Speleothems from Mawsmai and Krem Phyllut caves,Meghalaya, India: some evidences on biogenic activities

The Mawsmai cave and Krem Phyllut caves, East Khasi hills, Meghalaya, India has so far not yet attracted the attention of geomicrobiologists. Observations and hypotheses on the possible influence of identified microorganisms for speleothem formations in Meghalaya are reported for the first time. XRD studies identified calcite in speleothems and gypsum in cave wall deposits as the dominant minerals. SEM-EDAX showed interesting microfabric features showing strong resemblance with fossilised bacteria, calcified filaments, needle calcite and numerous nano scale calcite crystals, highly weathered and disintegrated crystals of calcite, that point towards a significant microbial influence in its genesis. Thin section petrography showed laminated stromatolitic features. The microorganisms identified by conventional isolation and further evaluation of isolates by molecular techniques include Bacillus cereus, Bacillus mycoides, Bacillus licheniformis, Micrococcus luteus, and Actinomycetes. Microscopic observations also showed unidentifiable cocci and four unidentifiable strains of CaSO₄ (gypsum) precipitating bacteria. Experimental studies confirmed that these bacteria are able to precipitate calcium minerals (calcite, gypsum, minor amounts of dolomite) in the laboratory. These results allow us to postulate that species like these may contribute to active biogenic influence in the cave formations at Meghalaya.     

Preservation of dinosaur tracks induced by microbial mats in the Sousa Basin (Lower Cretaceous), Brazil

Dinosaur footprints and tracks in the Sousa Basin (Lower Cretaceous, Brazil) occur in at least 37 localities, in distinct stratigraphic positions. Footprints are rare in the Antenor Navarro (lower) and Rio Piranhas (upper) formations, where lithofacies analyses point to sedimentation in ancient alluvial fan to fluvial braided palaeoenvironments. In the Sousa Formation, the generally finer grain sized sediments rendered them more suitable for footprint preservation, where lithofacies analyses point to sedimentation in warm, small/shallow and temporary lakes, swamps and meandering fluvial palaeoenvironments. Microbially induced sedimentary structures are observed in many of the fine-grained lithofacies where dinosaur tracks are also found, and the large number of these tracks in the Sousa Basin (particularly in the Sousa Formation, Lower Cretaceous) may be related to the role of the mats in their preservation. Observations on recent microbial mats show that footprint morphology is related to the mat thickness and to the water content of the mat and the underlying sediment. In dry mats, generally poorly defined or no footprints are produced, while in saturated ones the imprints are well-defined, sometimes with well-defined displacement rims. The formation of well-defined displacement rims around the prints of large dinosaurs occurs in thick, plastic, moist to water-unsaturated microbial mats on top of moist to water-unsaturated sediment. These aspects are commonly observed in the tracks of the Passagem das Pedras site in the Sousa Basin. The footprint consolidation and its early lithification probably occurred due the existence of microbial mats that allowed a more cohesive substrate, preventing the footprints from erosion. The sediments were initially stabilized by early cementation and by the mat fabric over the tracks. Successive flooding, and subsequent sediment influx allowed the large number of layers with dinosaur tracks and sedimentary structures.     

Calcite formation in microbial mats: modeling and quantification of inhomogeneous distribution patterns by a cellular automaton model and multifractal measures

The evolution of early diagenetic calcite cements in microbial mats of recent supratidal sediments of the southern North Sea is modeled in a two-dimensional microscale approach by a cellular automaton model (CAM). Calcite is traced out in the model by virtual calcium distribution patterns obtained from runs under different assumptions concerning sediment-intrinsic conditions. For justification of the CAM, real calcium distribution patterns, documented by scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry (SEM/EDX), are quantitatively compared with the virtual patterns on the basis of multifractal analyses. The formation of high magnesian calcite as a consequence of biogenic anaerobic decomposition of organic matter starts at certain initial calcite domains. In this stage an inhomogeneous and multifractal calcium distribution is characteristic. Nearly complete remineralization of organic matter leads to monofractal behavior of generalized fractal dimensions (D_B(q) ±1.84). The CAM results confirm that calcite formation is a self-determining morphogenetical process and diffusive transport processes of reactants within the mat affect the biogenic calcite formation.     

Petrographic observations suggestive of microbial mats from Rampur Shale and Bijaigarh Shale, Vindhyan basin, India

Petrographic observations of two Vindhyan black shales (Rampur Shale of the Semri Group and Bijaigarh Shale of the Kaimur Group) revealed the following features:

Remarkable preservation of microbial mats in Neoproterozoic siliciclastic settings: Implications for Ediacaran taphonomic models

It is beyond doubt that the appearance of infaunal bioturbation and metazoan biomineralization across the Ediacaran–Cambrian transition irreversibly affected the nature of marine sediment architecture and biogeochemistry. Here we review those changes in relation to their likely effect upon the processes of fossil preservation, especially within siliciclastic sediments. Processes of soft-tissue preservation in siliciclastic settings from the Ediacaran Period, including microbes and microbial mats as well as Ediacaran macrofossils, are here reviewed within this context. Highlighted examples include the exceptional preservation of microbes found in association with wrinkle structures and Ediacaran macrofossils in England and Newfoundland (replicated by silicate minerals) and in the White Sea region of Russia (replicated by iron sulphide). These occurrences show that soft-tissue preservation in siliciclastic settings went well beyond that typical for Ediacaran macrofossils alone and also extended to similar modes of preservation in associated microbes. Using these new observations it can be argued that several existing explanations for Ediacaran fossil preservation can be united within a biogeochemical model that involves evolution of the sediment mixed layer across this transition.     

External controls on the distribution,fabrics and mineralization of modern microbial mats in a coastal hypersaline lagoon,Cayo Coco (Cuba)

Active, carbonate‐mineralizing microbial mats flourish in a tropical, highly evaporative, marine‐fed lagoonal network to the south of Cayo Coco Island (Cuba). Hypersaline conditions support the development of a complex sedimentary microbial ecosystem with diverse morphologies, a variable intensity of mineralization and a potential for preservation. In this study, the role of intrinsic (i.e. microbial) and extrinsic (i.e. physicochemical) controls on microbial mat development, mineralization and preservation was investigated. The network consists of lagoons, forming in the interdune depressions of a Pleistocene aeolian substratum; they developed due to a progressive increase in sea‐level since the Holocene. The hydrological budget in the Cayo Coco lagoonal network changes from west to east, increasing the salinity. This change progressively excludes grazers and increases the saturation index of carbonate minerals, favouring the development and mineralization of microbial mats in the easternmost lagoons. Detailed mapping of the easternmost lagoon shows four zones with different flooding regimes. The microbial activity in the mats was recorded using light–dark shifts in conjunction with microelectrode O₂ and HS^? profiles. High rates of O₂ production and consumption, in addition to substantial amounts of exopolymeric substances, are indicative of a potentially strong intrinsic control on mineralization. Seasonal, climate‐driven water fluctuations are key for mat development, mineralization, morphology and distribution. Microbial mats show no mineralization in the permanently submersed zone, and moderate mineralization in zones with alternating immersion and exposure. It is suggested that mineralization is also driven by water‐level fluctuations and evaporation. Mineralized mats are laminated and consist of alternating trapping and binding of grains and microbially induced magnesium calcite and dolomite precipitation. The macrofabrics of the mats evolve from early colonizing Flat mats to complex Cerebroid or Terrace structures. The macrofabrics are influenced by the hydrodynamic regime: wind‐driven waves inducing relief terraces in windward areas and flat morphologies on the leeward side of the lagoon. Other external drivers include: (i) storm events that either promote (for example, by bioclasts covering) or prevent (for example, by causing erosion) microbial mat preservation; and (ii) subsurface degassing, through mangrove roots and desiccation cracks covered by Flat mats (i.e. forming Hemispheroids and Cerebroidal structures). These findings provide in‐depth insights into understanding fossil microbialite morphologies that formed in lagoonal settings.     

Neoproterozoic trace fossils vs. microbial mat structures: Examples from the Tandilia Belt of Argentina

The Tandilia Belt in northeast Argentina includes a Neoproterozoic sequence of sediments (Sierras Bayas Group), in which the Cerro Largo Formation, ca. 750 Ma in age, forms a siliciclastic, shallowing upward succession of subtidal nearshore to tidal flat deposits. Trace fossils Palaeophycus isp. and Didymaulichnus isp. have been described from the upper part of this succession. Specific sedimentary structures consisting of round-crested bulges, arranged in a reticulate pattern, and networks of curved cracks are associated with the trace fossils. These structures are considered to be related to epibenthic microbial mats that once colonized the sediment surface. They reflect stages of mat growth and mat destruction, if compared to analogous structures in modern cyanobacterial mats of peritidal, siliciclastic depositional systems. Also the trace fossils are interpreted as mat-related structures, partly forming components of networks of shrinkage cracks, partly representing the upturned and involute margins of shrinkage cracks or circular openings in desiccating and shrinking, thin microbial mats.

The definition of Didymaulichnus miettensis Young as a Terminal Proterozoic trace fossil is questioned, and it may be considered to interpret the ‘bilobate’ structure as the upturned, opposite margins of microbial shrinkage cracks which have been brought back into contact by compaction after burial.     

Electron spin resonance dating of the fossil deposits in the Naracoorte Caves,South Australia

The caves near Naracoorte, South Australia, contain one of the richest and most diverse fossil faunal assemblages on the Australian continent. Three sites were selected for electron spin resonance (ESR) dating because clastic, fossiliferous sediments were sandwiched between speleothem layers. This allows independent age control by highly precise thermal ionization mass‐spectrometry (TIMS) U‐series dating. We find that all ESR results agree within the constraints given by the U‐series dates, and allow further refinement of the age of the fauna analysed, indicating that most of the fauna in the large Victoria Cave Fossil Chamber is twice as old as reported previously. Our dating results, spanning from 280 to 500 ka for the Fossil Chamber, Victoria Cave, to about 125 ka for the Grant Hall, Victoria Cave, and 170 to 280 ka for the Fossil Chamber, Cathedral Cave, indicate little change, if any, in the megafaunal assemblage from the early Middle to the early Late Pleistocene. This changed dramatically after the last interglacial, when a large proportion of the megafauna suddenly disappeared. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ordovician strata in the Cliefden Caves area,New South Wales: a case study in the preservation of a globally significant paleontological site

The Cliefden Caves area in central-western New South Wales includes the scientifically most important and irreplaceable examples of fossiliferous Ordovician rocks in the State. Exposures of the stratigraphically lower parts of the Cliefden Caves Limestone Subgroup on the aptly named Fossil Hill are world-famous among paleontologists and internationally significant for preserving the earliest in situ shell beds documented in the literature. They also contain some of the oldest known rugose corals, and an exceptional example of one of the oldest coralline biostromes, as well as many examples of invertebrate fossils and cyanobacterial mat structures that either are unique to this locality or were first described from here. Other stratigraphic levels throughout the total 363?m-thick Cliefden Caves Limestone Subgroup are similarly endowed with highly significant fossils, such as a globally unique in situ shell bank with rare examples of the trimerellide brachiopod Belubula spectacula, a wealth of shelly fossils and trilobites on Dunhill Bluff (adjacent to Fossil Hill to the east), and the appropriately named Trilobite Hill. Less well known to the general public, but of international importance to paleontologists, is the unique deep-water sponge fauna of the overlying Malongulli Formation that occurs at several levels in limestone lenses within this unit. Fossils from the Cliefden Caves Limestone Subgroup and the Malongulli Formation have been documented in more than 60 scientific papers and monographs since paleontological investigations into the site were first published in 1895. Despite concerted scientific endeavour in the region over the past 50?years, much more study needs to be done to fully document the paleontological riches of the Cliefden Caves area. These sites are interpreted as the remains of a tropical island, fringed by limestone and flanked by deep-water environments in which the Malongulli Formation was deposited. Preservation of such islands is exceptionally rare in the geological record. It is therefore vital for the area to remain accessible to scientific researchers to continue their studies. Flooding of the Belubula Valley by a proposed dam downstream from the Cliefden Caves area would hinder future research work on this unique geoheritage resource. Fortunately, a successful public campaign has led to listing of the site on the State Heritage Register that will provide essential protection of the caves from inundation while ensuring continued access to researchers.     

Global geoheritage significance of Ordovician stratigraphy and sedimentology in the Cliefden Caves area,central western New South Wales

Globally significant geoheritage features of the Cliefden Caves area, in the Belubula River Valley between Orange and Cowra in central western New South Wales, comprise a richly fossiliferous shallow-water limestone succession of Late Ordovician age (the Cliefden Caves Limestone Subgroup) overlain by deep-water laminites and allochthonous limestones of the Upper Ordovician Malongulli Formation. Key features of the Ordovician geology of the Cliefden Caves area that have been identified using the Geoheritage Toolkit as being of international significance are the abundance of unique and exceptionally diverse fossils in the Fossil Hill Limestone (forming the lower part of the Cliefden Caves Limestone Subgroup), which supplement detailed interpretation of carbonate-dominated deposition within an Ordovician volcanic island setting. The fossiliferous limestones preserve biostromes and local small bioherms of stromatoporoids and corals, and recurrent in situ and disarticulated/imbricated Eodinobolus shell beds formed in shallow, quiet-water, dominantly muddy carbonate sediments that passed up-sequence to clay-free carbonate environments. These mud-dominated carbonate sediments are interspersed with higher-energy conditions, represented by skeletal, lithoclastic and calcrete-ooid grainstones overlying disconformities, leading to the identification of subaerial disconformities and associated diagenesis in the Fossil Hill Limestone. The Fossil Hill Limestone is succeeded by massive limestones in the middle part of the Cliefden Caves Limestone Subgroup and then, in turn by the Vandon Limestone and the deeper-water graptolitic laminites of the Malongulli Formation—this completes a succession that is rarely preserved in the geological record, further enhancing the geoheritage significance of the Cliefden Caves area.     

Microbially-induced sedimentary wrinkle structures and possible impact of microbial mats for the enhanced preservation of dinosaur tracks from the Lower Cretaceous Jiaguan Formation near Qijiang (Chongqing,China)

Recently, a paleosurface with microbially-induced sedimentary wrinkle structures that are associated with abundant, well-preserved, iguanodon-type, tridactyl tracks has been documented at the Lotus tracksite near Qijiang (Chongqing, China) in fluvial deposits of the Lower Cretaceous Jiaguan Formation. Two different wrinkle structure types are identified and described from a macroscopic point of view and also by applying microstructure analysis with a scanning electron microscope (SEM) with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and other high-resolution instruments, that detected sheath-like and globular organic matter and thus confirm the microbial origin of the observed wrinkle structures. A model for the formation of the two microbial mat induced wrinkle structure types and associated preservation of dinosaur tracks is proposed. Finally, some human footprints were left in comparable modern environments covered with a thin microbial mat, and they are used as a modern analog in order to better understand the track formation and preservation mechanisms of the dinosaur tracks of the Lotus tracksite.     

甘肃省肃北县红山铁矿外围找矿新进展

近几年,甘肃省肃北县红山铁矿外围通过地质调查工作,新发现具有进一步工作价值的铁矿点2处,初步评价为大-中型铁矿床。矿体主要赋存于蓟县系平头山组,其产出形态与空间分布受层位及背、向斜构造控制,且深部矿体好于浅部,矿体呈层状、透镜状。勘查区北部罗雅楚山复式向斜内红山铁矿西侧已圈定出长度大于50km的磁异常带,经验证为矿致异常。参照红山铁矿区潜力评价思路及预测成果,该区铁矿资源潜力可达10×108 t以上。通过进一步勘查工作,该地区有望形成大型铁矿资源基地。     

Geochemical characteristics of ores and surface waters for environmental risk assessment in the Pinpet iron deposit,southern Shan State,Myanmar

Mining operations in the Pinpet Fe deposit, which is the second‐largest Fe deposit in Myanmar, are currently suspended, in part because of possible contamination of heavy metals and hazardous elements (e.g., Fe, As, Cu, Zn, and U) into the surrounding aquatic environment and associated public concern. However, a scientific investigation of the source and degree of contamination in streams near the deposit has not yet been conducted. Therefore, we quantified heavy‐metal and hazardous‐element concentrations of stream waters and sediments in stream beds, and measured the speciation and concentration of these metals in deposit Fe ores using the sequential extraction method, to better understand the influence of mining activities on the surrounding environment. Geochemical results for Nan‐tank‐pauk stream and its tributaries indicate that the chemical compositions of their waters are controlled by carbonate bedrock and that no detectable contamination has occurred as a result of mining activity or hematite and limonite ore beneficiation processes in either the wet or dry seasons. All measured heavy‐metal and hazardous‐element concentrations were below the World Health Organization standards for drinking water and the proposed national drinking water quality standards in Myanmar. Bulk chemical compositions of stream‐bed and tailings dam sediments show that As, Zn, and Cu concentrations are similar to those in uncontaminated sediments. Results of bulk mineralogical and chemical analyses of ore samples reveal that some limonite ore samples contain substantial amounts of As (up to 2 wt%). However, sequential extraction results indicate that most (>90%) of the As in these As‐rich ores is hosted in insoluble fractions (e.g., crystalline Fe hydroxides and clays). Therefore, arsenic is unlikely to be released into the aquatic environment by interacting with water during ore beneficiation processes should the mine resume operations.     

新疆备战火山岩型铁矿床大哈拉军山组碳酸盐岩中铁矿体的发现及成因意义

新疆西天山备战铁矿床出露下石炭统大哈拉军山组海相火山喷发-沉积碎屑岩夹碳酸盐岩建造, 前人认为矿区铁矿体赋存在中-基性火山岩中, 主要为岩浆-热液成因。本文作者对矿区进行了剖面测量和钻孔岩芯编录, 发现在碳酸盐岩地层中也发育有铁矿体, 该矿体由纹层状、浸染状、条带状和块状矿石组成, 前三种矿石组成贫矿体, 呈层状分布于碳酸盐岩中; 块状矿石组成富矿体, 呈脉状产出于不同围岩界面及裂隙中。对矿区的碳酸盐岩进行了岩相学、地球化学和同位素分析, 认为区内碳酸盐岩包括灰岩、硅质灰岩、白云岩、钙质白云岩和大理岩等, 含矿岩石主要是白云岩。碳酸盐岩的碳同位素δ¹³C_V-PDB值(3.0‰~5.2‰)变化小, 而氧同位素δ¹⁸O_V-PDB值(-21.7‰~-12.3‰)变化大, 与成岩作用及热液活动有关; 灰岩和硅质灰岩的U/Th(< 0.5)、Ni/Co(2.99~7.59)和V/Cr(1.37~2.32)比值相对较低, δCe(0.85~1.02)异常不明显, 硅质灰岩中含有较高的SiO₂(>15%)和Al₂O₃(>3%), 其中还有硅质岩夹层, 指示其沉积环境为受陆源碎屑混染作用影响的酸性、氧化环境。白云岩的U/Th(>0.5)、Ni/Co(6.01~-18.36)、V/Cr(2.06~5.38)比值适中, δCe(0.83~0.98)具有负异常, 岩石含有硫化物和有机质, 很少有陆源碎屑混染, 指示白云岩沉积环境为碱性、还原环境, 利于Fe²⁺的溶解及铁胶体沉淀成矿。矿相学和矿物化学研究表明, 碳酸盐岩中的纹层状和浸染状矿石的磁铁矿分别是铁胶体后期转化和黄铁矿被交代的产物, 磁铁矿具有富镁低硅的特点, 为沉积成因; 而条带状和块状矿石中的磁铁矿是重结晶作用和热液交代及充填作用所致, 磁铁矿具有富钙和铝的特点, 为热液成因。因此, 备战铁矿床的碳酸盐岩中发育的铁矿体为沉积成因, 有后期热液成矿作用的叠加, 可归为沉积-热液叠加成因。

     

微量元素在福建马坑铁矿崎濑泉形成条件识别中的应用

崎濑泉是福建马坑铁矿区附近流量最大的泉,与矿区的关系一直没有查清。本文通过对前人勘察资料研究和在不同部位采水样进行分析的基础上,运用聚类分析和指示岩溶水、碎屑岩地下水补给来源和径流过程的Sr /Ca与Rb /K值研究了福建马坑铁矿崎濑泉补给来源和径流途径。结果表明,取自崎濑泉泉口水样与及矿区水文钻孔的岩溶水水样相关系数达到0.98,而与取自矿区北部砂岩裂隙水的水样相关性则很差;灰岩水和砂岩水间的相关系数仅为0. 26;崎濑泉水的Sr / Ca、Rb /K值与岩溶水的都比较相近,而砂岩裂隙水的Rb /K值则明显地较崎濑泉水与岩溶水的高,说明崎濑泉水的来源应当是深部的岩溶水,与其上部的砂岩裂隙水并无密切关系;崎濑泉的形成是大气降水在矿区东北部天山凹附近的灰岩裸露区渗入岩溶含水层并向西径流,至矿区中西部沿F10断层附近的岩溶强径流带径流至崎濑村,受陈坑- 崎濑断层阻挡然后涌出地面,而并非前人所说的是先由大气降水补给砂岩裂隙含水层,然后再由砂岩裂隙含水层补给下部的岩溶含水层。     

塔尔塔格铁矿床——新疆阿吾拉勒铁成矿带内首例IOA型铁矿床的厘定及意义

塔尔塔格铁矿是新疆西天山阿吾拉勒海相火山岩型铁成矿带内的一处中型铁矿床,其铁矿体呈透镜状产于粗安玢岩内顶部,在揭示海相火山岩中铁矿床与侵入岩关系方面具有重要意义。该铁矿床发育典型的磁铁矿 磷灰石组合,基本不含硫化物,矿石以似斑状、浸染状、球粒状和晶洞等构造类型为特色,磁铁矿内发育由条带状或叶片状钛铁矿和钛氧化物构成的出溶结构,并有少量的榍石、钍石、萤石等副矿物与之共生,矿床地质特征表明该矿床为典型的与富碱、中性侵入岩有关的IOA（iron oxide apatite）型铁矿床。该矿床围岩英安岩、赋矿粗安玢岩与成矿后正长花岗岩的锆石SHRIMP U Pb同位素加权平均年龄分别为311. 3±1. 4 Ma、304. 7±2. 9 Ma和301. 1±2. 8 Ma,铁矿石样品中与磁铁矿共生的榍石的LA ICP MS U Pb同位素加权平均年龄为302. 3±4. 0 Ma和303. 7±4. 2 Ma,成岩成矿年龄高度吻合,进一步确定其在晚石炭世晚期成矿。本文根据地质特征认为该矿床矿石是由粗安玢岩顶部富铁挥发分聚集而形成的,并初步提出“超浅成侵入岩顶部富挥发分囊体”成矿模型,即富碱、中性岩体超浅成侵位导致挥发分在岩体顶部迅速聚集形成多处富铁和挥发分的囊体,岩体冷凝固结的同时磁铁矿快速结晶成矿。塔尔塔格“IOA型”型铁矿的成因厘定,不仅表明海相火山岩型铁矿与IOA型铁矿可能存在成因联系,还暗示了海相火山岩型铁成矿带内具有寻找IOA型铁矿的潜力。     

华北克拉通条带状铁建造中富铁矿成因类型的研究进展、远景和存在的科学问题

本文在查阅前人大量资料的基础上,对华北克拉通条带状铁建造中富铁矿的研究历史进行了回顾和总结,将研究历史分为1949年以前,1950~1965年期间,1978~1986年期间,1987~1994年期间和2009年以来5个阶段。重点介绍了鞍本地区、冀东-吕梁地区和河南舞阳地区富铁矿的基本地质特征以及典型富铁矿的研究概况,针对鞍本地区弓长岭二矿区磁铁富矿成因的复杂性,对不同成因观点以及目前已取得的共识进行了详细阐述。目前大多数学者不支持接触交代假说和菱铁矿经变质转化为富铁矿成矿假说,近半数学者支持变质热液成矿假说,半数学者支持混合岩化热液成矿假说。作者在综合分析前人大量资料后,认为变质热液成矿说依据不足,理由有四点:(1)磁铁富矿中往往见有磁铁贫矿的残体;(2)磁铁富矿与蚀变岩紧密伴生,蚀变矿物石榴子石、部分角闪石(透闪石)和部分绿泥石均属非变质热液成因;(3)研究区遭受区域高绿片岩相至低角闪岩相变质作用的时间为2500~2450Ma,而与蚀变矿物石榴石紧密伴生的热液锆石SHRIMP U-Pb定年结果为1840±7Ma,明显小于区域变质作用年龄,据此可将热液作用时间限定于古元古代晚期,相当于大陆地壳伸展阶段;(4)部分热液成因富铁矿利用Re-Os方法定年,除一种属原生沉积成矿外,年龄范围也在古元古代晚期,可作为参考。此种热液是否为混合岩化热液尚缺乏足够证据,故本文暂将其作为古元古代晚期热液。此外,本文对华北克拉通条带状铁建造中富铁矿成因类型及其远景进行了初步总结,认为古元古代晚期形成的磁铁富矿规模属大型矿床,有较好远景;原生较富贫铁矿因褶皱构造产生磁铁矿流变而形成的富铁矿(可能尚有热液叠加)规模较大,具有一定远景;其他类型均为小型规模,不具工业意义。最后,本文指出富铁矿成因研究中尚存在的主要问题,包括早元古代晚期热液的来源;热液的形成是一期还是多期;铁建造遭受区域变质达高绿片岩相时,贫铁矿的围岩变质演化机理等,尚需进一步探讨。     

Forms of Iron in the Phosphorites of Abu—Tartur Area,Egypt

The Campanian-Maastrichtian phosphatic deposits in Egypt,called the Duwi Forma-tion,comprise a part of the extensive Middle East to North African phosphogenic province of Late Cretaceous to Paleogene age.The province holds the greatest accumulation of phosphorites in the geological history,possibly in excess of 70 billion metric tons.The phosphate resources in Egypt alone exceed 3 billion metric tons.Two-third of these three billions occur only in the Abu-Tartur area.Among the phosphorite deposits in Egypt,the phosphorites of the Abu-Tartur area are characterized by high contents of iron ranging from 3% to 7% with an average of 5%.The detailed mineralogical and geochemical studies on the Abu-Tartur phosphorites revealed that iron is found in the form of pyrite,ankerite,clay minerals,microinclusions,and iron oxide.Pyrite,which is the major fraction,occurs as filling cement and partial to complete teplacement of phosphatic grains and confined to the fresh phosphorites while iron oxide occurs as cryp-tocrystalline aggregates of red to brown particles and is confined to the weathered outcrops.Ex-clusive relations between pyrite in the fresh phosphorite samples inside the Abu-Tartur mine and iron oxide in the equivalent horizon of the weathered exposure indicated that iron oxide was formed by the oxidation of pyrite as a result of weathering.All of these forms harm the quality of ore,manufacturing processes,and the produced phosphoric acid and fertilizers.     

山东大张矽卡岩型铁矿床中铁的富集机制 ——来自流体包裹体和氢、氧同位素的证据

大张铁矿是鲁西地区近年来新发现的一个重要的矽卡岩型矿床.矿体主要赋存于石英二长闪长岩与奥陶系马家沟组灰岩接触带及其附近.根据脉体穿插关系和交代蚀变特征,将大张矽卡岩型铁矿床成矿过程划分为矽卡岩阶段、氧化物阶段、硫化物阶段和碳酸盐阶段.通过对透辉石、绿帘石、石英和方解石等透明矿物显微观察发现,大张铁矿中流体包裹体类型主要...