Kaolin mining in Mallersbach
Until 1975 kaolin was mined or processed in Mallersbach, Lower Austria, and in the nearby Niederfladnitz .
history
The manual mining of kaolin started in Mallersbach after the First World War. The kaolin that had not been processed was brought to Pleißing by carts and taken away with the local Retz – Drosendorf railway .
The deposit was developed as planned from the spring of 1948 by the Mallersbach mineral recycling company. She introduced the use of compressed air spades and conveyor belts. Diesel locomotives were used to transport the overburden. In 1951, a processing plant with fine grinding and air sifting was finally built, as well as a new loading facility. The compressed air spades did not prove their worth, however, and were replaced by backhoe excavators.
By 1972 the kaolin deposit in Mallersbach was exhausted, and a deposit in the nearby Niederfladnitz was developed in its place. The additional transport costs from Niederfladnitz to the processing plant in Mallersbach and back to the rail loading made the operation unprofitable. In 1975 bankruptcy was declared and operations were discontinued.
To assess and secure the raw material deposits in Lower Austria, the kaolin deposits in Mallersbach and Niederfladnitz were also explored through a total of 14 core drillings . In the Niederfladnitz-Ost deposit in particular, around 1.4 million tons of raw kaolin and 0.7 million tons of clay containing kaolin , which could be mined, were found. Because of its high iron content, the raw kaolin obtained from it was classified as only of limited use. No minable kaolin stocks were found in Mallersbach.
The mining of the found kaolin stocks was classified as economically unacceptable in 1980. However, according to the study, future changes in market and cost structures or better technologies could change this.
literature
- Federal Ministry for Trade and Reconstruction - Supreme Mining Authority: The Austrian Mining 1945–1955. Self-published by the Federal Ministry for Trade and Reconstruction - Supreme Mining Authority, Vienna 1955.
Web links
- Kaolin prospection in the Retz area (Lower Austria) (PDF; 527 kB)
- Mallersbach kaolin deposit (PDF; 719 kB)
- Mallersbach