A chemical examination of ilmenite sands, of New Zealand

Abstract

The black sands of New Zealand contain two main heavy detrital minerals, both of which are iron ores. They are titanomagnetic and ilmenite. The former has received close attention because of its possible utilization as the basis of an iron and steel industry, but it has been only in the last ten years that ilmenite has received close scrutiny. This has arisen from the realisation that our ilmenite-bearing sands are a vast store of raw material from which the desirable pigment titanium dioxide may be extracted, and even more important, the metal titanium. Titanium is a scarce metal today, and the demand is growing apace. Its unique physical properties make it a premium metal on the world's markets. Suggestions have been made that our ilmenite and titanomagnetite could be used for foundry work and steelmaking.