Tourmaline from quartz lenses of the Urtui granite pluton, Strel’tsovka orefield, Ttansbaikal krai

Quartz-tourmaline lenses, around which host granite is impregnated by uraninite, have been found among porphyritic granite with large phenocrysts of the Urtui pluton in the Ttansbaikal krai framing the Strel’tsovka volcano-tectonic structure. Two generations of tourmaline are distinguished. Most individual crystals belong to the first generation attributed to “fluor-schorl”; tourmaline-II attributed to schorl occurs as thin rims overgrowing tourmaline-I. The major type of cation isomorphic substitution in both tourmalines is Fe2+ → Mg. The Fe3+/Fetot value and Li content in the average sample are 2% and 80 ppm, respectively. The high F content, comparatively high Li, low Fe3+/Fetot value, and character of cation isomorphic substitution indicate that the tourmaline relates to greisens. The combination of these features allows one to distinguish greisen-type tourmaline-bearing rocks. The impregnated uranium mineralization in granite of the Urtui pluton, one of the probable sources of uranium in economic U ore of the Strel’tsovka deposit, is suggested to be caused by greisenization and the formation of quartz-tourmaline lenses.