Influence of particle mineralogy and size on the morphological characteristics of mineral fillers

Abstract

The morphological characteristics of mineral filler particles, such as contour shape, angularity and surface texture, are closely related to their mineralogy and size and the crushing process used. In the present study, the importance and effects of particle mineralogy and size on the morphology of different mineral fillers were examined. A total of 12 mineral filler fractions were prepared using the same grinding process and sieving method, and analyzed by digital imaging. Six parameters were used to describe the 2-dimensional characteristics of mineral filler particles based on digital image processing. The sensitivity of these parameters was analyzed by correlation and analysis of variance methods. The results show that for mineral fillers of the same particle mineralogy, as the particle size decreases, the contour shape becomes more regular and the angularity and surface texture becomes less abundant. For mineral fillers of the same particle size, the granite filler particles have a more regular contour shape and richer angularity and surface texture than the limestone and basalt filler particles. The form factor, angularity parameter AI1 and fractal dimension can best reflect the sensitivity of contour shape, angularity and surface texture characteristics of mineral filler particles to particle mineralogy and size.

Keywords

• Particle morphology
• Particle size
• Morphological characteristics
• Mineral filler particles
• Digital image processing
• Sensitivity analysis