Prospects for uranium potential in South European Russia (based on geochemical studies)

The paper addresses geochemical characteristics of South European Russia, which assess prospects for uranium potential in order to expand the uranium mineral resources base in the region. The research corresponded to providing a geochemical basis for the L-38 sheet of the geological map (scale of 1 : 100,000). Soils and sediments were tested over a 10 × 10 km network. In the samples, the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometric method determined contents of mobile forms of uranium and other elements (60 in total). Identification of nine areas promising for discovery of commercial uranium deposits, including the pa - leodoline type, represents a practical value of the research. The research findings are important, since they forecast expansion of the uranium raw materials base in a well-developed and accessible region with known deposits, but with limited reserves of strategic mineral raw materials.