辽宁瓦房店金刚石矿床50号岩管地质特征及找矿预测

以辽宁瓦房店金刚石矿床50号岩管为例,系统分析了该矿床的地质特征。通过对斑状富金云母金伯利岩、含围岩角砾斑状金伯利岩和金伯利凝灰角砾岩进行岩石地球化学分析发现: 碳酸盐化金伯利凝灰角砾岩超基性成分较少,滑石化、蛇纹石化及碳酸盐化混合金伯利凝灰角砾岩超基性成分较多; 铬、镍、钛在金伯利凝灰角砾岩中的含量较低,在含围岩角砾斑状金云母金伯利岩中的含量略高,在斑状富金云母金伯利岩和斑状金伯利岩中的含量最高。该矿床主要为含围岩角砾斑状金伯利岩和斑状富金云母金伯利岩,其次为金伯利凝灰角砾岩、含围岩角砾斑状金云母金伯利岩和含金伯利物质角砾岩。含铬镁铝榴石、铬铁矿和碳硅石是金刚石的伴生矿物。水平方向上,金伯利岩含矿品位西部较富,东部较贫; 垂直方向上,金伯利岩含矿品位变化较小。通过三维建模,推测50号岩管不是根部相,而是受EW向推覆构造作用影响发生的断层错位,在其东侧600 m深处存在50-1号金伯利岩体。     

Geological characteristics and prospecting predictions of No.50 kimberlite pipe in Wafangdian diamond deposit of Liaoning Province

Taking No.50 kimberlite pipe of Wafangdian diamond deposit in Liaoning Province as an example, the authors systematically analyzed its geological characteristics. Based on the petrogeochemical analysis of porphyry phlogopite kimberlite, breccia porphyry kimberlite with surrounding rocks and kimberlite tuff breccia, it is found that there are less ultrabasic components in carbonated kimberlite tuff breccia and more ultrabasic components in kimberlite tuff breccia mixed with steatitization, serpentinization and carbonation. The content of Cr, Ni and Ti is relatively lower in kimberlite tuff breccia, slightly higher in breccia porphyrg phlogopite kimberlite with surrounding rocks and the highest in porphyry phlogopite kimberlite and porphyry kimberlite. This deposit is mainly composed of breccia porphyry kimberlite with surrounding rocks and porphyry phlogopite kimberlite, followed by kimberlite tuff breccia, breccia porphyry phlogopite kimberlite with surrounding rocks and kimberlite breccia. Chromite bearing pyrope, chromite and moissanite are associated minerals of the diamond deposit. The kimberlite ore-bearing grade is high in the western part and low in the eastern part in the horizontal direction, while the kimberlite ore-bearing grade changes little in the vertical direction. Through the three-dimensional modeling, it is inferred that instead of the root phase, No.50 kimberlite pipe is the fault dislocation caused by the EW nappe structural force with the No.50-1 kimberlite body at the depth of 600 m in the eastern pipe.     

The geology and mineralogy of the Anuri kimberlite, Nunavut, Canada

The 613±6 Ma Anuri kimberlite is a pipelike body comprising two lobes with a combined surface area of approximately 4–5 ha. The pipe is infilled with two contrasting rock types: volcaniclastic kimberlite (VK) and, less common, hypabyssal kimberlite (HK).

The HK is an archetypal kimberlite composed of macrocrysts of olivine, spinel, mica, rare eclogitic garnet and clinopyroxene with microphenocrysts of olivine and groundmass spinel, phlogopite, apatite and perovskite in a serpentine–calcite–phlogopite matrix. The Ba enrichment of phlogopite, the compositional trends of both primary spinel and phlogopite, as well as the composition of the mantle-derived xenocrysts, are also characteristic of kimberlite. The present-day country rocks are granitoids; however, the incorporation of sedimentary xenoliths in the HK shows that the Archean granitoid basement terrain, at least locally, was capped by younger Proterozoic sediments at the time of emplacement. The sediments have since been removed by erosion. HK is confined to the deeper eastern parts of the Anuri pipe. It is suggested that the HK was emplaced prior to the dominant VK as a separate phase of kimberlite. The HK must have ascended to high stratigraphic levels to allow incorporation of Proterozoic sediments as xenoliths.

Most of the Anuri kimberlite is infilled with VK which is composed of variable proportions of juvenile lapilli, discrete olivine macrocrysts, country rock xenoliths and mantle-derived xenocrysts. It is proposed that the explosive breakthrough of a second batch of kimberlite magma formed the western lobe resulting in the excavation of the main pipe. Much of the resulting fragmented country rock material was deposited in extra crater deposits. Pyroclastic eruption(s) of kimberlite must have occurred to form the common juvenile lapilli present in the VKs. The VK is variable in nature and can be subdivided into four types: volcaniclastic kimberlite breccia, magmaclast-rich volcaniclastic kimberlite breccia, finer grained volcaniclastic kimberlite breccia and lithic-rich volcaniclastic kimberlite breccia. The variations between these subtypes reflect different depositional processes. These processes are difficult to determine but could include primary pyroclastic deposition and/or resedimentation.

There is some similarity between Anuri and the Lac de Gras kimberlites, with variable types of VK forming the dominant infill of small, steep-sided pipes excavated into crystalline Archean basement and sedimentary cover.     

山东蒙阴县西峪金伯利岩带深部综合地球物理特征及其意义

山东省蒙阴地区金伯利岩的深部地质构造特征是地学研究的热点之一。在蒙阴地区金伯利岩分布区中心部位的西峪岩带进行了10 km综合地球物理勘查,采用地震反射、大地电磁测深及重力测量解译推断出上五井和西峪两处的深部断裂构造。其中,西峪断裂带是金伯利岩浆侵入的先期控制性构造和岩浆通道,在西峪金伯利岩带内,地震反射波同相轴异常、重力低密度体、电阻率低阻异常都较为明显,且异常带有一定的连续性和规模,与已知的浅部金伯利岩体的分布形态比较吻合,推测地表延伸4 km深度内,西峪岩带内有较好的金伯利岩的发育,岩体在深部呈现节藕状间断分布。金伯利岩浆在近地表处隐爆,造成更多的破碎带和次生断裂,形成由密集零散分布的金伯利岩体组成的金伯利岩带,同时产生岩石的低电阻率和低密度异常。     

Geology of the Victor Kimberlite, Attawapiskat, Northern Ontario, Canada: cross-cutting and nested craters

The pipe shapes, infill and emplacement processes of the Attawapiskat kimberlites, including Victor, contrast with most of the southern African kimberlite pipes. The Attawapiskat kimberlite pipes are formed by an overall two-stage process of (1) pipe excavation without the development of a diatreme (sensu stricto) and (2) subsequent pipe infilling. The Victor kimberlite comprises two adjacent but separate pipes, Victor South and Victor North. The pipes are infilled with two contrasting textural types of kimberlite: pyroclastic and hypabyssal-like kimberlite. Victor South and much of Victor North are composed of pyroclastic spinel carbonate kimberlites, the main features of which are similar: clast-supported, discrete macrocrystal and phenocrystal olivine grains, pyroclastic juvenile lapilli, mantle-derived xenocrysts and minor country rock xenoliths are set in serpentine and carbonate matrices. These partly bedded, juvenile lapilli-bearing olivine tuffs appear to have been formed by subaerial fire-fountaining airfall processes.

The Victor South pipe has a simple bowl-like shape that flares from just below the basal sandstone of the sediments that overlie the basement. The sandstone is a known aquifer, suggesting that the crater excavation process was possibly phreatomagmatic. In contrast, the pipe shape and internal geology of Victor North are more complex. The northwestern part of the pipe is dominated by dark competent rocks, which resemble fresh hypabyssal kimberlite, but have unusual textures and are closely associated with pyroclastic juvenile lapilli tuffs and country rock breccias±volcaniclastic kimberlite. Current evidence suggests that the hypabyssal-like kimberlite is, in fact, not intrusive and that the northwestern part of Victor North represents an early-formed crater infilled with contrasting extrusive kimberlites and associated breccias. The remaining, main part of Victor North consists of two macroscopically similar, but petrographically distinct, pyroclastic kimberlites that have contrasting macrodiamond sample grades. The juvenile lapilli of each pyroclastic kimberlite can be distinguished only microscopically. The nature and relative modal proportion of primary olivine phenocrysts in the juvenile lapilli are different, indicating that they derive from different magma pulses, or phases of kimberlite, and thus represent separate eruptions. The initial excavation of a crater cross-cutting the earlier northwestern crater was followed by emplacement of phase (i), a low-grade olivine phenocryst-rich pyroclastic kimberlite, and the subsequent eruption of phase (ii), a high-grade olivine phenocryst-poor pyroclastic kimberlite, as two separate vents nested within the original phase (i) crater. The second eruption was accompanied by the formation of an intermediate mixed zone with moderate grade. Thus, the final pyroclastic pipe infill of the main part of the Victor North pipe appears to consist of at least three geological/macrodiamond grade zones.

In conclusion, the Victor kimberlite was formed by several eruptive events resulting in adjacent and cross-cutting craters that were infilled with either pyroclastic kimberlite or hypabyssal-like kimberlite, which is now interpreted to be of probable extrusive origin. Within the pyroclastic kimberlites of Victor North, there are two nested vents, a feature seldom documented in kimberlites elsewhere. This study highlights the meaningful role of kimberlite petrography in the evaluation of diamond deposits and provides further insight into kimberlite emplacement and volcanism.     

Indicator mineralogy of kimberlite boulders from eskers in the Kirkland Lake and Lake Timiskaming areas, Ontario, Canada

Sixteen kimberlite boulders were collected from three sites on the Munro and Misema River Eskers in the Kirkland Lake kimberlite field and one site on the Sharp Lake esker in the Lake Timiskaming kimberlite field. The boulders were processed for heavy-mineral concentrates from which grains of Mg-ilmenite, chromite, garnet, clinopyroxene and olivine were picked, counted and analyzed by electron microprobe. Based on relative abundances and composition of these mineral phases, the boulders could be assigned to six mineralogically different groups, five for the Kirkland Lake area and one for the Lake Timiskaming area. Their indicator mineral composition and abundances are compared to existing data for known kimberlites in both the Kirkland Lake and Lake Timiskaming areas. Six boulders from the Munro Esker form a compositionally homogeneous group (I) in which the Mg-ilmenite population is very similar to that of the A1 kimberlite, located 7–12 km N (up-ice), directly adjacent to the Munro esker in the Kirkland Lake kimberlite field. U–Pb perovskite ages of three of the group I boulders overlap with that of the A1 kimberlite. Three other boulders recovered from the same localities in the Munro Esker also show some broad similarities in Mg-ilmenite composition and age to the A1 kimberlite. However, they are sufficiently different in mineral abundances and composition from each other and from the A1 kimberlite to assign them to different groups (II–IV). Their sources could be different phases of the same kimberlite or—more likely—three different, hitherto unknown kimberlites up-ice of the sample localities along the Munro Esker in the Kirkland Lake kimberlite field. A single boulder from the Misema River esker, Kirkland Lake, has mineral compositions that do not match any of the known kimberlites from the Kirkland Lake field. This suggests another unknown kimberlite exists in the area up-ice of the Larder Lake pit along the Misema River esker. Six boulders from the Sharp Lake esker, within the Lake Timiskaming field, form a homogeneous group with distinct mineral compositions unmatched by any of the known kimberlites in the Lake Timiskaming field. U–Pb perovskite age determinations on two of these boulders support this notion. These boulders are likely derived from an unknown kimberlite source up-ice from the Seed kimberlite, 4 km NW of the Sharp Lake pit, since indicator minerals with identical compositions to those of the Sharp Lake boulders have been found in till samples collected down-ice from Seed. Based on abundance and composition of indicator minerals, most importantly Mg-ilmenite, and supported by U–Pb age dating of perovskite, we conclude that the sources of 10 of the 16 boulders must be several hitherto unknown kimberlite bodies in the Kirkland Lake and Lake Timiskaming kimberlite fields.     

The significance of termites on the future of kimberlite exploration in Botswana

The majority of the diamond mines in Botswana were discovered as a direct consequence of soil sampling for indicator minerals such as garnet and picroilmenite. Over the past 60 years the application of soil sampling for indicator minerals as a primary exploration tool has declined while aeromagnetic surveys have increased in popularity. The rate of kimberlite discovery in Botswana has declined significantly. The obvious magnetic kimberlites have been discovered. The future of new kimberlite discoveries is once again dependent on soil sampling for kimberlite indicator minerals. It is essential to have an in depth understanding of the transport mechanism of kimberlite indicator minerals from the kimberlite to the modern day surface of the Kalahari Formation, which is solely via termite bioturbation. Field observations indicate that the concentration of indicator minerals at surface is directly dependent on the physical characteristics and capabilities as well as behavioural patterns of the particular termite species dominant in the exploration area. The discovery of future diamond mines in Botswana will be closely associated with an in depth understanding of the relationship between size and concentration of kimberlite indicator minerals in surface soils and the seasonal behaviour, depth penetration capabilities, earthmoving efficiencies and mandible size of the dominant termite species within the exploration area. Large areas in Botswana, where kimberlite indicator minerals recovered from soil samples have been described as distal from source or background, will require re-evaluation. Without detailed termite studies the rate of discovery will continue to decline.

     

Macrocrystal phlogopite Rb–Sr dates for the Ekati property kimberlites, Slave Province, Canada: evidence for multiple intrusive episodes in the Paleocene and Eocene

New Rb–Sr age determinations using macrocrystal phlogopite are presented for 27 kimberlites from the Ekati property of the Lac de Gras region, Slave Province, Canada. These new data show that kimberlite magmatism at Ekati ranges in age from at least Late Paleocene (61 Ma) to Middle Eocene time (45 Ma). Older, perovskite-bearing kimberlites from Ekati extend this age range to Late Cretaceous time (74 Ma). Within this age range, emplacement episodes at 48, 51–53, 55–56 and 59–61 Ma can be recognized. Middle Eocene kimberlite magmatism of the previously dated Mark kimberlite (47.5 Ma) is shown to include four other pipes from the east-central Ekati property. A single kimberlite (Aaron) may be younger than the 47.5 Ma Mark kimberlite. The economically important Panda kimberlite is precisely dated in this study to be 53.3±0.6 Ma using the phlogopite isochron method, and up to six additional kimberlites from the central Ekati property have Early Eocene ages indistinguishable from that of Panda, including the Koala and Koala North occurrences. Late Paleocene 55–56 Ma kimberlite magmatism, represented by the Diavik kimberlite pipes adjacent to the southeastern Ekati property, is shown to extend onto the southeastern Ekati property and includes three, and possibly four, kimberlites. A precise eight-point phlogopite isochron for the Cobra South kimberlite yields an emplacement age of 59.7±0.4 Ma; eight other kimberlites from across the Ekati property have similar Late Paleocene Rb–Sr model ages. The addition of 27 new emplacement ages for kimberlites from the Ekati property confirms that kimberlite magmatism from the central Slave Province is geologically young, despite ages ranging back to Cambrian time from elsewhere in the Slave Province. With the available geochronologic database, Lac de Gras kimberlites with the highest diamond potential are currently restricted to the 51–53 and 55–56 Ma periods of kimberlite magmatism.     

Discussion of “Geology and diamond distribution of the 140/141 kimberlite, Fort à la Corne, central Saskatchewan, Canada”, by A. Berryman, B.H. Scott-Smith and B.C. Jellicoe (Lithos v. 76, p. 99–114)

A wide variety of geological data and geological observations by numerous geoscientists do not support a two-stage crater excavation and in-fill model, or a champagne glass-shaped geometry for the 169 or 140/141 kimberlite bodies in the Fort à la Corne kimberlite field, Saskatchewan as described by Berryman, A., Scott Smith, B.H., Jellicoe, B., (2004). Rather, these kimberlite bodies are best described as polygenetic kimberlite tephra cones and tuff rings with associated feeder vents of variable geometry as shown by previous workers for the 169 kimberlite, the 140/141 kimberlite and the Star kimberlite. The domal tephra cone geometry is preserved due to burial by conformable Cretaceous marine mudstones and siltstones and is not an artifact of Quaternary glacial processes.     

Titanochondrodite and titanoclinohumite derived from the upper mantle in the Buell Park kimberlite,Arizona, USA

Titanoclinohumite, titanochondrodite, and associated Na-bearing tremolite occurring as crystal fragments in the Buell Park kimberlite are not likely crystallization products of a kimberlite magma. They more likely formed as phases in hydration assemblages of peridotite at temperatures below 700 ° C and pressures below 18 kbar. The crystals were dispersed in kimberlite as rock fragments were comminuted during transport to the surface.     

辽宁瓦房店地区50号金伯利岩管及其周边构造特征

辽宁瓦房店地区的3个金伯利岩带内的典型金伯利岩管产于NE向、NNE向与近EW向3组构造薄弱带中,并严格受其控制;3组构造交汇部位是今后找寻金伯利岩管的有利部位。构造期次对该区50号岩管具有明显控制作用:早期近EW向挤压破碎带为金伯利岩管的导矿构造;中期NE向断裂为控矿构造;晚期NNE向断裂、NW向断裂,对金伯利岩体起破坏作用。50号岩管及其周边金伯利岩体与构造盆地具有较明确的关联性;野外调查表明,50号岩管周边也曾发生过由E向W方向(或由SE向NW方向)的水平运动,且三维建模显示现在50号岩管不是岩体的根部,应在其东部或东南部寻找可能的剩余部分。     

Petrophysical properties of kimberlites from the Komsomolsky Pipe and their relationship to its composition,formation conditions,and diamond content

The paper discusses the petrophysical properties of kimberlites from the Komsomolsky Pipe and statistical analysis of their relationships with the data of petrographic and ore microscopic studies. Comparison of the obtained results with data of analogous studies in other Yakutian kimberlite pipes showed that these data can be applied for prognostic evaluation of kimberlite contents in kimberlite bodies of this region.     

The Yubileinaya kimberlite pipe site,Russia: 3D model of the fault-block structure

Structural geological and tectonophysical studies at a qualitatively new methodical level in the Yubileinaya pipe open pit have shown that the fault-block tectonics plays substantial role in the spatial localization of kimberlite bodies. It has been established that localization of diamond-bearing kimberlite pipes is controlled by faults, which are expressed in the platform cover as wide, complexly built zones with a high density of local faults and tectonic fractures. As follows from 3D representation of data and analysis of stress fields, tectonic movements during kimberlite emplacement had shear kinematics. A tectonophysical model of local control of kimberlite bodies by fault-line extensional structural elements (pull-apart fissures and duplexes) has been elaborated.     

Geology and diamond distribution of the 140/141 kimberlite, Fort à la Corne, central Saskatchewan, Canada

The Cretaceous age Fort à la Corne (FALC) kimberlite province comprises at least 70 bodies, which were emplaced near the edge of the Western Canadian Interior Seaway during cycles of marine transgression and regression. Many of the bodies were formed during a marine regression by a two-stage process, firstly the excavation of shallow, but wide, craters and then subsequent infilling by xenolith-poor, crater-facies, subaerial, primary pyroclastic kimberlite. The bodies range in size up to 2000 m in diameter but are mainly less than 200 m thick and thus comprise relatively thin, but high volume, pyroclastic kimberlite deposits. Each body is composed of contrasting types of kimberlite reflecting different volcanic histories and, therefore, are considered separately.

The 140/141 kimberlite is the largest delineated body in the province, estimated to have an areal extent below glacial Quaternary sediments in excess of 200 ha. The infilling of the 140/141 crater is complex, resulting from multiple phases of kimberlite. The central part of the infill is dominated by several contrasting phases of kimberlite. One of these phases is a primary pyroclastic airfall mega-graded bed up to 130 m in thickness. The constituents grade in size from very fine to coarse macrocrystic kimberlite, through to a basal breccia. The mega-graded bed is a widespread feature within parts of the body examined to date and at this current stage of evaluation appears to explain a variable diamond distribution within a tested portion of the pipe. A second different phase of kimberlite is interpreted as representing a younger nested crater within the mega-graded bed. Centrally located thicker intersections (>450 m) of this younger kimberlite may indicate a vent for the kimberlite crater. The thickness of the mega-graded bed increases with proximity to the younger kimberlite in the study area.

Macrodiamond minibulk sample grades from the mega-graded bed have been obtained from nine large diameter drill holes, located within the northwest part of the body from an area of 20 ha, which represents approximately 10% of the currently modeled kimberlite outline. Diamond grade increases with depth within the mega-graded bed and also increases, within the same unit, towards the centrally positioned younger kimberlite. Macrodiamond sample grades vary from low at the top of the mega-graded bed, to considerably higher grades near the base. Total sample grade per drill hole varies from moderate near the vent feature to lower grades 200–300 m from the vent feature. Macrodiamond stone frequency measured in stones per tonne shows a pronounced relationship with depth and proximity to the vent feature within the mega-graded bed. There is a strong correlation between depth and increased stones per tonne, and a similar correlation between stones per tonne and proximity to the vent feature. The data supports the emplacement model of the mega-graded bed and, in turn, this information is useful in understanding the macrodiamond distribution within this bed.     

Morphology of the Nyurba kimberlite pipe and its relationship with the dolerite dike

Study of the magmatics in the Nakyn kimberlite field, with consideration of the isotope dating results, allowed us to establish a sequence of their formation. First, 368.5–374.4 Ma ago intrusions of the Vilyui–Markha dike belt formed. Then (363–364 Ma) intrusion of kimberlites took place. In the Early Carboniferous (338.2–345.6 Ma), alkaline basaltic magma intruded through faults controlling the kimberlites. The magmatic activity finished 331–324.9 Ma ago with the formation of explosive breccias. It has been found that the Nyurba kimberlite pipe consists of two bodies: their kimberlite melts have successively intruded through independent channels.     

辽宁省瓦房店金伯利岩矿区构造特征及其控矿作用

辽宁省瓦房店地区是中国著名的金刚石矿产地之一,矿床类型属于金伯利岩型金刚石矿床。通过研究区域构造背景,结合最新项目研究成果,将辽南瓦房店金伯利岩矿区构造演化过程划分为7个构造旋回,讨论辽宁省瓦房店地区不同构造旋回的特征及对金伯利岩的影响,得出加里东期近东西向构造控制着辽南金伯利岩的产生及成矿作用。燕山期断裂构造对金伯利岩的展布起控制作用,认为本区金伯利岩的成矿阶段可由古生代延至中生代。     

山东蒙阴坡里地区金伯利岩带形成时代——来自辉绿岩锆石U-Pb定年数据的证据

金伯利岩是化学成分、矿物组成和结构多变的混杂岩,极易发生蚀变,因此对金伯利岩全岩及各种矿物进行测年的方法很难确定金伯利岩的侵位年龄,且数据结果差别很大。通过分析蒙阴坡里金伯利岩带与辉绿岩的侵入关系,以及辉绿岩锆石U-Pb测年,结合辉绿岩与上覆灰岩的接触关系及金刚石砂矿储集层与已知金刚石原生矿的关系,确定辉绿岩脉的侵位时代为中生代燕山晚期,证实坡里金伯利岩带形成时代为中生代燕山晚期而非加里东期。     

A model for the origin of ilmenite in kimberlite and diamond: implications for the genesis of the discrete nodule (megacryst) suite

Mineralogical and chemical relationships indicate that the majority of ilmenites recovered from Group I kimberlites crystallized directly from the kimberlite magma in two contrasting P-T regimes: Ilmenites of the discrete nodule association formed in pegmatitic veins and apophyses surrounding the kimberlite magma at depth. Compositional ranges of the discrete nodule assemblage reflect essentially isobaric crystallization across the thermal aureole about the magma reservoir. Early crystallization of high pressure Cr-rich phases (garnet, clinopyroxene and possibly spinel) could result in later forming megacryst ilmenites being Cr-poor. During ascent of the kimberlite magma (essentially identical to the liquid injected into the pegmatitic veins), crystallization of garnet and clinopyroxene would be inhibited as a result of the expansion of the olivine phase field. The magma would not undergo Crdepletion, with the result that later crystallizing (ground-mass) ilmenites would be Cr-rich relative to associated ilmenite megacrysts.Rare ilmenite inclusions in diamonds show chemical affinities with those of the discrete nodule suite. It is proposed that large Type IIa diamonds may be late-crystallizing members of the discrete nodule assemblage. They are in other words related to the kimberlite event itself, and would represent a third diamond paragenesis, distinctly younger than those related to peridotites and eclogites.The mode of formation of rare MARID suite and metasomatized mantle xenoliths is not clearly understood, although mineralogical and chemical evidence point to a direct or indirect link to the host kimberlite.     

Geology of the Renard 65 kimberlite pipe,Québec,Canada

Renard 65, a diamondiferous pipe in the Neoproterozoic Renard kimberlite cluster (Québec, Canada), is a steeply-dipping and downward-tapering diatreme comprised of three pipe-filling units: kimb65a, kimb65b, and kimb65d. The pipe is surrounded by a marginal and variably-brecciated country rock aureole and is crosscut by numerous hypabyssal dykes: kimb65c. Extensive petrographic and mineralogical characterization of over 700 m of drill core from four separate drill holes, suggests that Renard 65 is a Group I kimberlite, mineralogically classified as phlogopite kimberlite and serpentine-phlogopite kimberlite. Kimb65a is a massive volcaniclastic kimberlite dominated by lithic clasts, magmaclasts, and discrete olivine macrocrysts, hosted within a fine-grained diopside and serpentine-rich matrix. Kimb65b is massive, macrocrystic, coherent kimberlite with a groundmass assemblage of phlogopite, spinel, perovskite, apatite, calcite, serpentine and rare monticellite. Kimb65c is a massive, macrocrystic, hypabyssal kimberlite with a groundmass assemblage of phlogopite, serpentine, calcite, perovskite, spinel, and apatite. Kimb65d is massive volcaniclastic kimberlite with localized textures that are intermediate between volcaniclastic and coherent, with tightly packed magmaclasts separated by a diopside- and serpentine-rich matrix. Lithic clasts of granite-gneiss in kimb65a are weakly reacted, with partial melting of feldspars and crystallization of richterite and actinolite. Lithic clasts in kimb65b and kimb65d are entirely recrystallized to calcite + serpentine/chlorite + pectolite and display inner coronas of diopside-aegirine and an outer corona of phlogopite. Compositions are reported for all minerals in the groundmass of coherent kimberlites, magmaclasts, interclast matrices, and reacted lithic clasts. The Renard 65 rocks are texturally classified as Kimberley-type pyroclastic kimberlites and display transitional textures. The kimberlite units are interpreted to have formed in three melt batches based on their distinct spinel chemistry: kimb65a, kimb65b and kimb65d. We note a strong correlation between the modal abundances of lithic clasts and the textures of the kimberlites, where increasing modal abundances of granite/gneiss are observed in kimberlites with increasingly fragmental textures.

     

Spatial distribution of kimberlite in the Slave craton, Canada: a geometrical approach

Exploration within the Slave craton has revealed clusters of kimberlite intrusions, commonly with internally consistent geochemical and temporal characteristics. Translation diagrams (“Fry analysis”) allow an unbiased geometrical examination of the distance and direction between each kimberlite occurrence and all others in the database. Recurrent patterns are visually accentuated due to the square function in data density. Circular histograms quantify the azimuthal density of kimberlite at various distances. For this study, the database comprises the geographic position of 212 kimberlite occurrences of which 70% are from the Lac de Gras field (LDG). Analyses are presented separately for the LDG data and for all non-LDG data in order to test for regional variations and to avoid overwhelming the craton-scale studies by the high density of LDG data.

Empirical grouping of kimberlite locations results in delineation of five elliptical clusters that encompass all but four kimberlite occurrences. Clusters within the western part of the craton are elongate to the north–northeast and align within a narrow zone (“Western Corridor”). Elsewhere, the clusters are elongate to the northwest or west–northwest and appear to be arranged en echelon within a poorly defined north–northwest trending zone (“Central Corridor”). Geometrical spatial analyses of kimberlite locations highlight the craton-scale pattern of emplacement within the two main corridors. At regional and local scales, individual intrusions are preferentially located towards the west–northwest (ca. 280°) and north–northeast (ca. 015°) of other intrusions, and these orientations are interpreted to reflect upper mantle trends in magma generation. At local scales (10–25 km), kimberlite of the central and southern craton tends to be located to the northeast (ca. 045°), and possibly weakly to the east–northeast (ca. 070°), of other intrusions, and these orientations correspond to major crustal fractures systems. It is proposed that kimberlite emplacement is controlled primarily by the interaction of elongate 280° and 015° source regions with near-surface deviations influenced by crustal fracture systems.

The 015° trend evident at craton, regional, and local scales is parallel to a swarm of alkaline diabase dykes that are concentrated in a ca. 30-km-wide corridor passing through Lac de Gras. A profound spatial association between significantly diamondiferous kimberlite and the margins of the dyke corridor suggests the corridor is the surface expression of a mantle-depth structure. It remains unclear whether the proposed mantle structure coincides with a diamond-rich zone near the base of the lithosphere, or delineates pathways favorable for diamond preservation during emplacement. The linear array of kimberlite within the western craton forms a parallel corridor that may be an analogous mantle structure, but which to date has failed to yield economic diamond concentrations.