Named the poisonous substance around which gold accumulates

Scientists still do not know by what principle gold deposits are located in the Earth. 

In new work

the authors studied the structure of minerals in detailgold using the ESRF synchrotron to understand this. As a result, it turned out that positively charged gold ions combine with negatively charged arsenic ions especially actively.

This stabilizes them so that gold builds up inside the minerals rich in arsenic, iron and sulfur.

The main driving factor in educationArsenic serves as gold deposits. From a practical point of view, this means that it will be easier for us to find new sources of gold and other noble metals, the atoms of which accumulate in sulfur compounds containing arsenic. 

Gleb Pokrovsky, author of the study and employee of the University of Toulouse

If any particular rock contains arsenicif the amount is insufficient, then gold binds with sulfur atoms, and then is quickly washed out of the minerals. If there is a lot of arsenic, gold begins to accumulate much faster.

The results of this study, according to scientists, will help not only to discover and develop new gold deposits faster, but also to process gold-bearing ore more efficiently.

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