Geochemistry of Rare Earth and Trace Elements in Rare Earth Tailings from Sichuan Province and the Significance of the Exploitation and Utilization

Abstract

Sichuan Province is one of the most important provinces in China for light rare earth element (LREE) resources, where they have been mined for more than 20 years. There is now a large volume of tailings present in the mines still containing an abundance of rare earth resources. It would be beneficial to the mine owners to recover the REEs in the tailings so an estimate of the amount would be extremely beneficial. Preliminary research has already been undertaken on the geochemistry of trace and rare earth elements in tailing samples from the A, B, C and D REE deposits. The results show that the REE distribution patterns of tailing samples are inherited from rare earth ores in REE deposits. The contents of rare earth oxides (REO) in samples are higher than the current cut-off grade (0.5%-1.0%), and the old tailings are higher than the new. In addition to the enrichment of REEs, samples of B (Sr 10%) and C (Sr 2.7%) are also rich in Sr while A samples are rich in Ba (1.8%). Mo, Bi, Pb and Ag are enriched in different degrees in all samples and in particular, the Mo content reached its cut-off grade, at 2.275% in the tailings of magnetic separation. It is evident from these results that it is necessary to protect tailings in rare earth mines in Sichuan Province, and to take appropriate measures to reclaim higher concentration elements.

Keywords

• rare earth tailings in sichuan province
• rare earth tailings in sichuan province
• rare earth elements
• trace elements
• rational use of resources