Summary
The mineralogy and textural relationships of the Tellnes ilmenite concentrate were determined to evaluate the effect of mineralogical characteristics of the raw material on sulphate-route TiO2 pigment production. It was found that the presence of hematite exsolutions and their grain size, twinning, the amount of ferric iron in the ilmenite, and the grain size distribution of the feed material affected the solubility of the ilmenite concentrate. Structural discontinuities, such as twinning, favoured the leaching of ilmenite grains. Depending on the size and distribution of exsolved hematite, there is a good correlation between the degree of dissolution of ilmenite and the amount of exsolved hematite from ilmenite. On the other hand, the coarser the ilmenite grain in the digestion step is the lesser the solubility. The quantity of trace elements, such as Cr and V, and their provenances in the mineral lattices normally affect the quality of the pigment. Their concentrations in the Tellnes ilmenite, however, are associated with the exsolved hematite which does not go into solution. Mg affects the precipitation process, and the MgO content of the concentrate is 4% which is mainly bound in ilmenite lattices. In contrast, MgO rises to 10% in unreacted solids due to the accumulation of insoluble Mg-bearing silicates.
Zusammenfassung
Die Mineralogie und die texturellen Beziehungen der Ilmenit-Konzentrate von Tellnes wurden untersucht, um den Effekt der mineralogischen Charakteristika des Rohmaterials auf die sulfatische TiO2 Pigmetproduktion zu evaluieren. Es wurde herausgefunden, dass die Anwesenheit von Hämatit-Entmischungen und deren Korngröße, Verzwilligung, der Anteil an dreiwertigem Eisen im Ilmenit und die Korngrößenverteilung des aufgegeben Rohmaterials die Löslichkeit des Ilmenit-Konzentrates beeinflussen. Strukturelle Diskontinuitäten, wie etwa Zwillinge, begünstigen das Auslaugen der Ilmenitkörner. In Abhängigkeit von der Größe und Verteilung des entmischten Hämatits, gibt es eine gute Korrelation zwischen dem Grad der Auflösung von Ilmenit und der Menge an entmischtem Hämatit im Ilmenit. Andererseits sinkt die Löslichkeit von Ilmenit mit Zunahme der Korngröße. Die Gehalte an Spurenelementen, wie etwa Cr und V und ihre Provenienz in den Kristallgittern beeinflussen normalerweise die Qualität des Pigments. Im Tellnes Ilmenit sind sie allerdings an den entmischten Hämatit gebunden, der nicht in Lösung geht. Magnesium beeinträchtigt den Ausfällungsvorgang. Der MgO-Gehalt des Konzentrats ist 4% und ist überwiegend an das Ilmenitgitter geknüpft. Im Gegensatz dazu steigt, infolge der Akkumulation der unlöslichen Mg-führenden Silikate, der MgO-Gehalt auf 10% in den nicht reagierenden Festphasen au.
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Chernet, T. Effect of mineralogy and texture in the TiO2 pigment production process of the Tellnes ilmenite concentrate. Mineralogy and Petrology 67, 21–32 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01165113
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01165113