Earth's Crustal Abundance | Distribution Of Elements

Added: 2026-05-17

[00:00:00]Two elements dominate Earth's crust.

[00:00:02]What if I told you two elements make up 75% of it?

[00:00:06]Earth's crustal abundance means the relative concentration of chemical elements in the outermost solid layer.

[00:00:13]Oxygen and silicon together are about 75%.

[00:00:17]Oxygen bonds in minerals. [music] Silicon builds the silicate framework.

[00:00:22]In the early 1900s, Frank Wigglesworth Clarke, the father of geochemistry, compiled the first systematic estimate.

[00:00:30]>> [music] >> Later, A.P. Vinogradov and others refined them by studying rocks from granite to basalt.

[00:00:37]They found iron and aluminum are also common, fueling large-scale mining.

[00:00:42]But precious metals like gold and platinum are rare.

[00:00:45]During planetary differentiation, many sank into Earth's iron core.

[00:00:50]This is why some materials are abundant and cheap, others scarce and costly.

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