Minerals play a vital role in both our environment and daily lives. There are multiple kinds of minerals, each with their own chemical makeup; some minerals even take on names from places or people they were found near.
An education in chemistry can open doors to jobs in mining, art restoration or technical sales; other chemists might opt to work in fields like environmental or physical chemistry instead.
Minerals are important for life
Minerals are essential in life as they support many functions such as energy metabolism and immune system function, maintaining strong bones and teeth health, regulating inflammation levels and supporting pro- and anti-inflammatory balance regulation. However, excess mineral intake may have negative repercussions for our immune systems so it is crucial that a balanced diet be adhered to.
There are two categories of minerals: macrominerals and trace minerals. Macrominerals include calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, potassium, sodium and chloride while trace minerals such as zinc iodine selenium and copper are needed in much smaller amounts.
Minerals are typically solids with ordered internal atomic structures that manifest externally as crystal form or morphology. Other natural solids without crystal structures, like opal and obsidian, are known as mineraloids. Colour can sometimes serve as an indicator for classifying minerals; their lustre can also provide clues; this category includes adjectives like metallic, dull, glassy pearly waxy.
They are used in manufacturing
Minerals and metals are indispensable components of modern manufacturing, found in everything from dinner plates to medications and even energy transition technologies. Without their availability, manufacturing would cease.
An average American consumes 24 tons of industrial minerals every year. These include gypsum used in construction and manufacturing, clay for making bricks and ceramics, silica sand used to produce glass production and electronics and bentonite/barite used as drilling mud filler or groundwater monitoring well fillers – just to name a few examples!
As demand for energy transition minerals increases, an opportunity exists to promote sustainable mining practices that will ensure these public resources are managed in an ethical and responsible manner, contributing to sustainable economic development while producing equitable outcomes for communities, companies and investors alike. Unfortunately, however, many countries face difficulty meeting this standard; corruption remains an ongoing problem in many nations as well.
They are important for the environment
Many minerals are needed for clean energy technologies – like batteries, solar panels and electric vehicle motors – to function, including batteries, solar panels and electric vehicle motors. Because some minerals cannot easily be substituted, disruption in their supply could delay the low-carbon transition. It is therefore imperative that mining of raw materials be conducted responsibly in order to protect the environment, uphold human rights and minimise social impacts.
As demand for critical minerals increases, so too do worries over their availability and sustainability. Mining operations have been associated with widespread human rights abuses such as child labor, particularly in countries with weak governance structures such as Democratic Republic of Congo. While responsible sourcing initiatives have been implemented at many companies through policies or industry-wide initiatives, more coordination between them may be required to achieve consistency and scale.
They are important for health
Minerals are essential to our wellbeing as they support body functioning and health. Minerals are one of four groups of essential nutrients – along with vitamins, amino acids and fats – and there are two categories of them: macrominerals (such as calcium phosphorus sodium potassium magnesium etc) and trace minerals which include iron zinc copper iodine selenium molybdenum.
People typically receive enough minerals from diet alone; however, supplements may be needed to make sure they get all of their required nutrients. However, too many mineral supplements may be detrimental as an excessive dose can cause deficiencies and negatively affect immune function.
