On the geological availability of germanium

Frenzel, Max; Кетрис, М. П.; Gutzmer, Jens

doi:10.1007/s00126-013-0506-z

Cited by 99 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 68 publications

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“…Deposits from the Cretaceous Panagyurishte district of Bulgaria (including the Chelopech, Radka, Krassen and Elshitsa HS deposits) locally contain germanite [Cu 13 [62,[96][97][98][99][100].…”

Section: Ge ± In-ga Mineralization In High-sulfidation Enargite Oresmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Additionally, Ge, Ga and In may be mobilized into magmas and hydrothermal fluids from sedimentary country rocks, in particular those rich in organic matter. Both Ge and Ga form strong bonds with organic compounds in coals and related organic materials, and coal deposits represent a significant resource of Ge and Ga globally [7,9,13,14]. As an example, coal seams from the upper Devonian Chattanooga black shale in Tennessee were found to contain up to 760 ppm Ge (up to 4.5 wt % Ge and 50 ppm Ga in the coal ash), with the shale itself containing up to 18 ppm Ge [123].…”

Section: Petrogenetic Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mineralogical Distribution of Germanium, Gallium and Indium at the Mt Carlton High-Sulfidation Epithermal Deposit, NE Australia, and Comparison with Similar Deposits Worldwide

et al. 2017

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Germanium, gallium and indium are in high demand due to their growing usage in high-tech and green-tech applications. However, the mineralogy and the mechanisms of concentration of these critical elements in different types of hydrothermal ore deposits remain poorly constrained. We investigated the mineralogical distribution of Ge, Ga and In at the Mt Carlton high-sulfidation epithermal deposit in NE Australia, using electron probe microanalysis and laser ablation inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Parageneses from which selected minerals were analyzed include: Stage 1 acid sulfate alteration (alunite), Stage 2A high-sulfidation enargite mineralization (enargite, argyrodite, sphalerite, pyrite, barite), Stage 2B intermediate-sulfidation sphalerite mineralization (sphalerite, pyrite, galena) and Stage 3 hydrothermal void fill (dickite). Moderate to locally high concentrations of Ga were measured in Stage 1 alunite (up to 339 ppm) and in Stage 3 dickite (up to 150 ppm). The Stage 2A ores show enrichment in Ge, which is primarily associated with argyrodite (up to 6.95 wt % Ge) and Ge-bearing enargite (up to 2189 ppm Ge). Co-existing sphalerite has comparatively low Ge content (up to 143 ppm), while Ga (up to 1181 ppm) and In (up to 571 ppm) are higher. Sphalerite in Stage 2B contains up to 611 ppm Ge, 2829 ppm Ga and 2169 ppm In, and locally exhibits fine colloform bands of an uncharacterized Zn-In mineral with compositions close to CuZn 2 (In,Ga)S 4 . Barite, pyrite and galena which occur in association with Stage 2 mineralization were found to play negligible roles as carriers of Ge, Ga and In at Mt Carlton. Analyzed reference samples of enargite from seven similar deposits worldwide have average Ge concentrations ranging from 12 to 717 ppm (maximum 2679 ppm). The deposits from which samples showed high enrichment in critical elements in this study are all hosted in stratigraphic sequences that locally contain carbonaceous sedimentary rocks. In addition to magmatic-hydrothermal processes, such rocks could potentially be important for the concentration of critical elements in high-sulfidation epithermal deposits.

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Section: Ge ± In-ga Mineralization In High-sulfidation Enargite Oresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Petrogenetic Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mineralogical Distribution of Germanium, Gallium and Indium at the Mt Carlton High-Sulfidation Epithermal Deposit, NE Australia, and Comparison with Similar Deposits Worldwide

et al. 2017

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“…Currently, germanium is extracted commercially from some Ge-rich coal seams and from zinc concentrates from some Zn-Pb mining operations, in which Ge is hosted within the common sulfide mineral sphalerite (ZnS) [1,2]. Germanium is particularly enriched in relatively Fe-poor sphalerite from Mississippi Valley-type (MVT) deposits formed at relatively low temperatures [2].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distribution and Substitution Mechanism of Ge in a Ge-(Fe)-Bearing Sphalerite

et al. 2015

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Abstract:The distribution and substitution mechanism of Ge in the Ge-rich sphalerite from the Tres Marias Zn deposit, Mexico, was studied using a combination of techniques at μm-to atomic scales. Trace element mapping by Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled 118Mass Spectrometry shows that Ge is enriched in the same bands as Fe, and that Ge-rich sphalerite also contains measurable levels of several other minor elements, including As, Pb and Tl. Micron-to nanoscale heterogeneity in the sample, both textural and compositional, is revealed by investigation using Focused Ion Beam-Scanning Electron Microscopy (FIB-SEM) combined with Synchrotron X-ray Fluorescence mapping and High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy imaging of FIB-prepared samples. Results show that Ge is preferentially incorporated within Fe-rich sphalerite with textural complexity finer than that of the microbeam used for the X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure (XANES) measurements. Such heterogeneity, expressed as intergrowths between 3C sphalerite and 2H wurtzite on [11 0] zones, could be the result of either a primary growth process, or alternatively, polystage crystallization, in which early Fe-Ge-rich sphalerite is partially replaced by Fe-Ge-poor wurtzite. FIB-SEM imaging shows evidence for replacement supporting the latter. Transformation of sphalerite into wurtzite is promoted by (111)* twinning or lattice-scale defects, leading to a heterogeneous ZnS sample, in which the dominant component, sphalerite, can host up to ~20% wurtzite. Ge K-edge XANES spectra for this sphalerite are identical to those of the germanite and argyrodite standards and the synthetic chalcogenide glasses GeS2 and GeSe2, indicating the Ge formally exists in the tetravalent form in this sphalerite. Fe K-edge XANES spectra for the same sample indicate that Fe is present mainly as Fe 2+, and Cu K-edge XANES spectra are characteristic for Cu + . Since there is no evidence for coupled substitution involving a monovalent element, we propose that Ge ) with vacancies in the structure to compensate for charge balance. This study shows the utility of synchrotron radiation combined with electron beam micro-analysis in investigating low-level concentrations of minor metals in common sulfides.

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“…1 Additionally, detection and quantification limits allow the determination of a diversity of metals and nonmetals in a myriad of sample types such as cements, ceramics, silicates, geological materials, metallosilicates, refractory compounds, aluminophosphates, silicoaluminophosphates, clays, phyllosilicates, and coals. 4,[6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] The chemical analysis of the inorganic solids mentioned above by ICP OES using conventional acid dissolution methods, in open flasks on hot plate, 15 usually involves costly and time-consuming procedures for sample preparation, 3 requiring a long analysis time and large amounts of reagents. Additionally, such conventional procedures do not assure complete dissolution of some solid inorganic samples, especially geological samples 15,16 (including silicates 8,13,17 and aluminosilicates) 14,16 even when a large amount of concentrated acids is used.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Straightforward Method for Determination of Al and Na in Aluminosilicates Using ICP OES

Ramos¹,

Almeida²,

Júnior³

et al. 2017

J. Braz. Chem. Soc.

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The improvements on aluminosilicates dissolution through microwave-assisted acid decomposition procedures for Na and Al quantification by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP OES) are reported here. Complete dissolution of the samples is achieved employing 4 mL of HNO 3 and 3-4 mL of HF thus reducing the total amount of these reactants in comparison with procedures found in the literature. Additionally, the type of crucibles used in the calcination for sample preparation step is also evaluated. Na and Al concentrations are in agreement with the expected values on the samples. Estimated silicon amount is achieved by difference of sodium and aluminum, and then Si/Al molar ratios were calculated for samples calcined in both porcelain (Si/Al is in the range 22-42) and platinum (Si/Al is in the range 27-40) crucibles, showing no difference between these procedures.

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On the geological availability of germanium

Cited by 99 publications

References 68 publications

Mineralogical Distribution of Germanium, Gallium and Indium at the Mt Carlton High-Sulfidation Epithermal Deposit, NE Australia, and Comparison with Similar Deposits Worldwide

Mineralogical Distribution of Germanium, Gallium and Indium at the Mt Carlton High-Sulfidation Epithermal Deposit, NE Australia, and Comparison with Similar Deposits Worldwide

Distribution and Substitution Mechanism of Ge in a Ge-(Fe)-Bearing Sphalerite

A Straightforward Method for Determination of Al and Na in Aluminosilicates Using ICP OES

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