The "Amang" Factory tour

We were looking for the trail head to access the path leading to the Greenfeild battle ground. That time the main signboard for this historical site was stolen. Rather difficult for an out of town visitor. Luckily the other landmark was rather useful and easy -it was this Amang factory.

There was a huge compound and ample parking place and if the owner allowed us to leve our car there. Yes we seeked permission and was direction to a spot near the main gate.

After our mission we had to meet up with the people of the factory to say our appreciation Guess who we met the owner Mr Chee himself He was very passionate about his operation and we very curious about the waste products from the tin mining industry. You know?  Those black black stuff.

Oh he was enthusiastic and we struggled to keep pace as well as trying to comprehend the strange jargon while he kept impressing us with his Geiger counter on the radioactive levels.

Whether we understood about half of his briefing we were certainly impressed and thankful for this accidental tour Certainly was a very good surprise as well as a very educational tour.

1. Front gate along Old Trunk Road Highway 1

Very unassuming factory - with no knowledge, few people would understand what "amang" would be

2. The Factory compound

We had shifted our from the parking at the gate to another spot right in front of the factory

3. Mr Chee explained - Radioactive Meter

Needs to carry it and checking constantly. The level varies and the surrounding of this whole factory was right at the brim. Anytime there could be an over exposure

4.  Geiger counter

The safe level is 1 mSv per annum and exposure measured over a span of 5 years. So what is shown here is unsafe for long exposure. For an 8 hour shift a worker could be exposed to a level of 0.1  mSv. Under extreme conditions could be as high as 2 mSv per day.

5. Left the couunter right on a pile of ore

This would shows the real level at source

 6. Question time

Interesting topic but rather complex. We were curious about the hot topics of Rare earth

 7. Oh! there was a good bit of elaboration

Can see from the different expressions of the two people/

#9

 9. And demonstration too

10.  Now as for the processes used in the factory

The physical separation of heavy metal from the Amang. He did explain but no one taking notes. Roughly gravity or magnetic and another requires heating up the working stock.

 11. Separation machines

Worker at doing the feeding chore

 12. Close-up

 I kicked myself for not being able to understand that much Mr Chee was showing us. So I still find the topic  interesting and have copied the whole para to be included in this conclusion. Well, I can read it myself when I want something to cheer me.

Heavy minerals in Amang

Former tin mining areas normally rich in ‘amang’, the tin tailing that contained heavy minerals which in turn will be economically beneficial to the mineral industries. Other researchers found that beach sand and rock are mineral resources other than ex mining area.

The mineral is a naturally occurring substance formed through geological processes that has a characteristic chemical composition, a highly ordered atomic structure and specific physical properties. Heavy minerals refers to minerals with a specific gravity greater than that of quartz which is 2.7.

Some heavy minerals present are - monazite {Ce}, La, Nd, Gd, Th {PO4}, zircon {ZrSiO4}, ilmenite {FeOTiO2}, xenotime (YPO4) and struverite (Nb.Ta.TiO2) are used in minerals industries.

These valuable minerals have many uses in industries. Zircon is a valuable mineral used as raw material in various industries such as foundry, ceramics, and refractory. In Bangladesh approximately 300 ton of zirconium flour is consumed every year in ceramic industries; the entire amount being currently imported. However, zircon occurring in the Bangladesh coast has so far not been utilized. Ilmenite fines is a by-products generated by the titanium slag and iron industries consisting of titanium dioxide, which is commonly used for the manufacture of white pigment for paint, plastic, paper and fabrics .

The rare earth elements are recovered through the separation of certain rare earth oxide bearing minerals, including bastnasite, monazite and ionic clays. Rare earth elements {REEs}, from lanthanum to lutetium, are a group of elements with similar chemical and physical properties due to their electronic configurations.

REE are divided into two sub-groups: the light rare earth elements (LREEs) from La to Sm and heavy rare earth elements (HREEs) from Gd to Lu. Gadolinium oxide (GdO2) is used for many different high technology applications such as infrared absorbing automotive glass, petroleum cracking catalyst, used in microwave applications, and colour TV tube phosphors while europium is responsible for the red color in television screens and computer monitors.

During the golden era of tin mining, Kampung Gajah in Perak, (N04º 14.967´ E101º 02.420´) used to be one of those areas producing tin for exporting purposes. Tin ores were processed using a physical property (wet separation technique or smelting process) to recover the tin. The remaining (‘amang’) were left there since not many people knew their uses. `Amang` is a widely accepted term in Malaysia for the heavy mineral rejects which remain after tin oxide (cassiterite) has been extracted from tin ores.

Nowadays, ‘amang’ is becoming more important since we can recover valuable heavy minerals from it. The concentration of heavy minerals from amang or soil contain rich amang involves a gravitational separation process or floatation, which will produce a layer which can be easily differentiated from mud and sand. The more density of the materials, the deeper they will sink.

By applying this concept, the dense material which is minerals will sink while others will float. Magnetic separation process may produce two distinct fractions which are magnetic minerals and non magnetic minerals. Magnetic minerals would consist of ilmenite only while non-magnetic minerals consist of xenotime, monazite and zircon . This study was conducted in order to design the lab scale method for physical separation of minerals from ‘amang’ enriched soils and sediments. The aim was to find the percent recovery of the minerals found in each sample from different locations and to determine the morphology of the minerals.

From the percent of mineral recovery, one can estimate which location possessed high amount of heavy mineral concentration. SEM/EDX analysis was used the check the morphology and the elemental composition of the rare earths presents in the samples while results from ICP-OES shows the concentration of selected rare earths in the sample.

Heavy metals are naturally occurring elements that have a high atomic weight and a density at least 5 times greater than that of water. Their multiple industrial, domestic, agricultural, medical and technological applications have led to their wide distribution in the environment; raising concerns over their potential effects on human health and the environment. Their toxicity depends on several factors including the dose, route of exposure, and chemical species, as well as the age, gender, genetics, and nutritional status of exposed individuals. Because of their high degree of toxicity, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, and mercury rank among the priority metals that are of public health significance. These metallic elements are considered systemic toxicants that are known to induce multiple organ damage, even at lower levels of exposure. They are also classified as human carcinogens (known or probable) according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer. This review provides an analysis of their environmental occurrence, production and use, potential for human exposure, and molecular mechanisms of toxicity, genotoxicity, and carcinogenicity.

The processing of amang, or tin tailings, for valuable minerals has been shown to technologically enhance NORM and this has stirred significant radiological safety and health concerns among Malaysia's regulatory authority.

A growing radiological concern is now focused on the amang effluent containing NORM in recycling ponds, since these ponds may be reclaimed for future residential developments. A study was carried out to assess the radiological risk associated with amang processing and the accumulated effluent in the recycling ponds. Twenty-six sediment samples from the recycling ponds of two amang plants in the states of Selangor and Perak, Malaysia, were collected and analyzed.

The maximum activity concentrations of (238)U, (226)Ra, (232)Th and (40)K recorded in sediments from these ponds were higher than Malaysia's and the world's natural highest. Correspondingly, the mean radium equivalent activity concentration indices, Ra(eq), and gamma radiation representative level index, I (gammar), were higher than the world's average. The enhancement of NORM in effluent sediments as a consequence of amang processing, and the use of a closed water management recycling system created Effective Dose Rates, E (nSv h(-1)), that signal potential environmental radiological risks in these ponds, should they be reclaimed for future land use.

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