Heavy minerals in the serpentinite weathering cover of the Szklary massif

Abstract

Forty minerals were identified belonging to the heavy mineral (d > 2.98 g/cm3) suite of the Szklary massif. They are: actinolite, almandine, anthophyllite, apatite, biotite, brunsvigite, chlorite, chromite, chrysolite, zircon, enstatite, epidote, ferroplatinum, goethite, haematite, hornblende, clinochlore, leucoxene, magnesioferrite, magnetite, magnesite, molibdenite, monacite, muscovite, niggliite (PtSn), olivine, orthopyroxenes, an osmium-bearing phase (Ba2CaOsO6), native palladium, pyrope, native platinum, pleonaste, rutile, native silver, talc, tremolite, trevorite, tourmaline, native gold and zoisite. The mineralogical characteristics of the most common phases are presented in this paper, and three paragenetic groups of heavy minerals are distinguished.