Geology, mineralogy and fluid inclusion date of the Kizilcaören fluorite-barite-REE deposit, Eskisehir, Turkey

Ali Haydar Gültekin*, Yüksel Örgün, Fikret Suner

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

43 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The Kizilcaö fluorite-barite-Rare Earth Element (REE) deposit occurs as epithermal veins and breccia fillings in altered Triassic metasandstones and Oligocene-Miocene pyroclastics adjacent to alkaline porphyritic trachyte and phonolite. This deposit is the only commercial source of REE and thorium in Turkey. Most of the fluorite-barite-REE mineralisation at Kizilcaö has been formed by hydrothermal solutions, which are thought to be genetically associated with alkaline volcanism. The occurrence of the ore minerals in vuggy cavities and veins of massive and vuggy silica indicate that the ore stage postdates hydrothermal alteration. The deposit contains evidence of at least three periods of hypogene mineralisation separated by two periods of faulting. The mineral assemblage includes fluorite, barite, quartz, calcite, bastnäsite, phlogopite, pyrolusite and hematite as well as minor amounts of plagioclase feldspar, pyrite, psilomelane, braunite, monazite, fluocerite, brockite, goethite, and rutile. Fluid inclusion microthermometry indicates that the barite formed from low salinity (0.4-9.2 equiv. wt% NaCl) fluids at low temperatures, between 105 and 230 °C, but fluorite formed from slightly higher salinity (<12.4 equiv. wt% NaCl) fluids at low and moderate temperatures, between 135-354 °C. The depositional temperature of bastnäsite is between 143-286 °C. The local coexistence of liquid- and vapour-rich inclusions suggests boiling conditions. Many relatively low-salinity (<10.0 equiv. wt% NaCl), low and moderate temperature (200-300 °C) inclusions might be the result of episodic mixing of deep-saline brines with low-salinity meteoric fluids. The narrow range of δ34S (pyrite and barite) values (2.89-6.92‰ CDT)suggests that the sulphur source of the hydrothermal fluids are the same and compatible with a volcanogenic sulphate field derived from a magmatic sulphur source.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)365-376
Number of pages12
JournalJournal of Asian Earth Sciences
Volume21
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jan 2003

Keywords

  • Fluid inclusion
  • Fluorite-barite-REE deposit
  • Geology
  • Mineralogy

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