1st Edition
Minerals in Africa Opportunities for the Continent’s Industrialisation
Africa’s dire need to industrialize is universally acknowledged and it is evident that the continent’s vast mineral resources can catalyze that industrialization. This requires the promotion of local beneficiation and value addition of minerals to yield materials on which modern Africa’s industry and society can rely. This book is, therefore, about transforming Africa’s comparative advantages in minerals into the continent’s competitive edge regarding materials. Mineral beneficiation and value addition form the basis and provide opportunities for mineral-driven Africa’s industrialization. The scope of the book is three-fold with inter-connected relationships: Information, Technical, and Policy oriented.
It will be a useful reference material for mining undergraduate students on beneficiation and value addition of each of the minerals found in Africa. The book, while presenting a broad overview of beneficiation and value addition of Africa’s minerals, provides crucial starting material for postgraduate research students and R&D institutions who wish to delve into more advanced methods of extraction and utilization of mineral-derived materials that are in Africa for the purpose of industrialization of the continent.
PART I - Information about minerals in Africa
1 Africa’s mineral resources
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Occurrences of minerals in Africa
PART II -Mineral beneficiation and value addition
2 Minerals of precious metals
2.1 Gold
2.2 Platinum Group Metals (PGMs)
2.3 Silver
3 Minerals of base metals
3.1 Aluminium
3.2 Antimony
3.3 Arsenic
3.4 Beryllium
3.5 Cadmium
3.6 Caesium
3.7 Chromium
3.8 Cobalt
3.9 Copper
3.10 Gallium
3.11 Germanium
3.12 Hafnium
3.13 Indium
3.14 Iron
3.15 Lead
3.16 Lithium
3.17 Magnesium
3.18 Manganese
3.19 Mercury
3.20 Molybdenum
3.21 Nickel
3.22 Niobium
3.23 Rare Earth Elements (REEs)
3.24 Rubidium
3.25 Tantalum
3.26 Tin
3.27 Titanium
3.28 Tungsten
3.29 Vanadium
3.30 Zinc
3.31 Zirconium
4 Minerals of radioactive metals
4.1 Bismuth
4.2 Thorium
4.3 Uranium
5 Industrial minerals
5.1 Andalusite, Kyanite and Sillimanite
5.2 Apatite
5.3 Asbestos
5.4 Asphalt
5.5 Azurite
5.6 Baryte (barite)
5.7 Basalt
5.8 Bentonite
5.9 Borates
5.10 Clay minerals
5.11 Cordierite (iolite)
5.12 Corundum
5.13 Diatomite
5.14 Dolomite
5.15 Epidote
5.16 Feldspar
5.17 Fluorspar (fluorite)
5.18 Graphite
5.19 Gypsum
5.20 Kaolinite (kaolin)
5.21 Lepidolite
5.22 Limestone
5.23 Magnesite
5.24 Magnetite
5.25 Mica
5.26 Natron
5.27 Nepheline syenite
5.28 Ochre
5.29 Pegmatites
5.30 Petalite
5.31 Phosphate
5.32 Pollucite
5.33 Potash
5.34 Pozzolan
5.35 Pumice
5.36 Salt
5.37 Selenium
5.38 Silica
5.39 Soda ash
5.40 Spodumene
5.41 Talc
5.42 Vermiculite
5.43 Wollastonite
5.44 Zeolites
6 Precious stones
6.1 Diamonds
6.2 Emerald
6.3 Ruby
6.4 Sapphire
7 Semi-precious stones
7.1 Agate
7.2 Amethyst
7.3 Aquamarine
7.4 Beryl
7.5 Chrysoberyl
7.6 Garnet
7.7 Howlite
7.8 Jade
7.9 Mtorolite (chrome chalcedony)
7.10 Opal
7.11 Pearl
7.12 Quartz
7.13 Tanzanite
7.14 Topaz
7.15 Tourmaline
8 Dimension stones
8.0 Dimension stone
8.1 Granite
8.2 Marble
8.3 Serpentine
8.4 Slate
8.5 Soapstone
9 Energy sources
9.1 Coal
9.2 Coal Bed Methane (CBM)
9.3 Natural gas
9.4 Peat
9.5 Petroleum
PART III - Policy issues about mining in Africa
10 Mineral-driven industrialisation of Africa
10.1 Role of mineral-based materials in society
10.2 Important and critical materials for industrialisation
10.3 Mineral by-products
10.4 Riverbed minerals
10.5 Obsolescent or near-obsolescent mineral materials
10.6 Mineral-driven Africa’s development
11 Science and technology and human resources
11.1 Science and technology and economic development
11.2 Higher education
11.3 Research and development institutions in mining
11.4 Professional organisations in mining
11.5 African scholars and African academies of sciences
11.6 Diaspora Africans
12 Mineral economics
12.1 Africa’s minerals in the global economy
12.2 Rates of depletion of finite mineral resources
12.3 Critical infrastructure issues in the mining industry
12.4 Environmental effects of mining
12.5 Corporate social responsibility
12.6 Investment and financing models
12.7 Ownership patterns
12.8 Mineral taxation and royalties
12.9 International trade in mineral products
12.10 Legal issues in Africa’s mining sector
12.11 Corruption in the African mining sector
12.12 Concluding remarks: Africa is poor by choice!
Biography
Professor Francis Gudyanga has a BSc (Hons) degree in Applied Chemistry from the University of Hertfordshire (UK), MSc in Analytical Chemistry from Chelsea College, University of London, MPhil in Metallurgy from Brunel University, Uxbridge (UK), a PhD in Mineral Technology from the Royal School of Mines, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, University of London, and a DIC in Electrochemical Engineering from Imperial College London. He is a metallurgist and applied chemist with over 30 years’ experience in the minerals industry covering plant operations, management, R&D at institutions in UK, South Africa and Zimbabwe, teaching university undergraduates and supervision of doctoral research students. His research interests are in extractive metallurgy, materials technology, and S&T policy. He has been serving on several national, regional and international Committees and Boards. He held senior positions in the Government of Zimbabwe for 10 years serving as Permanent Secretary in 3 ministries, namely: Science and Technology Development, Mines and Mining Development, and Higher and Tertiary Education Science & Technology Development. Professor Gudyanga is currently the President of the Zimbabwe Academy of Sciences.
The book by Francis Gudyanga is a very comprehensive encyclopedia on minerals, with special stress on the vast mineral wealth of Africa. It covers all aspects of the subject, such as listing of the minerals, their composition, properties, mining and processing, application in industry and economics.
Readers will realize after reading the book, that the present state of the mineral industry in Africa is far from perfect, if we consider its effect on the life of the natural owners of the mineral wealth – the people of Africa.
Professor Gudyanga also explains the fact that not only Africans, but the whole world will benefit from the gradual change in the treatment of the mineral wealth. Employment opportunities in Africa will be much higher, which will remove social tensions, leading to many negative consequences, such as the smuggling of people, mainly unemployed youth to Europe. In addition, investors in industry in Africa will also benefit, costs of transport of products will be much lower the those for exporting raw materials and the costs of final products may also become lower, thus benefiting the final customers.
Erik Navara,
Professor emeritus, University of Zimbabwe
