Misplaced Pages

#792207

101-646: The Nevada Northern owes its beginnings to the discovery and development of large porphyry copper deposits near Ely early in the 20th century. Two of the region's largest mines (including the Robinson Mine ) were purchased in 1902 by Mark Requa , president of the Eureka & Palisade Railroad in central Nevada. Requa then organized the White Pine Copper Company to develop his new properties, and it soon became evident that rail access to

202-579: A Gilman reagent . These can undergo substitution with alkyl halides to form coupling products ; as such, they are important in the field of organic synthesis . Copper(I) acetylide is highly shock-sensitive but is an intermediate in reactions such as the Cadiot–Chodkiewicz coupling and the Sonogashira coupling . Conjugate addition to enones and carbocupration of alkynes can also be achieved with organocopper compounds. Copper(I) forms

303-684: A National Historic Landmark . The nomination was approved by the National Park Service on September 27, 2006. The remainder of the Nevada Northern has largely been moribund since 1983. In 1987, the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power purchased the Cobre-East Ely line, in anticipation of the construction of a coal-fired generating plant along the route, which was never constructed. Meanwhile,

404-696: A covalent character and are relatively weak. This observation explains the low hardness and high ductility of single crystals of copper. At the macroscopic scale, introduction of extended defects to the crystal lattice , such as grain boundaries, hinders flow of the material under applied stress, thereby increasing its hardness. For this reason, copper is usually supplied in a fine-grained polycrystalline form, which has greater strength than monocrystalline forms. The softness of copper partly explains its high electrical conductivity ( 59.6 × 10   S /m ) and high thermal conductivity, second highest (second only to silver) among pure metals at room temperature. This

505-651: A half-dozen backers , including station manager George McCulloch (a young cousin of Victorian Premier Sir James McCulloch ), Rasp formed the Broken Hill Company staking out the entire Hill. As costs mounted during the ensuing months of fruitless search, three of the original seven (now remembered as the Syndicate of Seven ) sold their shares, so that, on the eve of the company's great success, there were nine shareholders, including Rasp, McCulloch, Philip Charly (aka Charley), David James, James Poole (five of

606-643: A nickel ) consists of 75% copper and 25% nickel in homogeneous composition. Prior to the introduction of cupronickel, which was widely adopted by countries in the latter half of the 20th century, alloys of copper and silver were also used, with the United States using an alloy of 90% silver and 10% copper until 1965, when circulating silver was removed from all coins with the exception of the half dollar—these were debased to an alloy of 40% silver and 60% copper between 1965 and 1970. The alloy of 90% copper and 10% nickel, remarkable for its resistance to corrosion,

707-425: A spin of 3 ⁄ 2 . The other isotopes are radioactive , with the most stable being Cu with a half-life of 61.83 hours. Seven metastable isomers have been characterized; Cu is the longest-lived with a half-life of 3.8 minutes. Isotopes with a mass number above 64 decay by β , whereas those with a mass number below 64 decay by β . Cu , which has

808-475: A $ 9.6 billion deal. In fiscal year 2021-2022, BHP's annual profit amounted to more than $ 34 billion (an increase of 34%) of $ 65 billion (an increase of 14%). The coal division's profits reached almost $ 9 billion (a loss of $ 577 million in 2022), with the BHP's iron ore division making $ 21.7 billion (a decrease of $ 4.6 billion since 2022). Profit growth allowed the company to pay a record dividend of $ 7.6 billion for

909-632: A 50/50 joint venture to hold the Filo del Sol (FDS) and Josemaria projects. Until January 2022, BHP was a dual-listed company ; the Australian BHP Billiton Limited and the British BHP Billiton plc were separately listed with separate shareholder bodies, while conducting business as one operation with identical boards of directors and a single management structure. The headquarters of BHP Billiton Limited and

1010-565: A Canadian company, was one of three bidders for the mine, tendering the lowest offer, and returned the mine to production in 2011. Ravensthorpe cost BHP US$ 3.6 billion in write-downs when it was shut in January 2009 after less than a year of production. In January 2010, following the BHP Billiton purchase of Athabasca Potash for US$ 320m, The Economist reported that, by 2020, BHP Billiton could produce approximately 15 per cent of

1111-451: A Queensland fertiliser plant. The takeover achieved 90 per cent acceptance on 17 June 2005, and 100 per cent ownership was announced on 2 August 2005, achieved through compulsory acquisition of the remaining 10 per cent of the shares. On 8 November 2007, BHP Billiton announced it was seeking to purchase rival mining group Rio Tinto Group in an all-share deal. The initial offer of 3.4 shares of BHP Billiton stock for each share of Rio Tinto

SECTION 10

#1732779670793

1212-399: A blast furnace. A potential source of copper is polymetallic nodules, which have an estimated concentration 1.3%. Like aluminium , copper is recyclable without any loss of quality, both from raw state and from manufactured products. In volume, copper is the third most recycled metal after iron and aluminium. An estimated 80% of all copper ever mined is still in use today. According to

1313-464: A blue crystalline penta hydrate , the most familiar copper compound in the laboratory. It is used in a fungicide called the Bordeaux mixture . Polyols , compounds containing more than one alcohol functional group , generally interact with cupric salts. For example, copper salts are used to test for reducing sugars . Specifically, using Benedict's reagent and Fehling's solution the presence of

1414-725: A fine of $ 25 million to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission in 2015 in connection with violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act related to its "hospitality program" at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing . BHP Billiton invited 176 government and state-owned-enterprise officials to attend the Games on an all-expenses-paid package. While BHP Billiton claimed to have compliance processes in place to avoid conflicts of interest,

1515-556: A freeze on approving any major new expansion projects. Days after announcing the Olympic Dam pull-out, BHP Billiton announced that it was selling its Yeelirrie Uranium Project to Canadian Cameco for a fee of around $ 430 million. The sale was part of a broader move to step away from resource expansion in Australia. On 19 August 2014, BHP Billiton announced it would create an independent global metals and mining company based on

1616-457: A green patina of compounds called verdigris . Copper is sometimes used in decorative art , both in its elemental metal form and in compounds as pigments. Copper compounds are used as bacteriostatic agents , fungicides , and wood preservatives . Copper is essential to all living organisms as a trace dietary mineral because it is a key constituent of the respiratory enzyme complex cytochrome c oxidase . In molluscs and crustaceans , copper

1717-505: A half-life of 12.7 hours, decays both ways. Cu and Cu have significant applications. Cu is used in Cu Cu-PTSM as a radioactive tracer for positron emission tomography . Copper is produced in massive stars and is present in the Earth's crust in a proportion of about 50 parts per million (ppm). In nature, copper occurs in

1818-687: A layer of brown-black copper oxide which, unlike the rust that forms on iron in moist air, protects the underlying metal from further corrosion ( passivation ). A green layer of verdigris (copper carbonate) can often be seen on old copper structures, such as the roofing of many older buildings and the Statue of Liberty . Copper tarnishes when exposed to some sulfur compounds, with which it reacts to form various copper sulfides . There are 29 isotopes of copper. Cu and Cu are stable, with Cu comprising approximately 69% of naturally occurring copper; both have

1919-536: A lot of interest when exhibited at the City of Melbourne Bank in Collins Street . Some sceptics asserted the promoters were merely using silver from somewhere else, to ramp up the shares.... Another shareholder, the dominating W. R. Wilson had had to lend William Jamieson , General Manager, a new suit so he could take the first prospectus, printed at Silverton near Broken Hill on 20 June 1885, to Adelaide to start

2020-408: A major workers' strike and forced the company to declare force majeure on two shipments, which drove copper prices up by 4%. In April 2017 activist hedge fund manager Elliott Advisors proposed a plan for BHP Billiton to spin off its American petroleum assets and significantly restructure the business, including the scrapping of its dual Sydney-London listing, suggesting shares be offered only in

2121-532: A natural color other than gray or silver. Pure copper is orange-red and acquires a reddish tarnish when exposed to air. This is due to the low plasma frequency of the metal, which lies in the red part of the visible spectrum, causing it to absorb the higher-frequency green and blue colors. As with other metals, if copper is put in contact with another metal in the presence of an electrolyte , galvanic corrosion will occur. Copper does not react with water, but it does slowly react with atmospheric oxygen to form

SECTION 20

#1732779670793

2222-647: A record high of A$ 48.90 following speculation that Chinese mining firm Chinalco was considering purchasing a large stake. As global nickel prices fell, on 25 November 2008, Billiton announced that it would drop its A$ 66 billion takeover of rival Rio Tinto Group, stating that the "risks to shareholder value" would "increase" to "an unacceptable level" due to the 2007–2008 financial crisis . On 21 January 2009, BHP Billiton then announced that Ravensthorpe Nickel Mine in Western Australia would cease operations, ending shipments of ore from Ravensthorpe to

2323-407: A red-brown precipitate with copper(II) salts. Compounds that contain a carbon-copper bond are known as organocopper compounds. They are very reactive towards oxygen to form copper(I) oxide and have many uses in chemistry . They are synthesized by treating copper(I) compounds with Grignard reagents , terminal alkynes or organolithium reagents ; in particular, the last reaction described produces

2424-451: A rich variety of compounds, usually with oxidation states +1 and +2, which are often called cuprous and cupric , respectively. Copper compounds promote or catalyse numerous chemical and biological processes. As with other elements, the simplest compounds of copper are binary compounds, i.e. those containing only two elements, the principal examples being oxides, sulfides, and halides . Both cuprous and cupric oxides are known. Among

2525-675: A selection of its aluminium, coal, manganese, nickel, and silver assets. The newly formed entity, named South32 , was subsequently demerged with listings on the Australian Securities Exchange the JSE and the London Stock Exchange . In 2015, BHP Billiton spun off a number of its subsidiaries in South Africa and Southern Africa to form a new company known as South32. BHP Billiton agreed to pay

2626-424: A variety of minerals, including native copper , copper sulfides such as chalcopyrite , bornite , digenite , covellite , and chalcocite , copper sulfosalts such as tetrahedite-tennantite , and enargite , copper carbonates such as azurite and malachite , and as copper(I) or copper(II) oxides such as cuprite and tenorite , respectively. The largest mass of elemental copper discovered weighed 420 tonnes and

2727-436: A variety of weak complexes with alkenes and carbon monoxide , especially in the presence of amine ligands. Copper(III) is most often found in oxides. A simple example is potassium cuprate , KCuO 2 , a blue-black solid. The most extensively studied copper(III) compounds are the cuprate superconductors . Yttrium barium copper oxide (YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7 ) consists of both Cu(II) and Cu(III) centres. Like oxide, fluoride

2828-515: A year later, its completion marked by a two-day celebration in Ely. The railroad's symbolic final spike—made of local copper—was driven by Requa in Ely on September 29, 1906, which was designated as Railroad Day. To celebrate the new railway, a ball was held inside the Northern building, which was still under construction at the time. Additional Ely-area trackage was constructed in 1907-1908 to serve

2929-774: A year over 10 years to develop the field and triple production. On 14 July 2011, BHP Billiton announced that it would acquire Petrohawk Energy of the United States for approximately $ 12.1 billion in cash, considerably expanding its shale natural gas resources in an offer of $ US38.75 per share. On 22 August 2012, BHP Billiton announced that it was delaying its US$ 20 billion (£12 billion) Olympic Dam copper mine expansion project in South Australia to study less capital intensive options, deferring its dual harbour strategy at West Australian Iron Ore and slowing down its Potash growth option in Canada. The company simultaneously announced

3030-583: Is a constituent of the blood pigment hemocyanin , replaced by the iron-complexed hemoglobin in fish and other vertebrates . In humans, copper is found mainly in the liver, muscle, and bone. The adult body contains between 1.4 and 2.1 mg of copper per kilogram of body weight. In the Roman era , copper was mined principally on Cyprus , the origin of the name of the metal, from aes cyprium (metal of Cyprus), later corrupted to cuprum (Latin). Coper ( Old English ) and copper were derived from this,

3131-405: Is a highly basic anion and is known to stabilize metal ions in high oxidation states. Both copper(III) and even copper(IV) fluorides are known, K 3 CuF 6 and Cs 2 CuF 6 , respectively. Some copper proteins form oxo complexes , which, in extensively studied synthetic analog systems, feature copper(III). With tetrapeptides , purple-colored copper(III) complexes are stabilized by

Nevada Northern Railway - Misplaced Pages Continue

3232-401: Is because the resistivity to electron transport in metals at room temperature originates primarily from scattering of electrons on thermal vibrations of the lattice, which are relatively weak in a soft metal. The maximum possible current density of copper in open air is approximately 3.1 × 10  A/m , above which it begins to heat excessively. Copper is one of a few metallic elements with

3333-533: Is melted in a furnace and then reduced and cast into billets and ingots ; lower-purity scrap is refined by electroplating in a bath of sulfuric acid . The environmental cost of copper mining was estimated at 3.7 kg CO2eq per kg of copper in 2019. Codelco, a major producer in Chile, reported that in 2020 the company emitted 2.8t CO2eq per ton (2.8 kg CO2eq per kg) of fine copper. Greenhouse gas emissions primarily arise from electricity consumed by

3434-444: Is one of the most important constituents of silver and karat gold solders used in the jewelry industry, modifying the color, hardness and melting point of the resulting alloys. Some lead-free solders consist of tin alloyed with a small proportion of copper and other metals. The alloy of copper and nickel , called cupronickel , is used in low-denomination coins, often for the outer cladding. The US five-cent coin (currently called

3535-437: Is recovered from mine tailings and heaps. A variety of methods are used including leaching with sulfuric acid, ammonia, ferric chloride. Biological methods are also used. A significant source of copper is from recycling. Recycling is facilitated because copper is usually deployed in its metallic state. In 2001, a typical automobile contained 20–30 kg of copper. Recycling usually begins with some melting process using

3636-598: Is the largest company in Australia, and the largest mining company in the world, both as measured by market capitalisation. In 2023, the company's position in the Forbes Global 2000 was 90th. Billiton Maatschappij was founded 29 September 1860, when its articles of association were approved by a meeting of shareholders in the Groot Keizershof hotel in The Hague , Netherlands. Two months later,

3737-536: Is used as a conductor of heat and electricity, as a building material , and as a constituent of various metal alloys , such as sterling silver used in jewelry , cupronickel used to make marine hardware and coins , and constantan used in strain gauges and thermocouples for temperature measurement. Copper is one of the few metals that can occur in nature in a directly usable metallic form ( native metals ). This led to very early human use in several regions, from c.  8000 BC . Thousands of years later, it

3838-411: Is used for various objects exposed to seawater, though it is vulnerable to the sulfides sometimes found in polluted harbors and estuaries. Alloys of copper with aluminium (about 7%) have a golden color and are used in decorations. Shakudō is a Japanese decorative alloy of copper containing a low percentage of gold, typically 4–10%, that can be patinated to a dark blue or black color. Copper forms

3939-513: The Australian and London Stock Exchanges as a dual-listed company . In 2015, some BHP Billiton assets were demerged and rebranded as South32 , while a scaled-down BHP Billiton became BHP. In 2018, BHP Billiton Limited and BHP Billiton plc became BHP Group Limited and BHP Group plc, respectively. In January 2022, BHP relinquished its London Stock Exchange listing, becoming a solely Australian Securities Exchange-listed company. As of 2022, BHP

4040-686: The British Geological Survey , in 2005, Chile was the top producer of copper with at least one-third of the world share followed by the United States, Indonesia and Peru. Copper can also be recovered through the in-situ leach process. Several sites in the state of Arizona are considered prime candidates for this method. The amount of copper in use is increasing and the quantity available is barely sufficient to allow all countries to reach developed world levels of usage. An alternative source of copper for collection currently being researched are polymetallic nodules , which are located at

4141-607: The Great Lakes may have also been mining copper during this time, making it one of the oldest known examples of copper extraction in the world. There is evidence from prehistoric lead pollution from lakes in Michigan that people in the region began mining copper c.  6000 BC . Evidence suggests that utilitarian copper objects fell increasingly out of use in the Old Copper Complex of North America during

Nevada Northern Railway - Misplaced Pages Continue

4242-553: The International Resource Panel 's Metal Stocks in Society report , the global per capita stock of copper in use in society is 35–55 kg. Much of this is in more-developed countries (140–300 kg per capita) rather than less-developed countries (30–40 kg per capita). The process of recycling copper is roughly the same as is used to extract copper but requires fewer steps. High-purity scrap copper

4343-726: The Neolithic period and the Bronze Age was formerly termed the Chalcolithic period (copper-stone), when copper tools were used with stone tools. The term has gradually fallen out of favor because in some parts of the world, the Chalcolithic and Neolithic are coterminous at both ends. Brass, an alloy of copper and zinc, is of much more recent origin. It was known to the Greeks, but became a significant supplement to bronze during

4444-525: The Vinča culture date to 4500 BC. Sumerian and Egyptian artifacts of copper and bronze alloys date to 3000 BC. Egyptian Blue , or cuprorivaite (calcium copper silicate) is a synthetic pigment that contains copper and started being used in ancient Egypt around 3250 BC. The manufacturing process of Egyptian blue was known to the Romans, but by the fourth century AD the pigment fell out of use and

4545-623: The nickname "the Big Australian", was incorporated on 13 August 1885, operating the silver and lead mine at Broken Hill , in western New South Wales , Australia. The Broken Hill group floated on 10 August 1885. The first consignment of Broken Hill ore (48 tons, 5 cwt, 3grs) was smelted at the Intercolonial Smelting and Refining Company's works at Spotswood, Victoria , a suburb of Melbourne. Historian Christopher Jay notes: The resulting 35,605 ounces of silver raised

4646-806: The 1960s. BHP began to diversify into a variety of mining projects overseas. Those included the Ok Tedi copper mine in Papua New Guinea, where the company was successfully sued by the indigenous inhabitants because of the environmental degradation caused by mining operations. BHP had better success with the giant Escondida copper mine in Chile, of which it owns 57.5%, and at the Ekati Diamond Mine in northern Canada, which BHP contracted for in 1996, began mining in 1998, and sold its 80% stake in to Dominion Diamond Corporation in 2013 as production declined. In 2001, BHP merged with

4747-495: The 1990s saw a brief resumption of copper mining near Ruth, this time by BHP . This project saw the construction of additional trackage near Ruth, and the resumption of service from there as far as Shafter by the BHP Nevada Railroad in 1996. Both the mine and railroad shut down again in 1999, and when mining resumed in 2004 concentrates were hauled by truck rather than by rail. The disused line between Ely and Cobre

4848-548: The 9th or 10th century AD. Carbon dating has established mining at Alderley Edge in Cheshire , UK, at 2280 to 1890 BC. Ötzi the Iceman , a male dated from 3300 to 3200 BC, was found with an axe with a copper head 99.7% pure; high levels of arsenic in his hair suggest an involvement in copper smelting. Experience with copper has assisted the development of other metals; in particular, copper smelting likely led to

4949-557: The BHP steelworks during the largely unsuccessful shelling of Newcastle . Newcastle operations were closed in 1999, and a 70-ton commemorative sculpture, The Muster Point , was installed on Industrial Drive, in the suburb of Mayfield, New South Wales . The long products side of the steel business was spun off to form OneSteel in 2000. In the 1950s, BHP began petroleum exploration, which became an increasing focus following oil and natural gas discoveries in Bass Strait in

5050-524: The Billiton mining company to form BHP Billiton. In 2002, flat steel products were demerged to form the publicly traded company BHP Steel which, in 2003, became BlueScope . In March 2005, BHP Billiton announced a US$ 7.3  billion agreed bid for WMC Resources , owners of the Olympic Dam copper, gold and uranium mine in South Australia, nickel operations in Western Australia and Queensland, and

5151-517: The Bronze Age and a shift towards an increased production of ornamental copper objects occurred. Natural bronze, a type of copper made from ores rich in silicon, arsenic, and (rarely) tin, came into general use in the Balkans around 5500 BC. Alloying copper with tin to make bronze was first practiced about 4000 years after the discovery of copper smelting, and about 2000 years after "natural bronze" had come into general use. Bronze artifacts from

SECTION 50

#1732779670793

5252-541: The Middle East; a copper pendant was found in northern Iraq that dates to 8700 BC. Evidence suggests that gold and meteoric iron (but not smelted iron) were the only metals used by humans before copper. The history of copper metallurgy is thought to follow this sequence: first, cold working of native copper, then annealing , smelting , and, finally, lost-wax casting . In southeastern Anatolia , all four of these techniques appear more or less simultaneously at

5353-426: The Nevada Northern by far, hosting dozens of loaded and empty ore trains daily. As a subsidiary of Nevada Consolidated, the primary purpose of the Nevada Northern throughout its history was the haulage of copper ores and products. Other freight traffic was also carried, and the railroad operated a daily passenger train between East Ely and Cobre until 1941. Local trains were also operated from Ely to Ruth and McGill for

5454-523: The Roman Empire. BHP BHP Group Limited , formerly known as BHP Billiton , is an Australian multinational mining and metals public company headquartered in Melbourne , Australia. The Broken Hill Proprietary Company was founded on 16 July 1885 in the mining town of Silverton, New South Wales . As of 2024, BHP was the world’s largest mining company by market capitalization and

5555-460: The SEC found that BHP Billiton had invited officials from at least four countries where BHP Billiton had interests in influencing the officials' decisions ( Congo , Guinea , Philippines and Burundi ). In August 2016, BHP Billiton recorded its worst annual loss in history, $ 6.4 billion. Towards the end of 2016 BHP Billiton indicated it would expand its petroleum business and make new investments in

5656-593: The United Kingdom, while leaving its headquarters and tax residences in Australia where shares would trade as depository instruments. At the time of the correspondence Elliott held about 4.1 per cent of the issued shares in London-listed BHP Billiton plc, worth $ 3.81 billion. Australia's government warned it would block moves to shift BHP Billiton's stock listing from Australia to the United Kingdom. Australian Treasurer Scott Morrison said

5757-843: The Yabulu nickel plant in Queensland Australia. Yabulu refinery was subsequently sold to Queensland billionaire Clive Palmer , becoming the Palmer Nickel and Cobalt Refinery . Pinto Valley mine in the United States was also closed. Mine closures and general scaling back during the 2007–2008 financial crisis accounted for 6,000 employee lay offs. As the nickel market became saturated by both spiraling economics and cheaper extraction methods; on 9 December 2009, BHP Billiton sold its Ravensthorpe Nickel Mine , which had cost A$ 2.4 billion to build, to Vancouver -based First Quantum Minerals for US$ 340 million. First Quantum,

5858-521: The affected areas is highly acidic, with a pH range of 2.1–4.9, and shows elevated electrical conductivity levels between 280 and 1561 mS/cm. These changes in water chemistry make the environment inhospitable for fish, essentially rendering the water uninhabitable for aquatic life. Numerous copper alloys have been formulated, many with important uses. Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc . Bronze usually refers to copper- tin alloys, but can refer to any alloy of copper such as aluminium bronze . Copper

5959-541: The atmosphere; 150 mg/kg in soil; 30 mg/kg in vegetation; 2 μg/L in freshwater and 0.5 μg/L in seawater. Most copper is mined or extracted as copper sulfides from large open pit mines in porphyry copper deposits that contain 0.4 to 1.0% copper. Sites include Chuquicamata , in Chile, Bingham Canyon Mine , in Utah, United States, and El Chino Mine , in New Mexico, United States. According to

6060-766: The beginning of the Neolithic c.  7500 BC . Copper smelting was independently invented in different places. The earliest evidence of lost-wax casting copper comes from an amulet found in Mehrgarh , Pakistan, and is dated to 4000 BC. Investment casting was invented in 4500–4000 BC in Southeast Asia Smelting was probably discovered in China before 2800 BC, in Central America around 600 AD, and in West Africa about

6161-666: The benefit of mine employees and others until the 1930s, and special school trains carried students to White Pine High School in central Ely. A series of corporate financial transactions in the 1920s and 1930s brought Nevada Consolidated under the control of the Kennecott Copper Corporation , and Nevada Consolidated was merged into Kennecott in 1942. The Nevada Northern thus became a Kennecott subsidiary. Faced with declining ore reserves and low copper prices, Kennecott closed its Ruth-area mines in May 1978, thus ending

SECTION 60

#1732779670793

6262-789: The company acquired mineral rights to the Billiton ( Belitung ) and Bangka Islands in the Netherlands Indies archipelago off the eastern coast of Sumatra . Billiton's initial ventures included tin and lead smelting in the Netherlands, followed in the 1940s by bauxite mining in Indonesia and Suriname . In 1970, Shell acquired Billiton. Billiton opened a tin smelting and refining plant in Phuket , Thailand, named Thaisarco (for Thailand Smelting And Refining Company, Limited). In 1994, South Africa's Gencor acquired

6363-625: The company ventured into steel manufacturing, with its operations based primarily at the Newcastle Steelworks . The decision to move from mining ore at Broken Hill to opening a steelworks at Newcastle was due to the technical limitations in recovering value from mining the lower-lying sulphide ores. The discovery of Iron Knob and Iron Monarch near the western shore of the Spencer Gulf in South Australia , combined with

6464-531: The company, especially when sourced from fossil fuels, and from engines required for copper extraction and refinement. Companies that mine land often mismanage waste, rendering the area sterile for life. Additionally, nearby rivers and forests are also negatively impacted. The Philippines is an example of a region where land is overexploited by mining companies. Copper mining waste in Valea Şesei, Romania, has significantly altered nearby water properties. The water in

6565-493: The company. Anderson successfully completed the four-year project with a merger between BHP and London-based Billiton. In July 2002, Brian Gilbertson of Billiton was appointed CEO, but resigned after just six months, citing irreconcilable differences with the board. Upon Gilbertson's departure in early 2003, Chip Goodyear was appointed the new CEO, increasing sales by 47 per cent and profits by 78 per cent during his tenure. Goodyear retired on 30 September 2007. Marius Kloppers

6666-522: The deprotonated amide ligands. Complexes of copper(III) are also found as intermediates in reactions of organocopper compounds, for example in the Kharasch–Sosnovsky reaction . A timeline of copper illustrates how this metal has advanced human civilization for the past 11,000 years. Copper occurs naturally as native metallic copper and was known to some of the oldest civilizations on record. The history of copper use dates to 9000 BC in

6767-461: The depths of the Pacific Ocean approximately 3000–6500 meters below sea level. These nodules contain other valuable metals such as cobalt and nickel . Copper has been in use for at least 10,000 years, but more than 95% of all copper ever mined and smelted has been extracted since 1900. As with many natural resources, the total amount of copper on Earth is vast, with around 10 tons in

6868-563: The discovery of iron smelting . Production in the Old Copper Complex in Michigan and Wisconsin is dated between 6500 and 3000 BC. A copper spearpoint found in Wisconsin has been dated to 6500 BC. Copper usage by the indigenous peoples of the Old Copper Complex from the Great Lakes region of North America has been radiometrically dated to as far back as 7500 BC. Indigenous peoples of North America around

6969-428: The entire mainline route for heritage use. On October 14, 2021, plans to extend the line to McGill were announced. Copper Copper is a chemical element ; it has symbol Cu (from Latin cuprum ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity . A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orange color . Copper

7070-545: The fastest water exchange rate (speed of water ligands attaching and detaching) for any transition metal aquo complex . Adding aqueous sodium hydroxide causes the precipitation of light blue solid copper(II) hydroxide . A simplified equation is: Aqueous ammonia results in the same precipitate. Upon adding excess ammonia, the precipitate dissolves, forming tetraamminecopper(II) : Many other oxyanions form complexes; these include copper(II) acetate , copper(II) nitrate , and copper(II) carbonate . Copper(II) sulfate forms

7171-399: The float process. The geographic Broken Hill, for which the town was named, was discovered and named by Captain Charles Sturt , stirring great interest among prospectors. Nothing of note was discovered until 5 November 1883, when Charles Rasp , boundary rider for the surrounding Mount Gipps Station , pegged out a 40-acre claim with contractors David James and James Poole. Together with

7272-609: The global headquarters of the combined group were located in Melbourne , Australia. The headquarters of BHP Billiton plc were located in London, England. Its main office locations were in Australia, the U.S., Canada, the UK, Chile, Malaysia, and Singapore. The company's shares traded on the following exchanges: BHP Billiton Limited and BHP Billiton plc were renamed BHP Group Limited and BHP Group plc, respectively, on 19 November 2018. In 1998, BHP hired American Paul Anderson to restructure

7373-511: The global investment community. On 22 February 2011, BHP Billiton announced that it had paid $ 4.75 billion in cash to Chesapeake Energy for its Fayetteville shale assets, which include 487,000 acres (1,970 km ) of mineral rights leases and 420 miles (680 km) of pipeline located in north central Arkansas . The wells on the mineral leases are currently producing about 415 million cubic feet of natural gas per day. BHP Billiton planned to spend $ 800 million to $ 1 billion

7474-580: The half-year ending December 31. BHP made an offer to acquire Anglo American for £31 billion in April 2024; however, the offer was rejected by the Anglo American as "highly unattractive". A revised offer was also rejected in May 2024. In July 2024, BHP and Lundin Mining agreed to jointly acquire 100% of Filo Corp. through a Canadian plan of arrangement. BHP and Lundin Mining also agreed to form

7575-638: The isolated region would be essential to fully exploit the potential of the mines. Subsequent surveys indicated that the most practical route for such a railroad was northward from Ely, connecting with the Southern Pacific somewhere in the vicinity of Wells . The Ely-area copper properties were further merged in 1904, forming the Nevada Consolidated Copper Company, and the Nevada Northern Railway

7676-511: The later spelling first used around 1530. Copper, silver , and gold are in group 11 of the periodic table; these three metals have one s-orbital electron on top of a filled d- electron shell and are characterized by high ductility , and electrical and thermal conductivity. The filled d-shells in these elements contribute little to interatomic interactions, which are dominated by the s-electrons through metallic bonds . Unlike metals with incomplete d-shells, metallic bonds in copper are lacking

7777-419: The level of <1% Cu. Concentration of the ore is required, which begins with comminution followed by froth flotation . The remaining concentrate is the smelted, which can be described with two simplified equations: Cuprous oxide reacts with cuprous sulfide to convert to blister copper upon heating This roasting gives matte copper, roughly 50% Cu by weight, which is purified by electrolysis. Depending on

7878-456: The local mining industry. This trackage, known as the "Ore Line," included a route bypassing Ely to the north and continuing west up Robinson Canyon to the copper mines at Ruth . East of Ely, the Ore Line project saw the construction of the "Hiline," a branch leading to Nevada Consolidated's new copper smelter and concentrator at McGill . The Ore Line immediately became the busiest segment of

7979-560: The mining division of Billiton excluding the downstream metal division. Billiton was divested from Gencor in 1997, and was amalgamated with Gold Fields in 1998. In 1997, Billiton plc became a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index and in 2001 Billiton plc merged with the Broken Hill Proprietary Company Limited (BHP) to form BHP Billiton. The Broken Hill Proprietary Company Limited (BHP), also known by

8080-472: The modern world. The price of copper is volatile . After a peak in 2022 the price unexpectedly fell. The global market for copper is one of the most commodified and financialized of the commodity markets , and has been so for decades. The great majority of copper ores are sulfides. Common ores are the sulfides chalcopyrite (CuFeS 2 ), bornite (Cu 5 FeS 4 ) and, to a lesser extent, covellite (CuS) and chalcocite (Cu 2 S). These ores occur at

8181-535: The move would be contrary to the country's national interest and would breach government orders mandating a listing on the Australian Securities Exchange. BHP Billiton dismissed the plan saying the costs and risks of Elliott's proposal outweighed any potential benefits. In May 2017, with much of the former Billiton assets having been disposed of, BHP Billiton began to rebrand itself as BHP, at first in Australia and then globally. It replaced

8282-516: The numerous copper sulfides , important examples include copper(I) sulfide ( Cu 2 S ) and copper monosulfide ( CuS ). Cuprous halides with fluorine , chlorine , bromine , and iodine are known, as are cupric halides with fluorine , chlorine , and bromine . Attempts to prepare copper(II) iodide yield only copper(I) iodide and iodine. Copper forms coordination complexes with ligands . In aqueous solution, copper(II) exists as [Cu(H 2 O) 6 ] . This complex exhibits

8383-619: The ore trains between Ruth and the McGill smelter. The smelter closed on June 20, 1983, and the Nevada Northern suspended all operations immediately thereafter. In a series of donations beginning in 1986, Kennecott transferred the entire Ore Line, as well as the railroad's yard and shop facilities in East Ely, to the White Pine Historical Railroad Foundation, a non-profit organization that today operates

8484-428: The ore, sometimes other metals are obtained during the electrolysis including platinum and gold. Aside from sulfides, another family of ores are oxides. Approximately 15% of the world's copper supply derives from these oxides. The beneficiation process for oxides involves extraction with sulfuric acid solutions followed by electrolysis. In parallel with the above method for "concentrated" sulfide and oxide ores, copper

8585-498: The original syndicate of seven, which had previously included George Urquhart and G.A.M. Lind), Bowes Kelly, W. R. Wilson, and William Jamieson (who had bought shares from several of the founders). John Darling, Jr. became a director of the company in 1892 and was chairman of directors from 1907 to 1914. Strongly encouraged by the New South Wales Minister for Public Works, Arthur Hill Griffith , in 1915,

8686-571: The property as the Nevada Northern Railway Museum which operates a heritage railroad on this part of the former NN. Passenger excursion train service is offered between Ely, Ruth, and McGill using period equipment pulled by historic steam and diesel locomotives. In April 2006, Nevada's National Historic Landmarks Committee granted unanimous support to nominating the Nevada Northern's East Ely shops complex as

8787-506: The refinement, by BHP metallurgists A. D. Carmichael and Leslie Bradford , of the froth flotation technique for separating zinc sulphides from the accompanying gangue and subsequent conversion (Carmichael–Bradford process) to oxides of the metal, allowed BHP to economically extract valuable metals from the heaps of tailings up to 40 feet (12 m) high at the mine site. In 1942, the Imperial Japanese Navy targeted

8888-566: The sale of its Fayetteville Onshore US gas assets to a wholly owned subsidiary of Merit Energy Company. In August 2021, BHP announced plans to exit the oil and gas industry by merging its hydrocarbon business with Woodside Energy , Australia's largest independent gas producer. It also announced its intention to delist from the London Stock Exchange and consolidate on the Australian Securities Exchange . This occurred in January 2022. In April 2023, BHP took over Oz Minerals in

8989-750: The secret to its manufacturing process became lost. The Romans said the blue pigment was made from copper, silica, lime and natron and was known to them as caeruleum . The Bronze Age began in Southeastern Europe around 3700–3300 BC, in Northwestern Europe about 2500 BC. It ended with the beginning of the Iron Age, 2000–1000 BC in the Near East, and 600 BC in Northern Europe. The transition between

9090-557: The sector. In February 2017, BHP Billiton announced a $ 2.2 billion investment in the new BP platform in the Gulf of Mexico . During the same year, as part of their plan to increase productivity at the Escondida mine in Chile, which is the world's biggest copper mine, BHP Billiton attempted to get workers to accept a 4-year pay freeze, a 66% reduction in the end-of-conflict bonus offering, and increased shift flexibility. This resulted in

9191-471: The slogan "The Big Australian" with "Think Big", with an advertising campaign rolling out in mid May 2017. Work on the change began in late 2015 according to BHP's chief external affairs officer. In August 2017, BHP announced that it would sell off its US shale oil and gas business. In July 2018, the company agreed to sell its shale assets to BP for $ 10.5 billion. BHP indicated its intention to return funds to investors. On 29 September 2018, BHP completed

9292-438: The sugar is signaled by a color change from blue Cu(II) to reddish copper(I) oxide. Schweizer's reagent and related complexes with ethylenediamine and other amines dissolve cellulose . Amino acids such as cystine form very stable chelate complexes with copper(II) including in the form of metal-organic biohybrids (MOBs). Many wet-chemical tests for copper ions exist, one involving potassium ferricyanide , which gives

9393-399: The top kilometer of Earth's crust, which is about 5 million years' worth at the current rate of extraction. However, only a tiny fraction of these reserves is economically viable with present-day prices and technologies. Estimates of copper reserves available for mining vary from 25 to 60 years, depending on core assumptions such as the growth rate. Recycling is a major source of copper in

9494-466: The world demand for potash . In August 2010, BHP Billiton made a hostile takeover bid worth US$ 40 billion for PotashCorp . The bid came after BHP's first bid, made on 17 August, was rejected as being undervalued. This acquisition marked a major strategic move by BHP outside hard commodities and commenced the diversification of its business away from resources with high exposure to carbon price risk, like coal, petroleum and iron ore. The takeover bid

9595-667: The world’s third-largest by revenue . Total iron ore revenue for the company increased by US$ 3.1 billion to US$ 28.0 billion in Fiscal Year 2024, accounting for 50.2% of the company’s revenue, while copper and coal contributed 33.4% and 13.8%, respectively. BHP Billiton was formed in 2001 through the merger of the Australian Broken Hill Proprietary Company Limited (BHP) and the Anglo–Dutch Billiton plc trading on both

9696-618: Was acquired by the city of Ely in 2006. Plans near 2008 by Sierra Pacific Resources for the construction of the Ely Energy Center , a 2,500 megawatt coal-fired generating plant in the Ely vicinity raised the possibility that the railroad may have seen another revival, carrying inbound loads of coal to White Pine County. Since then those plans have stalled; however, the Nevada Northern Railway Museum and Ely have considered other options to possibly restore

9797-527: Was found in 1857 on the Keweenaw Peninsula in Michigan, US. Native copper is a polycrystal , with the largest single crystal ever described measuring 4.4 × 3.2 × 3.2 cm . Copper is the 26th most abundant element in Earth's crust , representing 50 ppm compared with 75 ppm for zinc , and 14 ppm for lead . Typical background concentrations of copper do not exceed 1 ng/m in

9898-550: Was incorporated on June 1, 1905, to build a line connecting the Nevada Consolidated mines and smelter to the national rail network. The task of building the new railroad was contracted to the Utah Construction Company , which began work on September 11, 1905. Construction began at Cobre , where the Nevada Northern connected with the Southern Pacific and proceeded southward. The line was finished

9999-552: Was opposed by the Government of Saskatchewan under Premier Brad Wall . On 3 November, Canadian Industry Minister Tony Clement announced the preliminary rejection of the deal under the Investment Canada Act , giving BHP Billiton 30 days to refine their deal before a final decision was made; BHP withdrew its offer on 14 November 2010. Canada's decision to block the deal was generally viewed as surprising by

10100-433: Was rejected by the board of Rio Tinto for "significantly undervaluing" the company. It was unknown at the time whether BHP Billiton would attempt to purchase Rio Tinto through some form of hostile takeover . A formal hostile bid of 3.4 BHP Billiton shares for each Rio Tinto share was announced on 6 February 2008; The bid was withdrawn 25 November 2008 due to global recession . On 14 May 2008, BHP Billiton shares rose to

10201-547: Was the first metal to be smelted from sulfide ores, c.  5000 BC ; the first metal to be cast into a shape in a mold, c.  4000 BC ; and the first metal to be purposely alloyed with another metal, tin , to create bronze , c.  3500 BC . Commonly encountered compounds are copper(II) salts, which often impart blue or green colors to such minerals as azurite , malachite , and turquoise , and have been used widely and historically as pigments. Copper used in buildings, usually for roofing, oxidizes to form

#792207