Lithium cycle

[2] Lithium is widely distributed in the lithosphere and mantle as a trace element in silicate minerals.

Chemical weathering at Earth’s surface dissolves lithium in primary minerals and releases it to rivers and ground waters.

Lithium can be removed from solution by formation of secondary minerals like clays, oxides, or zeolites.

[1] Rivers eventually feed into the ocean, providing approximately 50% of marine inputs.

[1] Lithium isotopes have potential as viable geochemical tracers for processes such as silicate rock weathering and crust/mantle recycling due to significant lithium isotope fractionation during these processes.