Early fracture evolution within the Eye-Dashwa Lakes pluton,Atikokan, Ontario,Canada

The fracture history of part of the Eye-Dashwa Lakes pluton near Atikokan, Ontario was investigated from drill core and surface fracture data. The earliest fractures contain aplite and compose less than 5% of the population. They developed during the initial stages of plutonic cooling and contraction, in response to local magma-related pressures. Internal pressures decreased as the pluton cooled. Subsequent fractures, comprising more than 90% of the population, formed soon afterwards under the influence of a regional subhorizontal NW-SE compression. Statistical analysis and field evidence indicate that subhorizontal and moderately dipping dip-slip fractures are filled mainly with epidote. These were followed by formation of steeply dipping to subvertical strike-slip fractures that are filled mainly with chlorite. The resulting fracture framework was well established by the end of the Archaean. Minor stress changes since then have rejuvenated the old fracture zones rather than creating new zones.     

The ages of fractures in the Eye-Dashwa pluton,Atikokan, Canada

Ages of fractures in the Eye-Dashwa granite pluton north of Atikokan, Ontario, are estimated from analyses of their filling materials (pegmatite, aplite, hornblendeporphyry, epidote, chlorite, gypsum, diabase, iron oxides, carbonate and clays). The analyses include radiometric age determinations of filling materials, comparison of crystallization temperatures of filling materials with the expected temperature of the pluton through time, and paragenetic relations derived from textures. The major fractures (primarily epidote and chlorite-filled) were produced by penetrative deformation during cooling immediately after intrusion of the pluton. From 2.6 Ga to 2.4 Ga they transected the pluton and largely defined the present overall fracture network. Less severe penetrative deformation occurred about 1.1 Ga, when a few diabase dikes and small gypsum fractures developed. A second source of fracturing appears to have existed through most of geological time, and it reopened segments of old fractures within about 400 m of the present erosional surface. It is unknown whether the near-surface, or supergene, fractures formed more or less continuously through time or in distinct episodes, such as during glacial periods. Open fractures, which are most common in the near-surface layer, tend to transmit groundwater, but fracture sealing due to the accumulation of filling materials seems to occur with time. Underground excavations such as nuclear fuel waste disposal vaults, would be less susceptible to the incursion of groundwater, if they were located below the near-surface layer.     

Archean regional transpression and paleomagnetism in northwestern Ontario, Canada

The Archean metamorphic rocks of the Superior province of the Canadian Shield occur in lithologically defined belts or subprovinces. The tectonically more stable interiors of belts possess consistent primary components of magnetic remanence. In the case of the Quetico belt, these stable directions are tightly grouped about 005°/55° with some minor dispersion and most were acquired during the cooling that followed syntectonic recrystallisation.

This study examines the directions of primary remanence components for rocks along the margins of the Quetico belt, within 4 km of the strongly deformed vertical, ENE-trending boundaries. The boundaries are known to have experienced dextral transpression involving penetrative single-phase deformation which out-lasted metamorphism. Within a few kilometres of the belt boundaries, the primary remanence components are re-distributed along a vertical ENE-trending, great-circle girdle which is nearly parallel to the plane of transpressive shear and regional schistosity. It is suggested that the effects of transpression have mechanically deflected the components of primary remanence toward this plane.     

Factors controlling the groundwater transport of U, Th, Ra, and Rn

A model for the groundwater transport of naturally occurring U, Th, Ra, and Rn nuclides in the²³⁸U and²³²Th decay series is discussed. The model developed here takes into account transport by advection and the physico-chemical processes of weathering, decay, α-recoil, and sorption at the water-rock interface. It describes the evolution along a flowline of the activities of the²³⁸U and²³²Th decay series nuclides in groundwater. Simple sets of relationships governing the activities of the various species in solution are derived, and these can be used both to calculate effective retardation factors and to interpret groundwater data. For the activities of each nuclide, a general solution to the transport equation has been obtained, which shows that the activities reach a constant value after a distance ϰ_i, characteristic of each nuclide. Where ϰ_i is much longer than the aquifer length, (for²³⁸U,²³⁴U, and²³²Th), the activities grow linearly with distance. Where gKⁱ is short compared to the aquifer length, (for²³⁴Th,²³⁰Th,²²⁸Th,²²⁸Ra, and²²⁴Ra), the activities rapidly reach a constant or quasi-constant activity value. For²²⁶Ra and²²²Rn, the limiting activity is reached after 1 km. High δ²³⁴U values (proportional to the ratio^ɛ234Th/^W238U) can be obtained through high recoil fraction and/or low weathering rates. The activity ratios²³⁰Th/²³²Th,²²⁸Ra/²²⁶Ra and²²⁴Ra/²²⁶Ra have been considered in the cases where either weathering or recoil is the predominant process of input from the mineral grain. Typical values for weathering rates and recoil fractions for a sandy aquifer indicate that recoil is the dominant process for Th isotopic ratios in the water. Measured data for Ra isotope activity ratios indicate that recoil is the process generally controlling the Ra isotopic composition in water. Higher isotopic ratios can be explained by different desorption kinetics of Ra. However, the model does not provide an explanation for²²⁸Ra/²²⁶Ra and²²⁴Ra/²²⁶Ra activity ratios less than unity. From the model, the highest²²²Rn emanation equals 2ɛ. This is in agreement with the hypothesis that²²²Rn activity can be used as a first approximation for input by recoil (Krishnaswamiet al 1982). However, high²²²Rn emanation cannot be explained by production from the surface layer as formulated in the model. Other possibilities involve models including surface precipitation, where the surface layer is not in steady-state.     

Dating of the near-surface layer of a peatland in northwestern Ontario, Canada

The near-surface layer of the dominant microhabitat types on a peatland in the Rainy River area, northwestern Ontario, Canada was dated using a number of previously published methods. No single method was found to be appropriate in all microhabitat types, and discrepancies of up to 15 yr over a time-scale of 80 yr were encountered. The results suggested that the post-depositional mobility of ²¹⁰Pb, and possibly its atmospheric supply, are affected by microhabitat type. ²¹⁰Pb dates consistently underestimated independently derived dates in the uppermost sections of the cores. Ages derived by measuring the length of annual increments on moss stems were in general agreement with the ²¹⁰Pb dates, but were subject to bias where the moss remains were poorly preserved. ¹⁴C analyses on material from the base to the near-surface horizon confirmed the modern (post-AD 1950) origin suggested by the ²¹⁰Pb and moss increment dates. Increased ash content at the base of the near-surface layer was correlated with the dustbowl of the 1930s, but assignment of dates to other stratigraphic markers (charcoal, Ambrosia pollen, and Larix needles) was less certain. The ash peak (55 yr before AD 1990) was used as datum for relative dating methods based on assumptions of a constant rate of peat accumulation (constant bulk density method) and constant rate of pollen accumulation (pollen density method). The constant bulk density method provided quick, inexpensive estimates of maximum age, but could not be extrapolated beyond datum, nor applied to cores showing marked stratigraphic changes. The pollen density method was a valuable but time-consuming alternative for dating peatland depressions, which lack annual moss increments and are subject to ²¹⁰Pb leaching.     

TIMS测定铀矿石样品中^234U/^238U、^230Th/^232Th、^228Ra/^226Ra的方法研究

研究了TIMS测定铀矿石样品中234U/238U、230Th/232Th、228Ra/226Ra的方法。建立了铀矿石密闭混酸一次溶样的方法和采用阴离子、阳离子和Sr特效树脂逐级离子交换分离纯化U、Th和Ra的流程,满足了TIMS测量要求。测定结果表明：100～1000 ng的天然铀中234U/238U,其测量精密度从静态多接收的2.34%提高到动态多接收的0.47%;对230Th与232Th丰度接近、质量为1μg左右的钍,采用三带点样技术和法拉第多接收技术测定230Th/232Th,其内精度平均值为0.0048%,外精度为0.028%;采用单带加钽发射剂,ETP跳峰测定50～100 fg镭-228稀释剂中的228Ra/226Ra,其内精度小于0.10%,外精度小于0.20%。比较TIMS和HR-ICP-MS、α能谱法测定234U/238U、230Th/232Th、228Ra/226Ra结果,三者结果相吻合。TIMS测量法样品用量少、快速、准确、精密度高,是U、Th、Ra同位素比值测定方法的又一补充。     

Mineralogy of the deadhorse creek volcaniclastic breccia complex,northwestern Ontario,Canada

The Proterozoic Deadhorse Creek volcaniclastic breccia complex was emplaced in Archean metasedimentary and metavolcanic rocks of the Schreiber-White River greenstone belt adjacent to the Proterozoic Coldwell alkaline complex. The western sub-complex of the Deadhorse Creek breccia consists of metasomatically-altered breccia, a U-Be-Zr-rich main mineralized zone and a Zr-Y-Th-rich carbonate vein. The main mineralized zone is enriched in beryllium, thorium, uranium, first and second row transition elements, and rare earth elements. The major minerals present include: albite; potassium feldspar; quartz; calcite; apatite; and phenakite. Accessory minerals include: aegirine-jervisite; aegirine-natalyite; allanite; barite; barylite; coffinite; Ca-Mn-silicate; magnetite; monazite-(Ce); niobian vanadian rutile; pyrite; thorite; thorogummite; thortveitite; uraninite; vanadian crichtonite; xenotime-(Y); zircon and hydrated zircon; and zircon-thorite-coffinite solid solutions. The carbonate vein consists of dolomite-ankerite and calcite with accessory zircon, xenotime, and monazite. Barite, baotite and Ba-rich feldspars, were formed during metasomatism of the earlier-formed and genetically-unrelated volcaniclastic breccia adjacent to the main mineralized zone. The complex mineral assemblage of the fault-controlled main mineralized zone is considered to have formed in three stages. An initial emplacement of a “granitic” melt/fluid was followed by introduction of CO₂-bearing Cr-Nb-V-Ti-enriched alkaline fluids. The latter reacted with minerals which had crystallized from the “granitic” melt/fluid to produce the exotic V-, Sc- and Nb-bearing mineral assemblage. Subsequently, a supergene suite of minerals, consisting principally of calcite, thorogummite, hollandite and tyuyamanite, formed during post-Pleistocene alteration was superimposed onto the pre-existing Proterozoic age mineral assemblage. The major mineralogy of the main mineralized zone is essentially ‘granitic” and the melts/fluids are considered to be derived from an A-type granite source. However, the Deadhorse Creek mineralization is older (1129±6 Ma) than the A-type quartz syenites of the adjacent Coldwell complex (1108±1 Ma) which are the nearest potential sources of such melts. Thus, the source of the “granitic” melt together with that of the Cr-Nb-V-Ti-bearing alkaline fluids remains enigmatic.     

胶西北大泽山岩体地球化学、锆石U-Pb年代学及Lu-Hf同位素特征

胶东金矿集区是我国最重要的金矿集区, 大规模金成矿作用发生于125~110 Ma。本文选择了与成矿作用同期的早白垩世晚期大泽山岩体为研究对象, 通过详细的岩相学、岩石地球化学、锆石LA-ICP-MS U-Pb年代学研究, 识别出中粒二长花岗岩和细粒二长花岗岩两种主要的侵入岩类型, 它们具有相似的岩相学和岩石地球化学特征, 呈现同源岩浆演化特征。定年结果表明, 中粒二长花岗岩中锆石U-Pb年龄分别为119.8±0.8 Ma和119.3±0.9 Ma, 细粒二长花岗岩中锆石U-Pb年龄分别为109.2±0.7 Ma和109.9±0.7 Ma。岩石地球化学研究表明, 二长花岗岩具有高的全碱(K₂O+Na₂O=8.14%~8.72%), 高的Al₂O₃(12.42%~15.32%), 属过铝质高钾钙碱性系列, 轻稀土(LREE)富集、重稀土(HREE)相对亏损(LREE/HREE=8.46~18.87), 具明显的稀土元素分馏((La/Yb)_N=8.52~24.08)和较强的Eu负异常(δEu=0.33~0.58)。大泽山岩体锆石ε_Hf(t)值为-26.4~-16.2, 亏损地幔二阶段模式年龄(T_DM2)为2 812~2 173 Ma, 物源主要是古元古代和新太古代陆壳的部分熔融, 有少量幔源物质的加入。大泽山岩体成岩期与胶东金矿的主成矿期一致, 暗示岩浆活动与金成矿具有统一的地球动力学背景。

     

Oxygen isotope studies of granite and migmatite,Grenville province of Ontario,Canada

O¹⁸/O¹⁶ ratios have been obtained for rocks and minerals along a 200 mile traverse from near the Grenville front north of Lake Nipissing to the Paleozoic contact to the east of Georgian Bay. Two types of oxygen isotopic relationships correlated with metamorphic grade and style of plutonic emplacement are observed: (A) from the Grenville fron to the Haliburton Highlands, upper amphibolite to granulite facies paragneisses, migmatites and concordantly emplaced granites all show relatively low and uniform δO¹⁸-values, e.g. δ (whole rock) range from 5·0 to 8·9 per mil (SMOW) and 80 per cent of the 44 samples analyzed lie between 6·5 and 8·4. We attribute this to extensive syn-anatectic oxygen isotope homogenization and exchange with a deep-seated mafic or ultramafic reservoir through a water-rich pore fluid. (B) To the southeast of the Harvey-Cardiff Arch, in the Chandos Lake-Silent Lake area, where metasediments of lower metamorphic grade are abundant and granites intrude at higher crustal level are common, we observed higher O¹⁸/O¹⁶ ratios in the granites (δ = 9?14) and paragneisses (δ = 12?17). The granites apparently have undergone various degrees of oxygen isotope exchange with the intruded metasediments. It thus appears that the granite-paragneiss assemblege as a whole has not been extensively open to some extraneous oxygen reservoir as in case (A).     

新疆谢米斯台地区乌兰萨拉岩体地球化学、年代学及全岩Sr-Nd和锆石Hf同位素研究

谢米斯台地区位于新疆西准噶尔北部,该地区中酸性岩浆活动强烈。本文对谢米斯台地区乌兰萨拉岩体进行了地质、地球化学、年代学及全岩Sr-Nd和锆石Hf同位素研究。结果表明,乌兰萨拉岩体是一个由碱长花岗岩和花岗闪长岩组成的复式岩体。碱长花岗岩形成时代为晚志留世(422.7±2.0Ma),岩石高硅、富碱,属于准铝质-弱过铝质高钾钙碱性花岗岩;球粒陨石标准化配分模式图显示"V"字型配分样式,Eu负异常强烈,相对富集Ga、K、Rb、Th、U和Pb,亏损Ba、Sr、P、Ti、Cr和Ni等;岩石具有低(~(87)Sr/~(86)Sr)i值(0.7017~0.7038),正的ε_(Nd)(t)值(+4.49~+6.58)和锆石ε_(Hf)(t)值(+10.0~+14.2),Hf同位素模式年龄(t_(DM2))为500~771Ma。花岗闪长岩形成时代为早泥盆世(411.7±1.7Ma),属于准铝质,高钾钙碱性-钾玄岩系列花岗岩;球粒陨石标准化配分模式图显示右倾型配分样式,无明显Eu异常,相对富集LREE、LILE(Rb、Ba、K)、Th、U和Pb,亏损Nb、Ta、P和Ti等;岩石具有低的(~(87)Sr/~(86)Sr)i值(0.7041~0.7046),正的ε_(Nd)(t)值(+1.66~+3.87)和锆石ε_(Hf)(t)值(+4.4~+13.9),Hf同位素模式年龄(t_(DM2))为516~1120Ma,岩石Nd同位素和锆石Hf同位素出现一定程度的解耦。综合研究认为,乌兰萨拉岩体碱长花岗岩属A_2型花岗岩,花岗闪长岩属I型花岗岩,两者都是由新生下地壳发生部分熔融而形成,前者经历了一定程度的分离结晶作用,后者受到亏损玄武质岩浆(俯冲板片脱水交代地幔楔产生的上涌岩浆)的底侵,它们均形成于陆缘弧环境。     

Reconstruction of Holocene lake level from diatoms, chrysophytes and organic matter in a drainage lake from the Experimental Lakes Area (northwestern Ontario, Canada)

A paleolimnological study of lake-level changes in Lake 239 (Rawson Lake), a headwater lake in the Experimental Lakes Area in northwestern Ontario, indicates large fluctuations have occurred over the Holocene. Analyses are based on diatoms, the proportion of chrysophyte scales to diatoms and organic matter content from near-shore sediment cores. Quantitative estimates of lake level are based on a diatom-inferred depth model that was developed from surficial sediments collected along several transects in Lake 239. Declines of ∼ 1-3 m occurred during the late Holocene, whereas declines of at least 8 m occurred during the more arid mid-Holocene. These results provide the first substantive evidence of large declines in lake level in northwestern Ontario during the mid-Holocene. Conditions during the mid-Holocene may provide a partial view of future conditions under increasing global temperatures.     

The distribution of U and Th in growth zones of manganese nodules

Growth zones and individual sublayers from one manganese nodule and three manganese crusts from an area south of Hawaii were analysed for U and Th by the delayed-neutron counting technique.The concentrations of uranium and thorium in the manganese nodule are highest in the outermost zone on top of the nodule, being the surface last exposed to sea water. In this zone U varies from 6.3 to a maximum of 8.3 ppm in different sublayers, decreasing to 5.0 ppm in the inner zones and 3.4 ppm in the outer zone last exposed to the sediment. Ferromanganese material scraped from the zone last exposed to the sediment which has low concentrations of Fe, relative to the zone last exposed to sea water, has also low U contents (2.7 ppm).Th concentrations are higher in the outermost zone on top of the nodule (40 to a maximum of 130 ppm) than in the zone last exposed to the sediment (about 20 ppm Th).Manganese crusts contain up to 9 ppm U in the outermost zones last exposed to the sea water. They also have higher concentrations of Th (up to 64 ppm) relative to the inner zones of the crust growing on altered andesitic rock, which contains about 8 ppm U and about 26 ppm Th as an average.     

A new procedure for separating and measuring radiogenic isotopes (U, Th, Pa, Ra, Sr, Nd, Hf) in ice cores

A new method for the radiogenic isotope (U–Th–Pa–Ra, Sr, Nd, Hf) analysis of the soluble and insoluble components found within ice cores is presented. Melting experiments with rock standards in the presence of EDTA indicate that carbonates, as well as silicates, can be buffered sufficiently to preclude dissolution. The use of EDTA allows adsorbing species, such as Th and Hf, to remain in solution during melting thus fully separating the dust (insoluble) and sea salt (soluble) components of the ice after filtration. A new elemental separation scheme for low sample masses, less than 5 mg solid material, utilizes 4 primary ion exchange columns and two “clean-up” columns to fully isolate U, Th, Pa, Ra, Sr, Nd, and Hf while maintaining high yields. Elution schemes measured for USGS rock standards and a Chinese loess are presented to provide a comparison for variable matrix compositions. Mass spectrometer techniques were modified to measure small aliquots of the standards, equivalent to the amounts found in ice core samples, 10 ng and less. A MC-ICPMS was employed for the measurement of U, Th, Pa, Ra, and Hf; results of the experiments show that with ion yields up to 1%, rock standards have errors for ²³⁴U/²³⁸U of 1%, ²³⁰Th/²³²Th of 1.5%, [²²⁸Ra] of 9%, and ¹⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf of 100 ppm. MC-TIMS measurements of Sr and Nd show similar errors for small sample sizes: ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr of 50 ppm and ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd of 80 ppm. This new analytical method increases the number of possible tracers measured from a single sample, reducing separation times and sample consumption, as well as providing the addition of a radiometric clock, U-series, to the traditional suite of isotopic tracers, Sr, Nd, and Hf.     

Ba, Ra, Th, and U in marine mollusc shells and the potential of Ra/Ba dating of Holocene marine carbonate shells

The geochemistry of Ba, Ra, Th, and U and the potential of using ²²⁶Ra/Ba ratios as an alternative dating method are explored in modern and Holocene marine mollusc shells. Five modern shells of the Antarctic scallop Adamussium colbecki collected from the present day beach and six radiocarbon dated specimens from Holocene beach terraces of the Ross Sea region (Antarctic) between 700 and 6100 calibrated yr BP old have been analysed by mass spectrometry. In clean shells ²²⁶Ra concentrations and ²²⁶Ra/Ba ratios show a clear decrease with increasing age, suggesting the possibility of ²²⁶Ra dating. Limiting factors for such dating are Ba and ²²⁶Ra present in surface contaminants, and ingrowth of ²²⁶Ra from U present within the shell. Surface contamination is difficult to clean off entirely, but moderate levels of residual contamination can be corrected using ²³²Th. Sub-samples from the same shell with different proportions of contamination form a mixing line in a ²²⁶Ra/Ba-²³²Th/Ba graph, and the ²²⁶Ra/Ba of the pure shell can be derived from the intercept on the ²²⁶Ra/Ba axis. Contaminant corrected ²²⁶Ra/Ba ratios of late-Holocene ¹⁴C-dated samples fall close to that expected from simple ²²⁶Ra excess decay from seawater ²²⁶Ra/Ba values. ²²⁶Ra ingrowth from U incorporated into the shell during the lifetime of the mollusc can be corrected for. However, the unknown timing of post mortem U uptake into the shell makes a correction for ²²⁶Ra ingrowth from secondary U difficult to achieve. In the A. colbecki shells, ²²⁶Ra ingrowth from such secondary U becomes significant only when ages exceed ∼2500 yr. In younger shells, ²²⁶Ra/Ba ratios corrected for surface contamination provide chronological information. If evidence for a constant oceanic relationship between ²²⁶Ra and Ba in the ocean can be confirmed for that time scale, the ²²⁶Ra/Ba chronometer may enable the reconstruction of variability in sea surface ¹⁴C reservoir ages from mollusc shells and allow its use as a paleoceanographic tracer.     

福建太武山花岗岩体成因: 锆石U-Pb年代学与Hf同位素制约

太武山岩体位于福建东南沿海,为一大致呈北东向延伸的不规则状岩株体,出露面积约40km²。岩体主体岩性为中细粒花岗岩,环岩体北部边缘尚发育有似斑状黑云母花岗岩。锆石LA-ICP-MS U-Pb定年表明,岩体的形成年龄为96.9±1.3Ma(MSWD=1.09, 2σ),属晚白垩世早期岩浆活动产物。化学组成上,该岩体富硅,碱含量中等,弱过铝,铝饱和指数(A/NKC值)为1.01~1.04,碱铝指数(AKI值)为0.73~0.92,贫钙、镁、铁,属亚碱弱过铝质花岗岩类。微量和稀土元素组成上,岩体富Cs、Rb、U、Th、Pb和轻稀土,贫Ba、Sr、P、Ti,Rb/Sr比值高,具中到强的铕负异常(Eu/Eu^*=0.85~0.04),其Zr、Nb、Ce、Y等高场强元素均较之典型A型花岗岩偏低,锆石饱和温度也较低(726~809℃),综合地质地球化学资料指示该岩体应属高分异的I型花岗岩。太武山花岗岩的锆石ε_Hf(t)值散布于正值与负值之间(-1.44~2.78),t_DM2值偏低(0.98~1.25Ga,平均值为1.06Ga),指示成岩过程中应有显著的亏损地幔组分参与。综合分析表明,岩体的形成首先经历了幔源岩浆与其诱发地壳物质熔融产生的长英质岩浆在地壳深部混合,随后这一混合岩浆又经进一步分异演化的二阶段成岩过程。     

Fractionation of U,Th, Ra and Pb from boreal forest soils by sequential extractions

To determine the mobility of natural radionuclides in boreal forest soil, a five-step sequential extraction procedure was carried out on soil samples taken from various depths down to 3 m on Olkiluoto Island, Finland, where there are plans to construct a spent nuclear fuel disposal repository in the bedrock. The extracted fractions studied were exchangeable, acid-soluble, reducible, oxidizable and tightly bound. It was found that the extractability of most of the radionuclides studied was dependent on the sample grain size and depth. All the elements were concentrated in the smallest grain size samples (<0.063 mm). The extraction behaviour of Th, however, did not vary with sample depth, and only about 10% of the Th was extracted by the time of the final extraction step. Stable Pb and ²¹⁰Pb, as well as Ba and Ra concentrations were strongly correlated in the extractions. Radium and Ba were leached more readily than the other elements; approximately 17% of the total Ra was found in the first fraction extracted, representing exchangeable ions. Uranium was more mobile in the topsoil horizons than in the lower horizons. In the topsoil samples, an average of 51% of the extractable U was leached in the second extraction step, representing the elements soluble in weak acids, whereas only 13% of the U in the subsoil samples was extracted in this step. This is probably due to changes in soil redox conditions lower down the soil profile. The extraction behaviour of Pb and Fe also suggests the presence of more reducing conditions in the deeper soil horizons, because the percentage of extractable Pb and Fe in the oxidizable fraction increased with sample depth.     

Activity disequilibrium of Th, U, and U in old stilbite: Effects of young U mobility and α-recoil

Stilbite from Malmberget and Svappavara is part of hydrothermal mineral assemblages occupying regionally occurring open Palaeoproterozoic fractures in northern Sweden. At these locations, stilbite is characterized by Pb_rad excess relative to U and by activity ratios of [²³⁴U]/[²³⁸U] > 1 and [²³⁰Th]/[²³⁸U] > 1. The activity disequilibrium requires a disturbance of the U-Th systematics within the last one million years. Leaching and infiltration experiments on Malmberget stilbite demonstrate: (i) preferential leaching in the order Pb >U >Th and uptake in the order Pb > U, and (ii) isotopic fractionation of U by preferential mobilization of ²³⁸U and ²³⁵U relative to ²³⁴U. Stepwise-leaching further indicates that the bulk of U is hosted in the channel sites of stilbite. The Th-U disequilibrium systematics observed in untreated Malmberget and Svappavara stilbite can be explained by: (1) addition of U with [²³⁴U]/[²³⁸U] > 1 from a fluid, or alternatively (2) loss of U from a two-component system, consisting of a component that is “open” or accessible and a component that is “closed” or inaccessible to mobilization. U addition requires a multistage history involving multiple gain or loss of U and/or Pb. In contrast, U loss does not necessarily require multistage processes but can also be explained by preferential removal of ²³⁸U (and ²³⁵U) relative to recoiled daughter isotopes such as ²³⁴U, ²³⁰Th, and ²⁰⁶Pb (and ²⁰⁷Pb) during a single event. Such a behavior could be obtained if the recoiled daughter isotopes of channel-sited uranium are implanted into the crystal lattice and, in such a way, become less mobile than their parent isotopes. This case implies an open-system behavior for ions in the channel sites and a closed-system behavior for ions in the silicate framework of stilbite. Each α-recoil directly or indirectly, i.e., through its recoil cascade, damages the silicate framework. Subsequent (continuous) low-temperature annealing of the damaged stilbite lattice could trap the recoiled daughter isotopes in the repaired crystal lattice or sealed-off channels. Such immobile recoiled material can, in part, represent the “closed” component of the system. This model can account for all observations regarding the Th-U-Pb systematics, including the Th-U disequilibrium systematics, the similarity in Th/U as deduced from Th-U disequilibrium and Pb isotope data, and the excess of radiogenic Pb (²⁰⁸Pb-parents also had been multiply recoiled). These two contrasting explanations involve either multistage or multicomponent systems. They do not permit the derivation of an accurate age.     

234U238U and 230Th234U activity ratios in mineral phases of a lateritic weathered zone

A selective phase extraction procedure was developed for the identification of the significant phases of a typical deep soil profile sampled in the vicinity of the Ranger No. 1 uranium ore body, Alligator Rivers region, N.T., Australia. The significant phases were identified as amorphous iron oxide, crystalline iron oxide and a clay/quartz resistate. The distribution of ²³⁸U, ²³⁴U, ²³⁰Th and ²²⁶Ra between the phases was measured. The results indicated that the amorphous iron oxide phase is in adsorption/desorption equilibrium with the ground water. The crystalline iron oxide phase contains a chemical control, the kinetics of which are commensurate with or less than the half-life of ²³⁰Th (7.52 × 10⁴ y). The clay/quartz resistate is enriched in ²³⁸U descendants in such a way that they are not readily accessible to the ground water.     

胶东西北部北截岩体岩石成因:锆石U-Pb年龄、岩石地球化学与Sr-Nd-Pb同位素制约

胶东半岛西北部是我国最重要的金矿集区,95%以上的金资源储量赋存于晚侏罗世玲珑型和早白垩世郭家岭型花岗岩中。然而,对郭家岭型花岗岩形成的大地构造背景及其与金成矿的关系,尤其是岩石成因仍存有争议。本文通过对归属于郭家岭型花岗岩的北截岩体开展详细的岩相学、岩石地球化学、锆石U-Pb年代学和Sr-Nd-Pb地球化学研究,识别出细粒花岗闪长岩、含斑细粒花岗闪长岩、斑状中粒花岗闪长岩、斑状粗粒花岗闪长岩和花岗伟晶岩脉5种侵入岩类型,它们具有相似的地球化学特征和同位素组成,呈连续演化关系,为同一期岩浆活动的产物。电子探针分析显示,样品中的黑云母具有富FeOT、MgO、高Al2O3低TiO2的特点,为岩浆成因的富铁黑云母,Mg和Al元素的负相关性表明结晶过程中二者可能发生了置换。岩石地球化学研究表明,花岗闪长岩具有高的全碱(K2O+Na20=6.92%~9.31%)、Ba(518×10-6~3330×10-6)、Sr(305×10-6~1371×10-6),低的Al2O3(14.41%~15.82%)、MgO(0.19%~0.77%)、Rb(39.3×10-6~105×10-6)、Y(1.2×10-6~6.05×10-6)、Yb(0.08×10-6~0.40×10-6)含量特征,轻稀土(LREE)富集、重稀土(HREE)相对亏损(LREE/HREE=13.13-21.40),轻、重稀土元素分馏明显[(La/Yb)N=18.39~45.76],Rb、Sr、Ba、Pb等大离子亲石元素(LILE)富集,Nd、Ta、Zr、Hf等高场强元素(HFSE)明显亏损,具有高Ba-Sr花岗岩的地球化学特征。锆石LA-ICP-MS定年结果表明,斑状粗粒花岗闪长岩形成于131.53±0.86Ma,花岗伟晶岩脉形成于127.4±1.3Ma,说明其形成于早白垩世早期,伟晶岩脉应该是本次岩浆活动后期的产物。Sr-Nd同位素分析表明,初始87Sr/86Sr(ISr)和εNd(t)分别为0.710658-0.711568和-18.53^-11.17,二阶段亏损地幔模式年龄(tDM2)为2107-2425Ma,与胶东群变质岩年龄一致,指示了其原始岩浆有部分熔融的胶东群参与;Pb同位素分析表明,初始206Pb/204Pb和初始208Pb/204Pb分别为17.047~17.945和37.744~38.389,说明有大量的下地壳物质参与成岩。上述数据分析表明,北截岩体是基底岩石胶东群变质岩部分熔融形成的下地壳酸性岩浆与幔源基性岩浆混合作用的结果,太平洋板块向欧亚板块俯冲构造背景下的软流圈物质上涌和下地壳的部分熔融可能是形成这套花岗岩的机制,是板块俯冲产生的欧亚板块边缘火山弧的组成部分;在区域金成矿方面,其为金成矿提供了有利的赋存空间,而应该不是成矿流体来源或热动力条件。     

Single Column Sequential Extraction of Ra,Nd, Th,Pa and U from a Natural Sample

A new procedure allowing the sequential extraction of Ra, Nd, Th, Pa and U from the same initial natural sample (sea or river waters, particles, sediments, rocks) is proposed. Extraction recoveries were better than 90%. Procedural blanks ranged from 80 pg (for Nd) to below 1 fg, the detection limit of the MC‐ICP‐MS used (for Pa); all were negligible compared with the amounts of elements currently determined. Based on classical anionic resins attached to a peristaltic pump allowing precise flow rate control, this procedure allowed a consequent reduction of the sample size, which improved the sampling resolution and reduced the sampling cost. It also ensured a better consistency of the samples for the five tracers.