Searles Lake
Encyclopedia
Searles Lake is an endorheic dry lake
in the Mojave Desert
of San Bernardino County, California
, with the mining community, Trona
on its western shore. The evaporite
basin is approximately 19 km (11.8 mi) long and 13 km (8.1 mi) at its widest point, yielding 1.7 million tons annually of industrial minerals within the basin to the Searles Valley Minerals mining operations. Searles Lake is bounded by the Argus
and Slate Mountains.
The stratigraphic record at Searles Lake shows that it once held brackish water as deep as 200 m (656.2 ft). Fluctuations in lake levels correspond to the advances and retreats of glaciers in the Sierra Nevada Range. Thirty major lake levels occurred during the last 150,000 years, represented by a sequence of salt and mud beds. The precipitation of minerals occurred during long periods of lake evaporation.
The lake is home to the Trona Pinnacles
, a spectacular geologic tufa formation and a National Natural Landmark
.
was first produced from the dry lake surface in 1873 by John Searles under the name of the San Bernardino
Borax Mining Company. Searles was the first to haul borax using the famous 20 mule team wagons. In 1873, before the railroad was built to Mojave
, refined borax was hauled 175 miles by 20 mule teams from Slate Range Playa (now called Searles Lake) to the harbor at San Pedro. The Searles Lake borax discovery has been designated as California Historical Landmark
#774, with a plaque at the roadside rest area in Trona.[
and potassium
mineral
s of the carbonate
, sulfate, borate and halide classes of mineralogy. The manufacture of industrial minerals involves a complex solution mining operation in which naturally occurring brines are pumped from wells completed in several salt beds. The brine wells range in depth from near-surface to over 100 meters below the salt pan. A network of production wells, injection wells, solar ponds and piping are used in the production and treatment of the brines.
Industrial minerals are extracted from the brines at the Argus
, Trona
and Westend plants. Minerals are crystallized from the brines, screened, washed, and dried. The crystals are then baked in rotary kilns in order to drive off water molecules locked in the crystalline structure. Some recrystallization may be required in order to achieve a desired composition and granular density. This complex extraction process at the 3 plants is generally referred to as fractional crystallization. It includes the treatment of brines through carbonation extraction, refrigeration extraction and/or solvent extraction. Salt is also harvested from the lake surface and from solar ponds.
Commodities produced by Searles Valley Minerals from their Searles Lake operations include borax
, V-Bor (borax with 5 moles of water), anhydrous borax, boric acid
, soda ash, salt cake and salt
. Mineral reserves exceed 4 billion tons.
are in the California Desert National Conservation Area managed by the Bureau of Land Management
.
Dry lake
Dry lakes are ephemeral lakebeds, or a remnant of an endorheic lake. Such flats consist of fine-grained sediments infused with alkali salts. Dry lakes are also referred to as alkali flats, sabkhas, playas or mud flats...
in the Mojave Desert
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...
of San Bernardino County, California
San Bernardino County, California
San Bernardino County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2010 census, the population was 2,035,210, up from 1,709,434 as of the 2000 census...
, with the mining community, Trona
Trona, California
Trona is an unincorporated community in San Bernardino County, California. In 2000 it had a population of 2,742. Trona is at the western edge of Searles Lake, a dry lake bed in Searles Valley, southwest of Death Valley. The town takes its name from the mineral trona, abundant in the lakebed.It is...
on its western shore. The evaporite
Evaporite
Evaporite is a name for a water-soluble mineral sediment that result from concentration and crystallization by evaporation from an aqueous solution. There are two types of evaporate deposits, marine which can also be described as ocean deposits, and non-marine which are found in standing bodies of...
basin is approximately 19 km (11.8 mi) long and 13 km (8.1 mi) at its widest point, yielding 1.7 million tons annually of industrial minerals within the basin to the Searles Valley Minerals mining operations. Searles Lake is bounded by the Argus
Argus Range
The Argus Range is a mountain range located in Inyo County, California, southeast of the town of Darwin, between the Coso Range and the Panamint Valley, with the Panamint Range to the east .-Geography:The range contains Maturango Peak, at above sea level...
and Slate Mountains.
Geology
The lake is home to the Trona Pinnacles
Trona Pinnacles
Trona PinnaclesDesignationNational Natural LandmarkLocationCaliforniaNearest CityTrona, CaliforniaCoordinatesArea Date of Establishment1968Governing BodyBureau of Land Management...
, a spectacular geologic tufa formation and a National Natural Landmark
National Natural Landmark
The National Natural Landmark program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only natural areas program of national scope that identifies and recognizes the best examples of biological and geological features in...
.
History
BoraxBorax
Borax, also known as sodium borate, sodium tetraborate, or disodium tetraborate, is an important boron compound, a mineral, and a salt of boric acid. It is usually a white powder consisting of soft colorless crystals that dissolve easily in water.Borax has a wide variety of uses...
was first produced from the dry lake surface in 1873 by John Searles under the name of the San Bernardino
San Bernardino, California
San Bernardino is a city located in the Riverside-San Bernardino metropolitan area , and serves as the county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States...
Borax Mining Company. Searles was the first to haul borax using the famous 20 mule team wagons. In 1873, before the railroad was built to Mojave
Mojave, California
Mojave is a census-designated place in Kern County, California, United States. Mojave is located east of Bakersfield, at an elevation of 2762 feet...
, refined borax was hauled 175 miles by 20 mule teams from Slate Range Playa (now called Searles Lake) to the harbor at San Pedro. The Searles Lake borax discovery has been designated as California Historical Landmark
California Historical Landmark
California Historical Landmarks are buildings, structures, sites, or places in the state of California that have been determined to have statewide historical significance by meeting at least one of the criteria listed below:...
#774, with a plaque at the roadside rest area in Trona.[
Mineralogy
Searles Lake is a huge resource of sodiumSodium
Sodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal and is a member of the alkali metals; its only stable isotope is 23Na. It is an abundant element that exists in numerous minerals, most commonly as sodium chloride...
and potassium
Potassium
Potassium is the chemical element with the symbol K and atomic number 19. Elemental potassium is a soft silvery-white alkali metal that oxidizes rapidly in air and is very reactive with water, generating sufficient heat to ignite the hydrogen emitted in the reaction.Potassium and sodium are...
mineral
Mineral
A mineral is a naturally occurring solid chemical substance formed through biogeochemical processes, having characteristic chemical composition, highly ordered atomic structure, and specific physical properties. By comparison, a rock is an aggregate of minerals and/or mineraloids and does not...
s of the carbonate
Carbonate minerals
Carbonate minerals are those minerals containing the carbonate ion: CO32-.-Anhydrous carbonates:*Calcite group: Trigonal**Calcite CaCO3**Gaspeite CO3**Magnesite MgCO3**Otavite CdCO3**Rhodochrosite MnCO3**Siderite FeCO3**Smithsonite ZnCO3...
, sulfate, borate and halide classes of mineralogy. The manufacture of industrial minerals involves a complex solution mining operation in which naturally occurring brines are pumped from wells completed in several salt beds. The brine wells range in depth from near-surface to over 100 meters below the salt pan. A network of production wells, injection wells, solar ponds and piping are used in the production and treatment of the brines.
Industrial minerals are extracted from the brines at the Argus
Argus, California
Argus is an unincorporated community in San Bernardino County, California, United States. Argus is east-northeast of Ridgecrest. Argus and the communities of Pioneer Point, Trona, and Searles Valley make up the Searles Valley census-designated place....
, Trona
Trona, California
Trona is an unincorporated community in San Bernardino County, California. In 2000 it had a population of 2,742. Trona is at the western edge of Searles Lake, a dry lake bed in Searles Valley, southwest of Death Valley. The town takes its name from the mineral trona, abundant in the lakebed.It is...
and Westend plants. Minerals are crystallized from the brines, screened, washed, and dried. The crystals are then baked in rotary kilns in order to drive off water molecules locked in the crystalline structure. Some recrystallization may be required in order to achieve a desired composition and granular density. This complex extraction process at the 3 plants is generally referred to as fractional crystallization. It includes the treatment of brines through carbonation extraction, refrigeration extraction and/or solvent extraction. Salt is also harvested from the lake surface and from solar ponds.
Commodities produced by Searles Valley Minerals from their Searles Lake operations include borax
Borax
Borax, also known as sodium borate, sodium tetraborate, or disodium tetraborate, is an important boron compound, a mineral, and a salt of boric acid. It is usually a white powder consisting of soft colorless crystals that dissolve easily in water.Borax has a wide variety of uses...
, V-Bor (borax with 5 moles of water), anhydrous borax, boric acid
Boric acid
Boric acid, also called hydrogen borate or boracic acid or orthoboric acid or acidum boricum, is a weak acid of boron often used as an antiseptic, insecticide, flame retardant, as a neutron absorber, and as a precursor of other chemical compounds. It exists in the form of colorless crystals or a...
, soda ash, salt cake and salt
Salt
In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
. Mineral reserves exceed 4 billion tons.
Mineral List
- Analcime
- AphthitaliteAphthitaliteAphthitalite is a potassium sulfate mineral with the chemical formula: 3Na2.It was first described in 1835 for an occurrence on Mt. Vesuvius, Italy. The name is from the Greek άφθητος, "unalterable", and άλας, "salt", for its stability in air...
- BoraxBoraxBorax, also known as sodium borate, sodium tetraborate, or disodium tetraborate, is an important boron compound, a mineral, and a salt of boric acid. It is usually a white powder consisting of soft colorless crystals that dissolve easily in water.Borax has a wide variety of uses...
- Burkeite
- Galeite
- GaylussiteGaylussiteGaylussite is a carbonate mineral, a hydrated sodium calcium carbonate, formula Na2Ca2·5H2O. It occurs as translucent, vitreous white to grey to yellow monoclinic prismatic crystals. It is an unstable mineral which dehydrates in dry air and decomposes in water.It is formed as an evaporite from...
- GypsumGypsumGypsum is a very soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula CaSO4·2H2O. It is found in alabaster, a decorative stone used in Ancient Egypt. It is the second softest mineral on the Mohs Hardness Scale...
var: Selenite - HaliteHaliteHalite , commonly known as rock salt, is the mineral form of sodium chloride . Halite forms isometric crystals. The mineral is typically colorless or white, but may also be light blue, dark blue, purple, pink, red, orange, yellow or gray depending on the amount and type of impurities...
- HanksiteHanksiteHanksite is a sulfate mineral, distinguished as one of only a handful that contain both carbonate and sulfate ion groups. It has the chemical formula: Na22K92Cl.-Occurrence:...
- HeulanditeHeulanditeHeulandite is the name of a series of tecto-silicate minerals of the zeolite group. Prior to 1997, heulandite was recognized as a mineral species, but a reclassification in 1997 by the International Mineralogical Association changed it to a series name, with the mineral species being named:*...
- FeldsparFeldsparFeldspars are a group of rock-forming tectosilicate minerals which make up as much as 60% of the Earth's crust....
- Merlinoite
- MirabiliteMirabiliteMirabilite, also known as Glauber's salt, is a hydrous sodium sulfate mineral with the chemical formula Na2SO4·10H2O. It is a vitreous, colorless to white monoclinic mineral which forms as an evaporite from sodium sulfate bearing brines. It is found around saline springs and along saline playa lakes...
- NahcoliteNahcoliteNahcolite is a soft, colourless or white carbonate mineral with the composition of sodium bicarbonate also called thermokalite. It crystallizes in the monoclinic system....
- NorthupiteNorthupiteNorthupite is an uncommon evaporite mineral, with the chemical formula Na3Mg2Cl. It was discovered in 1895 at Searles Lake, San Bernardino County, California by C. H. Northup , a grocer from San Jose, California, for whom Northupite is named....
- OpalOpalOpal is an amorphous form of silica related to quartz, a mineraloid form, not a mineral. 3% to 21% of the total weight is water, but the content is usually between 6% to 10%. It is deposited at a relatively low temperature and may occur in the fissures of almost any kind of rock, being most...
- PhillipsitePhillipsitePhillipsite is a mineral of the zeolite group; a hydrated potassium, calcium and aluminium silicate, approximating to 3Al6Si10O32·12H2O. . The crystals are monoclinic, but only complex cruciform twins are known, these being exactly like twins of harmotome...
- Pirssonite
- Schairerite
- SearlesiteSearlesiteSearlesite is a sodium borosilicate mineral, with the chemical formula NaBSi2O52. It was discovered in 1914 at Searles Lake, California, and was named to honor John W. Searles, California pioneer, who drilled the well that yielded the first known Searlesite.Searlesite is an important ore mineral of...
- Sulphohalite
- Teepleite
- ThenarditeThenarditeThenardite is an anhydrous sodium sulfate mineral, Na2SO4 which occurs in arid evaporite environments. It also occurs in dry caves and old mine workings as an efflorescence and as a crusty deposit around fumaroles. It occurs in volcanic caves on Mt...
- TincalconiteTincalconiteTincalconite is a hydrous sodium borate mineral closely related to borax, and is a secondary mineral that forms as a dehydration product of borax. Its formula is Na2B4O7·5H2O or Na2[B4O54]·3H2O.Tincalconite typically occurs as a fine grained white powder...
- TronaTronaTrona ; Na3•2H2O is an evaporite mineral. It is mined as the primary source of sodium carbonate in the United States, where it has replaced the Solvay process used in most of the rest of the world for sodium carbonate production.- Etymology :The word "trona" comes to English by way of either...
- Tychite
- UlexiteUlexiteUlexite , sometimes known as TV rock, is a mineral occurring in silky white rounded crystalline masses or in parallel fibers. The natural fibers of ulexite conduct light along their long axes, by internal reflection...
Trona Pinnacles
The Trona PinnaclesTrona Pinnacles
Trona PinnaclesDesignationNational Natural LandmarkLocationCaliforniaNearest CityTrona, CaliforniaCoordinatesArea Date of Establishment1968Governing BodyBureau of Land Management...
are in the California Desert National Conservation Area managed by the Bureau of Land Management
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior which administers America's public lands, totaling approximately , or one-eighth of the landmass of the country. The BLM also manages of subsurface mineral estate underlying federal, state and private...
.