Biofacies zonation of Ordovician deposits of the southern Siberian Platform

Based on the inventory, revision, and analysis of stratigraphic, paleontological, and lithofacies data on the area of Ordovician deposits in the southern Siberian Platform (Irkut amphitheater), the refined and detailed schemes of biofacies zonation of this paleobasin are substantiated. Schemes of zonation have been compiled for the Nyaian, Ugorian, Kimaian, Mukteian, Volginian, Kirenskian-Kudrinian, Chertovskian, and Baksanian Horizons of the regional Ordovician stratigraphic chart of the Siberian Platform. The schemes present biofacies different in lithologic composition, spread of dominant groups of fauna, and hydrochemical regime (normal-marine salinity, freshwater, or high salinity). It is shown that contrasting changes in paleogeographic environments and the spread of faunal communities under changing environmental conditions were influenced by the transgression-regression cyclicity of the evolution of the Siberian Platform paleobasin and by the proximity of the land. Specific groups of fauna localized in particular facies are described. These groups are regarded as communities that were the first to occupy the littoral zones of epicontinental sea basins in the Ordovician.     

Dispersion halos of kimberlite indicator minerals in the Siberian Platform: History and formation conditions

The formation history of dispersion halos of kimberlite indicator minerals in the Siberian Platform is described beginning from the main Middle Paleozoic productive epoch of kimberlite magmatism. The history and formation conditions of the halos are reconstructed from the ontogeny and typomorphism of indicator mineral assemblages with involvement of the geological history of the Siberian Platform. The general trend characterizing the development of indicator mineral halos is discussed. The data obtained allow adequate estimation of of the character and geological setting of indicator mineral halos for forecasting purposes.     

The age of predictable primary diamond sources in the northeastern Siberian Platform

The U–Pb (SHRIMP) age was determined for zircons collected from 26 observation and sampling sites of diamonds and index minerals in the northeastern Siberian Platform. This part of the region hosts 15 low-diamondiferous Paleozoic and Mesozoic kimberlite fields, excluding the near economic Triassic Malokuonapskaya pipe in the Kuranakh field. Four epochs of kimberlite formation (Silurian, Late Devonian to Early Carboniferous, Middle to Late Triassic, and Middle to Late Jurassic) of the Siberian Platform, including its northeastern part, are confirmed as a result of our studies. Most observation points, including economic Quaternary diamond placers, contain Middle to Late Triassic zircons, which confirms the abundant Late Triassic volcanism in this region. The positive correlation of diamonds and major index minerals of kimberlites (mostly, garnets) at some observation sites indicates the possible Triassic age of the predictable diamondiferous kimberlites.     

Formation conditions and stratigraphy of Carboniferous coal deposits of the Siberian Platform

Litbological, paleogeographic, and paleontologic characteristics of the Siberian Platform indicate three stages in the geological development of the region and evolution of its organic world: Early, Middle, and Late Carboniferous, corresponding to the Lower, Middle, and Upper series of the Carboniferous system. Deposits of the lower series, separated as the Anganehan horizon. Include the Anganchan, Kazach'ya, and Krasnognr'yevka suites and lower portions of the Apsekan, Brus, Fat'yanikha, and Kondromo suites. Deposits of the middle series are assigned to the Tushama horizon, which includes the Tushama, Yangoto, Miirma, and Khattynngynakh suites and the Upper portions of the Apsekan, Brus, Fat'yanikha, and Kondromo suites. Formations of the upper series (the Kata horizon) include the Rudnaya, Anaklt, Listvyazhnoye, Kata, and Chokhchuolu suites.—Authors.     

Middle Paleozoic kimberlite magmatism in the northeastern Siberian craton

The mineral chemistry and crystal morphology of kimberlite pyropes from the Billyakh River placer in the northeastern Siberian craton are characterised in terms of the placer history. The pyropes bear signatures of chemical weathering (dissolution), presumably in a Middle Paleozoic laterite profile, and therefore were originally hosted by Middle Paleozoic kimberlites. The broad occurrence of placer pyropes with lateritic dissolution signatures points to the presence of Middle Paleozoic diamond-bearing kimberlites in the study area.     

Kerogen from the Cambrian deposits of the Kuonamka Formation (northeastern Siberian Platform)

Kerogens from the Lower and Middle Cambrian deposits of the Kuonamka Formation in the northeastern Siberian Platform have been analyzed by modern methods. We have determined the pyrolytic characteristics of insoluble organic matter and the contents of C, H, S, N, O, and the stable C isotope. The type and catagenesis of organic matter have been estimated, as well as the generating potential of oil source rocks. It has been found that the composition of kerogens taken from the Molodo River outcrops was affected by supergene processes and that the degree of their alteration is related to the organic content of rocks and their structure.     

Perspectives of the discovery of large and unique noble metal deposits in the northeastern Siberian Platform

Geological prospecting indicators of a potential presence of the Witwatersrand-type large and superlarge noble metal deposits containing optional Pt, Ir, Os, Rh, U, and diamond are presented. Perspective areas of native gold concentration in the northeastern Siberian Platform are indicated. Gold metallogeny of this region was basically developed in Early Precambrian in association with greenstone belts and granulitegneiss complexes. Promising zones with noble metal mineralization encompass large areas at the junction of tectonic provinces.     

Mineralogical criteria for the diamond potential of Upper Triassic placers on the northeastern margin of the Siberian Platform

Representative sampling of a diamond-bearing basal horizon in the Carnian Stage (Upper Triassic) on the northeastern margin of the Siberian Platform revealed a wide spectrum of indicator minerals, first of all, garnets, whose compositions are the same as in the inclusions in the regional diamonds. Of special interest are garnets of potential eclogite paragenesis with an abnormally high impurity of MnO (0.5–3.2 wt.%), which was earlier detected in more than 20% of garnets present as inclusions in diamonds of northern Quaternary placers and recommended as a new mineralogical criterion for diamond presence. Subcalcic Cr-pyropes of dunite–harzburgite paragenesis were also found in variable amounts, from 0.7 to 3.9 rel.%, in the sample of 973 grains of pyropes of lherzolite and websterite parageneses. Three grains contain 11.9, 12.6, and 16 wt.% Cr₂O₃, which corresponds to the presence of 30–34% of Mg–Cr-knorringite component. Such pyropes have been revealed for the first time in the study region. Cr-spinels are a mixture of compositions typical of kimberlites and the regional alkali-ultrabasic rocks. All studied samples contain picroilmenites with a variable content of Cr₂O₃ impurity. Since Mg–Fe–Ca-garnets with Mg# < 35 can be partly hosted in metamorphic rocks of the Anabar Shield, the elevated content of Na₂O impurity (> 0.09 wt.%) was also taken into account. The different contents of indicator minerals in the samples might be due to the variable composition of the diamond orebodies. The Carnian placers call for new systematic sampling. Special attention should be given to estimation of the composition of garnets of presumably eclogite paragenesis with elevated contents of TiO₂, MnO, CaO, and Na₂O and to search for perovskite and Nb-containing rutile. These minerals, together with zircons, are of interest for determining the U–Pb isotopic age of probable diamond orebodies—kimberlites.     

Studies of the reaction between diamond and heated kimberlite

At temperatures above about 1100° C degassed molten kimberlites were found to attack diamond, producing both graphite and metallic iron on the diamond surface. Using ordinary kimberlites in experiments performed at 1 Kb in a closed system, diamonds developed etch features (at temperatures above about 1000° C), consistent with attack by wet CO₂, but no graphite or iron was formed on the surfaces of the diamonds.     

山西地块的深部构造和金伯利建造:兼论金刚石矿与稳定地块的深部过程

稳定地块的深部,软流圈上拱,岩石圈破裂,产生三联结构超壳深断裂系,地幔热流使上地幔岩局部熔融,形成碱性-偏碱性系列岩浆,沿深断裂系侵位过程中演化为金伯利岩建造.金刚石聚集于该建造的终端-(角砾状)碱性超基性岩类,爆发式侵入上地壳,迅速冷凝,金刚石得以保存而成为有用资源.我国的稳定地块面积颇广,显生宙经历多次深部过程,已查明多处金刚石矿藏,仍有巨大找矿潜力.     

Petrochemical evaluation of the diamond potentials of Yakutian kimberlite fields

The diamond potentials of nine kimberlite bodies occurring in the Mirnyi, Nakyn, AlakitMarkha, and Daldyn fields were studied by examination of 2026 10-m core intervals. Most typical rock samples of about 1 kg were taken from each interval for X-ray fluorescence analysis of silicates. A total of 6715 kimberlite samples were analyzed. Pairwise correlation coefficients between mean compositions of kimberlites and their diamond contents were calculated. Correlations with diamond presence (99%) were found only for TiO₂, Al₂O₃, and K₂O. The negative correlation with TiO₂ and the positive correlation with K₂O can serve as criteria for diamond presence. These dependences are in good agreement with the petrochemical population model. According to this model, the decrease in TiO₂ contents in the range 3.0–0.01% and the increase in K₂O content to 0.85% are related to larger depths of parental melting zones. Contents of K₂O exceeding 0.85% are determined by the presence of garnet pyroxenites, associated with processes accompanying oceanic crust subduction, in magma formation zones. Formation of parental melts at larger depths determines higher diamond potentials of kimberlite bodies. Our results confirm the hypothesis that kimberlite parental melts are selective melts of lithospheric peridotites saturated with water and carbon dioxide.     

辽宁瓦房店金刚石矿田金伯利岩侵位机制分析

辽宁省瓦房店金刚石矿田位于华北陆块辽东新元古代-古生代坳陷带。区内各时代地层均有出露,其中新元古界出露面积最大。区内断裂构造发育,较大的有北北东向的金州断裂,已发现的金伯利岩体基本上分布在该断裂以西。矿田内金刚石矿均为金伯利岩型,已发现100多个金伯利岩体,划分成4条矿带,已提交4个大型原生金刚石矿床和3个近源小型金刚石砂矿床,资源量占全国的一半以上,是我国重要的金刚石矿集区,其中50号金伯利岩管因其出产的金刚石质量优越而在宝石界享有盛誉。但本区的金伯利岩绝大部分是20世纪70年代、80年代发现的,为了更好地开展金刚石勘查工作,对本区金伯利岩的成矿条件和控矿因素进行了研究,金伯利岩体的平面分布位置表明,瓦房店地区的金伯利岩体成群、成带分布,既有岩管也有岩脉,以岩脉为主,岩管约占20%左右,岩体大小不等、形态各异,钻孔控制的岩管、岩脉大多具有向下延伸突然中断的特征,钻孔中见到的金伯利岩显示,很多金伯利岩管底界平直或具有多个水平标高上出现平移错动的现象,典型岩管、岩脉与等轴或近等轴状构造盆地的关系密切。通过对区内金伯利体岩空间分布特征、岩体形态特征进行分析,并探讨了本区金伯利岩的侵位过程和...     

Garnets of crustal parageneses in alluvial deposits of the eastern Siberian Platform: genesis and search significance

We present results of study of the specific composition and parageneses of pyrope-almandine garnets from alluvial deposits of the Muna-Markha interfluve drainage in the Yakutian diamondiferous province. The data are correlated with the specific features of garnets (tentatively crustal) from Yakutian and Guinean kimberlites and their crustal xenoliths and from metamorphic rocks of the Anabar Shield. The conclusion is drawn that most of orange pyrope-almandine garnets from the alluvial deposits were generated from kimberlites with varying contents of disintegrated crustal material. This gives grounds to include the studied garnets into a complex of indicator minerals of kimberlites and use them in search for diamonds in the Yakutian diamondiferous province.     

Phenanthrene biomarkers in the organic matter of Precambrian and Phanerozoic deposits and in the oils of the Siberian Platform

The composition and distribution of phenanthrenes (polyaromatic compounds) have been studied in chloroform extracts from dispersed organic matter (OM) of clayey, siliceous, carbonate, and terrigenous rocks of different ages and facies and from some oils of the Siberian Platform. Phenanthrenes have been analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. High contents of 1,7,8-trimethylphenanthrene and 1,1,7,8-tetramethyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydrophenanthrene are present in the OM of Vendian and Cambrian carbonate-shale deposits and in ancient oils of the Nepa-Botuobiya and Anabar anteclises. The OM of Permian continental deposits and oils of the Vilyui syneclise is dominated by 1-methyl-7-isopropylphenanthrene (retene). A triangular diagram for identification of the types of original OM of rocks and classification of genetically related oils has been constructed based on the assessment of phenanthrene biomarker distribution. Putative pathways of the formation of phenanthrene biomarkers are discussed.     

Lithological and structural prerequisites for localization of ore deposits in the Mesoproterozoic-Neoproterozoic Uchur-Maya depression (Siberian Platform)

A set of sketch maps has been compiled including a structural map for the Uchur-Maya depression, maps of the fractures based on the data derived from the digital elevation model processed using the modulus of the topographic gradient for discriminating the fault boundaries, and maps of the lineament distribution and the density of the elementary linear structures. On these sketch maps, the location of the ore deposits and the occurrences of various metals are plotted within the bounds of the Uchur-Maya depression with the defining structural and lithological factors that control the ore occurrences. The locations of the ore objects relative to the differently oriented faults and the lineament network based on the data of the digital elevation model’s processing and the density of the linear structures have been analyzed. The most important lithological factors that control the ore deposits are the pre-Mesoproterozoic structural-stratigraphic unconformity zones, the contact zones between the Mesoproterozoic formations with their contrasting physical and chemical properties, and the high-porosity (cavernous) dolomite member in the Yudomian Group of the Vendian.     

The timing of kimberlite magmatism in North America: implications for global kimberlite genesis and diamond exploration

Based on a compilation of more than 100 kimberlite age determinations, four broad kimberlite emplacement patterns can be recognized in North America: (1) a northeast Eocambrian/Cambrian Labrador Sea province (Labrador, Québec), (2) an eastern Jurassic province (Ontario, Québec, New York, Pennsylvania), (3) a Cretaceous central corridor (Nunavut, Saskatchewan, central USA), and (4) a western mixed (Cambrian-Eocene) Type 3 kimberlite province (Alberta, Nunavut, Northwest Territories, Colorado/Wyoming). Ten new U–Pb perovskite/mantle zircon and Rb–Sr phlogopite age determinations are reported here for kimberlites from the Slave and Wyoming cratons of western North America. Within the Type 3 Slave craton, at least four kimberlite age domains exist: I-a southwestern Siluro-Ordovician domain (450 Ma), II-a SE Cambrian domain (540 Ma), III-a central Tertiary/Cretaceous domain (48–74 Ma) and IV-a northern mixed domain consisting of Jurassic and Permian kimberlite fields. New U–Pb perovskite results for the 614.5±2.1 Ma Chicken Park and 408.4±2.6 Ma Iron Mountain kimberlites in the State Line field in Colorado and Wyoming confirm the existence of at least two periods of pre-Mesozoic kimberlite magmatism in the Wyoming craton.

A compilation of robust kimberlite emplacement ages from North America, southern Africa and Russia indicates that a high proportion of known kimberlites are Cenozoic/Mesozoic. We conclude that a majority of these kimberlites were generated during enhanced mantle plume activity associated with the rifting and eventual breakup of the supercontinent Gondwanaland. Within this prolific period of kimberlite activity, there is a good correlation between North America and Yakutia for three distinct short-duration (10 my) periods of kimberlite magmatism at 48–60, 95–105 and 150–160 Ma. In contrast, Cenozoic/Mesozoic kimberlite magmatism in southern Africa is dominated by a continuum of activity between 70–95 and 105–120 Ma with additional less-prolific periods of magmatism in the Eocene (50–53 Ma), Jurassic (150–190) and Triassic (235 Ma). Several discrete episodes of pre-Mesozoic kimberlite magmatism variably occur in North America, southern Africa and Yakutia at 590–615, 520–540, 435–450, 400–410 and 345–360 Ma. One of the surprises in the timing of kimberlite magmatism worldwide is the common absence of activity between about 250 and 360 Ma; this period is even longer in southern Africa. This >110 my period of quiescence in kimberlite magmatism is likely linked to relative crustal and mantle stability during the lifetime of the supercontinent Gondwanaland.

Economic diamond deposits in kimberlite occur throughout the Phanerozoic from the Cambrian (Venetia, South Africa; Snap Lake and Kennady Lake, Canada) to the Tertiary (Mwadui, Tanzania; Ekati and Diavik in Lac de Gras, Canada). There are clearly some discrete periods when economic kimberlite-hosted diamond deposits formed globally. In contrast, the Devonian event, which is such an important source of diamonds in Yakutia, is notably absent in the kimberlite record from both southern Africa and North America.     

The source of sulfur in sulfide deposits in the Siberian Platform traps (from isotope data)

The source of sulfur in giant Norilsk-type sulfide deposits is discussed. A review of the state of the problem and a critical analysis of existing hypotheses are made. The distribution of δ³⁴S in sulfides of ore occurrences and small and large deposits and in normal sedimentary, metamorphogenic, and hypogene sulfates is considered. A large number of new δ³⁴S data for sulfides and sulfates in various deposits, volcanic and terrigenous rocks, coals, graphites, and metasomatites are presented. The main attention is focused on the objects of the Norilsk and Kureika ore districts. The δ³⁴S value varies from -14 to + 22.5‰ in sulfides of rocks and ores and from 15.3 to 33‰ in anhydrites. In sulfide-sulfate intergrowths and assemblages, δ³⁴S is within 4.2-14.6‰ in sulfides and within 15.3-21.3‰ in anhydrites. The most isotopically heavy sulfur was found in pyrrhotite veins in basalts (δ³⁴S = 21.6‰), in sulfate veins cutting dolomites (δ³⁴S = 33‰), and in subsidence caldera sulfates in basalts (δ³⁴S = 23.2-25.2‰). Sulfide ores of the Tsentral’naya Shilki intrusion have a heavy sulfur isotope composition (δ³⁴S = + 17.7‰ (n = 15)). Thermobarogeochemical studies of anhydrites have revealed inclusions of different types with homogenization temperatures ranging from 685 °C to 80 °C. Metamorphogenic and hypogene anhydrites are associated with a carbonaceous substance, and hypogene anhydrites have inclusions of chloride-containing salt melts. We assume that sulfur in the trap sulfide deposits was introduced with sulfates of sedimentary rocks (δ³⁴S = 22-24‰). No assimilation of sulfates by basaltic melt took place. The sedimentary anhydrites were “steamed” by hydrocarbons, which led to sulfate reduction and δ³⁴S fractionation. As a result, isotopically light sulfur accumulated in sulfides and hydrogen sulfide, isotopically heavy sulfur was removed by aqueous calcium sulfate solution, and “residual” metamorphogenic anhydrite acquired a lighter sulfur isotope composition as compared with the sedimentary one. The wide variations in δ³⁴S in sulfides and sulfates are due to changes in the physicochemical parameters of the ore-forming system (first of all, temperature and P_ch4) during the sulfate reduction. The regional hydrocarbon resources were sufficient for large-scale ore formation.