A repository of Earth’s first U-mineralized phosphatic dolostone from Paleoproterozoic ~2.0 Ga Vempalle Formation, Cuddapah Basin

All data used for the research described in the article "A repository of Earth’s first U-mineralized phosphatic dolostone from Paleoproterozoic ~2.0 Ga Vempalle Formation, Cuddapah Basin" authored by Deepak Agarwal and Bulusu Sreenivas are uploaded here. In this study, we carried out a geochemical analysis on drill core samples of cherty dolostone (CD), U-mineralized dolostone (UMD), and massive dolostone (MD). The Major and trace element concentration of the samples are presented in Table 1 and the REE concentration of the samples are presented in Table 2. Data representing Varimax rotated factor analysis of the massive dolostone, high-U dolostone > 100 ppm, and cherty dolostone are presented in Tables S1, S2, and S3, respectively.
In our research, we carried out geochemical analysis on drill core samples of dolostone belonging to 2 billion year old Vempalle Formation of the Cuddapah Supergroup. The geochemical signatures record the transition of the depositional environment from anoxic during the deposition of the lower Vempalle Formation (MD and UMD) to oxic during the deposition of the upper Vempalle Formation (CD). The Lower Vempalle Formation records the first significant U-mineralized phosphatic dolostone of the Earth history post-dating the global-scale glaciation due to upwelling nutrient-rich water, marine transgression, and rising sea levels. We propose that the Lower Vempalle Formation records the global signatures of Paleoproterozoic oceanic overturn and anoxic to euxinic depositional environmental transition.