Kaolin is a kind of fine-grained clay with Kaolinite flag mineral resources as the primary component and pure texture. Because of its white color, soft, good plasticity, fire resistance and other physical and chemical properties, it is widely used in ceramics, refractory materials, coatings, paper making, rubber and other industries. In recent years, with the use of kaolin in some high-tech fields such as atomic reactors and aerospace, its value as a strategic mineral material has increasingly emerged. However, according to the Chinese Powder Network, high-end kaolin products are still considered a "bottleneck" mineral material for China, and the demand relies on imported kaolin products from Dali. The processing technology and equipment are still a certain distance from comparison with foreign countries. Below are a few rough comparisons between domestic and imported kaolin products.

Different prices

According to the "Development and Use of Non metallic Mines" accounting. From January to December 2016, the total export volume and amount of kaolin in China were 1247254.71 tons and 106.1709 million US dollars respectively. During the same period, the total volume and amount of imported kaolin in China were 431871.64 tons and 9.3075 million US dollars respectively. After uniform calculation, the price of domestically produced kaolin in 2016 was about 8 US dollars per ton. The price of imported kaolin is about 20 US dollars per ton, and the price of imported kaolin is nearly twice that of domestically produced kaolin.

According to data from the China Academy of Commerce and Industry, in 2017, the national export of kaolin was 1155709.7 tons, with an export amount of 11.4596 million US dollars. In 2017, the import amount of kaolin nationwide was 533702.5ts, with an import amount of 119.596 million US dollars. After even calculation, the price of domestically produced kaolin in 2017 was about $99/t, while the price of imported kaolin was about $224/t. The price of imported products is still much higher than that of domestically produced kaolin.

Different consumption structures

The consumption structure of kaolin in China differs significantly from the uniform level of countries such as the United States. Domestic kaolin is mainly consumed in the field of ceramics. Its proportion reaches 55%. The average consumption share of ceramics in countries such as the United States is about 15%. Compared to low-end ceramic industries, domestically produced kaolin products account for a significantly smaller share of consumption in the papermaking industry, accounting for about 3O%, while the average level in countries such as the United States is above 4EKX. The kaolin used for domestic waste paper mainly relies on high-quality and high priced imported kaolin products.

One reason is that the grade of kaolin resources in China is relatively low. Although the storage capacity is relatively large, most of it can only be used in low-end ceramic categories or fillers. Furthermore, there is a significant gap between the processing technology and equipment of kaolin in China and other countries. Although various types of ultrafine crushing equipment have been developed in China, there is still a significant gap compared to advanced foreign equipment in terms of structure, material, processing precision, stability, and efficiency.

Different categories of new products

In addition to having more low-end products, there are also significant differences in the development of new products and new usage categories between China and countries such as the United States. Although China has done a lot of research work, such as the research and development of calcined Yanling clay products, 0.4 na molecular sieve composition, and high-temperature special ceramics, many of these products are still in the laboratory stage and there is still some distance from industrialization. Relatively speaking. Foreign products and usage fields touch on many aspects, including ceramic building materials, chemicals, environmental protection, textiles, atomic reactors, jet aircraft and other high-temperature refractory material industries.

Different industrial planning

According to the relevant person in charge of the China Nonmetallic Mining Association, the annual production of kaolin in China is approximately 7 million tons. Compared with the world, the concentration of China's kaolin industry is relatively low, and the scale of enterprises is relatively small. At present, most domestic kaolin production companies have a production capacity of several hundred thousand tons, while the world's leading kaolin production companies, such as Imerya in France, have a production capacity of about E5.9 million tons; Engaehard, Huber, and Taylor's "Tbiele" in the United States have a production capacity of about 1.8 million tons, 1.4 million tons, and 1.2 million tons respectively; and Cadam in Brazil has a production capacity of about 1 million tons.

Different product performance requirements

By comparing the primary performance indicators of high whiteness ultrafine kaolin produced by American kaolin production companies with the performance requirements of precision kaolin for special rubber and plastic coatings in China (refer to "TC/T 2370-2016 Precision Kaolin"), it can be seen that. The particle size of kaolin in the United States is required to be above 96% from m, while in China, it is required to be above 5%. The 325 mesh sieve residue of kaolin in the United States is required to be no more than 0.5%. The domestic requirement is not higher than 1%. The spherical ratio requirement for American kaolin is 4.2, but there is currently no such requirement in China.