A.I. Malinovsky1, P.V. Markevich1, M.I. Tuchkova2

1Far Eastern Geological Institute, FEBRAS, Vladivostok, 690022
2Geological Institute RAS, Moscow, 109017

In the paper the results of the study of the clastic heavy minerals from the structurally contrasting Cretaceous-Paleogene terrigenous assemblages of Sikhote-Alin and Kamchatka, as well as the Cenozoic sediments of the deep-water through Vanuatu, have been generalized. The data obtained have been interpreted on the base of their comparison with heavy mineral associations of the recent sediments, deposited in well-known geodynamic settings. It is shown that clastic heavy minerals of the sedimentary rocks, their relationship and the chemical composition of some minerals may serve as reliable indicators of different geodynamic environments and the related magmatic processes; moreover, they are useful for their identification within paleobasins of orogenic areas.