As mined salt Sicily

• How to extract salt in Sicily

In the heart of Sicily - the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, are some of the largest salt mines in Europe. Kilometers of underground tunnels, huge machines and excavators ...

This mysterious underground world of darkness and the white gold of Sicily.

The salt deposits - this is nothing like the dried-up remnants of an ancient ocean. Deposits of salt may be sometimes underground at a depth of 1 km, and can on the Earth's surface, where they form a salt lake.

The deposits of salt formed from seawater over geological periods of Earth life.

In addition to the salt lakes in the world there are accumulations of underground brines and solid salt deposits, which consist of covering each other's salt layers of different composition. It refers to the latter type, our salt mine in the town of Realmonte, Sicily, where we are now.

Scientists estimate that sea water all the seas and oceans is so much salt that it would cover the entire earth crust 45 meters thick. Moreover, the share of the famous salt accounts for a large part of the "white gold".

On average, in 1 liter of ocean water contains about 28-30 grams of salt.

Rock salt can form underground huge mountains that are not inferior in size to the highest peaks of the Caucasus and Pamir! The base of such hot lies at a depth of 5-7 km, and the peaks rise to the surface of the earth and may even protrude therefrom. These huge mountain called "salt domes".

When the salt deposits are located at depths ranging from 100 to 600 meters, open cast mining of salt deposits is impossible, and production of salt are underground (mining) method. Over 61% of the world's mined salt produced this way.

Salt extracted from mines, are widely used in all fields of industry, agriculture and medicine.

This salt, which is in the bowels of the earth, there was many, many millions of years ago. Time has made her a very solid, monolithic - stone. However, under high pressure and high temperature underground salt turns into a very flexible material.

mined rock salt mines in the device by the thickness of the dome or salt formation. For laying the broad strokes in the thickness of the salt deposits carried by special cutting machines. A real monster:

excavators:

The purity of rock salt deposits depends on the quality.

At mine salt extraction method has one major drawback - the constant threat of collapse.

The mysterious underground world of darkness and the white gold of Sicily.

A few more photos of the salt mine in the town of Realmonte, Sicily.

Dungeon, tons and tons of salt, dim the lights and different mechanisms.

To lift the produced salt to the surface typically used underground vagonetochnye electric trains, elevators and transporters.

Underground Transmission:

Kilometers of tunnels. After passage in the drilling machines are sometimes thicker hydrochloric fanciful drawings:

Some complex installation, the author of the photos do not have to use it. At the top is visible grid used to strengthen the salt of the tunnel:

And salt from the mine is already on the surface:

The loading of the cargo ship:

It was a journey into the underworld, the salt mine in Sicily.