Abstract
PHOSPHORITES are sedimentary rocks in which apatite, usually carbonate-fluor-apatite, is the major component. The origin of phosphorites, although widely discussed in the literature, is still far from being settled1. Mass mortality, volcanism and bacterial activity have been mentioned in the past as responsible for phosphorite formation, and Kazakov's2 “chemical” hypothesis has probably gained the widest recognition3,4. This hypothesis essentially claims that up welling deep and cold water, rich in phosphate and dissolved carbon dioxide and depleted in oxygen, is warmed at the surface and that the resulting decrease of pCO2 and increase of pH. cause the solubility of Ca-phosphate to decrease. Apatite may then be precipitated by organic or inorganic processes. Others1,5,6 suggest that many phosphorites are the result of the replacement of originally carbonate sediments.
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KOLODNY, Y. Are Marine Phosphorites Forming Today ?. Nature 224, 1017–1019 (1969). https://doi.org/10.1038/2241017a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/2241017a0
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