TITLE:
Petrography and Mineral Chemistry of Metamorphogenic Magnetite in the Layered Sill of the JC Pura Schist Belt, Karnataka, India
AUTHORS:
B. G. Dayanand, S. Santhosh, B. C. Prabhakar
KEYWORDS:
JC Pura, Layered Sill, Metamorphogenic Magnetite, Cr-Magnetite, Ishkulite
JOURNAL NAME:
International Journal of Geosciences,
Vol.15 No.12,
December
23,
2024
ABSTRACT: JC Pura schist belt has gained scope recently with reports of nickel, magnetite, PGEs, and traces of gold. The layered sill in the schist belt is a linear patch of ultramafic sequences (peridotite and pyroxenite) with metamorphogenic magnetite mineralization. The metamorphogenic magnetite appears as interbands in layered sequences and as veins in serpentinite. The present study focuses on understanding the characteristics of metamorphogenic magnetite by petrographic and EPMA analysis. The study found that the precursor chromite grains are transformed into Cr-magnetite and magnetite in the spinel transformation system due to metamorphism and hydrothermal alteration. The Cr, Mg, Al, and Ni are depleted during transformation, and Fe is enriched. The Cr-magnetite appears homogenous in the vein due to serpentinization, indicating prograde greenschist to amphibolite facies metamorphism, and the area has suffered an episodic metamorphic process. The results of Cr-magnetite cation proportions of Cr fall within ishkulite variety data range of 0.10 - 0.50 apfu (atoms per formula unit). Cr-magnetite variety Ishkulite represents an additional miscibility gap in the Cr-Fe3+ transformation series other than ferrite chromite and chrome magnetite. The transformation process primarily involves the oxidation of chromium and the reduction of iron. The oxidation of chromite by highly oxidizing fluids with increasing pressure and temperature alters to Cr-magnetite, where chromium in the +3 state oxidizes to the +6 state, forming soluble chromate ions and diffusing with Fe3+. Then, it transforms into magnetite due to reducing conditions. Cr-magnetite vein indicates the potential for chromite deposits in the area, and hydrothermal altered magnetites could be a source for hosting valuable precious metals like gold and PGEs. Further investigations are needed to assess the mineralization potential and its extent.