# Recovering Zircon, Ti and Re from beach sand



## kjavanb123 (Nov 22, 2009)

Hi all,

I have heard something about recoverying heavy minerals such as Rutile, Redium, and Zircon from beach sand in Australia, China and some other countries, any ideas how the sampling for such heavy minerals takes place? I know using gravity separation circuit you can remove the heavy minerals that are liberated in the beach sand. just don't know where to take samples in the beach. 

Thanks
Kev


----------



## 4metals (Nov 22, 2009)

If the elements you are looking for are amenable to gravity concentration then you can look for help from mother nature. Beaches are made up of sand which comes from somewhere else and was deposited on the beach by natural processes. On Long Island NY we have nice sand beaches, the sand is mostly quartz sand but it has some garnet in it. After a storm or if you can find a spot where the waters that move the sands slow down they drop the heaviest sands first. That's why we see streaks of red garnet sand deposited in the white quartz beach sand. The same mechanism will work with the elements you seek to locate. 

Check areas where a natural eddy current exists and you may see it on the surface, that is if it appears different than regular sand. Do you know a quick test to determine what you have? It is possible that during a mega storm in years gone by a large deposit was laid down, but if that is the case you would be finding indicators, like the streaks of red garnet on Long Island, telling you it exists near the surface in the location you are working. 

The guys who work river for placer gold would give you some good hints as to where to look.


----------



## g_axelsson (Nov 22, 2009)

To locate zircon you could use UV-light, zircon have very strong fluorescence in yellow or orange.


----------



## Juan Manuel Arcos Frank (Nov 22, 2009)

INDEED!!!!!!!!...There is gold in beach sand but this is not due to Nature...that gold comes from Humanity,vain men and women that used to wear their nice gold jewelry and when they get into the action...well...the gold goes into the beach sand and all you need is to get a metal detector and find it

Another gainful acivity is to make a deal with motel´s clerks...these guys get a huge treasure with gold earrings forgotten in nightstands or the floor.I am sure that no one women would claim for her earrings.

Gold just in computers?...no way...gold is everywhere.

Regards

Manuel


----------



## kjavanb123 (Nov 25, 2009)

Thanks all for your tips. Still not sure where to pick the samples in the beach, is it where waves lose their energy and drop to the beach? or is it in the shallow water sand? Chinese and Australian use gravity circuit to recover most of the Zircon minerals from sand and recycle the remaining sand and water back to the sea, it seems like an enviromentally friendly process.


----------



## 4metals (Nov 25, 2009)

Unless you're a clam!


----------



## butcher (Nov 26, 2009)

Here is my idea on this, I would look cracks in bed rock ,behind boulders beach side, wave coming in fast carrying sand, slows behind bolder's dropping heavy, similar to sluice.
or places were fast current will slow, in rivers where fast water after white water, on inside bend the water is slower heavys settle (outside bend water is cutting at bank), heavy materil will work its way to bottom of lighter materials, get to bedrock .
heavier material is harder to move than lighter material's in current of water. just like panning for gold, and will always work their way to the bottom.
as 4Metals suggest wave action should accumulate heavier material in sand into veins, fast waves constantly washing everything in, and slower return wave pulling back lighter material back towards ocean,
most sand came from rock in some mountain, maybe far up a river, and then far up some creek, and far up some small stream then up on the side of that mountain, may be the source rock that was washed and rolled down towards the ocean in snow melts, rains and flood through the years to get to the ocean jaggad rocks rolling into round boulders some fractuering and constant rolling to smaller siize on there way down rivers rocks turning into pebbles and sand and silts , this sand may also travel around some in the ocean, so the sand at the beach with a river a half mile up the coast may have come from that river, or even many many more miles for some river way far off.
as 4metal says look for sighns, black sand is a good indicator of heavy's, or conglomerate in old ancient river beds (may not have been water in some of these rivers since the dinasor drank from it.

some thing I noticed while typing this if you captilize 4metals name you get $metals :lol:


----------



## EVO-AU (Nov 30, 2009)

To One and All: Now I am rather curious. Why all the huff on finding Zircon ? Is this mineral valuable ? What can I do with it ? There is a Zircon mine ( open pit ) not far from my place. Shoud I get interested ?

Phill


----------



## EVO-AU (Dec 11, 2009)

To ONe and All: On Dec. 1st I asked about why all the furor about zircon . No one has answered about this intriguing subject. Not of any value after all, HUH ? 

Anybody ????? Phill


----------



## 4metals (Dec 11, 2009)

Frank Zappa used to think there was value in his zircon encrusted tweezer!


----------



## g_axelsson (Dec 11, 2009)

EVO-AU said:


> To One and All: Now I am rather curious. Why all the huff on finding Zircon ? Is this mineral valuable ? What can I do with it ? There is a Zircon mine ( open pit ) not far from my place. Shoud I get interested ?
> 
> Phill



It would be valuable in larger deposits but nothing worth collecting for the hobby refiner.

From the article on wikipedia you find that
"From 2003 to 2007, zircon prices have steadily increased from $360 to $840 per metric ton."
That's even lower than today's price of aluminium. And even though I haven't found any up to date prices of zirconium it shouldn't be that far from the older prices.

I like zirconium in the form of mineral samples... this is a nice 2 cm dark red crystal of zircon on black biotite that I have in my rock collection.






/Göran


----------



## EVO-AU (Dec 14, 2009)

4 metals: Who is Frank Zappa ( not the musician ) and why the zircon - tipped tweezers ? Does sound interesting ! Phill


----------



## 4metals (Dec 14, 2009)

Frank Zappa from "Dinah-Moe Humm" on Over-Nite Sensation ("D'you think I could interest you in a pair of zircon-encrusted tweezers?" Just something that comes to mind when I hear the word Zircon.


----------



## EVO-AU (Dec 15, 2009)

4metals: Knowledge comes in many forms. Thanks. Phill


----------



## EVO-AU (Dec 16, 2009)

4metals ( or is it $metals ): Hey man, overnite sensation is hardstyle hsk stuff !!!!!! Are you into the beat ???? Phill


----------



## 4metals (Dec 16, 2009)

Apparently not!


----------



## EVO-AU (Dec 17, 2009)

4metals: A friend was down under digging for opals and turned me on to the melbourne shuffle groups. My feet move to any kind of beat and that took the mothballs out me. Punch in hsk shuffle and get renovated. Sure moves the blood. Especially after wading around these cold mountain streams. Found a diamond the other day. Wan't sure, so took it to a mineral hunter up the line. He is going to cut and shape and see what comes. He said that I shouldn't get my hopes up, but the finished piece should look good glued to Hotai's belly. What do you know about opals ? Later, gater - Phill


----------



## DNIndustry (Feb 17, 2010)

I have beeb collecting and designing a reactor for refining these materials using iodine , heat, and electricity. Called the van arkel process.


----------



## Irons (Feb 18, 2010)

Here's another valuable placer sand which will be even more valuable when China begins to cut back their rare earth exports.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monazite


----------

