Industrial mineral
Industrial minerals are minerals that are used directly, i.e. without material conversion, for industrial purposes. A counterexample are the ores , which are mined because of their metal content and then converted into solid ( elementary ) metals through the smelting process . The reason for using industrial minerals, however, lies in the properties of the mineral itself, e.g. B. in their hardness , their birefringence or their piezoelectricity .
Fields of application
Minerals in the ceramic industry
Clay minerals serve as a plastic ceramic raw material. Feldspar increases the chemical resistance of sanitary ware. Quartz is used as a leaning agent . Magnesite and the bauxite minerals boehmite , gibbsite and diaspore as well as zircon are important raw materials for refractory ceramics.
Minerals in the building materials industry
Gypsum is used because of its property of hardening when it dries. Calcite and the clay minerals are the two main raw materials for the production of cement .
Minerals in the optical industry
Due to the piezo effect, quartz is used as an oscillating quartz in watches. Ruby is used in lasers . Cassiterite is used in photocalytic layers.
Minerals in the paper industry
Kaolinite , calcite and aragonite are important fillers and coating colors .
Minerals in mechanical engineering
Due to its high hardness, diamond is used in drill bits and as an abrasive. Other hard mineral materials are corundum and - with certain drawbacks due to the lower hardness - quartz .
Minerals in electrical engineering
Muscovite is used to make electrical insulators.
Minerals in the cosmetic industry
Clays play an important role as fillers in this branch of industry.
Minerals in the food industry
Diatomaceous earth is used as a filter in beer production.
Minerals in geotechnics
Barite is used as an additive in drilling fluids . Due to its thixotropy , montmorillonite is used to stabilize boreholes: When a borehole is stopped, a stable house of cards structure is formed, the drilling fluid solidifies and withstands the lithostatic pressure of the environment. If drilling is continued, the drilling fluid liquefies again after a certain time.
literature
- Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (1997–2008): Geological Yearbook. Series H (13 volumes). Evaluation criteria for industrial minerals, stones and earth. Schweizerbart'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung, Science Publishers, Stuttgart.
- Part 1 (Tone): no ISBN
- Part 2 (carbonate and sulphate rocks): no ISBN
- Part 3 (quartz raw materials): ISBN 978-3-510-95839-9
- Part 4 (volcanic rocks and lightweight aggregates): ISBN 978-3-510-95863-4
- Part 5 (gravel, sand and broken natural stone): ISBN 978-3-510-95897-9
- Part 6 (natural stone and roof slate): ISBN 978-3-510-95902-0
- Part 7 (Feldspars and other fluxes): ISBN 978-3-510-95914-3
- Part 8 (raw materials rich in aluminum oxide) + part 9 (raw materials rich in magnesium oxide): ISBN 978-3-510-95949-5
- Part 10 (phosphates, sulfur, sodium, potassium and magnesium salts) + part 11 (mica (muscovite, phlogopite, sericite, vermiculite, glauconite, chlorite)): ISBN 978-3-510-95955-6
- Part 12 (heavy minerals (ilmenite and leukoxene, rutile, zirconium, monazite and xenotime, staurolite, garnet, chromite, magnetite)): ISBN 978-3-510-95956-3
- Part 13 (beryllium minerals, bromine, iodine, graphite, colored earths, manganese minerals and zeolites): ISBN 978-3-510-95972-3
- Gocht, Werner (1991) Industrial Minerals in Developing Countries. The Earth Sciences; 9, 10; 327-330; doi : 10.2312 / geosciences . 1991.9.327 .