Researcher turns attention to strontium

The metal strontium has come under the research eye of Dr. J. E. Gruzleski of McGill University’s department of mining and metallurgical engineering.

Backed by grants extending over three years of $184,998 from Chromasco and $238,500 from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Dr. Gruzleski will study the fundamental effects of strontium in aluminum alloys as well as investigate potential new applications for strontium in the non-ferrous metals industry (for example, aluminum base die castings, magnesium alloys).

Strontium is coming into greater use in aluminum alloys in the automotive and aerospace industries because of its ability to impart beneficial properties to the alloys without adding weight.

Research such as Dr. Gruzleski’s will increase the understanding of strontium’s metallurgical characteristics.

Chromasco, a division of Timminco Ltd. and located at Haley, Ont., is the world’s largest producer of strontium and the only producer in Canada. The company buys strontium carbonate, the primary raw material used to produce the metal, from a limited number of offshore suppliers. Strontium carbonate is derived from the concentration and conversion of high- quality celestite.

In November, 1985, Timminco was granted a licence in Nova Scotia to develop celestite ore deposits in Cape Breton cty. The company simultaneously secured the exploration rights to another nearby celestite ore body. A program to determine the economic viability of the two ore bodies continues.

Timminco has already begun a multi-year program during which it plans to spend approximately $23.3 million to increase non- ferrous metals production capacity — and to cut production costs — at Haley and nearby Westmeath. Part of the program involves installing a production facility for high-purity strontium at Westmeath.

Strontium is used by the aluminum industry to modify aluminum- silicon alloy castings. These castings are used principally in automotive parts where the strontium component provides beneficial properties such as increased strength and ductility to aluminum wheels, enhanced cooling capacity to cyclinder heads and improved pressure tightness to intake manifolds.