The Metallogenetic Regularities of Lithium Deposits in China

Abstract

Lithium resources support the development of high‐technology industries. China has abundant lithium resources which are mainly distributed in Tibet, Qinghai, Sichuan and Jiangxi. Salt lakes in China have significant lithium reserves, but lithium is mainly produced from hard rock lithium deposits because the extraction from salt lakes requires further improvements. The hard rock lithium deposits mainly occur in granitic pegmatite in the Altay region of Xinjiang and the Jiajika deposit in western Sichuan Province; they mainly formed in the Mesozoic and occurred in a relatively stable stage during orogenic processes. On the basis of the information from 151 lithium deposits or spots, 14 lithium metallogenic series were identified, and granitic pegmatite, granite, and sedimentary types were considered to be the main prediction types of lithium resources. Twelve lithium mineralization belts were divided and a series of maps showing the lithium metallogenetic regularity in China were drawn. We conclude that the hard rock and brine type of lithium resources possibly have a similar lithium source related to magmatism. The metallogenic features of the lithium in China were related with the distinct history of tectonic‐magmatic activity in China. This study benefits the assessment of, and prospecting for, lithium resources in China.

Hydrochemical Dynamic Characteristics and Evolution of Underground Brine in the Mahai Salt Lake of the Qaidam Basin Qinghai‐Tibet Plateau

“…The Qaidam Basin is a large,closed,inland basin in the northwest of China. It is surrounded by high mountains, namely the Altun Mountain to the northwest, the Qilian Mountain to the northeast, and the Kunlun Mountain to the south (Wei and Jiang, 1994;Yin et al, 2008;Tan et al, 2011;Heermance et al, 2013;Li et al, 2015;Zhu et al, 2018). As shown in Fig.…”

Metallogeny of lithium through geological time

“…This trend is also reflected in the growth of the number of scientific publications in the field of geology, economic geology and ore technology, considering lithium as a subject matter at different levels -from an individual deposit to the global analysis [Christmann et al, 2015;Evans, 2014;Kesler et al, 2012;Li et al, 2015;Linde et al, 2000;and references therein]. Numerous recent studies address such issues as the type, age and location of the most important world mineral deposits.…”

“…The recently presented distribution diagram of pegmatite-related lithium resources on the geological timescale [Mc-Cauley and Bradley, 2014] can be considered as the first maiden attempt in this field. However, it was based on the limited sampling [Kesler et al, 2012] that has partly lost its relevance today. Moreover, McCauley and Bradley segmented the timescale of the diagram into large 100-m.y.…”

“…Here we focus on the lithium deposits belonging only to the types that have already been exploited or are being actively developed to be exploited soon. These types are: a) granite pegmatite, b) lithium-fluorine (Li-F) rare-metal granite, c) epithermal stratabound deposits, and d) brines of dry or seasonally drying salt lakes -salars [Christmann et al, 2015;Evans, 2014;Kesler et al, 2012;Linde et al, 2000].…”

“…Geothermal waters, circulating in the geodynamically active regions with lithium-bearing salars, were claimed to be promising lithium resources in some research works. [Christmann et al, 2015;Evans, 2014;Kesler et al, 2012;and references therein]. The underground waters of oil fields are also on the list of the perspective lithium feedstocks [Christmann et al, 2015;Linde et al, 2000].…”