Mooihoekite to chalcopyrite CuFeS, making it helpful in the study of ore deposits and the study of the central portion of the Cu-Fe-S phase system. Mooihoekite, chalcopyrite, talnakhite, and haycockite all play key roles in the study of ore genesis and beneficiation. Mooihoekite Mooihoekite is a copper iron sulfide mineral with chemical formula of CuFeS. The mineral was discovered in 1972 and received its name from its discovery area, the Mooihoek mine in Transvaal, South Africa. Mooihoekite crystallizes in the tetragonal crystal system. It has a short optical c-axis that is perpendicular to two longer a-axes of equal length. For Mooihoekite,
Metal subsurface mines. In some cases, the sale price of the metal/s involved make it economically feasible to mine lower concentration sources. Once the ore is mined, the metals must be extracted, usually by chemical or electrolytic reduction. Pyrometallurgy uses high temperatures to convert ore into raw metals, while hydrometallurgy employs aqueous chemistry for the same purpose. The methods used depend on the metal and their contaminants. When a metal ore is an ionic compound of that metal and a non-metal, the ore must usually be smelted—heated with a reducing agent—to extract the pure metal. Many common metals, such as iron,