Mineralogy and geochemistry of Nb-,Ta-,Sn-,U-,Th-,and Zr-bearing granitic rocks from Abu Rusheid shear zones,South Eastern Desert,Egypt

Granite-hosted,Nb-,Ta-,Sn-,U-,Th-,and Zr(Hf)-bearing mineralization from the Abu Rusheid shear zones occurs about 97 km southwest of the town of Marsa Alam,South Eastern Desert,Egypt.The SSE-trending brittle-ductile Abu Rusheid shear zones crosscut the peralkalic granitic gneisses and cataclastic to mylonitic rocks(mylonite,protomlyonite,and ultramylonite).The northern shear zone varies in width from 1 to 3 m with a strike length of >500 m,and the southern shear zone is 0.5 to 8 m wide and >1 km long.These shear zones locally host less altered lamprophyre and locally sheared granitic aplite-pegmatite dykes.The rare-metal minerals,identified from the peralkalic granitic gneisses and cataclastic to mylonitic rocks are associated with muscovite,chlorite,quartz,fluorite,pyrite,magnetite,and rare biotite that are restricted to the Abu Rusheid shear zones;these are columbite-tantalite and pyrochlore(var.betafite) in the northern shear zone and ferrocolumbite in the southern shear zone.Cassiterite occurs as inclusions in the columbite-tantalite minerals.U-and Th-minerals(uraninite,thorite,uranothorite,ishikawaite,and cheralite) and Hf-rich zircon coexist.Magmatic(?) zircon contains numerous inclusions of rutile,fluorite,U-Th and REE minerals,such as uranothorite,cheralite,monazite,and xenotime.Compositional variations in Ta/(Ta+Nb) and Mn/(Mn+Fe) in columbite range from 0.07-0.42 and 0.04-0.33,respectively,and Hf contents in zircon from 1.92-6.46 of the two mineralized shear zones reflect the extreme degree of magmatic fractionation.Four samples of peralkalic granitic gneisses and cataclastic to mylonitic rocks from the southern shear zone have very low TiO2(0.02 wt%-0.04 wt%),Sr [(15-20)×10-6],and Ba [(47-78)×10-6],with high Fe2O3T(0.94 wt%-1.99 wt%),CaO(0.14 wt%-1.16 wt%),alkalis(9.2 wt%-10.1 wt%),Rb [(369-805)×10-6],Zr [(1033-2261)×10-6],Nb [(371-913)×10-6],U [(51-108)×10-6],Th [(36-110)×10-6],Ta [(38-108)×10-6],Pb [(39-364)×10-6],Zn [(21-424)×10-6],Y [(8-304)×10-6],Hf [(29-157)×10-6],and ∑REE [(64-304)×10-6],especially HREE [(46-167)×10-6].Three samples from the northern shear zone also have very low TiO2(0.03 wt%),Sr [(11-16)×10-6],and Ba [(38-47)×10-6],with high Fe2O3T(1.97 wt%-2.91 wt%),CaO(0.49 wt%-1.01 wt%),alkalis(7.2 wt%-8.3 wt%),Rb [(932-978)×10-6],Zr [(1707-1953)×10-6],Nb [(853-981)×10-6],Ta [(100-112)×10-6],U [(120-752)×10-6],Th [(121-164)×10-6],Pb [(260-2198)×10-6],Zn [(483-1140)×10-6],Y [(8-304)×10-6],Hf [(67-106)×10-6],and ∑REE [(110-231)×10-6],especially HREE [(91-177)×10-6].The very high Rb/Sr(57.5-88.9),and low Zr/Hf(16.9-25.6),Nb/Ta(7.7-9.8),and Th/U(0.21-1.01) are consistent with very frac-tionated fluorine-bearing granitic rocks that were altered and sheared.The field evidence,textural relations,and compositions of the ore minerals suggest that the main mineralizing event was magmatic(629+/-5 Ma,CHIME monazite),with later hydrothermal alteration and local remobilization of the high-field-strength elements.

Processing of rare earth concentrates

The paper describes process details for extraction of rare earths from an intermediate grade concentrate of Madhya Pradesh region in India and a South African slag. The xenodme concentrate obtained from the former place was an intermediate grade （47%） rare earth phosphate containing both monazite and xenotime. The South African slag was a low-grade waste product typically containing only 4% of rare earths. The rare earth resource concentrates have been treated individually by different methods such as alkali fusion and alkali leaching to convert them into their mixed oxides. Both types of materials have been processed and greater than 98% solubilization of metal values has been achieved in the intermediate grade xenotime and 80% from the South African slag. The residue of xenotime hydroxide has been washed thoroughly to collect the sodium phosphate, as by-product and the slurry pH have been adjusted to separate rare earths from thorium effectively. Other impurities such as uranium and iron have been removed by precipitation of rare earths by oxalic acid. It has been possible to recover 〉95% yttrium along with other rare earth oxides.

Linking gold mineralization to regional-scale drivers of mineral systems using in situ U-Pb geochronology and pyrite LA-ICP-MS element mapping

Proterozoic orogens commonly host a range of hydrothermal ores that form in diverse tectonic settings at different times. However, the link between mineralization and the regional-scale tectonothermal evolution of orogens is usually not well understood, especially in areas subject to multiple hydrothermal events.Regional-scale drivers for mineral systems vary between the different classes of hydrothermal ore, but all involve an energy source and a fluid pathway to focus mineralizing fluids into the upper crust. The Mount Olympus gold deposit in the Proterozoic Capricorn Orogen of Western Australia, was regarded as an orogenic gold deposit that formed at ca. 1738 Ma during the assembly of Proterozoic Australia. However,the trace element chemistry of the pyrite crystals closely resembles those of the Carlin deposits of Nevada,with rims that display solid solution gold accompanied by elevated As, Cu, Sb, Hg, and Tl, surrounding gold-poor cores. New SHRIMP UeP b dating of xenotime intergrown with auriferous pyrite and ore-stage alteration minerals provided a weighted mean^(207) Pb*/^(206) Pb* date of 1769 ± 5 Ma, interpreted as the age of gold mineralization. This was followed by two discrete episodes of hydrothermal alteration at 1727 ± 7 Ma and 1673 ± 8 Ma. The three ages are linked to multiple reactivation of the crustal-scale Nanjilgardy Fault during repeated episodes of intracratonic reworking. The regional-scale drivers for Carlin-like gold mineralization at Mount Olympus are related to a change in tectonic regime during the final stages of the intracratonic 1820 -1770 Ma Capricorn Orogeny. Our results suggest that substantial sized Carlin-like gold deposits can form in an intracratonic setting during regional-scale crustal reworking.

Low-temperature alteration of uranium–thorium bearing minerals and its significance in neoformation of radioactive minerals in stream sediments of Wadi El-Reddah, North Eastern Desert, Egypt

The stream sediments of Wadi El Reddah(North Eastern Desert,Egypt)are geochemically and mineralogically investigated.Their content of radioactive and other heavy minerals is mainly represented by thorite,uranothorite,zircon,monazite,xenotime,columbite,fergusonite,and unknown rare earth elements(REEs)bearing minerals as well as cassiterite.Special emphasis on REE content of thorite,uranothorite,zircon and xenotime has been done to correlate them with the increase of uranium contents in these sediments.The key evidence for the presence lowtemperature alteration processes includes the presence of some zircon crystals as remnants after complete dissolution of the overgrowth zircon in severe acidic environment,the sulphur content,biogenic minerals,occurrence of unusual minerals as cassiterite pore filling in zircon,variation in the REEs content from the surrounding granites to the stream sediments and the abundance of monazite in the surrounding granites.Most minerals are partially and/or completely altered,which indicated by the pseudomorphism of zircon by xenotime,thorite,and uranothorite.