The Borborema Pegmatitic Province (BPP), northeastern Brazil, is historically important for tantalum mining and also famous for top-quality specimens of exotic Nb-Ta oxides and, more recently, for the production of gem quality, turquoise blue, 'Paraíba Elbaite.' With more than 750 registered mineralized rare-element granitic pegmatites, the BPP extends over an area of about 75 by 150 km in the eastern part of the Neoproterozoic Seridó Belt. The Late Cambrian pegmatites are mostly hosted by a sequence of Neoproterozoic cordierite-sillimanite biotite schists of the Seridó Formation and quartzites and metaconglomerates of the Equador Formation. The trace-element ratios in feldspar and micas allow to classify most pegmatites as belonging to the beryl-columbite phosphate subtype. Electron microprobe analyses (EMPA) of columbite, tapiolite, niobiantantalian rutile, ixiolite and wodginite group minerals from 28 pegmatites in the BPP are used to evaluate the effectiveness of Nb-Ta oxide chemistry as a possible exploration tool, to trace the degree of pegmatite fractionation and to classify the pegmatites. The columbite group mineral composition allows to establish a compositional trend from manganoan ferrocolumbite to manganocolumbite and on to manganotantalite. This trend is typical of complex spodumene-and/or lepidolite-subtype pegmatites. It clearly contrasts with another trend, from ferrocolumbite through ferrotantalite to ferrowodginite and ferrotapiolite compositions, typical of pegmatites of the beryl-columbite phosphate subtype. Large scatter and anomalous trends in zoned crystals partially overlap and conceal the two main evolution patterns. This indicates that a large representative data set of heavy mineral concentrate samples, collected systematically along cross-sections, would be necessary to predict the metallogenetic potential of individual pegmatites. Other mineral species, e.g. garnets and/or tourmaline, with a more regular distribution than Nb-Ta oxides, would be more appropriate and less expensive for routine exploration purposes. The currently available Nb-Ta oxide chemistry data suggest the potential for highly fractionated Ta-Li-Cs pegmatites in the BPP, so far undiscovered, and encourages further, more detailed research.

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Gahnite electron probe microanalyses from three pegmatites (Mirador, Capoeira and Quintos) of the Borborema Pegmatitic Province in northeastern Brazil allowed to determine molar compositions ranging from 86.

Various species of the tourmaline-group are common accessory minerals in the Boqueirão, Capoeira and Quintos Li-Be-Ta-Nb-bearing, LCT-family, rare-element-class granitic pegmatites from the Borborema Pegmatite Province (BPP), northeastern Brazil. Tourmaline from the border and wall zones of the pegmatites is enriched in Mg and Fe, crystallizing as Mg-rich members of the dravite-schorl solid-solution series. Tourmaline from the intermediate zone is richer in Fe and Al+Li, crystallizing as schorl. The Fe-Mg-free and Li-Al-rich elbaite is typical of the transition between the intermediate zone and the quartz core, and of replacement pockets. The bright turquoise blue elbaite known as "Paraíba tourmaline" is produced in the Capoeira 2 and Quintos pegmatites and is distinguished by high Cu contents, up to 1.07 wt.% CuO. In other occurrences of the "Paraíba tourmaline" in the BPP, up to 2.37 wt.% CuO were reported. Differences in the geochemical evolution trend of tourmalines among the pegmatite bodies investigated (vacancy at the X site, Fe, Mg, Zn, Li and F contents), suggest that they reached variable degrees of fractionation. This observation agrees with chemical data on white mica, feldspar, garnet and gahnite, and therefore permits the use of tourmaline composition as an indicator of the degree of evolution of the hosting pegmatite. According to these data,"Paraíba tourmaline"-producing pegmatites share the following characteristics: 1) they are the most evolved pegmatites so far known in § Volume 46October 2008 Part 5 the cANADiAN miNeRALogist the BPP; 2) they are hosted by quartzites or metaconglomerates (iron-poor host rocks); 3) they exhibit comb-textured dravite in the border zone (early saturation in tourmaline) and 4) the elbaitic "Paraíba tourmaline" is found in the most evolved parts of the pegmatites.sommAiRe De diverses espèces de tourmaline sont présentes comme accessoires dans les pegmatites granitiques de Boqueirão, Capoeira et Quintos, enrichies en éléments rares (Li-Be-Ta-Nb) et de type LCT, situées dans la province pegmatitique de Borborema (BPP), nord-est du Brésil. Dans les zones de bordure et de paroi des pegmatites, la tourmaline est enrichie en Mg et Fe; les compositions sont des membres magnésiens de la solution solide entre dravite et schorl. Dans la zone intermédaire, la tourmaline est enrichie en Fe et Al + Li, et correspond à la composition de schorl. L'elbaïte dépourvue de Fe-Mg et enrichie en Li-Al est typique de transition entre la zone intermédiaire et le noyau de quartz, et des poches de remplacement. L'elbaïte bleu turquoise connue sous le nom de "tourmaline de Paraíba" se rencontre dans les pegmatites de Capoeira 2 et Quintos, et se distingue par des teneurs élevées en Cu, atteignant jusqu'à 1.07% de CuO (poids). Dans d'autres indices de ce genre d'elbaïte dans la ceinture BPP, on a signalé jusqu'à 2.37% de CuO. Des différences dans les tracés géochimiques évolutifs des tourmalines parmi les massifs de pegmatites étudiés, par exemple dans la proportion de lacunes au site X, et de...

Tantalate samples, supposedly of the columbite group, were collected in the Borborema Pegmatitic Province, aiming to test the Mn/(Mn+Fe) and Ta/(Ta+Nb) ratios as geochemical indicators of pegmatite fractionation. Surprisingly, preliminary microprobe data allowed recognizing some species, so far unknown in the Province, namely titanian ixiolite, fersmite, brannerite, strüverite, natrobistantite, plumbo-and stibiomicrolite, plumboand uranpyrochlore. The identification of these exotic tantalates with unusual composition, in addition to its distribution in several pegmatites, far from the classical Alto do Giz and Seridozinho pegmatites, indicate that the elevated degree of fractionation is not restricted to these two occurrences but may be reached in other pegmatite areas of the Province. It indicates also that this degree of fractionation may be very variable between pegmatites in small areas. The zoning patterns observed in the titanian ixiolite, with Ti and Nb enrichment at the borders at expense of Ta enriched in the core, are also quite unusual and reverse in comparison with the normal trend of progressive Ta and Mn enrichment in tantalates with the degree of fractionation. A similar ''reverse'' trend was observed in titanian wodginite of petalite/pollucite bearing pegmatites of the Separation Rapids Province in Ontario, Canada.