Talc (Mg3Si4O10(OH)2) is not a battery mineral but its correct identification in the gangue minerals of an ore is essential for successful battery metal extraction.
Talc is a magnesium phyllosilicate associated with hydrothermal alteration of ultrabasic rocks. It floats naturally, is hydrophobic and brittle. If present, talc can cause serious problems in geometallurgical processes like froth flotation and may contaminate the concentrate. Understanding its concentration is therefore essential for efficient froth floatation.
Talc must be characterised with a technique, like XRD, which is able to identify the crystal structure of the mineral and doesn’t rely on its chemistry for the identification.
Mineral identification techniques such as Automated Mineralogy (SEM-EDX)® (Quantitative Evaluation of Minerals by Scanning Electron Microscopy) or MLA (Automated SEM-EDS modal analysis) often fail in the identification of talc and identify olivine instead.
- XRD easily and unambiguously identifies talc and accurately quantifies it, even if present in low abundances (<1 wt.%)
