Chromite is an
ironIron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
chromiumChromium is a chemical element which has the symbol Cr and atomic number 24. It is the first element in Group 6. It is a steely-gray, lustrous, hard metal that takes a high polish and has a high melting point. It is also odorless, tasteless, and malleable...
oxideAn oxide is a chemical compound that contains at least one oxygen atom in its chemical formula. Metal oxides typically contain an anion of oxygen in the oxidation state of −2....
: FeCr
2O
4. It is an
oxide mineralThe oxide mineral class includes those minerals in which the oxide anion is bonded to one or more metal ions. The hydroxide bearing minerals are typically included in the oxide class...
belonging to the
spinelSpinel is the magnesium aluminium member of the larger spinel group of minerals. It has the formula MgAl2O4. Balas ruby is an old name for a rose-tinted variety.-Spinel group:...
group. Magnesium can substitute for iron in variable amounts as it forms a
solid solutionA solid solution is a solid-state solution of one or more solutes in a solvent. Such a mixture is considered a solution rather than a compound when the crystal structure of the solvent remains unchanged by addition of the solutes, and when the mixture remains in a single homogeneous phase...
with magnesiochromite (MgCr
2O
4); substitution of
aluminiumAluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
occurs leading to
hercyniteHercynite is a spinel mineral with the formula FeAl2O4.It occurs in high-grade metamorphosed iron rich argillaceous sediments as well as in mafic and ultramafic igneous rocks. Due to its hardness it also is found in placers....
(FeAl
2O
4).
Occurrence
Chromite is found in
peridotiteA peridotite is a dense, coarse-grained igneous rock, consisting mostly of the minerals olivine and pyroxene. Peridotite is ultramafic, as the rock contains less than 45% silica. It is high in magnesium, reflecting the high proportions of magnesium-rich olivine, with appreciable iron...
from the Earth's
mantleThe mantle is a part of a terrestrial planet or other rocky body large enough to have differentiation by density. The interior of the Earth, similar to the other terrestrial planets, is chemically divided into layers. The mantle is a highly viscous layer between the crust and the outer core....
. It also occurs in layered ultramafic intrusive rocks. In addition, it is found in metamorphic rocks such as some
serpentiniteSerpentinite is a rock composed of one or more serpentine group minerals. Minerals in this group are formed by serpentinization, a hydration and metamorphic transformation of ultramafic rock from the Earth's mantle...
s.
OreAn ore is a type of rock that contains minerals with important elements including metals. The ores are extracted through mining; these are then refined to extract the valuable element....
deposits of chromite form as early magmatic differentiates. It is commonly associated with
olivineThe mineral olivine is a magnesium iron silicate with the formula 2SiO4. It is a common mineral in the Earth's subsurface but weathers quickly on the surface....
,
magnetiteMagnetite is a ferrimagnetic mineral with chemical formula Fe3O4, one of several iron oxides and a member of the spinel group. The chemical IUPAC name is iron oxide and the common chemical name is ferrous-ferric oxide. The formula for magnetite may also be written as FeO·Fe2O3, which is one part...
, serpentine, and
corundumCorundum is a crystalline form of aluminium oxide with traces of iron, titanium and chromium. It is a rock-forming mineral. It is one of the naturally clear transparent materials, but can have different colors when impurities are present. Transparent specimens are used as gems, called ruby if red...
. The vast
Bushveld igneous complexThe Bushveld Igneous Complex is a large layered igneous intrusion within the Earth's crust which has been tilted and eroded and now outcrops around what appears to be the edge of a great geological basin, the Transvaal Basin. Located in South Africa, the BIC contains some of the richest ore...
of
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
is a large layered
maficMafic is an adjective describing a silicate mineral or rock that is rich in magnesium and iron; the term is a portmanteau of the words "magnesium" and "ferric". Most mafic minerals are dark in color and the relative density is greater than 3. Common rock-forming mafic minerals include olivine,...
to ultramafic igneous body with some layers consisting of 90% chromite making the rare rock type,
chromititeChromitite is an igneous cumulate rock composed mostly of the mineral chromite. It is found in layered intrusions such as the Bushveld Igneous Complex in South Africa and the Stillwater igneous complex in Montana.-References:...
. The
Stillwater igneous complexThe Stillwater igneous complex is a large layered intrusion located in southern Montana in Stillwater, Sweet Grass and Park Counties. The complex is exposed across 30 miles of the north flank of the Beartooth Mountain Range. The complex has extensive reserves of chromium ore and has a history of...
in
MontanaMontana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
also contains significant chromite.
Uses
The only ores of chromium are the minerals chromite and magnesiochromite. Most of the time, economic geology names chromite the whole chromite-magnesiochromite series: FeCr
2O
4, (Fe,Mg)Cr
2O
4, (Mg,Fe)Cr
2O
4 and MgCr
2O
4. The two main products of chromite refining are ferrochromium and metallic chromium, for those products the ore smelter process differs considerably. For the production of ferrochromium the chromite ore (FeCr
2O
4) is reduced with either
aluminiumAluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
or
siliconSilicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. A tetravalent metalloid, it is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon, the nonmetal directly above it in the periodic table, but more reactive than germanium, the metalloid directly below it in the table...
in a
aluminothermic reactionAluminothermic reactions are exothermic chemical reactions using aluminium as the reducing agent at high temperature. The most prominent example is the thermite reaction between aluminium and iron oxides:-History:...
and for the production of pure chromium the iron has to be separated from the chromium in a two step roasting and leaching process.
Chromite is also used as a
refractoryA refractory material is one that retains its strength at high temperatures. ASTM C71 defines refractories as "non-metallic materials having those chemical and physical properties that make them applicable for structures, or as components of systems, that are exposed to environments above...
material, because it has a high heat stability.
Mining
In 2002 14,600,000 metric tons of chromite were mined. The largest producers were
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
(44%)
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
(18%),
KazakhstanKazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
(16%)
ZimbabweZimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
(5%), Finland (4%)
IranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
(4%) and
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
(2%) with several other countries producing the rest of less than 10% of the world production.
Minor production
In
PakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, chromite is mined from the ultramafic rocks in mainly the Muslim Bagh area of Zhob District of
BalochistanBalochistan is one of the four provinces or federating units of Pakistan. With an area of 134,051 mi2 or , it is the largest province of Pakistan, constituting approximately 44% of the total land mass of Pakistan. According to the 1998 population census, Balochistan had a population of...
. Most of the chromite is of metallurgical grade with Cr
2O
3 averaging 40% and a chrome to iron ratio of 2.6:1. Afghanistan has significant deposits of high grade chromite ore.
Recently, the biggest user of chromite ore has been China, importing large quantities from South Africa, Pakistan and other countries. The concentrate is used to make ferrochromium, which is in turn used to make
stainless steelIn metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5 or 11% chromium content by mass....
and some other alloys.
In April 2010 the
Government of OntarioThe Government of Ontario refers to the provincial government of the province of Ontario, Canada. Its powers and structure are set out in the Constitution Act, 1867....
announced that they would be opening up a large chromite deposit to development in the northern part of
OntarioOntario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
known as the
Ring of FireThe Ring of Fire is the name given to an area of muskeg swamps in the James Bay Lowlands located in Northern Ontario, Canada, which is currently home to a major mining exploration project...
.
External links