Texture and composition of magnetite in the Duotoushan deposit, NW China: implications for ore genesis of Fe–Cu deposits

2020 ◽  
Vol 84 (3) ◽  
pp. 398-411
Author(s):  
Xia Hu ◽  
Huayong Chen ◽  
Xiaowen Huang ◽  
Weifeng Zhang

AbstractThe Duotoushan deposit is an important Fe–Cu deposit in the Aqishan–Yamansu metallogenic belt of eastern Tianshan, NW China. Magnetite occurs in two main habits which are common in many Fe–Cu deposits, i.e. platy (TD1 Mag) and granular magnetite (TD2 Mag) have been identified at Duotoushan. Platy magnetite shows two different zones (bright and dark) based on the observations by scanning electron microscopy. The bright part (TD1-L) is the main part of TD1 magnetite and lacks inclusions. The dark part (TD1-D) is very porous and has abundant tiny silicate inclusions. Granular magnetite is usually anhedral with obvious oscillatory zoning in back-scattered electron images. In general, the dark zones of magnetite are characterised by greater Si, Ca, Al and lesser Fe contents than the bright zones. In situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis shows that the lattice parameter of TD1 magnetite is approximately equal to that of standard magnetite and slightly higher than that of TD2 magnetite, indicating that some cations with ionic radii smaller than those of Fe2+ or Fe3+ entered the magnetite lattice by simple or coupled substitution mechanisms in TD2 magnetite.The results in the present study show that the effects of temperature and $f_{{\rm O}_ 2}$ on platy magnetite are very limited and the changing fluid composition might be the major controlling factor for the formation of Duotoushan platy magnetite. Although the possibility that mushketovite transformed from hematite cannot be excluded entirely, evidence from in situ XRD data, pore-volume ratio calculation and the growth habit of intergrown minerals indicates that platy magnetite (TD1) coexisting with amphibole was more likely to have been precipitated originally from hydrothermal fluid. This was then affected by changes in the fluid composition which consequently led to dissolution of primary magnetite (TD1-L) and re-precipitation of TD1-D magnetite (with abundant porosity and mineral inclusions). Meanwhile, granular magnetite (TD2) with oscillatory zoning, and coexisting with epidote and quartz, was precipitated from fluid with periodic variation in temperature. These oscillatory zones are characterised by bands enriched in Si, Al and Ca alternating with bands depleted in these elements. The present investigation revealed a complex evolutionary process for magnetite formation in the Duotoushan deposit. The importance of combined investigation of texture and compositional characterisation of magnetite for study of the ore genesis and evolution of Fe–Cu deposits is highlighted.

2019 ◽  
Vol 84 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roger H. Mitchell ◽  
Rudy Wahl ◽  
Anthony Cohen

AbstractThe Good Hope carbonatite is located adjacent to the Prairie Lake alkaline rock and carbonatite complex in northwestern Ontario. The occurrence is a heterolithic breccia consisting of diverse calcite, dolomite and ferrodolomite carbonatites containing clasts of magnesio-arfvedsonite + potassium feldspar, phlogopite + potassium feldspar together with pyrochlore-bearing apatitite clasts. The apatitite occurs as angular, boudinaged and schlieren clasts up to 5 cm in maximum dimensions. In these pyrochlore occurs principally as euhedral single crystals (0.1–1.5 cm) and can comprise up to 25 vol.% of the clasts. Individual clasts contain compositionally- and texturally-distinct suites of pyrochlore. The pyrochlores are hosted by small prismatic crystals of apatite (~100–500 μm × 10–25 μm) that are commonly flow-aligned and in some instances occur as folds. Allotriogranular cumulate textures are not evident in the apatitites. The fluorapatite does not exhibit compositional zonation under back-scattered electron spectroscopy, although ultraviolet and cathodoluminescence imagery shows distinct cores with thin (<50 μm) overgrowths. Apatite lacks fluid or solid inclusions of other minerals. The apatite is rich in Sr (7030–13,000 ppm) and rare earth elements and exhibits depletions in La, Ce, Pr and Nd (La/NdCN ratios (0.73–1.14) relative to apatite in cumulate apatitites (La/NdCN > 1.5) in the adjacent Prairie Lake complex. The pyrochlore are primarily Na–Ca pyrochlore of relatively uniform composition and minor Sr contents (<2 wt.% SrO). Irregular resorbed cores of some pyrochlores are A-site deficient (>50%) and enriched in Sr (6–10 wt.% SrO), BaO (0.5–3.5 wt.%), Ta2O5 (1–2 wt.%) and UO2 (0.5–2 wt.%). Many of the pyrochlores exhibit oscillatory zoning. Experimental data on the phase relationships of haplocarbonatite melts predicts the formation of apatite and pyrochlore as the initial liquidus phases in such systems. However, the texture of the clasts indicates that pyrochlore and apatite did not crystallise together and it is concluded that pyrochlores formed in one magma have been mechanically mixed with a different apatite-rich magma. Segregation of the apatite–pyrochlore assemblage followed by lithification resulted in the apatitites, which were disrupted and fragmented by subsequent batches of diverse carbonatites. The genesis of the pyrochlore apatitites is considered to be a process of magma mixing and not simple in situ crystallisation.


1981 ◽  
Vol 195 (3) ◽  
pp. 677-684 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher H. Evans

Tervalent cations of the lanthanide (rare-earth) elements reversibly inhibit bacterial collagenase (clostridiopeptidase A; EC 3.4.24.3). Sm3+, whose ionic radius is closest to that of Ca2+, is the most effective inhibitor, completely suppressing clostridiopeptidase activity at a concentration of 100μm in the presence of 5mm-Ca2+. Er3+ and Lu3+, which both have ionic radii smaller than either Ca2+ or Sm3+, inhibit less efficiently, and La3+, which is slightly larger than Ca2+ or Sm3+, inhibits only weakly. These findings indicate a closely fitting, stereospecific, Ca2+-binding pocket in clostridiopeptidase, which excludes ions that are only slightly larger than Ca2+ [ionic radius 0.099nm (0.99 Ȧ)]. By contrast, trypsin, an enzyme whose activity does not depend on Ca2+, requires lanthanide concentrations 50–100-fold greater for inhibition. Furthermore, the relative efficiency of inhibition of trypsin by lanthanides increases as the lanthanide ions become smaller and the charge/volume ratio increases. At a concentration of 50μm, Sm3+ lowers the apparent Km for the hydrolysis of Pz-peptide by clostridiopeptidase from 5.4mm to 0.37mm and the apparent Vmax. from 0.29 Wünsch–Heidrich unit to 0.018 unit. Thus Sm3+ enhances the affinity of this enzyme for its substrate; inhibition of hydrolysis of Pz-peptide may result from the excessive stability of the enzyme–Sm3+–substrate complex. Inhibition by Sm3+ is competitive with regard to Ca2+. The apparent dissociation constant, Kd, of Ca2+ is 0.27mm, where the Ki for Sm3+ is 12μm. Clostridiopeptidase is more thermolabile in the absence of Ca2+. With Sm3+, thermoinactivation of the enzyme at 53°C or 60°C is initially accelerated, but then becomes retarded as heating continues. Lanthanide ions bind to gelatin and collagen. In so doing, they appear to protect these substrates from lysis by clostridiopeptidase through mechanisms additional to supplanting Ca2+ at its binding site on the enzyme. Collagen and gelatin sequester sufficient lanthanide ions to gain partial protection from clostridiopeptidase in the absence of an extraneous source of these inhibitors.


1990 ◽  
Vol 181 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. M. Gibson ◽  
D. Loretto ◽  
D. Cherns

ABSTRACTWe have studied the formation of metal silicides in-situ in an ultra-high vacuum transmission electron microscope. Metals were deposited on in-situ cleaned, reconstructed silicon surfaces and annealed. For the metals Ni and Co, we find that the phase sequence in ultra-thin films is different from that seen in ≈1000 Å thick films, and attribute this to the high surface-to-volume ratio. In general reactions occur at room temperature, to form an epitaxial phase if possible. We report preliminary new results on the formation of Pd2Si.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristina Belda Marín ◽  
Vincent Fitzpatrick ◽  
David L. Kaplan ◽  
Jessem Landoulsi ◽  
Erwann Guénin ◽  
...  

Silk fibroin (SF) is a natural protein largely used in the textile industry but also in biomedicine, catalysis, and other materials applications. SF is biocompatible, biodegradable, and possesses high tensile strength. Moreover, it is a versatile compound that can be formed into different materials at the macro, micro- and nano-scales, such as nanofibers, nanoparticles, hydrogels, microspheres, and other formats. Silk can be further integrated into emerging and promising additive manufacturing techniques like bioprinting, stereolithography or digital light processing 3D printing. As such, the development of methodologies for the functionalization of silk materials provide added value. Inorganic nanoparticles (INPs) have interesting and unexpected properties differing from bulk materials. These properties include better catalysis efficiency (better surface/volume ratio and consequently decreased quantify of catalyst), antibacterial activity, fluorescence properties, and UV-radiation protection or superparamagnetic behavior depending on the metal used. Given the promising results and performance of INPs, their use in many different procedures has been growing. Therefore, combining the useful properties of silk fibroin materials with those from INPs is increasingly relevant in many applications. Two main methodologies have been used in the literature to form silk-based bionanocomposites: in situ synthesis of INPs in silk materials, or the addition of preformed INPs to silk materials. This work presents an overview of current silk nanocomposites developed by these two main methodologies. An evaluation of overall INP characteristics and their distribution within the material is presented for each approach. Finally, an outlook is provided about the potential applications of these resultant nanocomposite materials.


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