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The use of X-ray micro-computed tomography to visualize and quantify lithium-bearing silicate minerals in pegmatites: Examples from the Tanco Pegmatite, Manitoba, Canada

  • Catriona M. Breasley EMAIL logo , Ivan R. Barker , Robert L. Linnen , Tânia Martins and Lee A. Groat
Published/Copyright: July 7, 2025
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American Mineralogist
From the journal American Mineralogist Volume 110 Issue 5

Abstract

X-raymicro-computed tomography (micro-CT) has been used in the geosciences to visualize the spatial arrangement of minerals and pores within rock samples. It is a powerful technique that can potentially be used to analyze lithium minerals as well, owing to its unique ability to non-destructively image microstructures and quantify mineral abundances in three dimensions (3D). The Tanco pegmatite in Manitoba, Canada, has a high abundance of the lithium-bearing mineral spodumene. In this study, all spodumene-quartz intergrowths were collected from zones 45 or 50 of the Tanco pegmatite. Three textural groups of spodumene and quartz intergrowths (SQUI) were recognized: the most abundant type of spodumene-quartz intergrowths observed at Tanco are elongated and oriented crystals, hereafter referred to as (1) “classic SQUI,” less common are quartz-spodumene intergrowths <1 mm referred to here as (2) micro-SQUI and intergrowths of stubby crystals of spodumene and quartz that are more than 1 cm, termed (3) macro-SQUI.

The relative 3D relationships between spodumene and quartz in the different SQUI groups were spatially correlated and quantified by micro-CT. The micro-SQUI group showed a mesh of multiple, complexly intergrown spodumene and quartz symplectites. The classic SQUI type showed a unidirectional crystallization texture in the samples, whereas the macro-SQUI group did not show a preference for crystallographic orientation. The relative proportions of the minerals comprising SQUI within small drill core sample volumes were quantified in three dimensions and contrasted to low spatial resolution bulk assay methods such as Rietveld X-ray diffraction (XRD) and bulk ICP-MS. The quantified results from micro-CT were categorized as spodumene and a “less dense than spodumene” fraction that included mostly quartz with minor amounts of muscovite, analcime, and albite. The absolute percentage differences between the micro-CT quantifications of spodumene from 6 out of 8 samples were within ±7% of Rietveld XRD results and 7 out of 9 samples were within ±10% of the calculations based upon the whole-rock geochemistry.

Although not all intergrowths of spodumene and quartz are interpreted to have originated by replacement of petalite, there are many instances where this texture resulted from the breakdown of petalite; this texture has been termed “SQUI.” This should result in intergrowths containing a weight percent ratio of 60% spodumene to 40% quartz. Our micro-CT results show spodumene modal abundances between 54 to 70 wt%, suggesting that SQUI can have multiple origins and that the currently accepted assumption is too simplistic.

Our research shows that micro-CT can successfully be used as a 3D visualization and quantification tool of Li-silicate minerals while providing additional contextual information that low spatial resolution bulk techniques cannot provide. This study also shows the diverse possibilities of utilizing micro-CT analysis in visualizing silicate textural information between minerals with density differences of at least 0.55 g/cm3, which includes investigating spodumene and quartz in 3D, highlighting an impactful use of micro-CT as a critical mineral visualization and quantification tool in pegmatites. This is important as the texture of spodumene can assist in determining the origins of lithium mineralization and can influence metallurgical processes. Understanding these aspects is vital for identifying further mineralization within deposits and assessing their economic viability.

Keywords: X-ray computed tomography; lithium; spodumene; pegmatite; Special Collection: Pegmatites

† Special collection papers can be found online at our website in the Special Collection section.

Acknowledgments and Funding

The authors extend their gratitude towards the entire Tanco mine team at the Tantalum Mining Corporation. Special thanks are extended to Aaryn Hutchins, Scott Rankmore, Claude Deveau, and Joey Champagne. Thanks are extended to the Manitoba Geological Survey for logistical and field support. Thanks are also extended to the Surface Science Western team, Jon Jacobs, Desmond Moser, and Emilie Landry from the Zircon and Accessory Phase Laboratory at UWO for sample preparation assistance, Chelsea Pastula, Tyler Hnatiuk, and Colin Epp from the Manitoba Geological Survey for field assistance and help. Thanks to Jenny Lai and Cole Mauws for assistance with Rietveld XRD and Maureen Soon and Xueya Lu for ring mill assistance. Thanks are extended to two anonymous reviewers and to David London for reviewing and improving this manuscript.

The research was supported by a Mitacs Inc. Accelerate grant to L.A.G. and R.L.L. and an NSERC Discovery Grant to L.A.G. (funding reference 06434). Funding for the purchase of the micro-CT at Surface Science Western was through the Canadian Foundation for Innovation–2017 Innovation Fund (CFI-IF #35961), Ontario Research Fund. The authors declare no competing interests.

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Received: 2024-04-23
Accepted: 2024-08-15
Published Online: 2025-07-07
Published in Print: 2025-05-26

© 2025 Mineralogical Society of America

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https://doi.org/10.2138/am-2024-9439
Keywords for this article
X-ray computed tomography; lithium; spodumene; pegmatite; Special Collection: Pegmatites

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Atomic-scale visualization and quantification of lithium in lepidolite by AC-TEM-EELS: Implications for pegmatite genesis and advancing lithium extraction techniques
  2. The use of X-ray micro-computed tomography to visualize and quantify lithium-bearing silicate minerals in pegmatites: Examples from the Tanco Pegmatite, Manitoba, Canada
  3. Single- and multi-mineral classification using dual-band Raman spectroscopy for planetary surface missions
  4. Magnesite formation during nesquehonite decomposition in the presence and absence of retained self-generated gases and the role of X-ray amorphous materials as essential stores for CO2
  5. Formation of bonanza Au-Ag-telluride ores in epithermal systems: Constraints from Cu-O isotopes and modeling
  6. Reexamination of the structure of nanomineral opal-CT using synchrotron X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray scattering structure factor, and pair distribution function analyses
  7. Titanium substitutions in garnet at magmatic, granulite facies, and high-pressure granulite facies conditions
  8. Mechanistic understanding of the dehydroxylation reaction of smectites: Insights from reactive force field (ReaxFF) molecular dynamics simulation
  9. Estimating the iron oxidation state of serpentinite using X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy
  10. Episodic magmatism contributes to sub-seafloor copper mineralization: Insights from textures and geochemistry of zoned pyrite in the Ashele VMS deposit
  11. Development of oxy-symplectites in a slow-spreading lower oceanic crust: Insights from the Atlantis Bank Gabbro Massif, Southwest Indian Ridge
  12. Heterogeneous distribution of Al-hematite regulated by hydrologic regime in a basaltic laterite of Hainan Island, South China: Implications for the aqueous history of Mars
  13. Allanite-(Sm), CaSm(Al2Fe2+)(Si2O7)(SiO4)O(OH), the third samarium mineral from Jordanów Śląski, Lower Silesia, Poland
  14. Letter
  15. The “breathing” Earth at Solfatara-Pisciarelli, Campi Flegrei, southern Italy (2005–2024): Nature’s attenuation of the effects of bradyseism
  16. New Mineral Names
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