Use of Micro-Organisms for the Recovery of Metals

ISSN： 1743-2804

Source： International Materials Reviews, Vol.19, Iss.1, 1974-01, pp. : 21-31

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Abstract

The environmental prophets forecast a world-wide depletion of mineral resources within the toming decades; the supply of ores of mercury, copper, and many other metals is uncertain.¹ For this reason, we are seeing the increasing development of interest in new and more selective methods of metal recovery from the earth. Brooks² has pointed out the distinction between metals like Fe, AI, Ti that could be successfully mined (though often present in the ores now, worked at only 2-4 times their average abundance in the Earth's crust) and those essential ‘metal vitamins’ (e.g. Hg, W, Ta, Ag, Sn, Mn, Mo) which, because supplies must be obtained either from enriched, ore bodies, or from the rock material having only the average crustal abundance, comprising the bulk of the Earth's crust, will eventually cease to be available to conventional extraction procedures as a gradual increase in expenditure and effort along conventional lines cannot maintain a constant level of economic, production. A similar problem may exist with Cu, Co, Ni, V, and Pb as known workable ore bodies may be depleted by the year 2000.^2,3 Four obvious alternatives, all of which could be employed concurrently, present themselves in seeking and ensuring continued supplies of metals vital for our technology