Dispersed elements do not always occur as associated elements in the ore deposits of other elements. Instead, they can constitute
independent ore deposits. The focus of this paper is placed on the mechanism of super-enrichment of the four dispersed elements
Tl, Ge, Se, and Te under favorable geological conditions, where their enrichment coefficients are so high that their abundances
can reach n x 10
3-n × 10
4, sometimes even up to n X 10
6 times (e. g. Te) those of the crust. As a result, they can form their independent ore deposits. Studies have shown that such
independent ore deposits are mostly distributed in the southwestern part of China, most of which belong to low-temperature
ore deposits, ranging in age from Yanshanian to Himalayan (Cretaceous to Cenozoic), with a significant time gap with the host
strata. Moreover, this paper also deals with the existing forms (as independent minerals, occurring isomorphously and being
adsorbed) of the dispersed elements in those independent ore deposits. The discovery of independent ore deposits of dispersed
elements is a great breakthrough in the study of dispersed element metallogenesis.
Key words dispersed element - super-enrichment - independent ore deposit - existing form
This project is granted by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 49633110).