Silica ( SiO2) is one of the most abundant minerals on earth's surface but Silica Sand deposits suitable for industrial use are quite rare.
Not only high chemical purity but also many physical properties like roundness of grains, their shape and texture, size distribution and crushing strength are critically important. Silica sand is formed by broken quartz crystals through weathering and disintegration. Transportation by water or wind, many cycles of agglomeration and disintegration, leaching and washing and contaminations give rise to varied types of Silica sand deposits, each with its own unique properties. That is why the source of Silica Sand is critically important for most of its commercial uses, esp for Foundries and for Frac Sands. But no source can consistently provide a commercially viable sand without a suitable Sand processing system. It is here that Qualicy Industries, with its "prospecting to mining to processing to transportation" integration, scores over its competitors.
Source is Critical
For most customers, Silica sand forms a low cost item in the final manufactured product esp in metal casting industry, but small variations in the sand quality results in unforeseen changes in the final product. Hence Silica sand users are very particular about the source and the process; it takes a lot of time and effort to finalize a particular sand and once finalized, the buyers don't change the supplier easily.
Although Qualicy Industries supplies Silica Sand across the whole spectrum of its uses, we specialize in Foundry Sand. Ferrous and Non ferrous casting industries need Silica Sand which not only has high refractoriness ( Fusion Point> 1650 oC), Acid neutrality, chemical inertness and freedom from clay but also semi rounded and smooth grains with specific Grain distribution. Kolayat region in Bikaner District (Rajasthan) is blessed with this type of sand. Geologically, it is of Tertiary formation origin and formed when this area was believed to be under water millions of year ago. It occurs in bands alternating with Ball clay strata over a region greater than 1600 Sq Kms. Although occurring in abundance, selective mining and specialized scrub washing is needed to take care of carbonate and argilliceous impurities to make this sand commercially superior.
Water Filtration and Purification industry is another great market for our Silica sand. Carefully sorted and washed Silica sand grains are used as Filter Media and Kolayat region is a huge mandi for this product. Another big market for our sand is the Pesticide Industry which uses this smooth textured Sand as kernel for their pesticides.
Silica sand also finds a major use as Frac sand/Proppant in the Petroleum Industry. Chemical purity, grain roundness, high crush resistance and other rheological characteristics are critical for Frac Sand. Our Silica sand is very suitable for this use but this market is still in a nascent stage. With further development of the petroleum industry in Rajasthan, this market is set to grow quite substantially.