> We can make magnetite hydrometallurgically (abiotically) and there are patents for the scavenging properties of said magnetite (and no doubt its intermediates) from an environmental point of view. I am having trouble of getting excited about this.
> 
> You have stepped into my world David. Welcome.-I had no idea about your world. It just seemed like an interesting observation/ chemistry to me. I can offer no more. My background is biochemistry. And that was years ago.

An interesting compound that scoured the early Earth:
> 
> http://wattsupwiththat.com/2012/06/27/green-rust-in-earths-early-ocean-history/#more-66... - with your last postI understand sort of what is happening here. We have a hydrated iron (II)/(III) hydroxide that is a 'biological' precursor to magnetite (Fe3O4). This precursor compound is particularly good at scavenging everything fromm solution (albeit likely at trace levels). Almost certainly magnetite will be thermodynamically more stable. -We can make magnetite hydrometallurgically (abiotically) and there are patents for the scavenging properties of said magnetite (and no doubt its intermediates) from an environmental point of view. I am having trouble of getting excited about this.-You have stepped into my world David. Welcome.-rom

Well it gives me a hint on the valence state of the iron.
> 
> Not (III)-Article says II & III:-http://geology.geoscienceworld.org/content/40/7/599.full

This blog was singularly uninformative.-Try this one:-http://phys.org/news/2012-06-evidence-oceanic-green-rust-future.html