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Uranium (-nickel-cobalt-molybdenum) mineralization along the Singhbhum copper belt, India, and the problem of ore genesis

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Abstract

Uranium mineralization is present at many places along the 200 km long Singhbhum copper belt, but the mineralization is relatively concentrated at the central part of it. The belt is characterized by many shear zone features, such as mylonites, phyllonites, and L-S type of structures and of course, copious metasomatism. Country rocks are basic schists, metapelites, quartzose rocks and albite schist/gneiss (‘Soda Granite’). Orebodies are sheet-like, conformable with the pervasive planar structures in the host rocks. No pronounced ‘wall rock alteration’ accompanied the mineralization. Grade of the ore is low (<0.1% U3O8). The principal uraniferous mineral uraninite occurs as dissemination. Other uranium-bearing minerals include pitchblende, allanite, xenotime, davidite, clarkeite, autunite (-metaautunite), torbernite, schoepite (-metaschoepite) and uranophane. Uranium is also present in a number of refractory phases either as inclusion of uraninite or in the crystal structure. Additionally, nickel, cobalt and molybdenum are present at Jaduguda-Bhatin in the form of millerite, gersdorffite, melonite, nickel-bearing pyrite, molybdenite etc. Dominance of uraninite over pitchblende and the larger cell-edge of uraninite, development of hematite-bearing quartz and Na-oligoclase at places in the ore zone, association of uranium mineralization with Ni-Co-Mo(-S-As) mineralization at Jaduguda-Bhatin and continuation of the orebodies to considerable depths, suggest that the uranium mineralization along the Singhbhum belt belongs to moderate to high temperature ‘vein type’. The age obtained by Pb207/Pb206 ratio and the concordia method suggest that the uranium mineralization in Singhbhum took place 1500–1600 Ma ago and this age is not far different from the age of formation of uranium-vein deposits in many other Precambrian shields of the world. The following two mechanisms of the formation of the deposits are discussed: 1) uranium precipitated in the Dhanjori basal sediments was mobilized during deformation and metamorphism into ore deposits, 2) the hydrodynamic system that leached out copper from the metabasic rocks to form the copper deposits at an earlier stage, could, in one of the oxidised pulses leach out uranium from the basal sediments and precipitate it in the favourable situations. Subsequent small-scale redistribution is possible. Constituents of the Ni-Co-(-S-As) mineralization appear to have been contributed by the volcanic-sedimentary pile.

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  1. Department of Geological Sciences, Jadavpur University, 700 032, Calcutta, India

    S. C. Sarkar

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Sarkar, S.C. Uranium (-nickel-cobalt-molybdenum) mineralization along the Singhbhum copper belt, India, and the problem of ore genesis. Mineral. Deposita 17, 257–278 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00206475

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