Mineralogical identification of the wheathering material of the Araxá carbonatite, Minas Gerais, Brazil.

• Grant number: 24/18502-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: April 01, 2025
• End date: March 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Geosciences - Geology
• Principal Investigator: Daniel Atencio
• Grantee: Ester Laíssa Lopes do Amparo
• Host Institution: Instituto de Geociências (IGC). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Araxá is a very important region for mining, with emphasis onniobium extraction. Its geology is also of great relevance for studiesmineralogical and crystallographic, and can contribute to the improvement indiscovery of new minerals in the country. Therefore, this project aims toanalyze carbonatite alteration samples from the Barreiro Alkaline Complex, in orderto better characterize its minerals and identify minerals not yet described inacademic literature. To this end, several methods will be used, such as analysischemistry by EDS (energy dispersive spectroscopy) and X-ray diffraction.