Silica Sand from South-Central Kansas for Foundry Use

Abstract

Tests and the opinions of foundry operators indicate that the Cheyenne sandstone of Barber, Comanche, and Kiowa counties, Kansas, can be a satisfactory source of silica sand for making synthetic molding sand or cores.

This loosely cemented sandstone disintegrates readily into particles having an over-all average A.F.A. grain fineness number of 72. Depending upon the location, sands having grain fineness numbers of 49 to 102 can be found.

The Cheyenne sands are characterized by a low percentage of minus 140-mesh particles, and by a broad grain-size distribution.

Kansas foundries import silica sand from other states; Cheyenne sand can be found to parallel closely the grain-size distribution of these imported sands. However, the market for foundries alone is not now of sufficient size to justify any large-scale development.