﻿PHILIPPINE FIBERS. 



103 



Agalite, or ground, talc, as it is commonly termed, has come into 

 extensive use as a mineral filler in paper manufacture. Like asbestos, 

 it has a distinct fibrous structure which causes it to blend well with the 

 vegetable fiber of the pulp and thus to be retained without the consid- 

 erable loss incidental to the use of china clay or sulphate of lime for 

 this purpose. The more valuable talc for paper loading consists of 

 altered tremolite, the fibrous structure of which is largely retained. 

 According to the statistics of the New York State Geological Survey 

 for 1905, there were produced 67,000 short tons of fibrous talc, valued 

 at $469,000, or an average of $7 per ton. Practically the entire output 

 finds its way to the paper mills. Tremolite from Ilocos Norte, Luzon, 

 was examined in the Division of Chemistry, Bureau of Science. It 

 consisted of irregular, foliated masses of a beautiful greenish-white tint. 

 Ground in a ball-mill and then passed through a sieve of 100 meshes 

 it is a greenish-white impalpable powder with a very soapy feel. It 

 appears as minute, elongated crystals or fibers when seen under the 

 microscope. Its chemical composition, compared with- that of a com- 

 mercial talc, is as follows : 





Water 



(loss on 



ignition). 



Silica 

 (SiOo). 



Alumina 



(A1 2 3 ). 



Ferric 



oxide 



(Fe 2 3 ). 



Lime 



(CaO). 



Magnesia 

 (MgO). 



Specific 



gravity 



(Joly" 



balance) . 



Ilocos Norte altered tre- 



Per cent. 



2.33 

 2.67 



Per cent. 



57.62 

 61.82 



Per cent. 

 1.66 



Per cent. 

 1.36 



Per cent. 



13.38 

 3.65 



Per cent. 



24.18 

 29.98 



Per cent. 



2.84 

 2.6-2.8 ' 



Agalite - 



1.59 









The specimen which was examined, when judged by its physical prop- 

 erties, would be considered of very good quality for the purpose of the 

 paper manufacturer. It is easily ground, is of good color and is 

 especially free from grit. 



No definite figures with respect to the extent of the deposit can be 

 given. However, it has the advantage of being situated near the sea 

 and development work should show large pockets of talc in connection 

 with mica. 



Sulphur and pyrites. — Although sulphur is found widely distributed 

 throughout the Philippine Archipelago, careful search has failed to 

 locate any deposits of commercial importance. The most favorable out- 

 look for native sulphur is from near Barauen in Leyte and from the 

 Island of Biliran, which, on superficial examination, show 3,000 and 

 400 tons of sulphur in sight, respectively, but both these deposits are 

 too small to warrant the necessary cost of extraction and transportation. 



Pyrites. — The only deposit of this mineral of any extent and so far 

 reliably reported, is in Lepanto Province, and here again the question 

 of transportation, for the present at least, throws it out of reckoning as 

 a commercial possibility. 



