MP Silitech, the chemical compound silicon dioxide, also known as silica (from the Latin silex), is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula SiO2 with a mean pore size of 60Å and particles size of 32-63µm. It has been known for its hardness since ancient times. Silica is most commonly found in nature as sand or quartz, as well as in the cell walls of diatoms.