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Metakaolin Opacifier
Product Snapshot
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Product description
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A high brightness (77/100 raw, >93/100 calcined) kaolin, with 50% of particles finer than 2 μm, low alkalis (K2O ~0.72%, Na2O ~0.10%), low iron content (~0.34% after magnetic separation, potentially lower with bacterial beneficiation), low titanium (~0.26%), high alumina (~35.1%), and a well ordered, crystalline structure.
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Product uses
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Metakaolin plays an important role in paper manufacture as a paper coating, used to reduce strikethrough (the ability to see printing on the reverse side) in thin paper, thus allowing the use of thinner paper.
Also used as an opacifier in paint to achieve the same effect.
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Annual market demand
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Domestic: 14,500 tpa (mostly papermaking).
International: >2.5 million tpa.
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Current domestic sources
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None.
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Sale price, ex-bin
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600.00 - 800.00 (AUD/t)
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Sales tagets (tpa)
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Year 1
0
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Year 2
1,000
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Year 3
2,200
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Year 4
3,850
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Year 5
6,650
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Year 6
11,500
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Market proportion
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Domestic: 79.3% at full production.
International: None initially, but suitable for export to NZ paper industry and also into Asia.
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