J Pak Mater Soc 2009 3 (1)

D.

BAUXITE DEPOSITS IN PAKISTAN: AN INTRODUCTION

Muhammad Fahad, Yaseen Iqbal, Rick Ubic

Material Connection Centre, Institute of Electronics & Physics, University of Peshawar, Pakistan

1. Introduction This introductory talk was focused upon Bauxite, its deposits in Pakistan and economical potential. Preliminary findings regarding the phase and microstructure of Bauxite were also described. A mineral is basically defined as a naturally occurring, inorganic substance formed through geological processes. Each mineral has a characteristic chemical composition, highly ordered atomic structure and specific physical properties. Almost all minerals are crystalline and form the basic component of the earths crust. So far more than 2000 minerals are known [1] . Mineral may be Rock Forming Minerals or Ore-Forming. Rock Forming Minerals are those which are found in abundance in the rocks of the earths crust whereas the Ore-Forming minerals are those which are of economic value and usually do not occur in abundance in rocks.

Figure 5. Mr. M Fahad giving his talk on Bauxite.

Rocks are aggregates or mixtures of minerals, generally in the form of interlocking crystals or grains. They may comprise of one mineral only (e.g. limestone) or a mixture of minerals (e.g. granite, sand stone). Rocks may include organic remains as well. Rocks are further divided into igneous and sedimentary rocks [1] . Igneous rocks are formed by cooling & solidification of magma which is a hightemperature solution of silica, silicates, metallic oxides, hot liquids and gases. Typical Igneous rocks are granite and basalt. Sedimentary rocks on the other hand, are formed by consolidation and cementation of sediments deposited under water or land surface. Normally, they are deposited in layers, progressively with younger upwards and older downwards. Such stratified layers are called beds and a group of beds is called a formation. Typical sedimentary rocks are sand stone and limestone [1]. Another type of rock referred to as Metamorphic rocks are formed when the pre-existing rocks have been changed in texture and composition by changing conditions of temperature and pressure. Substances formed on the earth surface (such as clay) when subjected to increased pressure and temperature, change to more stable forms such as mica or other silicates. Typical rocks of this type are schist and gneiss [1]. Mineral are also classified into various categories such as a) metallic minerals which include antimony, bauxite & laterite, chromite, 41

Muhammad Fahad, Yaseen Iqbal, Rick Ubic: D. Bauxite Deposits in Pakistan:.

J Pak Mater Soc 2009 3 (1)

copper, gold, silver, platinum, iron ore, lead and zinc, b) mineral used as fuel e.g. coal, petroleum and natural gas, c) precious and decorative stones e.g. garnet, peridot, quartz, ruby and topaz, and d) silicates such as china clay, fluorite, fire clay, feldspar, limestone and silica sand. Bauxite is a metallic mineral named after the village Les Baux (Southern France) where it was first discovered by Pierre Berthier in 1821. Bauxite is the most important aluminum ore consisting largely of gibbsite [Al(OH)3], boehmite [-AlO(OH)] and diaspore [-AlO(OH)] along with iron oxides such as goethite, hematite and clay mineral kaolinite [Al2Si2O5(OH)4] and small amount of anatase [TiO2][5]. Bauxite may be lateritic (i.e. silica bauxite) or karst (i.e. carbonate bauxite). Bauxite may be white, grey, yellow or red with white streak and dull to earthy luster [2]. On mohs scale of hardness, its hardness is 1 to 3 with 2 to 2.5 specific gravity. The crystal structure of Diaspore and Boehmite is orthorhombic whereas Gibbsite is monoclinic [2]. 2. Processing Bauxite is strip mineral as it is found at the surface with little or no over burden. Approximately 85-95% of the worlds bauxite production is processed into aluminum. In 2007, Australia was the top producer of bauxite with almost one third of the world share, following China, Brazil and Jamaica [3]. The Bayer process is the principal industrial means of refining bauxite to produce alumina [8]. Bauxite contains only 30 to 54% alumina and is obtained by filtering off the solid impurities. The mixture of the residual solid impurities is called red mud.

Figure 6. A Camera photograph from the AJKs Bauxite sample, showing its general appearance.

High-Alumina bauxite deposits, categorized as commercial bauxite mainly occur in the following areas of Pakistan [1]: a) Katha-Pail Deposits (> 100 m.t) which contains 35.5-72.5% alumina, 8.6850% silica and 10-20% iron along with boehmite and kaolinite and trace amount of diaspore and gibbsite. b) Chhoi-Akhori Deposits (46.5 m.t) which contains ~32-76% Al2O3, 2.5-43% SiO2, 0.25-12% Fe2O3 and 2.2 - 4.2% TiO2. Bauxite deposits have also been reported in Muzaffarabad-Kotli, Bandi Kapla-Khanpur Hazara, Margalla Hills (0.86 m.t) and Attock Surge area (0.25 m.t). An ordinary camera photograph of as-mined stones of Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) bauxite is shown in Figure 6. To assess the Processability of a mineral, its chemical and phase composition must be known because this determines the quality of the mineral and the required process for its up-gradation. In addition to alumina extraction, the residues or 42

Muhammad Fahad, Yaseen Iqbal, Rick Ubic: D. Bauxite Deposits in Pakistan:.

J Pak Mater Soc 2009 3 (1)

byproducts can be used for other purposes [4] . The characterization of bauxite ore, in particular, the iron mineralogy, is critical when determining its processability [5]. Iron oxides and hydro oxides are common constituents of bauxite, in which they are undesirable because their presence increases the cost of aluminum production [6] . The iron oxides are unchanged by the processing of bauxite with in a low temperature (<150C) Bayer plant and hence make up the major phase of the bauxite residue material that needs to be separated from the process liquor [5]. Globally, manganiferous karst bauxite is rare which in general, contains 0.2% of MnO2 [7]. 3. Other Applications Red mud is the residue of bauxite processing for alumina production and its major constituents are Fe2O3, Al2O3, SiO2, Na2O, CaO with trace amounts of Zr, Y, Th and U [8-9]. Red mud is used in the production of glazes in Ceramic industry e.g. sanitary ware, tiles and electrical porcelain glazes [9]. Low-cost mullite based ceramics are also produced from the mixture of natural bauxite and industrial waste fly ash[10]. Dense alumina ceramics are widely used for structural applications (such as armor, wear resistance applications and in situations with severe mechanical stresses coupled with corrosive and thermal action) [11]. Similarly, ordinary glass-ceramics and nano-crystalline glassceramics can be prepared from red mud in the aluminum industries [12-13]. Red mud is a potential ceramic body initial ingredient and influences the forming procedure, sintering and final properties [14]. Ceramic Microsphere are prepared using Chinese bauxite through centrifugal spray drying method, with applications in medicine,

chemical, environmental protection, nuclear technology and war industry [15]. Red mud and barium compounds have been utilized for making X-ray radiationshielding material through ceramic processing route using phosphate bounding [16]. In brief, bauxite is a mineral with diverse applications and is abundant in Pakistan; therefore, its detailed phase, chemical and microstructural analysis is required. Secondary electron scanning electron microscope images of AJK bauxite samples are shown in Figure 7. In Figure 5a, energy dispersive X-ray electron spectroscopy (EDS) revealed that the grains with bright contrast (labelled as A), dark grey contrast (labelled as S) and light grey contrast (labelled as I) comprised Al, Si only and Fe respectively. Similarly in Figure 5b, the grains or micro-regions labelled as A, M, T and S comprised Al, Mg, Ti and Si respectively.

Figure 7. SEI of AJK Bauxite sample, showing, a) grains with bright contrast (A), 43

Muhammad Fahad, Yaseen Iqbal, Rick Ubic: D. Bauxite Deposits in Pakistan:.

J Pak Mater Soc 2009 3 (1)

dark grey contrast (S) and light grey contrast (I). EDS detected Al in microregion A, Si only in region S and Fe in region labelled I, and b) grains of different shapes and compositions where the grains or micro-regions labelled as A, M, T and S comprised Al, Mg, Ti and Si respectively. 4. Conclusions Sufficient reserves of high quality Bauxite are present in Pakistan which requires systematic characterization and upgradation for economical development of the region and country. SEM of as-mined Bauxite samples revealed the presence of grains and micro-regions of varying morphology and contrast. EDS analysis revealed the presence of iron in microregions with grey contrast, silica in dark grey micro-regions and alumina in microregions with bright contrast. References
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Abbas S. G., Kazmi A. H. Metallogeny and Mineral Deposits of Pakistan Graphic Publishers Islamabad (2001). www.Geology.com visited on 25/03/2009. U.S. Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summary January 2008. Knorr K., Bruker A. X. S. Quantitative XRD Phase Analysis in Mineralogy & Minerals: Bauxite Lab. Report XRD 63. Kirwan L. J., Deeney F. A., Croke J. M., Hodnett K. Characterization of Various Jamaicans Bauxite Ores by Quantitative Rietveld X-ray Powder Diffraction and 57 Fe Mossbauer Spectroscopy. Inter. J. Mineral Processing (2008). Maurad E. Characterization of Standard Bauxite and its Deferration Products by Mossbauer Spectroscopy. Mineral Engineering 18 (2005) 984-86. Csordas-Toth A., Klug A., Bardossy G. Scanning Electron Microscopic and X-

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Ray Powder Diffraction Study of Manganiferous Bauxite, Kincsesbanya Hungary, Clay & Clay minerals 33 [6] (1985) 532-38. Liu Y., Lin C., Wu Y. Characterization of Red Mud Derived from a Combined Bayer Process and Bauxite Calcination Method. J. Hazardous Mater. 146 (2006) 255-61. Yalcin N., Sevinc V. Utilization of Bauxite Waste in Ceramic Glazes. Ceramics International 26 (1999) 485-93. Dong Y., Feng X., Ding Y., Liu X., Meng G. Preparation of Low-cost Mullite Ceramics from Natural Bauxite and Industry Waste Fly Ash. J. Alloys and Compounds 460 (2008) 599-606. Medvedovski E. Alumina-Mullite Ceramics for Structural Applications. Ceramics International 32 (2006) 369-75. Yang J., Zhang D., Hou J., He B., Xiao B. Preparation of Glass-Ceramics from Red Mud in the Aluminum Industry, Ceram. International 34 (2008) 125-30. Peng F., Liang K. M., Shao H., Hu A. M. Nano-crystal Glass-ceramics Obtained by Crystallization of Vitrified Red Mud. Chemosphere 59 (2005) 899-903. Sglave V. M., Maurina S., Conci A., Salviati A., Carturan G., Cocco G. Bauxite Red Mud in the Ceramic Industry Part 2: Production of Clay-based Ceramics. J. Euro. Ceram. Soc. 20 (2000) 245-52. Xiasu C., Pingan L., Xiuyan L., Anze S., Lingke Z. Preparation of Bauxite Ceramic Microsphere. J. Wuhan University of Tech.-Mater Sci. Feb (2007). Amritphale S. S., Anshul A., Chandra N., Ramakarishnan N. A Novel Process for Making Radiopaque Materials using Bauxite-Red mud. J. Euro. Ceram. Soc. 27 (2007) 1945-51.

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Muhammad Fahad, Yaseen Iqbal, Rick Ubic: D. Bauxite Deposits in Pakistan:.

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