Rutile in HP Rocks from the Western Tianshan, China: Mineralogy and Its Economic Implications

Abstract

Rutile is a common Ti-bearing accessory mineral in high pressure (HP) metamorphic rocks of the western Tianshan. Distribution of rutile in the HP rocks varies from 0.5% in the greenschist to 30% in the rutile-bearing vein. Rutile can be subdivided into three groups based on the variation of trace elements: The first group has an averaged Zr content of 18 ppm–44 ppm and Hf content of 0.8 ppm–2.4 ppm, which correspond to occurrence of rutile from vein; the second group Zr of 59 ppm–63 ppm, Hf of 3.5 ppm–3.7 ppm; and the third group Zr of 150 ppm–160 ppm and Hf of 3.9 ppm, corresponding to rutile in the matrix of blueschist and eclogite, respectively. Rutile has been retrograded to ilmenite and titanite partly or completely, reducing the value of the ore. But rutile of HP rocks in the western Tianshan usually has the lowest content of uranium (<1 ppm U), which might become an attractive raw material for the Ti industry. Therefore, rutile-bearing HP rocks in the western Tianshan as a mineral resource will be the focus of considerable attention.

Keywords

Ti resource / rutile / HP vein / eclogite / western Tianshan

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