Wednesday, December 19, 2018

How Modern Technology And Science Help In Mineral Exploration

By Christine Cook


The world economy today is carried on the back of one natural resource. Oftentimes called the black gold, in its various forms it powers the bulk of all equipment and machinery. From small power tools to huge heavy equipment this substance provides the main source of energy. All the vehicles that travel on roads use this to power the engine. This is a limited resource and industrialists engage scientist to study the sources through micro paleontology.

Several huge corporations are investing top dollars to survey the areas on the planet that most likely have big deposits of fossil fuel. The main source of this substance comes from deep beneath the bowels of our planet. It is processed into several products, the most heavily used are diesel and gasoline. All types of engines used to power vehicles use this for internal combustion.

One very obvious large user of this substance is the transport industry. Anywhere one goes, a car or any type of vehicle can be seen plying the thoroughfares day in and day out. The machines are powered by internal combustion engines that use fossil fuel as a catalyst for conversion of chemical energy into a mechanical form that drives the axles that turn the wheels.

Crude oil is an exhaustible resource. With this in mind, rich industrialists hire experts and scientists in looking for the spots where there are huge deposits. These scientists come from different fields of expertise and most are geologists and paleontologists. They help in identifying areas that can possibly contain a deposit of hydrocarbons which is the main component of petroleum and natural gas.

Geology is the science that concentrates on the study of earth materials which can either be solid, gas, or liquid. It also encompasses the process by which these materials are created and formed and the causes that bring about their existence. Geologists are what these scientists are called and their expertise and talent are now being harnessed by mining and oil exploration companies.

The study of organisms that lived millions of years ago is called paleontology. These focus especially on microorganisms such as foraminifera. The remains of the decomposed bodies of these organisms are embedded on rocks and sediments found deep under the oceans. There is also a branch of study that concentrates on the different earth layers where these might be found.

In modern times, exploration companies hire experts from these two fields of science to find more deposits and develop existing ones. Advance drilling technology backed up by powerful computers have made deep ocean drilling and exploration possible. These are capable of getting samples from great depths and different strata of the earth surface.

Micro paleontologists use the method of studying what fossils are normally found in the different strata of the earth crust. Modern gadgetry and analysis equipment are available as a result of technological advances. This equipment is used to determine the biological and chemical components of these strata. The extracted materials being brought up are known as core samples.

This huge endeavor which is largely financed by big oil industries seeks to find more and more of this resource as supplies begin to dwindle as a result of over-exploitation. More and more companies are looking at developing an alternative and renewable source of energy. Industries have relied too much on crude oil for a very long time. The use of fossil fuel has also brought about severe climatic changes.




About the Author:



No comments:

Popular Posts