Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the The United Nations
Deposit Type | Igneous Carbonatite | Igneous Massif-Type Anorthosite | Sedimentary |
---|---|---|---|
Host Rock | Carbonatite | Massif-Type Anorthosite | Upwelling-Related Sedimentary Rocks |
Distribution | 5% of global deposits | 1% of global deposits | 95% of global deposits |
Shape Of Ore Bodies | Veins and Lenses | Sheets and Lenses | Bedded (stratiform) |
Rare of Earth Elements | High | Low | Variable |
Deleterious Trace Elements | Low | Low | High |
Organic Matter | None | None | High |
Phosphate Mineralogy | Apatite | Apatite | Carbonate Fluorapatite |
Associated Minerals | Calcite, Dolomite, Magnetite | Pyroxene, Plagioclase, Ilmenite, Magnetite | Quartz, Clay Minerals, Calcite, Dolomite |
P2O5 Content | ~5 to 15 wt% | ~5 to 15 wt% | ~8 to 35 wt% |
Source | Mantle > 50 km depth) | Mantle/Crust (~ 30 to 50 km depth) | Upwelling-related organic matter |
Mineralization Processes | High temperature crystallization in magma | High temperature crystallization and gravitational settling in magma | Phosphate precipitation in accumulating sediment |
Source: Dr. Sandeep Banerjee, Postdoctoral Fellow/ Researcher Queen's University