New Approaches in the Exploration and Characterization of Critical Mineral Deposits

Dear Colleagues,

The growing global demand for critical mineral resources has heightened the importance of exploring and characterizing critical mineral deposits, which encompass a diverse range of economically essential commodities, including rare metals (e.g., Li and REEs), precious metals (e.g., Au, Ag, and Pt), and industrial minerals (e.g., graphite, mica, and fluorspar). Recent advances in understanding mineralization processes and developing genetic models and analytical/exploration technologies have significantly enhanced our capacity to decipher ore-forming mechanisms, optimize exploration targeting, and promote sustainable resource development.

This Special Issue aims to showcase cutting-edge research on novel methodologies for studying critical mineral deposits, with a focus on:

• Provenance of ore-forming minerals;
• Migration and precipitation mechanisms of ore-forming elements;
• Geochemical, geophysical, and remote sensing technologies;
• Advanced ore deposit modeling and characterization techniques;
• Integrated approaches combining mineralogy, field geology, geochronology, and spectroscopy.

We invite authors to submit contributions that enhance our understanding of such deposits, leading to more effective exploration strategies, improved resource estimation, and environmentally responsible mining practices. High-quality original research articles, reviews, and case studies are welcome.

Dr. Peng Li
Dr. Xinxing Liu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Minerals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.