Trace element minerals from carbonatite-related fluids, The Aird, Scotland

Fenitized rocks in Neoproterozoic country rocks adjacent to the Great Glen Fault, Scotland, contain calcite veins with mineral inclusions. The minerals include the rare earth vanadate wakefieldite, sulfur-rich monazite, scandium-rich ilmenite and manganese oxides rich in barium and lead. Each of these phases is recorded in carbonatites elsewhere. An affinity with carbonatites is further suggested by the carbon isotope composition of the calcite veins, and anomalously high levels of manganese and strontium in the veins. These data add weight to a model in which Scotland NW of the Great Glen Fault was affected by carbonatite-related fluids during the Caledonian Orogeny.

Automated summary

Fenitized rocks near the Great Glen Fault in Scotland contain calcite veins with mineral inclusions, including rare earth vanadate wakefieldite, sulfur-rich monazite, scandium-rich ilmenite, and manganese oxides rich in barium and lead. The presence of these phases, along with the carbon isotope composition and high levels of manganese and strontium, suggests that Scotland's northwestern region was influenced by carbonatite-related fluids during the Caledonian Orogeny.