Chang'an University said a new mineral discovered and named jointly with the
Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and other
institutes — the Wushe River germanium mineral — received approval from the
International Mineralogical Association's Commission on New Minerals,
Nomenclature and Classification in August. It is the first independently
occurring germanate mineral discovered in China. Germanium is a strategic metal
used in semiconductors, fiber‑optic communications, infrared optics and solar
PV; it has low crustal abundance, rarely forms independent ore bodies, and has
typically has been recovered as an associated element in lead‑zinc ores and coal.
