Minerals Council of Australia - Mineral Fact Sheets TIN TIN Introduction . One of its oldest uses is in combination with copper to make bronze. Copper was first coated with tin in the first century AD and tin-plated iron was manufactured in the 16th century. It has an advantageous combination of properties low melting point, malleability, resistance to corrosion and fatigue, and the ability to alloy with other metals. It is also non-toxic and easy to recycle.
Tin occurs in both primary and secondary deposits.
Primary deposits are typically associated with granite intrusive rocks. Intrusive rocks form when magma bodies are emplaced into rock beneath the earth's surface, rather than on it as in the case of volcanic rock. They also occur in rocks surrounding the margins of the intrusive rocks as veins, disseminations, skarns or carbonate replacements, generated by tin bearing fluids derived from the granite magmas. When the cassiterite reaches a drainage system, it may be transported to a river channel and concentrated into an alluvial placer deposit. A placer deposit buried by younger sediments or lava is known as a deep lead.