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Title: The Nature and Origin of the REE Mineralization in the Wicheeda Carbonatite, British Columbia, Canada

Abstract

The Wicheeda carbonatite is a deformed plug or sill that hosts relatively high grade light rare earth elements (LREE) mineralization in the British Columbia alkaline province. It was emplaced within metasedimentary rocks belonging to the Kechika Group, which have been altered to potassic fenite near the intrusion and sodic fenite at greater distances from it. The intrusion comprises a ferroan dolomite carbonatite core, which passes gradationally outward into calcite carbonatite. The potentially economic REE mineralization is hosted by the dolomite carbonatite. We recognized three types of dolomite. Dolomite constitutes the bulk of the dolomite carbonatite, dolomite replaced dolomite near veins and vugs, and dolomite occurs in veins and vugs together with the REE mineralization. Carbon and oxygen isotope ratios indicate that the calcite carbonatite crystallized from a magma of mantle origin, that dolomite is of primary igneous origin, that dolomite has a largely igneous signature with a small hydrothermal component, and that dolomite is of hydrothermal origin. Furthermore, the REE minerals comprise REE fluorocarbonates, ancylite-(Ce), and monazite-(Ce). In addition to dolomite, they occur with barite, molybdenite, pyrite, and thorite. Minor concentrations of niobium are present as magmatic pyrochlore in the calcite carbonatite. model is proposed in which crystallization of calcitemore » carbonatite preceded that of dolomite carbonatite. During crystallization of the latter, an aqueous-carbonic fluid was exsolved, which mobilized the REE as chloride complexes into vugs and fractures in the dolomite carbonatite, where they precipitated mainly in response to the increase in pH that accompanied fluid-rock interaction and, in the case of the REE fluorocarbonates, decreasing temperature. These fluids altered the host metasedimentary rock to potassic fenite adjacent to the carbonatite and, distal to it, they mixed with formational waters to produce sodic fenite.« less

Authors:
 [1];  [1];  [2]; ORCiD logo [3]
+ Show Author Affiliations
  1. McGill Univ., Montreal, QC (Canada). Dept. of Earth and Planetary Sciences
  2. British Columbia Geological Survey, Victoria, BC (Canada); Univ. of Victoria, BC (Canada). School of Earth and Ocean Sciences
  3. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE
OSTI Identifier:
1402586
Report Number(s):
LA-UR-15-23370
Journal ID: ISSN 0361-0128
Grant/Contract Number:  
AC52-06NA25396
Resource Type:
Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
Economic Geology
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 111; Journal Issue: 1; Journal ID: ISSN 0361-0128
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
58 GEOSCIENCES; Planetary Sciences; Rare Earth Elements, carbonatite, hydrothermal transport

Citation Formats

Trofanenko, J., Williams-Jones, A. E., Simandl, G. J., and Migdisov, A. A. The Nature and Origin of the REE Mineralization in the Wicheeda Carbonatite, British Columbia, Canada. United States: N. p., 2016. Web. doi:10.2113/econgeo.111.1.199.
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Trofanenko, J., Williams-Jones, A. E., Simandl, G. J., & Migdisov, A. A. The Nature and Origin of the REE Mineralization in the Wicheeda Carbonatite, British Columbia, Canada. United States. https://doi.org/10.2113/econgeo.111.1.199
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Trofanenko, J., Williams-Jones, A. E., Simandl, G. J., and Migdisov, A. A. Fri . "The Nature and Origin of the REE Mineralization in the Wicheeda Carbonatite, British Columbia, Canada". United States. https://doi.org/10.2113/econgeo.111.1.199. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1402586.
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@article{osti_1402586,
title = {The Nature and Origin of the REE Mineralization in the Wicheeda Carbonatite, British Columbia, Canada},
author = {Trofanenko, J. and Williams-Jones, A. E. and Simandl, G. J. and Migdisov, A. A.},
abstractNote = {The Wicheeda carbonatite is a deformed plug or sill that hosts relatively high grade light rare earth elements (LREE) mineralization in the British Columbia alkaline province. It was emplaced within metasedimentary rocks belonging to the Kechika Group, which have been altered to potassic fenite near the intrusion and sodic fenite at greater distances from it. The intrusion comprises a ferroan dolomite carbonatite core, which passes gradationally outward into calcite carbonatite. The potentially economic REE mineralization is hosted by the dolomite carbonatite. We recognized three types of dolomite. Dolomite constitutes the bulk of the dolomite carbonatite, dolomite replaced dolomite near veins and vugs, and dolomite occurs in veins and vugs together with the REE mineralization. Carbon and oxygen isotope ratios indicate that the calcite carbonatite crystallized from a magma of mantle origin, that dolomite is of primary igneous origin, that dolomite has a largely igneous signature with a small hydrothermal component, and that dolomite is of hydrothermal origin. Furthermore, the REE minerals comprise REE fluorocarbonates, ancylite-(Ce), and monazite-(Ce). In addition to dolomite, they occur with barite, molybdenite, pyrite, and thorite. Minor concentrations of niobium are present as magmatic pyrochlore in the calcite carbonatite. model is proposed in which crystallization of calcite carbonatite preceded that of dolomite carbonatite. During crystallization of the latter, an aqueous-carbonic fluid was exsolved, which mobilized the REE as chloride complexes into vugs and fractures in the dolomite carbonatite, where they precipitated mainly in response to the increase in pH that accompanied fluid-rock interaction and, in the case of the REE fluorocarbonates, decreasing temperature. These fluids altered the host metasedimentary rock to potassic fenite adjacent to the carbonatite and, distal to it, they mixed with formational waters to produce sodic fenite.},
doi = {10.2113/econgeo.111.1.199},
journal = {Economic Geology},
number = 1,
volume = 111,
place = {United States},
year = {Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2016},
month = {Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2016}
}
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https://doi.org/10.2113/econgeo.111.1.199
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Works referencing / citing this record:

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The Saint-Honoré Carbonatite REE Zone, Québec, Canada: Combined Magmatic and Hydrothermal Processes
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  • Néron, Alexandre; Bédard, Léo; Gaboury, Damien
  • Minerals, Vol. 8, Issue 9
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Deducing the source and composition of rare earth mineralising fluids in carbonatites: insights from isotopic (C, O, 87Sr/86Sr) data from Kangankunde, Malawi
journal, November 2017

  • Broom-Fendley, Sam; Wall, Frances; Spiro, Baruch
  • Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, Vol. 172, Issue 11-12
  • DOI: 10.1007/s00410-017-1412-7
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