MULTIFUNCTIONAL APPLICATION OF GRANITOID ROCKS AND KAOLINS OF THE REPUBLIC OF BELARUS IN THE SILICATE INDUSTRY

Abstract

The paper presens the results of studying the possibility of obtaining various silicate materials – foam glass, glasses, vitrocrystalline materials (petrositals and stone casting) and porous fillers for lightweight concretes based on granitoid rocks, as well as ceramics and refractory materials based on natural and enriched kaolins of the Republic of Belarus are presented.
A significant advantage of granitoid rocks is minor variations in chemical composition due to the substantial averaging with repeated intermediate crushing, whereas the content of oxides of silicon, aluminum, magnesium, iron and alkali allows for
their use as a raw material basis for the production of silicate materials of multi-purpose use. Kaolins possess a unique complex of properties (high whiteness, fire-proofness, dispersity, chemical inertness to acidic and alkaline solutions, mechanical strength in air-dry state), which determines their multi-purpose application not only in the ceramic industry, but also in a number of other industries: such as food, paper, medical, cosmetic, rubber ones, etc. The kaolinic raw material of the Sitnitsa deposit,
the eastern part of which is an overburden of granitoids, is distinguished by the presence of a quartz and feldspar quartz part in the mineral composition.
A set of indicators of the physico-chemical properties of synthesized materials offers a proof not only of the advisability of using granitoid rocks and kaolins as components of raw material compositions, but also of the improvement of ecological enviroment within the areas adjacent to mining and processing enterprises. The proximity of deposits of granitoid and kaolin reserves in the western part of the Mikashevichsko-Zhitkovichsky horst provides access to these resources and minimal costs, when they are jointly transported to the manufacturer.