Indium minerals
Class: Non-Ferrous Metals
Group: Rare Metals
Subgroup: Rare Refractory Metals
Metal: Indium
Indium is contained in the following own mineral:
Native indium (3 in 3 countries)
Yanomamite (1 in Brazil, 1 in Portugal)
Cadmoindite (1 in Czech Republic, 1 in RF)
Laforetite (1 in France, 1 in Japan)
Yixunite (2 in China)
Abramovite (1 in RF)
Petrukite (13 in 8 countres)
Damiaoite (1 in China)
CLASSIFICATION OF OWN INDIUM MINERALS
NATIVES: Native indium, Damiaoite, Yixunite
SULFIDES: Indite Cadmoindite, Roquesite, Laforetite, Sakuraiite, Abramovite, Petrukite
HYDROXIDES: Dzhalindite
PHOSPHATES, ARSENATES, VANADATES: Yanomamite
Indium is contained in the following mineral too:
Kudriavite
Cassiterite
Cylindrite
Sphalerite
Chalcopyrite
Stannite
Franckeite
Bornite
Galena
Tetrahedrite
Covellite
Galena
Enargita
Chalcocite
Pyrite
Arsenopyrite
Wolframite
Pyrrhotite
The main producers are: China, Canada, USA (South Korea, Japan)
Indium is used as a dopant to the semiconductor silicon or germanium. It is used as a sealing material in space technology and vacuum devices, as well as a connector of piezoelectric crystals.
India finds its application in temperature limiter and signaling devices, fuses and radiation contours of nuclear reactors. It is used as a solder, is applied to the bearing surfaces, reflectors and mirrors, indium also may be a component of low-melting alloys.
CLASSIFICATION OF MINERALS CONTAINING INDIUM:
METALS and INTERMETALLIC ALLOYS (NATIVES ): Native indium, Damiaoite, Yixunite
SULFIDES: Indite, Cadmoindite, Roquesite, Laforetite, Sakuraiite, Abramovite, Petrukite, Kudriavite, Cylindrite, Sphalerite, Chalcopyrite, Stannite, Franckeite, Bornite, Tetrahedrite, Covellite, Galena, Enargita, Chalcocite, Pyrite, Arsenopyrite, Pyrrhotite
OXIDES: Cassiterite, Wolframite
HIDROXIDES: Dzhalindite
PHOSPHATES, ARSENATES, VANADATES: Yanomamite
SELECTION OF METHODS FOR SEPARATING OF INDIUM MINERALS
During the processing of minerals containing indium, plants use the following types of separation:
Indium is extracted as a byproduct from the following slag:
Lead-zinc ore (~75 %)
Tin ore (~10-15 %)
Polymetallic ore
Copper ore
Indium is considered to be trace rare minerals, so called the rare items that do not have the ability to concentrate in the earth's crust. They do not form their own fields, and raw materials are extracted from the processing of ores or other elements. The industrial value has an ore containing more than 0.1% indium.
References
Ph.D. Natalia Petrovskaya. Fundamentals of the theory of flotation, 2007
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjiP5Q6g_aM
http://www.ngpedia.ru/id156992p1.html
http://all-best-tips.com/38316-which-chemical-elements-include-indium.html
https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%98%D0%BD%D0%B4%D0%B8%D0%B9
http://gold-silver.com.ua/valuable_metals/indium.html
http://www.krugosvet.ru/enc/nauka_i_tehnika/himiya/INDI.html
https://books.google.cl/books?id=Fl4yBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA15&lpg=PA15&dq=indium+mineral+group&source=bl&ots=InPeWYd7AZ&sig=vaixeyOfxzIluAixeCGXuPGi8gQ&hl=ru&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjH4rT08ZDVAhXCfpAKHaLwBWwQ6AEITDAF#v=onepage&q=indium%20mineral%20group&f=false
https://www.mindat.org/min-29261.html
© Ph.D. Natalia Petrovskaya
October 22, 2016
nataliapetrovsky@gmail.com