Alteration of beach sand ilmenite from Manavalakurichi, Tamil Nadu, India.

The study shows that the alteration of ilmenite has taken place according to the two stage model proposed by Grey and Reid (1975). Identification of the intermediate altered compound, pseudorutile is difficult. The present study has shown that the Mossbauer technique is suitable for the identification and estimation of this phase. It is shown that the magnetic susceptibility of the grains increases initially with progressive pseudorutile formation, and decreases in the later stages of alteration. Reflectivity and hardness also increase up to the stage of pseudorutile formation and decrease in the later stages. -from Authors