The Arctic shelf is an area of national priority for Russia. Huge reserves of hydrocarbon raw materials in addition to transport and logistics communications are concentrated within its borders. The article discusses the issues of identifying the spatiotemporal patterns of the formation of a potential oil-and-gas-bearing region in the junction zone of two noncoeval continental lithospheric plates: the ancient Archean (Russian) and the young Barents Sea plates (with the Grenville basement). A description of the geodynamic evolution of the region is given, and data on the geological structure of the Neoproterozoic complexes of the Sredny and Rybachy peninsulas (Kola Peninsula) and adjacent water areas of the Barents Sea are provided. The aggregate data suggest that the relief of the western Russian Arctic was mainly formed as a result of processes involved in closure of the Proto-Atlantic and Ural paleoceans (and later the Japetus paleocean). The oil and gas potential of the described region was formed as a result of a multistage and long-duration process that led to enrichment of Neoproterozoic complexes of the northern Kola Peninsula and adjacent waters of the Barents Sea in hydrocarbon raw materials.

The He isotopic composition and the He and Ne ratio of fluid inclusions in magnetite and pyrite from carbonatite breccias of the Sallanlatva alkali-ultramafic complex of the Kola alkaline province (Northwest Russia) are studied using the step-crushing method. The results indicate the highly likely involvement of fluids from several sources trapped in various proportions during the formation of the Sallanlatva explosive carbonatite breccias. The R/Ra ratio, where R is the measured 3He/4He ratio and Ra of 1.382 × 10–6 is the same ratio of atmospheric air, reaches 2.3, which is a reliable indicator of the presence of mantle gases. A low (1–44) 4He/20Ne ratio allows us to suggest the involvement of atmospheric gases dissolved in paleometeoric waters. A combination of these two facts favors a hypothesis of the phreatomagmatic nature of the studied breccias, i.e., their formation at the expense of interaction between the intruding hot orthomagmatic fluids and meteoric waters with dissolved atmospheric gases.

This study presents the sulfur isotopic characteristics in baryte from carbonatites of the Sallanlatva massif and sulfides (mainly pyrite and pyrrhotite) from carbonatites, phoscorites and products of their contact interaction with the host silicate rocks of most carbonatite-bearing complexes of the Devonian Kola Alkaline Province (KAP). For some complexes (Ozernaya Varaka, Kontozero), these characteristics are reported for the first time. The determined range of δ34S variations of sulfides in one complex does not exceed 4‰, but reaches 20‰ for the entire Kola Alkaline Province. This may be related to the evolution style of carbonatites and associated rocks. It is shown that the δ34S value in sulfides decreases from (1) the least evolved volcanic carbonatites of the Kontozero complex (δ34Savg. = –1.3‰) through (2) carbonatites and phoscorites of the Kovdor, Ozernaya Varaka, Sokli, and Salmagora massifs towards (3) the rocks of Seblyavr, Vuoriyarvi, and, finally, the carbonatites of Sallanlatva (δ34Savg. = –14.7‰) massifs, where sulfides differ from those of other KAP carbonatites in their exceptionally low δ34S values. The carbonatite volcanics of Kontozero are almost barren of REE mineralization; carbonatites of the second group contain accessory amounts of REE minerals; the third group is peculiar in the abundance of late carbonatites, where REE carbonates are frequently major minerals. Thus, the greater the volume of REE minerals in carbonatites of the complex, the lower the δ34S value in sulfides from its carbonatites and associated rocks. For the first time in the KAP, the sulfur isotopic composition of associated baryte–pyrite pairs was studied in the Sallanlatva carbonatites. The sulfur isotopic characteristics are shown to correspond to the final low-temperature (250–350°C) stage of carbonatite evolution in oxidized conditions, which satisfies the parameters of baryte crystallization. Since the studied samples of the Sallanlatva carbonatites are explosive breccias, the oxidized composition of fluids may indicate their phreatomagmatic nature, i.e., formation due to the interaction of intruded hot matter (melt/fluid) with meteoric waters.

An Erratum to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1028334X23070450

Late Mesozoic and Cenozoic geodynamics of the Arctic region is discussed in the context of possible mechanisms which provide multistage cyclic transformations and transport of carbon through crust and mantle. Geodynamic processes control the abiogenic generation of hydrocarbons and the patterns of their localization. Possible mechanisms of abiotic hydrocarbon generation are explained in the context of carbon transport from subduction zones to rifts and serpentinization of ultramafic rocks in the rifts in the case of the Laptev Sea and Gakkel Ridge areas. The carbon of shallow crust origin migrates with encapsulated fragments of marine sediments which are consumed in the Pacific subduction zone where they become destroyed and transformed by different chemical and physical processes. The resulting C-species are involved in mantle convection flows and reach the continental rifts of the Laptev Sea and the Gakkel mid-ocean ridge. Thus, the hydrocarbons formed in the crust and in the mantle acquire signatures of abiotic origin. According to the authors, the scale of manifestation of abiogenic methanogenesis in the lower parts of the lithosphere and in the upper mantle is not so wide. Numerous small (mm and fractions of the mm) particles of exogenous matter and dispersed carbon pulled into the mantle can only form a stable crustal geochemical plume that propagates in the plane of movement of convective flows. Indirectly, the scale of manifestation of this process can be judged by the volumes of degassing of hydrocarbon and carbon dioxide gases, as well as hydrogen and its compounds in the rift systems of the earth’s crust, which are extremely insignificant. However, in the cold seas of the Eastern Arctic, massive emissions of bubble methane of mixed genesis were found. As shown in the literature, the range of variability of stable isotopes of carbon and 14C of methane in certain areas of discharge associated with rifting demonstrates values (anomalously heavy 13C, and young 14C) that can be considered as examples of presumably abiogenic origin. Our work is mostly theoretical and suggests further discussion and improvement of the mechanism of formation of abiogenic hydrocarbons and the processes of their transformation.

Detailed geological and petrogeochemical studies carried out using the techniques developed by the authors have made it possible to complete the picture of the formation of supracrustal complexes of the Keivy structure. The studies have shown that the metasedimentary complexes of the Chervurt and Vykhchurt suites were formed mainly due to the material of the underlying strata. In the development of the Vykhchurt Formation, starting from its upper part, the material of the domains surrounding the Keivy takes an active part. The authors have come to the conclusion that at least the middle part of the Keivy section was formed as a result of washing and redeposition of the material of the structure itself, it confirms the conclusions about the presence of redeposited weathering crusts within the Keivy. The results obtained testify to the correctness of the earlier conclusion about the formation of the Keivy structure under conditions most similar to the middle massifs, and to a certain extent explain the formation of a giant deposit of aluminum raw materials within the Keivy.

Studies of lithotectonic formations within the Keivy domain of the NE Baltic Shield have shown that the domain was tectonically overlapped by adjacent microcontinents during regional collision processes in the Late Archean. As a consequence, the continental crust of the Keivy domain was submerged, relative to other blocks of the continental crust, and the described domain acquired the features of a classical median massif. Surrounded on all sides by collision systems, the Keivy median massif entered the cratonization regime. This led to intensive processes of denudation of the surrounding domains of the crust and the accumulation of a thick sedimentary cover on the surface. The described processes occurred during the formation of the first supercontinent (Monogea) in the history of the Earth and the manifestation of the Early Precambrian Huronian glaciation, which left its traces on most domains of the Earth’s continental crust. Thus, the processes of peneplain formation within the Keivy massif occurred under the cold weather conditions, high volcanic activity in the peripheral zones, and sedimentary cover saturation with the products of the physical and chemical mineral transformation of tonalite–trondhjemite and greenstone rock assemblages. The unique combination of certain geodynamic and climatic cycles on the Baltic Shield in the Late Archean led to the accumulation of extensive stratiform deposits of alumina raw materials within the Keivy median massif.

—We have studied the trace element composition of apatite from several varieties of carbonatites and associated apatite ores of the Vuoriyarvi alkaline-ultrabasic carbonatite complex (Kola region, northwestern Russia), which hosts several commercial deposits of apatite–magnetite and pyrochlore ores and large-scale unexplored rare-earth mineral occurrences. The composition of apatite was analyzed by total-reflection X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (hereafter, TXRF). Verification of the obtained results was carried out by ICP-MS analysis of weighed portions of apatite monomineral samples. It is shown that during the evolution of the Vuoriyarvi carbonatites and associated apatite–magnetite ores, the contents of Sr and rare-earth elements (REE) and the degree of REE fractionation in apatite synchronously increased. The obtained TXRF data on the composition of apatite in the carbonatite complex demonstrate the efficiency of TXRF and its high potential in both applied and fundamental research concerned with apatite of various geologic objects.

This paper is focused on the problems of studying the thermal conditions of the Earth’s crust in the transition zone from the Baltic Shield to the Barents Sea Plate, based on temperature measurements in the deep well P-1 located on the isthmus between the Srednii and Rybachii peninsulas (northeast of the Baltic Shield). A brief description of the comprehensive geophysical studies on the wellbore is given. The measurements of thermal conductivity and the concentration of radiogenic elements in borehole core rock samples are reported. The role of hydrogeological conditions has been proved to be minor in the temperature field disturbance in the well. Horner’s method has been used to calculate undisturbed temperatures at the bottoms of drilling intervals and to estimate the geothermal gradient of the Archean horizons in the section where the heat flow is estimated at 32 mW/m2. The undisturbed heat flow is estimated at 20 mW/m2 for the Riphean complex of the section. The study results characterize the thermal conditions of the Earth’s crust in the transition zone from the Baltic Shield to the Barents Sea Plate.

An Erratum to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1134/S0001437022330013

Described below are methods for reconstruction of formation settings for protoliths of ancient complexes that enable adjustment for the chemical evolution of the Earth matter and make it possible to apply the concept of trends in regime changes for geodynamic reconstructions in the Precambrian more correctly, providing no complete analogues with the Phanerozoic. In addition, methods for a single trend in the compositional evolution are described for several given sequences of objects. Possibilities of these methods are demonstrated on the example of the study of Archaean complexes in the Kola region.

The monograph provides consolidated geological-geophysical data on the Neoproterozoic (Riphaean) sediments on the north-eastern Baltic Shield. The study pioneers in summarizing all previous and present-day materials on the geology of the Rybachy and Sredny Peninsulas obtained both in field research and by drilling of the Poranichnaya-1 (5202 m) and Rybachinskaya (3001 m) parametric boreholes, as well as a series of smaller (less than 1 km) prospecting boreholes. The study results indicate a high oil, gas and diamond potential of the regional lithological units that may host major accumulations of these minerals. This can be evidenced by a sustainable inflow of gas (methane) in one of boreholes and by fragments of diamond crystals found in the study area. Since issues of the oil and gas deposits generation and diamond-bearing magmatism are always tightly woven with uniform global patterns of the Earth’s evolution, the book outlines its history at early stages. The book is intended for multidiscipline geologists, engineers engaged in prospecting for oil, gas and diamonds, students and experts in the Earth’s evolution and spatial-temporal formation patterns of the mineral deposits.

We study the P–T conditions and age of metamorphic evolution of the rocks that make up the Korvatundra structure in the northeast of the Fennoscandian Shield. The rocks underwent progressive metamorphism of the amphibolite facies at 625–660 ºC and 8.7–8.8 kbar 1945 ± 34 Ma (Sm–Nd data). The pegmatite cutting the metamorphic paragenesis that formed at this stage has an age of 1917 ± 6 Ma (zircon U–Pb data). Metamorphic transformations after 1917 Ma are manifested locally as discrete zones of blastomylonites in the rocks of the northern part and some inner sites of the Korvatundra structure. Both local increases and decreases in temperature and pressure are possible in these zones. The formation of light titanite with an age of 1863 ± 44 Ma marks the next stage of shear strain. Low-temperature alterations (chloritization and silicification) took place in the zones of final deformations 1722 ± 5 Ma (Rb–Sr data). Beginning from 1.94 Ga, the general deformational and metamorphic history of the Korvatundra structure, Lapland Granulite Belt, and Tana Belt confirms the assumption of the formation of a single inverted metamorphic zoning within the Korvatundra structure and the overlying Lapland–Kolvitsa Collision Belt in the Paleoproterozoic. The obtained data supplement the idea of the Paleoproterozoic geodynamic evolution of the Lapland–Kola orogen.

The paper presents data on geology and composition of rocks from the Ustoyarvi region (the North-Western Arctic zone of Russian Federation). Their compositional analysis (including mathematical evaluation of the similarity/difference measure) provided much reliable conclusion that the rocks from this area, which are presumably attributed to the Ustoyarvi structure (Ustoyarvinsky Greenstone Belt) were similar to those from the Ura-Guba area in the Kolmozero-Voronya Belt and continued it. In addition, it has been shown that from west to east lithotectonic units in the adjacent (Suormussky) Block become gradually impregnated with tectonic wedges of rocks of the Ustoyarvi Greenstone Belt. It indicates increasing collisional interaction between rock associations with a varied genesis. P-T formation parameters have been specified for komatiites from greenstone belts, i. e. the Kolmozero-Voronya, Ura-Guba, Ustoyarvi and Western Litsa area. It has been defined that komatiites of the Ustoyarvi Greenstone Belt were formed under pressure of about 5 hPa, komatiites of the Ura-Guba area - about 4.5 hPa, komatiites of the Kolmozero-Voronya - about 2 hPa. Thus, komatiites of the Ustoyarvi Greenstone Belt are more high-pressure formations.

The Sallanlatva massif belongs to the group of Paleozoic alkaline-ultrabasic complexes wide spread in the Kola Region (the northwestern part of the Fennoscandian Shield). In the central part of this massif, the host ijolite and urtites contain calcite, ankerite, ankerite-dolomite and siderite carbonatites. The explosive processes that led to the formation of carbonatite breccias in the calcite and ankerite-dolomite carbonatites occurred in Sallanlatva massife in the last stages of the carbonatite magmatism. There are two types of explosive carbonatite breccias in the Sallanlatva massif: (1) glimmerite-calciocarbonatite breccias, and (2) siderite-dolomite breccias. Analysis of the mineral composition of fragments and matrix and the shape of fragments in breccias has shown that the first material to intrude into the host calcite and ankerite-dolomite carbonatites was calcite melt. After that, dolomite melt penetrated through the fracture zones, which resulted in the formation of siderite-dolomite breccias. The differences in the mineral composition of the breccia matrix suggest that the residual carbonatite melts originate from separate magma chambers. The chamber with calcite melt was located at great depth, and some captured glimmerite fragments were abraded during the melt upwelling. Silicate-dolomite melts lifted from a shallower depth; the captured fragments of siderite carbonatites retained their angular shape. Late hydrothermal processes yielded veins and caverns with Ba-Sr-P-S-Ti-REE mineralization in the breccias and host rocks.

This paper represents a geological review of the Lapland Granulite Belt (LGB). Description of the general geological framework of the LGB complex is coupled with reviews of the geochronological data, metamorphism, mineral endowment and concludes with a discussion of the geotectonic models. It is shown that the belt was formed in the Neoarchean (2703 +/- 9 Ma using the U-Pb method) and consists of two compositionally different units. The lower member with dominating amphibolites is interpreted as metamorphosed volcanics, while the upper member is mainly composed of metamorphosed sandstones. It is noted that the composition and structure of the LGB complex are broadly consistent with typical Phanerozoic island-arc complexes. An interpretation of the LGB complex as a Neoarchean island-arc system is proposed. It is consistent with existing geodynamic interpretations of the adjacent terrains and, in general, fits the global geodynamic model of the supracrustal Archean complexes in the Baltic Shield.