Petrogenesis of Large Igneous Province and Carbonatite-Related Rare Earth Element Deposits

Dear Colleagues,

Large igneous provinces (LIPs) are produced by voluminous magma eruption (area >10⁵ km², volume >10⁵ km³) within a relatively short time (1–5 Ma). They are the most magnificent expression of magmatism in the Earth’s interior on the surface. The formation of LIPs could trigger extensive thermal and material exchange between different earth spheres, and hence are considered to be closely related to the topographic and environmental changes, as well as major metallogenic events.

With the reputation of being “modern industrial vitamins”, rare earth elements (REE) are among the most important strategic resources in the world. Notably, the worldwide REE ore deposits of economic importance are commonly associated with carbonatite–alkaline complexes, also containing niobium (Nb)-rich minerals and apatite (P). Therefore, carbonatite-related REE-Nb-P deposits are among the focus of REE-Nb-P prospecting. Specifically, some carbonatite–alkaline complexes are closely related to LIPs, such as Deccan, Paraná-Etendeka, Siberia, Kola-Dneiper, Bushveld, Keweenawan and Tarim LIPs.

This Special Issue aims to contribute to the petrogenesis of LIPs and carbonatite-related REE deposits. It is organized to focus on the following scientific questions:

(1) To reveal the petrogenesis of carbonatite–alkaline complexes in LIPs and their implications on the formation of LIPs;

(2) To find out the factors controlling fractionation and enrichment of light, heavy rare earth elements, Nb and P elements in the carbonatitic magmatic-hyrothermal processes;

(3) To investigate new scientific models for future exploration and prospecting of REE resources worldwide.

Dr. Zhiguo Cheng
Dr. Xiaowei Li
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Minerals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• large igneous provinces
• mantle plume
• carbonatite
• rare earth element deposits