What is made from the sulfur of the volcano. Extraction of sulfur from a volcano on the island of Java. Sulfur nitride conducts current

Photographer Olivier Grunwald recently visited a sulfur mine in the crater of the Kawah Lien volcano in East Java, Indonesia several times. He brought with him the necessary equipment to capture surreal images lit by moonlight, torches and the blue flames of burning sulfur.

The miners in the crater first ascend 2,600 meters, then descend to the shore of the 200-meter sulfuric acid crater lake, where they extract lumps of pure sulfur and carry them back to the weighing station. We present to your attention photos of these brave miners working under the cover of night.

1. A miner in the crater of the Kawah Lien volcano with a torch looks at the streams of liquid sulfur, burning with an eerie blue flame. (© Olivier Grunewald)

2. Volcanic acid lake in the crater of the Kawah Lien volcano. On the shore of the lake, work is being carried out to extract sulfur. (© Olivier Grunewald)

3. Steam and acid gases among yellowish sulfur deposits. (© Olivier Grunewald)

4. Burning red-hot sulfur in a volcanic crater. Sulfur melts at a temperature of 100 degrees Celsius, but the temperature in the crater is not enough for spontaneous combustion - this flame is illuminated by the miners' torches. (© Olivier Grunewald)

5. A miner clears away lumps of sulfur to take to the mine management. (© Olivier Grunewald)

6. Sulfur deposits on an old barrel surrounded by sulfur in the crater of the Kawah Lien volcano. (© Olivier Grunewald)

7. Miners extract sulfur in hellish conditions. Photographer Olivier Grunwald recalls that the smell was simply unbearable, masks were needed for work, which the miners practically did not have. (© Olivier Grunewald)

8. Miners with long crowbars, with which they get sulfur from the crater. (© Olivier Grunewald)

9. "Sculpture" formed by liquid sulfur in the crater Kawah Liena. When melted, sulfur appears almost blood-red, but as it cools, it acquires a yellow tint. (© Olivier Grunewald)

10. Molten sulfur burns as it drips from rocks and ceramic pipes that turn the sulfur gases from the volcano into a liquid that will then solidify and be collected. (© Olivier Grunewald)

11. Miners work in the crater, lit only by torches. (© Olivier Grunewald)

12. The miner puts sulfur in baskets in which it is taken out of the crater of the volcano. (© Olivier Grunewald)

13. Miner collects sulfur next to the condensation pipes. Molten sulfur burns in the background. (© Olivier Grunewald)

14. Miners with lumps of sulfur are preparing to return to the top. (© Olivier Grunewald)

15. Molten sulfur burns on solid deposits. The miners will put out the fire so as not to lose valuable sulfur reserves. (© Olivier Grunewald)

16. The miner with the cargo comes back. (© Olivier Grunewald)

17. A miner in a gas mask in a thick cloud of steam and acid gas with a torch, not far from the blue flame of burning liquid sulfur. (© Olivier Grunewald)

18. A pair of full gray baskets can weigh between 45 and 90 kg. (© Olivier Grunewald)

19. The miners are preparing to return with their cargo, surrounded by steam, gas and torchlight. (© Olivier Grunewald)

20. Barrack miners right in the crater of the volcano Kawah Lien. (© Olivier Grunewald)

21. A miner with a cargo in the form of lumps of sulfur. (© Olivier Grunewald)

22. Miners with torches return along the 200-meter wall of the Kawah Lien crater. (© Olivier Grunewald)

23. And below, work continues on the extraction of sulfur. (© Olivier Grunewald)

24. A miner weighs the extracted sulfur in the mine. The miners make their journey 2-3 times a day and earn about $13 a day. (© Olivier Grunewald)

25. At the primary processing station, sulfur lumps are broken into smaller pieces. (© Olivier Grunewald)

26. Then the lumps of sulfur are placed in large vessels over the fire to melt again. (© Olivier Grunewald)

27. Molten sulfur is poured from the melting pot into buckets. (© Olivier Grunewald)

28. A small amount of molten sulfur is poured into other vessels. (© Olivier Grunewald)

29. Last stage: pouring liquid sulfur on plates for cooling. Once cured, it will be transported to local factories for rubber manufacturing, sugar decolorization, and other industrial processes. (© Olivier Grunewald)

30. Photographer Olivier Grunwald prepares to photograph a small rock looming over the acidic volcanic lake of Kawah Liena. “It feels like you are on another planet,” the photographer shares his impression. In the hellish conditions of the Olivier crater, he lost one camera and two lenses. After finishing the project, he threw away all his clothes as the smell was so strong that he couldn't get rid of it. (© Olivier Grunewald)

In the most seemingly ordinary places on Earth, amazing phenomena sometimes occur. One such phenomenon is the Kawah Ijen sulfur quarry in Indonesia, where you can find stunning lava of an unusual neon blue color. The view of this mine is so amazing that you can look at this spectacle for hours.

Kawah Ijen is part of the Ijen Volcanic Chain, a group of stratovolcanoes in East Java, Indonesia. The depth of the Kawah Ijen crater is 200 meters, at its bottom lies the world's largest lake of turquoise sulfuric acid. Sulfur is mined from the lake - miners carry baskets loaded with gray from the quarry by hand.

When the sun rises, heat rises from the depths of the crater: liquid sulfur, flowing from the edge of the lake, flares up with a blue flame under the influence of high temperature - sulfur fountains reach five meters in height. Although the lake is not too hot for the sulfur to ignite spontaneously, it catches fire when the miners throw torches into it.

The miners work in appalling conditions - they have virtually no safety equipment. They wait for sulfur to flow out of the volcano through man-made passages, then collect it and take it away.

Sulfur is on the market for about 680 rupees per kilogram (about five US cents). Miners extract from 80 to 100 kg per shift - sulfur is taken out every 24 hours. The Kawah Ijen quarry is the source of the purest sulfur in Indonesia, which is used in the food and chemical industries.

visit it beautiful place not so easy: sulfur smells disgusting, and when a strong wind blows, under the influence of air currents from the volcano, dense gases rise and fall directly into the lungs. How miners can work in such conditions without at least some equipment remains a mystery.

Photographer Olivier Grunwald tried to photograph the blue flame in 2008 and lost his camera and two lenses. During filming, he wore a gas mask, and then the clothes had to be thrown away. But if you still want to see it, try not to fall into the lake - it's pure acid.

A very popular topic on the Internet, because it is very effective and shocking. The Ijen Volcano crater is one of the most attractive and dangerous on Earth. active volcano, constantly spewing clubs of sulfuric smoke, the world's largest acid lake Kawah Ijen, incredible blue fire in its beauty and inhuman working conditions for sulfur miners.

Isn't it still happening, many ask themselves. Let's try to collect the most complete information about this place here.

In fact, Ijen is not just a volcano, but a volcanic complex, from more than a dozen volcanic objects: stratovolcanoes, volcanic cones, craters located within a radius of 20 km around the caldera.

But it is the crater with an acidic lake that attracts tourists, the shores of which are a natural large deposit of natural sulfur. The crater in radius is 361 meters and has a depth of 200 meters.

Lake Kawah in the crater of the Ijen volcano is the largest acidic lake in the world. It consists of concentrated hydrochloric and sulfuric acid dissolved in water. The volcano emits hydrogen chloride as a gas. When interacting with water, it forms sulfuric acid with a pH of about zero. Hydrochloric acid dissolved in water gives the lake a beautiful turquoise color.

The lake is deadly, however, you can touch it with your hand. The temperature on the surface is 50-60°C, and in depth - over 200°C. The depth of the lake reaches 200 meters.

The amazing phenomenon of blue fire is actually sulfur dioxide burning at a temperature of 600 ° C, which gives the fire its characteristic blue color. The glow is quite weak, so you can only see it at night.

Sometimes the workers themselves set fire to the sulfur. Part of the smoke condenses in the ceramic pipes installed in the crater and flows out of the pipes, forming natural sulfur stalactites. Red colored liquid sulfur spews out of the vents and cools to yellow on the surface. These stalactites, by the way, are sold to tourists as souvenirs.

These spectacular photos were taken by the famous French photographer Olivier Grunewalda, who made several trips to the sulfur mines in the crater of the Kawaha Ijen volcano. There, with the help of special equipment, he took breathtaking surreal photographs of this place in the moonlight, lit by torches and blue flames of burning molten sulfur.

Lava flows burning with a blue flame are extremely rare on Ijen. Unfortunately, many sites show photos of Olivier Grunewald and give the impression that this happens every night. Don't believe! Usually only sulfur dioxide burns and there is no lava.

In the crater, local residents manually extract sulfur. This is very hard and dangerous work. Without protective suits, and many even without masks, miners break off pieces of sulfur with crowbars and place them in a basket. They carry these baskets 200 meters to the top of the crater, and then descend 3 km to the foot of the volcano to the village, where they receive a reward for the work done. The weight of such a basket is 60-80 kg, some manage to lift up to 90 kg.

Typically, workers make this trip twice a day. For 1 kg of sulfur they pay 900-1000 IDR, which means about $5 per basket or $10 per day. By local standards, this is a highly paid and prestigious job. The island of Java has a very high population density and unemployment. Sulfur miners are a kind of working elite.

However, this does not help them live long. Sulfur fumes are so dangerous to health that young guys look old, and the average life expectancy is about 47 years.

Despite the appalling working conditions, the workers are surprisingly friendly and cheerful people. Here is what he writes: I experienced a culture shock when a worker, on whose shoulders a basket that weighs more than his own, gave way to me on the stones leading to the top of the crater. Many times we were told a better way and gladly posed for tourists.

The best thing you can do for the workers is to give them a respirator or even just a protective mask. They can't even afford to buy replacement filters, they don't have the money or the opportunity. Many workers are not even aware that the air they breathe is dangerous.

The workers all smoke as one. They say that this helps them to bring down the smell of sulfur a little, which becomes simply impossible after a while.

you can see the journey of the blogger for these mines.

So that people could imagine the danger of the lake for their lives, an experiment was conducted. A sheet of aluminum was lowered into the lake for 20 minutes, already when immersed, it began to become covered with bubbles, and after all the time, the aluminum sheet became thin, like a piece of cloth.

At the bottom of the crater, sulfur collectors set up a small tent camp, where they live for some time while they are mining at this place. As soon as sulfur erupts elsewhere, they move to it. There are several such "deposits". They are equipped with pipes from which molten sulfur flows. When it cools and hardens, the workers begin to collect it.

Sulfur is collected in two baskets connected by a bamboo crossbar. Fleeing from poisonous fumes, the collectors came up with their own means of protection. It is an ordinary piece of soaked cotton fabric. They squeeze it with their teeth and breathe through it, or simply wrap part of their face with a cloth.

Due to the activity of the volcano in the crater, sulfurous steam is constantly released through the cracks. Hot steam passes through specially laid pipes, cools down and flows down the slope of the crater, gradually solidifying. The extraction technology is very primitive, but in this case, more is not needed. Then the miners get down to business, who break the lumps of sulfur into pieces with crowbars and fittings, put them in baskets and take them to the collection point. To do this, you have to overcome about 2500 meters over rough terrain with a load of 45-90 kg on your shoulders.

Workers do not use special protective equipment, sometimes only covering themselves with scarves. In gas masks and respirators, only firefighters appear here, who extinguish burning sulfur. They work here on a rotational basis for 15 days.

The extracted sulfur is used for rubber vulcanization, sugar decolorization and other industrial processes. Workers make small souvenirs out of it for sale, casting various figures from molten sulfur.

An Indonesian worker displays earnings coupons for a shipment of sulfur from the vent of the Kawa Ijen volcano in eastern Java, Indonesia. Three coupons - three walkers into the mouth of the volcano.

: A few days on Ijen, and even after, I spent in an embrace with the Combiners. The obtrusive melody and the same obsessive words fit amazingly well into Ijen's picture. I looked at young men dragging their 90 kg of sulfur 3 km down to the change window, and thought that combiners were everywhere. Yes…

The BBC shot a wonderful film about them, and every day they become the heroes of photo chronicles of the curious. Tourism on Ijen, although not as big as Bromo, is by no means uncommon. It’s good that the traffic on the trail is not so big yet, otherwise how to maneuver between the guests of the volcano for those for whom these three kilometers up empty and then again the same three, but down, and with a load is the only way to exist? The miners work every day. In the morning, sometimes before dawn, they come to the beginning of the trail to Ijen. Tourist vehicles also gather there.

Then, with empty baskets, they go to their daily track upstairs. Only 3 km. Someone goes alone, someone gathers in groups with comrades, someone attaches himself to tourists and talks about his life along the way, sometimes receiving a cigarette or two in gratitude.

Cigarettes on Ijen are the local currency. The miners are happy to pose for a photo - with or without luggage - or let you try to at least lift their "barbell".

Everyone will be grateful for a cigarette and immediately smoke it. They smoke incessantly. Among the miners, we randomly met only one who did not have this bad habit.

There is a small "dormitory" along the way for those who decide to stay overnight closer to the workplace. Or take a break/eat.

Surprising local souvenirs are also exhibited here: various figures cast from sulfur. Strange, strange souvenirs...

3 km up, and then another half an hour down to the mine itself. From above, the picture looks somehow unreal: small swarming figures in yellow smoke.

There, several people break off pieces of sulfur and load them into baskets that have arrived in time. Those who chip away change every day. This work is not paid. Working in hell itself, by the fumaroles. There is practically nothing to breathe. Although how is there nothing? Nose!

The eyes probably have a hard time too.

The hut is almost at the mine. What for?

Baskets ready for shipment.

Terek, our fellow traveler, dreamed of getting to Ijen after he saw a film about miners a few years ago. “Why didn’t I think of bringing them a pack of masks? In Bondovozo they are only 3,000 rupees!” Terek, don't worry. It's not a fact that your masks would have been used at all. What for? In fact, down below, miners sometimes wrap their faces in bandanas, kerchiefs, and scarves. And yet below we met one man in a respirator.

Lech at the very bottom, near the mines.

Terek on the trail. By the way, in the end I spent 5 days on Ijen; his dream came true to see the volcano in person and meet the miners. Part of the time spent in the families of miners. Very hospitable people. I don't think they have any great goals to tell the world about their hard work, but thank you for doing it.

Of course, there is nothing good for health in breathing sulfur. On the other hand, as it turns out, this is not as terribly harmful as it looks at first glance. Miners usually live up to 50 years... They are aware of the harm and risk, but they choose to do this work. Moreover, it is considered very good: you can earn several times more than anywhere else, say, in a batik factory (be it nearby).

Among the miners there are both young people and older people. Many of those whom I classified as young people turned out to be from 30 to 35. Everything is usually with families and with children. All cheerful, sincere, polite. They talk about their work and life, apparently laughing in their hearts at strange foreigners who listen to all this with their eyes wide open. Yes, they look young. Working outdoors, paradoxically, seems to have an effect.

Several times we met older men with huge tumors in the cheekbone area. Obviously, malignant and it is clear by what factor they are caused.

By the way, you look at the view and wonder: how do these short, dead guys manage to carry such a load? Yes, and you look at the baskets themselves - and you don’t believe that there is such a weight there. In appearance, sulfur seems light and porous, like a sponge.

Baskets often stand here and there along the trail, waiting for their owners.

And the owners themselves have a rest.

And a smoke break.

From the constant wearing of the yoke on the shoulders, a kind of outgrowth of the type of corn is formed right under the stick.

3 km with sulfur, up and down, along boulders and paths

- and hand over what you brought to the acceptance window. There, in the darkness, under the roof, sits some very characteristic receptionist with a sharp, unpleasantly concentrated expression on his face. As if it is read how he feels superior to these hard workers, giving them pennies for hellish work. Although, perhaps, this is my violent fantasy. Reception queue.

First on the scales. Usually the weight of the baskets is somewhere in the range of 65-90 kg.

After weighing, you receive a piece of paper from the receiver with a mark of the weight handed over. You reload your burden and carry it to the truck, which, after filling, will take the sulfur to the factory. It is about 10 kilometers from Ijen. How many people/walkers does it take to fill it???

Now with a piece of paper on which the accepted weight is indicated, we go to the payroll window. This is a valuable place to work also because you get the money right away.

This miner brought some today: my knees hurt. On paper:
- gross - 64 kg
- net - 59 kg
- cost per kg net - 780 rupees
- the total amount to be issued - 46,020 rupees, i.e. about 4.5 dollars.

During the day, a miner makes one or two (the strongest and strongest) walkers, earning, respectively, up to 10-12 dollars. With a successful combination of circumstances, you can earn up to 250 dollars a month.

Are you still complaining about life? Is the car a class lower than you would like? Buying a second line of clothing instead of the first? Can you fly to Europe for the weekend only once or twice a year? And sometimes you have to dine with a cheap business lunch for $ 10? Indeed, life probably did not work out ...

P.S. All the time at the crater and on the way, the feeling that in a strange time machine you were transported 200-400 years ago does not leave. Today is the XXI century in the yard, no? The feeling of colonial times is especially strong at the weighing kiosk. It becomes uncomfortable at the thought that people deliberately kill themselves, and yet it would be possible to at least somehow mechanize the process. Well, at least use donkeys, buffaloes, yaks! Probably, it will simply be more expensive, and to no avail: jobs will be reduced, unemployment with all the consequences ... And everything flows the same as it did centuries ago.

Today, it is the chemical industry that consumes the largest amount of sulfur. The most important is sulfuric acid. That is why its production takes almost half of the sulfur that is mined around the world. From three hundred kg of sulfur, when burned, about one ton of sulfuric acid is obtained.

Another industry that is inextricably linked with the extracted sulfur and consumes a significant part of it is the production of paper. To get 17 cellulose, you need to use at least one hundred kg of sulfur.

The use of sulfur in the rubber industry

Sulfur is most commonly used to turn rubber into rubber. When mixed with sulfur and heated to the desired temperature, rubber acquires properties for which it is highly valued among consumers - elasticity and elasticity. This process is also called vulcanization.

She happens:

hot. Proposed by Goodir in 1839. A mixture of rubber and sulfur is heated to about 150 degrees Celsius.
Cold. Proposed by Parks in 1846. The rubber is not heated, but treated with a solution of sulfur chloride S2C12.

Vulcanization is carried out with the aim of the appearance of bonds between polymer groups in the substance.

Most of the important physical and mechanical properties of a material that has undergone vulcanization depend on what they are made of, how they are distributed and how much energy the -C-Sn-C- bonds contain. For example, at different concentrations of added sulfur, completely different materials with different properties can be obtained.

Sulfur in agriculture and medicine

Sulfur in its pure form and in combination with other elements is successfully used for agricultural purposes. It is also significant for plants, like phosphorus. Fertilizers containing sulfur in their composition have a positive effect on both the quality of the harvested crop and its quantity.

Empirically, scientists have identified the effect of sulfur on the resistance of cereals to frost. It provokes the formation of organic substances that contain sulfhydryl groups-S-H. Due to this, the frost resistance of the plant increases due to the hydrophilicity of proteins and changes in the internal structure. Another way to use sulfur for agricultural purposes is its use in the prevention of diseases, mainly cotton and grapes.

For medical purposes, pure sulfur can also be used, as well as its compounds with other elements. The basis for many ointments that are used to treat various fungal skin diseases is fine sulfur. Most drugs of the sulfamide group are nothing more than compounds of various substances with sulfur: sulfadimezin, norsulfazol, white streptocide.

Today, the volume of sulfur production exceeds the required amount of raw materials for industry. It is mined not only from the depths of the earth, but also from gases or during the purification of fuel. In this regard, new ways of using the substance are being invented, for example, in construction. So, in Canada, sulfur foam was invented, which is planned to be used in laying roads and for laying pipelines outside the Arctic Circle. And in Montreal, the world's first house was built from blocks of unusual composition, which are a third of sulfur (the rest is sand). For the manufacture of such blocks, metal molds are used in which the mixture is heated to a temperature of more than 100 degrees Celsius. They are as strong and resistant to wear as their cement counterparts. A simple treatment with synthetic varnish will help to avoid oxidation. From such blocks you can build a garage or a warehouse, a shop or a house.

Today, more and more often you can find information about the emergence of new building materials that contain sulfur. It is no longer a secret to anyone that when using sulfur, an asphalt pavement is obtained that has excellent properties. It can match and even surpass gravel. It is quite profitable to use it in the construction of the highway. To obtain such a composition, it is necessary to mix one part of asphalt, two parts of sulfur and 13 parts of sand.

The demand for this raw material is growing. Sulfur sales will only increase in the long term.

Sulfur is one of the few substances that the first "chemists" operated on several thousand years ago. She began to serve humanity long before she occupied cell No. 16 in the periodic table.

Many old books tell about one of the most ancient (albeit hypothetical!) uses of sulfur. Both the New and Old Testaments depict sulfur as a source of heat during the heat treatment of sinners. And if books of this kind do not provide sufficient grounds for archaeological excavations in search of the remains of paradise or hellfire, then their evidence that the ancients were familiar with sulfur and some of its properties can be taken on faith.

One of the reasons for this fame is the prevalence of native sulfur in countries ancient civilizations. The deposits of this yellow combustible substance were developed by the Greeks and Romans, especially in Sicily, which until the end of the last century was mainly famous for sulfur.

Since ancient times, sulfur has been used for religious and mystical purposes, it was lit in various ceremonies and rituals. But just as long ago, element No. 16 also acquired quite mundane purposes: weapons were inked with gray, it was used in the manufacture of cosmetic and medicinal ointments, it was burned to bleach fabrics and to fight insects. Sulfur mining increased significantly after black powder was invented. After all, sulfur (together with coal and saltpeter) is its indispensable component.

And now gunpowder production consumes a part of the extracted sulfur, though very small. Nowadays, sulfur is one of the most important raw materials for many chemical industries. And this is the reason for the continuous growth of world sulfur production.

Origin of sulfur

Large accumulations of native sulfur are not so common. More often it is present in some ores. Native sulfur ore is a rock interspersed with sulfur.

When did these inclusions form - simultaneously with accompanying rocks or later? The direction of prospecting and exploration works depends on the answer to this question. But, despite the millennia of communication with sulfur, humanity still does not have a clear answer. There are several theories, the authors of which hold opposing views.

The theory of syngenesis (i.e., the simultaneous formation of sulfur and host rocks) suggests that the formation of native sulfur occurred in shallow water basins. Special bacteria reduced sulfates dissolved in water to hydrogen sulfide, which rose up, entered the oxidizing zone, and here it was oxidized chemically or with the participation of other bacteria to elemental sulfur. The sulfur settled to the bottom, and subsequently the sulfur-containing id formed the ore.

The theory of epigenesis (sulfur inclusions formed later than the main rocks) has several options. The most common of them suggests that groundwater, penetrating through the rock masses, is enriched with sulfates. If such waters come into contact with oil or natural gas deposits, then sulfate ions are reduced by hydrocarbons to hydrogen sulfide. Hydrogen sulfide rises to the surface and, oxidizing, releases pure sulfur in voids and cracks in rocks.

In recent decades, one of the varieties of the theory of epigenesis, the theory of metasomatosis, has been finding more and more confirmation (translated from Greek, “metasomatosis” means “replacement.” According to it, gypsum CaSO 4 2H 2 O and anhydrite CaSO 4 are constantly being converted into sulfur and calcite CaCO 3 This theory was created by Soviet scientists L. M. Miropolsky and B. P. Krotov in 1935. In particular, this fact speaks in favor of it.

In 1961, the Mishrak field was discovered in Iraq. Sulfur here is enclosed in carbonate rocks, which form a vault supported by outgoing supports (in geology they are called wings). These wings are composed mainly of anhydrite and gypsum. The same picture was observed at the domestic Shor-Su field.

The geological originality of these deposits can only be explained from the standpoint of the theory of metasomatism: primary gypsum and anhydrite have turned into secondary carbonate ores interspersed with native sulfur. Not only the proximity of minerals is important - the average sulfur content in the ore of these deposits is equal to the content of chemically bound sulfur in anhydrite. And studies of the isotopic composition of sulfur and carbon in the ore of these deposits gave additional arguments to supporters of the theory of metasomatism.

But there is one “but”: the chemistry of the process of converting gypsum into sulfur and calcite is not yet clear, and therefore there is no reason to consider the theory of metasomatism the only correct one. There are lakes on Earth even now (in particular, Sulfur Lake near Sernovodsk), where syngenetic deposition of sulfur occurs and sulfur-bearing sludge does not contain either gypsum or anhydrite.

All this means that the variety of theories and hypotheses about the origin of native sulfur is the result not only and not so much of the incompleteness of our knowledge, but the complexity of the phenomena occurring in the depths. Even from elementary school mathematics, we all know that different paths can lead to the same result. This law also applies to geochemistry.

Sulfur mining

Sulfur ores are mined in different ways - depending on the conditions of occurrence. But in any case, you have to pay a lot of attention to safety. Sulfur deposits are almost always accompanied by accumulations of poisonous gases - sulfur compounds. In addition, we must not forget about the possibility of its spontaneous combustion.

Ore mining in an open way is as follows. Walking excavators remove layers of rocks under which ore lies. The ore layer is crushed by explosions, after which the ore blocks are sent to the processing plant, and from there to the sulfur smelter, where sulfur is extracted from the concentrate. Extraction methods are different. Some of them will be discussed below. And here it is appropriate to briefly describe the borehole method of extracting sulfur from underground, which allowed the United States of America and Mexico to become the largest suppliers of sulfur.

At the end of the last century, the richest deposits of sulfur ore were discovered in the south of the United States. But it was not easy to approach the layers: hydrogen sulfide leaked into the mines (namely, the mine was supposed to develop the deposit) and blocked access to sulfur. In addition, sandy swimmers prevented breaking through to the sulfur-bearing strata. A solution was found by the chemist Herman Frasch, who proposed to melt sulfur underground and pump it to the surface through wells similar to oil wells. The relatively low (less than 120°C) melting point of sulfur confirmed the reality of Frasch's idea. In 1890, tests began that led to success.

In principle, Frasch's installation is very simple: a pipe in a pipe. Superheated water is supplied to the space between the pipes and flows through it into the formation. And molten sulfur rises through the inner pipe, heated from all sides. The modern version of the Frasch installation is supplemented by a third - the narrowest pipe. Through it, compressed air is supplied to the well, which helps to raise the molten Sulfur to the surface. One of the main advantages of the Frasch method is that it allows obtaining relatively pure sulfur already at the first stage of production. When mining rich ores, this method is very effective.

It was previously believed that the method of underground sulfur smelting was applicable only in the specific conditions of the "salt domes" of the Pacific coast of the United States and Mexico. However, experiments conducted in Poland and the USSR refuted this opinion. In Poland, a large amount of sulfur is already being extracted by this method: in 1968, the first sulfur wells were put into operation in the USSR as well.

And the ore obtained in quarries and mines has to be processed (often with preliminary enrichment), using various technological methods for this.

There are several methods for obtaining sulfur from sulfur ores: steam-water, filtration, thermal, centrifugal and extraction.

Thermal methods of sulfur recovery are the oldest. Back in the 18th century in the Kingdom of Naples, sulfur was smelted in heaps - “solfatars”. Until now, sulfur is smelted in Italy in primitive furnaces - "calcarons". The heat needed to smelt sulfur from ore is obtained by burning part of the mined sulfur. This process is inefficient, losses reach 45%.

Italy became the birthplace of steam and water methods for extracting sulfur from ores. In 1859, Giuseppe Gill received a patent for his apparatus, the forerunner of today's autoclaves. The autoclave method (significantly improved, of course) is still used in many countries.

In the autoclave process, enriched sulfur ore concentrate, containing up to 80% sulfur, is pumped into the autoclave in the form of a liquid pulp with reagents. Water vapor is supplied there under pressure. The pulp is heated up to 130°C. The sulfur contained in the concentrate melts and separates from the rock. After a short settling, the smelted sulfur is drained off. Then “tails” are released from the autoclave - a suspension of waste rock in water. The tailings contain quite a lot of sulfur and are returned to the processing plant.

In Russia, the autoclave method was first used by engineer K.G. Patkanov in 1896

Modern autoclaves are huge apparatuses as high as a four-story building. Such autoclaves are installed, in particular, at the sulfur-smelting plant of the Rozdil Mining and Chemical Combine in the Carpathian region.

In some industries, for example, at a large sulfur plant in Tarnobrzeg (Poland), waste rock is separated from molten sulfur on special filters. The method of separating sulfur and waste rock in centrifuges has been developed in our country. In a word, “gold ore (more precisely, golden ore) can be separated from empty rock” in different ways.

Recently, more and more attention has been paid to borehole geotechnological methods of sulfur extraction. At the Yazovsky deposit in the Carpathian region, sulfur - a classic dielectric - is melted underground with high-frequency currents and pumped to the surface through wells, as in the Frasch method. Scientists of the Institute of Mining and Chemical Raw Materials have proposed a method for underground gasification of sulfur. According to this method, sulfur is ignited in the reservoir, and sulfur dioxide is pumped to the surface, which is used to produce sulfuric acid and other useful products.

Different countries satisfy their needs for sulfur in different ways. Mexico and the United States mainly use the Frache method. Italy, which occupies the third place in the production of sulfur among the capitalist states, continues to extract and process (by various methods) sulfur ores from the Sicilian deposits and the Marche province. Japan has significant reserves of sulfur of volcanic origin. France and Canada, which do not have native sulfur, have developed a large-scale production of it from gases. There are no own sulfur deposits in England and Germany either. They cover their needs for sulfuric acid by processing sulfur-containing raw materials (mainly pyrite), and import elemental sulfur from other countries.

The Soviet Union and the socialist countries fully satisfy their needs thanks to their own sources of raw materials. After the discovery and development of the rich Carpathian deposits, the USSR and Poland significantly increased the production of sulfur. This industry continues to grow. In recent years, new large enterprises have been built in the Ukraine, old plants on the Volga and in Turkmenistan have been reconstructed, and the production of sulfur from natural gas and waste gases has been expanded.

Crystals and macromolecules

The fact that sulfur is an independent chemical element, and not a compound, was first convinced by the great French chemist Antoine Laurent Lavoisier in the 18th century.

Since then, the concept of sulfur as an element has not changed very much, but has significantly deepened and supplemented.

Element 16 is now known to consist of a mixture of four stable isotopes with mass numbers 32, 33, 34 and 36. It is a typical non-metal.

Lemon yellow crystals of pure sulfur are translucent. The shape of the crystals is not always the same. The most common is rhombic sulfur (the most stable modification) - the crystals look like octahedrons with cut corners. All other modifications are converted into this modification at room (or close to room) temperature. It is known, for example, that crystallization from a melt (sulfur melting point 119.5° C.) first produces acicular crystals (monoclinic form). But this modification is unstable, and at a temperature of 95.6°C it becomes rhombic. A similar process occurs with other modifications of sulfur.

Recall the well-known experience - obtaining plastic sulfur.

If molten sulfur is poured into cold water, an elastic, rubber-like mass is formed. It can also be obtained in the form of threads. But a few days pass, and the mass recrystallizes, becomes hard and brittle.

Molecules of sulfur crystals always consist of eight atoms (S 8), and the difference in the properties of sulfur modifications is explained by polymorphism - the unequal structure of crystals. The atoms in the sulfur molecule are built in a closed cycle, forming a kind of crown. When melting, the bonds in the cycle break, and cyclic molecules turn into linear ones.

The unusual behavior of sulfur during melting is given various interpretations. One of them is this. At temperatures from 155 to 187°C, a significant increase in molecular weight seems to occur, this is confirmed by a multiple increase in viscosity. At 187°C, the viscosity of the melt reaches almost a thousand poise, almost a solid is obtained. A further increase in temperature leads to a decrease in viscosity (molecular weight drops).

At 300°C, sulfur again turns into a fluid state, and at 444.6°C it boils.

For sulfur vapor, the number of atoms in the molecule gradually decreases with increasing temperature: S8 → S6 → S4 → (800°C) S 2 . At 1700°C, sulfur vapor is monatomic.

Briefly about sulfur compounds

In terms of prevalence, element No. 16 takes 15th place. The sulfur content in the earth's crust is 0.05% by weight. This is a lot.

In addition, sulfur is chemically active and reacts with most elements. Therefore, sulfur occurs in nature not only in the free state, but also in the form of various inorganic compounds. Sulfates (mainly alkali and alkaline earth metals) and sulfides (iron, copper, zinc, lead) are especially common. Sulfur is also found in coals, shale, oil, natural gases, in the organisms of animals and plants.

When sulfur interacts with metals, as a rule, quite a lot of heat is released. In reactions with oxygen, sulfur gives several oxides, of which the most important SO 2 and SO 3 are anhydrides of sulfurous H 2 SO 3 and sulfuric H 2 SO 4 acids. The combination of sulfur with hydrogen - hydrogen sulfide H 2 S - is a very poisonous fetid gas, always present in places of decay of organic residues. The earth's crust in places located near sulfur deposits often contains quite significant amounts of hydrogen sulfide. In aqueous solution, this gas has acidic properties. It is impossible to store its solutions in air, it oxidizes with the release of sulfur:

2H 2 S + O 2 → 2H 2 O + 2S.

Hydrogen sulfide is a strong reducing agent. This property is used in many chemical industries.

What is sulfur for?

Among the things that surround us, there are few such for the manufacture of which sulfur and its compounds would not be needed. Paper and rubber, ebonite and matches, fabrics and medicines, cosmetics and plastics, explosives and paint, fertilizers and pesticides - this is not a complete list of things and substances for the production of which element No. 16 is needed. In order to make, for example, a car, you need to use about 14 kg of sulfur. It can be said without exaggeration that the industrial potential of the country is quite accurately determined by the consumption of sulfur.

A significant part of the world's sulfur production is absorbed by the paper industry (sulfur compounds help to isolate cellulose). In order to produce 1 ton of cellulose, you need to spend more than 100 kg of sulfur. The rubber industry also consumes a lot of elemental sulfur - for the vulcanization of rubbers.

In agriculture, sulfur is used both in elemental form and in various compounds. It is part of mineral fertilizers and preparations for pest control. Along with phosphorus, potassium and other elements, sulfur is necessary for plants. However, most of the sulfur introduced into the soil is not absorbed by them, but helps to absorb phosphorus. Sulfur is introduced into the soil along with phosphate rock. The bacteria present in the soil oxidize it, the resulting sulfuric and sulfurous acids react with phosphorites, and as a result, phosphorus compounds are obtained that are well absorbed by plants.

However, the main consumer of sulfur is the chemical industry. Approximately half of the sulfur mined in the world goes to the production of sulfuric acid. To get 1 ton of H 2 SO 4 , you need to burn about 300 kg of sulfur. And the role of sulfuric acid in the chemical industry is comparable to the role of bread in our diet.

A significant amount of sulfur (and sulfuric acid) is consumed in the manufacture of explosives and matches. Pure, free from impurities, sulfur is needed for the production of dyes and luminous compounds.

Sulfur compounds are used in the petrochemical industry. In particular, they are necessary in the production of anti-knock agents, lubricants for ultra-high pressure equipment; cooling oils that accelerate metal processing sometimes contain up to 18% sulfur.

The enumeration of examples confirming the paramount importance of element No. 16 could be continued, but "one cannot grasp the immensity." Therefore, we mention in passing that sulfur is also necessary for such industries as mining, food, textiles, and - put an end to it.

Our century is considered the century of "exotic" materials - transuranium elements, titanium, semiconductors, and so on. But outwardly unpretentious, long-known element number 16 continues to be absolutely necessary. It is estimated that 88 out of 150 major chemical products use either sulfur itself or its compounds in the production.

From ancient and medieval books

“Sulfur is used to cleanse dwellings, since many are of the opinion that the smell and burning of sulfur can protect against all sorts of sorceries and drive away all evil spirits.”

Pliny the Elder, Natural History, 1st cent. AD

“If the grasses are stunted, poor in sap, and the branches and foliage of the trees are dull, dirty, darkish in color instead of a brilliant green, this is a sign that the subsoil is replete with minerals in which sulfur predominates.”

“If the ore is very rich in sulfur, it is lit on a wide iron sheet with many holes through which the sulfur flows into pots filled to the brim with water.”

"Sulfur is also part of a terrible invention - a powder that can throw pieces of iron, bronze or stone far ahead - the weapon of war of the new mud."

Agricola, On the Mineral Kingdom, 16th century.

How sulfur was tested in the 14th century

“If you want to test sulfur, whether it is good or not, then take a piece of sulfur in your hand and put it to your ear. If sulfur crackles so that you hear it crackle, then it is good; if sulfur is silent and does not crack, then it is not good ... "

This peculiar method of determining the quality of the material by ear (as applied to sulfur) can be used now. It was experimentally confirmed that only sulfur containing no more than one percent of impurities "cracks". Sometimes the matter is not limited only to cracking - a piece of sulfur breaks into pieces.

Asphyxiating sulfuric gas

As you know, the outstanding naturalist of antiquity Pliny the Elder died in 79 AD. during a volcanic eruption. His nephew, in a letter to the historian Tacitus, wrote: “...Suddenly there were peals of thunder, and black sulfuric vapors rolled down from the mountain flame. Everyone fled. Pliny got up and, leaning on two slaves, thought to leave too; but the deadly steam surrounded him on all sides, his knees buckled, he fell again and suffocated.

The "black sulfur fumes" that killed Pliny did not, of course, consist only of vaporous sulfur. Volcanic gases include both hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide. These gases have not only a pungent odor, but also great toxicity. Hydrogen sulfide is especially dangerous. In its pure form, it kills a person almost instantly. The danger is great even with an insignificant (about 0.01%) content of hydrogen sulfide in the air. Hydrogen sulfide is all the more dangerous because it can accumulate in the body. It combines with iron, which is part of hemoglobin, which can lead to severe oxygen starvation and death. Sulfur dioxide (sulfur dioxide) is less toxic, but its release into the atmosphere led to the fact that all vegetation around the metallurgical plants died. Therefore, in all enterprises producing or using these gases; special attention is paid to safety issues.

Sulfur dioxide and straw hat

Combining with water, sulfur dioxide forms weak sulfurous acid H 2 SO 3, which exists only in solutions. Sulfur dioxide will decolorize many dyes in the presence of moisture. This property is used for bleaching wool, silk, straw. But such compounds, as a rule, do not have great durability, and white straw hats eventually acquire the original dirty yellow color.

Sulfur dioxide SO 3 under normal conditions is a colorless, highly volatile liquid, boiling at 44.8°C. It hardens at -16.8°C and becomes very similar to ordinary ice. But there is another - a polymer modification of solid sulfuric anhydride (in this case, its formula should be written (SO 3) n). Outwardly, it is very similar to asbestos, its fibrous structure is confirmed by x-rays. This modification does not have a strictly defined melting point, which indicates its heterogeneity.

Plaster and alabaster

Gypsum CaSO 4 2H 2 O is one of the most common minerals. But the “gypsum splints” common in medical practice are made not from natural gypsum, but from alabaster. Alabaster differs from gypsum only in the amount of water of crystallization in the molecule, its formula is 2CaSO 4 H 2 O. When “cooking” alabaster (the process takes place at 160 ... 170 ° C for 1.5 ... quarters of water of crystallization, and the material acquires astringent properties. Alabaster greedily captures water, while rapid random crystallization occurs. The crystals do not have time to grow, but intertwine with each other; the mass formed by them, in the smallest detail, reproduces the form in which hardening occurs. The chemistry of the process taking place at this time is the opposite of what is happening during cooking: alabaster turns into gypsum. Therefore, the casting is plaster, the mask is plaster, the bandage is also plaster, and they are made of alabaster.

Glauber's salt

Salt Na 2 SO 4 10H 2 O, discovered by the largest German chemist of the 17th century. Johann Rudolf Glauber and named after him, is still widely used in medicine, glassmaking, and crystallographic studies. Glauber described it this way: “This salt, if well cooked, has the appearance of ice; it forms long, perfectly transparent crystals, which melt on the tongue like ice. It has the taste of ordinary salt, without any causticity. Thrown on blazing coals, it does not crack with a noise, like common kitchen salt, and does not ignite with an explosion, like saltpeter. It is odorless and tolerates any degree of heat. It can be used with benefit in medicine both externally and internally. It heals fresh wounds without irritating them. It is an excellent internal medicine: when dissolved in water and given to the sick, it cleanses the intestines.

The mineral Glauber's salt is called mirabilite (from the Latin "mirabilis" - amazing). The name comes from the name given by Glauber to the salt he discovered; he called her wonderful. The world's largest developments of this substance are in our country, the water of the famous Kara-Bogaz-Gol Bay is extremely rich in Glauber's salt. The bottom of the bay is literally strewn with it.

Sulfites, sulfates, thiosulfates...

If you are an amateur photographer, you need a fixer, i.e. sodium salt of sulfurous (thiosulfuric) acid H 2 S 2 O 3. Sodium thiosulfate Na 2 S 2 O 3 (aka hyposulfite) served as a chlorine absorber in the first gas masks.

If you cut yourself while shaving, you can stop the blood with a crystal of potassium alum KAl (SO 4) 2 12H 2 O.

Whether you want to whitewash ceilings, cover an item with copper, or kill pests in your garden, dark blue crystals of CuSO 4 5H 2 O copper sulphate are indispensable.

The paper on which this book is printed is made with calcium hydrosulfite Ca(HSO 3) 2 .

Ferrous sulfate FeSO 4 7H 2 O, chromic alum K 2 SO 4 Cr 2 (SO 4) 3 2H 2 O and many other salts of sulfuric, sulfurous and thiosulfuric acids are also widely used.

Cinnabar

If mercury is spilled in the laboratory (there is a danger of poisoning with mercury vapor!), It is first collected, and those places from which silvery drops are not removed are covered with powdered sulfur. Mercury and sulfur react even in the solid state - with simple contact. A brick-red cinnabar is formed - mercury sulfide - a chemically extremely inert and harmless substance.

It is not difficult to isolate mercury from cinnabar. Many other metals, iron in particular, displace mercury from cinnabar.

Sulfur bacteria

In nature, the sulfur cycle gradually occurs, similar to the cycle of nitrogen or carbon. Plants consume sulfur - after all, its atoms are part of the protein. Plants take sulfur from soluble sulfates, and putrefactive bacteria convert protein sulfur into hydrogen sulfide (hence the disgusting smell of decay).

But there are so-called sulfur bacteria that do not need organic food at all. They feed on hydrogen sulfide, and in their bodies, as a result of the reaction between H 2 S, CO 2 and O 2, carbohydrates and elemental sulfur are formed. Sulfur bacteria often turn out to be full of sulfur grains - almost their entire mass is sulfur with a very small “additive” of organic substances.

Sulfur for pharmacists

All sulfa drugs - sulfidine, sulfazol, norsulfazol, sulgin, sulfodimesin, streptocid and others inhibit the activity of numerous microbes. And all these medicines are organic sulfur compounds. Here are the structural formulas of some of them:

After the advent of antibiotics, the role of sulfa drugs has somewhat decreased. However, many antibiotics can be considered as organic derivatives of sulfur. In particular, it is necessarily part of penicillin.

Fine elemental sulfur is the basis of ointments used in the treatment of fungal skin diseases.

Sulfur nitride conducts current

In 1975, Chemical and Engineering News reported the discovery of a new inorganic polymer that has many of the properties of a metal. Polymeric sulfur nitride - polythiazyl (SN) n it is easily pressed and forged, its electrical conductivity is close to that of mercury. At the same time, polythiazyl films do not equally conduct current in the longitudinal and transverse directions. This is explained by the fact that the film is built from ordered polymer fibers arranged parallel to each other.

What can be built from sulfur

In the 70s, in some countries of the world, the production of sulfur exceeded the demand for it. Therefore, sulfur began to look for new applications, primarily in such material-intensive areas as construction. As a result of these searches, sulfur foam appeared as a heat-insulating material, concrete mixtures in which Portland cement was partially or completely replaced by sulfur, and highway pavements containing elemental sulfur.

In the eastern part of the island of Java, which is located in Indonesia, there is a place of amazing beauty, but very dangerous in nature - the volcano Kawah Ijen. The volcano is located at an altitude of about 2400 meters above sea level, the diameter of its crater is 175 meters, and the depth is 212 meters. Probably the strangest and most frightening lake of a beautiful apple-emerald color is located in its mouth, in which only the Terminator dares to swim, because instead of water it contains sulfuric acid. More precisely, a mixture of sulfuric and hydrochloric acid with a volume of 40 million tons.

Renowned French photographer Olivier Grunewalda recently made several trips to the sulfur mines at the Kawaha Ijen volcano crater in East Java, Indonesia. There, with the help of special equipment, he took breathtaking surreal photographs of this place in the moonlight, lit by torches and blue flames of burning molten sulfur.

Descent into the caldera of the Kawaha Ijen volcano, where there is a kilometer-wide sulfuric acid lake. Sulfur is mined on its shores

Each liter of this deadly goo contains an additional 5 grams of molten aluminum. In total, according to rough estimates, the lake contains more than 200 tons of aluminum. On the surface of the lake, the temperature fluctuates around 60 degrees, and at its bottom it is all 200!

Acid gases and steam are emitted from yellowish lumps of sulfur

A worker breaks off a piece of solid sulfur. Then the sulfur is carried to the weighing station.

However, the lake and the crater of the Kawah Ijen volcano itself is not used to attract tourists, but to extract sulfur in very unfavorable conditions for humans. And there is a myriad of sulfur in this crater, but since this is still Southeast Asia, manual labor is fully used.

Night. A miner with a torch is inside the crater of the Ijen Kawaha volcano, looking at a stream of liquid sulfur glowing in an uncanny blue.

The workers are local residents without any protective suits and gas masks, and inhaling the smell of sulfur is still disgusting, extracting lumps of sulfur day and night, using only their unprotected hands and a scarf tied around their face to protect their mouth and nose.

Miners work here in hellish conditions during the extraction of sulfur. Photographer Olivier Grunewalda described the local smell as unbearable, requiring a mask or gas mask for safety precautions. Some of the miners wear them, others work without them.

Miners with crowbars, which break off pieces of sulfur:

A worker puts pieces of sulfur into baskets to carry it out of the volcano:

Do you think it's all drawn? Watch the video:

Did you believe?

These bizarre shapes were formed from the flow of liquid sulfur inside the crater of the Kawaha Ijen volcano. When sulfur is molten, it is blood red. As it cools, it becomes more and more yellow.

Molten sulfur drips from a ceramic tube that condenses the sulfur gases from the volcano into a liquid. Then it cools down, hardens, and workers mine it.

The miner reached his destination with his cargo. The miners make two or three sulfur trips a day, earning about US$13 per shift for their hard work.

A mechanism for the initial processing of sulfur, where large pieces are broken into smaller pieces

Then lumps of sulfur are placed over the fire, and it melts again.

Molten sulfur is poured into containers

The last stage of this process is the distribution of liquid sulfur on the plates for cooling. When it cools and turns into sulfur sheets, they are sent to local local rubber vulcanization plants and other industrial facilities.

Photographer Olivier Grunewalda: “It feels like you are on another planet.” Grunewald lost one camera and two lenses in the harsh environment of the crater. When the shooting was over, he threw all his things into the trash: the sulfur smell was so strong that it would be impossible to get rid of it.

And now the daily report from this mine:

An Indonesian miner carries sulfur from Ijen on May 24, 2009 near Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia.

The acid-filled lake inside the Ijen volcano crater is 200 meters deep and a kilometer wide. Photo taken May 24, 2009 in East Java, Indonesia. The lake is filled with a solution of sulfuric acid and hydrogen chloride at a temperature of 33 Cº.

A worker repairs pipes in which sulfur dioxide condenses. Ijen volcano complex on May 24, 2009 near Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia.

A miner extracts sulfur from a pipe at the Ijen volcano crater on May 24, 2009 in East Java, Indonesia. Molten sulfur flows out of the deep red pipes, and as it cools it gradually turns yellow and solidifies.

Workers repair pipes in which sulfur dioxide condenses. Ijen volcano complex on May 24, 2009 near Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia.

A miner extracts sulfur from a pipe near the crater of the Ijen volcano on May 24, 2009 in East Java, Indonesia.

In this photo taken through a segment of a spare ceramic pipe, workers are repairing a large sulfur condensing pipe. Ijen volcano complex on May 24, 2009 near Banyuwangi, East Java, Indonesia.

A piece of sulfur mined from the Ijen volcano. Photo taken May 24, 2009, East Java, Indonesia.

In the eastern part of the island of Java, in Indonesia, there is the Ijen volcano. A lake full of turquoise water formed in its crater. But do not think of diving into it - it is just right to pour water into the battery.

Way up

From the capital to go to Ijen is too long. It's easier to start from the neighboring island of Bali. When you get to the port of Ketapang by ferry, you can take a taxi directly to the volcano: the trip will cost you about $40. Get ready for the fact that the driver will take fellow travelers. At the foot of Ijen, you will have to part with the car - only a footpath leads upstairs, narrow and winding.

Before the ascent, you can find a guide or take a tour, but there is not much point in this: the hard workers whom you will definitely meet along the way will tell you everything you want to know. When you get to the Pos Bandare transfer station, do not forget to warm up - a cold wind blows at the top. Now you are ready to try on the skin of an Indonesian miner.

Dirty job

In Lake Kavakh, not only water, but also sulfuric acid splashes at the top. locals must be grateful to the god of the volcano, Ijen steadily emits gaseous fumes. Rising to the surface, the gas lingers on stones and in special ceramic pipes. This creates ideal conditions for sulfur condensation.

Flowing down the pipe, the red-hot mass hardens and turns yellow. Sulfur is knocked out of the pipes with the help of steel fittings.

In appearance, porous and light pieces of sulfur actually weigh a lot. A load from 45 to 90 kg is dragged by the getter for several kilometers. He caught his breath, rested - and again for sulfur. Each worker makes two or three walks a day.

Hart, 34. “Over time, I learned to hold my breath for a long time and work very quickly so that the toxic fumes do not burn the lungs.”

The equipment of the miners is not rich: a back, a rocker and a rag to protect against fumes. It's almost impossible to breathe at the top of the volcano, so it's best to take a respirator with you.

Workers like to go downstairs in company. For a couple of cigarettes, they will gladly tell you something that you will not see on the Discovery Channel. You can even raise the rocker: after looking at your equipment, the miner will nod respectfully, well, or laugh.

Cigarettes are the local currency, you can't live without them. Miners smoke without exception, as if they do not have enough sulfuric fumes. Of course, all this has a bad effect on life expectancy: if a prospector lives to 50, this is a great success. At the same time, the work of the getter is considered quite good. They earn here several times more than in local factories.

Gema, 26 years old. "I smoke clove cigarettes to get rid of the pungent taste in my mouth."

Good earnings

There is a weighing station three kilometers from the summit. A simple hostel is also organized here - for those who do not want to return home today. There you can have a bite to eat and buy a souvenir: a figurine cast from sulfur.

Under the canopy sits the receiver - an unpleasant type, similar to a pawnshop worker. He gives the baskets an appraising look and orders them to be put on the scales. The mark is stamped on a piece of paper, the sulfur goes to the truck, and the miner goes to the salary window. Pay here immediately and without delay.

For 60 kg of net weight they give about $ 4.5. For a month, a strong prospector earns up to $ 300. By comparison, a batik factory worker earns only $90 a month.

Suleiman, 31 years old. “I do this to support my wife and child. You can't earn that much in rice fields."

Life outside the volcano

People of completely different ages go to the miners. Both old people and young guys climb the volcano, almost all of them have already started a family. If you wish, you can even invite yourself to visit one of the miners. They live modestly, but you cannot refuse them hospitality.

They talk about work and life willingly, secretly laughing at the tourists. It seems that the hellish work of the miners is not at all a burden: smiles do not leave their weather-beaten faces, and they themselves look very young. The next time you get tired of working in an office, think of an Indonesian miner. They certainly do not hold optimism.

Jumanto, 40 years old. “I don't have a family. The volcano gives me a feeling of freedom. I don’t depend on anyone and work as much as I see fit.”

In the province of Indonesia, East Java, there is a weakly active volcano Kawa Ijen with a height of 2.6 km. It is famous for its deep depression at the top (caldera) and a lake filled with sulfuric acid. Inside the crater of the volcano, emissions of gas fumes are constantly occurring, which are deposited on ceramic pipes. Over time, red molten sulfur begins to condense in them, which soon flows down and hardens. Local miners mine this mineral to earn their living.

To do this, they knock sulfur down with steel reinforcement, put the broken pieces on their shoulders and carry them to the weighing station. At the same time, workers are not particularly protected from dangerous gases and liquids that are released during the sulfur extraction process. The burden of miners is approximately 45-90 kg, one worker makes two or three trips a day. At the end of the working day, miners receive a salary of 50,000 rupees, or $5. The mineral is then used to bleach sugar, vulcanize rubber, and other industrial applications.

A lake in a volcano crater filled with a solution of hydrogen chloride and sulfuric acid. Its temperature is 33 C, its width is 1 km, its depth is 200 m. The photo was taken on May 24, 2009, East Java, Indonesia.

A worker knocks sulfur out of a pipe. As we can see, molten sulfur flows out as a red liquid, then gradually cools, turns yellow and solidifies.

A piece of sulfur extracted from the crater of the Ijen volcano

Workers carry mined sulfur out of the crater

Miner at the exit from the crater of the volcano.

The scars on his shoulders are the result of carrying heavy baskets.

Weigh Station. The miner puts the mined sulfur on the scales

Photograph of a worker carrying pieces of native sulfur.

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