6_Nickel (ID) Flashcards
Nickel
A silvery-white, metallic element used chiefly in making alloys, recognized as an elemental substance in 1751.
Niccolite (Nickeline)
A nickel arsenide mineral (NiAs) with a pale copper-red color and metallic luster, found in laterite deposits.
Garnierite
A green nickel silicate mineral found in laterite deposits, often associated with high-grade nickel ores.
Millerite
A nickel sulfide mineral with a metallic luster, often found in magmatic nickel sulfide deposits.
Pentlandite
A nickel-iron sulfide (Fe, Ni)₉S₈, an important ore of nickel and one of the primary minerals in magmatic nickel deposits.
Pyrrhotite
A magnetic iron sulfide (Fe₁₋ₓS) that often contains nickel and is an important ore of nickel.
Meteorite
More than 95% of all meteorites contain iron-nickel (FeNi) metal, which is primarily composed of iron with 5-30% nickel.
Magmatic Ore Deposits
Deposits found in igneous rocks where ore minerals crystallized from a melt or were transported in a melt, associated with magmatic systems.
Magmatic-Hydrothermal Ore Deposits
Ore deposits formed as a result of both magmatic and hydrothermal processes, where minerals are precipitated from aqueous solutions.
Partial Melting
The process where a rock partially melts, and the melt that forms is enriched in incompatible elements like nickel.
Fractional Crystallization
The separation of minerals from a magma during cooling, which causes certain minerals to concentrate and form ore deposits.
Sulfide Immiscibility
The process where liquid sulfides separate from silicate melts due to differences in composition and immiscibility, forming nickel-rich sulfide ores.
Hydrothermal Ore Deposits
Ore deposits formed when minerals precipitate from high-temperature aqueous fluids, often associated with magmatic activity.
Hydrothermal Fluids
Fluids that transport dissolved metals and ions, often at high temperatures and pressures, crucial in the formation of hydrothermal ore deposits.
Hydrothermal Solution Chemistry
The solubility and stability of metals in aqueous solutions, influenced by the fluid composition, temperature, and the presence of ligands.
Aqueous Complexes
Polyatomic ions formed when metal ions bond with ligands, stabilizing the metal in solution, important for the transport of metals in hydrothermal systems.
Nernst Partition Coefficients
Equilibrium ratios that describe the distribution of elements between coexisting phases, crucial for understanding element partitioning during crystallization.
Compatible Elements
Elements that preferentially concentrate in minerals during crystallization, such as nickel and iron in peridotite and gabbro.
Incompatible Elements
Elements that do not substitute into the crystal structure of minerals and tend to remain in the melt, such as certain trace elements in felsic rocks.
Nickel Laterite Deposits
Deposits formed by the weathering of ultramafic rocks, leading to the concentration of nickel in lateritic soils, especially in tropical climates.
Limonite Zone
The upper part of a nickel laterite deposit composed mainly of iron clay minerals with low nickel content and plasticity.
Saprolite Zone
The lower part of a nickel laterite deposit that contains higher concentrations of nickel-bearing minerals such as garnierite.
Magmatic Nickel Sulfide Deposit
Deposits formed from the interaction of magmatic processes and sulfide immiscibility, concentrating nickel and other valuable metals in sulfide ores.
Hydrothermal Nickel Sulfide Deposits
Deposits formed at shallow depths through the leaching of nickel from serpentinite rock by hydrothermal fluids, often associated with geothermal activity.
