Problems of ontogeny and phylogeny of ores

Abstract

The ontogeny and phylogeny of ore-bearing elements and minerals are closely related to sedimentation, magmatism, and metamorphism. Previously, this problem was considered in works by D.P. Grigor’ev, D.V. Rundkvist, and other geologists. By ontogeny, we mean the “fate” of elements and minerals, and by phylogeny, the development of mineral associations and deposits. This article considers the history of ore ontogeny and phylogeny studies by the example of ore deposits. The example of gold and silver demonstrates the diversity of ontogeny and phylogeny forms most illustratively because accumulations of these minerals, different in terms of scale, were registered in all ore “families”—jaspillitic, sulfidic, and polymetallic. It is rather difficult to determine the boundaries of the above families because they form in different physicochemical conditions. Ore formational analysis is a necessary initial operation to study regularities in the distribution of ore matter, as well as to understand the ontogeny and phylogeny of elements and minerals in the earth’s crust. The elaboration of the theory of ontogeny and phylogeny, as well as the identification of regularities of the intensity and extensity of ore formation, will make it possible to create new multidimensional classifications of ore deposits for the purposes of theoretical and practical analysis.