About Magnesium

Some technical details and a brief overview about magnesium:

	The Element
	Symbol: Mg
	Name: Magnesium
	Atomic number: 12
	Relative atomic mass: 24,305
	Valency: 2
	Relative density: 1.738
	Melting point: 651°
	Boiling point: 1107°
	Crystal structure: Close packed hexagonal (a=3.2030 c= 5.2002)

Source

Where Magnesium can be retrieved:

• In the Earth's crust (~ 2.5%): minerals such as carnallite (KCl·MgCl2·6H2O) and dolomite (CaCO3·MgCO3).
• In the Oceans, MgCl2 (~ 0.13% - 1.3 kg per m3 of seawater)

Production

Worldwide production of Metallic Magnesium: 600'000 T/year (80% in China)

Processes

Two fundamental processes:

1. Thermal reduction (Pidgeon process, mainly used in China): reduction of calcined Dolomite with ferrosilicon
2. Electrolytic reduction of MgCl

Price Evolution

Magnesium Price Evolution comparing China and Europe market