Diatomite
siliceous sedimentary rock. This very fined-grained material is made from deposits of a fossiled hard-walled algae called diatom.
Diatomite is not classified as a mineral.
Local names
- Tripolite refers to the variety found in Tripoli, Libya.
- Bann clay refers to the variety found in the Lower Bann valley in Ireland.
Applications
Alfred Nobel discovered that nitroglycerin could be made much more stable by mixing it with kieselguhr, and this invention became known as dynamite. Since kieselguhr is a very finely porous material, it finds another application as a filter aid, for example in the brewery industry, or as an absorbent.
