Abstract

Stratiform chromite deposits are of great economic importance, yet their origin and evolution remain highly debated. Layered igneous intrusions such as the Bushveld, Great Dyke, Kemi, and Stillwater Complexes, provide opportunities for studying magmatic differentiation processes and assimilation within the crust, as well as related ore-deposit formation. Chromite-rich seams within layered intrusions host the majority of the world’s chromium reserves and may contain significant platinum-group-element (PGE) mineralization.

This model of stratiform chromite deposits is part of an effort by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Mineral Resources Program to update existing models and develop new descriptive mineral deposit models to supplement previously published models for use in mineral-resource and mineral-environmental assessments. The model focuses on features that may be common to all stratiform chromite deposits as a way to gain insight into the processes that gave rise to their emplacement and to the significant economic resources contained in them.

First posted September 2010