Tin is used for coating thin sheets of steel as it is corrosion-resisting. Tin is extensively used in the canning industry and as an allay with copper in bronze. The U.S.A is the greatest consumer of tin consuming about 50 per cent of world's output.
The principal ore is Cassiterite (Sn02), an oxide of tin usually found in the metamorphic rock. About 75 percent of tin is recovered from placer deposits of Cassiterite and 25 per cent is obtained by mining of lode deposits. Rivers in the past have eroded those bodes and deposited them in the form of gravels which form the chief source of supply of tin.
Malaysia is the world's leading producer of tin accounting for 20% of world total output, which was 191,000 tons in 1985. Kinta valley alone accounts for half of Malaysian output. Russia is the second largest producer with 17% of world total. Indonesia accounts for 13% of world production with mining centres at Bangka, Billiton and Singkep is lands near the coast of Sumatra. Indonesia supplied 16 thousand metric tons of tin in 1988.
In Thailand tin is produced in Packet Island. In China tin is produced in Yunnan and Kwangsi. Nigeria produced 8 thousand metric tons of tin in 1988 from alluvial deposits on the Bauchi Plateau. Congo supplied 10 thousand metric tons of tin concentrates in 1988. Katanga district is the main supplier.
Bolivia is an important produce of tin ore. Her production was 23 thousand metric tons in 1988. The centres of production are on the Andes. In Britain production comes from the deep mines of Cornwall. Britain is a leading smelter of tin in the world. Russia also produces tin from the mines of Leningors and Olovyannaya in Transbaikal.
Mica: Mica is flexible, tough and resilient. It is a non-conductor and hence makes an ideal electrical insulator.
It is used in the electrical industry and hardly has any substitute. Non-splitting mica is usually ground and used as a lustrous sprinkle on wail-paper, for roofing, lubrication, varnishes and other purposes.
India supplies about 80 per cent of the world's output. Gaya-Hazaribagh belt in Bihar, Nellore in Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan are the principal areas of production. Bihar is the foremost of all the areas in quantity and quality. Bihar accounts for about 50 per cent of India's total production of mica.
The U.S.A, the Japan, France and Germany are the principal buyers of India's mica. The USA takes about 50 per cent of India's export.
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