Weathering, provenance, and tectonic setting of lithium-bearing clay deposits in the Guide area, China: constraints from major-trace elements and lithium isotopes

The claystone in the Guide area of the Qaidam Basin on the northeastern margin of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau contains lithium resources. This paper adopts geochemical and isotopic geochemical approaches to analyze the paleoenvironment, tectonic setting, sediment provenance, weathering processes, and lithium sources of the lithium-bearing claystones in the study area, and summarizes the genetic mechanisms of the lithium-bearing claystones. The results indicate that the claystone is dominated by i