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Article: Gangue.(minerals in an ore deposit)
- Article from:
- Rocks & Minerals
- Article date:
- September 1, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 Heldref Publications. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Gangue (pronounced "gang") is the term used to collectively describe the valueless minerals in an ore deposit. This view of gangue equates value with ore minerals. The table gives the most common gangue minerals (Rimstidt 1997). As one reads through this list, however, it becomes obvious that many gangue minerals may be of great value in the mineral-specimen market. Also, inclusion in the table does not preclude a mineral from being economically important in some deposits; it only indicates that it is commonly found in uneconomic concentrations associated with other minerals that are ores. For example, fluorite (our major source of fluorine) is a primary ore mineral in ...