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Bentonite is referred to as the "The Clay of 1000 uses"
Foundries, Well drillers, Iron ore manufacturers and producers of kitty litter are the main consumers of Bentonite.Foundries use Bentonite when pouring metal cast molds.The clay withstands higher temperatures and the excessive heat will not cause the clay to lose its chemical structure.
Well drillers use Bentonite when drilling oil or gas wells. Bentonite will absorb 10 times it weight in water. The bentonite clay is mixed with water and other minerals to form a drilling mud, which seals up the wall of the well bore and allows the rock chips to be pumped back to the surface.
Iron ore manufacturers add Bentonite to crushed taconite to form pellets, which can then be transported to a steel mills.
Because Bentonite will absorb moisture, new applications are continually being developed. Clumping cat litter and toxic waste cleanup are two of those new markets.
Foundries, Well drillers, Iron ore manufacturers and producers of kitty litter are the main consumers of Bentonite.
Bentonite is also used as a:
“WESTERN” Bentonite qualities (sodium type):
This type of Bentonite is a sodium based Bentonite - it swells approximately 15 times their un-wetted volume.
Western Bentonite in molding sand blends aids in deep pocket molding to maintain its dimensional accuracy.
Primary use is in the production of ferrous and non-ferrous castings. Western Bentonite results in a greater dry/hot strength than southern Bentonite
‘SOUTHERN” Bentonite qualities (calcium type):This type of Bentonite is a calcium based Bentonite - it swells only 2 times their un-wetted volume.
Southern Bentonite provides greater green compression strength and permeability than Western.
Bentonite and has lower hot retaining strength.
The lower strength aids in shakeout and reduces stress related defects.
Blends of Southern Bentonite molding sand often reduce mechanical penetration, which results in uniformly dense molds.
Primary use is in the production of non-ferrous castings.
Opta Minerals has long time experience in advising and supplying Bentonite and providing technical support to our customers.
Specifications desired for oil well drilling purpose
| Mechanical Analysis | At least 99% should pass through 200 mesh sieve. |
| Chemical composition | SiO2/Sesquioxide ratio in clay fraction should not be less than 3.5 and more than 4.5. |
| Mineral content | The mineral content in the clay should not be less than 70% by weight on the oven dry basis. The water soluble salts, should be less than 3%. |
| Base exchange capacity | Not less than 70 million equivalents per 100 gm. of bentonite. |
| Swelling index | The ratio of the weight of water to that of minimum weight of bentonite to produce a gel must be more than 8. |
| Swelling test | The swelling should not be less than 6cc in water per gram of bentonite. |
| Thixotrophy | The time of settling down of 6 percent suspension of sodium bentonite in a test-tube of ½" inner diameter should not be more than one hour. |
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