Pub. 5 2015 Issue 2

11 MINING FOCUS such as hydroxyapatite, lead zirconate titanate, titanium diox - ite, yttria-stabilized zirconia, and zirconium diboride. Sledding and Skiing Equipment The most dangerous Olympic sport is considered to be sledding. It is no wonder, then, that luge, skeleton, and bob- sled sports all use steel. (The word “luge” is French for sled.) The fact that steel is strong helps sledders to go as fast as 90 miles per hour. Molybdenum is part of the steel manufactur- ing process and helps increase the strength of the steel. The shell of the bobsled, which is called the cowling, is made from fiberglass. Fiberglass is made from woven glass, and glass is made from silica, which is quartz sand. The base of skis and snowboards is made from alumi- num, titanium, carbon fiber, and boron fiber. Steel is used to make the bindings. Tungsten alloy weights make the skis and snowboards steadier. Poles are built using shafts made from aluminum or carbon graphite; the tips are made from tung- sten carbide. Bicycle Frames Bikes are mostly built using metal. Some use a titanium frame, which is light and flexible, but also expensive. Other frames use aluminum. Aluminum frames are less expensive and less flexible, but they are still lightweight. Frames of chro - mium-molybdenum (Chromoly) steel are strong, inexpensive, and heavy. Other bicycle parts use steel, titanium, aluminum, mag - nesium, sulfur, and so on. Bats, Clubs, Sticks, and Blades Good bats are constructed using a scandium-aluminum alloy. They are light, durable, and easy to use. Scandium oc- curs in more than 800 minerals and is usually a by-product of uranium refining. Golf clubs have always been made of metal. In the 1400s, the head of the club used metal, which is why they are now called irons. In the 1500s, manufacturers began to make the clubs. By the 1800s, manufacturers started using metal shafts so that the players had better control over the ball. Clubs today are made of a variety of carefully selected materials such as aluminum, beryllium, carbon fibers, copper, graphite, steel, ti - tanium, tungsten, and other inventive alloys that involve these metals and others. Lacrosse sticks are cylinders that are made of many mined materials: aluminum, graphite, and titanium, for example. An - other possibility is the use of alloys. The stick could be made of aluminum that has been combined with magnesium, scan- dium, and zinc. Hockey blades are constructed from chrome-plated car- bon steel. The hockey sticks are light and flexible because they are made from aluminum, titanium, and graphite. Balls, Pucks, and Curling Stones Lacrosse balls and hockey pucks are made from rubber. The process for making rubber involves crude gum and sulfur. Curling stones are made of 42-pound rocks, quarried from a unique, dense granite found on Ailsa Craig, Scotland. Junior stones are composites that put granite and other rocks together. They are lighter so that they can be used by children and seniors. The stone has a plastic handle that attaches to the stone with a steel bolt. The hole where the bolt goes is of- ten lined with brass. (Brass is a mix of copper and zinc.) Other mined materials might be used, too, such as aluminum, lead, manganese, silicon, and tin. Timing the Races Races have to be timed in order to know who the winner is. The clocks they use are filled with metals (boron, copper, and gold, for example) and natural crystals such as quartz. Timing devices for races use many minerals such as boron, copper, gold, and quartz. Medals Everyone recognizes the gold, silver and bronze medals awarded during the Olympic games. But did you know that virtually all the metal used in the medals for both the 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympics and the 2012 Summer Games in London were mined at Rio Tinto Kennecott’s Bingham Canyon Mine right here in Utah? • Gold medals are actually silver plated with gold. The silver portion is 92.5%, and the gold portion is 7.5%. • Silver medals have 7.5% copper added to the silver. Pure silver by itself would be too soft. • Bronze medals are an alloy of copper and tin. Most of the medal, however, consists of copper. A Meaningful Contribution It’s fair to say that without mining, the sports we enjoy simply would not exist. So remember to thank a miner the next time you enjoy a round of golf or a day on the slopes. X