Occurrence and petrogenesis of phoscorite-carbonatite complexes in the Kola Alkaline Province, Arctic

Abstract

Although phoscorites and carbonatites form only a minor proportion of the earth's crustal rocks, these unusual rocks and their intimate relation are of both academic and economic importance. Rare metal (Nb, Zr, Ta) and REEs mineralizations are in close relation with the differentiation of these phoscorite-carbonatite complexes (PCCs). Recent integrated petrological and geochemical data on PCCs in the Kola Alkaline Province, Arctic, indicate that phoscorites and associated carbonatites are differentiated from common 'carbonated silicate patental magma'. Various hypotheses for the genesis of phoscorite-carbonatite complexes have been proposed during the last half-century. A simple magmatic fractionation scheme can not explain the chemical and mineralogical characteristics of phoscorite and conjugate carbonatite. Instead, the hypotheses involving liquid immiscibility and coeval accumulation processes are favored to explain the mineralogical and geochemical characteristics of phoscorite and carbonatite association.