Fine gold is typical for shelf sediments of the Black Sea. Its accumulation is not associated with only one source, it occurs in different terrigenousmineralogical provinces of the shelf. Fine gold has different genesis; its distribution in sediments is extremely uneven. Its highest content is found in the Dnieper depression, near Tendra spit and Zhebriyany bay.

The increased content of gold is often found in multicomponent nongraded recent sediments of the shelf – in the muddy and sandy shell deposits. The accumulation of fine gold is confined to the very fine sand in the Dnieper depression. There is a high negative correlation between gold content and psephites, which is represented exclusively by shelly material in these sediments. This negative relationship is natural, because there is no genetic relationship between biogenic psephites and predominantly terrigenous fine gold. Positive correlation between gold and the very fine sand in the sediments indicate that the determining factor is the hydrodynamic regime for the accumulation of fine gold in marine sediments.

Fine gold tends to accumulate in sediments with a high content of minerals residue near Tendra spit. Here the accumulation of gold is directly related to the formation of coastal marine titanium-zirconium placers, evidenced by positive correlations between gold and zircon, ilmenite and anatase.

The maximum gold content occurs in well-graded fine sand sediments in Zhebriyany bay and Zmeinyi Island area.

The lithological control of accumulation of fine gold in the sediments appears differently in various parts of the north-western shelf of the Black Sea and in different terrigenous-mineralogical provinces of the shelf.

Full Text

1. Fedoronchuk N.A., 2001. Lithology of bottom sediments and peculiarities of placer deposit formation on the North-Western Black See shelf, Abstract of dissertation, Astroprint, Odessa, 20 p. (In Ukrainian).
2. Fedoronchuk N.O., Suchkov І.O., Reznіk V.P., Іvanov V.G., 2001. Lithology of bottom sediments and sedimentation conditions in the North-western Black Sea shelf, Geological Journal, No.3, pp. 41-52. (In Ukrainian).
3. Fedoronchuk, N.A., Suchkov, I.A., 2012. Fine terrigenous and authigenous gold in marine sediments, Collection of scientific works ІGS NAS of Ukraine, Vol. 5, pp. 219-226. (In Russian).
4. Fedoronchuk, N.A., Suchkov, І.A. Mudrov, І.A., Goncharova, І.O., 2013. Lithologic-facial and mineralogical preconditions of fine gold accumulation in the neoeuxinian deposits of the Dnieper submarine valley (the NW Black Sea shelf), Geology and Mineral Resources of the World Ocean, No. 2, pp. 64-75. (In Ukrainian).
5. Ivanova, A.M., Kreyter, E.N., 2006. Fine gold in the shelf areas of the World Ocean, Geology and Mineral Resources of the World Ocean, No. 2, pp. 30-49. (In Russian).
6. Reznik, V.P., 1999. Some problems of sea fine gold (northwestern shelf of the Black Sea), Geology and Mineral Resources of the Black Sea, BMGSD NAS of Ukraine, Kiev, pp. 147-151. (In Russian).
7. Reznik, V.P., Fedoronchuk, N.A., 2000. Fine gold in marine and ocean sediments, Lithology and Mineral Resources, No. 4, pp. 355-363. (In Russian).
8. Reznіk V.P., 2003. Fine ore minerals in the sediments of the northwestern Black Sea shelf. Peculiarities of distribution, Geological Journal, No.2, pp. 99-111. (In Russian).
9. Shnyukov, E.F., 2001. Search of deposits of fine gold in the Azov-Black Sea region – an important geological problem of the XXI century, Geological problems of the Black Sea, Kiev, pp. 11-22. (In Russian).
10. Shnyukov, E.F., Ziborov A.P., 2004. Mineral wealth of the Black Sea, Publisher NAS of Ukraine, Kiev, 290 р. (In Russian).
11. Smyntyna V.A., Medinets V.I., Suchkov I.A., Fedoronchuk N.A. and others; ex. ed. V.I. Medinets, 2008. Zmiinyi Island. Ecosystem of Coasta Waters: monograph, Odes. Nat. I.I.Mechnikov University, Odessa: Astroprint, XII, 228 p. (In Ukrainian).
12. Suchkov I.A., 1999. To the geomorphology of the Western northwest shelf of the Black Sea, Geology and Mineral Resources of the Black Sea, Kiev, pp. 365-370. (In Russian).
13. Yushin, O.O., 2009. Genetic peculiarities of gold placers of the Azov-Black Sea province, Geology and Mineral Resources of the Black Sea, Kiyv, pp. 200-203. (In Russian).