Behind its visual beauty captured from space, a string of\nmulti-coloured ponds on the Utah plateau is in fact an advanced\nindustrial facility to purify potassium chloride, or potash. An\nextraordinary photograph taken by an astronaut shows a view resembling\nbright blue lines of abstract paintings stretching beside the river\u2019s\ndeep green bend of the Colorado River, Utah, United States.<\/p>\n
Those vividly coloured lines are solar evaporation ponds. They are\nlocated about 13 kilometres southwest of Moab, in the heart of the\nColorado Plateau\u2014a high-elevation region spanning around 340,000 square\nkilometres that crosses parts of Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and\nArizona.<\/p>\n
The ponds are used to purify potassium chloride, commercially known\nas potash, mined at a site located immediately adjacent to the\nponds.<\/p>\n
According to Live Science, the potash mining process is carried out\nby pumping boiling water into the ground to dissolve minerals and\nproduce a brine rich in chemicals. The dense brine is then extracted and\nchannelled into solar evaporation ponds until it shrinks into small\nbrown crystals.<\/p>\n
The stark colour differences in each pond indicate that the water\ninside is at different evaporation phases. When the pond is first filled\nwith brine, workers add dark blue dye to the water. The dye helps the\nwater absorb more sunlight, significantly speeding up evaporation.<\/p>\n
Over time the dye itself also evaporates. As the water volume\ndecreases, the bright blue intensity gradually fades. In the final\nevaporation phase, the pond turns white, then transforms into pale brown\n(tan) when the dried potash layer is the only material left at the\nbottom of the pond.<\/p>\n
Historically, the term \u2018potash\u2019 derives from \u2018pot ash\u2019 \u2014 ash from a\npot \u2014 the name of a pre-industrial fertiliser made by mixing wood ash\nwith water and evaporating the mixture in a pot.<\/p>\n
The chemical element potassium was named after this product once\nscientists discovered that the element is the main secret ingredient in\nit.<\/p>\n
Today, potassium sulphate is mainly used as a raw material for global\nagricultural fertilisers, though it has a range of other industrial\napplications including pharmaceuticals, cement, fire-extinguishing\nequipment, textiles, and even beer.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/looks-like-blue-candyfloss-from-space-whats-at-utahs-potash-mine-1779545706", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }