Natural Soda Ash

Book excerpt: Known as one of the world's major industrial chemicals natural soda ash plays a critical role in glass and ceramics industries, production of chemicals, cleansing and bleaching, and metallurgy. Natural soda ash is also preferable to synthetic types because its production is purer and requires less energy with virtually no harmful environmental effects. Essential data on the properties, sources, processing requirements, and applications of natural soda ash fill this guide, making it valuable to both manufacturers and users. The formation, occurrence and history of natural soda ash deposits are covered along with specific chemical, physical and mineralogical characteristics. Explanations of processing techniques demonstrate how to convert soda ash into commercial products. Included are new methods and technologies for large-scale soda ash production, safe handling procedures and marketing strategies.