Mining : What Is Gold Mining? How Is Gold Mined? | Geology ...
Historically, mercury has been widely used in placer gold mining to form mercurygold amalgam with smaller gold particles, thereby increasing the rate of gold recovery. In the 1960s, largescale mercury use stopped. In artisanal and smallscale gold mining (ASGM), however, mercury is still used, often clandestine, gold prospecting.