Soapstone/Talc

Silverstone is a division of FAKT Exhibitions Pvt (Ltd) has been engaged with the Mineral Industry for the most recent decade. Utilizing the absolute best geologists and researchers of Pakistan. SilverStone is credited for certain amazing disclosures one of them being "Powder". Powder is a stone that is mined from open-pit and underground stores. Since it is a characteristic item, powder is constantly found in mix with at least one other mineral whose extent relies upon its geographical beginning. Artificially unadulterated powder has never been found in nature in business amounts. Essentially the entirety of the powder items offered are unclean. The most well-known host for powder metal bodies is dolomite and ultramafic rocks. Shading varieties range from snow-white to dark, including greenish dim and different shades of green, pink and even red.

Soapstone/Talc in Pakistan:

Abbotabad & Mansehra Region:

This district alongside adjoining zone was exposed to mountain-working in Early Cambrian occasions over 500 million years prior and granitization occurred over huge territories of the request for a great many Square Kilometers Apart from the significant final result rock various middle items were additionally produced in fringe zones viz.

  • Iron metal and Manganese metal stores.
  • Carbonatite stores in Swat and Malakand.
  • Fluorite stores and Fluorite rock in Malakand.
  • Nepheline Syenite and Sodalite Syenite in Swat.
  • Wolfram minerals in Mansehra.
  • Soapstone and Talc stores in Abbotabad.

Magnesium-loaded transmissions from rocks being granitized, changed the lime stones to Soapstone or Talc as a reaction to natural conditions, virtue of the radiations and limestones, defenselessness to transformation, temperature and pressing factor conditions, length of transformative scene and so forth and so on

Our mines & enviroment

Pakistan is host to probably the best Talc stores on the planet, which are presently being delivered by SilverStone . With our own mines, each displaying an exceptional and assorted quality SilverStone have now made an efficient and very much characterized Mining Schedule and system to design and figure out various evaluations of metals. Every mineral example is then painstakingly chose and investigated nearby, regarding their Chemical and Physical properties and afterward reviewed at our principle Laboratory in Karachi. Since Pakistan has no open pit mines the extremely white powder must be gotten from somewhere inside the mines and we place a ton of premium on our white items. SilverStone stockroom is arranged in the most delightful and rich green valleys of the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) very nearly 1600 km North East of Karachi and all undertakings are made to earth ensure this region. Trees are not permitted to be cut. Extraordinary consideration is taken to guarantee that New Mine heads are not arranged in and close to thick foliage further trees are being planted and a Master plan with this impact is as of now set up to improve the biological equilibrium and agreement of the region. Extraordinary consideration is taken at our mines to guarantee that Child work isn't permitted and is completely prohibited.

Quality control

We pride ourselves in establishing the first modern laboratory with state of the art equipment totally dedicated to monitoring strict quality control of our products at each step from the small mines of NWFP to the vast markets of the world. Not an ounce of talc leaves our premises until it has been tested, retested and analyzed for the chemical and physical characteristics that have been promised to our costumers. Our R&D team can also undertake production of various grades of powder to suit individual customer needs. You tell us what you want or we can advise you on what will best assist your particular product.

Packing

Great emphasis is laid on the right packaging weights that our finished products carry. Imported Kraft paper is used to make paper bags for TALC. The products are available from 10kg weights in a paper sack to up to 1-ton PP jumbo bags. Shrink-wrapping & palletization is all done in house at the packaging stations. Special packing or bulk supplies are also catered to if required.

Whiteness

The lustrous white talc extracted from our mines like pearls from a shell are one of the whitest & purest talc known to man or available any where on the face of this earth, which has won many a laurel for being the whitest talc in the world. These Talc bodies carry very little impurities they are Asbestos Free and exhibit a very platy lamellar character making it a “LITTLE WHITE MIRACLE” which we are proud to process for our customers all over the world.

Areas of Usage:

Paints

Some of the important properties of Talc used in paint are color, fineness of grind, oil absorption, chemical inertness and resulting viscosity. Talc helps to impart integrity, reinforce paint films control viscosity and prevent sagging of paint films. It improves suspension and prevents settling of solids at the bottom of the paint container. Because talc is very soft (1 on MOHS hardness scale), it causes only minimal abrasion to process and application equipment. It disperses readily in both aqueous and solvent-based paints. Talc having a surface area greater then 12 m2/g is used for gloss control when an exact degree of Sheen or luster is required. SilverStone has the ability to fulfill all major criterions for the paint industry. Our experts from Pakistan & abroad can assist you in delivering custom made talc for all your production needs. SilverStone exhibits following characteristics.

  • Whiteness
  • Platy Particle shape
  • Low oil absorption
  • Opacifying power
  • Fine particle size

CERAMICS

A major consumer of Industrial minerals, the Ceramic industry (especially Asia) uses Talc for “body” and glazing of: Wall tiles, Sanitary Ware, Electrical Insulating (Steatite Talc) Porcelain Dinner Ware. The talc used is generally of 80 ~ 93% whiteness and 200 – 300 mesh. The formation of enstatite as talc disassociates during firing produces high thermal expansion bodies, which results in glazes being put into compression and thereby minimizes crazing. Low moisture expansion bodies are produced, which results in good resistance to delayed crazing. The massive nature of the talc aids in dry pressing and in preparation of good casting slips. Low firing temperatures are possible. The shrinkage and absorption properties of bodies are fairly constant over a wide temperature range. Good white fire bodies are possible. Glazes of unusual brilliance and attractiveness can be fitted readily to high-talc bodies. Talc is also used in steatite bodies, which are manufactured into high-frequency electric insulators, a segment of the ceramic white wares market. A minor use of talc is as an additive in dinnerware bodies composed of clay, flint and feldspar. Compromising as much as 6% of such bodies, These Ceramic provides greatly improved craze resistance. these ceramic exhibits the following characteristics.

  • Uniform Chemical composition.
  • Constant amount of shrinkage on firing.
  • Fired color.
  • Particle size distribution.

PLASTICS & COMPOUNDING

Talc is an important functional filler for compounded thermo-plastic and thermoset polymers. Because of its platy particle shape & purity is used in plastic primarily as reinforcing filler. It increases the stiffness of polypropylene by 80% at a 20% loading and by 150% at a 40% loading. It also increases the heat resistance of polypropylene, reduces mold shrinkage, improves melt rheology, and reduces molding cycle time. Compared to other reinforcing fillers, such as fiberglass, mica, talc is much less abrasive. It gives polypropylene superior low-temperature shock resistivity. In polyethylene film talc is used as an anti-block agent, an additive that roughens the surface of tacky film to prevent it from adhering to itself. Loading levels range from 0.5 to 1.0%. In vinyl talc is used to improve the hot strength of profile extrusions and to reduce the shrinkage of floor tile. Fine particle size grades are used as nucleating agents for semi-crystalline polyolefins, nylon, polyesters, and chlorinated polyethylene. Talc can be used in polyolefins at loading levels ranging from 1 to 50% by weight. Talc particles may be described as a series of very small plate-shaped particles which, when aligned, tend to make possible a finished part with improved physical properties. The nature of the particle size & shape will tend to produce slip or a form of lubricity. It is some what difficult to disperse in conventional plastic mixing equipment due to overall tendency for more bulking. The material is less sensitive to pH changes; therefore, it can be used in applications where minor acidity is a problem. Talc, as filler for plastics, has some special applications. Generally, it is used not as the sole filler in molding formulae but in combination with other filler materials. It facilitates removal from molds, helps achieve a better sheen or gloss on parts, and lowers the extrusions die wear through its lubricating effect. It is also an effective anti-blocking agent. Talc promotes better fire retardancy and aids in processing and final application of various plastic sealants and mastics. It is also useful as an aid in certain color applications, as filler for parts in contact with acids, and as a viscosity modifier to accomplish some improvement of overall finished product physical properties. This plastic exhibits following characteristics:

  • Platy particle shape.
  • Whiteness.
  • Chemical inertness
  • Low iron content
  • Electrical resistivity
  • Super fine particle size
  • Low abrasion
  • Powder bulk density

PAPER

One of the major consumers of talc is the paper industry (especially Europe & Japan.) As paper filler talc has a minimal negative effect on sheet strength but improves ink receptivity. It also reduces gloss but enhances opacity & brightness. The main reason for the growth of talc consumption in paper is the availability of high quality micronized talc. When Talc is used as a Titanium dioxide extender in paper it has a distinct weight advantage, a specific gravity of 2.8 vs. 4.2 for TiO2. This advantage becomes more important as postal rates increase. The unique property of preferentially wetting oily substances in the presence of water makes talc extremely effective in pitch control. Pitch & other oleo resinous components of paper pulps cause serious manufacturing problems if they are not controlled. Talc micronized to a surface area of 12m2/g or more, absorbs the pitch and helps prevent accumulations that would otherwise deposit on the rolls, wire, and other parts of the paper machine. The talc products can be used to pigment latex, starch, or alpha protein coating colors. Ultra fine talc products can be used with clay, calcium carbonate, and titanium dioxide pigments to control rheological properties, calendaring, gloss, ink holdout, opacity & brightness. These paper exhibits the following characteristics.

  • Paper filler :
    • Whiteness
    • Brightness
    • Controlled top size
    • Platy particle shape
    • Opacifying power
    • Low abrasion
    • Particle size (8 to 12m median)
  • Pitch Control :
    • Surface Area
    • Whiteness
    • Brightness
    • Low Abrasion
    • Particle size
    • Good dispersion without surfactants

COSMETICS

This product has been formulated by SilverStone with high purity talc’s after careful sorting and hand picking. In cosmetic industry. it is used in baby and body powders, facial products, anti-perspirant sticks and various types of creams and lotions. The quality of talc that can be used in cosmetic application has following characteristics.

  • Quartz Content (1% maximum, may be lowered to 0.1% maximum)
  • Tremolite Content (0.1 maximum)
  • Loss on Ignition (6.0% maximum at 10000C)
  • Neutral pH.
  • Acid soluble substances (2% maximum)
  • Water soluble substances (1% maximum)
  • Arsenic Content (3ppm maximum)
  • Lead Content (20ppm maximum)
  • Odor, slip, lubricity, particle size, and whiteness according to costumer specification.

Different grades are as follows:

PHARMACEUTICAL

Talc has been in very great demand by the Pharma industry due to its purity, thermal and chemical inertness. Multinational companies like Roche, Glaxo Smith Kline, and Merck Marker have been using this since it was introduced.

FILLERS & COATINGS

Textile sizings are made up of a binder, starch, glue, or synthetic polymer together with mineral powders referred to as weight-adding agents. Finishing agents are employed to improve web impregnation, appearance, dye receptivity, to provide temporary sizing, and to add weight.

OTHER USES

  • Dry Fire extinguishing powder.
  • Cereal polishing.
  • Bleaching agent.
  • Floor Wax.
  • Water filtration.
  • Leather treatment.
  • Shoe polish.
  • Welding rod coating.
  • Printing Ink.
  • Casting for Iron ore in the direct reduction process.
  • Asphalt.
  • Jointing Compounds.
  • Confectioneries.
  • Foam / Rubber.
  • Putties.
  • Chewing Gum.
  • Animal Feed.
  • Lubricants.
  • Soaps Manufacturing.