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Tin
Tin (Sn) is a silvery white malleable and ductile metal that
is not easily oxidized in air
and resists corrosion. Very soft metallic element, tin can be
rolled, pressed or hammered
into extremely thin sheets (tin foil).
The most important ore mineral of tin, cassiterite (tin dioxide,
SnO2) forms in high-
temperature veins, usually related to igneous rocks such as
granites and rhyolites.
Tin is often found in association with other non-ferrous metals,
such as lead and, to
a lesser extent, copper.
30% of tin consumption is used to coat soft iron (tinplate)
as used in the manufacture
of food and beverage cans.
Alloys such as bronze and pewter are also a major use of tin.
Tin is useful in electrical
applications, mainly low-melting-point solders, that account
for 30% of tin consumption.
Associated with calcium, tin is used to strengthen the lead
electrodes in lead-acid batteries.
Tin is also used in construction, transportation (mainly in
bearings requiring soft metal
alloys) and other various industrial applications. For example,
a thin layer of the oxide is
applied to bottle glass to increase its resistance to shock.
In glass-making, window glass
is made by pouring molten glass onto molten tin. This process
results in flat sheets of glass.
An alloy of tin and niobium has proven to be a "superconducting”
compound at very low
temperatures.
Links:
-World
Bureau of Metal Statistics - Statistics 2000 - 2003
-Tin
Technology
-Mineral
Commodity Summaries (tin), U.S. Geological Survey
Tin Production
Thousand Tonnes
| |
1999 |
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
| Europe |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Portugal |
|
1.227 |
2.163 |
361 |
218 |
220 |
| Spain |
|
1 |
1 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
| total |
|
1.228 |
2.164 |
364 |
222 |
225 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Asia |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| China |
92.000 |
111.000 |
91.600 |
77.300 |
55.600 |
115.000 |
| India |
|
50 |
52 |
53 |
54 |
56 |
| Indonesia |
49.708 |
46.400 |
50237 |
66.620 |
66.284 |
73.079 |
| Laos |
|
435 |
500 |
550 |
360 |
340 |
| Malaysia |
7.340 |
6.307 |
4.972 |
4.214 |
3.358 |
2.745 |
| Mongolia |
|
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
11 |
| Myanmar |
|
636 |
525 |
241 |
190 |
170 |
| Russia (Asia) |
4.500 |
5.200 |
5.000 |
5.000 |
7.200 |
7.500 |
| Thailand |
|
2.363 |
2.383 |
1.384 |
980 |
724 |
| Vietnam |
|
2.400 |
2.300 |
2.200 |
4.600 |
3.500 |
| total |
153.548 |
174.791 |
157.569 |
157.562 |
181.026 |
203.125 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| America |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Argentina |
|
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
28.500 |
| Bolivia |
12.417 |
12.464 |
12.000 |
11.800 |
16.754 |
18.010 |
| Brazil |
13.200 |
13.800 |
13.048 |
11.584 |
13.800 |
12.202 |
| Mexico |
|
4 |
8 |
9 |
21 |
24 |
| Peru |
30.400 |
37.410 |
38.200 |
38.815 |
40.202 |
40.200 |
|
total |
56.017 |
63.678 |
63.256 |
62.208 |
70.777 |
98.636 |
| |
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| Africa |
|
|
|
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| Congo |
|
0 |
0 |
700 |
900 |
950 |
| Niger |
|
22 |
19 |
18 |
17 |
16 |
| Nigeria |
|
1.100 |
1.000 |
1.100 |
1.300 |
1.400 |
| Rwanda |
|
160 |
170 |
289 |
427 |
300 |
|
total |
|
1.282 |
1.189 |
2.107 |
2.644 |
2.666 |
| |
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| Oceania |
|
|
|
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|
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| Australia |
|
9.146 |
9.640 |
7.500 |
1.465 |
800 |
|
total |
|
9.146 |
9.640 |
7.500 |
1.465 |
800 |
| |
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| WORLD
TOTAL |
265.582 |
313.803 |
297.074 |
291.949 |
326.911 |
404.688 |
Source: Österreichisches
Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Arbeit (Federal Ministry
for Economics and Labour of the Republic of Austria), World
Mining Data, April 2006
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