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Abstract:
China has abundant indium resources and is the main supplier of refined indium in the world. In this contribution, we systematically summarize the geology and spatial-temporal distribution of indium deposits in China, with emphasis on the genesis and enrichment mechanism of these deposits. The indium resources in China are mainly from Sn-polymetallic deposits related to Mesozoic granites within the southern Great Xing'an Range, southwestern Yangtze Block, western Nanling Range, and their surrounding regions. Moreover, these Mesozoic granitic intrusions are mainly composed of highly fractionated S- or A-type granites with peraluminous characteristics (A/CNK > 1.1) and high volatile concentrations, which are considered to be generated by biotitedehydration melting in the crust. Because biotite is an important carrier of tin and indium, the breakdown of biotite during partial melting could release tin and indium into magmatic-hydrothermal system, leading to Sn-In mineralization. During the precipitation of indium minerals from ore-forming fluids, it is preferentially incorporated into sphalerite lattice by a coupled substitution of In3+ + Cu+ <-> 2Zn2+, causing a decoupling from tin. Therefore, indium resources are dominantly sourced from sphalerite-bearing ores in Sn-polymetallic deposits in China. Recently, indium mineralization has been discovered in Sn-poor polymetallic deposits (e.g., the Qibaoshan Cu-polymetallic deposit); however, the enrichment mechanism of indium in Sn-poor deposits is still unclear. Consequently, we suggest that future studies should focus on the enrichment mechanism of indium in Sn-poor polymetallic deposits and the behavior of indium in magmatic-hydrothermal systems, which would contribute to a better understanding of the coupling and decoupling of tin and indium and their metallogenesis.
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Source :
ORE GEOLOGY REVIEWS
ISSN: 0169-1368
Year: 2022
Volume: 146
3 . 3
JCR@2022
3 . 2 0 0
JCR@2023
ESI Discipline: GEOSCIENCES;
ESI HC Threshold:51
JCR Journal Grade:1
CAS Journal Grade:2
Cited Count:
WoS CC Cited Count: 13
SCOPUS Cited Count: 14
ESI Highly Cited Papers on the List: 0 Unfold All
WanFang Cited Count:
Chinese Cited Count:
30 Days PV: 2
Affiliated Colleges: