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Chinese geologists have discovered an estimated alta-mud reserve of five billion tons in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, northwest China.
The reserve is located in a hilly area in the Mongolian Autonomous County of Bukesar in the region's north. The proven reserve of alta-mud is 570 million tons.
Alta-mud is a kind of clay widely used in industries involving steel and iron, construction, metallurgy, food, agriculture, chemistry and medicine, and cosmetics.
Scientists have found that alta-mud has the best purifying and lubricating capabilities of all kinds of clay. It can be used in making edible oil more purer, and when mixed with water, it becomes a fine lubricant to effectively prolong the service life of drill heads in oil prospecting.
At present, the annual alta-mud output around the world is approximately 100 million tons, mostly produced in the United States, Greece, Germany, Japan, Italy and Brazil.
China is rich in alta-mud resources with a proven reserve of two billion tons. Currently, 2.7 million tons are produced and sold annually in China.
(Xinhua News Agency December 18, 2002)
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