Mineral Resources Choice Paper Chromium is the metallic mineral I selected.

It has several uses, such a s medication(improving blood sugar control[people with type 1/2 diabetes and ste riod users],) and weight loss[1]. Along with that, Chromium is very useful for m a ing stainless steel, chrome plating(due to high corrosion resistance), dyes/pi gments(li e on buses)--however, due to enviromental and health hazards, new meth ods are being sought for.[2] Lastly, they are used in the tanning of hides and w ood preserving due to high toxicity levels.[2] Chromium is used in a variety ofw ays but those are just a few. The majority of Chromium is produced in South Afri ca, but Kaza hstan, India, Albania, Philippines, Russia, Findland, and Tur ey al so produce significant amounts.[2][3] It isn't shown how much Chromium is mined, but about 160 metric tons were recycled in 2010. The mineral is mined both bysu b-surface and surface methods.[3] Chromium was approximately ~$7500 per metricto ns in 1998(current dollars). Nitrogen is the nonmetal I pic ed. It's used in stainless steel/electric al parts(transistors, diodes, integraded circuits) manufactoring, reducing fireh azards in military aircraft fuel systems, and liquid explosion neutralizer.[6]It 's an alternative to pressurizing beer(Nitrogen ma es smoother beer then Carbon Dioxide due to smaller gas bubbles), paintball gun power, and can also be a chea per alternative for filling lightbulbs(argon), as well as filling tires(cheaper overall by improving fuel economy).[6][8] Nitrogen is also widely used in preser vation of pac aged foods and biological samples(such as eggs, sperm, and blood). [6] Nitrogen is primarily found in gaseous form--ma ing up ~78% of Earth's atmos phere. It may be found in all living organisms(about 3% of plant matter is nitro gen and 4% of the human body) and is usually a component in animal waste.[6] Nit rogen is not mined and is actually ta en through the air using fractional distri llation. Afterward, the air is cooled until the nitrogen liquefies, then heated very carefully.[7] Since all gases have different boiling pints/freezing points, they can be seperated gradually by chilling air. Nitrogen is very cheap, 2 cent s by the truc load or 1-2 dollars in smaller quantities. It's also cheaper topro duce nitrogen then bottled water.[9] Filling a tire with nitrogen costs 2-10doll ars.[8] The worst type of mining is mountaintop removal mining. Mountaintop remo val(an extention of strip mining) is a fairly new mining technique ; it dates ba c to the 1970s. One reason it's bad is because of the increase of minerals that get deposited in neighboring waters--causing less fish/macroinvertebrates divers ity and having more pollutant-tolerant species(which would be bad if the fish is for example an Asian Carp). Mountaintop mining also may cover up streams and br ea up forests into sections. The compact soil that results from mountaintop rem oval mining ma es it harder for trees and woody plants to [re]grow, leaving land damaged for years. The returning animals also change, having less diversity, mo stly including grassland birds and ma ing sna es as well as amphibians rarer.[10 -whole paragraph] According to Michigan.gov, we have 362 types of minerals here in Michiga n. One of the most numerous are quarts, which is uncountable than s to the vasta mount.[11] Quartz seams come in an inch to several feet, and a lot of them also contain some gold. The most common minerals are copper ore, iron pyrites, galena , and zinc somewhat.[11] However, sand, gravel, clay, coal, and stone also getmi ned.[12] Michigan also has gold in it's region, ranging from Newago County toKal as a. The gold in Michigan has been found in placer, nugget, and possibly pyrit e form.[11] Michigan consistantly is in the top 33.3% in the United States,havin g a lot of good mineral resources.[12] However, less then 1% of the laborforce i s in the mineral industries. Mineral resources ma e about as much moneyas 1/2 of the crops and 5% of the industrial production. I hoped you enjoyed reading about the uses, mining methods, mining areas , and prices of Chromium and Nitrogen and I also hope you li ed learning about h ow bad mountaintop removal mining is and Michigan's resources.

[1] http://www.webmd.com/vitamins-supplements/ingredientmono-932-CHROMIUM.aspx?a ctiveIngredientId=932&activeIngredientName=CHROMIUM [2] http://en.wi ipedia.org/wi i/Chromium[3] http://www.britannica.com/EBchec ed /topic/116008/chromium-processing[4] http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/comm odity/chromium/180798.pdf[5] http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/ch romium/mcs-2011-chrom.pdf[6] http://wantto nowit.com/uses-of-nitrogen/[7] http:/ /www.enviroliteracy.org/article.php/1007.html[8] http://www.wor truc online.com/ Article/Story/2007/09/What-You-Should-Know-About-Nitrogen-Filled-Tires.aspx?pres titial=1[9] http://wi i.answers.com/Q/How_much_does_one_liter_of_liquid_nitrogen _cost[10] http://www.epa.gov/region03/mtntop/index.htm[11] http://www.michigan.g ov/documents/deq/PU_08_Eopt_307307_7.pdf[12] http://www.geo.msu.edu/geogmich/min ing+main.html