Identification of compounds present in ash-shibat desert sands using SEM, X-ray and chemical analysis techniques

Abstract EN

Silicon, which is energetically unstable and so does not occur naturally in its elemental form, has a great many uses in fields within the electronics industry.

Libya is one of the countries in North Africa that has a large volume of desert land and in many sites of the Libyan Desert silicon is present as high purity silica.

In this study, Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction and inductively coupled plasma (ICP) spectroscopy along with other techniques were used to obtain data about the mineralogical composition of a Libyan quartz sand withdrawn from the Ash-Shibat formation situated in the southern part of the Libyan Desert.

The sand was investigated in its original form, after leaching with water and after leaching with acids to remove water-soluble and acid-soluble impurities, respectively.

Results of the ICP elemental analysis and other instrumental techniques showed that Ash-Shibat sand is composed mainly of high purity quartz (>99%) with trace impurities of B, Na, Ca, K, Mg, Al, Ti, and Fe oxides.

Water leaching was found to be ineffective in the rinsing out of the impurities.

The main impurity phase in the original and water leached sand was identified as Kaolinite (Al2Si205(OH) 4)2.

The metallic impurity content of the