High-grade copper ores are running out. Copper can be extracted from low-grade ores and contaminated land by phytoextraction and by bioleaching.
Describe how phytoextraction is used to obtain copper compounds.
Describe how bioleaching is used to obtain copper compounds.
Copper is obtained from the solution produced by bioleaching by adding scrap iron. Explain why this works.
Give one advantage and one disadvantage of biological extraction methods compared with traditional mining and smelting.
45 exam-style questions on Edexcel GCSE Chemistry 5.1 Obtaining and using metals, covering 5.1.1 The reactivity series of metals, 5.1.2 Displacement reactions as redox reactions, 5.1.3 Extracting metals from ores by reduction, 5.1.4 Biological methods of metal extraction, 5.1.5 Resistance to oxidation and recycling metals, and 5.1.6 Life cycle assessment. Each one has a worked solution and a mark scheme showing where the marks go.