Our Company

Technology Facilities and Capabilities

Minerals Technologies Inc. (MTI) conducts research, develops technology and provides analytical support in laboratories throughout the world.

The research and development teams for Specialty Minerals Inc. (SMI) and MINTEQ International Inc. (MINTEQ) are headquartered in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley with technology centers located globally. MTI further extends its R&D efforts through industry associations, academic relations and alliances, joint development agreements and equity positions as well as world class, pilot scale production resources.

MTI maintains a dynamic portfolio of trade secrets, know-how and patents and recognizes the importance of complementary technologies. We are active in identifying and acquiring selected technologies through purchase or license. MTI’s technology licensing office also offers valuable intellectual assets from our portfolio through donation, sale or license.

 

Specialty Minerals

SMI operates research and development facilities in Bethlehem and Easton, Pennsylvania, which are located about 90 miles west of New York City. The Company also operates an R&D Center in Kaarina, Finland, and has plans to initiate an Asian R&D Group. In total, MTI has built and equipped about 50,000 square feet of space in which the most up-to-date instruments and equipment are used by more than 100 scientists and engineers working to support today’s products and technology, while developing new products and technologies for tomorrow.

SMI employs almost two-dozen paper technology specialists trained at the premier paper science universities in the United States and Europe. These scientists are able to test paper made by paper-company customers as well as experimental samples SMI makes in its own laboratories. All of our equipment adheres to the various international standards, including TAPPI in North America and ISO in most other countries.

 

SMI is a majority shareholder of the CIC (Centre Internationale Couchage), near Trois Riviere, Quebec, a state-of-the-art pilot coater. Besides CIC, SMI also utilizes the Coating Technical Center in Finland.
Each year, the Company also conducts trials and sponsors research at a number of Institutes and Universities. These include, The Finnish Pulp & Paper Research Institute (KCL); the Swedish Institute for Surface Science (YKI), in Stockholm; Åbo Akademie in Turku, Finland; the University of Maine, Western Michigan University, the Institute for Paper Science & Technology at Georgia Technical University and others.

 

SMI is also a member of the Industrial Research Institute (IRI) and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Industrial Liaison Program (MIT ILP).

 

Research and development for our Performance Minerals is also conducted at the laboratories in Bethlehem and Easton. Performance Minerals includes Specialty PCC precipitated calcium carbonate products for use in plastics, sealants, food fortification and antacids, as well as our ground calcium carbonate and talc products, that are produced at five facilities in the United States.

 

MINTEQ

MINTEQ's array of technologically advanced refractory materials was developed at our research centers in Easton, Pennsylvania; Gamagori, Japan; and Cork, Ireland. Scientists and technicians at these locations study advanced applications of refractory materials used to protect a diverse range of industrial furnaces, ladles and tundishes. Other areas of investigation include different product formulations that exhibit extended furnace lining durability and new technologies that provide safer, faster application of refractory materials for increased steel production.

 

MTI's Analytical Services Group

The Analytical Services Group provides solutions to material characterization problems.

State-of-the-art instrumentation, well-equipped facilities, and leading-edge technical personnel have been specifically assembled for the analysis and investigation of materials. For more than 40 years, analytical and microscopy specialties have been developed to characterize materials from a variety of industries. These materials include:

  • Natural and synthetic minerals
  • Paper and in-process papermaking samples
  • Refractories and ceramics
  • Metals and alloys
  • Building Products
  • Plastics
  • Water
  • Pharmaceuticals

The Analytical Services Group is viewed as a problem solving resource. The staff strongly encourages that a problem be discussed in its entirety prior to submission of samples so that the proper test methods, reference materials, and preparation techniques can be applied.

 

Unusual samples or analyses are subject to extensive testing by multiple methods to corroborate results and ensure the integrity of the data. Quality Control and Proficiency Testing Programs monitor all tests and instruments in accordance with our accreditation by A2LA (The American Association for Laboratory Accreditation) to ISO 17025.

 

By combining analytical instrumentation with classical chemistry practices, a wide variety of materials can be analyzed. Some of the analytical tools available are:

  • Chemical Analysis
  • X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy (XRF)
  • Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectroscopy (ICP-MS)
  • Ion Chromatography
  • Variable Temperature Carbon Analyzer
  • Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy (GC-MS)
  • FT-Infrared Spectroscopy