Hua-Wen Qi

Continental hydrothermal sedimentary siliceous rock and genesis of superlarge germanium (Ge) deposit hosted in coal: A study from the Lincang Ge deposit, Yunnan, China

There are abundant hydrothermal sedimentary structures and plant fragment fossils in the siliceous rocks from the Lincang Ge deposit. The major element compositions of these siliceous rocks are characterized by high content SiO2, low TiO2 and Al2O3 concentrations, and low Al/(Al+Fe+Mn) ratios (0.010 on average). The siliceous rocks are distinctly enriched in Ge, Sb, As, W, and secondly enriched in Cs, U, Mo and Tl. Their total REE content are generally less than 1μg/g, LREE relatively concentrated, and the values of Eu anomaly and Ce anomaly vary from 0.452 to 5.141 and 0.997 to 1.174, respectively. Their NAS-normalized REE patterns are plain or left-inclined. The Oxygen isotope compositions of these siliceous rocks are similar to those of the hydrothermal siliceous sinter. The above characteristics, as well as the geological setting of the deposit, indicate these siliceous rocks formed in continental hydrothermal environment. As the interlayer or cliff of the Ge-rich coal seams, siliceous rocks tightly contacted with ore-body, and the contents of Ge in siliceous rocks vary from 5.6 to 360 μg/g (78 μg/g on average). The Ge content increased in coal which close to the siliceous rocks. With the increase of Ge content, the typical trace element ratios (i.e., Ge/Ga, Nb/Ta and U/Th) and REE patterns of Ge-rich coal are more close to those of the siliceous rocks. The Ge concentrated in coal seams of the Lincang Ge deposit might be transported by the hydrothermal water, which demonstrated by the siliceous rocks, during the coal-forming processes.

Geochemical and Sr–Nd–Pb isotopic compositions of Mesozoic mafic dikes from the Gan-Hang tectonic belt, South China: petrogenesis and geodynamic significance

Mesozoic mafic dikes in the Gan-Hang tectonic belt (GHTB) provide an opportunity to explore both the nature of their mantle source(s) and the secular evolution of the underlying Mesozoic lithospheric mantle in the region. The geochronology and primary geochemical and Sr–Nd–Pb isotopic compositions of Group 1 (middle section of GHTB) and Group 2 (the rest of the section) dolerite dikes spanning the GHTB were investigated. K–Ar ages indicate that dikes of both groups were emplaced during the Cretaceous (131–69 Ma). The dikes are doleritic in composition and are enriched in both large ion lithophile elements (LILEs; e.g. Rb, Ba, and Pb) and light rare earth elements (LREEs), with a wide range of Eu anomalies, but are depleted in high field strength elements (HFSEs; e.g. Nb, Ta, and Ti) and heavy rare earth elements (HREEs). Dikes sampled in the middle section of the GHTB (Group 1) show more pronounced REE differentiation and a greater contribution from crustal material than those from the east and west sections (Group 2) and are similar to GHTB volcanic rocks in exhibiting a slight enrichment in LREEs. The dolerites are further characterized by a wide range in 87Sr/86Sr i  = 0.7041–0.7110, 143Nd/144Nd i  = 0.511951–0.512758, ϵNd t  = –10.4 to +5.6, and Pb isotopic ratios (206Pb/204Pb i  = 18.1–18.3, 207Pb/204Pb i ≈ 15.6, and 208Pb/204Pb i  = 38.2–38.7). The dikes have undergone fractional crystallization of olivine, clinopyroxene, plagioclase, and Ti-bearing phases, except for dikes from the Anding area, which possibly experienced fractionation of plagioclase. Geochemically, all the dike samples originated from mantle sources ranging in composition from depleted to enriched that contained a component of foundered lower crust; crustal contamination during the ascent of these magmas was negligible. In the context of the late Mesozoic lithospheric extension across South China, mafic dike magmatism was likely triggered by the reactivation of deep faults, which promoted foundering of the lower crust and subsequent mantle upwelling in the GHTB.