A mysterious type of iron-rich magma entombed within extinct volcanoes is likely abundant with rare earth elements and could offer a new way to source these in-demand metals.
- The new research was published by The Australian National University (ANU) and the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
- The research is published in Geochemical Perspectives Letters.
- Using a unique experimental technique, researchers were able to recreate a certain type of extinct volcano in a lab, learning more about the magma these volcanoes produce.
- Dr. Michael Anenburg from ANU said the iron-rich magma that solidified to form some extinct volcanoes is up to a hundred times more efficient at concentrating rare earth metals than the magmas that commonly erupt from active volcanoes.
- This is a group of metals with crucial applications in several high-tech industries, such as magnets for electric vehicles and wind turbines.
- There is an enigmatic type of magma that contains unusually large amounts of iron. It is so rare, no eruptions featuring this type of magma have happened in recorded history.
- Instead, it is only known from extinct volcanoes that were active many millions of years ago.
- The most famous example of such a volcano is El Laco in Chile. Another notable example is Kiruna in Sweden, mined for iron ore for many decades.
- The common primary minerals in volcanic rocks are generally quartz, K-feldspar, plagioclase, muscovite, biotite, amphibole, pyroxene, or olivine.
- China has the biggest deposit of rare earth elements on the planet, while Europe’s largest deposit of rare earths is in Sweden.
- Australia has a world-class deposit at Mount Weld in Western Australia and others near Dubbo and Alice Springs.
