Quartz sand is also known as silica sand, industrial sand, or white sand. This is mainly the combination of two major elements: silica and oxygen. This sand is a very crucial raw material as it is used for nearly 100 kinds of industrial products such as electronics, glass, electrical appliances, water treatment, daily ceramics, etc. The beneficiation and purification process becomes important to optimize its use. And quartz sand classifier manufacturers have a huge role to play in the overall process.
Physical Properties of Quartz Sand
Quartz sand is quartz particles that are made by crushing and processing quartz stone. Quartz forms to be a part of non-metallic, hard, wear-resistant, and chemically stable silicate minerals. The prominent mineral component is Sio2 which has a melting point of 1713° C. It has a glass-like luster, and the fracture is staggered. The texture is colorless.
Why is Quartz Purification Needed?
Quartz sand has a variety of uses and it is a non-metallic mineral raw material. It is hard to purify quartz sand. Quartz sand prominently incorporates some other impurity minerals, among which iron-containing impurity minerals are goethite, hematite, limonite, ilmenite, pyrrhotite, tourmaline, Amphibole, Biotite, etc. The existence of these impurities immensely decreases the value of quartz sand. Therefore, it becomes extremely crucial to discard iron from quartz sand.
In recent years, the research on quartz sand purification and deep processing technology emphasizes beneficiation and purification, Surface modification, and silicon powder processing.
Quartz Sand Iron Removal Method
High-quality raw ore is the crucial factor for superior-quality quartz sand. However, quartz sand contains some impurities that may vary in amount. Quartz sand beneficiation and purification majorly opt for iron removal.
The three major categories are as followed:
The First Category: Under the first category there come physical-mechanical methods, such as magnetic separation, gravity separation, flotation, ultrasonic beneficiation, and water washing. These methods are well-suited for processing unrefined impurities. The Second Category is the Chemical method, which is leaching with an inorganic acid to eliminate iron oxide film on fine-grained iron-titanium minerals via the chemical reaction. This procedure is highly efficient, but its cost is very high. Moreover, the technical conditions are not supportive, and it is detrimental to the environment.The Third Category: The third category is the Microbial beneficiation method, which opts for different bacteria to remove iron from oxidized ores. The process takes much time, and the existing industrialization still faces many predicaments.
Principles to Implement While Choosing Quartz Sand Beneficiation and Purification Process
With the advent of technology, the purification of quartz sand has become very advanced. Considering the practical applications, opting for only a single method to produce qualified sand is not feasible. Typically, many methods in combination are used. The following methods are considered in the determination of the beneficiation process.
The original composition of the quartz sand is treated with the occurrence state of iron.
All the high-end quality requirements of the sales end users for the quartz sandConcentrator investment and production cost deterrentsContamination in the surrounding environment