Linnajavri
Mineral resources
Talc - a filler mineral with a great variety of uses
What is talc?
Talc is a hydrated magnesium sheet silicate mineral. It is soft and thereby non-abrasive, lamellar, organophilic, water repellant and chemically inert. The talc sheets are bound by weak forces allowing separation of the talc flakes giving it the characteristic softness and lubricity. Talc has a large number of uses based on its hardness and being chemically inert. Talc is used as filler in paint, paper, plastics, rubber adhesives, joint compounds, pharmaceuticals, and many other products.
Production and use of talc
The annual world production of talc in 2006 was 8.92 million tons. The production growth has been steadily increasing the last years. China accounts for approximately half of the world production. Most of the production (80 %) comes from talc from deposits related to altered carbonates, while approximately 20 % comes from floated talc from talc carbonate rocks from altered ultramafics. Finland is the main producer in Scandinavia producing approximately half a million tons of floated talc concentrates from soapstone as alteration product from ultramafics in eastern Finland. The talc product from the Finnish mines is used as filler and coating pigment in paper industry.
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The talc deposits at Linnajavri
The Linnajavri soapstone deposits are of the same type as the ones in Finland. The reserves in the Linnajavri area are estimated as large. The mineralogy of the soapstone bodies from the Linnajavri deposits has been studied. The mineral chemistry of the soapstone deposits have been determined by XRF and SEM-analyses, although the number of analyses have to be increased to get a better characterization of the deposits for industrial use. Floatation tests of the soapstone and measuring of whiteness of floated talc from selected deposits have been undertaken, but these data are so far confidential.
The resources of soapstone in the Linnajavri area have a potential for at least many tens of years, probably much more. Further mineralogical studies of the soapstone and flotation tests are necessary to find the economically and practically best quality of the flotation products that can be made from the different deposits. However, the size of the deposits is so large that such studies are fully valid. Compared with the mined Finnish deposits the logistics is not bad concerning distance to harbor, and in the Linnajavri area there is nearly no overburden. However, the elevation is higher with worse weather conditions.
Read more about the soapstone deposits at Linnajavri that are suitable for talc production here.
Discovery and recognition of deposits
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Exploitation in the Linnajavrí area