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6217361 
Book/Book Chapter 
HYDROGEN-MINERAL REACTIONS AND THEIR APPLICATION TO THE REMOVAL OF IRON FROM SPODUMENE 
Giardini, AA; Heinrich, EW; Salotti, CA 
1978 
Pergamon 
Lithium Needs and Resources 
273-279 
Pegmatitic deposits contain three distinctly different types of spodumene: (1) Phenocrystic spodumene in unzoned pegmatites. This type is high-iron spodumene, with Fe203 = 0.6–0.9%. (2) Zonal spodumene. Large laths in central zones; it contains 0.01–0.03% Fe203. (3) Spodumene plus quartz aggregates pseudomorphous after petalite; Fe203 = 0.007–0.03%. Only Type 1 generally occurs in deposits sufficiently large and uniform to be economically exploitable. Two processes are presently available for iron removal. Both require initial inversion of the (α) spodumene to its β-dimorph: (1) The chlorine process in which the isomorphous iron is converted to iron chloride and (2) The hydrogen process in which the Fe3+ ion is reduced to metallic iron. Hydrogen-mineral reactions, such as hydrogen-carbonate reactions, are potential sources of lime, methane and iron. They also are important for the beneficiation of such ceramic materials as spodumene and feldspar. 
Penner, S. S.