Nepheline Syenite

Nepheline syenite (silicate, naturally occurring blend of albite, microcline and nepheline) is a feldspatic mineral mined in Canada and Norway.

Nepheline syenite can be characterised by:

• High purity
• Absence free crystalline silica (free of labelling)
• Brightness
• Relatively low refractive index, making it a transparent filler in various binders
• High inertness in various media
• Easy wetting
• Transparency for UV-radiation (ie. suitable for UV-curing processes).

 

Basic properties

Property	Value	Unit
Hardness (Mohs)	6	[-]
Refractive index	1.51 – 1.53	[-]
Density	2.6	[kg/ dm3]

 

 

 

 

Product overview

Product overview Minex

Product	Grade	D50 [µm]	Tappi [-]	OA [g/ 100 g]	pH [-]	Moisture [%]
Minex	2	13.6	85.5	26.5	10.3	0.09
	3	11.0	88.0	27.0	10.3	0.09
	4	7.6	88.7	30.0	10.4	0.10
	7	3.5	90.0	33.0	10.4	0.16
	10	2.6	90.5	35.0	10.5	0.18
	12	1.5	92.0	34	10.5	0.20

Production location Minex

 

 

Product overview Nepheline

Product	Grade	D50 [µm]	R457 [%]	OA [g/ 100 g]	pH [-]	Moisture [%]
Nepheline	S4 PO	9.2	81.5	21	10.1	0.1
	S6 PO	5.1	84.4	22	10.2	0.2
	S7 PO	4.3	85.4	23	10.4	0.2
	S10 PO	1.9	85.6	31	10.4	0.4

 

Production locations Nepheline

 

Application

Nepheline syenite will provide:

 

• Chemical resistance: due to its inert nature, nepheline syenite will provide good chemical resistance compared to conventional fillers.
• Abrasion resistance: due to its hardness of 6 on Mohs scale, nepheline syenite will increase the coating’s resistance to wear.
• UV resistance: being insensitive to UV radiation, nepheline syenite will reduce the coating’s degradation.
• Gloss control: with the availability of ultrafine nepheline syenite (Minex 12, Minex S-10) and a product with an optimised particle size distribution (Minex EP-315), it is possible to apply coatings with a broad range of gloss levels.

 

Advantage over quartz and cristobalite and certain feldspar grades: nepheline syenite grades are free of labelling, and can therefore be used as an alternative when labelled grades of other mineral fillers are no longer allowed or wanted.