ABSTRACT
This chapter considers geological materials valued for their content of a specific mineral or metal. These contrast with construction materials (Ch. 8), which utilize the bulk properties of rocks, many of which contain a mixture of several minerals. However, this distinction is blurred. Most monomineralic rocks such as limestone, dolomite, chalk, gypsum and silica sand have both constructional uses (Fig. 8.1) and other industrial uses (Fig. 9.1c).
