On the largest Indonesian island of Java is a large sulphur mining industry which has been in operation for more than two decades. The sulphur is first extracted by hand from the Ijen volcano, brought down the mountain then transported to a processing factory to begin the purification process.

The first stage of the purification process is to boil the raw sulphur in large vats of boiling water. This breaks down the sulphur into a liquid form which begins the separation between the sulphur and other natural materials extracted at the time of mining. The liquid is then poured through several filters and on to the next stage in the process. The filtering process is designed to extract unwanted natural material from the liquid sulphur which is unavoidably extracted at the time of mining.

The second stage of the purification process is the removal excess materials in the form of sludge that collects at the bottom of the vats. A worker will extract the sludge using a sieve on a pole and then pour the boiling liquid sulphur through a series of finer filters.

The third stage of the purification process is the final filtering process. The liquid sulphur is poured through a series of finer filters which empty into metal barrels.

The fourth stage of the purification process is the final stage in the production line. The liquid sulphur is poured onto a tiled factory floor to cool it down and eventually solidify. Once the sulphur has solidified, it is broken up into small pieces using a scraper then collected in sacks. The sacks of purified sulphur are transported on a truck out of the jungle to a holding facility before being exported to international clients around the world.

After the purification process is complete the pure sulphur is used for a variety of purposes ranging from its use in household cleaning products, make up, explosives and even the purification of sugar.

Licin, Banyuwangi Regency, East Java, Indonesia