MINERALS USED IN GLASS, FERTILIZER, CERAMIC, PAINT AND CEMENT INDUSTRIES

1. MINERALS USED IN GLASS,
FERTILIZER, CERAMIC,
PAINT AND CEMENT
INDUSTRIES
SRUTHY SAJEEV
S4 MSC GEOLOGY
UNIVERSITY OF KERALA
KARIAVATTOM CAMPUS

2. INTRODUCTION
General classification of minerals;
Metallic, non-metallic, mineral fuel, fissionable minerals,
ground water.
Industrial minerals are included in non-metallic group.
A non-metal and non-fuel.
In many cases, they form the starting point for many basic
industries like cement, fertiliser, refractory, etc..,
Major industrial minerals- mica, asbestos, barytes, talc,
soapstone, steatite, bentonite and vermiculite.

3. MINERALS USED IN CEMENT
INDUSTRY

4. CEMENT
Essentially mineral glues
ability to unify other materials + fluidity when first mixed
with water enable the mass to assume any desired shape.
Do not exhibit their maximum strength when used alone.
Only when mixed with proper aggregates do their optimum
properties appear.
Necessary raw materials are of common occurrence and wide
geographic distribution.
Different types: ordinary Portland cement, pozzolana cement,
natural cements etc..,

5. RAW MATERIALS IN CEMENT INDUSTRY
Selection of raw materials is controlled by the standards
established by the National Bureau of standards and the
American society for testing minerals.
Proper selection of raw materials in correct proportions is
essential.
Source of CaO Source of Al2O3 Source of SiO2 Source of Fe
Cement rock clay clay clay
Limestone shale shale shale
Marl Ash from coal ash Iron ores
Shell Igneous rocks sand Pyrite cinders
sandstones

6. LIMESTONE
Sedimentary rocks deposited in shallow sea waters.
Composed essentially of calcium carbonate and mechanically
admixed impurities of clay and sand.
Limestone with purity above 99% CaCO3 are rare.
Because of high Mg content dolomite cannot be used for
producing Portland cement.
Rapid pace of industrialisation in the country has resulted in
an accelerated rate of production of limestone.
It has increased from a mere 29.65 lakh tonnes in 1951 to
1,455.52 lakh tonnes in 2002-03.

7. Distribution of Limestone in India (2002-03):
State Production in lakh
tonnes
1.Madhya Pradesh 237.58
2. Rajasthan 236.24
3. Andhra Pradesh 232.80
4. Gujarat 157.40
5. Chhattisgarh 136.67
6. Tamil Nadu 127.18
7. Karnataka 121.81
8. Maharashtra 88.90
9. Himachal Pradesh 66.98
10. Orissa 23.62
Others 26.70
All India 1,455.52

8. MARLS
Earthy, friable accumulations of calcareous material secreted by plants
and animals in lakes marshes.
RECENT SHELLS
Shell of recent origin have been collected and burned for lime.
CHALK
It is found in deposits formed during Cretaceous time.
Form of calcium carbonate of high purity.
CLAY AND SHALE
Used in the case where the limestone is insufficient in alumina and
silica.
Clay –
earthy, easily disintegrated, widely distributed mineral.
Contain hydrous aluminium silicates.

9. Minerals in clay
KAOLIN GROUP
Kaolinite
Dickite
Nacrite
halloysite
anauxite
allophane
MONTMORILLONITE
GROUP
montmorillonite
beidelite
nontronite
sapronite
ALKALI-BEARING CLAY metabentonite
Clay mica

10. Kaolinite is commonly formed by weathering of other
minerals particularly feldspars.
Many other minerals are found in clay but few of them occur
in quantity.
Shales- composed of clay minerals deposited in water.
weak but do not disintegrate as readily as the unconsolidated
clay.
Require grinding.

11. SAND AND SANDSTONES
Silica deficiency is corrected by using sand or sandstones.
Sandstones are chiefly quartz in content but may contain varying
amounts of clay and other minerals.
The tonnage used is very small.
IRON MATERIALS
The development of cement with low heat of hydration has created
a demand of high iron raw material.
Commonly used- iron ores, pyrite cinder, the product of
calcination of pyrite, and mill scale, and different forms of steel.
GYPSM
It is added to the clinker before the final operation of fine grining
to finished cement.

12. MINERALS USED IN FERTILIZER
INDUSTRY

13. ☻Play a very important role in enhancing food production.
☻Fertiliser minerals may be used directly in crude state or may
form basic raw materials for the manufacture of fertilisers.
☻Different type of fertilisers : phosphates, potash, nitrates,
sulphur, lime , and gypsum.

14. PHOSPHATES
Natural important phosphates – Apatite(phosphate of Ca with
some Cl, and F)
Rock Phosphates- Phosphorites, Phosphatic limestone, Guano,
Basic slag, Bone beds etc.., having no chemical composition.
India’s contribution to total world production- 0.4%
APATITE
PHOSPHORITE

15. SLAG
GUANO

16. USES
Largest consumers – fertiliser industry(about 95%)
Treatment with H2SO4 produces super phosphate, triple super
phosphate and dicalcium phosphate- more valuable for plant
Used in manufacture of elemental phosphorous , chemicals,
glass, sugar, iron and steel industries.
Finds use in safety matches, fire works, shells, grenades,
tracer bullets, smoke screens, distress signals, medicines, soft
drinks, baking powder, photography, cement, ceramics.

17. MODES OF OCCURENCE AND ORIGIN
Phosphatic rocks may be fragmental, nodular, oolitic,
pisolitic, lenticular, platy, granular, and massive in form.
Occur as marine sedimentary beds, Phosphatic marls, and
limestone beds, reworked pebbles, residual concentration of
Phosphatic materials and apatite deposits.
Marine sedimentary beds- originated by marine chemical
deposition in a large enclosed basins
Eg: rock phosphate deposit, near Mussorie, Dehradum district,
UP.( associated with chert and black shale)
Phosphatic marl and limestone- sedimentary beds with high P

18. Mostly low grade
Found in Palamau districts of Bihar, Pithoragrah district of UP
Pebble deposits- formed by reworking of Phosphatic
limestone and subsequent erosion and transportation.
Apatite deposits- formed due to concentration of apatite in
pegmatite, pneumatolitic veins and magmatic segregations.

19. DISTRIBUTION
 APATITE: Workable deposits occur in pegmatitic and
pneumatolitic veins.
State District/Area Other details
Andhra Pradesh Nellore,
Srikakulam and
Visakhapatnam
Pegmatite veins are
main source of
apatite
Bihar Singhbhum, Gaya,
Hazaribagh, and
Munger
Occurs as veins in
Singhbhum, and in
other places in
mica- pegmatite
Rajasthan Ajmer,Bhilwara,
Tonak, Pali,
Udaipur
Associated with
pegmatite and
quartz veins
Tamil Nadu Coimbatore, Salem,
Tiruchirapalli,
Nilgiri,
Kanyakumari
Mica pegmatite

20. POTASH
Important nutrient for protein synthesis
helps plant to use water more efficiently.
Protects crop from bacterial and fungal diseases.
It do not occur in native state.
Formerly, it was obtained from vegetable materials which were being burnt
and were dissolved in water.
The soluble yielded potash salts produced after evaporation.
Potassium minerals of economic importance other than silicates are its
chlorides, polyhalite and nitrates.
Eg:sylvite, carnallite, kainite,(chlorides) , alunite (polyhalite),nitre(nitrate)

21. SYLVITE CARNALLITE KAINITE
ALUNITE NITRE

22. Extraction of potash from its silicates is a complex and costly
process.
The mineral gluconite, a hydrous silicate of iron and
potassium also forms a potential source of potash and being
used as a slow acting potash manure.
Russia, Canada and Germany are the main potash producing
countries in the world.
No commercial production of potash in India.
The requirements are met by imports.

23. USES
Important use: as fertiliser.
Other uses: in the manufacture of glass, explosives, chemical
and metallurgical process.
Potassium carbonate – glass
Nitrate- explosive manufacture
Minor uses- in ceramics, dyeing, tanning, soap, meat curing,
matches and photography.
Indian potash limited, Bombay is the main supplier of
imported potash.
Potash muriate (KCl) – principal raw material for potash
bearing fertilisers.

24. MODE OF OCCURENCE AND ORIGIN
Marine evaporates
Potash-rich brines
Saline lakes
Playa deposits
Bitterns at salt works
Saline water on evaporation becomes concentrated as
supersaturated in soluble salts which finally precipitated as
solid salt
Represents residual product of saline water.

25. DISTRIBUTION AND RESERVES
Known to occur in Tsokar lake, Leh district, Jammu and
Kasmir, and Rann of Kuchch, Gujarat.
Sylvite – Sriganganagar district, Rajasthan.
Gluconite- Banda district, Uttar Pradesh and Satna district,
Madhya Pradesh associated with Semri and Rewa groups of
Vindhyan Super Group.
Production is negligible.
Tata chemicals is recovering minor amounts of crude potash
from bitterns at its salt works in Gujarat.

26. NITRATES
About 78% of nitrogen gas by volume is present in the
atmosphere.
Obtained mainly from Na and K nitrates, ammonium sulphate
and calcium cynamide.
Na and K nitrates- occur in nature in the form of soda nitre(
caliche) and saltpetre.
Ammonium sulphate- produced as by-product in the
manufacture of coke and gas form coal.
It is also chemically produced from ammonia which is a
synthetic product.

27. Naturally occurring ammonium salts- Sal ammoniac
(ammonium chloride), Mascognite [( NH4)2SO4].
Calcium cynamide- produced from atmospheric N and
calcium materials.
Nitrates- salts of nitric acid
and are restricted in occurrence because of soluble properties
in water.
USES- principal use in fertilizer.
Used in the form of sodium nitrate, ammonium sulphate,
calcium cynamide, calcium nitrate, urea etc..,
Used in explosives, nitric acid, chemical salts and
refrigeration.

28. 1. SALTPETRE
White in colour with saline taste
Specific gravity: 2.1
Lustre: vitreous
Sub transparent
Occur as mixed efflorescence of potassium nitrate, sodium
chloride, sodium sulphate, sodium carbonate and magnesium
nitrate in silky tuffs and thin crusts.
Accumulated in the course of century in the soil of highly
populated areas.
Distribution mostly in the Indo- Gangetic plains.

29. Muzaffarpur, Siwan, Chapra, Gopalganj, Champaran and
Samastipur districts of North Bihar were once famous for
production of saltpetre.
Industry almost dead due to availability of alkali salts at
cheaper rates.
Production is still made in remote villages.

30. 2.SODA NITRE(NaNO3)
Colour: white , grey, yellow, greenish, purple and reddish
brown.
Lustre: vitreous
Transparent
Specific gravity: 2.29
Soluble in water.
Massive in form.
Caliche- Chile deposit of NaNO3, largest deposit
Associated with potassium nitrate, sodium chloride, sulphates
of sodium, Ca and Mg etc..,

31. Also used for iodine extraction besides the source of nitrate.
It is a highly soluble mineral
Workable deposits occur only in regions of low rains.
Originated by the evaporation of the ground water.
Ground water may have carried those salts underground and
through the capillary action these salts are brought up during
summer months.
Arid and semi-arid regions such as plains of Gujarat,
Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, UP, and Bihar where evaporation is
higher than precipitation are ideal site for formation of nitrates.
No production is reported in India, chemically manufactured
to meet the internal demand.

32.  Lime and gypsum are also used in fertiliser industry.

33. MINERALS USED IN GLASS
INDUSTRY

34. Quartz and silica sand are the chief glass manufacturing
materials.
Minor amounts of soda and lime are also needed.
Quartz and silica sand is mixed with sodium carbonate ( soda
ash) or sodium sulphate in the prescribed proportion for the
easy manufacture of glass.
Calcium in the form of lime or limestone is added to give
strength.
Borax is employed for transparency.
Manganese dioxide, nickel oxide, selenium, cobalt and
chromium – for different colours.

35. QUARTZ AND SILICA SAND
Used largely in glass, foundry, Ferro-silicon alloy and cement
industries.
Used in many other industries like ceramic, fertilizer, alloy
steel, abrasive, chemical, electrode, insecticide, paint, rubber,
textile, water filtration, brick, mortar etc..,
Natural silica sand is preferred in glass industry
In cases when silica deposits are located far away, crushed
quartz is used.
The silica sand should be fairly free from contaminations like
clay material, pebbles and other materials.

36. Should not contain more than 4% moisture.
Depending on the types of glass manufactured, silica sands
have been classed into four grades, namely;
1.Special grade for high colourless,(e.g.: crystal glass, tableware,
and decorated ware)
2. Grade-I: for decolourised glassware( contain-ware, lamp ware)
3.grade-II: for glassware were slight tint is permissible
4. grade-III: for coloured glass.

37. QUARTZ

38. MODE OF OCCURENCE AND ORIGIN
 Quartz occur in veins and pegmatite.
 Has wide distribution.
 Vein-quartz is common, forming small hillocks in the
PreCambrian terrain.
 Hydrothermal processes may be responsible for the origin of
such quartz deposits.
 Silica-sand occurs in abundance in river beds and beach
deposits.
 Glass sand are obtained chiefly from sandstone and also from
unconsolidated deposits.

39. VEIN-TYPE QUARTZ
SILICA SAND

40.  Sandstone contains more than 80% of silica sand.
 Sandstone must be friable and break readily around grains.
 Vindhyan and Gondwana sandstones are source of silica sand.
 Are sedimentary origin.
 The process of mechanical concentration give rise to sand
placers.
SANDSTONE

41. MINERALS USED IN CERAMIC
INDUSTRY

42. Clay is the vital raw material.
Feldspar is employed both in the body and glaze for
chinaware.
Wollastonite prevents shrinkage and other dimensional and
glaze defects.
Other minerals like bauxite, andalusite-sillimanite group of
minerals, borax, magnesite, lithium minerals, fluorspar,
pyrophyllite, talc etc.., are utilised to supply certain desired
ingredients to clay or to manufacture special ceramic
materials.

43. CLAY
Aggregate of minerals and colloidal substances
Commonly become plastic when wet, and stone like hard
under fire.
Constituent minerals are so fine(0.002mm or so)
They can be recognised only by use of electron microscope,
X-ray and thermal analysis curves.
Important clay minerals- Kaolinite, montmorillonite,
saponite, beidellite, illite and allophane.
Clay also contains rock fragments and hydrous oxides.

44. KAOLINITE
MONTMORILLONITE
BEIDELITE
ALLOPHANE

45. USES
In ceramics, cement, refractory, paper, textile, rubber,
cosmetic, pharmaceutical, insecticide, electrical, building and
other industries.
Based on utility, clay is classified into;
TYPES CHARACTERISTICS USES
Kaolin(china clay and
paper clay)
Residual deposits, fine
grained, white-burning,
high grade refractory
Crockery, insulators, spark
plugs, cosmetics,
pharmaceutical and
insecticide.
Ball clay Highly plastic variety of
kaolin, high binding
power, tensile strength and
considerable strength and
shrinkage, white burning.
White ware, mixing with
non-plastic clay to impart
desired plasticity.

46. Fire clay(flint clay and
diaspore clay)
High alumina clay,
endures high
temperature.
Refractory
Bentonite Mainly montmorillonite,
swelling in water, and non-
bleaching.
Iron steel works,
reconditioning, oil drilling,
medicines , cosmetics etc..,
Fuller’s earth (bleaching
clay)
Decolouring oil, fat and
greases.
Petroleum refining, refining
vegetable oil and animal
fats, water purification,
printing etc..,
Brick and tile clay Common clay, low value
types, aluminous and
ferruginous, burns to red
colour, mined in bulk and
undergoes no processing
expect for removal of
stones
Bricks and tiles, also
sometimes in stoneware,
cement plants

47. BALL CLAY BENTONITE
FULLER’S
EARTH
BRICK
CLAY

48. MODE OF OCCURENCE AND ORIGIN
 China clay occurs associated with Pre Cambrian granites,
gneisses, pegmatite, phyllites and schists,
 Gondwana shales and sandstones as bedded deposits
 Within Tertiary sandstones and underlying laterites in many
parts of the country.
 Results from chemical weathering of aluminous rocks.
 In- situ: residual clay deposits.
 Transported as sediments.
 Favourable condition: tropical climate.

49.  Sedimentary clays include;
Marine, Lacustrine, Flood-plain, Estuarine, Deltaic, Loess, and
glacial.
 Residual clays assume roughly the form of source rock.
 Sedimentary clays – bedded forms and show banding,
laminations, and composition variations.

50. FELDSPAR
 The world production- 5.6 million
tonnes.
 Major producers- Italy, Japan, and
Thailand.
 India’s contribution- 1%.
USES
 Mainly utilised in the manufacture of
ceramics, glass, pottery, vitrified
enamels, special electrical porcelain,
glassware etc..,
 In ceramic industry it is used in the body
and as a glaze for China ware.

51. MODE OF OCCURENCE AND ORIGIN
 Alkali feldspar – essential constituent of acid igneous rocks.
 Common mineral in metamorphic, feldspathic arkoses and
sandstone.
 Occur in pegmatites.
 Usually associated with quartz.

52. DISTRIBUTION AND RESERVES
 Important sources- Mica pegmatites of Rajasthan, Andra
Pradesh and Bihar.
 Numerous pegmatites veins with alkali feldspar exist in other
states.

53. WOLLASTONITE
 Important ceramic mineral.
 Varies in colour from milky-white to brownish- grey colour.
 Occurs as radiating, prismatic, and bladed crystals.
 Translucent
 Highly cleavable and brittle.
 Length of crystal varies from a few cm to 50cm.

54. MINERALS USED IN PAINT INDUSTRY

55. Natural mineral pigment- limonite or hematite with or
without clay or maganese oxide.
Form ochre, umber, and siennas.
Ochres- mixture of hematite, limonite and clay with 15-80%
iron oxide, provide yellowish and reddish colours.
Umber- brown ochre with 11-25% of maganese oxide and
more of limonite.
Gypsum, barite, talc and natural white clay yields white
pigments.
Manufactured pigments- direct treatment of minerals or
chemically produced .
Requires opacity and ability to absorb oil.

56. OCHRE
Hydrated iron-oxide.
Presence of iron oxides- pigmentary quality.
 Hydrated iron oxides yields yellow colour and anhydrous red.
 Mixture of ferrous and ferric oxides imparts mainly brown
shade.
 Quality and value determined by staining power, brilliance
and fine texture.

57. USES
Reasonably good covering power
Permanent colours
No effect on other pigments
Extensively used in the manufacture of oil paints, primers and
also for imparting colour to cement and paper.
Dominate in market because;
Their cheapness
Abundance in occurence
Good pigmentary quality.

58. MODE OF OCCURENCE AND ORIGIN
Alteration product of other iron minerals
Or by degradation of highly ferruginous rocks
Form of weathered residual concentrations.
They are largely ferric hydroxide mixed with clay and other
impurities.
Minerals that are unstable under weathering conditions suffer
chemical decay-
The soluble parts like silica may be removed
Insoluble residues mainly iron oxides and other impurities
may accumulate in the form of ochres.

59. DISTRIBUTION, RESEVES, AND PRODUCTION
Widely distributed in the country.
Red ochre deposits are chiefly found in Gujarat, Karnataka,
Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
Yellow ochre- Andra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan,
Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
Jaitwara, Madhya Pradesh – well known for yellow ochre.

60. STATE DISTRICT REMARKS
Andra Pradesh Kurnool, Guntur,
Cuddapah, and Anantpur
Yellow ochre
Bihar Singhbhum -
Gujarat Rajpur, Banaskantha,
Jamnagar and Kuchch
Red ochre
Karnataka Bellary, Bidar Red ochre
Madhya Pradesh Gwalior, Jabalpur, Satna,
Rewa, Shahdol
Red ochre
Maharashtra Nagpur Production is being made.
Rajasthan Udaipur, Alwar, Bikaner,
Chittaurgarh
Yellow ochre
Uttar Pradesh Banda -
West Bengal Mednipur Yellow ochre.

61. REFERENCE
 Mudd, S.W, 1949. Industrial Minerals and Rocks. American
Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers, New
York.1156p.
 Sinha, R.K, 1982. Industrial Minerals. Oxford publishing
co., New Delhi.379.