Mineralogical investigations in the interpretation of heavy-mineral geochemical results from till

Abstract

Heavy-mineral geochemistry and its use in prospecting are based on the fact that some ore minerals (e.g. cassiterite, scheelite, wolframite, chromite, pyrochlore and columbite-tantalite) have a higher specific gravity than the common rock-forming silicates and are highly resistant to weathering in the secondary environment. Till, the most common type of surficial deposit in Finland, is relatively homogeneous and thus constitutes an appropriate sampling material for heavy-mineral geochemical studies. This is especially true in reconnaissance prospecting.The present work concentrates on the interpretation of heavy-mineral anomalies by reference to mineralogical and mineral chemistry data. Tetrabromoethane and a Frantz Isodynamic Separator were used to divide the heavy-mineral samples into subfractions, after which the minerals present were identified by light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy combined with energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry, electron microprobe techniques and X-ray diffraction.Applications of the methods at three tin anomaly sites in southern Finland are described. The results successfully predicted the presence of a greisen in one area and a pegmatite in another. Those for the third area were somewhat contradictory, the mineralogical composition of the samples suggesting a greisen source for the tin while the composition of the cassiterite pointed to a pegmatite or granite source.