3.21.3.1 Availability and Consumption

Strontium ores are used for domestic chemical plants with some high-grade ores exported to Japan, USA, Italy and Southeast Asia.

Strontium carbonate chemicals produced in China are mainly supplied to domestic markets. 20% of them are used for producing glass bulbs of kinescopes, about 10%~20% for magnetic materials, 10% for fireworks and signal flares. Since strontium carbonate chemicals have low production costs but high prices, they have got into international markets since 1979 as a salable chemical material and have been sold to Japan, the USA, the former USSR and Australia. Table 3.21.4, made on the basis of relevant reports both in China and abroad, presents the export of strontium carbonate in China, showing that about 50% of the products are exported.

Table 3.21.4 Exports of strontium carbonate in China (1979~1990)

Notes: I.Japan; II .the USA; III.Japan, the USA, USSR and Australia.¢Ù Japan is not included (Zhang Guangpeng and Shi Jiaxin, 1992).

As predicted by the Ministry of Chemical Industry of China, the demand for the standard strontium ores (SrSO4 content: 80%) will be about 50,800 tons in 2,000. In consideration of the retained reserves of 32.9086 million tons, the dynamic guarantee period of Sr resources can be as long as 658 years.

3.21.3.2 Trends

1) Owing to the excessive increase of the output of strontium ores and strontium carbonate in China, the domestic markets have been saturated; whereas international markets have a great potential demand for strontium carbonate and strontium ores. In recent years, Japan, the USA, Germany, Russia, Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia have expressed their hope of importing celestite and strontium carbonate from China. The abundance and a relatively long dynamic guarantee period of strontium resources of China make this country superior in developing export-oriented economy in strontium industries.

2) The exploitable strontium resources are mainly distributed in the lower and middle reaches of the Yangtze River. This region has favorable geographic and geological conditions, which will provide a good basis for the development of China's strontium chemical industry. This is also a favorable region for the collection and distribution of strontium products and foreign trade.

3) There are 21.7 million tons of associated strontium resources in China, amounting to 61% of the total strontium resources. Such resources are composed of by-product strontium in phosphorus ore, ground brine, lead and zinc ores, barite and gypsum. There are huge quantities of by-product strontium resources, serving as secondary economic resources of potential value. In recent years, some new Sr minerals have been discovered early or late in China, which shows a good prospect of associated strontium resources. This is of great importance in solving the shortage of strontium ores after 2000 in China and developing the strontium ore economy.

4) Strontium resources have strategic significance in the world and they are resources in oversupply in China. Therefore, timely comprehensive exploration and assessment of strontium resources should be conducted in the lower and middle reaches of the Yangtze River, such as the Huangshi area of Hubei Province and the Huayingshan area of East Sichuan, especially the Quxian-Dazhu area which has favorable ore-forming conditions, so that new strontium ore districts, especially high-grade ore districts, are hopefully to be found and the reserves can be expanded so as to maintain the superior position of Chinese strontium mining industry in the world.

5) The application scope of strontium has been expanded with the continuing development of science and technology. In addition to kinescope glass, strontium is utilized as a hard (permanent) magnetic material, new ceramic material and high-temperature superconductive material in developed countries. Stable consumption of the first two strontium products have been formed and their markets are being expanding year by year, while a fairly good prospect of the last product has already shown up. In China, strontium is now applied merely to producing strontium carbonate for kinescope bulbs and there are rather poor varieties of strontium products. Moreover, China is not able to produce many downstream strontium products for the time being and the technology of extracting metal strontium is still under development. However, as long as focuses are placed on related scientific research, international cooperation and the full use of strontium resources, China will certainly reach a new plateau in the strontium industry.