What is the production process of barium carbonate?

What is the production process of barium carbonate?
Main Industrial Production Processes of Barium Carbonate（BaCO₃）1. Carbonation Method (Most widely used mainstream process)Raw materials: Barite ore (BaSO₄), coal/coke, carbon dioxide, water

Process steps:
Crushing and mixing barite with coal;
Roasting in rotary kiln at 1000–1200 °C for high‑temperature reduction to obtain barium sulfide (BaS):
BaSO₄ + 2C → BaS + 2CO₂↑
Leaching the clinker with hot water to get aqueous BaS solution, removing slag;
Carbonation: feed CO₂ gas into barium sulfide solution, precipitate crude barium carbonate slurry:
BaS + CO₂ + H₂O → BaCO₃↓ + H₂S↑
Desulfurization, repeated washing to reduce sulfur impurities;
Vacuum filtration → drying (around 300℃) → pulverizing → finished powder.
Advantages: Low cost, large‑scale continuous production, suitable for regular ceramic/glass‑grade products.
Shortcoming: Sulfur impurity needs strict control for high‑end grades.
2. Metathesis Method (For high‑purity & electronic‑grade products)Raw materials: Barium sulfide / barium chloride, ammonium carbonate or sodium carbonate
Reaction:
BaS + (NH4)2CO3 → BaCO3↓ + (NH4)2S
BaCl2 + Na2CO3 → BaCO3↓ + 2NaCl
Process: Purified soluble barium solution reacts with carbonate solution → precipitation → multi‑stage washing → filtering → drying → milling.
Advantages: Higher purity, lower sulfur and heavy metals, controllable particle size; ideal for electronic ceramics, barium titanate and optical glass.
Shortcoming: Higher production cost than carbonation route.3. Witherite Conversion Method (Using natural witherite ore)Natural witherite (raw BaCO₃ ore) reacts with ammonium salt at high temperature to produce soluble barium chloride.
Add ammonium carbonate for re‑precipitation of refined barium carbonate.
Mother liquor can be recycled.
This route is only adopted in areas with abundant witherite mineral resources.Post‑treatment for commercial grades
Fine powder: grinding and particle‑size classification
Granular barium carbonate: filter cake → kneading → granulation → sintering → screening
Final quality inspection: purity, moisture, iron, sulfur, whiteness, particle size before packing

Product Name: Barium Carbonate Powder
Formula: BaCO₃
CAS No.: 513‑77‑9
EINECS: 208‑167‑3
Appearance: White, odorless fine powder
Molar mass: 197.35 g/mol
Density: 4.29 g/cm³
Solubility: Insoluble in water, soluble in acid
HS Code: 28366000
Typical Specifications (Industrial / High‑Grade)
BaCO₃: ≥99.2% (Electronic grade ≥99.5%)
Moisture: ≤0.30%
Total Sulfur (SO₄²⁻): ≤0.15%
Iron (Fe): ≤0.004%
Chloride (Cl⁻): ≤0.01%
Water‑insoluble matter: ≤0.20%
Whiteness ≥92%
Particle size: 200mesh /325mesh /400mesh or micron‑sized customized powder
Barium Carbonate (BaCO₃) — Application Fields
01.Ceramic & Enamel Industry (Largest application)
Used in ceramic glaze, frit, tile glaze, enamel ware. It improves glaze glossiness and smoothness, reduces firing temperature, eliminates pinholes. Also for electronic ceramics.
02.Glass Industry
Raw material for optical glass, crystal glass, glass tubes and container glass. It increases refractive index, brightness and chemical stability of glass and lowers melting temperature.
03.Barium Ferrite Magnetic Materials
Key raw material for permanent barium ferrite magnets, applied in speakers, small motors, sensors and magnetic parts.
04.Chemical Industry (Raw material for other barium salts)
Produce barium chloride, barium nitrate, barium titanate, barium hydroxide, barium oxide and other barium‑containing chemicals.
05.Electronics Industry
Manufacture piezoelectric ceramics, ceramic capacitors and other functional electronic ceramic components.
06.Coatings, Paints and Pigments
Serve as filler and additive in anti‑corrosion coatings, enhance wear resistance and weather‑fastness.
07.Wastewater Treatment
Remove sulfate ions from industrial wastewater by forming insoluble barium sulfate precipitate.
08.Other Applications
Metallurgy, carbide manufacturing, flame retardants, briquette additives.