Tanzanite History Tanzanite is blue to blue-violet variety of the mineral zoisite (a calcium aluminium hydroxyl sorosilicate) belonging to the epidote group. Its color is due to the incorporation of trace amounts of vanadium cations. It was brought to the limelight in 1967 by Manuel de Souza (who first mistook it for blue sapphire) with help of Masai herdsmen who originally discovered it in Merelani Hills, near the base of
Marble is a metamorphosed carbonate rock (limestone or dolomite rock) or simply a carbonate rock that was subjected to heat and pressure. In its pure form, marble is a white stone with a crystalline and sugary appearance, consisting of calcium carbonate (CaCO3). True marble forms from limestone but there is also dolomitic marble, which forms when dolomite CaMg(CO3)2 undergoes metamorphism. (hardness, properties) Most marble forms at convergent plate boundaries where
In January 2019 a tailings (mining waste) dam in Brazil owned by Vale mining company collapsed leaving over 200 people dead, thousands displaced and an environmental disaster of millions of cubic meters of toxic mudflows from iron waste. Four years earlier, another tailings dam in Brazil jointly owned by Vale and BHP Billiton failed leaving 19 fatalities, hundreds displaced and a similar environmental mess. Closer home in May 2018 an
Kenya Chamber of Mines has a change of board; the new board was elected into office on 5th April 2019 replacing the outgoing board that has been in-charge since March 2017. The Kenya Chamber of Mines (KCM), whose motto is “Supporting Mineral Industry Growth” is a Business Member Organization that represent the interests of players in the development of mineral sector of Kenya. These include: miners/mining companies, prospectors and explorers,
The World’s Most Recycled Material What is steel? What makes it so important and useful? What makes it so recyclable? Here are some interesting things about the world’s most recycled material. Steel is a hard, strong grey or bluish-grey alloy of iron and carbon, with carbon content not exceeding 2%. If the alloy exceeds 2% carbon in content, it moves from steel to cast iron. In addition to metal characteristics of
