What is ilmenite used for?

What is ilmenite used for?

Ilmenite is the main source of titanium dioxide which is used in paints, fabrics, plastics, paper, sunscreen, food and cosmetics.

How is titanium extracted from ilmenite?

Titanium is extracted from its ore, rutile – TiO2. It is first converted into titanium(IV) chloride, which is then reduced to titanium using either magnesium or sodium. The ore rutile (impure titanium(IV) oxide) is heated with chlorine and coke at a temperature of about 1000°C.

Is ilmenite a rare earth?

Mineral sands contain zircon, ilmenite, and rutile, with xenotime and monazite. These minerals are mined in many countries and production amounts to millions of tons per year of zirconium and titanium (from rutile and ilmenite), though thorium, tin, and the rare earth elements are associated.

Where is ilmenite found in the world?

Ilmenite is mined in Australia, Brazil, Russia, Canada, Sri Lanka, Norway, China, South Africa, Thailand, India, Malaysia, Sierra Leone and the United States. Ilmenite is not the only source of titanium.

Which valuable metal is ilmenite rich in?

. It is a weakly magnetic black or steel-gray solid. From a commercial perspective, ilmenite is the most important ore of titanium. Ilmenite is the main source of titanium dioxide, which is used in paints, printing inks, fabrics, plastics, paper, sunscreen, food and cosmetics.

What is the color of ilmenite?

iron-black
Ilmenite is a weakly magnetic mineral. The color is commonly iron-black, brownish-black, with metallic to sub-metallic luster.

Is ilmenite radioactive?

Both synthetic rutile and ilmenite contain radioactive elements such as Uranium-238 and Thorium-232. The probability of exposure to radiation due to decay of radioactive products is high depending on the dose rate and the activity levels during processing of these materials.

How do you identify ilmenite?

Ilmenite is a black mineral with a submetallic to metallic luster. With just a glance it can easily be confused with hematite and magnetite. The differentiation is easy. Hematite has a red streak, while ilmenite has a black streak.

Is gold found in ilmenite?

The Barrytown Flats contain marine placer mineral concentrations of ilmenite, garnet, zircon, gold, and associated heavy minerals. This form of gold is generally very fine-grained and may be difficult to recover by traditional gravity concentration methods.

Where is ilmenite found in the United States?

It is commonly found in ore veins formed at moderate temperatures, in high-temperature metamorphic deposits, and in sedimentary deposits. Notable occurrences are at Cavnic in Romania and at Butte, Montana, and Leadville, Colorado, in the United States.

Where is ilmenite found in Australia?

Ilmenite is found in the Murray Basin and the Wimmera (covers 600 000 sq km in Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia ranging from Broken Hill to Horsham from Renmark to Bendigo. The deposits are high grade, easily mined and processed.

What is the luster of ilmenite?

Ilmenite is a black mineral with a submetallic to metallic luster….

How can ilmenite be converted to titanium dioxide?

Ilmenite can be converted into pigment grade titanium dioxide via either the sulfate process or the chloride process. Ilmenite can also be improved and purified to rutile using the Becher process. Ilmenite ores can also be converted to liquid iron and a titanium-rich slag using a smelting process.

What are the properties of the mineral ilmenite?

Physical Properties of Ilmenite Chemical Classification Oxide Diagnostic Properties Streak; sometimes weakly magnetic. Chemical Composition Iron titanium oxide – FeTiO 3. Sometimes Crystal System Hexagonal Uses The primary ore of titanium. A minor sou

Where can I find rutile and ilmenite deposits?

Placers occur in river bends or behind river obstacles and in ocean shoreline sand deposits where slower water currents allow the heavier minerals to settle. Placer deposits often contain both rutile and ilmenite and there are enough of these deposits around the world to supply us with titanium for decades if not centuries.

How is ilmenite related to the hematite group?

Ilmenite lends it name to a group of similar, simple, trigonal, titanium oxides called the Ilmenite Group, a subgroup of the Hematite Group of minerals. The general formula for the group is ATiO 3; where the A can be either iron, magnesium, zinc and/or manganese. The Ilmenite Group members differ from…