Use of formulations containing glycerol as a dry grinding aid agent of mineral matter

Abstract

The invention consists in the use, as a dry grinding aid agent of a mineral matter chosen from among the dolomites, talc, titanium dioxide, alumina, kaolin and calcium carbonate, the function of which is to reduce the specific grinding energy and to increase the grinding capacity, of formulations containing glycerol.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION[0001]This Application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61 / 286,455, filed on Dec. 15, 2009, and to French Application No. 09 58685, filed Dec. 7, 2009, both incorporated herein by reference.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]Offering products which can be produced in a way which is no longer dependent on raw materials derived from fossil energy sources is now a major issue for the chemical industry. This approach is part of the strategy to reduce the rate of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) as defined by the Kyoto Protocol, and is related more generally to the concepts of “green chemistry” and sustainable development.DISCUSSION OF BACKGROUND[0003]The mineral industry is a large consumer of chemicals. They are used in the various stages of transformation / modification / processing to which mineral matter is subject. Dry grinding of mineral matter, of which natural calcium carbonate represents a special example due to its multiple uses, ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0016]Continuing their research with a view to providing a dry grinding aid agent for mineral matter, and notably for natural calcium carbonate, the Inventors have successfully identified that the use of formulations containing glycerol or polyglycerol proved particularly advantageous, since they are more effective than propylene glycol with a view to increasing the grinding capacity and reducing the specific consumption of grinding energy (grinding energy proper, but also grading energy) in order to obtain a given granulometry.

[0018]In addition, the use of glycerol has the equally unexpected advantage that it does not react with CaO and Ca(OH)2, concerning which the Inventors consider that they are formed on the surface of the carbonate material, resulting in the fact that this dry grinding agent used according to the invention does not change colour. In fact, it leads to no, or a minimum of, yellowing of the calcium carbonate with which it is ground, whereas a yellowing appears in the case of grinding with monopropylene glycol (MPG).

Problems solved by technology

Offering products which can be produced in a way which is no longer dependent on raw materials derived from fossil energy sources is now a major issue for the chemical industry.

However, such products are not free of VOCs.

This VOC content constitutes a barrier to the use of such calcium carbonates in applications in which the regulations no longer tolerate any volatile organic compounds.

Finally, no test supports the description and the claimed inventions in either of these documents: it is not therefore possible to apprehend “the technical effect” produced by the claimed products.