Titanium Dioxide

Ilmenite is a mineral that is primarily used to make synthetic TiO₂. As naturally occurring TiO₂, rutile and anatase are also widely distributed. For example, rutile is a “heavy mineral” in beach sand. Another ore is leucoxene, a fine-grained anatase created by ilmenite’s natural alteration. Titanium dioxide can also be obtained through two other processes:

• Chloride process: The ore is treated with chlorine and carbon in the chloride process, resulting in titanium tetrachloride, a volatile liquid that is further purified through distillation. In order to regenerate chlorine and create titanium dioxide, TiCl₄ is treated with oxygen.
• Sulfate process: Ilmenite is subjected to sulfuric acid treatment in the sulphate process in order to extract iron(II) sulphate pentahydrate. The resulting synthetic rutile is then subjected to additional processing in accordance with the requirements of the end user, such as pigment grade or not.

Titanium dioxide, also referred to as titanium(IV) oxide or titania, is an inorganic substance. It is also known as titanium white, Pigment White 6 (PW6), or CI 77891 when used as a pigment. Although mineral forms can appear black, it is a solid that is insoluble in water and is white in colour. It functions as a physical sunscreen that reflects ultraviolet radiation

from the sun as opposed to chemical sunscreens that absorb it.