Potash industry

Potash mineral or brine

Potash mineral or sylvinite contain potassium chloride and sodium chloride
POTASSIUM:
Potassium is one of the three major plant nutrients and as such must
be added to all intensive farming soils as it becomes depleted.
Some potassium-containing minerals such as clay, feldspar, and mica
are found naturally in soils.
The other nutrients become part of the plant structure, but potassium
largely remains as an ion in the cells and sap.
The function of potassium is to help control the plant’s water intake
and metabolism.
 POTASSIUM CHLORIDE
Potassium chloride (KCl) is a metal halide salt composed of
potassium and chlorine.
It is odorless and has a white or colorless vitreous crystal
appearance, with a crystal structure that cleaves easily in three
directions
"Muriate of potash" is name which is occasionally association with
its use as a fertilizer containing 60% plant food as K2O.
Manufacture
Potassium chloride is obtained by following methods
1. Leaching process
2. Flotation process
USES
As a fertilizer

Used as a salt replacer in foods, for recovery of potassium in the human body,

Used in various pharmaceutical preparations to correct potassium deficiency.

It used as a substitute for table salt in the diet of people with cardiovascular disorders, in
administration of the potassium ion, and as a constituent of Ringer's solution.
Leaching process:
The solubility of potassium chloride and sodium chloride increases as the temperature
increases. Individually both are much more soluble in hot water than in cold water.
•But in solutions saturated with both sodium and potassium chloride, the concentration of
NaCl diminishes as temperature rises, while the concentration of potassium chloride increases.

•These solubility characteristics are used to extract potassium chloride from sylvinite. Crushed
ore is mixed with sufficient quantity of recycle brine which is already saturated with NaCl and
heated almost to hilling to dissolve KCl.

The KCl rich brine on clarification and then cooling by vacuum evaporation produces KCl
crystals which are centrifuged, washed, dried and packed. The filtrate (brine) is recycled for
leaching more ore.
l Flotation process:
lExtraction of potassium chloride is much cheaper than leaching
process hence is used more extensively in the industry.
lThe ore is crushed to +10 mesh size then washed to remove clay

slimes.
lTo render it inert to amines, washed crushed ore is treated first with

starch and then with an amine acetate which selectively coats KCl
particles.
lAir is then bubbled through the slurry. The air bubbles attach

themselves to the coated particles and float them to the surface while
the uncoated particles sink.The floated KCl is centrifuged, dried and
packed.
 POTASSIUM SULFATE

Potassium sulfate (K2SO4) also called sulfate of potash, arcanite, it is a non-

flammable white crystalline salt which is soluble in water. The chemical is
commonly used in fertilizers, providing both potassium and sulfur.
Potassium sulfate contains 48 to 54% potassium (as K2O) and supplies 17-20
% of sulfate.
Potassium sulfate is the second largest tonnage of potassium compound and is
primarily used as a fertilizer.
Potassium sulfate can be made either by the
1.Mannheim process where potassium chloride is reacted with sulfuric acid, or
2. Made from natural complex salts like kainite or langbeinite.
MANUFACTURE
Potassium sulfate can be manufacture by two processes
1. Mannheim process
2. Recovery from natural complex salts

1. Mannheim process
Raw materials
Potassium chloride
Sulfuric acid

Reaction
KCl + H2SO4 KHSO4 + HCl
KHSO4 + KCl K2SO4 + HCl
The Mannheim process was originally developed for sodium sulfate
production. For making potassium sulfate, sodium chloride is
replaced with potassium chloride.
Potassium chloride reacts with sulfuric acid during the slow mixing
of the ingredients in the gas heated Mannheim furnace consisting of
cast iron muffle with rotating plough which helps to agitate the
mixture.
Hydrochloric acid produce during the reaction is cooled and
absorbed into water to produce 33% hydrochloric acid as a
byproduct.
The precipitated potassium sulfate fertilizer is cooled, filtered and
the lumps are crushed and granulated.
Potassium sulfate is twice as costly as potassium chloride.
Granulation adds further to its cost. Potassium sulfate contains over
50% potassium (as K2O) and less than 1 % chlorine.
Recovery from natural complex salts
Potassium sulfate occurs naturally as complex salts. The basic reactions
leading to potassium sulfate from kainite are by transformation of kainite to
schoenite followed by water leaching.

Natural resources
The mineral form of potassium sulfate, arcanite, is relatively rare. Natural
resources of potassium sulfate are minerals abundant in the Stassfurt salt. These are co
crystallizations of potassium sulfate and sulfates of magnesium calcium and sodium.

The minerals of potassium sulfate are

Kainite, MgSO4·KCl·H2O
Schönite, K2SO4·MgSO4·6H2O
Leonite, K2SO4·MgSO4·4H2O
Langbeinite, K2SO4·2MgSO4
Glaserite, K3Na(SO4)2
Polyhalite, K2SO4·MgSO4·2CaSO4·2H2O
USES
Potassium sulfate is used as fertilizer particularly in chloride sensitive
crops like tobacco, grapes and potato which require chloride free
potassium fertilizers. These three crops, being major crops, account for
about 7% of the total potash consumption. For best results, potassium
sulfate should contain at least 50 % potash by weight.

 Used as a flash reducer in artillery propellant charges.

 It reduces muzzle flash, flareback and blast overpressure
 The crude salt is also used in the manufacture of glass.