The academic monograph Principles of Mineral Material Science written by Professor Wang Ling from Chengdu University of Technology (CDUT) with funding from the National Foundation for Academic Publication in Science and Technology (NFAPST) was published by Geology Press in early April this year. This book is a practical reference book on the efficient development and utilization of mineral resources. Divided into 10 chapters, it systematically studies and discusses mineral materials' composition, processing, physicochemical properties and utilization efficiency, and the five elements of raw mineral materials and their mutual relations and laws. The book has 1.06 million characters, 317 illustrations and 228 tables and is printed in full color on coated paper.
The book immediately attracted high attention from the industry upon its publication, particularly in China's mineralogy, materials science and non-metallic mineral circles. It received priority coverage and positive reviews from new media platforms such as cnpowder.com.cn, China Non-Metallic Mineral Information Platform, fentijs.com, Mining World, and Orange Lamp as well as newspapers and journals such as China Mining News, Conservation and Utilization of Mineral Resources, China Non-Metallic Mineral Industry, and Development & Utilization of Non-Metallic Minerals. According to Geology Press, more than 1,400 copies of the book were sold within just three months after its publication, which is rarely seen for a geological academic monograph published by it.
The fundamental reason for the industry's high attention to and unanimous praise of Principles of Mineral Material Science is that the book is the first in China to systematically study and discuss the material properties and applications of minerals; it fills a gap in this research field of applied mineralogy and pushes the foundational theories, research methods and industrial applications of mineral material science a big step forward, therefore, it is a fundamental work in mineral material science at home and abroad. Further, it elaborates in depth on the fundamental reasons behind the different physicochemical properties and utilization efficiency of various minerals, pointing out the research directions and pathways for the further development of uses of various mineral resources and improvement of the development and utilization of mineral resources in China, particularly for the search of alternative urgently needed and strategic mineral resources. Therefore, the book possesses important practical application value. As stated in the book's preface by Mr. Ye Danian, a famous mineralogist and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the book is a brilliant pastiche on mineral material science and is to date the first foundational, practical and systematic theoretical work on the material properties and applications of minerals at home and abroad. It has for the first time constructed the systematic theoretical and disciplinary knowledge system of mineral material science, filling the gap in systematic theoretical research on mineral material science, enriching and developing mineralogy and laying a foundation for mineral material science. The publication of this book will significantly influence the efficient development and utilization of China's mineral resources, especially non-metallic mineral resources, the development of the mineral material industry, the strengthening of research and application of mineral functional materials, the cultivation of high-level talents, and disciplinary construction.
Professor Wang Ling has long been focusing on the field of mineral material science, diving into research and teaching with heart and soul and has made a series of remarkable research achievements. He led his team to discover a super-large ceramsite shale deposit in Chengkou County, Chongqing by applying the principles of mineral material science, ascertaining a potential economic value of more than RMB 20 billion. Further, in order to address the bottleneck related to high-end high-purity quartz sand (a key foundational material) in China, he developed a new technology for high-purity quartz processing, which was granted a series of national invention patents and was later transferred to a production enterprise for RMB 5.25 million through a listed transaction. This is a typical example of applying the principles of mineral material science to conduct scientific research and later achieving the commercialization of the research achievement.
The publication of Principles of Mineral Material Science - a systematic and creative important research achievement - highlights CDUT's strength in the field of mineral resource research. The monograph is an important contribution by CDUT's faculty to China's mineral resource industry and another landmark research achievement in CDUT's construction of disciplines included in the "double world-class project".
