China's newly discovered mineral officially named 'Jinxiuite'

A newly discovered mineral identified and submitted by researchers from the Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (CAGS) has been formally approved by the International Mineralogical Association's Commission on New Minerals, Nomenclature and Classification and officially named Jinxiuite, a nickel bismuth antimony arsenic sulfide.

The mineral was discovered in the Longhua nickel-cobalt deposit in Jinxiu Yao Autonomous County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Longhua deposit is exceptionally rich, with nickel and cobalt accounting for about 17.5 percent and 1.5 percent of the ore, respectively, nearly 80 times higher than the conventional metallogenic benchmarks of around 0.2 percent for nickel and 0.02 percent for cobalt.

Yan Jiayong, an expert in geophysics exploration at CAGS, told CMG that Jinxiuite is composed of nickel, bismuth, sulfur, antimony and arsenic. He said it essentially forms through replacement of earlier nickel bearing minerals, which causes a rearrangement of the crystal structure and ultimately crystallizes into a new, structurally stable mineral species.

The nickel and cobalt deposit in which Jinxiuite formed is regarded as a scarce type of mineral resource, particularly cobalt, which has long been heavily dependent on imports. The discovery of Jinxiuite is of major significance for research into the genesis of hydrothermal nickel and cobalt deposits and for guiding prospecting breakthroughs.

Tang Hejun, a senior engineer at CAGS, told CMG that Jinxiuite contains multiple valuable metals, including nickel, cobalt and bismuth, and that further research is needed to determine whether these metals can be extracted efficiently. He said this will directly affect future recovery rates and the economic benefits of comprehensive resource utilization in similar deposits. Tang added that the team plans to build a theoretical model to use Jinxiuite as an indicator mineral for exploration, so that if Jinxiuite or similar minerals are found in rocks or exploration samples in future geological surveys, it may help infer concealed nickel and cobalt mineralization bodies of potential economic value.