Nigeria is blessed with abundant mineral resources and most of these remain untapped. The country is so blessed with solid minerals and in large quantities too. Due to presence of oil in the country as well the government has not devoted enough time to the solid mineral sector although it has started by declaring its intension to support investors in this sector. This it has done by streamlining the process of acquisition of mining title and setting aside solid mineral support fund for investors in the sector.
The mica group of sheet silicate (phyllosilicate) minerals includes several closely related materials having nearly perfect basal cleavage. All are monoclinic, with a tendency towards pseudo-hexagonal crystals, and are similar in chemical composition. The nearly perfect cleavage, which is the most prominent characteristic of mica, is explained by the hexagonal sheet-like arrangement of its atoms.
Mica is widely distributed and occurs in igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary regimes. Large crystals of mica used for various applications are typically mined from granitic pegmatites. Until the 19th century, large crystals of mica were quite rare and expensive as a result of the limited supply in Europe. However, their price dramatically dropped when large reserves were found and mined in Africa and South America during the early 19th century.
PROPERTIES AND USES OF MICA
The mica group represents 37 phyllosilicate minerals that have a layered or platy texture. The commercially important micas are muscovite and phlogopite, which are used in a variety of applications. Mica’s value is based on several of its unique physical properties. The crystalline structure of mica forms layers that can be split or delaminated into thin sheets usually causing foliation in rocks. These sheets are chemically inert, dielectric, elastic, flexible, hydrophilic, insulating, lightweight, platy, reflective, refractive, resilient, and range in opacity from transparent to opaque. Mica is stable when exposed to electricity, light, moisture, and extreme temperatures. It has superior electrical properties as an insulator and as a dielectric, and can support an electrostatic field while dissipating minimal energy in the form of heat; it can be split very thin (0.025 to 0.125 millimeters or thinner) while maintaining its electrical properties, has a high dielectric breakdown, is thermally stable to 500 °C (932 °F), and is resistant to corona discharge. Muscovite, the principal mica used by the electrical industry, is used in capacitors that are ideal for high frequency and radio frequency. Phlogopite mica remains stable at higher temperatures (to 900 °C (1,650 °F)) and is used in applications in which a combination of high-heat stability and electrical properties is required. Muscovite and phlogopite are used in sheet and ground forms.
Mining of MICA
The mica industry can be divided into two distinct but interdependent industries: those that produce sheet mica, and those that produce flake mica. Each industry, although somewhat dependent on the other, produces different end products.
Sheet Mica Mining:
Sheet mica is recovered by either sinking a shaft along the strike and dip of a pegmatite or by open-pit surface mining of semi-hard pegmatite ore. In either case, it is a very economically risky mining procedure because of the cost involved in locating the vein and the unpredictability of the quality and quantity of the mica that might be recovered once the vein is located and worked.
In underground mining, the main shaft is driven through the pegmatite at suitable angles to the dip and strike using air drills, hoists and explosives. Crosscuts and raises are developed to follow promising exposures of mica. When a pocket of mica is found, extreme care is exercised in the removal to minimize damage to the crystals. Small explosive charges of 40% to 60% strength are carefully placed around the pocket and care is exercised with the drilling procedure so the mica will not be penetrated. The charge is just sufficient to shake the mica free from the host rock. After blasting, the mica is hand-picked and placed in boxes or bags for transporting to the
Trimming shed where it is graded, split, and cut to various specified sizes for sale.
Flake Mica Mining:
The flake mica produced in the U.S. comes from several sources: the metamorphic rock called schist as a by-product of processing feldspar and kaolin resources, from placer deposits, and from pegmatites. It is mined by conventional open-pit methods. In soft residual material, dozers, shovels, scrapers and front-end loaders are used in the mining process. North Carolina’s production accounts for half of total U.S. mica production. Hard-rock mining of mica-bearing ore requires drilling and blasting. After blasting, the ore is reduced in size with drop balls and loaded on the trucks with shovels for transport to the processing plant, where mica, quartz and feldspar are extracted.
APPLICATION
The principal use of ground mica is in gypsum wallboard joint compound, where it acts as filler and extender, provides a smoother consistency, improves work-ability, and prevents cracking. In the paint industry, ground mica is used as a pigment extender that also facilitates suspension due to its light weight and platy morphology. The ground mica also reduces checking and chalking, prevents shrinkage and shearing of the paint film, provides increased resistance to water penetration and weathering, and brightens the tone of colored pigments. Ground mica also is used in the well-drilling industry as an additive to drilling “muds.”
The plastic industry used ground mica as an extender and filler and also as a reinforcing agent. The rubber industry uses ground mica as an inert filler and as a mold lubricant in the manufacture of molded rubber products, including tires.
Sheet mica is used principally in the electronic and electrical industries. The major uses of sheet and block mica are as electrical insulators in electronic equipment, thermal insulation, gauge “glass”, windows in stove and kerosene heaters, dielectrics in capacitors, decorative panels in lamps and windows, insulation in electric motors and generator armatures, field coil insulation, and magnet and commutator core insulation.
REQUIREMENT AND CONDITIONS FOR MINING LEAD IN NIGERIA
There are two options available to a company or an individual to enter into the mining industry in Nigeria.
- Through the acquisition of an existing mining Lease from the original owner. Approval must be obtained from the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development for such a purchase.
- Fresh mining lease
Procedure for Mineral Title Licences/Leases and Permits:
Duly completed application form
Coordinates of the area of application
Certificate of incorporation
Attestation
Letter of consent from landowner(s)/occupier(s)
Types of minerals
Work programme/pre-feasibility report
Evidence of payment
Technical capability
Financial capability
In order to encourage investment in the solid minerals industry in Nigeria, Government is offering the following incentives
- 3-5 years Tax Holiday
- Deferred royalty payments
- Possible capitalization of expenditure on exploration and surveys
- Extension of infrastructure such as roads and electricity to mining sites, and provision of 100% foreign ownership of mining concerns.
The mining industry in Nigeria is regulated by the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act of 2007, National Minerals and Metals Policy 2008 and Nigerian Minerals and Mining Regulations 2011.
CONCLUSION
Business Advisory Network ‘BAN’ will work with you and assist you to process mining lease from the federal government. We will help you source for a site with rich mineral content. Mining is a technical field although the financial reward is enormous; therefore to succeed you need experts to guide you to avoid fatal mistakes that will erode your capital.
Other things BAN can do for you include but are not limited to helping you to determine the grade of Mica ore at the site, source market for your mined minerals, both locally and internationally. BAN will also help you arrange security at your mining sites.