Rare earth elements (REEs), yttrium and uranium are important industrial resources in many technology sectors; therefore, demand and production will likely continue to increase. Increased international market prices have led to new exploration for REE mineral resources in North America. It has been proposed that phosphorite deposits are a viable economic source of REE but the overall concentrations, depositional conditions, and ages are relatively unconstrained. Phosphorite is commonly associated with nutrient replete seawaters and sedimentary deposition, which is driven by upwelling, and/or continental delivery of bio-essential elements that are deposited on continental shelf regions. This project analyzed three sonic drill cores to better constrain, spatiotemporal REE concentrations of the Miocene-Pliocene aged samples from the Peace River Formation, which is associated with North America’s largest phosphate deposit. This project presents concentration data from a lateral (west-east) transect collected in central Florida that documented phosphatic sands, silts and clays. Newly obtained cores contained samples with well-rounded quartz sands, dolomitic silts, teeth, bones, and marine fossils commonly found in a near shore depositional environment. Sedimentary archives of the area are highly enriched in REEs, yielding concentrations nearing 200 ppm for some REEs. Our analysis confirms a previous study that phosphate grains, teeth, bones, and bulk sediment indicate REE are not associated with and/or sourcing from biogenic components, but rather associated with phosphate grains through secondary diagenetic processes. Together, a variety of factors could explain enrichment seen in Miocene phosphatic sediments including nutrient-rich runoff, oceanic upwelling, and sediment reworking. Although concentrations do not reach values as high as other mining sources, the relative ease of extraction from sedimentary deposits may make them a valuable source. A compilation of major global phosphate deposits through geologic history documents that a majority (based on tonnage phosphorite) of the burial are associated with climatic transitions from icehouse to greenhouse conditions. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Science in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. / Spring Semester 2018. / April 20, 2018. / geochemistry, geology, mining, phosphate, phosphorite, rare earth elements / Includes bibliographical references. / Jeremy D. Owens, Professor Directing Thesis; William C. Parker, Committee Member; Vincent J. Salters, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_653517 |
| Contributors | Turner, Kyle M. (Kyle Matthew) (author), Owens, Jeremy D. (professor directing thesis), Parker, William C (committee member), Salters, Vincent J. M. (committee member), Florida State University (degree granting institution), College of Arts and Sciences (degree granting college), Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science (degree granting departmentdgg) |
| Publisher | Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text, master thesis |
| Format | 1 online resource (64 pages), computer, application/pdf |
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