What is DE?
Many EP Minerals, LLC products are based on diatomaceous earth (DE). Diatomaceous earth, also called diatomite or kieselguhr, is a mineral of biogenic origin. It represents the accumulation of an enormous number of microscopic silica structures made by living diatoms, which are single-cell aquatic plants. There are many varieties of diatoms that live in lakes and oceans, staying close to the surface where they form part of the abundant plankton. Living diatoms are the base of the food chain for most aquatic life. When diatoms die, they leave a tiny silica skeleton known as a frustule, often of great beauty and intricacy.
All Celatom® diatomaceous earth filter aids are of the freshwater type and are predominantly (85%-95%) of the species Melosira Granulata. This species is characterized by a natural, filter-like, cylindrical shape of great mechanical strength. During the late Tertiary Period (approximately 5 million to 20 million years ago), massive deposits of diatoms were formed in the freshwater lakes which covered much of what is now Nevada and eastern Oregon. Geological upheavals over the eons have exposed these large and high-purity deposits in a very few places where they were protected by a cap of volcanic ash and preserved from erosion. These deposits can be as much as several hundred feet thick or as little as a few inches, depending on the climate in which they lived.
Diatoms grow differently than most plants. Most plants utilize solar energy to synthesize cellulose for their cell walls, but a diatom extracts dissolved amorphous silica from the water building a strong, pure, and stable skeleton called a frustule. These naturally porous silica structures are ideal for applications demanding performance and purity, such brewing, food and beverage, and pharmaceutical applications.