Home – Home – Jornals – Russian Geology and Geophysics 2010 number 7

The dependence of trace-element concentration on the size of crystal in sample is experimentally studied by the example of gold distribution among single crystals of different sizes of hydrothermally grown pyrite, As-pyrite, and magnetite. The effect is modeled on the assumption that the Au uptake is due to a nonautonomous phase (NАP). The structurally bound gold admixture is estimated from the dependence of the average content of evenly distributed gold on the specific surface of average crystal (1.5, 0.5, and 0.7 ppm for pyrite, As-pyrite with 0.02-0.08 wt.% As, and magnetite, respectively). The gold concentrations in hypothetical "pure" NАPs have been estimated by the extrapolation of the concentration dependence to the characteristic size of an NАP. The coefficients of fractionation of Au into an NАP relative to the bulk phase are 1.1·10³, 3.5·10³, and 2.4·10³ for pyrite, As-pyrite, and magnetite, respectively. Thus, the above effect is comparable in magnitude with the known effect of trace-element trapping by defects of crystal structure. Arsenic admixture favors the fractionation of gold into an NAP. We also considered other manifestations of this effect and its significance for solving problems of experimental geochemistry and analytical chemistry of trace elements and mineral processing. The data obtained substantiate the new mechanism of uptake of incompatible elements (including noble metals) during endogenic ore formation as more common and more effective than classical adsorption, including reducing adsorption of mercury and noble metals on mineral phases.