Editing Extractive metallurgy (section)

{{Short description|Ore extraction material science}}
{{Use American English|date = April 2019}}
{{Use mdy dates|date = April 2019}}

'''Extractive metallurgy''' is a branch of [[metallurgical engineering]] wherein process and methods of extraction of metals from their natural [[mineral deposit]]s are studied. The field is a [[materials science]], covering all aspects of the types of ore, washing, concentration, separation, chemical processes and extraction of pure metal and their [[alloying]] to suit various applications, sometimes for direct use as a finished product, but more often in a form that requires further working to achieve the given properties to suit the applications.<ref>Brent Hiskey "Metallurgy, Survey" in
Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, 2000, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim. {{doi|10.1002/0471238961.1921182208091911.a01}}</ref>

The field of ferrous and [[non-ferrous extractive metallurgy]] have specialties that are generically grouped into the categories of [[mineral processing]], [[hydrometallurgy]], [[pyrometallurgy]], and [[electrometallurgy]] based on the process adopted to extract the metal. Several processes are used for extraction of the same metal depending on occurrence and chemical requirements.