1. food and drink
2. food
3. grains and pasta

1
Silica Sand Resources
In
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Eng. Geologist. Rafat A. Ghandoura
Assist. Head of Industrial Minerals Dept.
2
Introduction
Saudi Arabia has numerous industrial minerals commodities. One
of the most important commodities are silica sand and quartz.
Abundant resources of silica sand have been explored in Saudi
Arabia during last 40 years.
Most high grade silica sand deposits occurs in form of sandstone
formations that bounds the Arabian Shield to the north and east.
Sandstone's deposits are in general friable, loosely to moderately
cemented and require pulverization to yield silica sand.
Majority of silica sand resources are white to off-white, it is
moderately sorted sand with low-iron and other contaminants.
Silica sands have a large number of industrial uses depending on
their characteristics. Numerous minor uses are based on either the
chemical purity or physical properties of this and (such as grainsize distribution or grain shape).
3
Silica (SiO2) Origin
There are different silica (SiO2) resources forms:
Hydrothermal Quartz: quartz veins and pegmatite's.
Silica Sand.
Sandstone.
quartzite rocks.
Chalcedony.
4
Introduction
Saudi Arabia has numerous industrial minerals commodities. One
of the most important commodities are silica sand and quartz.
Abundant resources of silica sand have been explored in Saudi
Arabia during last 40 years.
Most high grade silica sand deposits occurs in form of sandstone
formations that bounds the Arabian Shield to the north and east.
Sandstone's deposits are in general friable, loosely to moderately
cemented and require pulverization to yield silica sand.
Majority of silica sand resources are white to off-white, it is
moderately sorted sand with low-iron and other contaminants.
Silica sands have a large number of industrial uses depending on
their characteristics. Numerous minor uses are based on either the
chemical purity or physical properties of this and (such as grainsize distribution or grain shape).
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6
Geology
The abundant existence of
silica sand in the KSA is
within
the
geological
sequences of the Paleozoic,
Mesozoic, and Cenozoic
successions the bound the
Arabian Shield to the north,
east and south and appear
sporadically in relict Tertiary
deposits on the Red Sea
coastal plain.
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Silica Sand Formations
Sag Formation
Qasim Formation
Sarah Formation
Biyadh Formation
8
Main Silica Sand Occurrences
9
Dommat
Tabuk
Tayma
Riyadh
Qasim
Hail
aljandal
Al
Jubayl
Si
O
Si
Si
O
O222
SiO
2
Fe
2
O
Fe
Fe
O333
Fe222O
O
3
Al
2O
Al
Al
O333
Al222O
O
3
Reserve
Reserve
Reserve
Reserve
97.5
99.0
%
94.5
96.3
97.5
94
96-–-–-–-99.8
99.8
97
99.4
%
%
%
%
92
96.3
%
0.04
- 0.05
%
0.05-0.06
0.04-0.06
0.12-0.18
0.06-1.2
0.21
%%
%
0.04-0.43
%
1.27
%
1.06
1.25
1.2
1.1
1.0
%
%
%
2.3 %
%
100
M
m
Very
150
840
300
M
M
Large
m
m3333
16Large
M.
m
10
Silica Sand Producers in
Designated Silica Complexes in
Saudi Arabia
Rabia & Nassar
Delmon
National Factory
Adwan Chemicals
Aldrees
Ad-Doghom Mining
Mahmoud saeed
Al-nazal
Al-Zahid Mining
Almarbaie
Muadinoon
Zahrat al-Riyad
Tuwaig
Al-Raddadi
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Industrial Application
in Saudi Arabia
Glass
Ceramic
Paint
Chemicals
Concretes
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Silica Sand Mining in Saudi Arabia
Presently, there are three silica
sand complexes developed in
Saudi Arabia that have a number
of silica sand quarries. These
three areas are:
1) Ad-Doghm (near Riyadh)
2) Tayma South (south of Tabuk)
3) Dawmat al-jandal ( south of aljouf )
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SILICA PROCESSING
washing
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15
Production of Silica Sand
2007
820,000
2008
799,000
2009
709,000
2010
820,000
2011
1,300,000
2012
1,270,000
2013(e)
1,276,466
1276
1270
1300
781,000
400
200
0
820
2006
600
709
518,000
800
799
2005
1000
820
594,000
781
2004
1200
518
364,000
594
2003
1400
364
Year
Weight
production
of silica
sand
(tonnes)
Thousand tonnes
The silica sand production has significant increased between
2003-2007, whereas, there is a slight decrease in 2008-2009,
and the percentage of production has raised again.
Years
16
Year
Weight (tonnes)
2003
NA
2004
NA
2005
21,204
2006
28,634
2007
41,875
2008
73,710
2009
45,022
20
2010
46,437
10
2011
2012
2013
42,925
79.116
49,723
79
Silica Sand Import
43
60
50
74
70
42
45
40
21
0
29
30
46
50
0
Thous and tonnes
80
0
Years
17
Year
Weight (tonnes)
2003
372,674
2004
115,390
2005
88,757
2006
287,616
2007
349,908
2008
392,000
2009
461,878
2010
435,256
2011
583,775
2012
558,016
2013
641,128
Thous and tonnes
Silica Sand Export
800
600
400
200
373
288
350 392
461 435
584 558 641
115 89
0
Years
18
World production of silica sand
COUNTRY
USA
Germany
Australia
Italy
UK
TOTAL
OTHER
COUNTRIES
WORLD TOTAL
PRODUCTION
PRODUCTION (THOUSAND TONNES)
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013E
25,000
29,900
43,700
50,700
52,500
8,190
6,450
7,000
7,770
7,500
7,400
5,600
5,300
14,000
5,600
5,300
13,800
5,600
5,200
13,800
3,760
5,300
19,800
3,760
5,600
19,800
3,760
5,300
16,400
3,800
5,600
16,400
76,410
62,600
63,290
56,050
65,760
80630
83,660
85,700
39,900
41,590
63,400
57,710
49,950
55,240
57,370
55,340
55,300
115,00
0
118,000
126,000
121,00
0
106,000
121,000
138,000
139,000
141,000
2003
2004
2005
27,900
8,500
4,500
4,500
3,000
72,688
27,300
8,500
4,500
4,500
3,000
71,400
29,700
30,600
30,000
30,400
7,500
8,160
7,700
4,500
4,500
3,000
4,500
4,000
3,000
75,100
22,412
23,600
95,100
95,000
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SAUDI ARABIAN
QUARTZ RESOURCES
20
Saudi Quartz Occurrences
Quartz occurrences are situated in within the Arabian
Shield.
Most quartz occurrences in Saudi Arabia are found as:
quartz veins :
Most quartz veins are isolated with dimensions not
exceeding to 80m X 100m X 100m.
quartz cupolas :
appears to be dome shaped quartz bodies – cupola.
pegmatites (granitic composition):
Conventionally, zoned pegmatite bodies have been mined
for feldspar as the feldspar occurs in the marginal zone of
such bodies.
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22
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CONCLUSION
Silica sand resources are abundant and many of them are
intensively explored and analyzed.
Most silica sand is high quality, white, low iron and suitable
particle size for a number of industrial applications.
Most silica sand resources can be upgraded with suitable
processing, therefore, effective and optimum processing is
needed for almost all silica sand resources.
Processing of silica sand enhance the whiteness and purity
of sand – decreases iron and alumina and increases silica
contents.
Processing is important to bring silica sand to the required
technical specifications of industrial products.
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