C1.6a Opening a limestone quarry Name
Class
Date
In the UK, limestone is found in the Yorkshire Dales and the Derbyshire Peak District. The areas where limestone occurs are attractive and people do not want them spoilt. The quarrying of limestone causes many environmental problems. It damages the countryside, destroys wildlife habitats and causes pollution. On the other hand, limestone is an important raw material for industry and farming. It provides important products for people, and creates new jobs and wealth. East Bygum is a small and pretty village in the Yorkshire Dales. It is close to a railway line and there are some very expensive houses because it is possible to commute to nearby cities. It gets a lot of tourists but it also has some local unemployment. A very rare flower grows locally. High-quality limestone has been found nearby. A gravel company wants to start quarrying to meet the commercial need for limestone. Many local people oppose quarrying and an inquiry is going to be held. The people who conduct the enquiry will decide whether quarrying should be allowed to go ahead or not. 1
Complete this table showing the various effects that the quarry may have.
Effects of the quarry on: the quarry owners
the local people
the environment
2
Circle the changes that are for the better. Underline the changes that are for the worse.
3
Complete these sentences, giving as many reasons as you can: I am for the quarry because ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I am against the quarry because _______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
4
The class will be divided into four groups: ●
people who will own the quarry and will sell the limestone
●
people working at the local Job Centre Plus
●
people who live in East Bygum
●
an environmental group.
Your group must prepare an argument either for or against the building of the quarry. Your argument must include why you are for or against it. You must be ready to give a two-minute presentation, illustrated if you wish, to argue your case. At the end, you will all vote for or against the limestone quarry. © Pearson Education 2010. Edexcel GCSE Science Activity Pack. This document may have been altered from the original.
C1.6b Making and testing a concrete bar You are going to make small bars of concrete. Later, you will test how strong they are. Note that you are not expected to recall details of this practical for the examination. Concrete has three main ingredients. Different mixtures are used for different purposes – for example: ●
a general purpose mix is 1 part cement, 2 parts sand and 3 parts gravel
●
a mix for foundations is 1 part cement, 2.5 parts sand and 3.5 parts gravel.
Prediction 1
What mixture of cement, sand and gravel do you think will make the strongest concrete? For example, should it be mostly cement, mostly sand or mostly gravel?
Apparatus eye protection
protective gloves
plastic cup
sticky tape
cardboard mould
newspaper
sand
fine gravel
cement
string
slotted masses
plastic teaspoon water
Health and safety ●
Wear eye protection and plastic gloves
●
Cement is alkaline – it can cause skin burns
●
Take care when mixing to avoid making a dust
●
When you tidy away, do not wash any concrete down the sink
●
Pull your glove off inside out and then throw it away
Method A Make a cardboard mould using cardboard, scissors and sticky tape.
Sheet 1 of 2 © Pearson Education 2010. Edexcel GCSE Science Activity Pack. This document may have been altered from the original.
C1.6b Making and testing a concrete bar (cont.)
B Protect your bench with newspaper and put on gloves. C Add these substances to the plastic cup: 3 level teaspoons each of cement, sand and fine gravel. D Use the teaspoon to mix the cement, sand and fine gravel together. E Add a little water, and stir the mixture carefully. Keep adding water until the mixture just becomes sloppy. Remember that you can always add a little more water, but you can’t take it out. When the mixture is ready, the teaspoon should push easily into the mixture, leaving a hole when it is taken out. F
Scrape enough mixture into the mould (10 cm × 1 cm × 1 cm) to fill it, and smooth the surface (you will have some mixture left over). Label the mould with your name and the mixture added. Leave the bar to set for at least two days.
G If you have time, make at least one more bar of concrete. You must use 9 level teaspoons of material in total, but you should vary the proportions of the mixtures – for example, 4 teaspoons of cement, 3 of sand, 2 of gravel. H When the concrete has set (this will take several days) test its strength. Remove it from the cardboard mould. Support it at each end and pass a loop of string around the middle. Hang slotted masses from the string, carefully adding more masses until the bar breaks. Record the mass needed to break the bar. Examine the broken ends and record their appearance.
Recording your results 2
Draw a suitable table for your results. It should include space to record the amount of each ingredient used, and the breaking strength of the concrete block (tested in the second lesson).
Considering your results/conclusions 3
How strong was your concrete bar? If you made more than one bar, which was the stronger?
4
What do you notice about the broken ends? Suggest a reason why the bar broke where it did.
Evaluation 5
Compare the strength of your bar with similar bars from the other students. To what extent were the results for identical mixtures repeatable? Suggest reasons for any differences.
© Pearson Education 2010. Edexcel GCSE Science Activity Pack. This document may have been altered from the original.
Sheet 2 of 2
C1.6c Products from limestone Name
Class
Date
Quarry queries 1
The list shows some of the factors affecting the decision to open a limestone quarry:
a
●
extra traffic
●
provides jobs
●
dusty and noisy
●
provides local income
●
loss of wildlife habitats
●
sited in the countryside
●
limestone is a useful resource.
List the factors that might be used to support a decision in favour of opening a quarry, giving a brief reason for each one. ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________
b
List the factors that might be used to support a decision against opening a quarry, giving a brief reason for each one. ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________
Useful products from limestone 2
Write a word equation for the thermal decomposition of the main compound found in limestone. Use the words below in your answer: carbon dioxide
calcium carbonate
calcium oxide
_______________________________________________________________________________ 3
Name the substance that is heated with calcium carbonate to make cement. _______________________________________________________________________________
4
Name two substances that are mixed with water to make concrete. _______________________________________________________________________________
5
What useful material is made by heating sand with sodium carbonate and calcium carbonate? _______________________________________________________________________________
6
Suggest what could happen to the cost of building a house if the quarrying of limestone was reduced. Give reasons for your answer. _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________
© Pearson Education 2010. Edexcel GCSE Science Activity Pack. This document may have been altered from the original.
C1.6d Why use limestone? Gravel consists of pieces of rock. It is used to make concrete and the foundations for roads. Limestone can be used for gravel, but it is also useful as a building stone and as a raw material in the chemical industry. Should another rock be used instead? The table compares three rocks. Limestone Cost of quarrying it Usefulness as gravel Usefulness as a raw material for the chemical industry Amount of waste left at the quarry Variety of wildlife in the local area Quality of soil for farming in the local area Ease of cutting it into useful shapes Effect of acid rain or weather on the stone
Granite
Sandstone
low
high
high
good
good
good
very good
poor
poor
a little
a lot
a lot
very good
poor
poor
good
poor
poor
easy
difficult
easy
slowly eroded
little or no effect
damaged by bad weather
1
Suggest two reasons why it may be better to quarry limestone rather than granite or sandstone.
2
Suggest two reasons why it may be better to quarry granite or sandstone, rather than limestone.
3
Do any of these rocks have drawbacks as building materials? Explain your answer.
4
Do you think that limestone should be used as gravel? Explain your answer.
5
Some quarries are turned into nature reserves or lakes after quarrying ends. Suggest how this could benefit the:
6
a
environment
b
local community
c
local economy.
Suggest why granite is used as a wall covering for important buildings, and sandstone is used for paving slabs.
Extra challenge 7
Suggest a drawback of using marble for kitchen worktops where acidic foods such as vinegar may be used.
Š Pearson Education 2010. Edexcel GCSE Science Activity Pack. This document may have been altered from the original.
C1.6e Opening a limestone quarry: Briefing cards 1
Cut out the cards below.
2
Sort them into two groups – one group for arguments in favour of opening a limestone quarry, and one group for arguments against opening it.
wildlife habitats lost
noise from explosions and machines
sited in the countryside
UK exports limestone
extra local income
looks unattractive
heavy lorries on the roads
sited away from towns
limestone is a valuable resource
quarry turned into a lake after use
dusty
provides jobs
Š Pearson Education 2010. Edexcel GCSE Science Activity Pack. This document may have been altered from the original.