Quartz sand has a wide range of uses and is one of the important raw materials for glass production, ceramics, and refractory porcelain. Due to its high silicon content, it plays an important role in the aerospace, electronics, machinery, and IT industries. Quartz stone is a raw ore mined from the mountain, mixed with much soil. A large amount of fine powder will be produced in the process of quartz sand making, which will affect the purity of the finished quartz sand and cause economic losses. Therefore, ore washing is required during the production process. To obtain quartz sand with relatively high purity and fewer impurities, it is first necessary to use a washing equipment method to remove impurities on the surface of the raw sand and purify it, which can pave the way for subsequent mineral processing.
What is quartz sand
Quartz sand, also known as silica sand, is a non-metallic mineral composed of quartz. Due to its unique physical and chemical properties, it is widely used in many industries, such as construction, glass, ceramic, and foundry. It is also one of calcium silicate products’ most important raw materials. One thing in common in these fields is that the demand for quartz sand is large, and the quality requirements of raw materials are low. However, high-end quartz sand also plays a vital role in electronic information, optical fiber, photovoltaic, and other industries, in the defense industry, aerospace, and other fields.
However, the majority of quartz sand requires beneficiation or purification to elevate its quality to meet the stringent demands of industrial applications. This process is crucial as it ensures that high-quality quartz sand, with its unique physical and chemical properties, can effectively serve the needs of various industries.
Why is quartz sand washed?
Quartz sand purification mainly adopts washing, magnetic separation, flotation, or acid leaching. However, water washing is the first link in quartz sand beneficiation, which can determine one of the important guarantees of later quality. This method effectively removes surface coverings, clay particles, and fine impurities. Usually, the quartz raw materials used for ultra-white glass have very strict requirements on iron content, so it is necessary to remove iron impurities in quartz sand. Therefore, after the sand is cleaned by washing equipment, the quartz powder product removes sticky mud or film iron impurities, improves the crushing and grinding efficiency, and can increase the whiteness by more than 20%. In the later stage, magnetic separation, electrostatic separation, flotation, and other methods are added for further classification. After removing specific impurities, refined quartz sand can be obtained.
Quartz sand washing equipment
Spiral sand washing machine
Spiral sand washing machine is mainly used for high-efficiency cleaning of fine and coarse particles. It is commonly used for washing and impurity removal in highways, hydropower, sand making, and aggregate plants. It has single and double spiral designs, and the length can also be customized according to the requirements of the on-site test machine. The spiral device in the equipment adds water to the quartz sand and stirs it. During the continuous stirring process, the thin film iron on the surface of the quartz sand is taken away by the water, thereby achieving the effect of cleaning and screening. This spiral sand washer has strong wear resistance, high cleanliness, a long spiral body, and a good sealing system. It is widely used in the sand and gravel mining industry.
Trommel scrubber
When the original ore contains a large amount of mud, mostly sticky clay, it is difficult for ordinary ore washing machines to effectively and fully disperse the clay, resulting in complicated ore dressing processes and increased costs. However, the trommel scrubber has a large feed size and a large processing capacity, which is very suitable for washing large stones. Desludging quartz stone is the best choice. The main function is to roll and stir materials of different coarseness and water together, effectively releasing useful quartz sand from muddy soil and clay. The trommel scrubber has a high degree of sand and gravel cleaning and strong desludging ability. The washer has been widely used in many sand and gravel production lines. It can perform cleaning and screening processes at the same time without clogging, which can improve subsequent mineral processing indicators.
Attrition scrubbing machine
This quartz sand scrubbing machine is commonly used in the washing process of silica sand and quartz sand. The rotation of the impeller drives the slurry to rotate, effectively dispersing the ore mud and removing surface impurities. It mainly removes the film iron, bonding, and muddy impurity deposits on the surface of the quartz sand through stirring, scrubbing, and flushing. It then further purifies the silica sand through classification operations. High-efficiency scrubbing and strong stirring force can fully ensure the purity and quality of quartz sand. This attrition scrubbing machine occupies a small area, has a unique design structure, and has an excellent cleaning effect.
In addition, wheel sand washing machines, trommel screens, trough washing machines(log washers), etc., can be used in quartz sand washing plants. Among them, attrition scrubbers are slightly more practical and specially designed for quartz sand and silica sand washing. Our quartz sand washing equipment has less loss of fine sand and stone powder during operation, has a high degree of cleaning of sand and gravel, strong coordination, and a wide range of uses. JXSC will formulate specific quartz sand washing plants and equipment based on your sand and gravel conditions. Contact us for more details!