Minerals

Many minerals have value in their own right or as ores for extraction of metals. Many are used as industrial minerals, where the properties define the application. Other minerals are used for their specific properties such as plasticity of clay, hardness of corundum or the refractoriness of chromite or zircon. Others are used as low cost inert fillers or extenders, such as sand and aggregates in cementitious materials or calcium carbonate in many plastics. Some minerals may be further processed or refined or used as chemical feed stocks for a host of industries and industrial applications.

Minerals For All Applications

Minerals are fundamental to our way of life. All inorganic products, compounds or components are or are derived from minerals - hence the basic question animal, vegetable or mineral? From metals to paint to electronic circuitry to concrete to ceramics to glass to salt to fertiliser to orthopaedic implants and health care creams - all are based on minerals.

Ceram has a huge wealth of expertise in the minerals industry centred on the use, applications, properties and characterisation of minerals and mineral processing. Our experts are able to add value and insight to your application needs.

Minerals are becoming increasing modified by technological advances, including surface treatments and coatings, to alter the basic properties of minerals. Mineral processing is now more waste and energy conscious; waste reduction and alternative uses are critical.

Mineral properties that can be beneficially used for different applications include:

• chemical composition
• purity
• whiteness, colour or reflectivity
• refractive index
• surface area, porosity, oil, gas or water absorption
• surface morphology
• hardness, abradability, strength
• toxic or deleterious components
• particle size and grading
• surface charge and zeta potential
• packing density
• thermal stability, decomposition or refractoriness
• electrical properties -conductive minerals and insulators
• thermal insulators and thermal conductors.

Applications for Minerals

Applications for minerals are truly unlimited. Their broad range of properties is used as building blocks for other industries or as minerals in their own right. Minerals are used across the board including:

Industrial Sector	Application Examples
Petrochemical	Baryte in high density drilling muds, propant grains in oil extraction
Abrasives	Olivine in grit blasting to fused alumina in grinding and polishing media
Healthcare	Talc, along with other mineral fillers in creams and suncare products
Horticulture	Vermiculite, phosphate based fertilisers
Plastics and polymers	Fillers, extenders, pigments and flame retarders
Refractories	Zircon, chromite and alumina
Construction	Lime and hydraulic limes
Glass	Sand and limestone are primary components
Steel	Iron ore and limestone in blast furnaces
Non-slip surfaces	Alumina and sintered products
Absorbants	Clays, bentonites and fullers earth

Ceram’s Mineral Projects:

• alternative uses for by products or co-products
• mineral substitution for cost and energy saving
• characterisation of mineral grades for specifications
• determination of toxic or deleterious components in minerals
• property evaluation for sands and aggregates
• chemical analysis for deposit survey work
• identification of trace components such as chromite in glass sand
• correct identification of industrial minerals for applications of customs tariffs
• evaluation of mineral morphology such as aspect ratio and sphericity
• propant sands and modified grains
• abrasive minerals
• control of minerals in slips, slurries and suspensions.

Case Studies:

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