Native metal brass, bronze, pewter, German silver, osmiridium, electrum, white gold, and silver-mercury and gold-mercury amalgam. Only gold, silver, copper and the platinum metals occur in nature in large amounts. Over geological time scales, very few metals can resist natural weathering processes like oxidation, which is why generally only the less reactive metals such as gold and platinum are found as native metals. The others usually occur as isolated pockets where a natural chemical process reduces a common compound or ore of the metal, leaving the pure metal behind as small flakes or inclusions. Non-metallic elements occurring in the native state include
Ore Metal Exchange aims to add uranium to its list of metals on warrant. The World Bank reports that China was the top importer of ores and metals in 2005 followed by the US and Japan. DILL, H.G. (2010) "The “chessboard” classification scheme of mineral deposits: Mineralogy and geology from aluminum to zirconium," Earth-Science Reviews, Volume 100, Issue 1-4, June 2010, Pages 1-420 Ore An ore is an occurrence of rock or sediment that contains sufficient minerals with economically important elements, typically metals, that can be economically extracted from the deposit. The ores are extracted from the earth through mining; they