Dr. Jiaxin Wang - The geochemical behavior of scandium in hydrothermal fluids

Scandium (Sc) is a rare earth element (REE) that, because of a combination of low density and high melting point, is used to produce the light high tensile strength aluminum alloys that are required by the automotive and aerospace industries to help address the issue of global warming. Currently, 90% of global Sc production is from the Bayan Obo REE deposit (the largest REE deposit in the world), where the minerals hosting it are of hydrothermal origin. This raises the question of how Sc is transported in hydrothermal fluids to form economic deposits. This presentation will show the results of experiments designed to determine the geochemical behavior of Sc in hydrothermal fluids to understand the conditions and processes concentrating it to economically exploitable levels.