Specialty Minerals Inc. (SMI) manufactures a multitude of precipitated calcium carbonate (PCC) and ground calcium carbonate (GCC) products in a number of shapes and particle sizes. The various permutations made possible by this menu of shapes and sizes yield a wide array of performance characteristics. This allows the formulator to choose the particle shape and size best suited to a respective pharmaceutical, food fortification, nutritional supplement, or personal care application.
PCC particle sizes range from a minimum of 0.07 microns to a maximum of 12 microns. Shapes made in the United States by SMI include scalenohedral (which has an open structure), cubic, prismatic, prismatic/cubic blend, semi-regular prismatic, and irregular rhombohedral, which is the particle shape of our GCC products. SMI’s PCCs made in the United Kingdom have prismatic, scalenohedral, and aragonitic acicular (needle-like) shapes.
Click on the link below for a downloadable information sheet with scanning electron micrograph (SEM) photos that show the shapes of SMI’s PCCs made in the U.S. The sheet includes the characteristics of each PCC shape, the behavior resulting from a given size/shape combination, and the recommended applications for each. This should help you understand how to pick the appropriate SMI calcium carbonate grade for your product.
Relating Particle Shape to Performance – Calcium Carbonates For Healthcare
These are some of the particle shapes you’ll see:
Learn more:
- SMI minerals in food fortification uses
- SMI minerals in nutritional supplements
- SMI minerals in pharmaceuticals
- SMI minerals in personal care products
- SMI calcium carbonates for food, nutritional supplements, pharmaceuticals and personal care products
- Choosing the right grade of Specialty Minerals calcium carbonate for consumer products.
- Useful information for formulators: Downloadable information sheets on formulating with calcium carbonate, the effect of particle size and shape in a product, high bioavailability of calcium carbonate, California Proposition 65 lead limits, and calcium carbonate lead levels.
- U.S. Recommended Daily Intake (RDI) for Calcium
- Osteoporosis: Anyone Can Be At Risk – Even You! A downloadable information sheet
- Specialty Minerals minerals in consumer products: See the products you use every day—foods, nutritional supplements, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, toiletries, and other personal-care items—that use SMI talcs and calcium carbonates.
- About Specialty Minerals Inc.
