The use of marine manganese tailings in industrial coatings applications

The disposal of tailings from a future manganese nodule or crust mining operation will be an environmental challenge. However, these manganese tailings can be used for a variety of beneficial uses. One of the major applications which shows great promise is in industrial coatings. Four areas of experimentation were undertaken. All experimental coatings were made by adding measured amounts of tailings to selected chemical carriers. The resulting mixtures were applied to wood, metal and concrete. Four kinds of coatings were tried: those for rust-resistance, termite resistance, antibiofouling and undercoating (including high temperature automotive undercoats). The coatings were applied by brush, roller and in one case sprayed. The coatings went on well and imparted a series of very useful qualities, including hardness, rust resistance and an even matte finish. The useful coatings properties can be traced back to the chemical composition of the tailings. These beneficial properties are derived from the highly oxidized state of the manganese, the chemical nature of manganese (which preferentially scavenges and tightly binds other elements), the small angular grain size of the particles, the metallic nature of the resulting coatings and the fact that manganese has a repelling effect on organisms.