Feldspar is an important raw material for ceramic, glass, pottery, plastics, rubber, paint, electrical wire and glazing industries. The demand of feldspar has been continuously increased particularly on ceramic and glass industries due to its alumina and alkaline contents. Feldspar, a fluxing agent and glass matrix, does not only enhance the transparency of products, but also reduces the melting temperature. As a result, the energy consumption during ceramic and glass manufacturing can be reduced by using feldspar.
Feldspar is a term used to describe a group of aluminosilicate minerals containing sodium, potassium and calcium. Sodium-rich feldspar is called albite, having an empirical formula of NaAlSi308, whereas the terms orthoclase and artorthite are used to describe potassium and calcium rich feldspar respectively. A variety of names are given to feldspar minerals, depending on their composition.
o Feldspar is regarded as the most abundant group of minerals which can be found on the earth's crust.
o It is a tectosilicate mineral and tectosilicate minerals constitute about 72-75% of the earth crust and are one out of many silicate minerals which are rock-forming minerals which also constitute about 85-90% of the earth crust.
o It has a colourless or pale-coloured crystals appearance and contains aluminosilicates of potassium, sodium, and calcium.
o Feldspars are formed from magma as a crystallize veins in igneous and metamorphic rock, most feldspars are deposited as sodium feldspar, potassium feldspar and mixed feldspars.
The global feldspar market size was valued at USD 1.61 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.9% from 2020 to 2027. The growth of the market is largely influenced by the dynamics of the glass and ceramics industries. The distinctive chemical constituents present in the product, such as potassium oxide, sodium oxide, and alumina, play a key role in promoting its usage across the glass and ceramics sector. The product is largely used in its ground form between 20 mesh to 200 mesh in glassmaking and ceramics filler application.
The growing demand for ceramic tiles across the globe, rising usage of feldspar in automotive glass, growing construction industry in developing economies are some of the factors that will likely to enhance the growth of the feldspar market in the forecast period of 2020-2027.
