Spodumene
“The lithium mineral powering the future”
Spodumene is a lithium aluminum pyroxene mineral and currently the world's most important hard-rock source of lithium — the lightest metal and a critical component of rechargeable batteries. Gem varieties include pink kunzite and green hiddenite, but it's the industrial demand for lithium that has made spodumene a strategic mineral.
lithium aluminum inosilicate (LiAlSi₂O₆)
Greenbushes (Western Australia — world's largest hard-rock lithium mine), Kings Mountain (North Carolina, USA), Minas Gerais (Brazil), Afghanistan (kunzite), Bikita (Zimbabwe)
6.5-7
Global spodumene mining has exploded by over 500% since 2015 to feed lithium-ion battery production for electric vehicles — a single electric car battery requires about 8 kg of lithium, equivalent to mining roughly 100 kg of spodumene ore.
Test Your Knowledge
In what geological setting does spodumene crystallize, and why does this setting concentrate lithium?
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