Evolution and Li Mineralization of the No. 134 Pegmatite in the Jiajika Rare-Metal Deposit, Western Sichuan, China: Constrains from Critical Minerals

The Jiajika rare-metal deposit located in western Sichuan Province (China) is renowned as the largest lithium deposit in Asia, and the No. 134 pegmatite dike is the largest lithium pegmatite under mining conditions in the area. On the basis of a detailed characterization of textures and minerals in the Jiajika No. 134 pegmatite, two zones (the barren Zone Ⅰ and the spodumene Zone Ⅱ) and three subzones (Zone Ⅱ was subdivided into microcrystalline, medium-fine grained and coarse-grained spodumene zones) have been identified. The detailed mineralogical characteristics of lithium minerals and other indicator minerals from each zone were evaluated by EPMA for illustrating the magmatic–hydrothermal evolution and the cooling path of the Jiajika No. 134 pegmatite. From the outer zone inwards, grain size gradually increased, the typical graphic pegmatite zone was absent, and spodumene randomly crystallized throughout nearly the whole pegmatite body. This evidence indicated a Li-saturated melt prior to pegmatite crystallization, which could be the main cause of the super-large-scale Li mineralization of the Jiajika No. 134 pegmatite. A comparison of the Cs content between primary beryl in the Jiajika No. 134 pegmatite and other important Li-Cs-Ta pegmatites in the world indicates that No. 134 pegmatite shows a high degree of fractional crystallization. The evolution of mica species from muscovite to Li-micas from Zone Ⅰ to Zone Ⅱ marks the transition from the magmatic to the hydrothermal stage in pegmatite evolution. The absence of individual lepidolite and the relatively limited scale of alteration of spodumene (<10 vol%) suggest that the activity of the hydrothermal fluids in the system is limited, which contributes to the preservation of the easily altered Li ores and is also an important controlling factor of the super-large-scale Li mineralization of the pegmatite. Spodumene–quartz intergrowth (SQI) usually occurs partly along the rims of the spodumene grains in the Jiajika No. 134 pegmatite. Combined with the pegmatite mineral equilibria, the results of fluid inclusion studies of the pegmatite and the metamorphic conditions in the area, a constrained P-T path of the magmatic–hydrothermal crystallization of the Jiajika No. 134 pegmatite is proposed. The unusual steeply sloped cooling path of the No. 134 pegmatite could be attributed to the fast pressure drop triggered by the intrusion of a pegmatitic melt along the fractures surrounding the Majingzi granite, which could also be the dominant evolution process for other spodumene pegmatites with similar SQI features in the world. The feature of limited internal geochemical fractionation suggested by mineral-scale geochemical analyses of spodumene and micas, combined with the clear textural zoning of the No. 134 pegmatite, can best be ascribed to the effect of undercooling during pegmatite formation. This effect might be one of the non-negligible rules of pegmatite petrogenesis, and would significantly upgrade the potential of Li mineralization by minimizing diffusional Li transfer to the country rocks.

Geochemistry and Isotope Composition of Paleoproterozoic Granites and Felsic Volcanics of the Elash Graben: Evidence of the Heterogeneity of the Early Precambrian Crust

—The paper presents results of a petrogeochemical and isotope–geochronological study of the granite–leucogranite association of the Pavlov massif and felsic volcanics from the Elash graben (Biryusa block, southwest of the Siberian craton). A characteristic feature of the granite–leucogranites is their spatial and temporal association with vein aplites and pegmatites of the East Sayan rare-metal province. The U–Pb age of zircon from granites of the Pavlov massif (1852 ± 5 Ma) is close to the age of the pegmatites of the Vishnyakovskoe rare-metal deposit (1838 ± 3 Ma). The predominant biotite porphyritic granites and leucogranites of the Pavlov massif show variable alkali ratios (K2O/Na2O = 1.1–2.3) and ferroan (Fe*) index and a peraluminous composition; they are comparable with S-granites. The studied rhyolites of the Tagul River (SiO2 = 71–76%) show a low ferroan index, a high K2O/Na2O ratio (1.6–4.0), low (La/Yb)n values (4.3–10.5), and a clear Eu minimum (Eu/Eu* = 0.3–0.5); they are similar to highly fractionated I-granites. All coeval late Paleoproterozoic (1.88–1.85 Ga) granites and felsic volcanics of the Elash graben have distinct differences in composition, especially in the ferroan index and HREE contents, owing to variations in the source composition and melting conditions during their formation at postcollisions extension. The wide range of the isotope parameters of granites and felsic volcanic rocks (εNd from +2.0 to –3.7) and zircons (εHf from +3.0 to +0.8, granites of the Toporok massif) indicates the heterogeneity of the crustal basement of the Elash graben, which formed both in the Archean and in the Paleoproterozoic.

Koytash Deposit As A Prospective Object Of Uzbekistan For Expanding Resources Of Wollastonite, Precious Metals And Other Associated Elements

The article discusses complex and conjugated formation of wollostonite, sulfide-rare metal and silver-base polymetallic ores of Koytash deposit. Forms recommended for co-extraction, mineral composition and elements-impurities of them have been revealed. These data on rare-metal sulfide and sulfide-polymetallic ores of Koytash skarn-rare metal deposit proves its prospects in extraction of both rare metal and noble metals, bismuth and wollastonite.

Cation ordering, valence states, and symmetry breaking in the crystal-chemically complex mineral chevkinite-(Ce): Recrystallization, transformation, and metamict states in chevkinite

Annealing is commonly used in the recrystallization of metamict minerals in an attempt to reconstruct the original structure. Annealing at 750 °C of Nb-rich chevkinite-(Ce) from the Biraya rare-metal deposit, Russia, resulted in the structural transformation C2/m → P21/a, which defines chevkinite stability in different environments. This transformation seems to be a rapid version of a naturally occurring process that possibly involves twinning of the crystals. Nb-rich chevkinite-(Ce) occurs naturally as two polymorphs, one with the C2/m space group and the other with P21/a. The latter is the stable form under ambient conditions. There are some distinct differences in the values of the structural parameters, such as the average M-O distances or site scattering values of particular sites for both space groups, which can be associated with the redistribution of some lighter cations, mainly Mg2+, within the crystal lattice. The use of complementary experimental techniques (electron probe microanalysis, X-ray diffraction, and photoelectron spectroscopy) has delivered information on the structure and transformation of a very complex, highly zoned and partially metamict solid solution. It should be useful in determining the structure of any mineral where cation disorder is present.