The Ministry of Natural Resources recently released a "Notice of Newly Discovered Mineral Types", which identified a new mineral type - high-purity quartz ore. Its emergence will change the previous situation of high dependence on imports and help promote the high-quality development of related strategic emerging industries.

The person in charge of the relevant department of the Ministry of Natural Resources stated that the newly established mineral is called high-purity quartz ore, which refers to rocks that can obtain silicon dioxide with a purity of not less than 99.995% through beneficiation and purification, and whose impurities and inclusions meet the requirements of high-tech applications such as semiconductors and photovoltaics. According to different types of ore, high-purity quartz ore can be divided into granite pegmatite type, vein quartz type, natural crystal type, quartzite type, etc. The mineral processing and purification products are high-purity quartz sand.

High purity quartz ore, as a strategic resource that is scarce in the world and highly dependent on imports in China, has unique geological characteristics and mining conditions that set it apart from other minerals. In recent years, China has launched a new round of breakthrough strategic actions in mineral exploration, and has discovered multiple Yanchun quartz mines in areas such as the eastern Qinling Mountains in Henan and Altay in Xinjiang.

The establishment of new mineral types will have a positive impact on cultivating and developing new quality productivity, enhancing the resilience and safety level of China's industrial and supply chains. Source of this article: Science and Technology Daily