Abstract
—This paper considers the use of radioactive elements for the solution of geochemical problems related to granitoid magmatism. The metallogenic types of granites are recognized on the basis of the contents of radioactive (Th-bearing, rare-metal, U-bearing, gold ore, etc.) elements in them. Special attention is focused on the Th/U ratio, which is higher than 2.5 in primary igneous rocks, such as Li–F granites of the Ongon-Hayrhan deposit (Mongolia). Granitoids with Th/U < 2 (and, the more so, Th/U < 1) cannot be considered igneous. They are either metasomatized or of metasomatic genesis. Petrochemical and geochemical data on these types of rocks should be used for petrological implications with great care. Radiogeochemical indices can and must be used as additional indicators of the genesis of rocks, when it is controversial because of the widely manifested convergence and metasomatism processes.