A Preliminary Review of Metallogenic Regularity of Tin Deposits in China

Abstract

China is rich in tin resources, and contains many types of tin deposits. Among the tin deposit types, the cassiterite‐sulfide type, skarn type and quartz vein type occupy a large proportion of tin resources and reserves. From the aspect of exploitation and utilization, the most important types are cassiterite‐sulfide type and quartz vein type. The cassiterite‐sulfide type tin deposits are mainly located in Northern Guangxi and Eastern Yunnan, skarn type deposits are mainly distributed in the ore‐concentration areas of South Hunan in Middle Nanling, and the quartz vein type tin deposits are mainly distributed in South China, such as Western Fujian, Middle Jiangxi, Northern Guangzhou and Southern Hunan. The most important metallogenic epoch for tin deposits is the Mesozoic era. The metallogenic geotectonic background is mainly continental environments after orogeny process, with strong tectonic changes, interlaced deep fracture and frequent magmatism. And the most distinctive feature is the well developed Mesozoic granites, which have a close relationship with tin mineralization. Based on the detailed study of the data from 873 tin deposits in China, this paper summarized the metallogenic regularity of tin deposits, classified 20 important metallogenic series of tin or tin‐associated deposits, and inferred that the cassiterite‐sulfide type, skarn type, quartz vein type and greisen type are the main prediction types of tin resources. Forty‐four tin‐mineralization belts were divided, among which, 19 belts are the most important. In addition, a series of maps about tin metallogenic belts and tin metallogenic regularity were compiled, aiming to provide theoretical basis for potential estimation and prediction of tin mineral resources.