The geologic position, development stages, age, and geochemical features of metasomatic and felsic igneous rocks along the southern edge of the Siberian craton are compared. The comparison shows that all the studied metasomatic rocks are confined to the faults feathering the main suture zone of the craton. From Biryusa zone in the southwest and farther northeast, from Primor’e zone to Davan shear zone and Katugino-Ayan zone in the Aldan area, the metasomatic rocks are of similar composition but show higher mineralization. The process begins with blastocataclasis (barren stage). During the second stage, ore-bearing (Nb, Zr, Hf, and REE) potassic solutions circulate along the blastocataclastic zones. They form metasomatic potassic rocks of the early alkaline stage, expressed in subalkaline granitization. The next (acid) stage is marked by the formation of greisens with Sn, Be, Th, U, and W mineralization. The igneous stage might precede or follow the metasomatism. At the time of ongoing tectonic movements, it produces rapakivi-like granites rich in the same elements. Also, a huge volcanoplutonic belt develops along the craton edge during this time. The geochemical features of its felsic volcanics are close to those of the metasomatic rocks and granites. The age of all these rocks is within 2.1–1.6 Ga.

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Overall petrologic and geochemical data indicate that the early Paleozoic magmatism in the Olkhon area of the Baikal Region exhibits diverse types of granitoids, whose time of formation is estimated at a narrow age interval of 500–465 Ma. This magmatism was responsible for the formation of both autochthonous gneiss–migmatite–granitoid suites (Sharanur complex) and multiphase intrusions (Aya complex) emplaced into the upper horizons of the continental crust. In major-element chemistry, K2O/Na2O values, and rare-element composition the migmatite–plagiogranites and calc-alkaline and subalkaline granitoids of the Sharanur complex are similar to the host gneisses and schists, as they were likely derived from melting of the ancient metamorphic substratum of the Olkhon series. In new isotope-geochemical characteristics (ICP MS method) the Sharanur granitoids are close to the first-phase biotite granites of the Aya massif, whose further geochemical evolution was governed mainly by intrachamber magmatic differentiation leading to the production of second-phase leucogranites enriched in HREE and HFSE (in particular, Ta and Nb) and depleted in Sr, Ba, Eu, Li, and LREE. The origin of the autochthonous and intrusive granitoids is related to early Paleozoic collision events within the Olkhon metamorphic terrane, while the formation of syncollisional granitoids is best explained by both melting of the crust protolith (Sharanur complex) and magmatic differentiation (multiphase Aya intrusion). All mineralogical and geochemical characteristics indicate that these granitoids are distinguished from rare-metal pegmatoid granites and Li–F and Rb–Be–Nb pegmatites, whose vein bodies crosscut the granitoids, and are regarded as middle Paleozoic rocks, which mark the transition to within-plate magmatism in the Baikal Region.

The paper presents new data on mineralogical-geochemical peculiarities of the granites and pegmatites of the Baikal area (Olkhon Region) with implications for the age, generation conditions and geodynamic settings of magmatism. The early Paleozoic granitoids of the Olkhon region are syncollisional formations produced from the gneiss-schistose substratum of the Olkhon metamorphic sequences. Pegmatoid granites and pegmatites of the Region were generated within a wide age range (458-390 Ma) and include different mineralogical and geochemical types. Amongst the Early Paleozoic granitoids, pegmatoid rocks are products of the collisional magmatism evolution and are similar to granites in terms of the mineral composition and distribution patterns of rare and rare earth elements. On the Olkhon island (Baikal lake) the pegmatite of the Tashkiney vein belong to the Be-Nb-Ta mineralogical-geochemical type demonstrating high contents of W, Sn U, Th and very low concentrations of Li and volatile components (F, B). In the Pryolkhonye area, vein pegmatite Iliksin is with Li, Be, Nb, Ta mineralization (lepidolite, vorobyevite, samarskite et al). The studied pegmatite veins are similar both by the profound negative Ba, Sr, Eu, and Zr anomalies. The zircons from the Tashkiney vein (390±5.0 Ma) and of the Iliksin vein (430.1±2.2 Ma, U-Pb isotope LA ICP MS metod) indicate the formation of pegmatite at the late post-collisional stage of magmatism in the Olkhon Region. As regard to mineralogical and geochemical characteristics, vein pegmatites with amazonite (Ainsky and Ulan-Nur) belong to the Li-F type. The tantalum mineralization, represented by microlites and minerals of the columbite-tantalite group is associated with the Ainsky amazonite pegmatite. As opposed to the Early Paleozoic syncollisional granitoids and pegmatoid formations, the middle Paleozoic vein bodies of pegmatites (Tashkiney, Iliksin, Ainsky, Ulan-Nur) are regarded as rare-metal pegmatites. In terms of geochemical characteristics, they are similar to the rare-metal pegmatoid granites and pegmatites of the intra-plate setting widespread in Mongolia and Transbaikalia. The rare-metal mineralization in the Olkhon region may be genetically related to the evolution of Be-Nb-Ta and Li-F types of the post-collisional granites and pegmatites.

—We present results of petrographic, mineralogical, and geochemical study of all types of rocks of a multiphase pluton and consider the chemical evolution of igneous and metasomatic rocks of the Baga Gazriin Chuluu pluton, based on new precise analytical data. At the early stage of their formation, the pluton granites were already enriched in many trace elements (Li, Rb, Cs, Be, Nb, Ta, Th, and U), F, and HREE relative to the upper continental crust. They show strong negative Ba, Sr, La, and Eu anomalies, which is typical of rare-metal Li–F granites. The geochemical evolution of the Baga Gazriin Chuluu multiphase pluton at the postmagmatic stage was marked by the most intense enrichment of greisens and microclinites with lithophile and ore elements (Sn, W, and Zn) and the formation of ore mineralization. In the permeable rift zone where the Baga Gazriin Chuluu pluton is located, the fluid–magma interaction took place under the impact of a mantle plume. High-temperature mantle fluids caused melting of the crustal substratum, which determined the geochemical specifics of Li–F granite intrusions. Genesis of granitic magma enriched in Li, F, Rb, Sn, and Ta is possible at the low degrees of melting of the lower crustal substratum. The Baga Gazriin Chuluu pluton formed in the upper horizons of the Earth’s crust, where magma undergoes strong differentiation and the saturation of fluids with volatiles can lead to the postmagmatic formation of metasomatites of varying alkalinity (zwitters (greisens), microclinites, and albitites) producing rare-metal mineralization. By the example of the early Mesozoic magmatism area of Mongolia, it is shown that the formation of granites and associated rare-metal minerals is due to the interaction of mantle fluids with the crustal material and the subsequent evolution of granitic magmas.