Unique trace element geochemistry of pyrometamorphic apatite-supergroup minerals: a case study of fluorellestadite from burnt coal (Poland) and shale (France) post-mining waste heaps, with emphasis on boron, germanium, aluminium and titanium

Authors

  • Łukasz Seweryn Kruszewski Institute of Geological Sciences PAS, Twarda 51/55 Str., PL-00-818 Warszawa, Poland
  • Jiří Sláma Department of Geological Processes, Institute of Geology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Rozvojová 269, 165 00 Praha 6 – Lysolaje, Czech Republic
  • Ewa Deput Institute of Geological Sciences PAS, Twarda 51/55 Str., PL-00-818 Warszawa, Poland

Keywords:

apatite supergroup, non-nominal ion substitution, boron, germanium, titanium, tetrahedra

Abstract

Apatite-type structure is known for its flexibility towards accommodating numerous ions of different crystallographic affinities. Two samples of fluorellestadite from two pyrometamorphic rocks (slags) from burned waste heaps (BWH) from France (LdS) and Poland (RDT) were studied in terms of their trace element composition using Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry. Boron shows an evident, persistent enrichment in both the samples, with average/maximum levels of 497/1040 and 49/106 ppm, respectively. So is true for magnesium (884/16766 and 404/6251 ppm, i.e., respectively) and sodium (512/697 and 249/370 ppm, respectively). Germanium is clearly enriched in the first sample (29/40 ppm) and, to a lesser degree, in the second one (34 ppm on average). The LdS sample is also clearly enriched in Al (888/1238 ppm), K (385/697 ppm), Ti (515/943 ppm), V (172/347 ppm), and Cu (16/1369 ppm).  The RDT sample is also rich in As (105/120 ppm) and Sr (1072/6592 ppm). An interesting feature of both samples concerns their REE pattern: Nd is the dominant element of the group, with the respective Nd/ΣLREE and Nd/(Ce+La) values of 0.43 and 0.90; and 0.37 and 0.66. In order from highest to lower average concentrations, aluminium, magnesium, titanium, boron, potassium, and germanium may be essential substituents in the BWH apatites.

Downloads

Published

2023-04-17

Issue

Vol. 67 No. 1 (2023)

Section

Articles

License

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
  1. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
  2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
  3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as this can lead to productive exchanges and earlier and more frequent citation of the published work (See The Effect of Open Access).