HIGH PUREQUARTZ PRODUCT PRODUCED FROM BASIC FLOTATION OF PRIMARY CLAY MATERIAL
Vancouver, BC, (July 28, 2011) -- i-minerals inc. (TSX.V:IMA , US OTC: IMAHF) announces it has received initial results from Dorfner Anzaplan (“Dorfner”) a specialty quartz testing laboratory in Germany. Dorfner’s initial work included a detailed analysis of the quartz product derived from the primary clay material from the Company’s Bovill Kaolin Project. The material was first processed at Ginn Mineral Research in Sandersville, Georgia, wherein the clay fraction (kaolin + halloysite) was separated from the sand fraction (feldspar + quartz). The sand fraction was then sent to Minerals Research Laboratory at North Carolina State University (“MRL”) where four quartz products were created using a multiple flotation techniques: a 30 mesh one float product (“2011 F1 30”); a finer grind 50 mesh one float product (“2011 F1 50”); a 50 mesh two float product (“2011 F2 50”) and a 50 mesh three float product (“2011 F3 50”). Dorfner completed analysis of each of the four samples with the results as follows:
2011 F1 30
2011 F1 50
2011 F2 50
2011 F3 50
total impurities (ppm)
1742.07
355.57
303.92
279.57
SiO2 purity
99.730%
99.944%
99.953%
99.956%
High pure quartz products have total impurities less than 500 parts per million (“ppm”) or greater than 99.95% SiO2. All of the 50 mesh products tested by Dorfner reported total impurities of 356 ppm or less. The purity levels achieved after the single and second float are some of the best results achieved to date. At least 80% of impurities are attributable to Al+K+Na indicating there is likely trace amounts of feldspar in the quartz product.
High pure quartz products are used in a variety of applications including solar glass, specialty chemicals manufacturing, and optical applications including fibre optics. Various applications required different specifications for total element content. i-minerals is undertaking additional analysis for less common elements to confirm the quartz product is acceptable into a variety of markets and applications.
The company has commissioned Dorfner to undertake a series of leach testing to see how much further the trace elements can be reduced.
With these results we have now produced high pure quartz from both the granitoid ores of our Kelly’s Basin deposit and the primary clay from the neighboring Bovill Kaolin project,” commented Thomas Conway, President and CEO of i-minerals inc. ”To have achieved this level of purity through basic flotation leaves the company well positioned to be a low cost producer of high purity quartz products and naturally we are all very encouraged with these results.”
A. Lamar Long, CPG, is the Qualified Person (“QP”) for the Helmer-Bovill project under NI 43-101. He oversees the quality control and quality assurance program and the construction of all samples for metallurgical analysis and reviews all analytical results prior to public release.
About i-minerals inc.
i-minerals holds ten minerals leases in northwestern Idaho that hosts Kelly’s Basin feldspar-quartz deposit that is the subject of an ongoing feasibility study. . High purity quartz (>99.98% SiO2) can be produced through a standard flotation process. A pre-feasibility study completed by SRK Consulting (USA) Inc. of Denver Co (“SRK”), calculated a NPV of $61 million and an IRR of 19%. Preliminary exploration work on occurrences of primary clay deposits has identified variable concentrations of kaolinite, halloysite, quartz and feldspar. The Company commissioned SRK to complete and initial assessment of the primary clay deposits through a Preliminary Economic Assessment (the “PEA”) which is based upon limited, widely spaced drilling over large areas. While additional assessment work is required to fully assess the economic viability of the deposits, the PEA yielded a NPV of $95 million and an IRR of 48% and indicated these primary clay deposits may represent the largest deposit of halloysite in North America. Halloysite is a unique tubular shaped alumina-silicate mineral often referred to as a halloysite nanotube which is being increasingly used in nanotechnology applications.
