The role of climate in the accumulation of lithium-rich brine in the Central Andes

• Published in: Applied geochemistry Vol. 38; pp. 92 - 102
• Main Authors: Godfrey, L.V., Chan, L.-H., Alonso, R.N., Lowenstein, T.K., McDonough, W.F., Houston, J., Li, J., Bobst, A., Jordan, T.E.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.11.2013; Elsevier
• Subjects: altitude; climate; climate change; Earth sciences; Earth, ocean, space; Engineering and environment geology. Geothermics; Exact sciences and technology; ferrihydrite; Geochemistry; hot springs; isotope fractionation; isotopes; lakes; Pollution, environment geology; rivers; rocks; runoff; salts; smectite; sodium; solutes; sorption; water balance; Andes region; Argentina; South America; Andes; Central Andes; South America, Andes Mts; altitude; oxides; springs; sorption; lithium; brines; modern; ferrihydrite; isotopes; sheet silicates; silicates; lakes; chlorides; rivers; salt; accumulation; halite; dissolution; runoff; resources; climate; halides; chemically precipitated rocks; evaporites; smectite; hydroxides; sedimentary rocks; lagoons; deserts; dilution; isotope fractionation; calderas; clay minerals; volcaniclastics
• ISSN: 0883-2927; 1872-9134
• DOI: 10.1016/j.apgeochem.2013.09.002

•δ7Li of waters and rocks in the Central Andes were measured.•Halite/brine partition coefficients of lithium and δ7Li of halite were determined.•Li-rich brines have a high component of fluids of geothermal origin.•Removal of lithium by clays is minor relative to other regions of the world.•The weathering flux of lithium and sodium decouple according to climate state. Lithium-rich brine within the sub-surface of the Salar del Hombre Muerto (SHM) salt pan in the Andes of northwestern Argentina has a chemical and isotopic composition which is consistent with Li derived from several sources: the modern halite saturated lagoon, Li-rich salts and brines formed recently, and dissolution of halite which precipitated from ancient saline lakes. SHM lies in the closed basin that includes part of the massive Cerro Galán caldera which is drained by the Río los Patos, which is responsible for 90% of surface runoff into the salar. The low Li isotope composition, +3.4‰, of this river is consistent with significant contributions of geothermal spring water. As water drains through the volcaniclastic deposits which cover a large proportion of the basin, Li removal, as indicated by decreasing Li/Na, occurs but without significant isotope fractionation. This indicates a mechanism of surface sorption onto smectite or ferrihydrite rather than Li incorporation into octahedral structural sites of clays. These observations suggest that conditions in this high altitude desert have limited the dilution of hydrothermal spring water as well as the formation of clay minerals, which jointly have allowed the Li resource to accumulate rapidly. Changes in climate on a multi-millennial time scale, specifically in the hydrologic budget, have resulted in solute accumulation rates that have been variable through time, and decoupled Li and Na fluxes. Inflow to the salar under modern conditions has high Li/Na (7.9×10−3 by wt) with δ7Li indistinguishable from basement rocks (−0.3‰ to +6.4‰), while under pluvial climate conditions the Li/Na of the saline lake was 40 times lower than the modern lagoon (0.1–0.3×10−3 compared to 10.6–13.4×10−3) with slightly higher δ7Li, +6.9‰ to +12.3‰, reflecting the uptake of 6Li into secondary minerals which formed under a wetter climate.