Kimberlitic sources of super-deep diamonds in the Juina area,Mato Grosso State,Brazil

The Juina diamond field, in the 1970–80s, was producing up to 5–6 million carats per year from rich placer deposits, but no economic primary deposits had been found in the area. In 2006–2007, Diagem Inc. discovered a group of diamondiferous kimberlitic pipes within the Chapadão Plateau (Chapadão, or Pandrea cluster), at the head of a drainage system which has produced most of the alluvial diamonds mined in the Juina area. Diamonds from placer deposits and newly discovered kimberlites are identical; they have super-deep origins from the upper-mantle and transition zone. Field observations and petrographic studies have identified crater-facies kimberlitic material at seven separate localities. Kimberlitic material is represented by tuffs, tuffisites and various epiclastic sediments containing chrome spinel, picroilmenite, manganoan ilmenite, zircon and diamond. The diamond grade varies from 0.2–1.8 ct/m³. Chrome spinel has 30–61 wt.% Cr₂O₃. Picroilmenite contains 6–14 wt.% MgO and 0.2–4 wt.% Cr₂O₃. Manganoan ilmenite has less than 3 wt.% MgO and 0.38–1.41 wt.% MnO. The ¹⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf ratio in kimberlitic zircons is 0.028288–0.28295 with ε_Hf = 5.9–8.3, and lies on the average kimberlite trend between depleted mantle and CHUR. The previously known barren and weakly diamondiferous kimberlites in the Juina area have ages of 79–80 Ma. In contrast, zircons from the newly discovered Chapadão kimberlites have a mean ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U age of 93.6 ± 0.4 Ma, corresponding to a time of magmatic activity related to the opening of the southern part of the Atlantic Ocean. The most likely mechanism of the origin of kimberlitic magma is super-deep subduction process that initiated partial melting of zones in lower mantle with subsequent ascent of proto-kimberlitic magma.     

Lower mantle diamonds from Rio Soriso (Juina area,Mato Grosso,Brazil)

The morphology, colour, fluorescence, cathodoluminescence, nitrogen content and aggregation state, internal structure and mineral inclusions have been studied for 69 alluvial diamonds from the Rio Soriso (Juina area, Mato Grosso State, Brazil). Nitrogen in most diamonds (53%) is fully aggregated as B centres, but there is also a large proportion of N-free stones (38%). A strong positive correlation between nitrogen and IR-active hydrogen concentrations is observed. The diamonds contain (in order of decreasing abundance) ferropericlase, CaSi-perovskite, magnetite, MgSi-perovskite, pyrrhotite, olivine, SiO₂, perovskite, tetragonal almandine-pyrope phase and some other minerals represented by single grains. The Rio Soriso diamond suite is subdivided into several subpopulations that originated in upper and lower mantle of ultramafic and mafic compositions, with the largest subgroup forming in the ultramafic lower mantle. Analysed ferropericlase grains are enriched in Fe (Mg#=0.43–0.89), which is ascribed to their origin in the lowermost mantle. The Juina kimberlites may be unique in sampling the material from depths below 1,700 km that ascended in a plume formed at the core–mantle boundary.Electronic Supplementary Material  Supplementary material is available for this article at

---

Stratigraphy and mineralogy of the manganese ores of Urucum,Mato Grosso,Brazil

Preliminar results of geological mapping and microscopic studies are presented. The mineral deposits of Urucum are clearly different from the rest of the banded iron-formations in Brazil: Urucum is essentially younger, and probably Late Proterozoic, the sequence is unmetamorphic. Two main types of manganese ore exist in Urucum, namely: The Urucum-Santa Cruz type is with finely laminated rhythmic layering, the Mato Grosso type is concretionary, and sometimes nodular. The origin of the Fe- and Mn-minerals is traditionally explained as due to weathering. However, the involvement of volcanic processes cannot be totally excluded. The conglomerates, intercalated in the banded iron-formation, are glacial and possibly belong to the Eocambrian.     

Petrology of potassic alkaline ultramafic and carbonatitic rocks from Planalto da Serra (Mato Grosso State), Brazil

The Planalto da Serra igneous rocks form plugs, necks and dykes of carbonate-rich ultramafic lamprophyres (aillikites and glimmerites with kamafugitic affinity) and carbonatites (alvikites and beforsites). Phlogopite and/or tetraphlogopite, diopside and melanitic garnet are restricted to aillikitic rock-types, whereas pyroclore occurs only in carbonatites. Aillikites and carbonatites are altered to hydrotermalites, having chlorite and serpentine as dominant minerals. Planalto da Serra igneous rock association has kamafugitic affinity (i.e. effusive, ultrapotassic. High LREE/HREE fractionation, incompatible elements data and Sr-Nd isotopes, suggest that the K-ultramafic alkaline and carbonatite rocks originated from a variably metasomatized mantle source enriched in radiogenic Sr. Crustal contamination is negligible or absent. Age values of 600 Ma rule out the geochronological relationship between the investigated intrusions and the Mesozoic alkaline bodies from the Azimuth 125° lineament. The TDM model ages allow to conclude that Planalto da Serra magma is derived from the partial melting of a mantle source metasomatised by K-rich carbonatated melt during the Early to Late Neoproterozoic. On the basis of alkaline magmatism repetitions at 600 Ma and 90–80 Ma we question the subsistence of a stationary mantle plume for so long time.     

Age of ultramafic high-K rocks from Planalto da Serra (Mato Grosso,Brazil)

The Planalto da Serra ultramafic-alkaline rocks are represented by several plugs, lava-flows and N60–80E trending dykes which are mainly represented by glimmerites, harzburgites and carbonatites. These rocks intrude the Cryogenian basal unit of the Northern Paraguay Belt in the Rio dos Cavalos rift (southeastern part of the Amazonian Craton). ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dating on the phlogopite from glimmeritic dykes and plugs yielded an age of ca. 600 Ma, which is consistent with Rb/Sr and Sm/Nd determinations on the other rock-types. These age determinations make it difficult to establish a geochronological and genetic relationship between the Planalto da Serra rocks and the Cretaceous bodies of the “Azimuth 125° Lineament”, and it suggests there is a relationship between its emplacement and the beginning of the extensional tectonics responsible for the separation of the Amazonian and Laurentia Cratons. This age also indicates that the onset of the deformation of the Cuiaba Group may be older than 600 Ma.     

Mineral inclusions in sublithospheric diamonds from Collier 4 kimberlite pipe, Juina, Brazil: subducted protoliths, carbonated melts and primary kimberlite magmatism

We report on a suite of diamonds from the Cretaceous Collier 4 kimberlite pipe, Juina, Brazil, that are predominantly nitrogen-free type II crystals showing complex internal growth structures. Syngenetic mineral inclusions comprise calcium- and titanium-rich phases with perovskite stoichiometry, Ca-rich majoritic-garnet, clinopyroxene, olivine, TAPP phase, minerals with stoichiometries of CAS and K-hollandite phases, SiO₂, FeO, native iron, low-Ni sulfides, and Ca–Mg-carbonate. We divide the diamonds into three groups on the basis of the carbon isotope compositions (δ¹³C) of diamond core zones. Group 1 diamonds have heavy, mantle-like δ¹³C (−5 to −10‰) with mineral inclusions indicating a transition zone origin from mafic protoliths. Group 2 diamonds have intermediate δ¹³C (−12 to −15‰), with inclusion compositions indicating crystallization from near-primary and differentiated carbonated melts derived from oceanic crust in the deep upper mantle or transition zone. A ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U age of 101 ± 7 Ma on a CaTiSi-perovskite inclusion (Group 2) is close to the kimberlite emplacement time (93.1 ± 1.5 Ma). Group 3 diamonds have extremely light δ¹³C (−25‰), and host inclusions have compositions akin to high-pressure–temperature phases expected to be stable in pelagic sediments subducted to transition zone depths. Collectively, the Collier 4 diamonds and their inclusions indicate multi-stage, polybaric growth histories in dynamically changing chemical environments. The young inclusion age, the ubiquitous chemical and isotopic characteristics indicative of subducted materials, and the regional tectonic history, suggest a model in which generation of sublithospheric diamonds and their inclusions, and the proto-kimberlite magmas, are related genetically, temporally and geographically to the interaction of subducted lithosphere and a Cretaceous plume.     

Paleoproterozoic bimodal post-collisional magmatism in the southwestern Amazonian Craton,Mato Grosso,Brazil: Geochemistry and isotopic evidence

This paper discusses geological and geochemical aspects of a Paleoproterozoic volcano-plutonic association that crops out in southwestern Amazonian Craton, Mato Grosso, Brazil. The study area was divided into undeformed and deformed domains, based on structural and geochronology studies. The undeformed domain is composed mainly of felsic explosive and effusive flows. Inter-layered mafic flows of basalts and sedimentary rocks are also present. The deformed domain is mainly composed of titanite and hornblende-bearing monzogranite to syenogranite and biotite monzogranite, while granodiorite is less common. U–Pb single zircon analyses yielded ages of 1.8–1.75 Ga in granites and felsic volcanic rocks for both domains. Basalts from the undeformed domain are phaneritic, fine-grained, and are often hydrothermally altered. They show tholeiitic affinity and are LREE enriched. Their trace element composition resembles those of within-plate associations. The ε_Nd (t = 1.75 Ga) for all these rocks are positive, ranging from 0.12 to 1.49, which reflect a juvenile source. The felsic volcanism comprises subalkaline rocks with high K contents and is divided into two groups: crystal enriched ignimbrites and effusive rhyolites. REE patterns of effusive rocks show negative-Eu anomalies and are smooth in the ignimbrites. Trace element patterns similar to those of the effusive rocks and ignimbrites are found in magmatic rocks derived from sources affected by subduction-related metasomatism. Hornblende and biotite granites occur in the deformed felsic plutonic domain. These rocks show evidence of low-temperature metamorphism and deformation, and in some places, of hydrothermal alteration. The LREE/Nb (or Ta) ratios of these rocks are consistent with those observed in granites of post-collisional settings. The ε_Nd (t = 1.75 Ga) values are slightly negative on average, with few positive values (?1.41 to +2.96). These data are interpreted as indicative of a magmatism produced during a post-collisional event from mixed sources: a metasomatised mantle and a Paleoproterozoic continental crust. An intracontinental shearing with age of 1.7–1.66 Ga created the Teles Pires–Juruena lineament which partially controlled this magmatism.     

Mapping and spatial analysis of the soybean agricultural frontier in Mato Grosso, Brazil, using remote sensing data

The main pioneer frontier considered by geographers is the Amazonian pioneer frontier. The occupation of the Brazilian territory has been carried out through successive economic cycles. Currently, the expansion of soybean crops in Amazonia is considered as the last economic cycle involving new migrations to still unexplored areas. Mapping this frontier is necessary in order to better understand its drivers and think about efficient land use policies to struggle its progress. In this paper, we propose an innovative methodology for mapping the agricultural frontier in the Amazonian state of Mato Grosso (Brazil) using satellite data acquired during the 2000–2006 period. We assume that the frontier evolves through successive land-use stages such as wildlands, non-croplands, extensive croplands and intensive croplands areas. The transitions between two stages can then be monitored through land-use change analysis. A particular emphasis is given on three land-use transitions named “deforestation”, “economic” and “intensification sub-frontiers”. In order to adapt this model for the use of remote sensing data, we defined (1) a relevant spatial scale corresponding to an agrarian locality, (2) relevant indices to qualify the land-use types and (3) rules applied on land-use types to define the frontier’s location. Our results highlight the dynamic of the agricultural frontier towards northern areas. We identified four main agricultural regions with different levels of agricultural intensification. We finally discuss these results with respect to governmental policies and economics for a better understanding of the frontier’s dynamic.     

Concentration of gold in in situ laterites from Mato Grosso

The gold concentration studied is located in lateritic soils overlying Precambrian schists of the Cuiaba Group in Mato Grosso, Brazil. The following five horizons may be recognized from bottom to top: (1) a gray-blue altered schist horizon, (2) a red argillaceous alterite, (3) a horizon characterized by iron oxihydroxide-rich pebbles and quartz fragments in an iron oxihydroxide-rich matrix and clays, (4) an iron crust, and (5) the present soil. The most significant gold content is found in the third horizon just below the iron crust. According to geological study and morphological observations of the gold particles, the gold ore mined today is the result of two combined processes, i.e., the ferrallitic alteration of quartz lodes enclosed in schists and the effect of the red argillaceous alterite which acts as an impervious structure preventing the largest gold grains from migrating downward during their mechanical concentration.     

The origin of diamonds in western Minas Gerais,Brazil

Important diamond mineralized alluvium/colluvium occurs in western Minas Gerais (WMG) in the Brasília Orogenic Belt (700-450 my). Diamonds are geographically related to glacial and periglacial sediments (Upper Proterozoic and Permo-Carboniferous), wadi and debris flow conglomerates (Lower Cretaceous and Upper Cretaceous), and ultramafic alkaline rocks (intrusive and extrusive, including kimberlites, leucitites, kamafugites, carbonatites, etc.) of Cretaceous age. Petrological data indicate that the rocks originally petrographically classified as kimberlites present mineralogical, chemical, and isotopical differences with Group I and II kimberlites and more closely resemble kamafugites. The Brasília Orogenic Belt presents features of a Wilson Cycle implying that WMG does not fulfil the geotectonic and geothermometric requisites to host primary diamond sources. An analysis of field relations and sedimentology in WMG shows that the majority of the diamonds have been transported by glacial events from the São Francisco Craton further east.     

Geochemistry of contaminated komatiites from the Umburanas greenstone belt,Bahia State,Brazil

The late Archaean Umburanas greenstone belt (UGB) is located in the São Francisco Craton, southwest of Bahia State, Brazil. The lower unit of UGB comprises basal komatiite lavas and tholeiitic basalts intercalated with felsic volcanic rocks. The regional crystalline basement rocks, the Gavião block, predominantly consist of granitic, granodioritic and migmatitic gneiss along with tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite (TTG) associations.Petrographic studies of UGB komatiites reveal characteristic spinifex igneous texture although primary mineralogy is rarely preserved. Based on textural relationships, komatiites are divided into cumulate, spinifex, and massive types. The MgO content varies in the range 31.5–40.4 wt%. The MgO–SiO₂ negative correlation in komatiites suggests olivine fractionation trend. The UGB komatiites are of Al-undepleted type, characterized by Al₂O₃/TiO₂ (21–48) ratio, enriched in highly incompatible LILE relative to moderately incompatible HFSE and distinct negative Nb, Sr and Eu anomalies. Also shows depletion of light rare earths, convex-downward rare earth patterns typically not observed in komatiites world-wide, and primitive mantle normalized Gd/Yb (1.03–1.23) and La/Sm (2.36–4.99) ratios. The negative Eu anomaly is attributed to the circulation of H₂O-rich fluid, whereas the negative Nb and Sr anomalies are attributed to contamination from granitic basement rocks of the Gavião block.The UGB komatiites are most likely derived from adiabatic decompressional melting of a mantle plume. The melting took place at liquidus temperatures in the range 1572–1711 °C, which is consistent with mantle-plume origin invoked for several other komatiites in Archaean greenstone belts elsewhere. The melts were more likely generated at a depth shallower than 100 km (pressure < 2.5 GPa) where garnet was absent in the source mineralogy. Geochemical characteristics suggest contamination of primary melts with granitic basement rocks either during ascent of melt or during emplacement of magma in a continental basin setting. Greenschist to low-T amphibolite facies metamorphism at ∼2Ga may also have played a role in modifying the original komatiite petrography and composition.     

Luminescence in diamonds of the Sao Luiz placer (Brazil)

Plates made of diamonds from the Sao Luiz province (Brazil) were investigated by confocal scanning luminescence microscopy. The samples have many macroinhomogeneities (cracks and inclusions), but there is a quasi-uniform distribution of luminescence centers in the bulk. At all investigated points of the crystals, the same group of centers was observed: N3, H4, 575, and a red band with a maximum at 690-700 nm. The visible nonuniformities in the distribution of luminescence over the area of the plates are determined by relatively small fluctuations in the ratio of the intensities of individual bands in the spectra. Nitrogen centers of different degrees of aggregation (H4, N3, and 575 nm, with four, three, and one nitrogen atom, respectively) coexist in these crystals. In the same zones of the samples, the distribution of blue luminescence (N3 centers) is diffuse (uniform), but the distribution of yellow-green luminescence is characterized by layering on (111). This might be a consequence of the tangential growth of octahedron faces or a result of plastic deformation of the crystals and dislocations along (111).     

Chemostratigraphy of lava sequences from the Rio Itapicuru Greenstone Belt,Bahia State,Brazil

The Rio Itapicuru greenstone terrain of north-central Bahia State consists of belts of supracrustal rocks surrounding granitic plutons and domes. The basal supracrustal rocks are predominantly massive metabasalts with minor amounts of intercalated chemical sedimentary rocks and mafic tuffs. They are overlain by a middle unit of intermediate to acid pyroclastic rocks, lavas, and volcaniclastic sediments, and an upper unit of greywackes, sandstones and conglomerates.A geochemical study of major and trace elements of the volcanic rocks indicates the existence of a chemical discontinuity between the basaltic and the acid to intermediate members. The basalts are typical tholeiites with Ti, Zr, Sr, Y and Nb contents analogous to those of modern ocean-floor tholeiites or, alternatively, low-K tholeiites of primitive island arcs. In contrast, compositional variations of the hornblende-bearing andesites and dacites fall along indisputably calc-alkaline trends of low FeO and TiO₂ contents which decrease with increasing differentiation. The lithostratigraphic and chemical variations within lavas of the Rio Itapicuru greenstone are comparable to those described from the Western Australian greenstone belts. Only in greenstone belts of the Canadian type do thick calc-alkaline sequences containing abudant basaltic andesites overlie conformably and transitionally the underlying tholeiitic basalts. Elsewhere the calc-alkaline sequences, if present, do not contain basaltic andesites and are chemically unrelated to the underlying basalts.     

Origin of sub-lithospheric diamonds from the Juina-5 kimberlite (Brazil): constraints from carbon isotopes and inclusion compositions

Forty-one diamonds sourced from the Juina-5 kimberlite pipe in Southern Brazil, which contain optically identifiable inclusions, have been studied using an integrated approach. The diamonds contain <20 ppm nitrogen (N) that is fully aggregated as B centres. Internal structures in several diamonds revealed using cathodoluminescence (CL) are unlike those normally observed in lithospheric samples. The majority of the diamonds are composed of isotopically light carbon, and the collection has a unimodal distribution heavily skewed towards δ¹³C ~ ?25 ‰. Individual diamonds can display large carbon isotope heterogeneity of up to ~15 ‰ and predominantly have isotopically lighter cores displaying blue CL, and heavier rims with green CL. The light carbon isotopic compositions are interpreted as evidence of diamond growth from abiotic organic carbon added to the oceanic crust during hydrothermal alteration. The bulk isotopic composition of the oceanic crust, carbonates plus organics, is equal to the composition of mantle carbon (?5 ‰), and we suggest that recycling/mixing of subducted material will replenish this reservoir over geological time. Several exposed, syngenetic inclusions have bulk compositions consistent with former eclogitic magnesium silicate perovskite, calcium silicate perovskite and NAL or CF phases that have re-equilibrated during their exhumation to the surface. There are multiple occurrences of majoritic garnet with pyroxene exsolution, coesite with and without kyanite exsolution, clinopyroxene, Fe or Fe-carbide and sulphide minerals alongside single occurrences of olivine and ferropericlase. As a group, the inclusions have eclogitic affinity and provide evidence for diamond formation at pressures extending to Earth’s deep transition zone and possibly the lower mantle. It is observed that the major element composition of inclusions and isotopic compositions of host Juina-5 diamonds are not correlated. The diamond and inclusion compositions are intimately related to subducted material and record a polybaric growth history across a depth interval stretching from the lower mantle to the base of the lithosphere. It is suggested that the interaction of slab-derived melts and mantle material combined with subsequent upward transport in channelised networks or a buoyant diapir explains the formation of Juina-5 diamonds. We conclude that these samples, despite originating at great mantle depths, do not provide direct information about the ambient mantle, instead, providing a snapshot of the Earth’s deep carbon cycle.     

An infrared investigation of inclusion-bearing diamonds from the Venetia kimberlite,Northern Province,South Africa : implications for diamonds from craton-margin settings

The Venetia kimberlites in the Northern Province of South Africa sampled diamonds from the lithosphere underlying the Central Zone of the Limpopo Belt. Given the general correlation of diamond-bearing kimberlites with old stable cratons, this tectonic setting is somewhat anomalous and, therefore, it is desirable to characterise the diamonds in terms of their infrared characteristics. A suite of diamonds of known paragenesis from the Venetia mine spans a large range of nitrogen concentrations from less than the detection limit to 1,355 ppm. Diamond nitrogen contents are, on average, higher in the eclogitic diamond population relative to the websteritic and peridotitic diamonds. Nitrogen aggregation states are variable, ranging from almost pure type IaA diamond (poorly aggregated nitrogen) to pure type IaB diamond (highly aggregated nitrogen). On a nitrogen aggregation diagram two distinct groups can be identified based on nitrogen content and nitrogen aggregation state. These are a minor population of diamonds with nitrogen contents generally higher than 500 ppm and nitrogen aggregation states of less than 40% IaB, and another, dominant population that is characterised by higher and more variable nitrogen aggregation. The unusually aggregated nature of the majority of the diamonds analysed is unique to Venetia relative to other intrusives on the Kaapvaal-Kalahari craton, but is similar to aggregation states observed for diamonds from other craton margin or adjacent mobile belt settings such as the Argyle lamproite and the George Creek kimberlite. This could be a consequence of diamond mantle residence at mantle temperatures higher than the norm for other kimberlites from the interior of cratons. Deformation of the mantle, associated with dynamic processes such as orogenesis or subduction, might also be responsible for accelerating the rate of nitrogen aggregation in these diamonds. Low numbers of diamonds with degradation of platelets at the Venetia kimberlite, relative to diamonds from the Argyle lamproite, indicate that deformation was at a significantly lower level. The comparatively low value of diamonds from Argyle (at approximately US8/carat) as opposed to Venetia (US8/carat) as opposed to Venetia (US90/carat) is in large part because of the very high abundance of brown diamonds at Argyle. Therefore, it is apparent that deformational history of the mantle in which the diamonds were resident prior to or during sampling by the host may have an important role to play in the profitability of a primary diamond deposit. The apparently consistent association of diamonds with unusually aggregated nitrogen with kimberlites, or lamproites intruded into craton margin or mobile belt settings suggests that it may be possible to recognise such contributory sources in alluvial diamond deposits, through the study of the infrared characteristics of the diamonds. Electronic supplementary material to this paper can be obtained by using the Springer Link server located at http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00410-002-0385-2     

Mercury, copper and zinc contamination in soils and fluvial sediments from an abandoned gold mining area in southern Minas Gerais State, Brazil

Mercury, zinc and copper contamination was evaluated in soils and fluvial sediments from an abandoned gold mining site at Descoberto Municipality (southern Minas Gerais State, Brazil). Metals bioavailability and potential mobility were studied through physical, chemical and mineralogical characterization, geoaccumulation indexes calculations, mercury speciation and determination of potentially bioavailable contents of zinc and copper. Values of pH were in the neutral range, while organic matter concentrations were very low. Mineralogical characterization, in the total samples, indicated the presence of quartz, kaolinite and gibbsite for all samples. Total mercury, zinc and cooper concentrations were higher than the limits recommended by Brazilian documents. Geoaccumulations indexes revealed that most of the sediment samples were low to moderately polluted by zinc and copper, while just one sample was very strongly polluted by mercury. Mercury speciation revealed the predominance of the elementary form for all samples, and low concentrations for exchangeable, strongly bound and residual fractions. Zinc and copper behavior was strongly controlled by iron and aluminum concentrations, while their bioavailable contents were very low in comparison with the total concentrations.     

Hydrochemical relationships in groundwater from central São Paulo State, Brazil

Groundwater samples from different aquifers occurring at center/northeast portion of São Paulo State, Brazil, were collected and chemically analyzed. The waters leaching Mesozoic sediments are generally more acid (pH_average=5.9) and have lower values for total dissolved solids (TDS_average=105 mg/L) than those obtained for waters leaching Paleozoic sediments of Tubarão Group. First-degree trend surfaces revealed that the deeper tubular wells occur towards east/southeast and exploit Paleozoic sediments as well fractured/fissured diabases/basalts, whereas the tubular wells in the west/northwest region are shallower. Piper diagrams indicated that the majority of the waters are a blend of waters from different lithologies. Significant correlations were found among nitrate, chloride and bicarbonate, suggesting the occurrence of some anthropogenic inputs, whereas elevated alpha activity of geogenic ²²⁶Ra indicated the need of a broad radiometric survey in the area.     

Mineral inclusions in diamonds from the River Ranch kimberlite, Zimbabwe

More than 99% of mineral inclusions in diamonds from the River Ranch pipe in the Late Archean Limpopo Mobile Belt (Zimbabwe), are phases of harzburgitic paragenesis, namely olivine (Fo_92–93), orthopyroxene (Mg# = 93), G10 garnets and chromites. The diamond inclusion (DI) chemistry demonstrates a limited overlap with River Ranch kimberlite macrocrysts: the DI garnets are more Ca-undersaturated, and DI spinel and garnet are more Mg-rich. Most River Ranch diamond inclusions were equilibrated at T = 1080–1320 °C, P = 47–61 kbar, and f _O2 between IW and WM buffers. The P/T profile beneath the Limpopo Mobile Belt (LMB) is consistent with a paleo-heat flow of 41–42 mW/m², similar to calculations for Roberts Victor, but hotter than for the Finsch, Kimberley, Koffiefontein and Premier Mines. This is ascribed to the younger tectonothermal age of the LMB and its proximity to Late Archean oceans. Like diamond inclusions from all other kimberlites studied, the River Ranch DI have a lithospheric affinity and therefore indicate that an ancient, chemically depleted, thick (at least 200 km) mantle root existed beneath the Limpopo Mobile Belt 530–540 Ma ago. The mantle root might have developed beneath the continental Central Zone of the LMB as early as the Archean, and could be alien to the overthrust allochthonous sheet of the Limpopo Belt. Oxygen fugacity estimates for diamond inclusions at River Ranch are similar to other diamondiferous harzburgites beneath the Kaapvaal craton, indicating that the Kaapvaal mantle as a whole was well buffered and homogeneous with respect to f _O2 at the time of peridotitic diamond crystallization. Received: 11 January 1995 / Accepted: 10 June 1997     

Mineral inclusions in diamonds from the Sputnik kimberlite pipe, Yakutia

The Sputnik kimberlite pipe is a small “satellite” of the larger Mir pipe in central Yakutia (Sakha), Russia. Study of 38 large diamonds (0.7-4.9 carats) showed that nine contain inclusions of the eclogitic paragenesis, while the remainder contain inclusions of the peridotitic paragenesis, or of uncertain paragenesis. The peridotitic inclusion suite comprises olivine, enstatite, Cr-diopside, chromite, Cr-pyrope garnet (both lherzolitic and harzburgitic), ilmenite, Ni-rich sulfide and a Ti-Cr-Fe-Mg-Sr-K phase of the lindsleyite-mathiasite (LIMA) series. The eclogitic inclusion suite comprises omphacite, garnet, Ni-poor sulfide, phlogopite and rutile. Peridotitic ilmenite inclusions have high Mg, Cr and Ni contents and high Nb/Zr ratios; they may be related to metasomatic ilmenites known from peridotite xenoliths in kimberlite. Eclogitic phlogopite is intergrown with omphacite, coexists with garnet, and has an unusually high TiO₂ content. Comparison with inclusions in diamonds from Mir shows general similarities, but differences in details of trace-element patterns. Large compositional variations among inclusions of one phase (olivine, garnet, chromite) within single diamonds indicate that the chemical environment of diamond crystallisation changed rapidly relative to diamond growth rates in many cases. P-T conditions of formation were calculated from multiphase inclusions and from trace element geothermobarometry of single inclusions. The geotherm at the time of diamond formation was near a 35 mW/m² conductive model; that is indistinguishable from the Paleozoic geotherm derived by studies of xenoliths and concentrate minerals from Mir. A range of Ni temperatures between garnet inclusions in single diamonds from both Mir and Sputnik suggests that many of the diamonds grew during thermal events affecting a relatively narrow depth range of the lithosphere, within the diamond stability field. The minor differences between inclusions in Mir and Sputnik may reflect lateral heterogeneity in the upper mantle.     

Geochemical evolution of laterites from two areas of the semiarid region in Bahia State, Brazil

Lateritic covers developed during the Pleistocene in two distinct areas (Gentio do Ouro District and Sento Sé) of the State of Bahia, Brazil, have been investigated geochemically. Samples of the bedrock (gabbros, from the Gentio do Ouro District, and silicate facies iron formation and associated iron-rich banded carbonates, from the Sento Sé Area) and the lateritic products (latosols, cuirasses and pisolites) were analyzed for major and selected trace elements (Co, Cu, Cr, Ni, V, Pb, Ba, Au and ree). The purpose of the research was to study the geochemical evolution of the laterites and the relationship of weathering processes to secondary gold mineralization.Four types of element mobilities are recognized, defined by progressive depletion (type A) or enrichment (type C) in the sequence latosol-cuirasse-pisolite or by extreme enrichment (type B) or depletion (type D) in the cuirasse. Cr and V have similar behavior (type C), whatever the type of parent rock: however, when the original rocks are gabbros, Co, Cu and Ni demonstrate behavior A, B and A, respectively. Also Ti has the same type of mobility (type A), whatever the type of parent rock.The concentrations of some residual elements, e.g., Ti, V, Mn, Fe and Au, are inherited from the original rocks, that is, they exhibit higher values in the lateritic materials on parent rocks in which their contents are high.The enrichment of ree in the lateritic materials on iron-rich carbonates is attributed to relatively basic and reducing conditions at depth. This environment allowed the ions of these elements (Ce, Sm, Eu and Yb in the reduced ionic form) to stay in solution along with Fe²⁺. At shallow depht, under oxidizing conditions, the iron oxyhydroxides adsorbed the ree ions. This adsorption was more effective for La, Ce and Yb ions.The ree contents in the lateritic products from gabbros indicate a depletion of hree plus Eu, Nd and Sm are also depleted in cuirasses and Ce is depleted in pisolites. The loss of these ree and the slight concentration of lree in the red latosol of the Gentio do Ouro District are attributed to partial leaching of ree by a relatively acidic solution. The adsorption of ree by iron oxyhydroxides was less intense here than in the weathering of the iron-rich carbonates at Sento Sé Area. It was also more effective for La and Ce (ions). This type of weathering solution may be generated from oxidation of the accessory pyrite present in the gabbros of the Gentio do Ouro District. It may dissolve primary gold which then precipitates on encountering basic conditions at depth.