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The distribution of lithium deposits and lithium resources contained in them are analyzed throughout geological time. The basis for the analysis is data on 164 deposits from around the world with resources estimated above 100 thousand t of Li2O, representing almost the entire explored resource base attractive in the modern and near future conditions to extract this element. The variability of various aspects of their formation in geological time is demonstrated by comparing supercontinent cycles in terms of the quantity and quality of resources in deposits of different types, ages, and tectonic position. It has been established that lithium deposits have an extremely uneven pulsed distribution on the geological time scale. The Kenoran, Columbian, and Rodinian cycles are represented only by the pegmatite-type deposits, the intensity of formation of which decreased in this series. In the Pangean cycle, it increased again, approaching the Kenoran level. In addition, first deposits of a granite type appeared. In the current Amasian cycle, deposits of the granite type quantitatively predominate over the pegmatite type, but they both yield quantitatively to the clay-type deposits only appeared in this cycle. In terms of the resources, all these three types with solid ores are inferior to deposits associated with brines in salars, geothermal and oil-and-gas fields. All deposits from the Kenoran to Pangean cycles were formed in collision belts at the postorogenic stage of their development. In the Amasian cycle, continuity in this aspect was preserved, but deposits of granite and clay types formed in the back zones of active continental margins were also established. Deposits in salars also have these two tectonic positions. Geothermal deposits are known within the framework of collisional orogens and on active continental margins. Oil-and-gas fields have been explored only in the sedimentary covers of ancient platforms. Currently, objects of pegmatite and salar types are of maximum importance for the world economy, and the granite-type deposits are of less significance. All of them are traditional for lithium extraction. In the pegmatite type, the Kenoran deposits have the highest degree of industrial development, in the granite-type deposits of the Amasian cycle. In recent years, single deposits of clay, geothermal, and oil-and-gas field types began to be involved in the exploitation, as well as representatives of the salar type with brine compositions that have not been suitable for conventional technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ke'eryin area in Sichuan province is one of the large rare metal ore concentration areas in the Songpan–Garze metallogenic belt. Numerous granite pegmatite dikes spread around the Ke'eryin mass. However, locating rare metal dikes in such a large pegmatite field has always been one of the challenges in this region. This paper summarized the geochemical element distribution in the Ke'eryin pegmatite and put forward geochemical indexes, e.g., characteristic element indexes, indicator indexes and grade indexes, to locate rare metal ore in the Ke'eryin area based on a systematic petrogeochemical analysis of two-mica granite, pegmatite microcline albite granite, different pegmatite types and typical deposits. Characteristic element indexes include Li, B, Sn, Rb, Be, Nb and Ta, etc. Indicator indexes for lateral variation are Cs, Tl, F, Zr, Y and ΣREE elements as well as values, e.g., TiO2/Ta, Zr/Hf, Ta/Zr, Nb/Ta, K/Na, etc., while indicator indexes for vertical variation include B, U, Zr, Be, Sn, Rb, Sr, Ba, Tl and In, etc. The variation in these indexes can be used to locate rare-metal-mineralized pegmatite, indicating ore bodies in a deep basin. Grade indexes are aluminum saturation index（A/CNK, A/NK）and rittmann index(σ), etc. Li ore grade is positively correlated with aluminum saturation but is negatively correlated with alkalinity. Grade index variation is a good indicator of lithium enrichment in ore bodies.

ABSTRACT: Since 2012, some advances have been made through the resource investigation, metallogenesis research, and comprehensive utilizing of lithium deposits in China. Firstly, the progress of lithium exploration has been made in Sichuan, Xinjiang, Qinghai and Jiangxi provinces (autonomous region). Li deposits are not only found within the pegmatite rocks but also within the granitic rocks and sedimentary rocks. Secondly, the methods of geological survey, geochemical and geophysical exploration, remote sensing technology and even drilling technology have been improved, which can be delineating orebodies quickly. Thirdly, the mechanisms of Li mineralization were summarized by analyzing the relationship between the Li contents and kinds of geological phenomena. Based on practice, a new understanding of “multi-cycle, deep circulation, integration of internal and external” metallogenic mechanism or “MDIE” metallogenic mechanism for short has been put forwarded further in this paper, and the “five levels + basement” exploration model has been successfully expanded to guide the prospecting work both in the Jiajika and Keeryin pegmatite ore fields in western Sichuan Province. Besides, new progress has been made in the aspect of amblygonite deposits of granite-type and hydrothermal type in the Mufushan-Jiuling ore district, which points out a new direction for prospecting new types of lithium deposits in China.

The Central Andes of South America host the largest known lithium resources in a confined area, but the primary lithium sources of the salar deposits and the mobilisation process of lithium are still a matter of speculation. Chemical weathering at or near the surface and leaching in hydrothermal systems of the active magmatic arc are considered the two main mechanisms of Li extraction from the source rock. The lithium and strontium isotope composition of typical salar deposits offer insights into the processes on how Li brine deposits in Andean evaporites are formed. Data from the Salar de Pozuelos indicate near-surface chemical weathering in a cold and dry climate as the dominant mobilisation process of Li, with evaporation being responsible for the enrichment. The Cenozoic ignimbrites are the favoured source rock for the Li, with subordinate additions from the Palaeozoic basement. The identification of the source rocks is supported by radiogenic Nd and Pb and stable B isotope data from salar deposits. A comparison with other Li brine and salt deposits in the Altiplano-Puna Plateau and its western foothills places the Salar de Pozuelos as an endmember of Li solubilisation by chemical weathering with only minor hydrothermal mobilisation of Li. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The lithium market has experienced an unprecedented boom in recent years like a "golden age" and is one of the fastest growing raw material markets in the world. The fast growing demand for lithium is mainly related to the increase in the production of lithium-ion batteries used in electric or hybrid vehicles and portable electronic equipment, and to a lesser extent, in other strategic fields (military, nuclear technologies). This was reflected in a significant change in the structure of consumption, an increase in international trade and in the price of lithium raw materials. Moreover, in 2018 lithium was listed as a critical element for the national security and economy of the United States, and in 2020 it was also listed as a critical raw material for the European Union economy. It is also a time of increased exploration for new deposits, as well as mining processing and recycling. As a result, global lithium reserves have doubled in the last six years. All this prompted the authors to prepare an article in which the sources of lithium minerals and their resources, the basic factors determining the economic situation on the market, their prices and the possibilities of recycling and substitution are presented and assessed. Attention is also paid to the role of companies operating in Poland as significant partners on the European market of lithium-ion batteries. Lithium oxide and hydroxide and lithium carbonate are the main lithium raw materials used in Poland. In the absence of the country having its own deposits, they are imported, and the main suppliers are Chile, Western European countries and Russia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lithium ore deposits are divided into pegmatite and brine deposits. The Puna Plateau and the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau (QTP) are home to the most abundant brine lithium deposits worldwide. Very few studies have investigated the chronology of brine lithium deposits. This paper reports the Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating measurements for typical brine lithium deposits at QTP, including East Taijnar Salt Lake, West Taijnar Salt Lake, and Yiliping Salt Lake in the central Qaidam Basin. Combining the results of OSL dating with previous studies and mineral composition obtained by X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), this study summarizes the age and characteristics of the climatic environment during the formation of brine lithium deposits in the Qaidam Basin. The main results are: 1) Brine lithium deposits in the Qaidam Basin began to form since 40 ka. Brine lithium deposits in South America formed during the middle Pleistocene and late Pleistocene, and are older than the deposits in the Qaidam Basin. The lithium deposits of Tibet formed around 4 ka, are the youngest. 2) The climate in East Taijnar Salt Lake and West Taijnar Salt Lake was extremely cold and dry during 27–4.6 ka, with a relatively humid climatic condition at ∼10 ka. After 4.6 ka, the environment was comparatively more humid around both lakes. Yiliping Salt Lake had a dry climate since 38.09 ka, and the climate in the Three Lakes area is mainly controlled by the westerlies in the Holocene; and 3) East Taijnar Salt Lake, West Taijnar Salt Lake and Yiliping Salt Lake were located in the same secondary basin during the late Pleistocene. However, tectonic activity around 40 ka led to the evolution of Yiliping Salt Lake into an independent basin. East Taijnar Salt Lake and West Taijnar Salt Lake separated around 27 ka, and then deposited the lower salt layers until the Holocene. The substantial amount of detrital minerals that the Nalinggele River brought during the Holocene led to a brief desalination of East Taijnar Salt Lake. The upper salt layer was deposited in East Taijnar Salt Lake and West Taijnar Salt Lake during this period due to the extremely dry climate.

We investigate the Li isotope composition and the Li concentrations of metamorphic and sedimentary rocks of the Palaeozoic (Pz) basement in the Central Andes and follow the trace of the Li in the Cenozoic volcanic rocks at the active continental margin. The average Li isotope composition of Pz-basement closely resembles global averages of upper crustal rocks with overlapping, but higher average Li content in the Pz-basement. Lithium isotope composition and content in the Cenozoic volcanic rocks of the Central Volcanic Zone (CVZ) range from mantle-like signatures to Pz-basement compositions with high δ7Li values and high Li contents. Evolutionary trends of the Li isotope composition in the CVZ volcanic rocks can be explained by assimilation of the Pz-basement. At a margin-wide scale, the abundance of Li in the CVZ volcanic rocks is higher than that of the Cenozoic volcanic rocks of the active Andean arc north and south of the CVZ. The CVZ volcanic and Pz-basement rocks are considered to be the primary source of Li in world-class Li-deposits in evaporates of the Altiplano-Puna high plateau and its western slope between ca 27° and 20° S. These deposits define the so-called "Lithium-Triangle", between southern Bolivia, NW Argentina and NE Chile. The pivotal processes of extraction of Li from its primary rock sources and of Li migration from the source rocks to the deposits still await detailed investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Continuous lithium (Li) depletion shadows the increase in energy density and safety properties promised by zero-excess lithium metal batteries (ZELMBs). Guiding the Li deposits toward more homogeneous and denser lithium morphology results in improved electrochemical performance. Herein, a lithium nitrate (LiNO 3 ) enriched separator that improves the morphology of the Li deposits and facilitates the formation of an inorganic-rich solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI) resulting in an extended cycle life in Li||Li-cells as well as an increase of the Coulombic efficiency in Cu||Li-cells is reported. Using a LiNi 0.6 Co 0.2 Mn 0.2 O 2 positive electrode in NCM622||Cu-cells, a carbonate-based electrolyte, and a LiNO 3 enriched separator, an extension of the cycle life by more than 50 cycles with a moderate capacity fading compared to the unmodified separator is obtained. The relative constant level of LiNO 3 in the electrolyte, maintained by the LiNO 3 enriched separator throughout the cycling process stems at the origin of the improved performance. Ion chromatography measurements carried out at different cycles support the proposed mechanism of a slow and constant release of LiNO 3 from the separator. The results indicate that the strategy of using a LiNO 3 enriched separator instead of LiNO 3 as a sacrificial electrolyte additive can improve the performance of ZELMBs further by maintaining a compact and thus stable SEI layer on Li deposits., (© 2023 The Authors. Small published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)