ILMENITE

Physical properties

Habit: tabullar, lamellar, massive.
Color: iron black.
Diaphaneity: opaque.
Luster: submetallic.
Streak: brownish black.
Fracture: subconchoidal.
Cleavage: none.
Chemical: insol. in HCl, or HNO3 but attacked by boiling H2SO4. Slightly antiferromagnetic with a specific magnetic susceptibility of +10^–6 m³.kg^–1. Nonfusible with a melting point of 1365–1470°C. Semiconductive with an electrical resistivity ranging from 0.001 to 4 Ω.m.
Deposits: massive hard rock hemo-ilmenite deposits in ultramafic igneous rocks (e.g., anorthosites, peridotites, gabbros, diorites, syenites) such as the large deposits of Allard lake (Québec, Canada) or Tellnes (Norway). Sedimentary deposits as heavy mineral sands in South Africa (Richards Bay), Australia, India and Brazil.

The Uses of ILMENITE

Titanium paints and enamel, source of titanium metal, welding rods, titanium alloys, ceramics.

Definition

Iron-black mineral, black to brownish-red streak, submetallic luster, resembles magnetite in appearance but is readily distinguished by feeble magnetic character, d 4.5–5, Mohs hardness 5–6.