What Is Kaolin

It is one of the most common minerals on earth and can be easily identified by its fine particle size and plate-like structure. The world's largest reserves of premium kaolin are located in the United States and Brazil.

Seventy million years ago, in the United States, the Atlantic coastline stretched from Columbus to Augusta, and the southern part of Georgia was covered by the sea. Weathered crystalline rocks from the Piedmont Plateau (now the foothills of the Smoky Mountains) began to break down and rushing streams carried the tiny feldspar and kaolinite crystals seaward to form large sedimentary deposits in what we refer to today as Georgia’s fall line. These reserves are world renowned for their brightness, purity and fine particle structure. KaMin has strategically placed our three plants along this fall line, in order to have the best access to the specific crudes in each area.

In Brazil, the largest premium deposits are found on the banks of the Jari River in the Amazon region in the northeastern section of Brazil, and are mined almost exclusively by CADAM. Much like Georgia kaolin, these deposits are known for their brightness, purity and fine particle size, while delivering unique rheological properties in customer formulations.

Identifying the actual crude reserves and the mining operation itself are only the beginning for KaMin and CADAM clays. After mining, our clays are further cleaned and purified through a series of processing technologies to ensure the quality and consistency of our products. See our infographic for a look at the all of our different processing steps.

View Kaolin Processing Infographic  

After processing, our kaolin is shipped to customers all over the world. You will find our kaolin in paper, paint, rubber, plastic, ink, adhesives, sealants and many other products.