Nasarawa State has been appropriately tagged as "Nigeria’s Home of Solid Minerals". The State is one of the most naturally endowed states in Nigeria in terms of the availability of economically and commercially viable natural resources. Indeed each of the 13 Local Government Areas in the State is uniquely blessed with one form of Solid Mineral deposit or the other which can be sold in the local and international markets.

Below is a distribution of the Solid Minerals and their industrial application.

S/N		MINERAL		INDUSTRIAL APPLICATION
1		Beryl (Emerald, Aquamarine  and Heliodor)		--Major source of the metal Berylium alloys with copper to produce hard, fatigue resistant metal of high tensile strength. --Extracted Berylium is used as a moderator in nuclear reactions. --Oxide (Beo) derived from Beryl is an excellent refractory withstanding temperatures of up to 2,750oC
2		Sapphire		--Used as watch jewels, bearings in scientific instruments. Also for ornamental purposes.
3		Tourmaline		--Used in the manufacture of pressure gauges to measure transient blast pressure. Also for ornamental purposes.
4		Quartz		--Used in glass and silica bricks; paint scouring, soaps and sand paper. --In its powered form, it is used in porcelain, paint, sand paper, scouring soaps and as a wood filter. --It is used in construction mortal and cement and flux metallurgy.
5		Amethyst Garnet Topaz		--Mostly used for ornamental purposes. --Sometimes used for the manufacture of abrasives, coated paper, grindstones, sharpening stones and scouring powders.
6		Zircon		--It is a major source of Zinconia (Oxide of Zirconium metal) used for refractories, muffle furnaces, fire bricks for electrical porcelain, best sparking plugs, for refining precious metals, roof of electrical furnaces, white opacifier in enamel industry, paints and lacquers in abrasives and polishing powder. --Used as insulator of heat and electricity.
7		Tantalite		--Source of Tantalum used in the production of special steels especially those for dental and surgical instruments. --Manufacture of space crafts
8		Cassiterite		--Tin plating for making Tin cans. --Making alloy solders (Tin 50%, Lead 50%). Used for sealing of Tin cans, automobile radiators and electrical equipment.
9		Columbite		--Source of Niobium used as an alloy of steel to form weldable high speed steel for radio transmitting valves, heat sensitive detective devices called barometer, for jet engines and other aircraft components, etc.
10		Ilmenite		--Source of Titanium dioxide which is used for white paint pigments. --Source of Titanium metal used for ferro titanium alloys. --Used as de-oxidizer and for stabilizing ore.
11		Galena		--Lead (metal) used in storage batteries --Paints (white lead) PbC03 alloys for various uses.
12		Iron Ore		--For making cast iron, wrought iron, steel for various uses. Also used for making alloys for various uses.
13		Barytes		--Source of barium metal used in alloy. --Barium with Lead and calcium for bearings – alloy with Aluminum magnesium and Nickel for Radio valves, with Iron as Barium ferrite for permanent magnets. --Used as drilling mud in the petroleum industry
14		Feldspars		--Used in glass manufacturing, ceramic industry as part of the body of the ware and as a constituent of the glazes on pottery, tiles, porcelain, insulators.
15		Limestone		--Source of calcium metal used as a de-oxidizer and scavenger in refining copper, aluminum, chromium and nickel and reducing Uranium oxide to uranium. --In cement manufacture --In metallurgy as flux --As filter in paints --Construction work --For hydrated lime production
16		Mica		--Muscovite used chiefly as electrical insulator, production of generators, telephone, condensers. --Used as fillers in production of tyres and tubes and as dry lubricants.
17		Coaking coal		--For producing pig iron --Steel production --As fuel to provide heat --To raise steam for power stations, railways and domestic purposes --for producing coal gas.
18		Talc		--In paints as extender --In ceramics for tiles, electrical porcelain and table ware, tips of barriers and for refractory purposes --Cosmetic industry, etc.
19		Clays		--For building bricks, flower pots, floor tiles, fencing bricks, etc.
20		Glass sand		--Glass industry, for coloured and white glass containers, bottles. Also as synthetic marble and for table wares, sanitary wares.
21		Dolomite/Marble		--For Refractory furnace, building materials, source of carbon dioxides, terazzo tiles, floor and wall tiles.
22		Salt		--For food seasoning and preservation --In chemical industry to prepare soda ash, caustic soda and sodium sulphate, etc --For chlorine production.
23		Chalcopyrite		--Sulphur to manufacture sulphur ointment for skin medication --Sulphur to sulphuric acid, etc.

 

 

 

DISTRIBUTION OF SOLID MINERALS IN NASARAWA STATE

S/N	LOCAL AREA	SOLID MINERAL
1	Akwanga	Cassiterite, Clay, Columbite, Ilmenite, Mica
2	Awe	Barytes, Pyrite, Clay, Galena, Limestone, Sodium Chloride, Ephalerite.
3	Doma	Clay, Silica sand
4	Keana	Baryte, Galena, Salt, Limestone
5	Karu	Clay, Silica sand, Granites, Tantalite, Mica, Sphalerite
6	Keffi	Clay, Talc, Gemstone (Tourmaline, Aquamarine and Sapphire)
7	Kokona	Tourmaline, Aquamarine, Mica, Chalcopyrite
8	Lafia	Clay, Silica sand, Topaz
9	Nasarawa	Cassiterite, Clay, Columbite, Tantalite
10	Nasarawa Eggon	Emerald, Aquamarine, Heliodor, Topaz, Amethyst, Quartz, Mica, Granite
11	Obi	Baryte, Clay, Coaking coal
12	Toto	Marble, Iron ore, Mica
13	Wamba	Tantalite, Cassiterite, Columbite, Granite, Ilmenite, Aquamarine

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Page Transmitted 10 February 2000

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