Hoidas Lake
| Hoidas Lake | |
|---|---|
| Location | Saskatchewan |
| Coordinates | 59°55′33″N 107°49′24″W / 59.9258°N 107.8233°WCoordinates: 59°55′33″N 107°49′24″W / 59.9258°N 107.8233°W |
| Basin countries | Canada |
Hoidas Lake is a remote northern Canadian lake which lies approximately 50 kilometers north of Uranium City, Saskatchewan. Named in honor of Irvin Frank Hoidas, a Royal Canadian Air Force pilot officer killed in action during the Second World War when his Stirling W-7520 crashed near the Belgian town of Saint-Truiden,[1][2][3] it is the site of Canada's most advanced rare earth element (REE) mining project.[4]
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[edit] Setting
Hoidas Lake lies in the Northern Rae Geological Province, in the general vicinity of many of Saskatchewan's large uranium mines.[4]
[edit] Mineralogy
The mineralogy of the Hoidas Lake rare earth deposit differs from most other such deposits in that it is hosted in veins of apatite and allanite.[5] The deposit also contains a number of heavy REEs, such as dysprosium.[4] This is important, as dysprosium is used in the manufacture of hybrid car components[6] and some are suggesting an impending shortage of the metal.[7] Mineralization is presumably hydrothermal, from an alkali or carbonatitic source at depth.[8]
[edit] Resource scale
Ongoing work at Hoidas Lake has delineated a vein system (known as the JAK zone), which extends for at least a kilometer along strike.[8] The limits of the system have not been established along strike nor along dip,[8] and the zone's total extension is therefore unknown. Estimates of the resource given current delineations and assuming a 1.5% total rare earth cutoff, have established a presence of at least 286,000 tonnes of rare earth ore,[9] which is enough to supply more than 10% of the North American market for the foreseeable future.
[edit] Ownership
The Hoidas Lake claims are owned by Great Western Minerals Group, based in Saskatoon.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ http://wwii.ca/memorial/world-war-ii/116809/pilot-officer-irvin-frank-hoidas/
- ^ Irvin Frank Hoidas
- ^ http://www.inmemories.com/Cemeteries/heverlee.htm
- ^ a b c d Hoidas Lake, Saskatchewan
- ^ Salvi S, Williams‐Jones A. 2004. Alkaline granite‐syenite deposits. In Linnen RL, Samson IM, editors. Rare element geochemistry and mineral deposits. St. Catharines (ON): Geological Association of Canada. pp. 315‐341
- ^ G, Nishiyama. "Japan urges China to ease rare metals supply." 8 November 2007. Reuters Latest News. 10 March 2008 <http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSL08815827>
- ^ Cox C. 2008. Rare earth innovation. [Internet]. Herndon (VA): The Anchor House Inc; [updated 2008 Feb 16; cited 2008 Mar 18]. Available from http://theanchorhouse.com
- ^ a b c http://library2.usask.ca/theses/available/etd-01292010-141709/unrestricted/Halpin_K.pdf
- ^ http://www.gwmg.ca/html/projects/hoidas-lake/index.cfm
[edit] External links
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