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LA-ICP-MS U–Pb dating of rutile inclusions within corundum (ruby and sapphire): new constraints on the formation of corundum deposits along the Mozambique belt

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Abstract

Direct dating of corundum and the establishment of age constraints for corundum crystal growth are restricted due to the absence of a geochronometer. Syngenetic mineral inclusions may help define minimum ages for corundum growth. Here, we present results of in situ LA-ICP-MS U–Pb dating applied to rutile inclusions in corundum from localities along the Mozambique belt. U–Pb dating of rutile inclusions gave ages of 533 ± 11 Ma (2 σ) for the Gitonga pit (John Saul ruby mine) and 526 ± 13 Ma for the Aqua Ruby mine, both in the Mangari area of Kenya, and an age of 499 ± 12 Ma for ruby from the Morogoro area, Tanzania. These ages are interpreted as cooling ages that set a minimum age for corundum growth following metamorphism along the East-African Antarctic Orogen, and might be used for petrogenetic tracing of corundum in placer deposits.

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Acknowledgments

We are thankful to the vice president of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU), Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Hofmeister, and the Institute for Geosciences of JGU for providing samples used in this study. The research has been supported by scholarship A-13-00099 of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and Institute for Geosciences of JGU. We also thank reviewer Dr. Thomas Zack for helpful suggestions and Prof. Dr. Bernd Lehmann for editing the manuscript.

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  1. Elena S. Sorokina

    Present address: Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry Russian Academy of Sciences (GEOKHI), 19 Kosygin st, 119991, Moscow, Russia

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Gemological Institute of America, 5355 Armada Dr, Carlsbad, CA, 92008, USA

    Elena S. Sorokina

  2. Institute for Geosciences, Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz (JGU), J.-J.-Becher-Weg 21, 55128, Mainz, Germany

    Delia Rösel, Tobias Häger & Regina Mertz-Kraus

  3. Institute of Geology, TU Bergakademie Freiberg, Bernhard-von-Cotta-Straße 2 (Humboldt-Bau), 09599, Freiberg, Germany

    Delia Rösel

  4. Swala Gem Traders, Box, 11063, Arusha, Tanzania

    John M. Saul

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  1. Elena S. Sorokina
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Correspondence to Elena S. Sorokina.

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Editorial handling: B. Lehmann

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Sorokina, E.S., Rösel, D., Häger, T. et al. LA-ICP-MS U–Pb dating of rutile inclusions within corundum (ruby and sapphire): new constraints on the formation of corundum deposits along the Mozambique belt. Miner Deposita 52, 641–649 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00126-017-0732-x

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