GE 0 RG I A GE 0 L 0 GI CAL G.A.RLllliD PEYTON, Director S URVEy 425 State Capitol I Atlanta, Georgia { ROCK- VVOOL OPPORTUNITIES FOR.. MANUFACTURING IN G E 0 R,G I A BY A.S.FURCR.ON A.C.J\1\UNYAN AND R.. W. SMITH c . f N t:'O R. MAT I 0 N I R.c u l A R. N 0. I0 N~vEMBER.~ 1939 OPPORTUNITIES FOR BOCK ViJOOL i1J.ANUFACTUTI.E llJ GEORGIA Rock wool is a heat insulation product which is usually prepared from impure limestone. No rock wool is manufactured at present in the Southeastern States. Tennessee and Alabama produce sor.1e slag wool, but there are no plants of ..:iny kind manufacturing insulating wool in Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and North Carolina,. Georgia's geograppic position gives her rare market opport1mities. In the following pages we wish to show that Georgia has a great cpportunity for rock wool mjnufacture; that she has ample rock WJ ol resources; and that costs of plant construction and labor are reasonable in this State. THE OPPORTUNITY The market territory for a mineral or rock wool plant in Georgia is probably the states of G-eorgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Hissi::>sippi, and. possibly Louisiana. At the present time the state of Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee ar8 the best markets, South Carolina and Alabama the next best, and Florida the least developed. ~.iuch rock wool, or mineral v:ool~ is being used at present in Georgia and other Southeastern States. All of this material must be brought in from a Considerable distances SO that the conSU-TJler pays more for his product, yet this additional cost to the consumer does not benefit the manufactu:eer Florida is not favorablir situated for the manufacture of rock wool becaus'e the necessary materials for its manufacture are not easily obtained there, and Florida is far removed from fuels. Atlanta. is one of the best markets in the s outheast and is a city particularly favo~ able to the building trade. This is also true of other large cities, such as Columbus, Rome, Brunswick, Macon, Augu.sta, Savannah, etc. Our warm climate is popolarizing air-conditioning throughout this region. Thus, when we see that no mineral vo ol is manufacturer in other adj ecent states it is obvious that we have an open market for such products in . these states. Between 1,000 and 1,500 tons of mineral or rock wool are sold yearly in the Southeast territory outlined above. At the rresent t~~e, this market is being supplied largely from the states of Indiana, Ohio, New Jersey, and other states in the Middle West and East. The freight rate to the Southeast territory amounts to between 12-~% and 17% of the cost of wool .to the distributors. The leading brands of blowing-wool sell to the distributors in Atlanta at about ~53.00 p er ton, although a few . of the "independents" sell it as low as :~35.00 per ton. Batts cost the distributors 4-~ to 6~ per square f oot. At the present time, about 60% of the use of mineral vo ol for home construction in the southeast is in new homes (largely batts), and about 40% in insulating old constru.ction (blowing wool). About 75% of the new ' homes costing ~6,000 and over are being insulated. The saturation point of insulating -previously constructed homes has by no means been reached, Page 2 thus the market for mineral wool in the Southeast territory is steadily growing. The greater part of the home insulation in the Southeast is of the ceiling only. The quantity of WDol consumed per house could and should be increased by the use of 2~Lnch batts in the walls, the use for fire-proofing attached garages, and the use under the floors in small but modern homes without a basement. The industrial use of mineral wool could be increased if the manufacturers w-ould put out a l-inch blanket for wrapping air ducts in air-conditioning installations. The conclusions from numerous intervi6'Ns with companies selling this type of insulation in Atlanta is that a mineral wool plant in Georgia would succeed, provided: (l) It was carefully located in reference to raw materials and distribution facilities; (2) Careful chemical control under an experienced operator is used so as to produce ro ol that is equal in quality to the standard brands in use today. Particular attention should be paid to the quality of the ba.tts, as this use is growing and the installing companies demand batt& that are strong and easy_ to han,dle; (3) The company must be adequately financed so as to be able to st~d the .period of getting their product adopted by the distributors of the Southeast. The few pla.'lts now in the Southeast apparently make a product that does not q1 ite come up to the quality of the "standard brands" and have a very small capacity compared to the present and future market. The freight rate differential of the others offers a decided inducement to locate a progressive mineral wool plant in Georgia. ROCK VoiOOL RESOURCES Wool rock, the ordinary source of rock wool, is an impure or siliceous limestone. YJool rocks are recognized by their ehem.ical composition; careful blovdng tests should be made, however, before constructing a plant near a deposit. Impure limestones or calcareous shales which contain around 40 to 65 per cent calcium carbonate or calcium magnesium carbonate and the balance, chiefly silica or silica and alumina, vdll make rock mol. Experiments also indicate that rocks which contain between 20 and 30 per cent carbon dioxide will make rock -ro ol. It is obvious from the above remarks that such products as limestone and sandstone, limestone and shale or slate, etc., may be blended to form a suitable mix. Possibilities for rock l'O ol manufacture occur in many sections of northwest Georgia. From Cartersville and Rome, northward, the Knox dolomite (a cherty dolomite) is a wide-spread formation over this ares. The percentage of silica varies with locality but analyses in our files show that this.formation would be suitable locally for rock vool manufacture. .Another formation common to the area is called the Fort Payne chert~ This fo+-mation ranges from nearly pure chert to a cherty limestone, the latter .locally suitable for rock '\'0 ol .manufacture. These formations and oth,ers of this section have been described and their outcrops have been mapped. Silurian shales adjacent to the red iron deposits of Dade County contain considerable lime. r,Iany are accessible to the Southern Railway Page 3. in Lookout Vall~. Near these shales are outcrops of Mississippian lime$tones, As an example of this type of deposit, excellent outcrops of calcareous shales occur on Shinbone Ridge, east of Trenton. The following are some typical sections and analyses of wool rock and sub-wool rock in the Paleozoic area of northwest Georgia: Big Cedar Creek Exposure Floyd Countr Limestone of the Cannas- ~"1fuynard, Poole T., A report on the limestones and cement materials of north Georgia, Georgia Geol. Surv~ Bulletin 27, pp. 166-167, 1912 auga is exposed over a thickness of about 30 feet about one mile northwest o~ Vans Valley, &ong the north side of Big Cedar Creek. The lower 10 feet of the exposure consists of light bluish-gray limestone resenbling in lithologic character the Knox dolomite; this 1~ feet is wool rock, as illustrated by its analysis below. Immediately above this unit lies 10 feet of cherty limestone Ywhich, in places, might be termed a calcareous shale. Analysis 77 of this unit shows it to be a sub-wool rock. At the top of the exposure, the rock is a dolomitic limestone vh ich resembles the Knox dolomite. It seems likely, therefore, that the entire section might be used in rock w:> ol manufacture. !nalyses of Limestone from Big Cedar Creek Exposure 77 Lime ( CaO) .... Magnesia (MgO) Ferric oxide (Fe2o3) Sulphur trioxide (s 2o3) Phosphorus pentoxide (P2o5) Silica (SiQ2 ) Potash (K2o) A : Soda (Na20) o~ Clay bases ..... Loss on ignition ~ Carbon dioxide (C02) cal. tr. .02 .31. 10.. 73 27 ..17 100.00 24.04 14.18 3.20 4.18 tr. .o4 31.95 4.48 .35 12"68 28.94 100.00 14.62 Page 4. Cartersville District: Rock wool may be manufactured in and near the Cartersville district - in Bartow and Gorden cotmties north of Cartersville." In that section, both limestone and slate compose the Connasauga formation. The limestoneSrange in chemical composition form high-calcium limestone to dolomite and th~ grade from pure limestone to dolomite through argillaceous limestone to calcareous shale. (The~e rocks ~11 make rock 1m ol. ) There are numberous localities where the limestone is immediately adjacent to the slate. This district has been famous ;for its SLate quarries for much green slate was quarried in the past. Analyses. of the slate and the limestones show that the slate waste could be readily combined with the limestone to produ.ce rock .wool; thus the slate could be quarried as a by-product. Although, in recent years, tile and other types of roofing materials have cut into our slate markets, there should be ample sale for this handsome slate for use where dwellings are being constructed at a cost of from twenty to twenty-five thousand dollar&. Indeed, it wou1-d seem that the same salesman might successfully sell both product& at the same time. Railroad an:d highway facilities are excellent in this part of the State. The Louisville and Nashville railroad practically follows the outcrop of the formation as well as does the new Nat~onal Highway No. 411 from Cartersville to Chatsvvorth. The slates and associated liiaestones are described in Bulletin 34 of the Geolo.:;ical Survey of Georgia. Description and analyses may be found in Bulletin 27 of the Georgia Geological Survey, entitled, 11A Report on the Limestones and Cem~nt Hateri.als of North Georgia". Walker and Dade Counties.: There ar~ many localities :i.n northwest Georgiavvhere it w'O'UI'd be possible to blend sandstone and limestone in rock wool manufacture. Carboniferous sandsto_nes a<"ld l.imestones of Lookout Mountain repres ent an example. Lonkout I.::ountain is .capped by thick deposits of sandstone (the Lookout formation and the i'[alden sandstone). These formationS> are underlain by the Bangor limestone. On the .western side of the mountain, the lower portion of the Bangor limestone conta:iiis a considerable amount of chert. The limestone also contains argillaceous and magnesian limestone. In Pigeon Hountain, a spur of Lookout !'!lountain, the Bangor l~~estone has an estimated thickness of 900 ,feet. Here it is directly overlain by the Lookout sandstone and shales. The coal of Lookout iiountai. n is c~ldng coal. Btrmingham coke may be obtained at reas anable costs . a..'Yl.d natural gas is locally available. T.V.A. power and Georgia power are also available in northvmst Georgia; water power and water are abundant. . Rail:roa.ds and National highways. are rrumerous. PIEDMOJIIT MARBLE BOLTS: Rock wool could be made from certain rocks in the great belt of crystcl.line rocks v;hich occurs throughdmt middle north Georgia. In Hall and Habersham coU:rit'i:cs, northeast of Atlanta, large deposits of impure marble occur. This marbel belt lies not far from the Southern Railroad and from the U. s. High~~y 23, through Gainesville, Baldwin, etc. , Wool rocks occur in the marble belt of Pickens, Cherokee, Gilmer, and Fannin couties in northern Georgia The Louisville and Nashville Railroad and State HighTvay No. 5 fallon the belt through Keithsburg, Page 5. Sharp Mountain, Ball Ground, Tate, Ellijay, and Blue Ridge. The famous Georgia marble quarries are located in Tate. Wool rocks probably occur along this entire marble belt. The following analyses: (GeorgiaGeolog- ical Survey Bulletin 43! by 1'I. S. Bayley, P 98) show wool rock at Keiths- burgand at 1"Jhitestone {Llilm.er County):. . . ANALYSES OF Blue Gray Marbles from the Keithsburg Belt Cherokee County, and from Whites.tone, Gilmer County, Geor,gia Analyst: Dr. Edgar Everhart ' Keithsburg B~lt . 1. 2 'Whitestone 3. Moisture : .o5 .10 Ignition ~ . ..54 .2.p_2, CaO .. .30.95 . .3.2.6.8. . .oo 1.18 26.72 ]JigO. ; ~ 2.00 F eO . . . . . . . . . . "' 2.03 .81 2.0~ . ... . ' 2.12 .23 l\ffn(j ~ " ~ .oo Co2.: .......... ..... 25.36 . 2),.36 24.00 .Al203 .... 9.23 . . 1. 0. '..5.8 8.11 Fe2o3 . . . . . . . . . . . .. 3.05 '. 3.86 . SOJ. . . , Trace _ .00 . 2.65 .oo P205 .,00 . ,,t~GO . . .oo TiO~ . . .38 ,3J . .. ... . 1.6.5 Na2o.................... .23 . ol$.. . . .44 .................., .46. . ~21- .23 ,.. I 6 ... t . ................... 26.41. . . _2;1..,37 32.29 o I"' ' ~ 100.69' .. '99.9-1 ' - . .. . - . 99.62 ' I Page 6 lt 1. Slightly schistose, fine-gra:ined bluish-gray marble. In stream Crossing road miles southeast of Gover. 2. B~~ish-gray, micaceous schistose marble at qridge over Long Swamp of Cr~ek, one mile south east of Nelson 3. Vecy fine-gratned, platy gray-blue 'marbie. West side of valley, south of road leading to Highway No~ _5, 1"1hitestone; G~J.riler. County. In the following analyses from Sharp Mo1p1tain Creek, in Cherokee County (Bulletin 43, .P 100), No. &is a: sub-wool rock and No. 5 is a wool rock: ' Analyses of Blue-gray Marbles from Sharp Mountain Belt, Cherokee County, Georgia Analyst: Dr. Edgar Everhart 4. 5. Moisture ~ ~ . ;.04 Ignition .-- .10. CaO .........'........... 20.74 MgO ..................... 2.28 MnO . . . ' FeO ...............'..... 2.11 . co2 (Calculated) .' 17.50 A1 203 . ....,. l6.2J . . . ' Fsoe32o3................................. 2.82 .-00 P205 ................' . .oo TiO2 ..................... .25 N.a20 K2o ..................... .................... 18 .-63 S"i02 '37 .01 Organic Matter. TOTAL 99.89 .o6 2. 56 ' 32.14 1.34 39 25.90 12.13 4.71 .02 .43 .. .' . .16 .59 19.38 .22 1 0 0. 03 Pege 7 4. Schistose, gray-blue, fine-grained micaceousmarbi~, 2 miles north- west of Gober, where road_pr.qsses Murphy Creek .... 5. Gray and blue-gray, fine-grai!1ed .- micaceous marble, 2 :mlles west of Ball Ground on Sharp !Jount