through if they are in liquid form or dissolved in water. Dissolving them in water is no good as reactive metals will react with water so the only option is to melt the ore

5 .

During the electrolysis of a reactive metal ore, which electrode attracts the metal ions?

The neutral electrode

The cathode

The anode

It happens randomly

Metal ions are positively charged and therefore are always attracted to the cathode which is the negative electrode. There is no such thing as a neutral electrode

6 .

Why can you not obtain group I and group II metals by heating their oxide with carbon?

Carbon is more reactive than group I and group II metals

The ores of group I and group II metals are too strong

The metals are silver in colour but carbon is black

Carbon is less reactive than the group I and group II metals

Carbon is used to displace metals from their ores so if the metal is more reactive than carbon, the carbon will not be able to displace it

7 .

Titanium is a stronger and lighter metal than iron. Apart from the fact that iron is more abundant in the Earth's crust, why do we not use it instead?

It is more easily corroded because it is more reactive than iron

It is only found in countries that like to keep their resources for themselves rather than exporting them

It is not malleable or ductile

Extracting it is an expensive and difficult process

Like aluminium, titanium forms a thin oxide coating that protects it from further corrosion

8 .

To extract titanium, the ore (titanium dioxide) is converted to titanium chloride which is then reacted with magnesium at 800^oC. The magnesium combines with the chloride, leaving the titanium metal on its own. The reaction of magnesium with the titanium chloride is an example of what sort of reaction?

Neutralisation

Displacement

Hydration

Condensation

The extraction of titanium needs to take place away from oxygen and so it is carried out in an argon atmosphere

9 .

What does the displacement reaction of magnesium with the titanium chloride tell you about titanium and magnesium?

They are non-metals

Titanium is softer than magnesium

Titanium is more reactive than magnesium

Titanium is less reactive than magnesium

Since magnesium displaces titanium form titanium chloride, magnesium must be more reactive than titanium

10 .

Which of the following metals could also be used to displace titanium from its chloride?

Gold

Iron

Aluminium

Sodium

It is likely that you don't know where titanium fits in the reactivity series but that doesn't matter. You know from question 8 that magnesium works, so all you need to do is to look at the list of possible answers for a metal higher than magnesium in the reactivity series. Examiners will sometimes throw in questions like this to check how much you really understand about the subject, rather than just testing your knowledge of facts

You can find more about this topic by visiting BBC Bitesize - Metals and alloys - AQA

Author: Kev Woodward (PGCE, Science & Chemistry Teacher, Quiz Writer)