Determination of the elemental concentration of uranium and thorium in the products and by-products of amang tin tailings process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alnour, I. A.; Wagiran, H.; Ibrahim, N.; Hamzah, S.; Elias, M. S.

2017-01-01

Amang or tin tailing is processed into concentrated ores and other economical valuable minerals such as monazite, zircon, xenotime, ilmenite etc. Besides that, the tailings from these ores may have a significant potential source of radiation exposure to amang plants' workers. This study was conducted to determine the elemental concentration of uranium and thorium in mineral samples collected from five amang tailing factories. The concentration of uranium and thorium was carried out by using instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) relative technique. The concentration of uranium and thorium in ppm obtained in this study are as follows: raw (189-1064) and (622-4965); monazite (1076-1988) and (3467-33578); xenotime 4053 and 5540; zircon (309-3090) and (387-6339); ilmenite (104-583) and (88-1205); rutile (212-889) and (44-1119); pyrite (7-43) and (9-132); and waste (5-338) and (9-1218) respectively. The analysis results shows that the monazite, xenotime and zircon have high content of uranium and thorium, whereas ilmenite, rutile, pyrite and waste have lower concentration compare with raw materials after tailing process. The highest values of uranium and thorium concentrations (4053 ± 428 ppm and 33578 ± 873 ppm, respectively) were observed in xenotime and monazite; whereas the lowest value was 5.48 ± 0.86 ppm of uranium recorded in waste (sand) and 9 ± 0.32 ppm of thorium for waste (sand) and pyrite.

U-Pb, Re-Os, and Ar/Ar geochronology of rare earth element (REE)-rich breccia pipes and associated host rocks from the Mesoproterozoic Pea Ridge Fe-REE-Au deposit, St. Francois Mountains, Missouri

USGS Publications Warehouse

Aleinikoff, John N.; Selby, David; Slack, John F.; Day, Warren C.; Pillers, Renee M.; Cosca, Michael A.; Seeger, Cheryl; Fanning, C. Mark; Samson, Iain

2016-01-01

Rare earth element (REE)-rich breccia pipes (600,000 t @ 12% rare earth oxides) are preserved along the margins of the 136-million metric ton (Mt) Pea Ridge magnetite-apatite deposit, within Mesoproterozoic (~1.47 Ga) volcanic-plutonic rocks of the St. Francois Mountains terrane in southeastern Missouri, United States. The breccia pipes cut the rhyolite-hosted magnetite deposit and contain clasts of nearly all local bedrock and mineralized lithologies.Grains of monazite and xenotime were extracted from breccia pipe samples for SHRIMP U-Pb geochronology; both minerals were also dated in one polished thin section. Monazite forms two morphologies: (1) matrix granular grains composed of numerous small (<50 μm) crystallites intergrown with rare xenotime, thorite, apatite, and magnetite; and (2) coarse euhedral, glassy, bright-yellow grains similar to typical igneous or metamorphic monazite. Trace element abundances (including REE patterns) were determined on selected grains of monazite (both morphologies) and xenotime. Zircon grains from two samples of host rhyolite and two late felsic dikes collected underground at Pea Ridge were also dated. Additional geochronology done on breccia pipe minerals includes Re-Os on fine-grained molybdenite and 40Ar/39Ar on muscovite, biotite, and K-feldspar.Ages (±2σ errors) obtained by SHRIMP U-Pb analysis are as follows: (1) zircon from the two host rhyolite samples have ages of 1473.6 ± 8.0 and 1472.7 ± 5.6 Ma; most zircon in late felsic dikes is interpreted as xenocrystic (age range ca. 1522–1455 Ma); a population of rare spongy zircon is likely of igneous origin and yields an age of 1441 ± 9 Ma; (2) pale-yellow granular monazite—1464.9 ± 3.3 Ma (no dated xenotime); (3) reddish matrix granular monazite—1462.0 ± 3.5 Ma and associated xenotime—1453 ± 11 Ma; (4) coarse glassy-yellow monazite—1464.8 ± 2.1, 1461.7 ± 3.7 Ma, with rims at 1447.2 ± 4.7 Ma; and (5) matrix monazite (in situ)—1464.1 ± 3.6 and 1454

Composition of monazites from pegmatites in eastern Minas Gerais, Brazil

USGS Publications Warehouse

Murata, K.J.; Dutra, C.V.; da Costa, M.T.; Branco, J.J.R.

1959-01-01

Two zoned pegmatites in south-eastern Minas Gerais were sampled in detail for their content of monazite and xenotime and the monazite was analysed for certain of the rare-earth elements and thorium. The ratio of xenotime to monazite increases in both pegmatites from the wall toward the quartz core. The content of the less basic rare-earth elements and of thorium in monazite rises in the same direction. These variation trends suggest that during the crystallization of these pegmatites there was a fractionation of the elements leading to a more or less steady enrichment of the less basic rare-earth elements and of thorium in the residual fluids. One mode of explaining these observed effects postulates that the rare-earth elements and thorium were present in pegmatitic fluids as co-ordination complexes rather than as simple cations. ?? 1959.

Geochemical and textural characterization of phosphate accessory phases in the vein assemblage and metasomatically altered Llallagua tin porphyry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Betkowski, Wladyslaw B.; Rakovan, John; Harlov, Daniel E.

2017-09-01

Petrographic and geochemical characterization of phosphate accessory minerals represents a powerful tool in understanding the mineralization and metasomatic history of one of the world's biggest tin deposits, the Siglo XX mine, Salvadora stock, Llallagua, Bolivia. The Llallagua tin deposit lies in a hydrothermally altered porphyry stock that is part of the subduction-related Bolivian tin belt. Despite numerous studies, there is still a debate over the timing and characteristics of mineralization history of the deposit. Primary igneous fluorapatite and monazite (for the first time) were recognized in the altered porphyry. The igneous monazite is enriched in Th, unlike the hydrothermal monazite that is recognized for its low Th concentration. Fluorapatite, monazite, and xenotime also coexist with cassiterite within the hydrothermal vein assemblage. Fluorapatite and xenotime are essentially pristine. Monazite, however, shows various degrees of alteration in the form of regenerative mineral replacement (RMR). This exemplifies differential reactivity and selective mineral replacement/alteration of three accessory phosphate minerals, that are all important geochemical tracers of magmatic and hydrothermal processes, and which can all be used as geochronometers. Mineral textures and composition in the altered porphyry and vein assemblages have been evaluated. Monazite-xenotime geothermometry indicates monazite crystallization beginning around 550 °C. Monazite continues to grow as temperatures gradually decrease to about 300 °C, when most of cassiterite precipitation occurred in the samples studied. The primary mechanism of phosphate alteration has been identified as a coupled dissolution-reprecipitation process, which led to REE exchange in the igneous fluorapatite and hydrothermal monazite. In Type I local alteration, La and Pr-Nd show continuity across the pre- and post- alteration concentric zones indicating that they were not affected by alteration. This is an

Crystal Structure and Crystal Chemistry of Some Common REE Minerals and Nanpingite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ni, Yunxiang

1995-01-01

Part I. Crystal structure and crystal chemistry of fluorocarbonate minerals. The crystal structure of bastnasite-(Ce) have been solved in P-62c and refined to R = 0.018. The structure is composed of (001) (CeF) layers interspersed with (CO_3) layers in a 1:1 ratio. The Ce atom is coordinated in rm CeO_6F_3 polyhedra. The atomic arrangement of synchysite-(Ce) has been solved and refined to R = 0.036 with a monoclinic space group C2/c. It possesses a (001) layer structure, with layers of (Ca) and (CeF) separated by layers of carbonate groups. The layers stack in a manner analogous to C2/c muscovite. Polytypism similar to the micas may exist in synchysite. The crystal structures of cordylite-(Ce) have been solved in P6 _3/mmc and refined to R = 0.023. The structure and chemical formula are different from those deduced by Oftedal. The formula is rm MBaCe_2(CO _3)_4F, where M is rm Na^+, Ca^{2+}_{1/2 }+ O_{1/2}, or any solution. The presence of (NaF) layer in the structure is the key difference from the Oftedal's structure. This redefinition of the chemical formula and crystal structure of cordylite will be proposed to IMA-CNMMN. Part II. Crystal structure and crystal chemistry of monazite-xenotime series. Monazite is monoclinic, P2 _1/n, and xenotime is isostructural with zircon (I4_1/amd). Both atomic arrangements are based on (001) chains of intervening phosphate tetrahedra and RE polyhedra, with a REO_8 polyhedron in xenotime that accommodates HRE (Tb - Lu) and a REO_9 polyhedron in monazite that preferentially incorporates LRE (La - Gd). As the structure "transforms" from xenotime to monazite, the crystallographic properties are comparable along the (001) chains, with structural adjustments of 2.2 A along (010) to accommodate the different size RE atoms. Part III. Crystal structure of nanpingite-2M _2, the Cs end-member of muscovite. The crystal structure of nanpingite has been refined to R = 0.058. Compared to K^+ in muscovite, the largest interlayer Cs^+ in

New geochronological history of the Mbuji-Mayi Supergroup (Proterozoic, DRC) through U-Pb and Sm-Nd dating

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

François, Camille; Baludikay, Blaise K.; Storme, Jean-Yves; Baudet, Daniel; Paquette, Jean-Louis; Fialin, Michel; Debaille, Vinciane; Javaux, Emmanuelle J.

2016-04-01

The Mbuji-Mayi Supergroup, DRC is located between the Archean-Paleoproterozoic Kasai Craton and the Mesoproterozoic Kibaran Belt. This sedimentary sequence, unaffected by regional metamorphism, preserves a large diversity of well-preserved acritarchs (organic-walled microfossils), evidencing the diversification of complex life (early eukaryotes) for the first time in mid-Proterozoic redox stratified oceans of Central Africa (Baludikay et al., in review). This Supergroup is composed of two distinct lithostratigraphic successions (i) BI Group: a lower siliciclastic sequence (ca. 1175 Myr to ca. 882 Myr or ca. 1050 Myr (Cahen, 1954; Holmes & Cahen, 1955; Delpomdor et al., 2013) unconformably overlying the ca. 2.82-2.56 Gyr granitoid Dibaya Complex to the North (Cahen & Snelling; recent notice on DRC geological map); and (ii) BII Group: a poorly age-constrained upper carbonate sequence with sparse shales . Basaltic lavas (including pillow lavas) overlying the Mbuji-Mayi Supergroup were dated around 950 Myr (Cahen et al., 1974; Cahen et al., 1984). To better constraint the age of this Supergroup in the Meso-Neoproterozoic limit, we combine different geochronological methods, in particular on diagenetic minerals such as monazite (Montel et al., 1996; Rasmussen & Muhling, 2007) and xenotime (McNaughton et al., 1999) but also on detrital zircons. For the BI Group, results of in situ U-Pb dating with LA-ICP-MS on monazite, xenotime and zircon (Laboratoire Magmas et Volcans, Clermont-Ferrand) provide ages between 2.9 and 1.2 Gyr for zircons and between 1.4 and 1.03 Gyr for monazites and xenotimes. New results of in situ U-Th-Pb dating of well-crystallized monazites and xenotimes with Electron MicroProbe (Camparis, UPMC, Paris), highlight that some crystals display zonations with an inherited core older than 1125 Myr and diagenetic rims around 1050-1075 Myr. This suggests that the diagenesis of BI Group is younger than 1175 Myr (Delpomdor et al., 2013) and probably around

Contrasting accessory mineral behavior in minimum-temperature melts: Empirical constraints from the Himalayan metamorphic core

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cottle, John M.; Larson, Kyle P.; Yakymchuk, Chris

2018-07-01

Medium-grained leucogranite in the Tama Kosi region of the Nepalese Himalayan Metamorphic Core yields a relatively narrow range of monazite 208Pb/232Th dates with a dominant population at 21.0 Ma inferred to represent crystallization of an early plutonic phase. In contrast, the pegmatitic portion of the same intrusive complex, that cross-cuts the medium-grained leucogranite, contains zircon, monazite and xenotime that each display near-identical age spectra, recording semi-continuous (re-)crystallization from 27.5 Ma to 21.0 Ma, followed by a 2 m.y. hiatus then further (re-)crystallization between 19.4 and 18.6 Ma. The "gap" in pegmatite dates corresponds well to the crystallization age of the older leucogranite, whereas the end of accessory phase growth in the pegmatite coincides with the onset of regional-scale cooling. Detailed textural, trace element and thermochronologic data indicate that the range of zircon, monazite and xenotime dates recorded in the pegmatite reflect inherited components that underwent semi-continuous (re-)crystallization during metamorphism and/or anatexis in the source region(s), whereas dates younger than the hiatus indicate accessory phase recrystallization, related to both fluid influx and a concomitant increase in temperature. In contrast, the lack of an inherited component(s) in the medium-grained leucogranite phase is inferred to be a result of complete dissolution during partial melting. A model is proposed in which influx of heat and H2O-rich fluids associated with early leucogranite emplacement temporarily delayed zircon and monazite and xenotime crystallization, respectively. These data highlight the importance of measuring spatially resolved dates, trace elements and textural patterns from multiple accessory minerals combined with model constraints to better understand the often-complex crystallization history of anatectic melts in collisional orogens.

Geochemistry and Ar-Ar muscovite ages of the Daraban Leucogranite, Mawat Ophiolite, northeastern Iraq: Implications for Arabia-Eurasia continental collision

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mohammad, Yousif O.; Cornell, David H.; Qaradaghi, Jabbar H.; Mohammad, Fahmy O.

2014-06-01

Daraban Leucogranite dykes intruded discordantly into the basal serpentinized harzburgite of the Mawat Ophiolite, Kurdistan region, NE Iraq. These coarse grained muscovite-tourmaline leucogranites are the first leucogranite dykes identified within the Mawat Ophiolite. They are mainly composed of quartz, K-feldspar, plagioclase, tourmaline, muscovite, and secondary phologopite, while zircon, xenotime, corundum, mangano-ilemnite and cassiterite occur as accessories.

Multiple age components in individual molybdenite grains

USGS Publications Warehouse

Aleinikoff, John N.; Creaser, Robert A.; Lowers, Heather; Magee, Charles W.; Grauch, Richard I.

2012-01-01

Re–Os geochronology of fractions composed of unsized, coarse, and fine molybdenite from a pod of unusual monazite–xenotime gneiss within a granulite facies paragneiss, Hudson Highlands, NY, yielded dates of 950.5 ± 2.5, 953.8 ± 2.6, and 941.2 ± 2.6 Ma, respectively. These dates are not recorded by co-existing zircon, monazite, or xenotime. SEM–BSE imagery of thin sections and separated grains reveals that most molybdenite grains are composed of core and rim plates that are approximately perpendicular. Rim material invaded cores, forming irregular contacts, probably reflecting dissolution/reprecipitation. EPMA and LA-ICP-MS analyses show that cores and rims have different trace element concentrations (for example, cores are relatively enriched in W). On the basis of inclusions of zircon with metamorphic overgrowths, we conclude that molybdenite cores and rims formed after high-grade regional metamorphism. The discovery of cores and rims in individual molybdenite grains is analogous to multi-component U-Pb geochronometers such as zircon, monazite, and titanite; thus, molybdenite should be carefully examined before dating to ensure that the requirement of age homogeneity is fulfilled.

Towards the challenging REE exploration in Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Setiawan, Iwan

2018-02-01

Rare earth elements (REE) are the seventeen elements, including fifteen from 57La to 71Lu, in addition to 21Sc and 39Y. In rock-forming minerals, rare earth elements typically occur in compounds as trivalent cations in carbonates, oxides, phosphates, and silicates. The REE occur in a wide range of rock types: igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. REE are one of the critical metals in the world. Their occurrences are important to supply the world needs on high technology materials. Indonesia has a lot of potential sources of REE that are mainly from residual tin mining processes in Bangka islands, which are associated with radioactive minerals e.g. monazite and xenotime. However, the REE from monazite and xenotime are difficult to extract and contain high radioactivity. Granitoids are widely distributed in Sumatra, Sulawesi, Kalimantan and Papua. They also have a very thick weathering crusts. Important REE-bearing minerals are allanite and titanite. Their low susceptibilities during weathering result an economically potential REE concentration. I-/A- type granitoids and their weathered crusts are important REE sources in Indonesia. Unfortunately, their distribution and genesis have not been deeply studied. Future REE explorations challenge are mainly of the granitoids their weathered crusts. Geochemical and mineralogical characterization of type of granitoids and their weathered crusts, the hydrothermally altered rocks, and clear REE regulation will help discover REE deposits in Indonesia.

Compositional and phase relations among rare earth element minerals

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burt, D. M.

1990-01-01

This paper discusses the compositional and phase relationships among minerals in which rare earth elements (REE) occur as essential constituents (e.g., bastnaesite, monazite, xenotime, aeschynite, allanite). Particular consideration is given to the vector representation of complex coupled substitutions in selected REE-bearing minerals and to the REE partitioning between minerals as related to the acid-base tendencies and mineral stabilities. It is shown that the treatment of coupled substitutions as vector quantities facilitates graphical representation of mineral composition spaces.

Application of U-Th-Pb phosphate geochronology to young orogenic gold deposits: New age constraints on the formation of the Grass Valley gold district, Sierra Foothills province, California

USGS Publications Warehouse

Taylor, Ryan D.; Goldfarb, Richard J.; Monecke, Thomas; Fletcher, Ian R.; Cosca, Michael A.; Kelly, Nigel M.

2015-01-01

The Grass Valley orogenic gold district in the Sierra Nevada foothills province, central California, the largest historic gold producer of the North American Cordillera, comprises both steeply dipping east-west (E-W) veins located along lithologic contacts in accreted ca. 300 and 200 Ma oceanic rocks and shallowly dipping north-south (N-S) veins hosted by the Grass Valley granodiorite; the latter have yielded about 70 percent of the 13 million ounces of historic lode gold production in the district. The oceanic host rocks were accreted to the western margin of North America between 200 and 170 Ma, metamorphosed to greenschist and amphibolite facies, and uplifted between 175 and 160 Ma. Large-scale magmatism in the Sierra Nevada occurred between 170-140 Ma and 120-80 Ma, with the Grass Valley granodiorite being emplaced during the older episode of magmatism. Uranium-lead isotopic dating of hydrothermal xenotime yielded the first absolute age of 162±5 Ma for the economically more significant N-S veins. The vein-hosted xenotime, as well as associated monazite, are unequivocally of hydrothermal origin as indicated by textural and chemical characteristics, including grain shape, lack of truncated growth banding, lack of a Eu anomaly, and low U and Th concentrations. Furthermore, the crack-seal texture of the veins, with abundant wallrock slivers, suggests their formation as a result of episodic fluid flow possibly related to reoccurring seismic events, rather than a period of fluid exsolution from an evolving magma. The N-S veins are temporally distinct from a younger 153-151 Ma gold event that was previously reported for the E-W veins. Overlapping U-Pb zircon (159.9±2.2 Ma) and 40Ar/39Ar biotite and hornblende (159.7±0.6 to 161.9±1.4 Ma) ages and geothermobarometric calculations indicate that the Grass Valley granodiorite was emplaced at ca. 160 Ma at elevated temperatures (~800°C) within approximately 3 km of the paleosurface and rapidly cooled to the ambient

Geologic history of the Blackbird Co-Cu district in the Lemhi subbasin of the Belt-Purcell Basin

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bookstrom, Arthur A.; Box, Stephen E.; Cossette, Pamela M.; Frost, Thomas P.; Gillerman, Virginia; King, George; Zirakparvar, N. Alex

2016-01-01

The Blackbird cobalt-copper (Co-Cu) district in the Salmon River Mountains of east-central Idaho occupies the central part of the Idaho cobalt belt—a northwest-elongate, 55-km-long belt of Co-Cu occurrences, hosted in grayish siliciclastic metasedimentary strata of the Lemhi subbasin (of the Mesoproterozoic Belt-Purcell Basin). The Blackbird district contains at least eight stratabound ore zones and many discordant lodes, mostly in the upper part of the banded siltite unit of the Apple Creek Formation of Yellow Lake, which generally consists of interbedded siltite and argillite. In the Blackbird mine area, argillite beds in six stratigraphic intervals are altered to biotitite containing over 75 vol% of greenish hydrothermal biotite, which is preferentially mineralized.Past production and currently estimated resources of the Blackbird district total ~17 Mt of ore, averaging 0.74% Co, 1.4% Cu, and 1.0 ppm Au (not including downdip projections of ore zones that are open downward). A compilation of relative-age relationships and isotopic age determinations indicates that most cobalt mineralization occurred in Mesoproterozoic time, whereas most copper mineralization occurred in Cretaceous time.Mesoproterozoic cobaltite mineralization accompanied and followed dynamothermal metamorphism and bimodal plutonism during the Middle Mesoproterozoic East Kootenay orogeny (ca. 1379–1325 Ma), and also accompanied Grenvilleage (Late Mesoproterozoic) thermal metamorphism (ca. 1200–1000 Ma). Stratabound cobaltite-biotite ore zones typically contain cobaltite1 in a matrix of biotitite ± tourmaline ± minor xenotime (ca. 1370–1320 Ma) ± minor chalcopyrite ± sparse allanite ± sparse microscopic native gold in cobaltite. Such cobaltite-biotite lodes are locally folded into tight F2 folds with axial-planar S2 cleavage and schistosity. Discordant replacement-style lodes of cobaltite2-biotite ore ± xenotime2 (ca. 1320–1270 Ma) commonly follow S2fractures and fabrics

REE Mineralization in Kiruna-type Magnetite-Apatite Ore Deposits: Magmatism and Metasomatism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harlov, D. E.

2015-12-01

Magnetite-apatite ore bodies of the Kiruna type occur worldwide and are generally associated with volcanic rocks or volcanism. They also show strong evidence of extensive metasomatism over a wide P-T range. Notable examples include the Kiirunavaara ore body, northern Sweden (Harlov et al., 2002, Chem. Geol., 191, 47-72); the Grängesberg ore body, central Sweden (Jonsson et al., 2010, NGF abstracts, vol 1, 88-89); the Mineville ore body, Adirondacks, New York, USA (McKeown and Klemc, 1956, U.S. Geol Sur Bull (1956), pp. 9-23); the Pea Ridge ore body, SE Missouri, USA (Kerr, 1998, MS Thesis, Univ. Windsor, Windsor, Ontario, Canada 113 pp); the Jurassic Marcona ore body in south-central Peru (Chen et al., 2010, Econ Geol, 105, 1441-1456); and a collection of ore bodies from the Bafq Region, central Iran (Daliran et al., 2010, Geol. Assoc. Canada, Short Course Notes, v. 20, p.147-159). In these ore bodies, low Th and U monazite, xenotime, allanite, REE carbonates, and/or REE fluorides are commonly associated with the apatite as inclusions, rim grains, or as independent grains in the surrounding mineral matrix. High contrast BSE imaging, coupled with EMPA and LA-ICPMS, indicates that the apatite has experienced fluid-induced alteration in the form of (Y+REE) + Na + Si + Cl depletion implying that it served as the source for the (Y+REE) (e.g. Kiirunavaara, northern Sweden; Harlov et al., 2002). Formation of monazite and xenotime associated with fluorapatite, as inclusions or rim grains, has experimentally been demonstrated to originate from the fluorapatite as the result of fluid-aided, coupled dissolution-reprecipitation processes (Harlov et al., 2005, Contrib. Mineral. Petrol. 150, 268-286). This is explains the low Th and U content of the monazite and xenotime. Fluid sources could range from 700-900 °C, residual, acidic (HCl, H2HSO4) grain boundary fluids, remaining after the last stages of ore body crystallization, to later stage, cooler (< 600 °C) (H2O-CO2-(Na

Magmatic and hydrothermal R.E.E. fractionation in the Xihuashan granites (SE China)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maruéjol, Patricia; Cuney, Michel; Turpin, Laurent

1990-11-01

The Xihuashan stock (South Jiangxi, China) is composed of cogenetic granitic units (granites Xe, γa, γc, γd and γb) and emplaced during the Yanshanian orogeny (153±0.2 Ma). They are two feldspars, Fe-rich biotite±garnet and slightly peraluminous granites. Primary accessory minerals are apatite 1, monazite, zircon, uranothorite±xenotime in granites Xe and γa, zircon, uranothorite, uraninite, betafite, xenotime 1; hydrothermal minerals are monazite altered into parisite and apatite 2, Y-rich parisite, yttroparisite, Y-rich fluorite and xenotime 2 in granites γc and γb. Petrographic observations, major element, REE, Y and Rb-Sr isotropic data point to a magmatic suite (granites Xe and γa → granites γc and γd → granite γb) distinct from hydrothermal Na-or K-alteration of γb. From granite Xe to granite γb, LREE, Eu, Th and Zr content are strongly depleted, while HREE, Y and U content increase. During K-alteration of γb, these variations are of minor importance. Major and accessory mineral evidences, geochemical and fluid inclusion results indicate two successive alteration fluids interacting with γb, (1) a late-magmatic F- and CO2-rich fluid and (2) a post-magmatic, aqueous and slightly saline fluid. The depletion of LREE and Th content and the increase in HREE, Y and U content correspond, in the magmatic suite to the early fractionation of monazite in the granites where there is no hydrothermal alteration (granites Xe and γe) and to the hydrothermal alteration of monazite into parisite and secondary apatite, intense new formation of yttroparisite, Y enrichment and U loss in the uranothorite and late crystallization of uraninite in the granites γc and γb. Moreover, simulated crystallization of monazite and temperature of monazite saturation show early fractionation of monazite from the magma in the less evolved granites (Xe and γe) and prevailing hydrothermal leaching of monazite in the most evolved granites (γc-γd and γb) related to a late

Reconstruction of paleoenvironment recorded in the Ediacaran Lantain black shales

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Y. H.; Lee, D. C.; You, C. F.; Zhou, C.

2016-12-01

The Ediacaran period (635-542 Ma) was a critical time in the history of life and Earth, during which profound changes in complex megascopic life and probably ocean oxygenation occurred. A growing evidence demonstrates that the Early Ediacaran ocean was not simply a largely anoxic basin as previous thought. Pulsed oxidation or a multilayered water column had been proposed to explain the presence of Lantain macrofossils. To verify these models, in-situ isotopic analysis becomes critical in identifying the isotopic signatures of authigenic minerals, and to avoid mixing in the signals from detrital and diagenetic phases. In this study, samples from Lantain Member II, a 40 m thick black shale unit containing macrofossils and overlaying the cap carbonate, were analyzed, including one sample from the lower part of Member II and six samples from upper part of Member II. Abundant xenotimes were overgrown on the detrital zircon grains during early diagenesis in all the samples. This authigenic phosphate mineral provides the best constraint of depositional age. In addition, framboidal pyrites and microbial mats are alternatively present on the top of Member II, where layered barites are found in one sample, supporting the model of frequent changes of redox conditions. Preliminary results show that the depositional age of barite-bearing black shale is > 520 Ma. In this study, we will combine the in-situ U-Pb xenotime dating and sulfur isotopes in barite and pyrite to discuss the evolution of redox conditions in the Ediacaran ocean.

Isotope and chemical age of the Greater Caucasus basement metamorphic rocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Konilov, A. N.; Somin, M. L.; Mukhanova, A. A.

2009-04-01

It is widely accepted that metamorphic basement of the Greater Caucasus is essentially Proterozoic [i.e. Gamkrelidze & Shengelia, 2005 ]. New results of geochronological study, mainly on magmatic zircon, contradict this opinion [Somin, 2007; Somin et al., 2007a, b, c and references therein]. To precise age of metamorphism we tried to apply CHIME method on monazite [Suzuki, Adachi, 1991]. The facility consists of Tescan SEM VEGA II xmu equipped with EDS Energy 400 and WDS Wave 500 from Oxford Instruments. This system and analytical protocol for monazite analysis are close to described by Slagstad [2006]. Samples of three metamorphic units were used with purpose to investigate their PT conditions and chemical composition of accessory monazite, xenotime and zircon. In the Blyb Complex Ky-bearing St-Grt-Bt schist was studied. Temperature calculated using Grt-St and Grt-Bt thermometers are 550-600 oC at 10 kb. Because xenotime absence and very low Y2O3 content in monazite, temperature determination on Mnz thermometer was impossible. Isochron chemical age of monazite is 288±24 Ma. In the Gondary Complex the Sil-bearing Grt-Bt gneiss was studied. Temperature calculated using Grt-Bt thermometer and Grt-Pl-Sil-Qtz geobarometer correspond to 610 oC at 4 kb. Monazite thermometer [Pyle et al., 2001] indicates temperature range 533-640 oC for three samples. Monazite chemical age is 303±31 Ma, zircon of leucosome yields SHRIMP age 321-288 Ma. In the Makera Complex the And-Bt-Ms and Grt-Bt-Ms metapelites were examinated. Temperature calculated using Grt-Bt thermometer and Grt-Pl-And-Qtz geobarometer correspond to 500 oC at 2,5 kb. Monazite thermometer indicates average temperatures 293-433-447 oC. Two isochrones correspond to 239±28 Ma and 282±19 Ma. Our results of monazite dating are close to the U-Pb zircon data although not similar being some younger. Therefore conclusion on Precambrian metamorphic events in the studied complexes of the Greater Caucasus is erroneous. These

Compositional and phase relations among rare earth element minerals

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Burt, D. M.

1989-01-01

A review is presented that mainly treats minerals in which the rare-earth elements are essential constituents, e.g., bastnaesite, monazite, xenotime, aeschynite, allanite. The chemical mechanisms and limits of REE substitution in some rock-forming minerals (zircon, apatite, titanite, garnet) are also derived. Vector representation of complex coupled substitutions in selected REE-bearing minerals is examined and some comments on REE-partitioning between minerals as related to acid-based tendencies and mineral stabilities are presented. As the same or analogous coupled substitutions involving the REE occur in a wide variety of mineral structures, they are discussed together.

Advanced Characterization of Rare Earth Elements in Coal Utilization Byproducts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verba, C.; Scott, M.; Dieterich, M.; Poston, J.; Collins, K.

2016-12-01

Rare earth elements (REE) in various forms (e.g., crystalline mineral phases; adsorbed/absorbed state on and into organic macerals, neoformed glass from flyash or bottom ash) from domestic feedstocks such as coal deposits to coal utilization byproducts (CUB) have the potential to reduce foreign REE dependence and increase domestic resource security. Characterization is critical for understanding environmental risks related to their fate and transport as well as determining the most practical and economical techniques for concentrating the REE and converting them into chemical stocks for manufacturing. Several complementary electron microscopy (SEM-EDS, EPMA-WDS, FIB-SEM, cathodoluminescence, and XRD) and post image processing techniques were used to understand REE transition from coal to CUB. Sites of interest were identified and imaged and respective elemental x-ray maps acquired and montaged. Pixel classification of SEM imagers was completed using image analysis techniques to quantify the distribution of REE associated features. Quantitative elemental analysis of phases were completed using EMPA-WDS followed by FIB-SEM. The FIB-SEM results were reconstructed into 3D volumes and features of interest (e.g. monazite) were analyzed to determine the structure and volumetric estimation of REEs and thus predict detrital REE phases to ICP-MS results. Trace minerals were identified as pyrite, zircon, REE-phosphates' (monazite, xenotime), and barite within the coal tailings. In CUB, amorphous aluminosilicates, iron oxide cenospheres, and calcium oxides were present; monazite appear to be unaltered and unaffected by the combustion process in these samples. Thermal decomposition may have occurred due to presence of detrital zircon and xenotime and subsequent thin Ca-oxide coating enriched in trace REEs.

Yttrium geothermometry: an approach to determine the oldest garnet growth recrystallization conditions from micaschists (Yunquera Unit, Betic Cordilleras, southern Spain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Esteban, J. J.; Cuevas, J.; Tubía, J. M.; Gil Ibarguchi, J. I.

2012-04-01

The garnet-xenotime geothermometry is nowadays been using as a tool to identify low-grade relic garnets and even to calculate garnet growth temperatures in metapelites that have undergone a polymetamorphic evolution (Pyle and Spear, 2000; Borghi et al., 2006). A prograde metamorphic evolution, under continuously increasing temperature, can induce garnet and accompanying phase's composition homogenization by intra-crystalline diffusion, leading to flat zoning profiles. Consequently, the application of conventional geothermobarometers on those mineral assemblages does establish minimum P-T conditions. Therefore, the less susceptible elements to diffusion processes, like trace elements, should be taken into account in order to reconstruct their metamorphic evolution. We studied a polymetamorphic micaschist recovered from the Yunquera Unit, one of the tectonic slices of the Internal Zone of the Betic Cordilleras (southern Spain) (Dürr, 1963). The Yunquera unit evidences three stages of recrystallization at different P-T conditions. According to conventional geothermobarometry (Esteban et al., 2005) the metamorphic peak, M2, is estimated at 1200-1300 MPa and 560-695 °C and the decompression path, M3, at 600 MPa and 700 °C. The lack of mineral paragenesis in apparent chemical equilibrium during M1, does not allow determining accurately its recrystallization conditions. Xenotime, identified by scanning electron microprobe, appears as matrix mineral and therefore the entire garnets are assumed to be in chemical equilibrium with it. Yttrium profiles of two garnets show a mean bell-shape compositional variation that differs significatively from the discontinuous profiles shown by Ca, Mg and Fe. This difference accounts for different diffusion rates for those elements and agree with the original Y-zoning preservation. A third Y-profile shows an oscillatory compositional variation. The internal part of garnets, bounded by sharp inclusion trails, are characterized by sawed

Radioactive rare-earth deposit at Scrub Oaks mine, Morris County, New Jersey

USGS Publications Warehouse

Klemic, Harry; Heyl, A.V.; Taylor, Audrey R.; Stone, Jerome

1959-01-01

A deposit of rare-earth minerals in the Scrub Oaks iron mine, Morris County, N. J., was mapped and sampled in 1955. The rare-earth minerals are mainly in coarse-grained magnetite ore and in pegmatite adjacent to it. Discrete bodies of rare-earth-bearing magnetite ore apparently follow the plunge of the main magnetite ore body at the north end of the mine. Radioactivity of the ore containing rare earths is about 0.2 to 0.6 mllliroentgens per hour. The principal minerals of the deposit are quartz, magnetite, hematite, albiteoligoclase, perthite and antiperthite. Xenotime and doverite aggregates and bastnaesite with intermixed leucoxene are the most abundant rare-earth minerals, and zircon, sphene, chevkinite, apatite, and monazite are of minor abundance in the ore. The rare-earth elements are partly differentiated into cerium-rich bastnaesite, chevkinite, and monazite, and yttrium-rich xenotime and doverite. Apatite, zircon, and sphene contain both cerium and yttrium group earths. Eleven samples of radioactive ore and rock average 0.009 percent uranium, 0.062 percent thorium, 1.51 percent combined rare-earth oxides including yttrium oxide and 24.8 percent iron. Scatter diagrams of sample data show a direct correlation between equivalent uranium, uranium, thorium, and combined rare^ earth oxides. Both cerium- and yttrium-group earths are abundant in the rare-earth minerals. Radioactive magnetite ore containing rare-earth minerals probably formed as a variant of the magnetite mineralization that produced the main iron ore of the Scrub Oaks deposit. The rare-earth minerals and the iron ore were deposited contemporaneously. Zircon crystals, probably deposited at the same time, have been determined by the Larsen method to be about 550 to 600 million years old (late Precambrian age). Uranium, thorium, and rare-earth elements are potential byproducts of iron in the coarse-grained magnetite ore.

Exploration of dysprosium: the most critical element for Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watanabe, Y.

2012-04-01

Dysprosium (Dy), one of the heavy rare earth elements, is used mainly as an additive for NdFeB permanent magnets which are installed in various modern industrial products such as voice coil motors in computers, factory automation machinery, hybrid and electric vehicles, home electronics, and wind turbine, to improve heat resistance of the magnets. Dy has been produced about 2,000t per year from the ores from ion adsorption type deposits in southern China. However, the produced amount of Dy was significantly reduced in 2011 in China due to reservation of heavy rare earth resources and protection of natural environment, resulting in soaring of Dy price in the world. In order to respond the increasing demand of Dy, unconventional supply sources are inevitably developed, in addition to heavy rare earth enriched ion adsorption type deposits outside China. Heavy rare earth elements including Dy are dominantly hosted in xenotime, fergusonite, zircon, eudialyte, keiviite, kainosite, iimoriite, etc. Concentration of xenotime is found in placer deposits in Malaysia and India, hydrothermal deposits associated with unconformity-type uranium mineralization (Athabasca basin in Canada, Western Australia), iron-oxide fluorite mineralization (South Africa) and Sn-bearing alkaline granite (Brazil). Zircon and fergusontie concentration is found as igneous and hydrothermal products in peralkaline syenite, alkaline granite and pegmatite (e.g., Nechalacho in Canada). Eudialyte concentration is found in some peralkaline syenite bodies in Greenland, Canada, Sweden and Russia. Among these sources, large Dy resources are estimated in the deposits hosted in peralkaline rocks (Nechalacho: 79,000t, Kvanefjeld: 49,000t, Norra Karr: 15,700t, etc.) compared to the present demand of Dy. Thus, Dy will be supplied from the deposits associated with peralkaline and alkaline deposits in future instead of ion adsorption type deposits in southern China.

Geochemical prospecting for rare earth elements using termite mound materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Horiuchi, Yu; Ohno, Tetsuji; Hoshino, Mihoko; Shin, Ki-Cheol; Murakami, Hiroyasu; Tsunematsu, Maiko; Watanabe, Yasushi

2014-12-01

The Blockspruit fluorite prospect, located in North West State of the Republic of South Africa, occurs within an actinolite rock zone that was emplaced into the Kenkelbos-type granite of Proterozoic age. There are a large number of termite mounds in the prospect. For geochemical prospecting for rare earth elements (REEs), in total, 200 samples of termite mound material were collected from actinolite rock and granite zones in the prospect. Geochemical analyses of these termite mound materials were conducted by two methods: portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Comparison of the two methods broadly indicates positive correlations of REEs (La, Ce, Pr, Nd, and Y), in particular Y and La having a strong correlation. As the result of modal abundance analyses, the actinolite rock at surface mainly consists of ferro-actinolite (89.89 wt%) and includes xenotime (0.26 wt%) and monazite (0.21 wt%) grains as REE minerals. Termite mound materials from actinolite rock also contain xenotime (0.27 wt%) and monazite (0.41 wt%) grains. In addition, termite mound materials from the actinolite rock zone have high hematite and Fe silicate contents compared to those from granite zone. These relationships suggest that REE minerals in termite mound materials originate form actinolite rock. Geochemical anomaly maps of Y, La, and Fe concentrations drawn based on the result of the portable XRF analyses show that high concentrations of these elements trend from SW to NE which broadly correspond to occurrences of actinolite body. These results indicate that termite mounds are an effective tool for REE geochemical prospection in the study area for both light REEs and Y, but a more detailed survey is required to establish the distribution of the actinolite rock body.

Age constraints on felsic intrusions, metamorphism and gold mineralisation in the Palaeoproterozoic Rio Itapicuru greenstone belt, NE Bahia State, Brazil

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mello, E.F.; Xavier, R.P.; McNaughton, N.J.; Hagemann, S.G.; Fletcher, I.; Snee, L.

2006-01-01

U-Pb sensitive high resolution ion microprobe mass spectrometer (SHRIMP) ages of zircon, monazite and xenotime crystals from felsic intrusive rocks from the Rio Itapicuru greenstone belt show two development stages between 2,152 and 2,130 Ma, and between 2,130 and 2,080 Ma. The older intrusions yielded ages of 2,152??6 Ma in monazite crystals and 2,155??9 Ma in zircon crystals derived from the Trilhado granodiorite, and ages of 2,130??7 Ma and 2,128??8 Ma in zircon crystals derived from the Teofila??ndia tonalite. The emplacement age of the syntectonic Ambro??sio dome as indicated by a 2,080??2-Ma xenotime age for a granite dyke probably marks the end of the felsic magmatism. This age shows good agreement with the Ar-Ar plateau age of 2,080??5 Ma obtained in hornblendes from an amphibolite and with a U-Pb SHRIMP age of 2,076??10 Ma in detrital zircon crystals from a quartzite, interpreted as the age of the peak of the metamorphism. The predominance of inherited zircons in the syntectonic Ambro??sio dome suggests that the basement of the supracrustal rocks was composed of Archaean continental crust with components of 2,937??16, 3,111??13 and 3,162??13 Ma. Ar-Ar plateau ages of 2,050??4 Ma and 2,054??2 Ma on hydrothermal muscovite samples from the Fazenda Brasileiro gold deposit are interpreted as minimum ages for gold mineralisation and close to the true age of gold deposition. The Ar-Ar data indicate that the mineralisation must have occurred less than 30 million years after the peak of the metamorphism, or episodically between 2,080 Ma and 2,050 Ma, during uplift and exhumation of the orogen. ?? Springer-Verlag 2006.

Indentation recovery in GdPO 4 and observation of deformation twinning

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wilkinson, Taylor M.; Musselman, Matthew A.; Boatner, Lynn A.

A series of nanoindentation tests on both single and polycrystalline specimens of a monazite rare-earth orthophosphate, GdPO 4, revealed frequent observation of anomalous unloading behavior with a large degree of recovery, where previously this behavior had only been observed in xenotime-structure rare-earth orthophosphates. An indentation site in the polycrystalline sample was examined using TEM to identify the deformation mechanism responsible for recovery. Finally, the presence of a twin along the (100) orientation, along with a series of stacking faults contained within the deformation site, provide evidence that the mechanism of recovery in GdPO 4 is the collapse of deformation twinsmore » during unloading.« less

Mineral potential tracts for shoreline Ti-Zr placer deposits (phase V, deliverable 85): Chapter P in Second projet de renforcement institutionnel du secteur minier de la République Islamique de Mauritanie (PRISM-II)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Beaudoin, Georges

2015-01-01

Shoreline placer Ti deposits are composed of ilmenite, rutile, zircon, monazite, and magnetite in well-sorted, fine- to medium-grained sand in coastal dunes, beaches and inlets. In addition to titanium, zirconium, in particular, and rare earth elements (REE) have become a major source of value in shoreline placer deposits. Shoreline placer deposits form mostly on tropical beaches around the world (fig. 1), and consist of dark sand layers rich in heavy minerals that are resistant to mechanical abrasion and chemical weathering. According to Hamilton (1995), shoreline placer deposits supply approximately 80 percent of the world’s rutile production, 25 percent of ilmenite, 100 percent of zircon, and 50 percent of both monazite and xenotime.

Indentation recovery in GdPO 4 and observation of deformation twinning

DOE PAGES

Wilkinson, Taylor M.; Musselman, Matthew A.; Boatner, Lynn A.; ...

2016-09-30

A series of nanoindentation tests on both single and polycrystalline specimens of a monazite rare-earth orthophosphate, GdPO 4, revealed frequent observation of anomalous unloading behavior with a large degree of recovery, where previously this behavior had only been observed in xenotime-structure rare-earth orthophosphates. An indentation site in the polycrystalline sample was examined using TEM to identify the deformation mechanism responsible for recovery. Finally, the presence of a twin along the (100) orientation, along with a series of stacking faults contained within the deformation site, provide evidence that the mechanism of recovery in GdPO 4 is the collapse of deformation twinsmore » during unloading.« less

Contemporaneous migmitization and granite emplacement during regional metamorphism: Evidence for mid-crustal contribution to the batholiths of the Arabian-Nubian Shield

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Elisha, B.; Katzir, Y.; Kylander-Clark, A. R.

2017-12-01

Collision-related granitoid batholiths, like those of the Hercynian and Himalayan orogens, are mostly fed by magma derived from meta-sedimentary sources. However, in the late Neoproterozoic calc-alkaline batholiths of the Arabian Nubian Shield (ANS), which constitutes the northern half of the East African orogen, sedimentary contribution is obscured by the juvenile character of the crust and the scarcity of migmatites. Here we use paired in-situ measurements of U-Th-Pb isotope ratios and REE contents of monazite and xenotime by LASS to demonstrate direct linkage between granites and migmatites in the northernmost ANS. Our results indicate a single prolonged period of monazite growth, 640-600 Ma, in metapelites, migmatites and peraluminous granites of the Abu-Barqa (SW Jordan), Roded (S Israel) and Taba-Nuweiba (Sinai, Egypt) metamorphic suites. Distribution of monazite dates and age zoning in single monazite grains in migmatites suggest that peak thermal conditions and partial melting prevailed for 10 Myr, from 620 to 610 Ma. REE patterns of monazite are well correlated with age, recording garnet growth and garnet breakdown in association with the prograde and retrograde stages of the melting reactions, respectively. Xenotime dates (n=40) cluster at 600-580 Ma recording retrogression to greenschist-facies conditions as garnet continues to destabilize. Phase equilibrium modelling and mineral thermobarometry illustrate that melting occurred either by dehydration of muscovite or by water-fluxed melting at 650-680° and 5-7 kbar. The expected melt production is 8-14%, allowing melt connectivity network to form and eventually melt extraction and segregation. The crystallization time of peritectic melt retained in dia- and metataxites overlaps the emplacement time of a vast calc-alkaline granitic flux throughout the northern ANS, which was previously considered post-collisional. Similar monazite ages ( 620 Ma) of the amphilolite-facies non-anatectic Elat schist indicate

Mineralogy of parent rock and peaty-podzolic soil of Iremel Ridge, Southern Urals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khalitov, R. M.; Perova, E. N.; Abakumov, E. V.; Suleimanov, R. R.

2017-08-01

The mineralogy of soils and parent rocks of the Iremel Ridge has been studied by the methods of micromorphology, laser diffraction, computed X-ray microtomography, and X-ray fluorescence analysis. In hard rock and soil, the major minerals have been identified: quartz, illite, and a chlorite-group mineral (Fe analogue of sudoite), as well as accessory minerals: monazite, xenotime, rutile, zircon, and florencite. It has been found that chlorite, illite, and quartz are present in all horizons of the studied peaty-podzolic soil. Insignificant amounts of mixed-layered mineral and kaolinite could be suggested in the T and EL horizons of peaty-podzolic soil. The mixed-layered mineral is most probably of soil origin, which is related to the transformation of illites inherited from the parent rock under acidic conditions.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kogawa, M.; Watson, E. B.; Ewing, R. C.

Lead-doped zircon crystals, which were synthesized under three different conditions (Watson et al. 1997): dry at 1430 °C at atmospheric pressure without P2O5; wet at 900 °C at 1.5 GPa in the presence of P2O5; and wet at 800 °C at 1.0 GPa without P2O5, have been investigated to understand the mechanisms of Pb incorporation into zircon at the sub-micrometer scale, using various electron microscopy techniques including high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy (HAADF-STEM). Four different mechanisms in which Pb may be incorporated into zircon have been identified. In the P-free synthesis, Pb-oxidemore » hydrate particles, 50–200 nm in size, are embedded in zircon. Each Pb-particle is associated with a single vesicle, ~50 nm. Lead in the zircon structure is possibly incorporated under the detection limit value of energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) by means of: (1) Zr4+ = Pb2+ + 2H+ at less than ~0.1 wt%. In the system with P, Pb-phases occur in three different forms: Pb-rich domains concentrated along cleavage planes or grain boundaries without any evident crystal form; numerous Pb-phosphate particles, as large as 100 nm, embedded heterogeneously in the zircon crystal; and homogeneous distribution of Pb in the zircon structure at less than ~1 wt% as determined by EDX. These results suggest that charge balance is maintained by the xenotime-type coupled substitution: (2) Zr4+ + 2Si4+ = Pb2+ + 2P5+ with a possible minor contribution from mechanism 1. The apparent solubility limit of Pb, <1 wt%, is constrained mainly by the xenotime-type coupled substitution mechanism, which is probably due to increasing strain at higher Pb-concentrations. The presence of Pb2+ in natural zircon is consistent with the low-level Pb allowed by substitution mechanism 2, with only a minor contribution from substitution mechanism 1, the latter of which causes distortion in the local structure.« less

Targeting heavy rare earth elements in carbonatite complexes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Broom-Fendley, S.; Wall, F.; Gunn, A. G.; Dowman, E.

2012-04-01

The world's main sources of the rare earth elements (REE) are concentrated in carbonatite complexes. These have the advantages of high grade and tonnage, combined with low thorium contents, yet they are generally enriched in light rare earths (LREE). The heavy rare earths (HREE, which include Eu-Lu and Y) are more highly sought after because of their role in new and green technologies. HREE are predominantly extracted from ion-adsorption clays in China. These are small, low grade deposits, which are often illegally mined by artisans. Increased government control, environmental legislation and local demand for REE in China have led to high prices and global concerns about the security of supply of the HREE. Alternative sources of the HREE are poorly documented. We present a review of such targets, including: (1) 'abnormal' carbonatites; (2) areas around LREE-rich complexes such as breccia, fenite and latter stage veins; and (3) weathered carbonatites. At Lofdal, Namibia, carbonatite dykes contain xenotime-(Y) together with LREE minerals. The original chemistry of the carbonatite magma, coupled with late-stage magma and fluid evolution, seem to be controlling factors [1, 2]. The Khibina carbonatite, Kola Peninsula, Russia, is an example of where early LREE carbonatites become increasing HREE-enriched as magmas evolve to carbo-hydrothermal fluids [3]. Around carbonatite complexes in Malawi HREE enrichment can be found in breccia and in fenite. Breccia around Songwe shows areas with high Y/La ratios within the matrix caused by narrow zones of xenotime enrichment. Fenite around Kangankunde and Chilwa Island has higher HREE:LREE ratios than the carbonatite [4]. At weathered complexes, such as at Mount Weld in Western Australia, changes in both HREE concentration and LREE:HREE ratios are observed. In currently unworked sections of the deposit, the HREE mineral churchite (YPO4.H2O) has formed concentrations due to groundwater flow [5]. These areas of enrichment are

High REE and Y concentrations in Co-Cu-Au ores of the Blackbird district, Idaho

USGS Publications Warehouse

Slack, J.F.

2006-01-01

Analysis of 11 samples of strata-bound Co-Cu-Au ore from the Blackbird district in Idaho shows previously unknown high concentrations of rare earth elements (REE) and Y, averaging 0.53 wt percent ???REE + Y oxides. Scanning electron microscopy indicates REE and Y residence in monazite, xenotime, and allanite that form complex intergrowths with cobaltite, suggesting coeval Co and REE + Y mineralization during the Mesoproterozoic. Occurrence of high REE and Y concentrations in the Blackbird ores, together with previously documented saline-rich fluid inclusions and Cl-rich biotite, suggest that these are not volcanogenic massive sulfide or sedimentary exhalative deposits but instead are iron oxide-copper-gold (IOCG) deposits. Other strata-bound Co deposits of Proterozoic age in the North American Cordillera and elsewhere in the world may have potential for REE and Y resources. IOCG deposits with abundant light REE should also be evaluated for possible unrecognized heavy REE and Y mineralization. ?? 2006 by Economic Geology.

International strategic minerals inventory summary report; rare-earth oxides

USGS Publications Warehouse

Jackson, W.D.; Christiansen, Grey

1993-01-01

Bastnaesite, monazite, and xenotime are currently the most important rare-earth minerals. Bastnaesite occurs as a primary mineral in carbonatites. Monazite and xenotime also can be found in primary deposits but are recovered principally from heavy-mineral placers that are mined for titanium or tin. Each of these minerals has a different composition of the 15 rare-earth elements. World resources of economically exploitable rare-earth oxides (REO) are estimated at 93.4 million metric tons in place, composed of 93 percent in primary deposits and 7 percent in placers. The average mineral composition is 83 percent bastnaesite, 13 percent monazite, and 4 percent of 10 other minerals. Annual global production is about 67,000 metric tons of which 41 percent is from placers and 59 percent is from primary deposits; mining methods consist of open pits (94 percent) and dredging (6 percent). This output could be doubled if the operations that do not currently recover rare earths would do so. Resources are more than sufficient to meet the demand for the predictable future. About 52 percent of the world's REO resources are located in China. Ranking of other countries is as follows: Namibia (22 percent), the United States (15 percent), Australia (6 percent), and India (3 percent); the remainder is in several other countries. Conversely, 38 percent of the production is in China, 33 percent in the United States, 12 percent in Australia, and 5 percent each in Malaysia and India. Several other countries, including Brazil, Canada, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, make up the remainder. Markets for rare earths are mainly in the metallurgical, magnet, ceramic, electronic, chemical, and optical industries. Rare earths improve the physical and rolling properties of iron and steel and add corrosion resistance and strength to structural members at high temperatures. Samarium and neodymium are used in lightweight, powerful magnets for electric motors. Cerium and yttrium increase the

Sol gel synthesis and pH effect on the luminescent and structural properties of YPO4: Pr3+ nanophosphors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kahouadji, B.; Guerbous, L.; Boukerika, A.; Dolić, Slobodan D.; Jovanović, Dragana J.; Dramićanin, Miroslav D.

2017-08-01

Pr3+ -doped YPO4 nanophosphors prepared by simple sol gel method with different pH values (2, 4, 7 and 11) were obtained. The nanopowders samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), room temperature steady and time resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy. The thorough study of pH influence on particle's structure and luminescence of YPO4: 1 at. Pr3+ is presented. It was found that the grain size of samples increases with increases in pH value and obtained particles crystallize in a tetragonal phase with xenotime structure. Under 4f5d excitation (230 nm), all emission spectra show the inter-configurational 4f2→4f5d and under 3P2 excitation (449 nm), only the intra-configurational 1D2→3H4 red emission transition between 580 nm and 620 nm are observed. The highest luminescent intensity was obtained for samples prepared at pH = 4. Furthermore, it was found that the pH of solution has no effect of 1D2 lifetime.

Immobile Trace Element Discrimination of Near-cogenetic Eruptions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Villa, I. M.

2015-12-01

A chemical diagram to discriminate individual magma batches in composite plutonic/volcanic complexes is proposed here: x = Y/Al, y = Zr/Ti. Both ratios are stable during weathering and low-grade metamorphism. Y/Al only depends on fractional crystallization of garnet, xenotime and monazite during magmatogenesis and the degree of partial melting. This already distinguishes individual magmas. Zr/Ti is modified by other phases (rutile, titanite, zircon, ilmenite, biotite, etc) that neither accommodate nor fractionate trivalent cations and provides a totally independent perspective on magmatogenesis. The Y/Al-Zr/Ti plot has no relation to tectonic setting (convergent, rift, intraplate, etc) and is not designed to distinguish lines of descent (calc-alkaline, transitional, etc). Instead, it can discriminate at a very fine scale lavas that share a common regional origin and are therefore confused in classic tectonic discrimination plots. Disentangling individual magma batches is inaccessible to global modeling but important to chronostratigraphers. Application to two well studied examples, Adamello (Alps) and North Anatolia, reproduces known consanguinity and rejects a few dubious ones.

Age constraints on Tarkwaian palaeoplacer and lode-gold formation in the Tarkwa-Damang district, SW Ghana

USGS Publications Warehouse

Pigois, J.-P.; Groves, D.I.; Fletcher, I.R.; McNaughton, N.J.; Snee, L.W.

2003-01-01

Two major epigenetic gold-forming events are recorded in the world-class gold province of southwest Ghana. A pre-Tarkwaian event was the source of the world-class Tarkwa palaeoplacers whereas post-Birimian and Tarkwaian deformation, which was related to the Eburnean orogeny, gave rise to the world-class (e.g. Prestea) to giant (e.g. Obuasi) orogenic gold deposits which have made the region famous for more than 2,500 years. A maximum age of 2133 ?? 4 Ma for Tarkwaian sedimentation is provided by 71 of 111 concordant SHRIMP II U Pb dates from detrital zircons in Tarkwaian clastic rocks from Damang and Bippo Bin, northeast of Tarkwa. The overall data distribution broadly overlaps the relatively poorly constrained ages of Birimian volcanism and associated Dixcove-type granitoid emplacement, indicating syntectonic development of the Tarkwaian sedimentary basin. These zircon ages argue against derivation of the palaeoplacer gold from an orogenic gold source related to the compressional phase of an orogeny significantly older than the Eburnean orogeny. Instead, they suggest that the gold source was either orogenic gold lodes related to an earlier compressional phase of a diachronous Eburnean orogeny or ca. 2200-2100 Ma intrusion-related gold lode. The CO2-rich fluid inclusions in associated vein-quartz pebbles are permissive of either source. At the Damang deposit, an epigenetic, orogenic lode-gold system clearly overprinted, and sulphidised low-grade palaeoplacer hematite magnetite gold occurrences in the Banket Series conglomerate within the Tarkwaian sedimentary sequence. Gold mineralisation is demonstrably post-peak metamorphism, as gold-related alteration assemblages overprint metamorphic assemblages in host rocks. In alteration zones surrounding the dominant, subhorizontal auriferous quartz veins, there are rare occurrences of hydrothermal xenotime which give a SHRIMP U Pb age of 2063 ?? 9 Ma for gold mineralisation. The similar structural timing of epigenetic gold

Characteristics and genesis of Rare Earth Element (REE) in western Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Handoko, A. D.; Sanjaya, E.

2018-02-01

Rare Earth Element (REE) has unique properties that have been used in many hightech applications. The demand of REE increased recently in the world due to its special properties. Although REE concentration in the crust is higher than gold, economically viable deposits are still rare. Reduction of REE exports by China cause increased prices of REE. Due to this condition, exploration of potential REE mines emerged. Indonesia also participates in this phenomenon, and explore the possibility of REE mines in its area. This review will discuss the characteristics and genesis of REE and its occurrence in western Indonesia; focused in Sumatera, Tin Island, and Kalimantan. The review is done based on literature research from several resources about characteristics of rare earth element in general and in the given area. The research shows that the potential REE mines can be found in several different locations in Indonesia, such as Tin Island, Sumatera, and Kalimantan. Most of them are composed of monazite, zircon, and xenotime as rare earth minerals. Monazite iss known for its elevated number of radioactive elements, so study about radioactive content and more environment friendly ore processing becomes compulsory.

Thorium: Issues and prospects in Malaysia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

AL-Areqi, Wadeeah M.; Majid, Amran Ab.; Sarmani, Sukiman; Bahri, Che Nor Aniza Che Zainul

2015-04-01

In Malaysia, thorium exists in minerals and rare earth elements production residue. The average range of thorium content in Malaysian monazite and xenotime minerals was found about 70,000 and 15,000 ppm respectively. About 2,636 tonnes of Malaysian monazite was produced for a period of 5 years (2006-2010) and based on the above data, it can be estimated that Malaysian monazite contains about 184.5 tonnes of thorium. Although thorium can become a major radiological problem to our environment, but with the significant deposit of thorium in Malaysian monazite, it has a prospect as a future alternative fuel in nuclear technology. This paper will discuss the thorium issues in Malaysia especially its long term radiological risks to public health and environment at storage and disposal stages, the prospect of exploring and producing high purity thorium from our rare earth elements minerals for future thorium based reactor. This paper also highlights the holistic approach in thorium recovery from Malaysian rare earth element production residue to reduce its radioactivity and extraction of thorium and rare earth elements from the minerals with minimum radiological impact to health and environment.

Thorium: Issues and prospects in Malaysia

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

AL-Areqi, Wadeeah M.; Majid, Amran Ab.; Sarmani, Sukiman

2015-04-29

In Malaysia, thorium exists in minerals and rare earth elements production residue. The average range of thorium content in Malaysian monazite and xenotime minerals was found about 70,000 and 15,000 ppm respectively. About 2,636 tonnes of Malaysian monazite was produced for a period of 5 years (2006-2010) and based on the above data, it can be estimated that Malaysian monazite contains about 184.5 tonnes of thorium. Although thorium can become a major radiological problem to our environment, but with the significant deposit of thorium in Malaysian monazite, it has a prospect as a future alternative fuel in nuclear technology. This papermore » will discuss the thorium issues in Malaysia especially its long term radiological risks to public health and environment at storage and disposal stages, the prospect of exploring and producing high purity thorium from our rare earth elements minerals for future thorium based reactor. This paper also highlights the holistic approach in thorium recovery from Malaysian rare earth element production residue to reduce its radioactivity and extraction of thorium and rare earth elements from the minerals with minimum radiological impact to health and environment.« less

Zircon (Hf, O isotopes) as melt indicator: Melt infiltration and abundant new zircon growth within melt rich layers of granulite-facies lenses versus solid-state recrystallization in hosting amphibolite-facies gneisses (central Erzgebirge, Bohemian Massif)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tichomirowa, Marion; Whitehouse, Martin; Gerdes, Axel; Schulz, Bernhard

2018-03-01

In the central Erzgebirge within the Bohemian Massif, lenses of high pressure and ultrahigh pressure felsic granulites occur within meta-sedimentary and meta-igneous amphibolite-facies felsic rocks. In the felsic granulite, melt rich parts and restite form alternating layers, and were identified by petrology and bulk rock geochemistry. Mineral assemblages representing the peak P-T conditions were best preserved in melanocratic restite layers. In contrast, in the melt rich leucocratic layers, garnet and related HP minerals as kyanite are almost completely resorbed. Both layers display differences in accessory minerals: melanosomes have frequent and large monazite and Fe-Ti-minerals but lack xenotime and apatite; leucosomes have abundant apatite and xenotime while monazite is rare. Here we present a detailed petrographic study of zircon grains (abundance, size, morphology, inclusions) in granulite-facies and amphibolite-facies felsic gneisses, along with their oxygen and hafnium isotope compositions. Our data complement earlier Usbnd Pb ages and trace element data (REE, Y, Hf, U) on zircons from the same rocks (Tichomirowa et al., 2005). Our results show that the degree of melting determines the behaviour of zircon in different layers of the granulites and associated amphibolite-facies rocks. In restite layers of the granulite lenses, small, inherited, and resorbed zircon grains are preserved and new zircon formation is very limited. In contrast, new zircons abundantly grew in the melt rich leucocratic layers. In these layers, the new zircons (Usbnd Pb age, trace elements, Hf, O isotopes) best preserve the information on peak metamorphic conditions due to intense corrosion of other metamorphic minerals. The new zircons often contain inherited cores. Compared to cores, the new zircons and rims show similar or slightly lower Hf isotope values, slightly higher Hf model ages, and decreased oxygen isotope ratios. The isotope compositions (Hf, O) of new zircons indicate

The unusual mineralogy of the Hayes River rhyolite, Hayes Volcano, Cook Inlet, Alaska

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hayden, L. A.; Coombs, M. L.; McHugh, K.

2013-12-01

Hayes Volcano is an ice-covered volcanic massif located in the northern Cook Inlet region approximately 135 miles northwest of Anchorage, Alaska. The last major eruptive episode of Hayes, and the only known in any detail, occurred ~3,700 yr B.P. and produced the Hayes Tephra Set H, a series of dacitic fall deposits widespread throughout southcentral Alaska (Riehle et al., 1994, Quat. Res. 33, p. 91-108). An undated, early Holocene pyroclastic-flow deposit exposed beneath Tephra Set H in the Hayes River valley is unusual in the Aleutian-Alaska subduction zone in whole-rock composition and mineralogy. The deposit comprises rhyolite pumice (~75 wt% SiO2) that contain phenocrysts of plagioclase, sanidine, quartz, and biotite in vesicular, clear matrix glass, and <1% dense, white cognate inclusions with the same whole-rock composition and phenocryst assemblage as the pumice, but a crystalline matrix. Holocrystalline inclusions may represent portions of the magma body that rapidly quenched in the shallow subsurface as dikes or chamber rinds and were then excavated during explosive eruption. Rhyolite and inclusions are peraluminous (2-3 % normative corundum), high-K, enriched in incompatible elements, and depleted in Sr and Eu. In accord with its evolved and enriched composition the rhyolite pumice and inclusions contain an abundance of accessory phases, including apatite, monazite, xenotime, and zircon. Monazite are euhedral, as large as 500 um, ThO2-rich (up to 4 wt%) and contain significant amounts of Ag (200-500 ppm). Xenotime are generally smaller than the monazite and occur frequently as small blebs. Rhyolite pumices also contain Fe-sulfides, Cu, Sn, Ni, and barite. Sanidine phenocrysts in the pumice and inclusions are sharply zoned and highly enriched in the celsian component (up to 5 wt% BaO) and also show LREE enrichment. Inclusions contain abundant Mn-rich cordierite (~3 wt% Mn2O3) in the san-plag-qtz matrix, as well as Fe-Ti oxides that are relatively high in

Application of Scanning Electron Microscopy/Energy-Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy for Characterization of Detrital Minerals in Karst Cave Speleothems.

PubMed

Zupančič, Nina; Miler, Miloš; Šebela, Stanka; Jarc, Simona

2016-02-01

Micro-scale observations in karst caves help to identify different processes that shaped local morphology. Scanning electron microscopy/energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy inspection of speleothems from two karst caves in Slovenia, Predjama and Črna Jama, confirmed the presence of sub-angular to sub-rounded detrital fragments of clay minerals, feldspars, quartz, Fe-oxides/hydroxides, rutile and Nb-rutile, xenotime, kassite, allanite, fluorapatite, epidote, ilmenite, monazite, sphene, and zircon, between 2 and 50 μm across. These occur in porous layers separating calcite laminae in the clayey coating on the layer below the surface of the speleothems, and are also incorporated within actual crystals. It is likely that they are derived from the weathered rocks of the Eocene flysch. Probably they were first transported into the caves by floodwaters forming cave sediments. Later, depending upon the climate conditions, they were moved by air currents or by water to the surface of active speleothems. They might also be redeposited from overlying soils enriched with wind-transported minerals from the flysch, or from higher passages filled with weathered flysch sediment, by drip water percolating through the fissured limestone. As some of the identified minerals are carriers of rare earth elements, Ti and Zr, their presence could affect any palaeoclimatic interpretations that are based upon the geochemical composition of the speleothems.

Preliminary summary review of thorium-bearing mineral occurrences in Alaska

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bates, Robert G.; Wedow, Helmuth

1952-01-01

Thorium-bearing minerals are known at 47 localities in Alaska. At these localities the thorium occurs as a major constituent or in minor amounts as an impurity in one or more of the following 12 minerals: allanite, columbite, ellsworthite, eschynite, gummite, monazite, orangite, parisite, thorianite, thorite, xenotime, and zircon. In addition other minerals, such as biotite and sphene, are radioactive and may contain thorium. Several unidentified columbate minerals with uranium or thorium and uranium as major constituents have been recognized at some localities. The distribution, by type of deposit, of the 57 thorium occurrences is as follows: lode - 3, lode and placer - 1, granitic rock - 3, granitic rock and related placer - 14, and placer - 26. Of the four lode occurrences only the radioactive veins at Salmon Bay in southeastern Alaska and the contact metamorphic deposit in the Nixon Fork area of central Alaska warrant further consideration, although insufficient data are available to determine whether these two deposits have commercial possibilities. The remaining occurrences of thorium-bearing minerals in Alaska are limited to placer deposits and disseminations of accessory minerals in granitic rocks. In most of these occurrences the thorium-bearing minerals occur in only trace amounts and consequently warrent little further consideration. More data are needed to determine the possibilities of byproduct recovery of thorium-bearing minerals from several of the gold and tin placers.

Palaeoproterozoic Volcanic Massive Sulphides (VMS) in the Lithuanian crystalline basement: evidences for a back-arc tectonic setting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Skridlaite, Grazina; Siliauskas, Laurynas

2014-05-01

In the southwestern part of the East European Craton (EEC), several events of Palaeoproterozoic volcanic arc magmatic activity were recognized in the concealed crystalline basement. In Lithuania, the TTG suites of 1.89 Ga and 1.86-1.84 Ga were later metamorphosed in amphibolite and granulite facies conditions. Remnants of a volcano-sedimentary sequence metamorphosed in green schist and amphibolite facies conditions were discovered in central and southern Lithuania. In southern Lithuania, the upper part of the Lazdijai 13 (Lz13) drilling (at c. 493 m depth) consists of exhalitic quartz chlorite cherts mixed with andesitic rocks. The rocks are impregnated with magnetite in some places replacing calcite. Most of the magnetite grains are overgrown by a dendritic kovelite, which may have formed while magnetite was still in aqueous surrounding. Other accessory minerals are xenotime, zircon, apatite, Sr-Ba sulphates etc. The cherts are underlain by a metaandesite which volcanic structures were obscured by hydrothermal alteration, i.e. the idiomorphic magnetite crystals and porphyritic plagioclase grains were replaced by clay minerals and quartz or muscovite in many places. Thin metamorphosed mudstone layers turned into garnet, biotite (+/-staurolite) and chlorite schists. The rocks were affected by silicification, chloritization, argilitization and carbonatization. Taking into account the rock composition, micro and macro scale alteration zones and absence of breccia, the whole package resembles an outer part of the VMS stockwork. The lower boundary at 526 m is sharp, marked by a quartz vein, below which lies quartz, biotite (+/- chlorite) bearing schist with minor tremolite (former sandstone). It was intensely affected by silicification, and was enriched in Na, K and Ca. Accessory minerals are monazite, xenotime, apatite and detrital zircon. The schist exhibits fine mineral foliation, and is fine-grained. A 4 m thick granitic vein cuts the rock at 654 m depth, below

Radiological risk assessment of environmental radon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khalid, Norafatin; Majid, Amran Ab; Yahaya, Redzuwan; Yasir, Muhammad Samudi

2013-11-01

Measurements of radon gas (222Rn) in the environmental are important to assess indoor air quality and to study the potential risk to human health. Generally known that exposure to radon is considered the second leading cause of lung cancer after smoking. The environmental radon concentration depends on the 226Ra concentration, indoor atmosphere, cracking on rocks and building materials. This study was carried out to determine the indoor radon concentration from selected samples of tin tailings (amang) and building materials in an airtight sealed homemade radon chamber. The radiological risk assessment for radon gas was also calculated based on the annual exposure dose, effective dose equivalent, radon exhalation rates and fatal cancer risk. The continuous radon monitor Sun Nuclear model 1029 was used to measure the radon concentration emanates from selected samples for 96 hours. Five types of tin tailings collected from Kampar, Perak and four samples of building materials commonly used in Malaysia dwellings or building constructions were analysed for radon concentration. The indoor radon concentration determined in ilmenite, monazite, struverite, xenotime and zircon samples varies from 219.6 ± 76.8 Bq m-3 to 571.1 ± 251.4 Bq m-3, 101.0 ± 41.0 Bq m-3 to 245.3 ± 100.2 Bq m-3, 53.1 ± 7.5 Bq m-3 to 181.8 ± 9.7 Bq m-3, 256.1 ± 59.3 Bq m-3 to 652.2 ± 222.2 Bq m-3 and 164.5 ± 75.9 Bq m-3 to 653.3 ± 240.0 Bq m-3, respectively. Whereas, in the building materials, the radon concentration from cement brick, red-clay brick, gravel aggregate and cement showed 396.3 ± 194.3 Bq m-3, 192.1 ± 75.4 Bq m-3, 176.1 ± 85.9 Bq m-3 and 28.4 ± 5.7 Bq m-3, respectively. The radon concentration in tin tailings and building materials were found to be much higher in xenotime and cement brick samples than others. All samples in tin tailings were exceeded the action level for radon gas of 148 Bq m-3 proposed by EPA except monazite 0.15 kg, struverite 0.15 kg and 0.25 kg. Whereas

Characterization of Rare Earth Elements in in Clay Deposits Associated with Central Appalachian Coal Seams

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scott, M.; Verba, C.; Falcon, A.; Poston, J.; McKoy, M.

2017-12-01

Because of their multiple uses in clean energy technologies, rare earth elements (REE) are critical for national economic and energy security. With no current domestic source, supply remains a major concern for domestic security. Underclay - specifically the layer of stratum beneath a coal bed - is a potentially rich source of REE. This study focuses on the characterization and ion exchange recovery of REE from underclay samples from the Lower Freeport, Middle Kittanning, and Pittsburgh coal seams in West Virginia. Multimodal techniques provided quantitative assessments of REE-bearing mineral phases in select underclays and the influence of organic acid rock treatment on the recovery of REE from both exchangeable and crystalline mineral phases present. All samples are from extensively weathered horizons that contain abundant kaolinite and illite. Total REE concentrations range from 250-450 ppm and all samples have a HREE/LEEE ratio >20%. Rare earth element bearing minerals identified in the clay are monazite, xenotime, florencite, and crandallite. Our selective recovery approach is designed to isolate and recover REE through partial dissolution of the clay matrix and ion exchange rather than dissolution/recovery of phosphate or aluminosilicate bound REE. These results provide a better understanding of coal seam underclay, the affinity of REEs for specific ligands and colloids, and how the rock and ligands respond to different chemical treatments. These processes are important to the development and commercialization of efficient and cost effective methods to extract REE from domestic geologic deposits and recover into salable forms.

Nb sbnd Th sbnd Zr mineralization in microgranite—microsyenite at Jabal Tawlah, Midyan region, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drysdall, Alan R.; Douch, Colin J.

A composite sill of mineralized and highly radioactive microgranite—microsyenite caps Jabal Tawlah, a low ridge in the extreme NW of the Arabian Shield. The leucocratic composition, distribution of quartz and low K 2O:Na 2O ratios indicate that deuteric processes, including separation of a silica-rich phase and albitization, played a major role. Mineralization is in the form of a disseminated enrichment in Nb, Ta, Sn, Th, Y, heavy REE and Zr. Four Y- and heavy REE-bearing minerals, gagarinite [NaCaY(F,Cl) 6], fergusonite [(Y,Er,Ce,Fe)(Nb,Ta,Ti)O 4], xenotime and yttrian fluorite, as well as zircon, columbite, thorite, sphalerite, galena, pyrite, ilmenite, hematite, limonite, magnetite, goethite, siderite, possible chrysocolla and an MnO-bearing mineral have been identified. The geochemical signature of the mineralization is similar to that which distinguishes alkali granites from other granitic rocks. Jabal az Zuhd, a major plutonic complex consisting largely of alkali granite, crops out only 5 km NW of Jabal Tawlah. However, there is no other evidence of possible derivation from a parental alkali granite magma. Reserves indicated by outcrop dimensions and three drill-hole intersections are 6.4 million tonnes to an average depth of 65 m below wadi level, grading 0.34% Nb, 0.52% Y, 0.47% Zn and approximately 4% zircon (plus 175 ppm Ta, 380 ppm Sn, 700 ppm Th and heavy REE).

Direct dating of paleomagnetic results from Precambrian sediments in the Amazon craton: Evidence for Grenvillian emplacement of exotic crust in SE Appalachians of North America

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

D'Agrella-Filho, Manoel S.; Tohver, Eric; Santos, João O. S.; Elming, Sten-Åke; Trindade, Ricardo I. F.; Pacca, Igor I. G.; Geraldes, Mauro C.

2008-03-01

We apply a new diagenetic dating technique to determine the age of magnetization for Precambrian sedimentary rocks in the SW Amazon craton. Two new paleomagnetic poles are reported from the rocks of the Aguapeí Gp.: red beds of the Fortuna Fm. (Plat = 59.8°N, Plon = 155.9°E, A95 = 9.5, K = 14, 18 sites, N/n 128/115, Q = 5) and the reverse-polarity mudstones of the overlying Vale da Promissão Formation (Plat = 49.5°N, Plon = 89.3°E, A95 = 12.5, K = 30, 6 sites, N/n = 94/80, Q = 4). The Fortuna Fm. magnetization is hosted by massive, interstitial hematite cement and constitutes a post-depositional remanence. The age of diagenesis of the red beds is well-constrained by the 1149 ± 7 Ma U-Pb age of authigenic xenotime rims on detrital zircons determined by SHRIMP analysis. The magnetite-hosted remanence of the Vale da Promissão Fm. may be detrital in origin, but the age of deposition is poorly constrained. The reliable and precisely-dated Fortuna Fm. paleomagnetic pole fixes the paleogeographic position of the Amazon craton near the SE Appalachians portion of North America at 1.15 Ga. These data demonstrate a mobile Grenvillian link between these two cratons, and support the recent identification of Amazon crust in the Blue Ridge province region of North America.

Euramerican tonsteins: overview, magmatic origin, and depositional-tectonic implications

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lyons, P.C.; Spears, D.A.; Outerbridge, W.F.; Congdon, R.D.; Evans, H.T.

1994-01-01

Carboniferous tonsteins (kaolinized volcanic-ash beds) of wide geographic distribution are known in both Europe and North America. Relict volcanic minerals common in these Euramerican tonsteins are volcanic quartz (including beta-quartz paramorphs), zircon and ilmenite; less common are magnetite, fayalite, rutile, monazite, xenotime, apatite and sanidine. Data for two relatively thick (3-13 cm) and widespread (>400 km) European tonsteins (Erda and Sub-Worsley Four-foot) indicate an increase in detrital quartz near the top of the beds which indicates mixing with normal clastic sediments, including the introduction of heavy detrital minerals (e.g., tourmaline and garnet). These thick tonsteins show multiple horizontal bedding, normal graded bedding, disturbed bedding, and centimeter-scale scour surfaces. The Fire Clay tonstein in North America represents from one to five separate volcanic air-fall ash deposits as determined by normal graded bedding and mineralogical analysis. These features indicate several episodes of volcanic-ash deposition and very localized subsequent erosion and bioturbation. Electron microprobe data from glass inclusions in volcanic quartz in Euramerican tonsteins indicate a rhyolitic origin for these tonsteins and reveal chemical "fingerprints" valuable for intra- and inter-basinal correlations. However, the tectonic framework for European and North American tonsteins was quite different. In Europe, volcanic-ash beds were associated with Variscan collisional tectonics, whereas in North America, volcanic ash was associated with Ouachita tectonic activity, explosive volcanism from the Yucatan block, collision between the South American and North American plates, and the formation of Pangea. ?? 1994.

Radiological risk assessment of environmental radon

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Khalid, Norafatin; Majid, Amran Ab; Yahaya, Redzuwan

Measurements of radon gas ({sup 222}Rn) in the environmental are important to assess indoor air quality and to study the potential risk to human health. Generally known that exposure to radon is considered the second leading cause of lung cancer after smoking. The environmental radon concentration depends on the {sup 226}Ra concentration, indoor atmosphere, cracking on rocks and building materials. This study was carried out to determine the indoor radon concentration from selected samples of tin tailings (amang) and building materials in an airtight sealed homemade radon chamber. The radiological risk assessment for radon gas was also calculated based onmore » the annual exposure dose, effective dose equivalent, radon exhalation rates and fatal cancer risk. The continuous radon monitor Sun Nuclear model 1029 was used to measure the radon concentration emanates from selected samples for 96 hours. Five types of tin tailings collected from Kampar, Perak and four samples of building materials commonly used in Malaysia dwellings or building constructions were analysed for radon concentration. The indoor radon concentration determined in ilmenite, monazite, struverite, xenotime and zircon samples varies from 219.6 ± 76.8 Bq m{sup −3} to 571.1 ± 251.4 Bq m{sup −3}, 101.0 ± 41.0 Bq m{sup −3} to 245.3 ± 100.2 Bq m{sup −3}, 53.1 ± 7.5 Bq m{sup −3} to 181.8 ± 9.7 Bq m{sup −3}, 256.1 ± 59.3 Bq m{sup −3} to 652.2 ± 222.2 Bq m{sup −3} and 164.5 ± 75.9 Bq m{sup −3} to 653.3 ± 240.0 Bq m{sup −3}, respectively. Whereas, in the building materials, the radon concentration from cement brick, red-clay brick, gravel aggregate and cement showed 396.3 ± 194.3 Bq m{sup −3}, 192.1 ± 75.4 Bq m{sup −3}, 176.1 ± 85.9 Bq m{sup −3} and 28.4 ± 5.7 Bq m{sup −3}, respectively. The radon concentration in tin tailings and building materials were found to be much higher in xenotime and cement brick samples than others. All samples in tin tailings were

Metallogeny of Mesoproterozoic Sedimentary Rocks in Idaho and Montana - Studies by the Mineral Resources Program, U.S. Geological Survey, 2004-2007

USGS Publications Warehouse

O'Neill, J. Michael

2007-01-01

-central Idaho are integrated and summarized by Bookstrom and others (chapter B, this volume). In particular, their field investigations and analysis of evidence and previous arguments for synsedimentary versus epigenetic mineral deposit types, both of which have been postulated by earlier workers, led them to conclude that both processes were likely instrumental in forming the ore deposits of the Blackbird district. Finally, this report supplies new data on isotopic ratios of sulfur, oxygen, carbon, and helium in minerals associated with cobalt-bearing ores of the cobalt belt. Slack (chapter C, this volume) identified several previously unrecognized rare-earth-element minerals in Blackbird ores: monazite (Ce,La,Y,Th)PO4, xenotime (YPO4), allanite (CaCe)2(Al,Fe)3Si3O12(OH), and gadolinite (Be2FeY2Si2O10). Light rare-earth elements reside mostly in monazite, whereas yttrium and heavy rare-earth minerals reside mostly in xenotime. Dated monazite, which in the Blackbird district is interstitial to cobaltite, is Cretaceous. This date brings into question the otherwise geologically convincing interpretation of Blackbird ores as being of Mesoproterozoic age and synsedimentary origin. This volume consists of three summary articles: A. Great Divide megashear, Montana, Idaho, and Washington: An intraplate crustal-scale shear zone recurrently active since the Mesoproterozoic by J. Michael O'Neill, Edward T. Ruppel, and David A. Lopez B. Blackbird Fe-Cu-Co-Au-REE deposits by Arthur A. Bookstrom, Craig A. Johnson, Gary P. Landis, and Thomas P. Frost C. Geochemical and mineralogical studies of sulfide and iron oxide deposits in the Idaho cobalt belt by John F. Slack

Geochronology, Magnetic Lithostratigraphy, and the Tectonostratigraphic Evolution of the Late Meso- to Neoproterozoic Ghanzi Basin in Botswana and Namibia, and Implications for Copper-Silver Mineralization in the Kalahari Copperbelt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hall, Wesley Scott

Despite a wealth of research on the Kalahari Copperbelt over the past 30 years, two crucial aspects of the mineralizing systems have remained elusive. First, the age of the rift sequence hosting the deposits and, second, the nature of the fluid pathways for the mineralizing fluids. Laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICPMS) U-Pb isotopic analysis on one igneous sample of the Makgabana Hills rhyolite (Kgwebe Formation) within the central Kalahari Copperbelt in Botswana constrains the depositional age of the unconformably overlying Ghanzi Group to after 1085.5 +/- 4.5 Ma. The statistically youngest detrital zircon age populations obtained from the uppermost unit of the Ngwako Pan Formation (1066 +/- 9.4 Ma, MSWD = 0.88, n = 3), the overlying D'Kar Formation (1063 +/- 11, MSWD = 0.056, n = 3), and the lower Mamuno Formation (1056.0 +/- 9.9 Ma, MSWD = 0.68, n = 4) indicate that the middle and upper Ghanzi Groups were deposited after 1060 to 1050 Ma. Lu-Hf analysis of detrital zircon suggests that the Mesoproterozoic and Paleoproterozoic rocks of the Namaqua Sector and the Rehoboth Basement Inlier were the primary sediment sources for the siliciclastic rocks of the Ghanzi Group and lesser material was derived from the basin-bounding footwall margin of the northwest Botswana rift, the Paleoproterozoic Magondi Belt and the Okwa Block, and possibly parts of the Limpopo Belt on the northern margin of the Kalahari Craton in southern Africa. A molybdenite Re-Os age of 981 +/- 3 Ma provides a minimum depositional age constraint on D'Kar Formation sedimentation. Authigenic xenotime U-Th-Pb ages of 925 and 950 Ma further the evidence for an earliest Neoproterozoic (Tonian) age for the D'Kar Formation. Re-Os ages of 549 +/- 11.2 Ma (low-level highly radiogenic chalcocite-idaite) and 515.9 +/- 2.4 Ma (molybdenite), and a U-Th-Pb age of 538.4 +/- 8.3 Ma (xenotime inclusion in chalcopyrite) from several Cu-Ag deposits in the central Kalahari Copperbelt

Fluid-aided incorporation of Y into almandine-pyrope garnet via coupled dissolution-reprecipitation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harlov, D. E.

2009-12-01

In nature almandine-pyrope garnet is a well-known host for a variety of trace elements including (Y+HREE), Sr, HFSE, as well as LREE such as Sm and Nd; all of which have important roles with regard to various geological processes (Kohn, 2009, GCA, 73, 170). For example, Y exchange between xenotime and garnet has been empirically calibrated as a geothermometer (Pyle and Spear, 2000, CMP, 138, 51). Sm/Nd and Lu/Hf dating, using garnet, is a well-known geochronometer (Thöni et al., 2008, Chem Geol, 254, 216). In general, REE + HFSE + Sr have been used to chart garnet growth and subsequently the evolution of the host rock (Konrad-Schmolke et al., 2008, EPSL, 272, 488). Incorporation of Y into garnet is probably the most widely studied trace element. These studies range from stress-induced redistribution of Y in garnet (Røhr et al, 2007, Am Mineral, 92, 1276) to Y zoning during garnet growth (Zeh, 2005, J Petrol, 47, 2335). While the incorporation of Y into garnet has generally been thought to occur either via diffusion or during garnet growth, more recent workers have suggested that incorporation of Y could also be fluid-aided. Fluid-aided incorporation of Y into garnet has been tested in the piston-cylinder apparatus (CaF2 assemblies, cylindrical graphite ovens) at 1000 MPa and 900 °C (8 days duration). Here, 10 mg of 50-200 µm size, inclusion-free, gem quality, fragments of the Gore Mountain garnet (Alm40-49, Py37-43, Gr13-16, Sp1) plus 5 mg 2N NaOH and 2 mg Y2O3 were loaded into a 3 mm diameter, 1 cm long, Au capsule that was then arc-welded shut and placed vertically in the CaF2 assembly such that the NiCr thermocouple tip came halfway up along the Au capsule length. Examination of the garnet fragments after the experiment indicates both high Y mobility and the partial alteration of the garnet in the form of a remobilized Y3Al5O12 component enriching those areas of the garnet along the grain rim. The enriched areas take the form of a series of intergrowths with

The behaviour of monazite from greenschist facies phyllites to anatectic gneisses: An example from the Chugach Metamorphic Complex, southern Alaska

PubMed Central

Gasser, Deta; Bruand, Emilie; Rubatto, Daniela; Stüwe, Kurt

2012-01-01

Monazite is a common accessory mineral in various metamorphic and magmatic rocks, and is widely used for U–Pb geochronology. However, linking monazite U–Pb ages with the PT evolution of the rock is not always straightforward. We investigated the behaviour of monazite in a metasedimentary sequence ranging from greenschist facies phyllites into upper amphibolites facies anatectic gneisses, which is exposed in the Eocene Chugach Metamorphic Complex of southern Alaska. We investigated textures, chemical compositions and U–Pb dates of monazite grains in samples of differing bulk rock composition and metamorphic grade, with particular focus on the relationship between monazite and other REE-bearing minerals such as allanite and xenotime. In the greenschist facies phyllites, detrital and metamorphic allanite is present, whereas monazite is absent. In lower amphibolites facies schists (~ 550–650 °C and ≥ 3.4 kbar), small, medium-Y monazite is wide-spread (Mnz1), indicating monazite growth prior and/or simultaneous with growth of garnet and andalusite. In anatectic gneisses, new low-Y, high-Th monazite (Mnz2) crystallised from partial melts, and a third, high-Y, low-Th monazite generation (Mnz3) formed during initial cooling and garnet resorption. U–Pb SHRIMP analysis of the second and third monazite generations yields ages of ~ 55–50 Ma. Monazite became unstable and was overgrown by allanite and/or allanite/epidote/apatite coronas within retrograde muscovite- and/or chlorite-bearing shear zones. This study documents polyphase, complex monazite growth and dissolution during a single, relatively short-lived metamorphic cycle. PMID:26525358

Crystallization of accessory phases in magmas by local saturation adjacent to phenocrysts

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bacon, C.R.

1989-01-01

Accessory minerals commonly occur attached to or included in the major crystalline phases of felsic and some intermediate igneous rocks. Apatite is particularly common as inclusions, but Fe-Ti oxides, pyrrhotite, zircon, monazite, chevkinite and xenotime are also known from silicic rocks. Accessories may nucleate near the host crystal/ liquid interface as a result of local saturation owing to formation of a differentiated chemical boundary layer in which accessory mineral solubility would be lower than in the surrounding liquid. Differentiation of this boundary layer would be greatest adjacent to ferromagnesian phenocrysts, especially Fe-Ti oxides; it is with oxides that accessories are most commonly associated in rocks. A boundary layer may develop if the crystal grows more rapidly than diffusion can transport incorporated and rejected elements to and from the phenocryst. Diffusion must dominate over convection as a mode of mass transfer near the advancing crystal/liquid interface in order for a boundary layer to exist. Accumulation of essential structural constituent elements of accessory minerals owing to their slow diffusion in evolved silicate melt also may force local saturation, but this is not a process that applies to all cases. Local saturation is an attractive mechanism for enhancing fractionation during crystallization differentiation. If accessory minerals attached to or included in phenocrysts formed because of local saturation, their host phenocrysts must have grown rapidly when accessories nucleated in comparison to lifetimes of magma reservoirs. Some inconsistencies remain in a local saturation origin for accessory phases that cannot be evaluated without additional information. ?? 1989.

Fluorbritholite-(Y) and yttrialite-(Y) from silexites of the Keivy alkali granites, Kola Peninsula

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lyalina, L. M.; Zozulya, D. R.; Savchenko, Ye. E.; Tarasov, M. P.; Selivanova, E. A.; Tarasova, E.

2014-12-01

Investigation of the morphology, anatomy, and chemical composition of fluorbritholite-(Y) and yttrialite-(Y) from silexites of the Keivy alkali granites in Kola Peninsula has shown that these minerals are the main REE concentrators in this area and that their content reaches 10-15 vol %. Britholite and yttrialite are associated with zircon, aeschynite-(Y), chevkinite-(Ce), fergusonite-(Y), thorite, monazite-(Ce), xenotime-(Y) and bastnaesite-(Ce). Three morphological types of fluorbritholite-(Y) have been identified: (I) subhedral crystals and grains, (II) anhedral grains intergrown with yttrialite-(Y), and (III) poikilitic crystals and skeletal aggregates. These morphological types of fluorbritholite-(Y) are characterized by successive (I to III type) decreases in P content down to the pure silicate fluorbritholite-(Y). Crystals of the first type are heterogenous: the P content decreases and the HREE content increases from core to rim. The total REE content increases insignificantly from types I to II and drastically decreases in fluorbritholite-(Y) of type III. The successive prevalence of HREE over LREE indicates the hydrothermal conditions of mineral crystallization. The chemical composition of yttrialite-(Y) is distinguished by the relatively high Th content and depletion in Al. The compositional trend (from core to rim) in heterogeneous grains of yttrialite-(Y) testifies that their heterogeneity was caused by metasomatic alteration of the mineral. The interrelation of fluorbritholite-(Y) and yttrialite-(Y) indicate that fluorbritholite-(Y) of types II and III were formed later than yttrialite-(Y). Evidence for fluorbritholite-(Y) and yttrialite-(Y) formation suggests the significant role of hydrothermal processes in the genesis of silexites.

Neodymium isotopic study of rare earth element sources and mobility in hydrothermal Fe-oxide (Fe-P-REE) systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gleason, James D.; Marikos, Mark A.; Barton, Mark D.; Johnson, David A.

2000-03-01

Rare earth element (REE)-enriched, igneous-related hydrothermal Fe-oxide hosted (Fe-P-REE) systems from four areas in North America have been analyzed for their neodymium isotopic composition to constrain REE sources and mobility in these systems. The Nd isotopic results evidence a common pattern of REE concentration from igneous sources despite large differences in age (Proterozoic to Tertiary), tectonic setting (subduction vs. intraplate), and magmatic style (mafic vs. felsic). In the Middle Proterozoic St. Francois Mountains terrane of southeastern Missouri, ɛ Nd for Fe-P-REE (apatite, monazite, xenotime) deposits ranges from +3.5 to +5.1, similar to associated felsic to intermediate igneous rocks of the same age (ɛ Nd = +2.6 to +6.2). At the mid-Jurassic Humboldt mafic complex in western Nevada, ɛ Nd for Fe-P-REE (apatite) mineralization varies between +1.1 and +2.4, similar to associated mafic igneous rocks (-1.0 to +3.5). In the nearby Cortez Mountains in central Nevada, mid-Jurassic felsic volcanic and plutonic rocks (ɛ Nd = -2.0 to -4.4) are associated with Fe-P-REE (apatite-monazite) mineralization having similar ɛ Nd (-1.7 to -2.4). At Cerro de Mercado, Durango, Mexico, all assemblages analyzed in this Tertiary rhyolite-hosted Fe oxide deposit have identical isotopic compositions with ɛ Nd = -2.5. These data are consistent with coeval igneous host rocks being the primary source of REE in all four regions, and are inconsistent with a significant contribution of REE from other sources. Interpretations of the origin of these hydrothermal systems and their concomitant REE mobility must account for nonspecialized igneous sources and varied tectonic settings.

Zircon-scale insights into the history of a Supervolcano, Bishop Tuff, Long Valley, California, with implications for the Ti-in-zircon geothermometer

USGS Publications Warehouse

Reid, M.R.; Vazquez, J.A.; Schmitt, A.K.

2011-01-01

Zircon has the outstanding capacity to record chronological, thermal, and chemical information, including the storage history of zoned silicic magma reservoirs like the one responsible for the Bishop Tuff of eastern California, USA. Our novel ion microprobe approach reveals that Bishop zircon rims with diverse chemical characteristics surround intermediate domains with broadly similar compositions. The highest Y, REE, U, and Th concentrations tend to accompany the largest excesses in Y + REE3+:P beyond what can be explained by xenotime substitution in zircon. Apparent Ti-in-zircon temperatures of <720??C for zircon rims are distinctly lower than most of the range in eruption temperatures, as estimated from FeTi-oxide equilibria and zircon solubility at quench. While permissive of crystallization of zircon at near-solidus conditions, the low Ti-in-zircon temperatures are probably better explained by sources of inaccuracy in the temperature estimates. After apparently nucleating from different melts, zircons from across the Bishop Tuff compositional spectrum may have evolved to broadly similar chemical and thermal conditions and therefore it is possible that there was no significant thermal gradient in the magma reservoir at some stage in its evolution. There is also no compelling evidence for punctuated heat ?? chemical influxes during the intermediate stages of zircon growth. Judging by the zircon record, the main volume of the erupted magma evolved normally by secular cooling but the latest erupted portion is characterized by a reversal in chemistry that appears to indicate perfusion of the magma reservoir by-or zircon entrainment in-a less evolved melt from the one in which the zircons had previously resided. ?? 2010 Springer-Verlag.

Rare-earth elements

USGS Publications Warehouse

Van Gosen, Bradley S.; Verplanck, Philip L.; Seal, Robert R.; Long, Keith R.; Gambogi, Joseph; Schulz, Klaus J.; DeYoung,, John H.; Seal, Robert R.; Bradley, Dwight C.

2017-12-19

diverse and often complex in composition. At least 245 individual REE-bearing minerals are recognized; they are mainly carbonates, fluorocarbonates, and hydroxylcarbonates (n = 42); oxides (n = 59); silicates (n = 85); and phosphates (n = 26).Many of the world’s significant REE deposits occur in carbonatites, which are carbonate igneous rocks. The REEs also have a strong genetic association with alkaline magmatism. The systematic geologic and chemical processes that explain these observations are not well understood. Economic or potentially economic REE deposits have been found in (a) carbonatites, (b) peralkaline igneous systems, (c) magmatic magnetite-hematite bodies, (d) iron oxide-copper-gold (IOCG) deposits, (e) xenotime-monazite accumulations in mafic gneiss, (f) ion-absorption clay deposits, and (g) monazite-xenotime-bearing placer deposits. Carbonatites have been the world’s main source for the light REEs since the 1960s. Ion-adsorption clay deposits in southern China are the world’s primary source of the heavy REEs. Monazite-bearing placer deposits were important sources of REEs before the mid-1960s and may be again in the future. In recent years, REEs have been produced from large carbonatite bodies mined at the Mountain Pass deposit in California and, in China, at the Bayan Obo deposit in Nei Mongol Autonomous Region, the Maoniuping deposit in Sichuan Province, the Daluxiang deposit in Sichuan Province, and the Weishan deposit in Anhui Province. Alkaline igneous complexes have recently been targeted for exploration because of their enrichments in the heavy REEs.Information relevant to the environmental aspects of REE mining is limited. Little is known about the aquatic toxicity of REEs. The United States lacks drinking water standards for REEs. The concentrations of REEs in environmental media are influenced by their low abundances in crustal rocks and their limited solubility in most groundwaters and surface waters. The scarcity of sulfide minerals

Characterization of Rare Earth Element Minerals in Coal Utilization Byproducts

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Montross, Scott N.; Verba, Circe A.; Collins, Keith

realizing the occurrence of REE mineral phases in CUB and allowed us to calculate structural and volumetric estimates of REE. Collectively, the rock and coal ash samples contained minerals such as quartz, kaolinite, muscovite/illite, iron oxide (as hematite or magnetite), mullite, and clinochlore. Trace minerals included pyrite, zircon, siderite, rutile, diopside, foresterite, gypsum, and barite. We identified REE phosphate minerals monazite (Ce,La,Nd,Th)(PO 4,SiO 4), xenotime (YPO 4,SiO 4), and apatite (Ca 5(PO 4) 3(F,Cl,OH) via SEM and electron microprobe analysis: these materials generally occurred as 1-10 μm-long crystals in the rock and ash samples. As has been shown in other studies, amorphous material-aluminosilicate glass or iron oxyhydroxide-are the major components of coal fly and bottom ash. Trace amounts of amorphous calcium oxide and mixed element (e.g., Al-Si-Ca-Fe) slag are also present. Quartz, mullite, hematite, and magnetite are the crystalline phases present. We found that REEs are present as monomineralic grains dispersed within the ash, as well as fused to or encapsulated by amorphous aluminosilicate glass particles. Monazite and xenotime have relatively high melting points (>1800 °C) compared to typical combustion temperatures; our observations indicate that the REE-phosphates, which presumably contribute a large percentage of REE to the bulk ash REE pool, as measured by mass spectroscopy, are largely unaltered by the combustion. Our study shows that conventional coal combustion processes sequester REE minerals into aluminosilicate glass phases, which presents a new engineering challenge for extracting REE from coal ash. The characterization work summarized in this report provides a semi-quantitative assessments of REE in coal-containing rock and CUB. The data we obtained from 2- and 3-D imaging, elemental mapping, volumetric estimates, and advanced high-resolution pixel classification successfully identified the different mineral phases present in

The mineralogy and geochemistry of quartz-tourmaline schlieren in the granites of the Primorsky Complex, Western Baikal Region

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Savel'eva, V. B.; Bazarova, E. P.; Kanakin, S. V.

2014-12-01

Quartz-tourmaline schlieren have been found within rapakivi-like granites of the Early Proterozoic Primorsky Complex in the Western Baikal Region. These rocks are biotite leucogranites with normal alkalinity (A/CNK = 1.00-1.04); a high iron mole fraction (92-95%); a K2O/Na2O value of about 2.0; relatively high F, Li, Rb, Cs, Sn, Pb, Th, and U contents; and low Ba, Sr, Eu, Zn, Sc, and V contents. The schlieren composed of quartz and tourmaline with relics of feldspar also contain fluorite, rare muscovite, chlorite, and accessory rutile, ilmenite, zircon, monazite, xenotime, and bastnäsite. B2O3 and F contents in the schlieren are 2.29-2.63 and 0.30-0.47 wt %, respectively. Fe2O3 (4.8-5.4 wt %), F, and H2O contents are higher in these schlieren than in the host granite, while SiO2, CaO, Na2O, K2O, and P2O5 contents are lower than in host rocks. K2O/Na2O values decrease in the schlieren down to 0.4. Enrichment of the schlieren in Fe and other ore elements (Zn, Co, Cu, Sn, etc.), together with B, F, H2O, and Na, suggests that they crystallized from fluid-saturated melt segregated from aluminosilicate melt in the apical part of a shallow-seated intrusion. The formation of tourmaline may be related to the interaction of the fluid with feldspars in the crystallizing granites; it was accompanied by a separation of fluid F-CO2. Quartz precipitated at the next stage, due to the acidic character of the aqueous fluid. In general, the relationships of minerals in the schlieren indicate distinct fractionation of LREE, HREE, and Y in the fluid-saturated melt.

Neodymium isotopic study of rare earth element sources and mobility in hydrothermal Fe oxide (Fe-P-REE) systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gleason, J.D.; Marikos, M.A.; Barton, M.D.

2000-03-01

Rare earth element (REE)-enriched, igneous-related hydrothermal Fe-oxide hosted (Fe-P-REE) systems from four areas in North America have been analyzed for their neodymium iosotopic composition to constrain REE sources and mobility in these systems. The Nd isotopic results evidence a common pattern of REE concentration from igneous sources despite large differences in age (Proterozoic to Tertiary), tectonic setting (subduction vs. intraplate), and magmatic style (mafic vs. felsic). In the Middle Proterozoic St. Francois Mountains terrane of southeastern Missouri, {epsilon}{sub Nd} for Fe-P-REE (apatite, monazite, xenotime) deposits ranges from +3.5 to +5.1, similar to associated felsic to intermediate igneous rocks of themore » same age ({epsilon}{sub Nd} = +2.6 to +6.2). At the mid-Jurassic Humboldt mafic complex in western Nevada, {epsilon}{sub Nd} for Fe-P-REE (apatite) mineralization varies between +1.1 and +2.4, similar to associated mafic igneous rocks ({minus}1.0 to +3.5). In the nearby Cortez Mountains in central Nevada, mid-Jurassic felsic volcanic and plutonic rocks ({epsilon}{sub Nd} = {minus}2.0 to {minus}4.4) are associated with Fe-P-REE (apatite-monazite) mineralization having similar {epsilon}{sub Nd}({minus}1.7 to {minus}2.4). At Cerro de Mercado, Durango, Mexico, all assemblages analyzed in this Tertiary rhyolite-hosted Fe oxide deposit have identical isotopic compositions with {epsilon}{sub Nd} = {minus}2.5. These data are consistent with coeval igneous host rocks being the primary source of REE in all four regions, and are inconsistent with a significant contribution of REE from other sources. Interpretations of the origin of these hydrothermal systems and their concomitant REE mobility must account for nonspecialized igneous sources and varied tectonic settings.« less

Lithium in Jack Hills zircons: Evidence for extensive weathering of Earth's earliest crust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ushikubo, Takayuki; Kita, Noriko T.; Cavosie, Aaron J.; Wilde, Simon A.; Rudnick, Roberta L.; Valley, John W.

2008-08-01

In situ Li analyses of 4348 to 3362 Ma detrital zircons from the Jack Hills, Western Australia by SIMS reveal that the Li abundances (typically 10 to 60 ppm) are commonly over 10,000 times higher than in zircons crystallized from mantle-derived magmas and in mantle-derived zircon megacrysts (typically < 2 ppb). High Li concentrations in zircons (10 to 250 ppm) have also been found in igneous zircons from three continental parent rocks: granites, Li-rich pegmatites, and migmatites in pelitic metasediment. The substitution of trivalent cations (REEs and Y) in zircon correlates with Li + 1 and P + 5 , suggesting that an interstitial site for Li, as well as the xenotime substitution for P, provides charge balance for REEs. Li is thus fixed in the zircon structure by coupled substitutions, and diffusive changes in [Li] composition are rate-limited by slow diffusion of REEs. The Jack Hills zircons also have fractionated lithium isotope ratios ( δ7Li = - 19 to + 13‰) about five times more variable than those recorded in primitive ocean floor basalts (2 to 8‰), but similar to continental crust and its weathering products. Values of δ7Li below - 10‰ are found in zircons that formed as early as 4300 Ma. The high Li compositions indicate that primitive magmas were not the source of Jack Hills zircons and the fractionated values of δ7Li suggest that highly weathered regolith was sampled by these early Archean magmas. These new Li data provide evidence that the parent magmas of ancient zircons from Jack Hills incorporated materials from the surface of the Earth that interacted at low temperature with liquid water. These data support the hypothesis that continental-type crust and oceans existed by 4300 Ma, within 250 million years of the formation of Earth and the low values of δ7Li suggest that weathering was extensive in the early Archean.

Geochemical Characterization Of Cherts From The 3.46Ga Apex Basalt To Assess The Origins Of Possible Biosignatures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bower, D. M.; Steele, A.; Ackerson, M. R.; Bullock, E. S.; Green, O. R.; Fries, M.; Conrad, P. G.

2017-12-01

Many terrestrial cherts contain compelling microtextures and mineral phases that are indicative of ancient life in hydrothermal systems on early Earth. In volcanically-derived hydrothermal deposits, cherts have undergone multiple alteration events often resulting in separate generations of quartz veins that are much younger than the host rocks. In some cases, multiple episodes of hydrothermal alteration obscure otherwise syngenetic biosignatures and likewise create false signatures in the form of secondary carbon emplacement or diagenetic phase changes. To better identify possible biosignatures in hydrothermal deposits and understand their origins, we used confocal micro Raman spectroscopy, electron probe microanalysis, and cathodoluminescence (CL) imaging to characterize the quartz fabrics, mineral phases, trace elements, and macromolecular carbon (MMC) in quartz veins from the 3.46 Ga Apex Basalt chert samples. MMC, anatase (TiO2), pyrite (Fe2S), jarosite-alunite (KFe3(SO4)2(OH)6 - Kal3(SO4)2(OH)6), chamosite-phyllosilicates, and Fe-oxides all occur in close association in multiple generations of quartz veins throughout the sample suite. Mineral phases xenotime (YPO4), scorodite (FeAsO4 . H2O), apatite (CaPO4), pentlandite ((Fe,Ni)9S8), barite (BaSO4), sphalerite ((Zn,Fe)S), dolomite ((CaMg(CO3)2) and halides occur in specific generations of quartz. Trace elements (Cr, Mn, Mo, Cu, Sc, Va, Sb, and Co) are heterogeneously distributed within individual samples and likely occur due to fluid scavenging of the host basalts. CL imaging of quartz demonstrates that the majority of silicate material in the Apex cherts underwent recrystallization. This could result in the alteration of MMC and associated mineral assemblages. The biogencity and true origins of morphological features and chemical signatures in the Apex cherts are hotly debated, yet discovering the causes and nature of these puzzling attributes will be key for determining the usefulness of interrogating

Co-Cu-Au deposits in metasedimentary rocks-A preliminary report

USGS Publications Warehouse

Slack, J.F.; Causey, J.D.; Eppinger, R.G.; Gray, J.E.; Johnson, C.A.; Lund, K.I.; Schulz, K.J.

2010-01-01

A compilation of data on global Co-Cu-Au deposits in metasedimentary rocks refines previous descriptive models for their occurrence and provides important information for mineral resource assessments and exploration programs. This compilation forms the basis for a new classification of such deposits, which is speculative at this early stage of research. As defined herein, the Co-Cu-Au deposits contain 0.1 percent or more by weight of Co in ore or mineralized rock, comprising disseminated to semi-massive Co-bearing sulfide minerals with associated Fe- and Cu-bearing sulfides, and local gold, concentrated predominantly within rift-related, siliciclastic metasedimentary rocks of Proterozoic age. Some deposits have appreciable Ag ? Bi ? W ? Ni ? Y ? rare earth elements ? U. Deposit geometry includes stratabound and stratiform layers, lenses, and veins, and (or) discordant veins and breccias. The geometry of most deposits is controlled by stratigraphic layering, folds, axial-plane cleavage, shear zones, breccias, or faults. Ore minerals are mainly cobaltite, skutterudite, glaucodot, and chalcopyrite, with minor gold, arsenopyrite, pyrite, pyrrhotite, bismuthinite, and bismuth; some deposits have appreciable tetrahedrite, uraninite, monazite, allanite, xenotime, apatite, scheelite, or molybdenite. Magnetite can be abundant in breccias, veins, or stratabound lenses within ore or surrounding country rocks. Common gangue minerals include quartz, biotite, muscovite, K-feldspar, albite, chlorite, and scapolite; many deposits contain minor to major amounts of tourmaline. Altered wall rocks generally have abundant biotite or albite. Mesoproterozoic metasedimentary successions constitute the predominant geologic setting. Felsic and (or) mafic plutons are spatially associated with many deposits and at some localities may be contemporaneous with, and involved in, ore formation. Geoenvironmental data for the Blackbird mining district in central Idaho indicate that weathering of

A Weighty Subject: Exploration for Heavy Minerals Across the State of Mississippi

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gifford, J.; Woolsey, A. I.; Yarbrough, L. D.; Platt, B. F.; Widanagamage, I. H.; Easson, G. L.

2017-12-01

Preliminary analysis has shown that an array of industrial minerals is known to occur in offshore deposits on the Gulf Coast as well as on-shore deposits in the Upper Cretaceous and Paleogene-Neogene clastic units, such as the Meridian Sand Member of the Eocene Tallahatta Formation in northeastern Mississippi. Furthermore, economic deposits occur within Holocene sediments along the Pearl and Pascagoula Rivers as well as along the modern Gulf of Mexico shoreline. These industrial minerals include suites of heavy minerals (specific gravity ≥2.97) that contain oxides of titanium (ilmenite, rutile, and leucoxene), oxides of zirconium (zircon), and the complex rare-earth-bearing phosphates (monazite and xenotime). These oxides are essential constituents of a wide-range of industrial materials critical to common technologies and the bulk of these mineral commodities are presently dependent on foreign supply. Current offshore deposits have been shown to be economic but are likely no longer accessible given their location within the Gulf Islands National Seashore. This comprehensive study is developing a heavy mineral occurrence dataset for the state of Mississippi including detailed analyses of the industrial mineral resources available within the state. More than 100 samples have been collected across the state from active and non-operating sand pit mining locations. The heavy mineral fraction of each sample was separated using lithium heteropolytungstates (LST) and gravity-based separation techniques. A grain mount for each sample was prepared with the heavy mineral fraction and the percentage values for each heavy mineral species were obtained from 200 grain counts per sample grain mount. Typical heavy mineral fraction for the sample set was approximately 0.9 % with an array from 0.0% to some samples ranging to a greater concentration of 7.5%. The resulting dataset will be further analyzed for geospatial similarities in trends and occurrences. Additional data

Weathering behavior of REE-Y in a granitic soil profile (Case of Strengbach watershed)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gangloff, Sophie; Stille, Peter; Chabaux, François

2017-04-01

Rare earth elements and yttrium (REE-Y) can be used as tracers of bedrock weathering and soil formation. One of the aims of this study is to better understand the different phenomena which impact the REE-Y mobilization and modify the REE-Y pattern along a soil profile. Our study has been performed on a granitic soil profile and soil solutions corresponding, sampled in a forest parcel covered with spruces from the Strengbach catchment. The behavior of the REE-Y pattern are compared with previously published results. The samples were collected from 2009 to 2013 and ultra-filtered to determine the spatial and temporal influence as well as that of the colloidal and dissolved fractions on the evolution of the REE-Y patterns. The EFTi of the soil indicates that during alteration process, phosphate minerals and zircon might be dissolved and induce the formation of secondary mineral phase like xenotime in the deeper soil horizons. The ultra-filtered soil solutions from humic horizon show that the REE-Y are principally enriched in the colloidal fraction controlling the REE-Y dynamic while in the deeper soil solutions colloidal and dissolved fractions influence the REE-Y. The mobility of REE-Y is controlled by the dissolution of the zircon and phosphate minerals, the precipitation of the REE-Y(PO4) and the evolution of OC with depth. The comparative study of the soil profile, soil water extracts and soil solutions show that (Eu*/Eu)DS anomaly reflects weathering of plagioclase in the micropores and the migration of the released Eu to the macropores, the (Ce*/Ce) anomaly, is stabilized by the electron shuttling of the humic acid (aromaticity) and provides information on the redox conditions only in the deeper soil horizons depleted in humic acid and finally the HREE enrichment in the deeper soil solutions results from the partial dissolution of secondary minerals in the upper soil horizons (above 30 cm depth).

Matrix effects for elemental fractionation within ICPMS: applications for U-Th-Pb geochronology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, W.

2016-12-01

Recent development in instruments provides significant technical supports for daily, quick, money saving geochemical analyses. Laser ablation ICPMS stands out due to these reasons, especially for the U-Th-Pb isotopic dating. Matrix-matched external standardization is by far the most common approach used in U-Th-Pb dating via LA-ICPMS. However, matrix-effects between standard and sample for in-situ dating have shown to be both significant and insignificant. It remains mysterious whether a well matrix-matched standard is needed for U-Th-Pb dating by LA-ICPMS. This study provides an experimental framework for the understanding of matrix effects induced elemental fractionation for U-Th-Pb associated with ICPMS. A preliminary study on the influence of varied U, Th and Pb amounts on their fractionations has been carried out. Experimental data show that different U, Th and Pb contents result in varied 238U/206Pb and 232Th/208Pb ratios. The fractionations of U/Pb and Th/Pb increase with the increasing contents (1 ppb to 100 ppb) with a strong positive anomaly at 10 ppb. Matrixes representing minerals frequently used in dating have been investigated for the influences on U/Pb and Th/Pb fractionations, which suggest a complicated effect. Little fractionations observed between mineral pairs (e.g., monazite and apatite; zircon and perovskite; rutile and perovskite; xenotime and baddeleyite), whereas large fractionations identified for other minerals (e.g., zircon and baddeleyite; monazite and sphene; rutile and baddeleyite). Single element matrix (i.e., Si, P, Ca, Zr, Ti) has been studied to identify their effects on the fractionations. U/Pb ratio increases with the increasing Si and P contents, whereas it decreases for Zr, Ca and Ti. Th/Pb ratio increases with increasing Si contents, decreases for P and Zr, and increases first then decreases for Ca and Ti. Above all, different matrix and U, Th and Pb amounts show distinct U/Pb and Th/Pb fractionations within ICPMS. The

Optimization Recovery of Yttrium Oxide in Precipitation, Extraction, and Stripping Process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perwira, N. I.; Basuki, K. T.; Biyantoro, D.; Effendy, N.

2018-04-01

Yttrium oxide can be used as a dopant control rod of nuclear reactors in YSH material and superconductors. Yttrium oxide is obtained in the Xenotime mineral derived from byproduct of tin mining PT Timah Bangka which contain rare earth elements (REE) dominant Y, Dy, and Gd whose content respectively about 29.53%, 7.76%, and 2.58%. Both usage in the field of nuclear and non-nuclear science and technology is need to pure from the impurities. The presence of impurities in the yttrium oxide may affect the characteristic of the material and the efficiency of its use. Thus it needs to be separated by precipitation and extraction-stripping and calcination in the making of the oxide. However, to obtain higher levels of Yttrium oxide, it is necessary to determine the optimum conditions for its separation. The purpose of this research was to determine the optimum pH of precipitation, determine acid media and concentration optimum in extraction and stripping process and determine the efficiency of the separation of Y from REE concentrate. This research was conducted with pH variation in the precipitation process that pHs were 4 - 8, the difference of acid media for the extraction process, i.e., HNO3, HCl and H2SO4 with each concentration of 0,5 M; 1 M; 1,5 M; and 2 M and for stripping process were HNO3, HCl, and H2SO4 with each concentration of 1 M; 2M; and 3 M. Based on the result, the optimum pH of precipitation process was 6,5, the optimumacid media was HNO3 0,5 M, and for stripping process media was HNO3 3 M. The efficiency of precipitation process at pH 6,5 was 69,53 %, extraction process was 96.39% and stripping process was 4,50%. The separation process from precipitation to extraction had increased the purity and the highest efficiency recovery of Y was in the extraction process and obtained Y2O3 purer compared to the feed with the Y2O3 content of 92.87%.

Detrital Zircons From the Jack Hills and Mount Narryer, Western Australia: Geochronological, Morphological, and Geochemical Evidence for Diverse >4000 Ma Source Rocks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crowley, J. L.; Myers, J. S.; Sylvester, P. J.; Cox, R. A.

2004-05-01

Detrital zircons from all major clastic units in the Jack Hills and Mount Narryer metasedimentary belts, Western Australia, were analyzed for morphology, internal zoning, inclusion mineralogy, age, and trace element concentrations (latter two obtained by laser-ablation microprobe ICPMS). The results show that zircons were derived from a wide diversity of rocks, including previously described, >4000 Ma grains that are older than any known terrestrial rocks. In three metaconglomerate samples from the western Jack Hills, 4200-3800 Ma zircons ("old grains") comprise 14% of the population, 3800-3600 Ma grains form only 2%, and 3550-3250 Ma zircons ("young grains") are dominant with a significant peak at 3380 Ma. Old and young grains are interpreted as being from similar rock types because they are indistinguishable in trace element concentrations, size (several hundred microns), morphology (subequant, typically fragmented), internal zoning (typically both oscillatory and sector), and U concentration (50-200 ppm). Many of these properties suggest an intermediate plutonic source, whereas an evolved granitic source was previously interpreted from rare-earth element and oxygen isotope data. Detrital zircons in quartzites and metaconglomerates at Mount Narryer differ significantly from zircons from the western Jack Hills. Old grains comprise only 3% (most of which are 4200-4100 Ma), 3800-3600 Ma zircons form 31%, and there are peaks at 3650, 3600, and 3500 Ma. Old and young grains have similar properties that suggest granitic sources, such as elongate prismatic morphology, oscillatory zoning, high U concentrations (100-600 ppm), and xenotime and monazite inclusions. Trace element concentrations are broadly similar to those in Jack Hills zircons, with notable exceptions being generally higher U, smaller Ce and Eu anomalies, and lower Nb/Ta. It is considered unlikely that Jack Hills zircons were derived from granitic gneisses that surround the metasedimentary belts because

Sources of Extraterrestrial Rare Earth Elements:To the Moon and Beyond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McLeod, C. L.; Krekeler, M. P. S.

2017-08-01

The resource budget of Earth is limited. Rare-earth elements (REEs) are used across the world by society on a daily basis yet several of these elements have <2500 years of reserves left, based on current demand, mining operations, and technologies. With an increasing population, exploration of potential extraterrestrial REE resources is inevitable, with the Earth's Moon being a logical first target. Following lunar differentiation at 4.50-4.45 Ga, a late-stage (after 99% solidification) residual liquid enriched in Potassium (K), Rare-earth elements (REE), and Phosphorus (P), (or "KREEP") formed. Today, the KREEP-rich region underlies the Oceanus Procellarum and Imbrium Basin region on the lunar near-side (the Procellarum KREEP Terrain, PKT) and has been tentatively estimated at preserving 2.2 × 10^8 km^3 of KREEP-rich lithologies. The majority of lunar samples (Apollo, Luna, or meteoritic samples) contain REE-bearing minerals as trace phases, e.g., apatite and/or merrillite, with merrillite potentially contributing up to 3% of the PKT. Other lunar REE-bearing lunar phases include monazite, yittrobetafite (up to 94,500 ppm yttrium), and tranquillityite (up to 4.6 wt % yttrium, up to 0.25 wt % neodymium), however, lunar sample REE abundances are low compared to terrestrial ores. At present, there is no geological, mineralogical, or chemical evidence to support REEs being present on the Moon in concentrations that would permit their classification as ores. However, the PKT region has not yet been mapped at high resolution, and certainly has the potential to yield higher REE concentrations at local scales (<10s of kms). Future lunar exploration and mapping efforts may therefore reveal new REE deposits. Beyond the Moon, Mars and other extraterrestrial materials are host to REEs in apatite, chevkinite-perrierite, merrillite, whitlockite, and xenotime. These phases are relatively minor components of the meteorites studied to date, constituting <0.6% of the total sample

Coupled dissolution-precipitation in natural monazite: effect of irradiation damage or fluid mediation?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seydoux-Guillaume, Anne-Magali; Montel, Jean-Marc; de Parseval, Philippe; Bingen, Bernard; Janots, Emilie

2010-05-01

The LREE orthophosphate monazite is a common accessory mineral, important as a U-Th-Pb geochronometer in both metamorphic and magmatic rocks. In order to correctly interpret measured ages, it is essential to properly understand mechanisms that control them. Few studies have shown that coupled dissolution-crystallisation in the presence of a fluid phase is a mechanism incomparably more efficient that solid state diffusion to reset isotopic signature within monazite grains. It is known that dissolution-precipitation is efficiency enhanced by the presence of defects within crystals. Because of its high actinide contents (U and Th), monazite receives intense self-irradiation doses. In contrast to zircon (a silicate), monazite (a phosphate) is less sensitive to irradiation. Natural amorphous monazite has never been reported and the only proof that monazite lattice was destroyed by irradiation is shown by the presence of lattice distortion (strained lattice); this is because defect healing is more efficient than amorphization. The present study focuses on large (cm) single monazite crystals from five distinct localities in Norway, Madagascar, Srilanka, Zwaziland and Morefield. They have different chemical compositions, especially with regard to U, Th and Pb contents, and have ages ranging from ca. 500 to 1000 Ma. Nevertheless, all of them share the same petrographic features. Optical microscope and SEM images reveal variably intense fracturation. BSE imaging in the SEM indicates that monazite is composed of multiple phases: an unaltered monazite (Mnz1) + an altered monazite (Mnz2) associated with Th-rich phase (Thorium silicate or Thorium oxide) +/- Xenotime, depending on the initial composition of Mnz1. Analogous textures were already described by Seydoux-Guillaume et al. (2007) and Hetherington and Harlov (2008;). The alteration textures are always associated with radial cracks emanating from the high radioactive phase (Th-rich phase). The question addressed in the

Standard Materials for Microbeam Analysis of Lanthanides and Actinides

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ellis, I.; Gorton, M.; Rucklidge, J. C.

2010-12-01

Traces of Th and U in naturally-occuring minerals monazite, xenotime and zircon are used for dating host rocks. Natural variations of actinide concentrations in some rock formations are well documented. Microbeam techniques perform dating in-situ where grains of indicator minerals are left intact in thin sections. Separated individual grains of these minerals are also routinely dated by Pb-isotope mass spectrometry. Ideal calibration materials will be compatible with multiple techniques. Quantitative analysis of low levels of lanthanides (REE), U, Th and Pb found in natural minerals requires standards containing similar concentrations of these elements. The ideal low-level standard suite will have materials with each REE cation present below 5%, similar to natural rare-earth phosphate minerals. In contrast, REE orthophosphates LnPO4 have cation concentrations from 59 to 64%, and ultraphosphates LnP5O14 from 27% to 32%. The concentrations of U and Pb must also be in the 1% range in the host REE phosphate. There are two competing limits to the synthesis of crystals with multiple cations in the REE sites. The crystal structure limits potential cation mixtures to selections within groups (La,Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu), (Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho), and (Er, Tm,Yb, Lu, Y). Complex L X-ray spectra limit the use of contiguous REE in a single material. There are two general synthetic routes for the preparation of lanthanide/actinide standard materials for beam analysis and dating. Lanthanide orthophosphates (LnPO4) are crystallized from lead-free heterogeneous fluxes; oligomers (metaphosphates LnP3O9 and ultraphosphates LnP5O14) are formed by condensation of phosphoric acid in the presence of cations. All of these trivalent lanthanide phosphate crystal structures are hosts for Th+4 and U+4, and in synthetic materals, Ca+2 is used for charge compensation. Our work focuses on the preparation of mixed-cation lanthanide metaphosphates and ultraphosphates. The solvent (essentially P2O5) provides

An energy transfer kinetic probe for OH-quenchers in the Nd(3+):YPO4 nanocrystals suitable for imaging in the biological tissue transparency window.

PubMed

Samsonova, Elena V; Popov, Alexandr V; Vanetsev, Alexander S; Keevend, Kerda; Orlovskaya, Elena O; Kiisk, Valter; Lange, Sven; Joost, Urmas; Kaldvee, Kaarel; Mäeorg, Uno; Glushkov, Nikolay A; Ryabova, Anastasiya V; Sildos, Ilmo; Osiko, Vyacheslav V; Steiner, Rudolf; Loschenov, Victor B; Orlovskii, Yurii V

2014-12-28

Tetragonal xenotime-type yttrium orthophosphate (YPO4) Nd(3+) doped nanoparticles suitable for biomedical applications were prepared by microwave-hydrothermal treatment. We applied the energy transfer probing based on the analysis of kinetics of impurity quenching to determine the presence and spatial position of -OH fluorescence quenching acceptors in the impurity-containing nanoparticles. We show that the impurity quenching kinetics of the 0.1 at% Nd(3+) doped YPO4 nanoparticles is a two stage (ordered and disordered) static kinetics, determined by a direct energy transfer to the -OH acceptors. Analyzing the ordered stage, we assume that the origin of the -OH groups is the protonation of the phosphate groups, while analyzing the disordered stage, we assume the presence of water molecules in the mesopores. We determine the dimension of the space of the -OH acceptors as d = 3 and quantify their absolute concentration using the disordered Förster stage of kinetics. We use the late stage of kinetics of fluorescence hopping (CDD ≫ CDA) quenching (the fluctuation asymptotics) at 1 at% Nd(3+) concentration as an energy transfer probe to quantify the relative concentration of -OH molecular groups compared to an optically active rare-earth dopant in the volume of NPs, when energy migration over Nd(3+) donors to the -OH acceptors accelerates fluorescence quenching. In doing so we use just one parameter α = γ(A)/γ(D) = n(A)√[C(DA)]/n(D)√[C(DD)], defined by the relation of concentration of the -OH acceptors to the concentration of an optically active dopant. The higher is the α, the higher is the relative concentration of -OH acceptors in the volume of nanoparticles. We find α = 2.95 for the 1 at% Nd(3+):YPO4 NPs that, according to the equation for α, and the results obtained for the values of the microparameters CDD(Nd-Nd) = 24.6 nm(6) ms(-1) and CDA(Nd-OH) = 0.6 nm(6) ms(-1), suggests twenty times higher concentration for acceptors other than donors. As the

Rare earth element deposits in China

USGS Publications Warehouse

Xie, Yu-Ling; Hou, Zeng-qian; Goldfarb, Richard J.; Guo, Xiang; Wang, Lei

2016-01-01

China is the world’s leading rare earth element (REE) producer and hosts a variety of deposit types. Carbonatite- related REE deposits, the most significant deposit type, include two giant deposits presently being mined in China, Bayan Obo and Maoniuping, the first and third largest deposits of this type in the world, respectively. The carbonatite-related deposits host the majority of China’s REE resource and are the primary supplier of the world’s light REE. The REE-bearing clay deposits, or ion adsorption-type deposits, are second in importance and are the main source in China for heavy REE resources. Other REE resources include those within monazite or xenotime placers, beach placers, alkaline granites, pegmatites, and hydrothermal veins, as well as some additional deposit types in which REE are recovered as by-products. Carbonatite-related REE deposits in China occur along craton margins, both in rifts (e.g., Bayan Obo) and in reactivated transpressional margins (e.g., Maoniuping). They comprise those along the northern, eastern, and southern margins of the North China block, and along the western margin of the Yangtze block. Major structural features along the craton margins provide first-order controls for REE-related Proterozoic to Cenozoic carbonatite alkaline complexes; these are emplaced in continental margin rifts or strike-slip faults. The ion adsorption-type REE deposits, mainly situated in the South China block, are genetically linked to the weathering of granite and, less commonly, volcanic rocks and lamprophyres. Indosinian (early Mesozoic) and Yanshanian (late Mesozoic) granites are the most important parent rocks for these REE deposits, although Caledonian (early Paleozoic) granites are also of local importance. The primary REE enrichment is hosted in various mineral phases in the igneous rocks and, during the weathering process, the REE are released and adsorbed by clay minerals in the weathering profile. Currently, these REE-rich clays are

CONCH: A Visual Basic program for interactive processing of ion-microprobe analytical data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nelson, David R.

2006-11-01

A Visual Basic program for flexible, interactive processing of ion-microprobe data acquired for quantitative trace element, 26Al- 26Mg, 53Mn- 53Cr, 60Fe- 60Ni and U-Th-Pb geochronology applications is described. Default but editable run-tables enable software identification of secondary ion species analyzed and for characterization of the standard used. Counts obtained for each species may be displayed in plots against analysis time and edited interactively. Count outliers can be automatically identified via a set of editable count-rejection criteria and displayed for assessment. Standard analyses are distinguished from Unknowns by matching of the analysis label with a string specified in the Set-up dialog, and processed separately. A generalized routine writes background-corrected count rates, ratios and uncertainties, plus weighted means and uncertainties for Standards and Unknowns, to a spreadsheet that may be saved as a text-delimited file. Specialized routines process trace-element concentration, 26Al- 26Mg, 53Mn- 53Cr, 60Fe- 60Ni, and Th-U disequilibrium analysis types, and U-Th-Pb isotopic data obtained for zircon, titanite, perovskite, monazite, xenotime and baddeleyite. Correction to measured Pb-isotopic, Pb/U and Pb/Th ratios for the presence of common Pb may be made using measured 204Pb counts, or the 207Pb or 208Pb counts following subtraction from these of the radiogenic component. Common-Pb corrections may be made automatically, using a (user-specified) common-Pb isotopic composition appropriate for that on the sample surface, or for that incorporated within the mineral at the time of its crystallization, depending on whether the 204Pb count rate determined for the Unknown is substantially higher than the average 204Pb count rate for all session standards. Pb/U inter-element fractionation corrections are determined using an interactive log e-log e plot of common-Pb corrected 206Pb/ 238U ratios against any nominated fractionation-sensitive species pair

Geochemical and Geochronologic Investigations of Zircon-hosted Melt Inclusions in Rhyolites from the Mesoproterozoic Pea Ridge IOA-REE Deposit, St. Francois Mountains, Missouri

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watts, K. E.; Mercer, C. N.; Vazquez, J. A.

2015-12-01

Silicic volcanic and plutonic rocks of an eroded Mesoproterozoic caldera complex were intruded and replaced by iron ore, and cross-cut by REE-enriched breccia pipes (~12% total REO) to form the Pea Ridge iron-oxide-apatite-REE (IOA-REE) deposit. Igneous activity, iron ore formation, and REE mineralization overlapped in space and time, however the source of REEs and other metals (Fe, Cu, Au) integral to these economically important deposits remains unclear. Melt inclusions (MI) hosted in refractory zircon phenocrysts are used to constrain magmatic components and processes in the formation of the Pea Ridge deposit. Homogenized (1.4 kbar, 1000°C, 1 hr) MI in zircons from rhyolites ~600 ft (PR-91) and ~1200 ft (PR-12) laterally from the ore body were analyzed for major elements by EPMA and volatiles and trace elements (H2O, S, F, Cl, REEs, Rb, Sr, Y, Zr, Nb, U, Th) by SHRIMP-RG. Metals (including Cu, Au) will be measured in an upcoming SHRIMP-RG session. U-Pb ages, Ti and REE were determined by SHRIMP-RG for a subset of zircon spots adjacent to MI (1458 ± 18 Ma (PR-12); 1480 ± 45 Ma (PR-91)). MI glasses range from fresh and homogeneous dacite-rhyolite (65-75 wt% SiO2) to heterogeneous, patchy mixtures of K-spar and quartz (PR-12, 91), and more rarely mica, albite and/or anorthoclase (PR-91). MI are commonly attached to monazite and xenotime, particularly along re-entrants and zircon rims (PR-91). Fresh dacite-rhyolite glasses (PR-12) have moderate H2O (~2-2.5 wt%), Rb/Sr ratios (~8) and U (~5-7 ppm), and negative (chondrite-normalized) Eu anomalies (Eu ~0.4-0.7 ppm) (typical of rhyolites), whereas HREEs (Tb, Ho, Tm) are elevated (~2-3 ppm). Patchy K-spar and quartz inclusions (PR-12, 91) have flat LREE patterns, and positive anomalies in Tb, Ho, and Tm. One K-spar inclusion (PR-91) has a ~5-50 fold increase in HREEs (Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm) and U (35 ppm) relative to other MI. U-Pb and REE analyses of its zircon host are not unusual (1484 ± 21 Ma); its irregular shape

Th-REE- and Nb-Ta-accessory minerals in post-collisional Ediacaran felsic rocks from the Katerina Ring Complex (S. Sinai, Egypt): An assessment for the fractionation of Y/Nb, Th/Nb, La/Nb and Ce/Pb in highly evolved A-type granites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moreno, J. A.; Molina, J. F.; Bea, F.; Abu Anbar, M.; Montero, P.

2016-08-01

The relationships of Y/Nb, Th/Nb, La/Nb and Ce/Pb ratios in A-type felsic rocks from the Ediacaran Katerina Ring Complex, northernmost Arabian-Nubian Shield (ANS; S. Sinai, Egypt), are investigated in this work to understand their behavior during generation of highly evolved granitic magmas and to explore the nature of magma sources. Textural and compositional relationships of cognate Th-REE- and Nb-Ta-accessory minerals in Katerina felsic rocks show that chevkinite-group minerals (CGM), monazite, thorite, allanite and xenotime formed from residual liquids in quartz syenite porphyries, quartz monzonites and peralkaline granites, whereas in aluminous granites, allanite and monazite crystallized early, and thorite and columbite formed from residual liquids. Relationships of Y/Nb, Th/Nb, La/Nb and Ce/Pb ratios with Zr/Hf ratios in the aluminous granites and with Be abundances in the peralkaline granites suggest a decrease in La/Nb and Ce/Pb ratios in the former, and in Y/Nb and La/Nb ratios in the latter with crystallization progress. This contrasts with absence of systematic variations of Th/Nb and Ce/Pb ratios in the peralkaline compositions and of Y/Nb ratio in the aluminous ones. In this latter, Th/Nb ratio can present a significant decrease only in highly evolved compositions. An analysis of Y/Nb, Th/Nb, La/Nb and Ce/Pb relationships in worldwide OIB and subduction-related magmatic suites reveals that A-type felsic rocks with (Th/Nb)N < 1.3, (La/Nb)N < 1.3, and (Ce/Pb)N > 1 may have A1-type affinity, and those with (Th/Nb)N > 2, (La/Nb)N > 2, and (Ce/Pb)N < 1 tend to present A2-type affinity. The crystal fractionation of Th-LREE- and Nb-Ta-accessory minerals and mixing of components derived from the two granite groups may cause deviations from these compositional limits that can be evaluated using constraints imposed by Th/Nb-La/Nb, Ce/Pb-Th/Nb and Ce/Pb-La/Nb relationships in OIB and subduction-related magmatic suites. Three mantle sources might have been

The post-collisional late Variscan ferroan granites of southern Sardinia (Italy): Inferences for inhomogeneity of lower crust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Conte, Aida Maria; Cuccuru, Stefano; D'Antonio, Massimo; Naitza, Stefano; Oggiano, Giacomo; Secchi, Francesco; Casini, Leonardo; Cifelli, Francesca

2017-12-01

The post-collisional late Variscan magmatism of Sardinia-Corsica batholith attained a peak at about 290 Ma. In southern Sardinia, in the frontal part of the Variscan orogenic wedge, this magmatism is represented by three suites of granitoids, here defined as GS1, GS2 and GS3. GS1, GS2 and GS3 are slightly peraluminous and F-bearing granitoids; GS1 and GS3 granites show in addition a ferroan character, whereas GS2 rocks range from magnesian to ferroan, from granodiorites to leucogranites. From magnetic susceptibility data, GS1 and GS2 belong to the ilmenite series, whereas GS3 is a slightly oxidized rock-suite plotting on the ilmenite/magnetite series boundary. Each rock-suite shows distinctive characters, in terms of petrography, petrochemistry, rock associations, as well as metallogenic signature of the related fluids. The distinction among rock-suite types is made on the basis of both mafic and characteristic accessory minerals. Siderophyllitic dark mica as the only mafic phase, and accessory xenotime (Y) characterize the GS1 rocks; GS2 mineral associations include biotite ± hornblende + allanite + magnetite; GS3 rocks show an association of hastingsite + annite + allanite + magnetite. Chemical variations in the studied samples suggest different magmatic evolution of independent magmas. Pb, Sr and Nd isotopic data constrain the origin of magmas to lower crustal sources. Chemical composition of rocks and dark micas meet those of liquids experimentally obtained by low degrees of partial melting of different meta-igneous deep crustal sources, felsic for GS1 rock-types and more mafic for GS3 rock-types. GS1 intrusions show granophile-type (Sn-W-Mo) metallogenic signatures, very low magnetic susceptibility, and Nd model ages (referred to the Depleted Mantle - TDM) of 2.3 Ga, coherent with a possible derivation from an old (early Proterozoic-Neoarchean), reduced and weathered basement, tectonically buried under Variscan covers. A definite deep crustal inhomogeneity is

Rare earth mineral potential in the southeastern U.S. Coastal Plain from integrated geophysical, geochemical, and geological approaches

USGS Publications Warehouse

Shah, Anjana K.; Bern, Carleton R.; Van Gosen, Bradley S.; Daniels, David L.; Benzel, William M.; Budahn, James R.; Ellefsen, Karl J.; Karst, Adam; Davis, Richard

2017-01-01

We combined geophysical, geochemical, mineralogical, and geological data to evaluate the regional presence of rare earth element (REE)−bearing minerals in heavy mineral sand deposits of the southeastern U.S. Coastal Plain. We also analyzed regional differences in these data to determine probable sedimentary provenance. Analyses of heavy mineral separates covering the region show strong correlations between thorium, monazite, and xenotime, suggesting that radiometric equivalent thorium (eTh) can be used as a geophysical proxy for those REE-bearing minerals. Airborne radiometric data collected during the National Uranium Resource Evaluation (NURE) program cover the southeastern United States with line spacing varying from ∼2 to 10 km. These data show eTh highs over Cretaceous and Tertiary Coastal Plain sediments from the Cape Fear arch in North Carolina to eastern Alabama; these highs decrease with distance from the Piedmont. Quaternary sediments along the modern coasts show weaker eTh anomalies, except near coast-parallel ridges from South Carolina to northern Florida. Prominent eTh anomalies are also observed over large riverbeds and their floodplains, even north of the Cape Fear arch where surrounding areas are relatively low. These variations were verified using ground geophysical measurements and sample analyses, indicating that radiometric methods are a useful exploration tool at varying scales. Further analyses of heavy mineral separates showed regional differences, not only in concentrations of monazite, but also of rutile and staurolite, and in magnetic susceptibility. The combined properties suggest the presence of subregions where heavy mineral sediments are primarily sourced from high-grade metamorphic, low-grade metamorphic, or igneous terrains, or where they represent a mixing of these sources. Comparisons between interpreted sources of heavy mineral sands near the Fall Line and igneous and metamorphic Piedmont and Blue Ridge units showed a strong

Complete zircon and chromite digestion by sintering of granite, rhyolite, andesite and harzburgite rock reference materials for geochronological purposes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bokhari, Syed Nadeem H.; Meisel, Thomas

2014-05-01

Zircon (ZrSiO4) is a common accessory mineral in nature that occurs in a wide variety of sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks. Zircon has the ability to retain substantial chemical and isotopic information that are used in range of geochemical and geo- chronological investigations. Sample digestion of such rock types is a limiting factor due to the chemical inertness of zircon (ZrSiO4) tourmaline, chromite, barite, monazite, sphene, xenotime etc. as the accuracy of results relies mainly on recovery of analytes from these minerals. Dissolution by wet acid digestions are often incomplete and high blank and total dissolved solids (TDS) contents with alkali fusions lead to an underestimation of analyte concentrations. Hence an effective analytical procedure, that successfully dissolves refractory minerals such as zircon is needed to be employed for reliable analytical results. Na2O2 digestion [1] was applied in characterisation of granite (G-3), rhyolite (MRH), andesite (MGL-AND) and harzburgite (MUH-1) powdered reference material with solution based ICP-MS analysis. In this study we undertake a systematic evaluation of decomposition time and sample:Na2O2 ratio and test portion size after minimising effect of all other constraints that makes homogeneity ambiguous. In recovering zircon and chromite 100 mg test portion was mixed with different amounts of Na2O2 i.e. 100-600 mg. Impact of decomposition time was observed by systematically increasing heating time from 30-45 minutes to 90-120 minutes at 480°C. Different test portion sizes 100-500 mg of samples were digested to control variance of inhomogeneity. An improved recovery of zirconium in zircon in granite (G-3), rhyolite MRH), andesite (MGL-AND) and chromite in harzburgite (MUH-1) was obtained by increasing heating time (2h) at 480°C and by keeping (1:6) ratio of sample:Na2O2. Through this work it has been established that due to presence of zircon and chromite, decomposition time and sample:Na2O2 ratio has

Structure, alteration, and geochemistry of the Charlotte quartz vein stockwork, Mt Charlotte gold mine, Kalgoorlie, Australia: time constraints, down-plunge zonation, and fluid source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mueller, Andreas G.

2015-02-01

The Kalgoorlie district in the Archean Yilgarn Craton, Western Australia, comprises two world-class gold deposits: Mt Charlotte (144 t Au produced to 2013) in the northwest and the Golden Mile (1,670 t Au) in the southeast. Both occur in a folded greenschist-facies gabbro sill adjacent to the Golden Mile Fault (D2) in propylitic alteration associated with porphyry dikes. At Mt Charlotte, a shear array of fault-fill veins within the Golden Mile Fault indicates sinistral strike-slip during Golden Mile-type pyrite-telluride mineralization. The pipe-shaped Charlotte quartz vein stockwork, mined in bulk more than 1 km down plunge, is separated in time by barren D3 thrusts from Golden Mile mineralization and alteration, and occurs between two dextral strike-slip faults (D4). Movement on these faults generated an organized network of extension and shear fractures opened during the subsequent infiltration of high-pressure H2S-rich fluid at 2,655 ± 13 Ma (U-Pb xenotime). Gold was deposited during wall rock sulphidation in overlapping vein selvages zoned from deep albite-pyrrhotite (3 g/t Au) to upper muscovite-pyrite assemblages (5 g/t Au bulk grade). Chlorite and fluid inclusion thermometry indicate that this kilometre-scale zonation is due to fluid cooling from 410-440 °C at the base to 350-360 °C at the top of the orebody, while the greenstone terrane remained at 250 °C ambient temperature and at 300 MPa lithostatic pressure. The opened fractures filled with barren quartz and scheelite during the retrograde stage (300 °C) of the hydrothermal event. During fracture sealing, fluid flux was periodically restricted at the lower D3 thrust. Cycles of high and low up-flow, represented by juvenile H2O-CO2 and evolved H2O-CO2-CH4 fluid, respectively, are recorded by the REE and Sr isotope compositions of scheelite oscillatory zones. The temperature gradient measured in the vein stockwork points to a hot (>600 °C) fluid source 2-4 km below the mine workings, and several

Neoarchean metamorphism recorded in high-precision Sm-Nd isotope systematics of garnets from the Jack Hills (Western Australia)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eccles, K. A.; Baxter, E. F.; Mojzsis, S. J.; Marschall, H.; Williams, M. L.; Jercinovic, M. J.

2013-12-01

Studies of metasedimentary rocks from the Jack Hills, which host Earth's oldest known detrital minerals, have focused on zircon and occasionally monazite or xenotime, but no attention has been directed toward one of the most common mineral markers of metamorphism: garnet. Garnet can provide a record of the post-depositional, prograde metamorphic history of Archean metasedimentary rocks. Additionally, the use of a newly developed detrital garnet dating technique [1,2] may reveal information about pre-depositional metamorphism that could address lingering questions about the nature and timing of Earth's earliest tectonometamorphic events. Here we investigate garnet from the Jack Hills metasedimentary rocks to test whether they record in situ metamorphism or are a detrital relict of even older metamorphic events. We identified garnet in two bulk quartz-pebble conglomerate samples collected from the 'discovery' outcrop at Eranondoo Hill in the Jack Hills of Western Australia. Electron microprobe analyses of polished grains and SEM measurements of unpolished grain surfaces are consistent, revealing garnet composition indicative of a single generation/population of predominantly almandine-spessartine solid solution (~10-35% mole fraction spessartine). Compositional maps of garnet grains reveal little zoning and no discontinuities, most consistent with a single growth event. Dating Jack Hills' garnet via the Sm-Nd system is possible due to continued development of small sample analysis techniques, including running NdO+ TIMS analyses with Ta2O5 activator [3] permitting <50 ppm 2 sigma analytical precision on a 400pg in-house standard and continued improvement in blanks (<15pg full procedural blanks). Additionally, employing a nondestructive chemical prescreening technique (tabletop SEM) allows for grouping of multiple grains based on chemical similarity. Final Nd loads in the 450-750pg range routinely yield dates with precisions <×10Ma for two point isochrons between

Metamorphic and tectonic evolution of Ceuta peninsula (Internal Rif): new interpretation in the framework of arc and back arc evolution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Homonnay, Emmanuelle; Lardeaux, Jean-Marc; Corsini, Michel; Cenki-Tok, Bénédicte; Bosch, Delphine; Munch, Philippe; Romagny, Adrien; Ouazzani-Touhami, Mohamed

2016-04-01

thrusting toward the NE. Furthermore, biotite-sillimanite bearing S2 foliation affecting the whole of crustal rocks is contemporaneous with the movement on this main ductile thrusting. We combined garnet-biotite and GASP thermo-barometers with thermodynamic modelling (Theriak-Domino) in order to constrain pressure and temperature conditions of D2 and D3 tectono-metamorphic events. P-T conditions of D2 deformation are in the range 7-10kbar and 770-820°C and are compatible with syn-tectonic partial melting. D3 deformation event occurred at 1-7kbar and 400-550°C. These metamorphic conditions reflect abnormally high geothermal gradients during both shortening and thinning and are clearly compatible with the thermal evolution recognized in continental arcs. Preliminary U-Th-Pb (monazite, zircon and xenotime) and previous Ar39/Ar40 (micas) analyses, furnished similar ages around 21 Ma for D2 and D3 events, suggesting a very fast transition from arc to back-arc dynamics.

Thermochronology of the Cornubian batholith in southwest England: Implications for pluton emplacement and protracted hydrothermal mineralization

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chesley, J.T.; Halliday, A.N.; Snee, L.W.; Mezger, K.; Shepherd, T.J.; Scrivener, R.C.

1993-01-01

The metalliferous ore deposits of southwest England are associated with biotite-muscovite granites that intruded upper Paleozoic sediments and volcanic rocks at the end of the Hercynian Orogeny. The hydrothermal mineralization can be subdivided into four stages: 1. (1) exoskarns 2. (2) high-temperature tin and tungsten oxide-bearing sheeted greisen bordered veins and Sn-bearing tourmaline veins and breccias 3. (3) polymetallic quartz-tourmaline-chlorite-sulfide-fluorite-bearing fissure veins, which represent the main episode of economic mineralization 4. (4) late-stage, low-temperature polymetallic fluorite veins. U-Pb dating of monazite and xenotime and 40Ar 39Ar dating of muscovite were used to determine emplacement ages and cooling times for individual plutons within the Cornubian batholith, as well as separate intrusive phases within the plutons. In addition, 40Ar 39Ar ages from hornblende and secondary muscovite and Sm-Nd isochron ages from fluorite were employed to determine the relationship between pluton emplacement and different stages of mineralization. The U-Pb ages indicate that granite magmatism was protracted from ~300 Ma down to ~275 Ma with no evidence of a major hiatus. There is no systematic relation between the age of a pluton and its location within the batholith. The U-Pb ages for separate granite phases within a single pluton are resolvable and indicate that magma emplacement within individual plutons occurred over periods of as much as 4.5 myrs. Felsic porphyry dike emplacement was coeval with plutonism, but continued to ~270 Ma. The geochronologic data suggest that the Cornubian batholith originated from repeated melting events over 30 myrs and was formed by a series of small coalescing granitic bodies. Cooling rates of the main plutons are unrelated to emplacement age, but decrease from the southwest to the northeast from ~210??C myr-1 to ~60??C myr-1 with a mean of 100??C myr-1. These slow cooling rates appear to reflect the addition of

Linking microstructures, petrology and in situ U-(Th)-Pb geochronology to constrain P-T-t-D evolution of the Greather Himalyan Sequences in Western Nepal (Central Himalaya)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Iaccarino, Salvatore; Montomoli, Chiara; Carosi, Rodolfo; Langone, Antonio

2013-04-01

et al., 2008) is rarely found within garnet crystal, while monazite found only along mylonitic foliation helps to constrain the age of shearing and hanging-wall rocks exhumation, between 25 Ma (low Y cores interpretd as Aln out product, close to P peak) and 18 Ma (high Y rims interpreted as Grt breakdown/melt crystallization product during decompression). The present results point out the occurence of a high-temperature shear zone, in the core of the GHS, active before the onset of the Main Central Thrust, responsible of at least a part of the exhumation of the metamorphic rocks. References Janots, E., Engi, M., Berger, J., Allaz, J., Schwarz, O., Spandler, C., (2008): Prograde metamorphic sequence of REE minerals in pelitic rocks of the Central Alps: implications for allanite monazite-xenotime phase relations from 250 to 610°C. Journal of Metamorphic Geology 26, 509-526. Williams, M.L., Jercinovic, M.J., (2012): Tectonic interpretation of metamorphic tectonites: integrating compositional mapping, microstructrual analyses and in situ monazite dating. Journal of Metamorphic Geology 30, 739-752.

Thermochronology of the Cornubian batholith in southwest England: Implications for pluton emplacement and protracted hydrothermal mineralization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chesley, J. T.; Halliday, A. N.; Snee, L. W.; Mezger, K.; Shepherd, T. J.; Scrivener, R. C.

1993-04-01

The metalliferous ore deposits of southwest England are associated with biotite-muscovite granites that intruded upper Paleozoic sediments and volcanic rocks at the end of the Hercynian Orogeny. The hydrothermal mineralization can be subdivided into four stages: (1) exoskarns (2) high-temperature tin and tungsten oxide-bearing sheeted greisen bordered veins and Sn-bearing tourmaline veins and breccias (3) polymetallic quartz-tourmaline-chlorite-sulfide-fluorite-bearing fissure veins, which represent the main episode of economic mineralization (4) late-stage, low-temperature polymetallic fluorite veins. U-Pb dating of monazite and xenotime and 40Ar /39Ar dating of muscovite were used to determine emplacement ages and cooling times for individual plutons within the Cornubian batholith, as well as separate intrusive phases within the plutons. In addition, 40Ar /39Ar ages from hornblende and secondary muscovite and Sm-Nd isochron ages from fluorite were employed to determine the relationship between pluton emplacement and different stages of mineralization. The U-Pb ages indicate that granite magmatism was protracted from ~300 Ma down to ~275 Ma with no evidence of a major hiatus. There is no systematic relation between the age of a pluton and its location within the batholith. The U-Pb ages for separate granite phases within a single pluton are resolvable and indicate that magma emplacement within individual plutons occurred over periods of as much as 4.5 myrs. Felsic porphyry dike emplacement was coeval with plutonism, but continued to ~270 Ma. The geochronologic data suggest that the Cornubian batholith originated from repeated melting events over 30 myrs and was formed by a series of small coalescing granitic bodies. Cooling rates of the main plutons are unrelated to emplacement age, but decrease from the southwest to the northeast from ~210°C myr -1 to ~60°C myr -1 with a mean of 100°C myr -1. These slow cooling rates appear to reflect the addition of heat from

Thorium and rare earth minerals in the Powderhorn district, Gunnison County, Colorado

USGS Publications Warehouse

Olson, Jerry C.; Wallace, Stewart R.

1954-01-01

Thorium has been found since 1949 in at least 33 deposits in an area 6 miles wide and 20 miles long in the Powderhorn district, Gunnison County, Colo. The district is composed largely of pre-Jurassic metamorphic and igneous rocks, which are chiefly if not entirely pre-Cambrian in age. The metamorphic and igneous rocks are overlain by sandstone of the Morrison formation of Jurassic age, and by volcanic rocks of the Alboroto group and Hinsdale formation of Miocene and Pliocene (?) age, respectively. The thorium deposits occur in or near alkalic igneous rocks in which such elements as titanium, rare earths, barium, strontium, and niobium occur in greater-than-average amounts. The greatest mass of the alkalic igneous rocks the Iron Hill composite stoc,- occupies an area of 12 square miles in the southeastern part of the district. The age of the thorium deposits, like that of the alkalic igneous rocks, is not known other than pre-Jurassic. The thorium veins and mineralized shear zones range from a few inches to 18 feet in thickness and from a few feet to 3,500 feet in length. The veins are composed of calcite,.dolomite, siderite, ankerite, quartz, barite, pyrite, sphalerite, galena, goethite,. apatite, alkali feldspar, and many other minerals. The thorium occurs at least partly in thorite or hydrothorite. Sparse xenotime has been tentatively identified in one deposit. Several minerals containing rare earths of the cerium group as major constituents are found in carbonate veins near Iron Hill. Bastnaesite has been identified by X-ray methods, and cerite and synchisite are probably present also.The fluorapatite in some veins and in parts of the carbonate rock mass that occupies 2 square miles in the central part of the Iron Hill complex contains rare earths of the cerium group, generally in amounts of a fraction of a percent of the rock. The radioactivity of the deposits appears to be due almost entirely to thorium and its daughter products The ThO2 content of selected

Li isotopes in archean zircons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bouvier, A.; Ushikubo, T.; Kita, N.; Cavosie, A. J.; Kozdon, R.; Valley, J. W.

2009-12-01

Li is a fluid mobile, moderately incompatible element with a large mass difference between its two stable isotopes. Different processes can fractionate 7Li/6Li (fluid-rock interaction, metamorphic reactions, and Li diffusion), leading to variation by over 50‰ of δ7Li for common crustal material. These large variations make δ7Li a potential tracer of continental weathering and of the fluids affecting magma sources. Here, we report δ7Li and trace elements in Archean igneous zircons from TTG and sanukitoid granitoids from the Superior Province (Canada) in order to characterize Li in Archean zircons from well-described samples. These data are compared to detrital zircons from the Jack Hills (Western Australia) for which parent rock-type is uncertain. This study aims to better understand Li substitution in zircon and to evaluate the utility of δ7Li and [Li] for Archean petrogenesis. Zircons (n=71) were analyzed for δ7Li and trace elements (Li, P, Ca, Ti, V, Fe, Y, REE, U, Th) using an IMS-1280 ion microprobe. Most of the zircons display typical igneous REE patterns and zoning by CL. [Li] averages 13.1 ± 9 for TTG, 25.7 ± 19 for Sanukitoid and 31.0 ± 14 ppm for Jack Hills zircons, which are distinct from mantle-related zircons (<0.1 ppm). Values of δ7Li average 1.0 ± 4.5‰ for TTGs, 6.3 ± 4.4‰ for sanukitoids and -2.6 ± 8.8‰ for Jack Hills samples. Trace elements were analyzed from single spots in order to evaluate coupled substitutions. Atomic ratios (3Li+Y+REE)/P average 2.6, showing that Li and trivalent atoms are not charge-balanced by P, and suggesting that Li does not replace Zr, according to the xenotime substitution. However, (Y+REE)/(Li+P) atomic ratios average 1.0 ± 0.6, supporting the hypothesis that Li is interstitial and partly compensates trivalent cations. Several observations in this study suggest that [Li] is primary in the studied zircons: i) if Li is interstitial, charge-balance and slow diffusion of REE would control Li mobility

REE in karst bauxites: the Campania example (southern Italy)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mondillo, N.; Boni, M.; Balassone, G.; Rollinson, G.

2012-04-01

-phosphates (florencite type minerals) in the Regia Piana deposit and possibly LREE-enriched goethite at Dragoni. QEMSCAN® analysis allowed the identification and location of discrete particles of monazite and xenotime, but because of their very small dimensions (typically <10 microns) it was difficult to determine the exact chemical composition without further investigation. Chemical analyses have shown a total REEs content of 620 ppm on average in all bauxite deposits, with a maximum value of 1454 ppm of total REEs at the top of the Regia Piana profile. The LREE (La-Eu) contents in the samples vary between 200 and 1400 ppm, with positive Ce and La anomalies. The HREE (Gd-Lu) contents are always around 40-60 ppm. The relationship between REEs and the Al and/or Fe values is not clear, probably because the REE content may be slightly biased by the detrital characteristics of the bauxite. The higher Ce and other LREE values, detected at the top of several deposits rather than at the bottom, can be related to LREE supergene minerals occurrence in the higher parts of profile. The Campania deposits represent an interesting case study for REE concentration in karst bauxites. A similar LREE fractionation process could be applied to other bauxite deposits, though related to more favorable parent rocks with sub-economic REE-grades.

Re-Os systematics and geochemistry of cobaltite (CoAsS) in the Idaho cobalt belt, Belt-Purcell Basin, USA: Evidence for middle Mesoproterozoic sediment-hosted Co-Cu sulfide mineralization with Grenvillian and Cretaceous remobilization

USGS Publications Warehouse

Saintilan, N.J.; Creaser, R.A.; Bookstrom, Arthur A.

2017-01-01

-Os systematics with evidence for a linear trend of mixing with (metamorphic?) fluids.The new Re-Os ages and extremely high initial 187Os/188Os ratios of cobaltite reported here favor a magmatic-hydrothermal genetic model for a multi-stage REE-Y-Co-Cu-Au mineralization occurring at ca. 1370 to 1349 Ma, and related to the emplacement of the Big Deer Creek granite pluton at ca. 1377 Ma. In our model, deposition of paragenetically early xenotime and gadolinite was followed by an influx of Mesoproterozoic evaporitic brines and magmatic-hydrothermal fluids containing metals and reduced sulfur derived from mafic and oceanic island-arc Archean to Paleoproterozoic rocks in the Laurentian basement. Cobaltite mineralization occurred upon cooling of these fluids at an inferred temperature of 300 °C or below.

Summary of reconnaissance for radioactive deposits in Alaska, 1945-1954, and an appraisal of Alaskan uranium possibilities

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wedow, Helmuth

1956-01-01

In the period 1945-1954 over 100 investigations for radioactive source materials were made in Alaska. The nature of these investigations ranged from field examinations of individual prospects or the laboratory analysis of significantly radioactive samples submitted by prospectors to reconnaissance studies of large districts. In this period no deposits of uranium or thorium that would warrant commercial exploitation were discovered. The investigations, however, disclosed that radioactive materials occur in widely scattered areas of Alaska and in widely diverse environments. Many igneous rocks throughout Alaska are weakly radioactive because of uranium- and thorium-bearing accessory minerals, such as allanite, apatite, monazite, sphene, xenotime, and zircon; more rarely the radioactivity of these rocks is due to thorianite or thorite and their uranoan varieties. The felsic rocks, for example, granites and syenites, are generally more radioactive than the mafic igneous rocks. Pegmatites, locally, have also proved to be radioactive, but they have little commercial significance. No primary uranium oxide minerals have been found yet in Alaskan vein deposits, except, perhaps, for a mineral tentatively identified as pitchblende in the Hyder district of southeastern Alaska. However, certain occurrences of secondary uranium minerals, chiefly those of the uranite group, on the Seward Peninsula, in the Russian Mountains, and in the vicinity of Kodiak suggest that pitchblende-type ores may occur at depth beneath zones of alteration. Thorite-bearing veins have been discovered on Prince of Wales Island in southeastern Alaska. Although no deposits or carnotite-type minerals have been found in Alaska, several samples containing such minerals have been submitted by Alaskan prospectors. Efforts to locate the deposits from which these minerals were obtained have been unsuccessful, but review of available geologic data suggests that several Alaskan areas are potentially favorable for

P-T-t paths from polyphased garnets of the Yenisey Ridge: evidence for three tectonothermal events along the western margin of Siberian craton

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Likhanov, Igor

2015-04-01

Studies of pelitic gneisses and schists within the Yenisey regional shear zone (Garevka complex) at the western margin of the Siberian craton provide important constraints on the tectonothermal events and geodynamic processes in the Yenisey Ridge. In situ U-Th-Pb geochronology of monazite and xenotime from different growth zones of the garnet porphyroblasts coupled with P-T path calculations derived from garnet zoning patterns records three superimposed metamorphic event [1]. The different field gradients reflect contrasting tectonic settings. The first stage occurred as a result of the Grenville-age orogeny during late Meso-early Neoproterozoic (1050-850 Ma) and was marked by low-pressure zoned metamorphism at c. 4.8-5.0 kbar and 565-580 °C with a metamorphic field gradient of dT/dZ = 20-30 °C/km. At the second stage, the rocks experienced middle Neoproterozoic (801-793 Ma) collision-related medium-pressure metamorphism at c. 7.7-7.9 kbar and 630 °C with dT/dZ < 10 °C/km. The final stage evolved as a synexhumation retrograde metamorphism (785-776 Ma) at c. 4.8-5.4 kbar and 500 °C with dT/dZ < 14 °C/km and recorded uplift of the rocks to upper crustal levels in shear zones. The duration of post-collisional thrust exhumation does not exceed 16 Myr, which gives an exhumation rate of the metamorphic rocks of about 500-700 m/Myr [2]. This is in good agreement with the rate of exhumation (400 m/Myr) calculated for coeval collision-related metamorphic events in the Teya complex of the Yenisey Ridge [3] resulted from crustal thickening due to overthrusting [4] and also agrees with the results of thermomechanical numerical modeling (350 m/Myr) [5]. The final stages of collisional orogeny were followed by the development of rift-related bimodal dyke swarms of the Baikal-Yenisey belt, resulting from Neoproterozoic (790-780 Ma) extensional processes along the western margin of the Siberian craton and the onset of Rodinia's breakup [6]. Post-Grenville metamorphic

A Unique Yttrofluorite-Hosted Giant Heavy Rare Earth Deposit: Round Top Mountain, Hudspeth County, Texas, USA

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pingitore, N. E.; Clague, J. W.; Gorski, D.

2013-12-01

Round Top Mountain is a surface-exposed peraluminous rhyolite laccolith, enriched in heavy rare earth elements, as well as niobium-tantalum, beryllium, lithium, fluorine, tin, rubidium, thorium, and uranium. The extreme extent of the deposit (diameter one mile) makes it a target for recovery of valuable yttrium and HREEs, and possibly other scarce elements. The Texas Bureau of Economic Geology estimated the laccolith mass as at least 1.6 billion tons. A Preliminary Economic Assessment for Texas Rare Earth Resources listed an inferred mineral resource of 430,598,000 kg REOs (rare earth oxides), with over 70% Y+HREEs (YHREE). Put in global perspective, China is thought to produce ~25,000 tons YHREE per year, and exports but a small fraction of that. Because of the extremely fine grain size of the late-phase fluorine-carried critical fluid mineralization, it has not been clear which minerals host the YHREEs. X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy experiments at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource revealed that virtually all of the YHREE content resides in yttrofluorite, rather than in the other reported REE minerals in the deposit, bastnaesite and xenotime. The extended x-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) spectra of the sample suite were all quite similar, and proved a close match to known model compound specimens of yttrofluorite from two locations, in Sweden and New Mexico. Small spectral variation between the two model compounds and among the samples is attributable to the variable elemental composition and altervalent substitutional nature of yttrofluorite (Ca [1-x] Y,REE [x])F[2+x]. We found no other reported deposit in the world in which yttrofluorite is the exclusive, or even more than a minor, YHREE host mineral. Leaching experiments show that the YHREEs are easily liberated by dissolution with dilute sulfuric acid, due to the solubility of yttrofluorite. Flotation separation of the yttrofluorite had been demonstrated, but was rendered inefficient by the

Elemental Analysis of Zircon by High Mass Resolution USGS-Stanford SHRIMP-RG: Measuring and Evaluating Ti-in-zircon Temperatures and Compositional Characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wooden, J. L.; Mazdab, F. K.; Claiborne, L. L.; Miller, C. F.; Barth, A. P.

2006-12-01

fractionation rather than magmatic oxidation conditions. Zircons typically have positive Ce anomalies that rise as T falls and Hf increases. This reflects either fractionation of minerals that incorporate Ce+3 but little Ce+4, or oxidation. U and Th concentrations are typically highest in low-T zones but often show very irregular patterns with T and Hf. Molar ratios of total 3+ ions over P are mostly 1-5, suggesting charge compensation other than the xenotime substitution (Mazdab and Wooden 2006). Random analyses of zircons for T and composition are of limited use given wide variation within single zircons. Process interpretations should be based on trends observed in multiple zircons from individual samples, as many samples have characteristics distinct from general trends. Hydrothermal zircon (Hoskin 2005) is not unusual as a rim zone and may reflect a fine intergrowth of other minerals (apatite, titanite, oxides) or unusual late stage growth conditions. Ti temperatures from these zones are often unreliable, and all analyses for Ti and trace elements should include screens (i.e. F, Al, Ca, Fe) for Ti-bearing minerals and other accessories. While trace element concentrations of zircons may not be diagnostic of rock types in general, careful analyses as described above provide invaluable information about magmatic and metamorphic processes.

Micron-Scale Correlations Among Ti, P, Ce, and Y in Hadean Jack Hills Zircons

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hofmann, A. E.; Cavosie, A. J.; Valley, J. W.; Eiler, J. M.

2007-12-01

Detrital zircons and the inclusions found therein are our only mineralogical constraints on geologic events that occurred on the Hadean Earth. These zircons are commonly small (ca. <100 μm in the longest dimension) and preserve micron to sub-micron chemical zonations indicative of a dynamic petrological history. Trace elements within zircon are of particular interest because concentrations and ratios of these elements can provide information regarding chemical and physical conditions during zircon growth. In this study, we analyzed Hadean-age detrital zircons from Archean metasediment in the Jack Hills (Australia) using the Caltech Microanalysis Center Cameca NanoSIMS 50L. Trace elements analyzed included Ti, P, Ce, and Y. Ti- thermometry [1,2,3] can potentially constrain growth and/or re-equilibration temperatures of zircons; P, Ce, and Y are known to enter the zircon lattice by the coupled xenotime-type substitution mechanism: (Y, REE)3+ + P5+ = Zr4+ + Si4+ [5]. The 89Y/28Si ratio was observed to correlate with, and was used as a proxy for, cathodoluminescence (CL) banding. Growth features manifested in CL (e.g., sector, oscillatory zoning) were observed in all zircons analyzed. CL zones vary from <1 μm to several microns in width; therefore, the NanoSIMS---with a beam diameter resolved to ca. 250 nm on the sample surface when operating with an O- primary beam---is uniquely suited for this scale of analysis. Regions displaying CL banding were imaged as 20 x 20 μm areas. All elements were normalized to 28Si; 49Ti/28Si ratios were converted to [Ti] via calibration based on analyses of synthetic, high-Ti zircons (provided by B. Watson) that were independently analyzed on Caltech's JEOL JXA-8200 electron microprobe. We observe three types of relationships between trace element distribution and CL banding in the zircons imaged: 1) strong positive correlations between CL banding, P, Ce, and Ti; 2) subtle positive correlations between CL banding, P, Ce, and Ti; 3) no

Microtectonic-assisted P-T determination on low-grade Alpine metamorphic rocks from the "Tisia Mega-Unit" of the Slavonian Mountains in Croatia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balen, Dražen; Lihter, Iva; Massonne, Hans-Joachim

2016-04-01

The internal structure of the Tisia (Tisza) Mega-Unit in the Alpine-Carpathian-Dinaridic orogenic system encompasses large Alpine nappe systems brought to its present-day position by complex regional-scale movements. The Slavonian Mountains are part of the Bihor nappe system which is below the Codru and above the Mecsek nappe systems. The low-grade metamorphic schist unit of the Slavonian Mountains includes numerous rocks which were previously related to Precambrian and/or Lower Paleozoic orogeneses. However, recent studies (e.g. Balen, 2014, European Geosciences Union General Assembly, EGU 2014-6122) show that the metapelites of this unit should be attributed to the Alpine orogeny and the poorly known P-T conditions, which they experienced, should be refined. Although metapelites can be sensitive to changes of metamorphic conditions and, therefore, be suitable for the P-T estimation of metamorphic event(s), the extraction of mineral assemblages, being in equilibrium, and associated microtectonic data for particular low-grade metamorphic rocks is not straightforward. On the contrary, due to lack of suitable minerals and complex mictotectonic features, one can be faced with a severe problem concerning (dis)equilibrium. To avoid this, the observation scale in the research was set to the sub-mm level taking into account microtectonic positions of minerals. The investigated samples from the Slavonian Mountains are fine-grained schists consisting of chlorite (15-30 vol. %), white mica (15-25 vol. %), quartz (10-25 vol. %), feldspars (albite 10-15 vol. %; some K-feldspar), biotite (<5 vol. %), opaques (<5 vol. %), and accessory minerals (zircon, monazite, xenotime, apatite, chalcopyrite, pyrite, barite, parisite-(Ce), rutile). The schists show complex microtectonic fabric including well-developed foliations, pervasive folding, crenulation and cleavage. Foliations are defined by the preferred orientation of phyllosilicates and thin quartz and feldspar ribbons. Chlorite

The late Variscan ferroan granite magmatism of southern Sardinia: inferences from Mo metallogenesis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Naitza, Stefano; Conte, Aida Maria; Cuccuru, Stefano; Fadda, Sandro; Fiori, Maddalena; Oggiano, Giacomo; Secchi, Francesco

2017-04-01

Metallogeny is a powerful tool to investigate crustal evolution; a good example is offered by the Variscan basement of Sardinia and its Mo deposits. Mo ores are poorly represented in Variscan metallogenic provinces of Europe: however, in Sardinia, numerous small Mo deposits, often associated to Sn, W and F ores, are present, invariably related to an early Permian intrusive peak bracketed at about 290 Ma (Fadda et al., 2015; Naitza et al., 2017). In Sardinia, two main magmatic peaks have been schematized at pre-300 and 290 Ma. In southern Sardinia, the 290 magmatic peak is made up of several intrusive F-bearing rock-suites (Conte et al., 2016), belonging to ilmenite series, showing a slight peraluminous character and mostly classifiable as ferroan granites (sensu Frost and Frost, 2011). Mo-bearing granites form a distinct suite of relatively small plutons, emplaced at very shallow depth (about 1kb) in an exhumed Variscan low-grade basement. Peculiar characters of Mo-bearing granites are the occurrence of greisenized microgranite and granophyre cupolas, with fayalite-bearing pegmatites, and ilmenite, xenotime-(Y), monazite, fluorite, and local topaz as accessory phases. Recently, Conte et al. (2016) interpreted these granites as originated by partial melting of low crustal felsic metaigneous photoliths enriched in granophiles (Mo, Sn, W). Mo ores occur as: a) endo- and exo- quartz-muscovite greisens with molybdenite±Fe-Cu sulphides, and b) quartz-molybdenite±wolframite±Fe-Cu-Zn sulphides±fluorite±topaz hydrothermal veins and stockworks, hosted in granites or in country rocks. Redox state of magmas exerts a strong control on Mo metallogeny, as in Mo districts worldwide ores are usually hosted by high-fO2 magnetite series intrusions (Ishihara, 1981). The close field association of Sardinian Mo mineralization with ferroan, low-fO2 ilmenite-series granites may be explained in terms of Mo-enriched crustal sources of magmas, and very efficient geochemical