bulman titanium

a bit of reading on titanium. the news is in the 90's but gives you a feel for its use which countries have it etc. The bit that stands out is it relationship to the steel industry.
TITANIUM MINERAL CONCENTRATES1
(Data in thousand metric tons of contained TiO2, unless otherwise noted)
Domestic Production and Use: Two firms produced ilmenite and rutile concentrates from heavy-mineral sands
operations in Florida and Virginia, and one firm produced ilmenite in California as a byproduct of sand and gravel
production. Domestic production data were withheld to avoid revealing company proprietary data. Based on average
prices, the value of titanium mineral concentrates consumed in the United States in 1999 was about $522 million. The
major coproduct of mining from ilmenite and rutile deposits is zircon. About 95% of titanium mineral concentrates
were consumed by five titanium pigment producers. The remainder was used in welding rod coatings and for
manufacturing metal, carbides, and chemicals.
Salient Statistics—United States: 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999e
Imports for consumption
Ilmenite and slag 586 641 651 732 750
Rutile, natural and synthetic 295 305 311 365 305
Exports,e all forms 21 10 15 38 6
Consumption
Ilmenite and slag 1,010 1,010 1,060 2980 2985
Rutile, natural and synthetic 439 365 383 392 380
Price, dollars per metric ton:
Ilmenite, bulk, 54% TiO2, f.o.b. Australian ports 83 87 83 77 91
Rutile, yearend, bulk, f.o.b. Australian ports 600 563 530 500 485
Slag:e
80% TiO2, f.o.b. Sorel, Quebec, Canada 244 292 294 338 377
85% TiO2, f.o.b. Richards Bay, South Africa 349 353 390 385 393
Stocks, mine, distributor and consumer, yearend2
Ilmenite 137 267 234 248 250
Rutile 52 77 80 70 70
Employment, mine and mill, numbere 400 400 400 450 450
Net import reliance3 as a percent of
reported consumption 70 57 68 76 77
Recycling: None.
Import Sources (1995-98): Ilmenite: South Africa, 53%; Australia, 29%; Canada, 6%; India, 6%; and other, 6%.
Rutile: Australia, 54%; South Africa, 39%; and other, 7%.
Tariff: Item Number Normal Trade Relations
12/31/99
Synthetic rutile 2614.00.3000 Free.
Ilmenite and ilmenite sand 2614.00.6020 Free.
Rutile concentrate 2614.00.6040 Free.
Titanium slag 2620.90.5000 Free.
Depletion Allowance: Ilmenite and rutile: 23% (Domestic), 15% (Foreign).
Government Stockpile: None.
Events, Trends, and Issues: Global production of total ilmenite and slag in 1999 was estimated to be nearly
unchanged compared with that of 1998. Similarly, domestic consumption of ilmenite and titanium slag concentrates in
1999 was estimated to be unchanged compared with that of 1998. In 1999, the United States continued its reliance on
imported feedstocks with 61% of imports derived from beneficiated ilmenite products.
In the United States, development efforts were proceeding the minerals sands deposits near Camden, TN; a feasibility
study was being conducted that included construction of a pilot plant separation facility and the development of a
detailed mine plan.
In 1999, two of the largest producers of titanium mineral concentrates merged to form a new company. The merger
was estimated to represent 32% of the current supply of titanium feedstock. In Australia, a major new source of
ilmenite production was closed after insurmountable operational difficulties. Several companies in Australia were
conducting feasibility studies in the Murray Basin. Feasibility studies also continued at the Kwale deposit in Kenya.
Prepared by Joseph Gambogi [(703) 648-7718, [email protected], fax: (703) 648-7722]
179
TITANIUM MINERAL CONCENTRATES
World Mine Production, Reserves, and Reserve Base:
Mine production Reserves4 Reserve base4
1998 1999e
United States:
Ilmenite W W 13,000 59,000
Rutile W W 700 1,800
Australia:
Ilmenite 1,355 1,140 581,000 5120,000
Rutile 225 180 517,000 551,000
Canada, ilmenite6 760 770 31,000 36,000
India:
Ilmenite 162 162 30,000 38,000
Rutile 13 13 6,600 7,700
Norway, ilmenite6 266 270 40,000 40,000
South Africa:
Ilmenite6 935 932 63,000 63,000
Rutile 112 112 8,300 8,300
Ukraine:
Ilmenite 133 133 5,900 13,000
Rutile 48 48 2,500 2,500
Other countries:
Ilmenite 248 248 63,000 98,000
Rutile 8 8 7,900 100,000
World total (ilmenite, rounded) 73,860 73,650 330,000 460,000
World total (rutile, rounded) 7406 7361 43,000 170,000
World total (rounded) 74,260 74,010 370,000 640,000
World Resources: Ilmenite supplies about 90% of the world’s demand for titanium minerals. World ilmenite
resources total about 1 billion tons of titanium dioxide. Identified world resources of rutile (including anatase) total
about 230 million tons of contained TiO2.
Substitutes: Ilmenite, rutile, and leucoxene are used for producing titanium dioxide pigment, titanium metal, and
welding rod coatings. In the future, commercial processes may be developed to use anatase and perovskite mineral
concentrates.
Fewer environmental pollution problems are encountered when pigment is produced from rutile rather than ilmenite.
The chloride process, using a rutile feed, generates about 0.2 ton of waste per ton of TiO2 product; the sulfate
process, using ilmenite, generates about 3.5 tons of waste per ton of product. Producing synthetic rutile from ilmenite
results in about 0.7 ton of waste, mainly iron oxide, per ton of product. Direct chlorination of ilmenite generates about
1.2 tons of waste, mainly ferric chloride, per ton of TiO2.
eEstimated. W Withheld to avoid disclosing company proprietary data.
1See also Titanium and Titanium Dioxide.
2Excludes ilmenite used to produce synthetic rutile.
3Defined as imports - exports + adjustments for Government and industry stock changes.
4See Appendix C for definitions.
5Based on data published by the Australian Bureau of Resource Sciences.
6Ilmenite is used primarily to produce titaniferous slag. Reserves and reserve base are ilmenite.
7Excludes U.S. production.
U.S. Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries, February 2000