Antimony mine production

U.S. imports by class and country, 3 49t world mine production, reserves, and reserve base, 3 42t Antimony (III) acetate, 3 65 Antimony alloys, 3 41-56 compositional ranges, 3 52t process metallurgy, 3 44-47 selenium and metallurgy of, 22 98 uses of, 3 51-54... 

World production of antimony is about 68,000 tons per year. Table 6 shows world mine production by main countries . China, Bolivia, Mexico, the Republic of South Africa and the USSR accounted for 84% of the total world estimated mine production during 1989. 

TABLE 6. World mine production of antimony by country (metric tons (revised from Reference 70)... 

Montana. These deposits consist of stibnite and other sulfide minerals containing base metals and silver or gold. Ores of the complex deposits are mined primarily for lead, copper, 2inc, or precious metals antimony is a by-product of the treatment of these ores. 

It is very difficult to know positively whether the Arabians refer here to metallic antimony or not. Stimmi with ancient and medieval writers generally means the native sulphide, yet that they used metallic antimony, but generally confused it with lead, is also certain. Yet classifying the sulphide of antimony here among the metals seems to be hardly reasonable. In this connection, however, it should be remembered that the word for metals originally meant the mines themselves, and later was used to represent the products of the mines and that at no time with the ancient or medieval writers was there any recognition of the existence of metals as elementary substances, nor were they fundamentally distinguished from other minerals. 

The pre-1991 research involving microbial oxidation of 29 sulfide minerals of iron, copper, arsenic, antimony, gallium, zinc, lead, nickel, and mercury was compiled by Nordstrom and Southam (1997). The importance of microbially mediated sulfide oxidation has been recognized for several decades (Nordstrom and Southam, 1997). Bacteria catalyze the oxidative dissolution of sulfide minerals, increasing the production of acidity in mine wastes. In the absence of bacteria, the rate of sulfide oxidation stabilizes as the pH decreases below 3.5 (Singer and Stumm, 1970). 

The environmental distribution of antimony is wide, and it has been estimated that the atmospheric distribution resulting from man s activities (fossil fuels, mining, etc.) is greater than from natural sources. Most of the forms are simple inorganics in the form of oxides and oxoanions. Although some methylantimony species are found, their mode of production is not clear and attempts to demonstrate biological methylation have been inconclusive. 

Relatively little is known about antimony in the marine environment. It may require a closer look if an input from mining or flame retardant production was anticipated. Water in Osaka Bay contained antimony at 0.15 pg/1, with one sample as high as 0.8 pg/1. Higher concentrations were reported for fresh and rain water [86]. Since, historically, many major pollution problems started in Japan (Minamata - mercury, itai-itai - cadmium, yusho - PCBs), these findings may well be an advance notice to initiate a survey of antimony in the marine environment. 

The market for antimony oxides is dependant on PVC and brominated FRs, since the trioxide works as a synergist with halogens, whether in the polymer itself or as an additive. Raw materials are a key cost at around 80% of the product. Bolivia and Guatemala have closed their antimony ore mines due to low prices and China is now the leading source of antimony ore. 

Antimony and its compounds are listed among the most toxic elements of priority pollutants by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Antimony exists in several industrial and mining wastes, such as chemical and allied products, glass products, electrical and electronic equipment, lead acid storage batteries, and copper electrorefining solutions. 

A low viscosity, preaccelerated, thixotropic flame retardant polyester (ASTM E-84 <25 without antimony trioxide) offering excellent wet-out and low drainage for the hand-lay, spray/projection deposition and filament winding for products required by the transportation, electrical, mining and building-construction industries. 

The world production of antimony in mines (counted as Sb) was 150000 tonnes in 2001, of which Ghina produced 135000 tonnes or 90%, Russia and South Africa... 

Of those elements that can combine to form solders, several have limitations that restrict their practical implementation for solder use (see Table 45.2). Gallium, gold, indium, platinum, and palladium cannot be mined or refined in sufficient quantity to satisfy the needs of the electronics industry and are prohibitively expensive, blocking their consideration as a major constituent of a worldwide solder supply. The Bismuth (Bi) supply, a by-product of lead refining, would be marginally sufficient. Mercury and antimony are too toxic. Both mercury and Pb are already on the EU s RoHS list of restricted materials. Galhum and mercury possess too low a melting point to be used on their own. This leaves five metals for practical solder alloy consideration bismuth (Bi), copper (Cu), silver (Ag), tin (Sn), and zinc (Zn). Due to... 

Stibnite (SbjSj) is the most important ore for mining antimony. Another less important antimony ore is stibiconite (Sb Sbj O iOH)). Three-fourths of the world s production of antimony comes from China. The remaining one-fourth comes from Russia, South Africa, Tajikistan, and Bolivia. Even though there are still mineral deposits of antimony ore in Montana, Idaho, and Nevada, no direct mining operations for antimony are currently underway in the United States. However, some antimony is produced as a byproduct from copper and silver mining in the United States. 

As indicated in the Product Assessment Matrix (Table 5), an environmental assessment of mining metal must consider the energy consumption and the solid, liquid and gaseous residues that result from the various mining processes. Availability of the metals is an additional consideration. Table 6 lists the world reserves of the major metals typically utilized in electronic assemblies. Sn-Ag-Cu alloy is one of the major compositions proposed as a replacement for Sn-Pb solder. Silver is 300 times less available than lead. Half of the silver available comes as a by-product from mining lead, copper and zinc. Antimony and bismuth are also obtained as by-products of lead, copper and silver mining. 

---