Publications

Seawater and natural brines accounted for about 57 percent of magnesium compounds produced in the United States in 2011. Dead-burned magnesia was produced by Martin Marietta Magnesia Specialties LLC from well brines in Michigan. Caustic-calcined magnesia was recovered from seawater by Premier Magnesia LLC in Florida, from well brines in Michigan by Martin Marietta and from magnesite in...

Crushed stone and construction sand and gravel, the two major types of natural aggregates, are among the most abundant and accessible natural resources on the planet. The earliest civilizations used aggregates for various purposes, mainly construction. Today aggregates provide the basic raw materials for the foundation of modern society.

This summary of international mineral exploration activities for the year 2011 draws upon available information from industry sources, published literature and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) specialists. This summary provides data on exploration budgets by region and mineral commodity, identifies significant mineral discoveries and areas of mineral exploration, discusses government...

In 2011, U.S. apparent consumption of strontium (contained in celestite and manufactured strontium compounds) increased markedly to 18.4 kt (20,300 st) from 10.4 kt (11,500 st) in 2010. Gross weight of imports was 34.4 kt (38,000 st), of which 76 percent originated from Mexico.

The United States continues to be the world's leading producer and consumer of diatomite. Production of diatomite in the United States during 2011 was estimated to be 600 kt (661,000 st), a slight increase compared with 2010 production. The unit value of diatomite varied widely by end use in 2011. Diatomite used as a lightweight aggregate was priced at $8.82/t ($8/st), while specialty...

Ammonia was produced by 12 companies at 27 plants in 15 states in the United States during 2011. Sixty-one percent of total U.S. ammonia production capacity was centered in Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas because of those states' large reserves of natural gas, the dominant domestic feedstock. In 2011, U.S. producers operated at about 84 percent of their rated capacity (excluding plants...

In 2011, elemental sulfur and the byproduct sulfuric acid were produced at 109 operations in 29 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Total shipments were valued at about $1.6 billion. Elemental sulfur production was 8.2 Mt (9 million st); Louisiana and Texas accounted for about 53 percent of domestic production.

Four minerals represent 90 percent of the borates used by industry worldwide — the sodium borates, tincal and kernite; the calcium borate, colemanite; and the sodium-calcium borate, ulexite.

In 2010, the market appeared to bottom out with production continuing its downward trend and average unit values down for the first time since 1998.

Domestic production, consumption, exports and prices of perlite in the United States were all estimated to have decreased in 2011 compared with 2010, but not significantly. The weak economic conditions that prevailed in the United States for most of the 2011 probably accounted for these decreases. The only statistic that increased was imports, which were estimated to have risen by about...

The article offers information on mercury, a mineral commodity used in industrial and small-scale gold mining applications. Mercury has been reported to be used for amalgamation with gold since the Roman times. Mercury from cinnabar from Almadén, Spain has been used by Romans and has been continued to be used through the Middle Ages and the Colonial era.

The article offers information on dimension stone (DS) that are quarried as natural rock for a specific size and dimension chosen for its color, strength, durability. Varieties of metamorphic, igneous or sedimentary rocks are used but DS rocks are mainly marble, granite and slate that can be found from Maine to Alabama in the U.S., in the Carrara District of Italy as well as in Greece...