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{{Short description|Titanium-iron oxide mineral}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox mineral
| name = Ilmenite
| category = [[Oxide mineral]]
| boxwidth =
| boxbgcolor =
| image = Ilmenite-155036.jpg
| imagesize =
| caption = Ilmenite from Miass, Ilmen Mts, Chelyabinsk Oblast', Southern Urals, Urals Region, Russia. 4.5 x 4.3 x 1.5 cm
| formula = iron titanium oxide, {{Chem|Fe||Ti||O|3}}
| IMAsymbol = Ilm<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Warr|first=L.N.|date=2021|title=IMA–CNMNC approved mineral symbols|journal=Mineralogical Magazine|volume=85|issue=3|pages=291–320|doi=10.1180/mgm.2021.43|bibcode=2021MinM...85..291W|s2cid=235729616|doi-access=free}}</ref>
| strunz = 4.CB.05
| dana = 04.03.05.01
| system = [[Trigonal]]
| class = Rhombohedral ({{overline|3}}) [[H-M symbol]]: ({{overline|3}})
| symmetry = ''R''{{overline|3}} (no. 148)
| unit cell = a = 5.08854(7) c = 14.0924(3) [Å]: Z = 6
| color = Iron-black; gray with a brownish tint in reflected light
| habit = Granular to massive and lamellar exsolutions in hematite or magnetite
| twinning = {0001} simple, {10{{overline|1}}1} lamellar
| cleavage = absent; parting on {0001} and {10{{overline|1}}1}
| fracture = Conchoidal to subconchoidal
| tenacity = Brittle
| mohs = 5–6
| luster = Metallic to submetallic
| refractive =
| opticalprop = Uniaxial (–)
| birefringence = Strong; O = pinkish brown, E = dark brown (bireflectance)
| pleochroism =
| streak = Black
| gravity = 4.70–4.79
| density =
| melt =
| fusibility =
| diagnostic =
| solubility =
| diaphaneity = Opaque
| other = weakly magnetic
| references = <ref>{{cite web |last1=Barthelmy |first1=David |title=Ilmenite Mineral Data |url=http://webmineral.com/data/Ilmenite.shtml |website=Mineralogy Database |publisher=Webmineral.com |access-date=12 February 2022 |date=2014}}</ref><ref name=HBM>{{cite book |editor-first1=John W. |editor-last1=Anthony |editor-first2=Richard A. |editor-last2=Bideaux |editor-first3=Kenneth W. |editor-last3=Bladh |editor-first4=Monte C. |editor-last4=Nichols |title=Handbook of Mineralogy |publisher=Mineralogical Society of America |location=Chantilly, VA, USA |url=http://rruff.geo.arizona.edu/doclib/hom/ilmenite.pdf |access-date=12 February 2022 |chapter=Ilmenite}}</ref><ref name=Mindat>{{mindat|id=2013|name=ilmenite}}</ref>
}}

'''Ilmenite''' is a titanium-iron [[oxide mineral]] with the idealized formula {{Chem|Fe||Ti||O|3}}. It is a weakly magnetic black or steel-gray solid. Ilmenite is the most important ore of [[titanium]]<ref>Heinz Sibum, Volker Günther, Oskar Roidl, Fathi Habashi, Hans Uwe Wolf, "Titanium, Titanium Alloys, and Titanium Compounds" in Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry 2005, Wiley-VCH, Weinheim. {{doi|10.1002/14356007.a27_095}}</ref> and the main source of [[titanium dioxide]], which is used in paints, printing inks,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sanbohk.com/uploadfiles/2014-2/2014211105416156.pdf|title=Sachtleben RDI-S|access-date=2018-12-25|archive-date=2018-12-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225130335/http://www.sanbohk.com/uploadfiles/2014-2/2014211105416156.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> fabrics, plastics, paper, sunscreen, food and cosmetics.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.mineralcommodities.com/products/|title=Products|website=Mineral Commodities Ltd|access-date=2016-08-08}}</ref>

== Structure and properties ==
Ilmenite is a heavy (specific gravity 4.7), moderately hard (Mohs hardness 5.6 to 6), opaque black mineral with a submetallic luster.<ref name=KleinHurlbut1993/> It is almost always massive, with thick tabular crystals being quite rare. It shows no discernible cleavage, breaking instead with a conchoidal to uneven fracture.<ref name=Sinkankas1964/>

Ilmenite crystallizes in the [[trigonal]] system with space group ''R''{{overline|3}}.<ref name=Nesse2000>{{cite book |last1=Nesse |first1=William D. |title=Introduction to mineralogy |date=2000 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York |isbn=9780195106916 |pages=366–367}}</ref><ref name=HBM/> The ilmenite [[crystal structure]] consists of an ordered derivative of the [[corundum]] structure; in corundum all cations are identical but in ilmenite Fe2+ and Ti4+ ions occupy alternating layers perpendicular to the trigonal c axis.

Pure ilmenite is [[paramagnetic]] (showing only very weak attraction to a magnet), but ilmenite forms [[solid solution]]s with [[hematite]] that are weakly [[ferromagnetic]] and so are noticeably attracted to a magnet. Natural deposits of ilmenite usually contain intergrown or exsolved [[magnetite]] that also contribute to its ferromagnetism.<ref name=KleinHurlbut1993>{{cite book |last1=Klein |first1=Cornelis |last2=Hurlbut |first2=Cornelius S. Jr. |title=Manual of mineralogy : (after James D. Dana) |date=1993 |publisher=Wiley |location=New York |isbn=047157452X |edition=21st |pages=380–381}}</ref>

Ilmenite is distinguished from hematite by its less intensely black color and duller appearance and its black [[Streak (mineralogy)|streak]], and from magnetite by its weaker magnetism.<ref name=Sinkankas1964>{{cite book |last1=Sinkankas |first1=John |title=Mineralogy for amateurs. |date=1964 |publisher=Van Nostrand |location=Princeton, N.J. |isbn=0442276249 |pages=328–329}}</ref><ref name=KleinHurlbut1993/>

<gallery>

Image:Ilmenite.GIF|Crystal structure of ilmenite
File:Ilmenite-65675.jpg|Ilmenite from Froland, Aust-Agder, Norway; 4.1 x 4.1 x 3.8 cm
File:Ilmenite and hematite under normal light.jpg|Ilmenite and hematite under normal light
File:Ilmenite and hematite under polarized light.jpg|Ilmenite and hematite under polarized light
</gallery>

==Discovery==
In 1791 [[William Gregor]] discovered a deposit of black sand in a stream that runs through the valley just south of the village of [[Manaccan]] ([[Cornwall]]), and identified for the first time titanium as one of the constituents of the main mineral in the sand.<ref>Gregor, William (1791) "Beobachtungen und Versuche über den Menakanit, einen in Cornwall gefundenen magnetischen Sand" (Observations and experiments regarding menaccanite [i.e., ilmenite], a magnetic sand found in Cornwall), ''Chemische Annalen'' …, '''1''', [https://books.google.com/books?id=ZFAyAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA40 pp. 40–54], [https://books.google.com/books?id=ZFAyAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA103 103–119.]</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Nature's Building Blocks: An A-Z Guide to the Elements|last1=Emsley|first1=John|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2001|location=Oxford, England, UK|isbn=978-0-19-850340-8 |chapter=Titanium |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j-Xu07p3cKwC|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/naturesbuildingb0000emsl}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Woodford |first1=Chris|author1-link=Chris Woodford (author) |title=Titanium |date=2003 |publisher=Benchmark Books |location=New York |isbn=9780761414612 |page=7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=84W_FvfskTsC&dq=history+of+titanium&pg=PA4 |access-date=22 February 2022}}</ref> Gregor named this mineral '''''manaccanite'''''.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Habashi |first1=Fathi |title=Historical Introduction to Refractory Metals |journal=Mineral Processing and Extractive Metallurgy Review |date=January 2001 |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=25–53 |doi=10.1080/08827509808962488|bibcode=2001MPEMR..22...25H |s2cid=100370649 }}</ref> The same mineral was found in the [[Ilmensky Mountains]], near [[Miass]], [[Russia]], and named ''ilmenite''.<ref name=Sinkankas1964/>

== Mineral chemistry ==
Pure ilmenite has the composition {{chem2|FeTiO3}}. However, ilmenite most often contains appreciable quantities of magnesium and manganese and up to 6 [[wt%]] of hematite, {{chem2|Fe2O3}}, substituting for {{chem2|FeTiO3}} in the crystal structure. Thus the full chemical formula can be expressed as {{chem2|(Fe,Mg,Mn,Ti)O3}}.<ref name=KleinHurlbut1993/> Ilmenite forms a solid solution with [[geikielite]] ({{Chem|Mg||Ti||O|3}}) and [[pyrophanite]] ({{Chem|Mn||Ti||O|3}}) which are magnesian and manganiferous end-members of the [[solid solution]] series.<ref name=HBM/>

Although ilmenite is typically close to the ideal {{Chem|Fe||Ti||O|3}} composition, with minor mole percentages of Mn and Mg,<ref name=HBM/> the ilmenites of [[kimberlite]]s usually contain substantial amounts of geikielite molecules,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wyatt |first1=Bruce A. |last2=Baumgartner |first2=Mike |last3=Anckar |first3=Eva |last4=Grutter |first4=Herman |title=Compositional classification of "kimberlitic" and "non-kimberlitic" ilmenite |journal=Lithos |date=September 2004 |volume=77 |issue=1–4 |pages=819–840 |doi=10.1016/j.lithos.2004.04.025|bibcode=2004Litho..77..819W |s2cid=140539776 }}</ref> and in some highly differentiated [[felsic]] rocks ilmenites may contain significant amounts of pyrophanite molecules.<ref name=SasakiEtal2003>{{cite journal |last1=Sasaki |first1=Kazuhiro |last2=Nakashima |first2=Kazuo |last3=Kanisawa |first3=Satoshi |title=Pyrophanite and high Mn ilmenite discovered in the Cretaceous Tono pluton, NE Japan |journal=Neues Jahrbuch für Mineralogie - Monatshefte |date=15 July 2003 |volume=2003 |issue=7 |pages=302–320 |doi=10.1127/0028-3649/2003/2003-0302}}</ref>

At temperatures above {{convert|950|C||sp=us}}, there is a complete solid solution between ilmenite and [[hematite]]. There is a [[miscibility gap]] at lower temperatures, resulting in a coexistence of these two minerals in rocks but no solid solution.<ref name=KleinHurlbut1993/> This coexistence may result in exsolution lamellae in cooled ilmenites with more iron in the system than can be homogeneously accommodated in the crystal lattice.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Weibel |first1=Rikke |last2=Friis |first2=Henrik |title=Chapter 10 Alteration of Opaque Heavy Minerals as a Reflection of the Geochemical Conditions in Depositional and Diagenetic Environments |journal=Developments in Sedimentology |date=2007 |volume=58 |pages=277–303 |doi=10.1016/S0070-4571(07)58010-6|isbn=9780444517531 }}</ref> Ilmenite containing 6 to 13 percent {{chem2|Fe2O3}} is sometimes described as ''ferrian ilmenite''.<ref name=BuddingtonLindsley1964>{{cite journal |last1=Buddington |first1=A. F. |last2=Lindsley |first2=D. H. |title=Iron-Titanium Oxide Minerals and Synthetic Equivalents |journal=Journal of Petrology |date=1 January 1964 |volume=5 |issue=2 |pages=310–357 |doi=10.1093/petrology/5.2.310}}</ref><ref name=MurphyFrick2006>{{cite book |last1=Murphy |first1=P. |last2=Frick |first2=L. |year=2006 |chapter=Titanium |title=Industrial minerals & rocks: commodities, markets, and uses |editor-last1=Kogel |editor-first1=J. |publisher=SME |pages=987–1003 |isbn=9780873352338 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zNicdkuulE4C&q=Titanium |access-date=21 February 2022}}</ref>

Ilmenite [[Metasomatism|alters]] or [[Weathering|weathers]] to form the [[Mineral#Differences between minerals and rocks|pseudo-mineral]] [[leucoxene]], a fine-grained yellowish to grayish or brownish material<ref name=KleinHurlbut1993/><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Mücke |first1=A. |last2=Bhadra Chaudhuri |first2=J.N. |title=The continuous alteration of ilmenite through pseudorutile to leucoxene |journal=Ore Geology Reviews |date=February 1991 |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=25–44 |doi=10.1016/0169-1368(91)90030-B|bibcode=1991OGRv....6...25M }}</ref> enriched to 70% or more of {{chem2|TiO2}}.<ref name=MurphyFrick2006/> Leucoxene is an important source of titanium in [[heavy mineral sands ore deposits]].<ref name="VanGosenEtal2014">{{cite journal |last1=Van Gosen |first1=Bradley S. |last2=Fey |first2=David L. |last3=Shah |first3=Anjana K. |last4=Verplanck |first4=Philip L. |last5=Hoefen |first5=Todd M. |title=Deposit model for heavy-mineral sands in coastal environments |journal=U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report |series=Scientific Investigations Report |date=2014 |volume=201--5070-L |doi=10.3133/sir20105070L|doi-access=free }}</ref>

== Paragenesis ==
Ilmenite is a common accessory mineral found in [[metamorphic rock|metamorphic]] and [[igneous rock]]s.<ref name=HBM/> It is found in large concentrations in [[layered intrusion]]s where it forms as part of a [[cumulate rock|cumulate]] layer within the intrusion. Ilmenite generally occurs in these cumulates together with [[orthopyroxene]]<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Wilson |first1=J.R. |last2=Robins |first2=B. |last3=Nielsen |first3=F.M. |last4=Duchesne |first4=J.C. |last5=Vander Auwera |first5=J. |title=The Bjerkreim-Sokndal Layered Intrusion, Southwest Norway |journal=Developments in Petrology |date=1996 |volume=15 |pages=231–255 |doi=10.1016/S0167-2894(96)80009-1|hdl=2268/550 |isbn=9780444817686 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> or in combination with [[plagioclase]] and [[apatite]] (''[[nelsonite]]'').<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Charlier |first1=Bernard |last2=Sakoma |first2=Emmanuel |last3=Sauvé |first3=Martin |last4=Stanaway |first4=Kerry |last5=Auwera |first5=Jacqueline Vander |last6=Duchesne |first6=Jean-Clair |title=The Grader layered intrusion (Havre-Saint-Pierre Anorthosite, Quebec) and genesis of nelsonite and other Fe–Ti–P ores |journal=Lithos |date=March 2008 |volume=101 |issue=3–4 |pages=359–378 |doi=10.1016/j.lithos.2007.08.004|bibcode=2008Litho.101..359C }}</ref>

[[Magnesium|Magnesian]] ilmenite is formed in [[kimberlite]]s as part of the MARID association of minerals ([[mica]]-[[amphibole]]-[[rutile]]-ilmenite-[[diopside]]) assemblage of [[Biotite|glimmerite]] [[xenolith]]s.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Dawson |first1=J.Barry |last2=Smith |first2=Joseph V. |title=The MARID (mica-amphibole-rutile-ilmenite-diopside) suite of xenoliths in kimberlite |journal=Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta |date=February 1977 |volume=41 |issue=2 |pages=309–323 |doi=10.1016/0016-7037(77)90239-3|bibcode=1977GeCoA..41..309D }}</ref> [[Manganese|Manganiferous]] ilmenite is found in [[granite|granitic]] rocks<ref name=SasakiEtal2003/> and also in [[carbonatite]] intrusions where it may also contain anomalously high amounts of [[niobium]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Cordeiro |first1=Pedro F.O. |last2=Brod |first2=José A. |last3=Dantas |first3=Elton L. |last4=Barbosa |first4=Elisa S.R. |title=Mineral chemistry, isotope geochemistry and petrogenesis of niobium-rich rocks from the Catalão I carbonatite-phoscorite complex, Central Brazil |journal=Lithos |date=August 2010 |volume=118 |issue=3–4 |pages=223–237 |doi=10.1016/j.lithos.2010.04.007|bibcode=2010Litho.118..223C }}</ref>

Many [[mafic]] [[igneous rock]]s contain grains of intergrown [[magnetite]] and ilmenite, formed by the [[oxidation]] of [[ulvospinel]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Buddington |first1=A. F. |last2=Lindsley |first2=D. H. |title=Iron-Titanium Oxide Minerals and Synthetic Equivalents |journal=Journal of Petrology |date=1 January 1964 |volume=5 |issue=2 |pages=310–357 |doi=10.1093/petrology/5.2.310}}</ref>

== Processing and consumption ==
[[File:Tellnes.jpg|thumb|300px|Tellnes opencast ilmenite mine, [[Sokndal]], Norway]]

Most ilmenite is mined for [[titanium dioxide]] production.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.mineralcommodities.com/products/industry-fundamentals/|title=Industry Fundamentals|website=Mineral Commodities Ltd|access-date=2016-08-08|archive-date=2016-10-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161007145819/http://www.mineralcommodities.com/products/industry-fundamentals/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Ilmenite and titanium dioxide are used in the production of [[titanium]] metal.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Kroll|first=W|title=The production of ductile titanium|journal= Transactions of the Electrochemical Society|volume=78|pages=35–47|doi=10.1149/1.3071290|year=1940}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Seki|first=Ichiro|title=Reduction of titanium dioxide to metallic titanium by nitridization and thermal decomposition|url=https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/matertrans/58/3/58_MK201601/_pdf|journal=Materials Transactions|volume=58|issue= 3|pages=361–366|doi=10.2320/matertrans.MK201601|year=2017|doi-access=free}}</ref>

Titanium dioxide is most used as a white pigment and the major consuming industries for TiO2 pigments are paints and surface coatings, plastics, and paper and paperboard. Per capita consumption of TiO2 in China is about 1.1 kilograms per year, compared with 2.7 kilograms for Western Europe and the United States.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ihsmarkit.com/products/titanium-dioxide-chemical-economics-handbook.html|title=Titanium Dioxide Chemical Economics Handbook}}</ref>

Ilmenite can be converted into pigment grade [[titanium dioxide]] via either the sulfate process or the [[chloride process]].<ref name=Ullmann>{{Ullmann|author=Völz, Hans G. |display-authors=etal |title=Pigments, Inorganic|year=2006|doi=10.1002/14356007.a20_243.pub2}}</ref> Ilmenite can also be improved and purified to titanium dioxide in the form of [[rutile]] using the [[Becher process]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Welham |first1=N.J. |title=A parametric study of the mechanically activated carbothermic reduction of ilmenite |journal=Minerals Engineering |date=December 1996 |volume=9 |issue=12 |pages=1189–1200 |doi=10.1016/S0892-6875(96)00115-X|bibcode=1996MiEng...9.1189W }}</ref>

Ilmenite ores can also be converted to liquid [[iron]] and a titanium-rich slag using a smelting process.<ref>{{citation| url = https://www.saimm.co.za/Journal/v108n01p035.pdf | title = Ilmenite smelting: the basics| first = P.C. |last = Pistorius | journal = The Journal of the South African Institute of Mining and Metallurgy | volume = 108 | date = Jan 2008 }}</ref>

Ilmenite ore is used as a flux by steelmakers to line blast furnace hearth refractory.<ref name="RTFT Products">{{cite web|title=Rio Tinto, Fer et Titane - Products|url=http://www.rtft.com/ENC/index_ourproducts.asp|publisher=Rio Tinto Group|access-date=19 Aug 2012|archive-date=6 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150506221657/http://www.rtft.com/ENC/index_ourproducts.asp|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Ilmenite can be used to produce [[ferrotitanium]] via an [[aluminothermic]] reduction.<ref name="FerroAlloy">{{cite book |title=Handbook of Ferroalloys: Theory and Technology |publisher=Elsevier |editor-last1=Gasik |editor-first1=Michael |year=2013 |location=London |pages=429 |isbn=978-0-08-097753-9}}</ref>

== Feedstock production ==
{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; clear:right; margin:0 0 .5em 1em;"
|+Various ilmenite feedstock grades.<REF>{{citation|last=Hayes|year=2011|first=Tony|title=Titanium Dioxide: A Shining Future Ahead|url=http://argex.ca/documents/Euro_Pacific_Canada_Titanium_Dioxide_August2011.pdf|publisher=Euro Pacific Canada|access-date=16 Aug 2012|page=5}}{{dead link|date=August 2018}}</ref>
|-
! Feedstock || {{Chem|Ti||O|2}} Content || Process
|-
! || (%) ||
|-
| Ore || <55 || Sulfate
|-
| Ore || >55 || Chloride
|-
| Ore || <50 || Smelting (slag)
|-
| Synthetic rutile || 88-95 || Chloride
|-
| Chloride slag || 85-95 || Chloride
|-
| Sulfate slag || 80 || Sulfate
|}
{| class="wikitable" style="float:right; clear:right; margin:0 0 .5em 1em;"
|+Estimated contained {{Chem|Ti||O|2}}. production{{sfn|Hayes|2011|p=5}}<ref>USGS 2012 Survey, p. 174</ref> (Metric tpa x 1,000, ilmenite & rutile)
|-
! Year || 2011 || 2012-13
|-
! Country || USGS || Projected
|-
| [[Australia]] || 1,300 || 247
|-
| [[South Africa]] || 1,161 || 190
|-
| [[Mozambique]] || 516 || 250
|-
| [[Canada]]|| 700||
|-
| [[India]] || 574||
|-
| [[China]] || 500||
|-
| [[Vietnam]] || 490||
|-
| [[Ukraine]] || 357||
|-
| [[Senegal]] || - || 330
|-
| [[Norway]] || 300||
|-
| [[United States]] || 300||
|-
| [[Madagascar]] || 288||
|-
| [[Kenya]] || - || 246
|-
| [[Sri Lanka]] || 62 ||
|-
| [[Sierra Leone]] || 60||
|-
| [[Brazil]] || 48||
|-
| Other countries || 37||
|-
| Total world || ~6,700 || ~1,250
|}

Most ilmenite is recovered from heavy mineral sands ore deposits, where the mineral is concentrated as a [[placer deposit]] and weathering reduces its iron content, increasing the percentage of titanium. However, ilmenite can also be recovered from "hard rock" titanium ore sources, such as [[ultramafic to mafic layered intrusions]] or [[anorthosite]] [[massif]]s. The ilmenite in layered intrusions is sometimes abundant, but it contains considerable intergrowths of magnetite that reduce its ore grade. Ilmenite from anorthosite massifs often contain large amounts of calcium or magnesium that render it unsuitable for the [[chloride process]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Murphy |first1=Philip |last2=Frick |first2=Louise |title=Industrial minerals & rocks : commodities, markets, and uses. |date=2006 |publisher=Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration |location=Littleton, Colo. |isbn=9780873352338 |pages=990–991 |edition=7th |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zNicdkuulE4C |access-date=23 February 2022 |chapter=Titanium |editor-first1=James M. |editor-last1=Barker |editor-first2=Jessica Elzea |editor-last2=Kogel |editor-first3=Nikhil C. |editor-last3=Trivedi |editor-first4=Stanley T. |editor-last4=Krukowski}}</ref>

The proven reserves of ilmenite and rutile ore are estimated at between 423 and 600 million tonnes titanium dioxide. The largest ilmenite deposits are in South Africa, India, the United States, Canada, Norway, Australia, Ukraine, Russia and Kazakhstan. Additional deposits are found in Bangladesh, Chile, Mexico and New Zealand.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Güther |first1=V. |last2=Sibum |first2=H. |last3=Roidl |first3=O. |last4=Habashi |first4=F. |last5=Wolf |first5=H |year= 2005 |chapter=Titanium, Titanium Alloys, and Titanium Compounds |title=Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry |publisher=Wiley InterScience |isbn=978-3-527-30673-2}}</ref>

Australia was the world's largest ilmenite ore producer in 2011, with about 1.3 million tonnes of production, followed by South Africa, Canada, Mozambique, India, China, Vietnam, Ukraine, Norway, Madagascar and United States.

The top four ilmenite and rutile feedstock producers in 2010 were [[Rio Tinto Group]], [[Iluka Resources]], Exxaro and [[Kenmare Resources]], which collectively accounted for more than 60% of world's supplies.{{sfn|Hayes|2011|p=3}}

The world's two largest [[Open cast mining|open cast]] ilmenite mines are:
* The [[Tellnes mine]] located in [[Sokndal]], [[Norway]], and run by Titania AS (owned by Kronos Worldwide Inc.) with 0.55 Mtpa capacity and 57 Mt contained {{Chem|Ti||O|2}} reserves.
* The Rio Tinto Group's Lac Tio mine located near [[Havre Saint-Pierre]], Quebec in [[Canada]] with a 3 Mtpa capacity and 52 Mt reserves.<ref name="Lac Tio Page">{{cite web|title=Lac Tio Mine|url=http://www.infomine.com/minesite/minesite.asp?site=lactio|publisher=InfoMine|access-date=16 Aug 2012}}</ref>

Major mineral sands based ilmenite mining operations include:
* [[Richards Bay Minerals]] in [[South Africa]], majority-owned by the Rio Tinto Group.
* [[Kenmare Resources]]' Moma mine in [[Mozambique]].
* Iluka Resources' mining operations in Australia including Murray Basin, [[Eneabba, Western Australia|Eneabba]] and [[Capel, Western Australia|Capel]].
* The Kerala Minerals & Metals Ltd (KMML), [[Indian Rare Earths Limited|Indian Rare Earths]] (IRE), VV Mineral mines in India.
* TiZir Ltd.'s Grande Cote mine in [[Senegal]]<ref name="MDL Website">{{cite web|title=TiZir Limited|url=http://www.mineraldeposits.com.au/tizir/|publisher=Mineral Deposits Limited|access-date=16 Aug 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120818182108/http://www.mineraldeposits.com.au/tizir/|archive-date=2012-08-18}}</ref>
* [[QIT Madagascar Minerals]] mine, majority-owned by the Rio Tinto Group, which began production in 2009 and is expected to produce 0.75 Mtpa of ilmenite, potentially expanding to 2 Mtpa in future phases.

Attractive major potential ilmenite deposits include:
* The Karhujupukka magnetite-ilmenite deposit in Kolari, northern [[Finland]] with around 5 Mt reserves and ore containing about 6.2% titanium.
* The Balla Balla magnetite-iron-titanium-vanadium ore deposit in the [[Pilbara]] of [[Western Australia]], which contains 456 million tonnes of [[cumulate rocks|cumulate]] ore horizon grading 45% {{Chem|Fe}}, 13.7% {{Chem|Ti||O|2}} and 0.64% {{Chem|V|2|O|5}}, one of the richest magnetite-ilmenite ore bodies in Australia<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://www.australianminesatlas.gov.au/aimr/commodity/vanadium.html |title = Vanadium - AIMR 2011 - Australian Mines Atlas}}</ref>
* The Coburn, WIM 50, Douglas, [[Pooncarie]] mineral sands deposits in [[Australia]].
* The Magpie titano-magnetite (iron-titanium-vanadium-chrome) deposits in eastern [[Quebec]] of [[Canada]] with about 1 billion tonnes containing about 43% Fe, 12% TiO2, 0.4% V2O5, and 2.2% Cr2O3.
* The Longnose deposit in Northeast Minnesota is considered to be "the largest and richest ilmenite deposit in North America."<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.mprnews.org/story/2017/05/26/titanium-range-breakthrough-could-lead-to-new-kind-of-mining-in-ne-minn-|title=Titanium Range? Breakthrough could lead to new kind of mining in NE Minn.|last=Kraker|first=Dan|access-date=2017-05-31}}</ref>

==Lunar ilmenite==
Ilmenite has been found in [[Moon rock]]s,<ref name="NYT-20151228">{{cite news |last=Bhanoo |first=Sindya N. |title=New Type of Rock Is Discovered on Moon |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/29/science/new-type-of-rock-is-discovered-on-moon.html |date=28 December 2015 |work=[[New York Times]] |access-date=29 December 2015 }}</ref> and is typically highly enriched in magnesium similar to the [[Kimberlite|kimberlitic]] association. In 2005, [[NASA]] used the [[Hubble Space Telescope]] to locate potentially ilmenite-rich locations for a [[Moon base]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Lane |first=Megan |date=26 August 2005 |title=How to set up a moonbase |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/4177064.stm |location=UK |access-date=4 August 2023}} </ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Titanium minerals}}
{{Titanium compounds}}
{{Ores}}
{{iron compounds}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Iron(II) minerals]]
[[Category:Titanium minerals]]
[[Category:Oxide minerals]]
[[Category:Ilmenite group]]
[[Category:Trigonal minerals]]
[[Category:Minerals in space group 148]]
[[Category:Magnetic minerals]]

Ilmenite - Revision history

MavisLandale6: minor changes

Ajay Kumar: Created a new article