In the world of powder materials, silicon dioxide (SiO₂) holds a central position. It has diverse forms and wide-ranging applications. However, its different product forms—such as quartz powder, silica fume, microsilica, and white carbon black—are often confused. While these materials share a common origin, they differ significantly in physical properties, production processes, and application areas. Clearly distinguishing among them is crucial for material selection, process optimization, and product innovation. This article will provide a clear analysis of the differences and connections between these four common silicon-based powders. It helps you accurately grasp their material characteristics and empower your product research, development, and production. Epic Powder focuses on ultrafine quartz grinding, precise classification, and surface modification, . Our independently developed grinding mills and air classifiers are widely applied in the production of high-performance powders.
The differences between the four silicon-based powders
Quartz powder and silica fume both refer to crystalline SiO₂ powders, essentially produced by crushing rocks into fine particles. Quartz powder is relatively coarse, while silica fume is finer. By crushing raw quartz ore using various processing equipment, people can obtain quartz powder. Silica fume, on the other hand, is an ultrafine powder produced by grinding quartz ore to a certain purity or through chemical methods to obtain fine silica particles. However, they differ in physical properties, chemical composition, and application areas.
Microsilica, also known as silica fume, is an industrial byproduct collected from the smoke and dust of smelting furnaces. It contains fine dust with a high silica content. In the emitted smoke, SiO₂ accounts for about 90% of the total dust, with extremely small particle sizes, often at the nano-level, hence the name “silica fume.”
White carbon black is an ultrafine silica powder produced by chemical methods, such as vapor-phase or precipitation methods. It appears as a white powder, granules, or irregular chunks. Vapor-phase white carbon black consists entirely of nano-silica, with a purity of up to 99% and a particle size of 10–20 nm, but its production process is complex and expensive. Precipitation white carbon black includes traditional and special precipitation methods. The former uses sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, CO₂, and sodium silicate as raw materials. The latter employs special techniques like ultra-gravity technology, sol-gel methods, chemical crystallization, secondary crystallization, or reverse micelle microemulsion. White carbon black is a porous material with the composition SiO₂·nH₂O, where nH₂O exists in the form of surface hydroxyl groups. It is heat-resistant, non-flammable, odorless, and has excellent electrical insulation properties.
Silica Fume
Silica fume is very fine noncrystalline silica produced in electric arc furnaces as a byproduct of the production of elemental silicon or alloys containing silicon. This recycled material can be added directly to concrete as an individual ingredient or in a blend of portland cement and silica fume.
Silica fume consists primarily of amorphous (non-crystalline) silicon dioxide (SiO2). The individual particles are extremely small, approximately 1/100th the size of an average cement particle. Because of its fine particles, large surface area and the high SiO2 content, silica fume is a very reactive pozzolan when used in concrete.
Benefits of Silica Fume
- Silica-fume concrete with a low water content is highly resistant to penetration by chloride ions eliminating corrosion induced by deicing or marine salts.
- It’s available in wet or dry forms.
- The small particle size, which is 100 times finer than ordinary portland cement complements, provides a ball-bearing effect which improves thixotropic behavior, in effect modifying concrete viscosity.
- The high surface area of silica fume particles affects the mobility of water within concrete so segregation and bleeding of concrete are virtually eliminated.
- High cohesive workability and the ability to hold long distance pumping of concrete.
- Used to enhance mechanical and durability properties of concrete.
Differences Between Silica Fume and Quartz Powder
Physical Properties
Both silica fume and quartz powder are fine materials with particle sizes typically below 1 micron. However, their physical properties differ. Silica fume is usually lightweight, loose, and has low density, while quartz powder is denser and heavier.
Chemical Composition
Chemically, silica fume and quartz powder also differ. Silica fume is a form of silicon dioxide (SiO₂) with a crystal structure similar to quartz but often amorphous due to its small particle size, featuring many active surface groups. Quartz powder, on the other hand, is produced by crushing and grinding large quartz crystals. with its chemical composition also being SiO₂.
Application Areas
Both materials are widely used in industry but in different fields. Silica fume is commonly used in electronics, optics, ceramics, cosmetics, coatings, and plastics to enhance material stability, reduce costs, and improve processing performance. Quartz powder is mainly used in glass, ceramics, cement, construction materials, and metal surface coatings, where its high hardness and chemical stability make it a key component in many functional materials.
Over Epic Powder
Episch poeder specializes in the research, development, and production of advanced powder processing technologies. We provide innovative solutions for industries utilizing non-metallic minerals such as quartz, silica, calcium carbonate, and more. Episch poeder focuses on ultrafine grinding, precise classification, and surface modification solutions. Our independently developed grinding mills and air classifiers are widely applied in the production of high-performance powders like quartz. Committed to quality and sustainability, Epic Powder empowers our clients with cutting-edge powder solutions tailored to your specific needs.
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— Jason Wang, Senior ingenieur
