Jamaica has begun to study the possibilities of extracting titanium, a metallic substance used in the manufacture of strong, lightweight alloys, from red mud, the effluent left when bauxite is refined into alumina.

"We have begun the literature work on titanium oxide and its extraction metallurgy in red mud," said Dr. Carlton Davis, the chairman of the Jamaica Bauxite Institute (JBI).

Titanium is used especially in the manufacture of products such as aircraft parts.

Post-bauxite strategy

Jamaica is looking at the possibility of extracting the metal as part of its post-bauxite strategy, given that the island's mineral reserves of bauxite ore could be depleted in about 50 years.

Jamaica produces over four million tonnes of alumina annually, and for every tonne of the product it manufacturers, there is a tonne of red mud which is either stored in large ponds as effluent, on dried and stacked. Each tonne of red mud contains about six per cent of titanium oxide.

"This is a future resource," said Davis. "Titanium is a high-value metal."

Red mud also contains high levels of iron oxide, used in the manufacture of steel. But the high-energy requirement in steel production, the high cost of oil, and the ready availability of the mineral have pushed work on extracting iron oxide on the back burner.

Jamaica is looking at the possibility of extracting the metal as part of its post-bauxite strategy, given that the island's mineral reserves of bauxite ore could be depleted in about 50 years.