Study on Microinclusions of Metals and Minerals in Rocks: Problems in Interpreting Research Findings, and Their Application to the Study of Magmatic Systems of Kamchatka and the Stanovoy Fold Belt

Abstract

The article discusses the problems of interpreting the results of studies on microinclusions of metals and minerals by scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray microanalysis, which are related to the influence of the matrix material. The method was shown to work well when studying “relatively large” (5-10 μm) microinclusions for the purpose of their phase identification and semi-quantitative determination of composition normalized to 100%. The possibilities of “cleaning” the analysis results from “additives” introduced by matrix elements are discussed, as well as criteria for assessing the distance from the boundaries of a micro-object at which the influence of the matrix becomes minimal. The use of the results obtained using these approaches is illustrated by the examples of studying the petrology and metallogeny of igneous rocks of Kamchatka and the Stanovoy fold belt, during which new data were obtained on petrological processes in the mantle-crustal substrate beneath the active volcanic arc and on the evolution of the ore-magmatic system beneath the ancient active continental margin.