Evaluation of trace elements concentration in Takht coal mine, MinooDasht, Golestan Province, NE of Iran

Takht coal mine located in the Gheshlagh coal-bearing large synclinorium in northern flank of the Alborz Mountains in East of Golestan province has been investigated for evaluation of concentration of trace elements such as gallium (Ga), germanium (Ge), vanadium (V), scandium (Sc), uranium (U), lanthanum (La) and cerium (Ce). Coal samples studied in this research were categorized into bituminous, sub-bituminous-lignite, lignite and peat types according to chemical analysis of major element (CHNS wt%) constructing the coals. ICP-MS analysis of coal samples show that most of trace elements in Takht coal mine have very low concentrations to those of hard and brown coals around the world, however they displayed slightly enrichment in V (up to 88 ppm), Zr (up to 96 ppm) and Sc (up to 16) compared to global average concentration in coals. Low concentration of trace elements in the Takht coal mine could be attributed to inherent poverty of the Shemshak sedimentary basin of such elements. It could be related to the absence of trace elements-bearing source rocks (e.g., granitoids, carbonatites, pegmatites and periodotites) as source rocks of Shemshak Group sediments in the study area. Therefore, it seems that formation and evolution of the Shemshak Group is occurred in a sedimentary basin with normal concentrations of the trace elements that led to formation of a trace element-poor coals.