Mineralogical and chemical characteristics of a powder and purified quartz from Yunnan Province

Abstract

Abstract For comprehensive utilization of powder quartz, a detailed mineralogical analysis is needed. In this paper, the minerals collected from a powder quartz deposit in Yunnan Province and its purification products were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), chemical composition, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses. The raw powder quartz deposit had a simple mineral composition made of 85% quartz and 15% clay minerals kaolinite and illite with a trace amount of feldspar. It had narrow particle size distribution with whiteness of 81.4. The impurity minerals kaolinite and illite existed in the forms of aggregates with quartz or inclusions in quartz particles and could be easily removed. The mineralogical characterization suggested that the powder quartz deposit was formed by long-term weathering of feldspathic or felsic rocks, possible of pegmatitic origin.