Loparite in Placers of the Lovozero Placer Cluster Using the Example of the Sergevan Site

Abstract

Loparite is the main placer-forming mineral in placers located along the periphery of the Lovozero alkaline massif. The article presents new materials of the study of loparite from samples taken during field work at the Sergevan site of the Revda placer, located near the northern frame of the massif. The mineral was extracted from the heavy fraction of a technological sample weighing about 30 kg. The paper presents the results of a study of the morphology, features of the chemical composition and internal structure of loparite from placers, as well as its relationship with the bedrock of the massif. Two loparite grains groups were determined: loparite-1, represented by large (0.25–0.75 mm) twins of crystals of regular crystallographic forms, and loparite-2, comprises smaller (0.05–0.20 mm) fragments of irregular shape. The work studied the mineralogical features of each type of grains and revealed their relationship with the bedrock mineralization. The study of the typomorphic features of placer loparite makes it possible to develop an optimal technological scheme for the enrichment of placers to expand the rare metal resource base of Russia