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Cassiterite and Sn mineralization in the giant Bayan Obo Fe-Nb-REE deposit, Northern China

  • Ya-Ting Xu , Ru-Cheng Wang EMAIL logo , Mei-Fu Zhou and Fu-Yuan Wu
Published/Copyright: January 18, 2025
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American Mineralogist
From the journal American Mineralogist Volume 110 Issue 1

Abstract

Critical rare metal deposits are strategic resources as these metals have numerous applications in hightech industries. Among the critical rare metals, natural stannum (Sn) is mainly found in the Sn-oxide mineral cassiterite (SnO2) and is closely associated with granite or pegmatite. Carbonatite and alkaline rocks are more likely to contain vast amounts of critical rare metals, especially REEs and niobium (Nb). Here we report the presence of abundant cassiterite (SnO2) and evaluate potential Sn mineralization in the Bayan Obo Fe-Nb-REE deposit in northern China, the largest REE deposit worldwide. This represents the first reported evidence of Sn enrichment in a carbonatite-hosted REE deposit.

REE-Fe ores are dominantly mined in the Bayan Obo deposit. Disseminated, banded, and massive ores contain tens to hundreds of parts per million Sn, and vein-type ores are notably rich in Sn (up to 1500 ppm). In-situ micro-zonation mineralogical analyses identified two occurrences of cassiterite and several Sn-rich minerals in these REE-Fe ores. Abundant early-stage nanoscale cassiterite inclusions are present within magnetite grains in banded and massive REE-Fe ores, and ubiquitous late-stage granular cassiterite, Sn-rich rutile, titanite, and bafertisite are present in vein-type REE-Fe ores. Multiple U-Th-Pb dating of monazite and columbite-Mn in association with cassiterite yields peak ages of 425 Ma and 419 ± 18 Ma, respectively, revealing coeval Sn and Nb mineralization. We conclude that Sn was derived from carbonatitic magmas, and the dense distribution of cassiterite inclusions in magnetite marked the pre-enrichment of Sn in the Bayan Obo deposit. Subsequent Early Paleozoic hydrothermal events led to reactivation and further Sn mineralization. Similar to Nb, Sn was mineralized in the Bayan Obo deposit, possibly forming economically important resources. Our study highlights the potential of Sn mineralization associated with carbonatite-hosted REE deposits.

Keywords: Critical rare metals; cassiterite; Sn mineralization; Bayan Obo deposit; TEM; geochemical characteristics; U-Th-Pb dating; SIMS

Acknowledgments and Funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant 42230809, 92262001) and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities. The authors acknowledge the Innovation Academy for Earth Science, CAS, for an initial Key Research Program (IGGCAS-201901). Yating Xu was supported by the China Scholarship Council (grant no. CXXM2110080163). We thank Wenlan Zhang and Huan Hu for their kind help with EMP and LA-ICP-MS testing. Many thanks to Xiaolei Wang, Yue Guan, and Junyong Li for their support in SIMS laboratory work. We thank Yiqun Zhao and Xuan Meng from Electron Microscopy Centre of Lanzhou University for their help in TEM laboratory work. We are grateful to the two anonymous reviewers for their detailed and constructive comments. Thanks also go to Associate Editor Julie Roberge for handling our manuscript.

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Received: 2023-08-08
Accepted: 2024-04-19
Published Online: 2025-01-18
Published in Print: 2025-01-29

© 2025 Mineralogical Society of America

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https://doi.org/10.2138/am-2023-9149
Keywords for this article
Critical rare metals; cassiterite; Sn mineralization; Bayan Obo deposit; TEM; geochemical characteristics; U-Th-Pb dating; SIMS

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Thermoelasticity of phase D and implications for low-velocity anomalies and local discontinuities at the uppermost lower mantle
  2. Plastic deformation of dry, fine-grained olivine aggregates under high pressures
  3. Raman Match: Application for automated identification of minerals from Raman spectroscopy data
  4. Estimating modal mineralogy using Raman spectroscopy: Multivariate analysis models and Raman cross-section proxies
  5. The olivine-spinel- aSiO2melt  (OSaS) oxybarometer: A new method for evaluating magmatic oxygen fugacity in olivine-phyric basalts
  6. The transition of the magma plumbing system of Tianchi shield-forming basalts, Changbaishan Volcanic Field, NE China: Constraints from dynamic Fe-Mg diffusion modeling in olivine
  7. Arsenic in pyrite acts as a catalyst for dissolution-reprecipitation reaction and gold remobilization
  8. In-situ and ex-situ experimental investigation on the chalcopyrite replacement in saline solution at 310–365 °C and 15–25 MPa
  9. Cassiterite and Sn mineralization in the giant Bayan Obo Fe-Nb-REE deposit, Northern China
  10. Enrichment and fractionation of rare earth elements (REEs) in ion-adsorption-type REE deposits: Constraints of an iron (hydr)oxide-clay mineral composite
  11. Mineral precipitation sequence from multi-stage fluids released by eclogite during high-pressure metamorphism
  12. Miyake-jima anorthite: A lunar crustal material analog
  13. Mushroom-shaped growth of crystals on the Moon
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