Owing to the embargo placed by the People’s Government on the export of wolfram, no supplies were received from China during the year. The meagre stocks held in the Colony at the beginning of the year were soon exported.
Wolfram was discovered in several places in the New Territories during the year, the richest being in the Lin Fa Mountain district, and was soon mined, but on a very disorganized and unauthorized basis. The miners are refugees and jobless workmen working independently who sell the product of their labour to a collector who in turn sells it to the exporter.
It is estimated that the total output from these sources is thirty tons per month. Prices at the beginning of the year were $700/$800 per picul of 65% grade rising gradually to the present price of $1,700 per picul which is the highest on record.
Government have now stepped in and prohibited unauthorized mining in view of the loss of revenue, and in order to bring the miners under better control. They intend to place the mining in the hands of contractors.”
I was wondering about the use of the name wolfram. As I am a chemist, I'm familiar with this name but it is usually called tungsten in English . The usual source is a mineral named wolframite, so this is likely what was referred to as Wolfram Ore.
Yes, wolfram ore is wolframite. The name also piqued my curiosity and I had to look it up. Below is the wiki link:
“The name "wolframite" is derived from German "wolf rahm", the name given to tungsten by Johan Gottschalk Wallerius in 1747. This, in turn, derives from "Lupi spuma", the name Georg Agricola used for the element in 1546, which translates into English as "wolf's froth" or "wolf's cream". The etymology is not entirely certain but seems to be a reference to the large amounts of tin consumed by the mineral during its extraction, the phenomenon being likened to a wolf eating a sheep.[11]Wolfram is the basis for the chemical symbol W for tungsten as a chemical element.”
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“Wolfram Ore. Owing to the…
“Wolfram Ore.
Owing to the embargo placed by the People’s Government on the export of wolfram, no supplies were received from China during the year. The meagre stocks held in the Colony at the beginning of the year were soon exported.
Wolfram was discovered in several places in the New Territories during the year, the richest being in the Lin Fa Mountain district, and was soon mined, but on a very disorganized and unauthorized basis. The miners are refugees and jobless workmen working independently who sell the product of their labour to a collector who in turn sells it to the exporter.
It is estimated that the total output from these sources is thirty tons per month. Prices at the beginning of the year were $700/$800 per picul of 65% grade rising gradually to the present price of $1,700 per picul which is the highest on record.
Government have now stepped in and prohibited unauthorized mining in view of the loss of revenue, and in order to bring the miners under better control. They intend to place the mining in the hands of contractors.”
Source: Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce Report For The Year 1951, page 63
Wolfram/Tungsten
I was wondering about the use of the name wolfram. As I am a chemist, I'm familiar with this name but it is usually called tungsten in English . The usual source is a mineral named wolframite, so this is likely what was referred to as Wolfram Ore.
Yes, wolfram ore is…
Yes, wolfram ore is wolframite. The name also piqued my curiosity and I had to look it up. Below is the wiki link:
“The name "wolframite" is derived from German "wolf rahm", the name given to tungsten by Johan Gottschalk Wallerius in 1747. This, in turn, derives from "Lupi spuma", the name Georg Agricola used for the element in 1546, which translates into English as "wolf's froth" or "wolf's cream". The etymology is not entirely certain but seems to be a reference to the large amounts of tin consumed by the mineral during its extraction, the phenomenon being likened to a wolf eating a sheep.[11]Wolfram is the basis for the chemical symbol W for tungsten as a chemical element.”