Mineralogy
Searles Lake is a huge resource of sodium and potassium minerals of the carbonate, sulfate, borate and halide classes of mineralogy. The manufacture of industrial minerals involves a complex solution mining operation in which naturally occurring brines are pumped from wells completed in several salt beds. The brine wells range in depth from near-surface to over 100 meters below the salt pan. A network of production wells, injection wells, solar ponds and piping are used in the production and treatment of the brines.
Industrial minerals are extracted from the brines at the Argus, Trona and Westend plants. Minerals are crystallized from the brines, screened, washed, and dried. The crystals are then baked in rotary kilns to drive off water molecules locked in the crystalline structure. Some recrystallization may be required to achieve a desired composition and granular density. This complex extraction process at the 3 plants is generally referred to as fractional crystallization. It includes the treatment of brines through carbonation extraction, refrigeration extraction and/or solvent extraction. Salt is also harvested from the lake surface and from solar ponds.
Commodities produced by Searles Valley Minerals from their Searles Lake operations include borax, V-Bor (borax with 5 moles of water), anhydrous borax, boric acid, soda ash, salt cake and salt. Mineral reserves exceed 4 billion tons.
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