The use of fluid inclusion decrepitometry to distinguish mineralized and barren quartz veins in the aberfoyle tin-tungsten mine area, Tasmania

In the Aberfoyle Sn/W district of N.E. Tasmania, mineralization is in quartz veins associated with Devonian granite. The host rocks to the mineralization are folded Silurian quartzites, greywackes and shales and these also contain abundant pre-mineralization quartz veins which can be difficult to distinguish from irregularly mineralized ore veins on geological criteria, especially in drill core. It was found that the decrepitation characteristics of the quartz, chiefly the intensity ratio of high and low temperature peaks, which are developed in all decrepigrams, enable a distinction between the two generations of veins to be readily made. The differences between the fluid inclusions in the two generations of veins are relatively subtle, however it seems clear that “CO₂-rich” inclusions having a wide range of composition and density are the main source of decrepitation events and that the major differences in decrepitation behaviour can be correlated with differences in average homogenization temperature of these inclusions. Even those ore veins which have undergone moderate ductile deformation have the typical signature of their origin. The decrepitation results are supported by analyses of inclusion gases by Raman microprobe. These analyses differentiate a third group of veins which are possibly unmineralized veins belonging to a separate hydrothermal system.     

湖南西部钨锑金矿床成矿规律及找矿应用

湖南西部钨锑金矿床赋存于雪峰弧形构造带之前寒武系浅变质岩系中,受到韧-脆性剪切构造控制,具有明显的地层层位效应。区域变质和动力变形过程中,大规模深层次的韧性剪切变形促使矿源层中的Au活化迁移,连同SiO2,K等活性组分和岩石中的H2O一起形成含金动力变质热液,当其进入伸展型脆韧性剪切带及其剥离构造带、张扭性断裂带时,形成充填交代型含金石英脉型和破碎带蚀变岩型金矿。研究表明,矿床具有特定的元素共生组合,矿脉(体)沿倾向延伸大且普遍具有侧伏成矿现象,沿控矿构造方向侵入的长英质脉岩带与成矿有一定的联系;载金的硫(砷)化物以富集轻硫同位素为特点,氧化-还原反应是金成矿的主要化学机制等特征性成矿标志。矿床广泛发育中低温热液蚀变,黄铁矿、毒砂矿物和As元素是找金的标型矿物和指示元素。矿床成因主要属于受韧-脆性脆剪切带控制的变质热液型金矿。     

The Kalguty complex deposit, the Gorny Altai: Mineralogical and geochemical characteristics and fluid regime of ore formation

The results of detailed mineralogical, geochemical, and thermobarogeochemical studies of the Kalguty complex greisen deposit are presented. The chemical compositions of ore veins, greisens, and other geological bodies have been determined. A wide range of chemical elements from Li to U (48 elements, including noble metals and REE) has been determined in ore minerals. Graphite in association with quartz and sulfides was identified in ore veins for the first time. Graphite is enriched in a light carbon isotope. The δ¹³C value varies from ?26.3 ± 0.4 to ?26.6 ± 0.3‰. High Au, Ag, Hg, Te, Sb, Bi, Cu, Pb, Zn, Fe, and S contents were detected in graphite grains with a microprobe. The graphite content increases regularly with depth; the spatial correlation of graphite with W, Mo, Cu, Au, Pt, Pd, and other metals is established. The highest Au, Ag, Pt, Pd, and Os contents are characteristic of minor intrusions of albitized granite porphyry (γπ₂J₁vk), intramineral dikes of hydrothermally altered kalgutite (γπ₃J₁vk), ore veins, their greisen selvages, and autonomous ore-bearing greisen bodies of the Mo stock type. Gold occurs in native form, while silver is contained largely in sulfides and sulfosalts. High PGE contents are characteristic of pyrite, wolframite, and molybdenite. The major components of fluid inclusions in quartz (H₂O, CO₂, CO, and H₂) have been studied, as well as hydrocarbons (CH₄, C₂H₆, C₃H₈, C₄H₁₀, C₅H₁₂, C₆H₁₄, C₂H₂, and C₂H₄) contained therein. Two-phase fluid inclusions are predominant, while single-and three-phase inclusions are less abundant. The homogenization temperatures of primary and secondary inclusions are 290–340 and 140–160°C, respectively. The concentration of dissolved salts (NaCl and KCl) in two-phase inclusions amounts to 11.6–14.0%. The H₂O and CO₂ contents decrease with depth, whereas the CO, H₂, and HC concentrations increase in the same direction. Graphite is regarded as a product of reactions with participation of fluid (gas) components. The ore mineralization was formed under contrasting conditions related to the oxidation of a primary reduced deep metalliferous fluid.     

Fluid Geochemistry and Metallogenesis of the Hatu Gold Deposit in the Junggar Basin, Xinjiang

The Hatu large gold deposit is located on the western margin of the Junggar basin, Xinjiang. Its mineralization is characterized by auriferous quartz veins and Au-bearing altered fracturing zones. Studies on mineralogy, inclusions and decrepitation temperature indicate that the gold deposit was formed by overlapping of two kinds of fluid of different origins, instead of gradual evolution of a single fluid. The auriferous quartz veins are related to magmatism-originated fluid, but the Au-bearing altered fracturing zones to deep-derived fluid. Bonanzas in quartz veins were formed and localized at overlapping positions of two types of fluid under intensive compression.     

Metamorphism of sulfides and gangue quartz at the Degdekan and Gol’tsovsky gold deposits, Magadan oblast

The Degdekan and Gol’tsovsky gold-quartz deposits are located in the southeastern Yana-Kolyma gold belt. The orebodies occur as quartz veins hosted in metaterrigenous rocks and cut by postmineral basic-intermediate dikes. It was established that metamorphism of sulfides and gangue quartz was restricted to a few centimeters off the dike contact. According to sulfide geothermometers, the metamorphic temperatures close to the contact of dikes attained 700°C at the Degdekan deposit and were no higher than 491°C at the Gol’tsovsky deposit. The formation of the forbidden assemblage of quartz and loellingite and its fine-grained texture indicate that the thermal effect on the Degdekan ore was short-term. The prolonged heating of the ore at the Gol’tsovsky deposit gave rise to the aggradation recrystallization of quartz and the formation of equilibrium sulfide aggregates that show only insignificant differences in composition from the primary phases. The average homogenization temperature of primary and pseudosecondary fluid inclusions is 206 ± 40°C in the unmetamorphosed veins and 257 ± 33°C in the metamorphosed veins. The salinity of fluids in the primary and pseudosecondary inclusions in quartz veins of both types varies from 0.5 to 14.0 wt % NaCl equiv. The melting temperature of liquid CO₂ in the carbon dioxide inclusions, ranging from ?57.0 to ?60.8°C, suggests an admixture of CH₄ and/or N₂. The unmetamorphosed quartz veins were formed at a fluid pressure varying from 0.7 to 1.3 kbar, while quartz veins at the contact with dikes crystallized at a pressure of 0.8–1.5 kbar. The results of gas chromatography showed the presence of CO₂ and H₂O, as well as N₂ and CH₄. The average bulk of volatiles contained in the fluid inclusions in quartz from the metamorphosed veins is 1.5–2 times lower than in the unmetamorphosed veins; this proportion is consistent with the occurrence of decrepitated gas inclusions in the heated quartz.     

Fluid Inclusions and C?H?O?S?Pb Isotopes: Implications for the Genesis of the Zhuanshanzi Gold Deposit on the Northern Margin of the North China Craton

The Zhuanshanzi gold deposit lies in the eastern section of the Xingmeng orogenic belt and the northern section of the Chifeng‐Chaoyang gold belt. The gold veins are strictly controlled by a NW‐oriented shear fault zone. Quartz veins and altered tectonic rock‐type gold veins are the main vein types. The deposits can be divided into four mineralization stages, and the second and third metallogenic stages are the main metallogenic stages. In this paper, based on the detailed field geological surveys, an analysis of the orebody and ore characteristics, microtemperature measurement of fluid inclusions, the Laser Raman spectrum of the inclusions, determination of C? H? O? S? Pb isotopic geochemical characteristics, and so on were carried out to explore the origin of the ore‐forming fluids, ore‐forming materials, and the genesis of the deposits. The results show that the fluid inclusions can be divided into four types: type I – gas–liquid two‐phase inclusions; type II – gas‐rich inclusions; type III– liquid inclusions; and type IV – CO₂‐containing three‐phase inclusions. However, they are dominated by type Ib – gas liquid inclusions and type IV – three‐phase inclusions containing CO₂. The gas compositions are mainly H₂O and CO₂, indicating that the metallogenic system is a CO₂? H₂O? NaCl system. The homogenization temperature of the ore‐forming fluid evolved from a middle temperature to a low temperature, and the temperature of the fluid was further reduced due to meteoric water mixing during the late stage, as well as a lack of CO₂ components, and eventually evolved into a simple NaCl? H₂O hydrothermal system. C? H? O? S? Pb isotope research proved that the ore‐forming fluids are mainly magmatic water during the early stage, with abundant meteoric water mixed in during the late stage. Ore‐forming materials originated mostly from hypomagma and were possibly influenced by the surrounding rocks, suggesting that the ore‐forming materials were mainly magmatic hydrothermal deposits, with a small amount of crustal component. The fluid immiscibility and the CO₂ and CH₄ gases in the fluids played an active and important role in the precipitation and enrichment of Au during different metallogenic stages. The deposit is considered a magmatic hydrothermal deposit of middle–low temperature.     

Geological characteristics, tectonic setting and preliminary interpretations of the Jilau gold–quartz vein deposit, Tajikistan

The southern Tien Shan metallogenic province of Central Asia hosts a number of important gold resources including the Jilau gold–quartz vein system in western Tajikistan. These deposits were formed at the late stages of continent–continent collision in association with subduction-related magmatism, metamorphism and continental margin deformation attributed to the Central Asian Hercynian Orogeny. Jilau is hosted by a Hercynian syntectonic granitoid intrusive that was emplaced into bituminous dolomite country rocks. Economic mineralisation is associated with a dilational jog within a high-angle, oblique dextral-reverse slip shear zone that was undergoing brittle–ductile deformation. The orebody takes the form of shear-zone subparallel quartz veins and lenses that emanate from a steeply plunging ore shoot of veins and stringers within a silicified and sulphidised granodiorite core. It is thought to have formed by a dynamic process in which fluid flow was governed by a fault-valve mechanism. Numerous cycles of fluid pressure build-up, fault failure, jog dilation, fluid flow, phase separation of low salinity H₂O–CO₂–CH₄(–N₂) fluids, and sealing took place. Gold appears together with scheelite and bismuth minerals predominantly as inclusions in arsenopyrite in quartz veins and altered wall-rock, and is mainly associated with quartz containing fluid inclusions enriched in CH₄. The correlation between high gold grades and high CH₄ concentrations suggests that components of the mineralising fluids were derived from, or passed through, the reducing, carbonaceous rocks in the contact aureole of the intrusive. The occurrence of Au and W in an adjacent Hercynian skarn deposit and in the Jilau orebody, infers that the ore metals in both these systems were ultimately derived from a magmatic source. Received: 15 April 1999 / Accepted: 30 December 1999     

Gold deposit in the Butarny granitoid stock, Russian Northeast

The Butarny gold deposit is situated in the central part of the Khurchan-Orotukan Zone of tectonomagmatic activation, which is traced for 150 km in the near-meridional direction, and localized in the slightly eroded Late Jurassic granitoid stock of the same name. The explored orebodies are quartz veins and pinnate veinlets with low-grade pocket-disseminated sulfide (mainly arsenopyrite) mineralization containing native gold. The Bi-bearing gold-pyrite-arsenopyrite and the quartz-löllingite-arsenopyrite-stibnitejamesonite stages of the veined low-sulfide ore formation have been distinguished. The main mineral assemblage consists of arsenopyrite, native gold, and native bismuth. The minerals-carriers of gold were deposited during the final stage of ore-bearing quartz crystallization at 334?245°C from low-concentrated pneumatolytic-hydrothermal carbonated fluid containing CO₂ and CH₄ (5.8?2.2 and 1.6?0.5 mol/kg of solution, respectively). The ore-bearing fluid had variable salinity (5.3?2.2 wt % NaCl equiv). It is quite probable that the gas-saturated fluid participated in transport and precipitation of ore matter. Its density varies from 1.02 to 0.77 g/cm³. The pressure is estimated at 1600 to 780 bar. The fluid regime of ore formation at the Butarny deposit is similar to that of typical intrusion-related gold deposits. The Au tenor of beresitized granodiorite, numerous quartz veinlets, and extensive Au-bearing weathering mantle allow us to suggest stockwork mineralization.     

The Aitik Cu–Au–Ag deposit in northern Sweden: a product of high salinity fluids

The Aitik Cu–Au–Ag deposit is located in northern Sweden and is hosted by strongly deformed 1.9 Ga Svecofennian volcano-sedimentary rocks. The main copper mineralization, which occurs as disseminations and veinlets, is hosted by garnet–biotite schist. Subeconomic mineralization in the footwall to the ore is hosted by feldspar–biotite–amphibole gneiss and porphyritic quartz monzodiorite. The deposit has been affected by post-mineralization metamorphic and igneous activity. Fluid inclusions in six samples of copper-mineralized quartz veins record the presence of three different fluid populations. The main ore was deposited from an aqueous, highly saline (31–37 eq. wt% NaCl + CaCl₂) fluid. This fluid was trapped in inclusions intimately associated with the main chalcopyrite mineralization. Later bornite deposition took place from a less saline (18–27 eq. wt% NaCl + CaCl₂), aqueous fluid. A third fluid composed of almost pure CO₂, interacted with the copper-rich system during a post-ore event. The Aitik Cu–Au–Ag deposit shares some features with both porphyry-type and Fe-oxide–Cu–Au deposits. A high calcium content of the ore fluids, similar to other Cu–Au deposits in northern Scandinavia, suggests a contribution to the salinity of the mainly magmatic-hydrothermal fluids from evaporitic rocks in stratigraphically lower units.     

西藏邦布石英脉型金矿床的成因: 流体包裹体及氢-氧同位素证据

西藏邦布石英脉型金矿床是产于印度-亚洲板块陆-陆造山主碰撞汇聚环境下、与大洋俯冲无关的新型造山型金矿床。该矿床位于雅鲁藏布江缝合带南侧朗杰学增生楔的东段南缘,矿体受区域内EW向金地-鲁农复向斜和错古-折木朗壳型脆-韧性剪切带及其次级构造的控制。金矿化主要与石英脉密切相关,并包裹于脉内细粒/粗粒硫化物中。矿区内主要分布有3期石英脉:成矿前钩状石英脉、成矿期石英大脉和成矿后陡立状石英脉。文章对3期石英脉流体包裹体形态、形成温度、密度及H-O同位素等方面进行了详细的对比研究,试图查明成矿流体来源以及金的沉淀机制等问题。研究表明,钩状石英脉内包裹体主要为液相(L)包裹体,成分主要为H₂O溶液,其流体可能为早期区域变质的产物;石英大脉内包裹体主要为含CO₂气液(VL)两相包裹体,体积较大,成分主要为H₂O+CO₂+CH₄±N₂,成矿流体为深源变质流体,并与变质地层中的有机质发生强烈反应;陡立状石英脉内包裹体主要为气液两相包裹体,体积较小,其主要成分为H₂O+CO₂,流体主要与后期区域变质事件有关,为成矿后变质作用的产物。邦布金矿的主要成矿流体源自深部变质流体,流体不混溶作用可能是导致金矿沉淀的主要原因。     

Ore metal redistribution by hydrocarbon–brine and hydrocarbon–halide melt phases, North Range footwall of the Sudbury Igneous Complex, Ontario, Canada

We report methane-dominant hydrocarbon (fluid) inclusions (CH₄±C₂H₆–C₂H₂, C₃H₈) coexisting with primary brine inclusions and secondary halide melt (solid NaCl) inclusions in Au–Pt-rich quartz-sulfide-epidote alteration veins associated with the footwall-style Cu–PGE (platinum-group element)–Au deposits at the Fraser Mine (North Range of the Sudbury Igneous Complex). Evidence for coentrapment of immiscible hydrocarbon–brine, and hydrocarbon–halide melt mixtures is demonstrated. A primary CH₄–brine assemblage was trapped during quartz growth at relatively low T (min. T _trapping∼145–315°C) and P (max. P _trapping∼500 bar), prior to the crystallization of sulfide minerals in the veins. Secondary inclusions contain solid halite and a mixture of CH₄, C₂H₆–C₂H₂ and C₃H₈ and were trapped at a minimum T of ∼710°C. The halite inclusions may represent halide melt that exsolved from crystallizing sulfide ores that texturally postdate (by replacement) early alteration quartz hosting the primary, lower T brine–CH₄ assemblage. Laser ablation ICP-MS analyses show that the brine, hydrocarbon and halide melt inclusions contain significant concentrations of Cu (0.1–1 wt% range), Au, Bi, Ag and Pt (all 0.1–10 ppm range). Cu:Pt and Cu:Au ratios in the inclusions are significantly (up to 4 log units) lower than in the host alteration veins and adjacent massive sulfide ore veins, suggesting either (1) early Cu loss from the volatiles by chalcopyrite precipitation or (2) enhanced Au and Pt solubilities relative to Cu at the temperatures of entrapment. Concentration ratios between coexisting brine and CH₄ inclusions are lower for Cu, Au, Bi and Ag than for other elements (Na, Ca, Fe, Mn, Zn, Pb) indicating that during interaction with the brine, the hydrocarbon phase was enriched in ore metals. The high concentrations of ore metals in hydrocarbon, brine and halide melt phases confirm that both aqueous and non-aqueous volatiles were carriers of precious metals in the Sudbury environment over a wide range of temperatures. Volatile evolution and magmatic sulfide differentiation were clearly part of a single, continuous process in the Sudbury footwall. The exsolution of H₂O-poor volatiles from fractionated sulfide liquid may have been a principal mechanism controlling the final distribution of PGE and Au in the footwall ore systems. The study reports the first measurements of precious metal concentrations in fluid inclusions from a magmatic Ni–Cu–PGE environment (the Sudbury district). Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available for this article at     

Compositional zoning of fluid inclusions in the Archaean Junction gold deposit,Western Australia: A process of fluid ‐ wall‐rock interaction?

The Junction gold deposit, in Western Australia, is an orogenic gold deposit hosted by a differentiated, iron‐rich, tholeiitic dolerite sill. Petrographic, microthermometric and laser Raman microprobe analyses of fluid inclusions from the Junction deposit indicate that three different vein systems formed at three distinct periods of geological time, and host four fluid‐inclusion populations with a wide range of compositions in the H₂O–CO₂–CH₄–NaCl ± CaCl₂ system. Pre‐shearing, pre‐gold, molybdenite‐bearing quartz veins host fluid inclusions that are characterised by relatively consistent phase ratios comprising H₂O–CO₂–CH₄ ± halite. Microthermometry suggests that these veins precipitated when a highly saline, >340°C fluid mixed with a less saline ≥150°C fluid. The syn‐gold mineralisation event is hosted within the Junction shear zone and is associated with extensive quartz‐calcite ± albite ± chlorite ± pyrrhotite veining. Fluid‐inclusion analyses indicate that gold deposition occurred during the unmixing of a 400°C, moderately saline, H₂O–CO₂ ± CH₄ fluid at pressures between 70 MPa and 440 MPa. Post‐gold quartz‐calcite‐biotite‐pyrrhotite veins occupy normal fault sets that slightly offset the Junction shear zone. Fluid inclusions in these veins are predominantly vapour rich, with CO₂?CH₄. Homogenisation temperatures indicate that the post‐gold quartz veins precipitated from a 310 ± 30°C fluid. Finally, late secondary fluid inclusions show that a <200°C, highly saline, H₂O–CaCl₂–NaCl–bearing fluid percolated along microfractures late in the deposit's history, but did not form any notable vein type. Raman spectroscopy supports the microthermometric data and reveals that CH₄–bearing fluid inclusions occur in syn‐gold quartz grains found almost exclusively at the vein margin, whereas CO₂–bearing fluid inclusions occur in quartz grains that are found toward the centre of the veins. The zonation of CO₂:CH₄ ratios, with respect to the location of fluid inclusions within the syn‐gold quartz veins, suggest that the CH₄ did not travel as part of the auriferous fluid. Fluid unmixing and post‐entrapment alteration of the syn‐gold fluid inclusions are known to have occurred, but cannot adequately account for the relatively ordered zonation of CO₂:CH₄ ratios. Instead, the late introduction of a CH₄–rich fluid into the Junction shear zone appears more likely. Alternatively, the process of CO₂ reduction to CH₄ is a viable and plausible explanation that fits the available data. The CH₄–bearing fluid inclusions occur almost exclusively at the margin of the syn‐gold quartz veins within the zone of high‐grade gold mineralisation because this is where all the criteria needed to reduce CO₂ to CH₄ were satisfied in the Junction deposit.     

Multi-stage pyrite and hydrothermal mineral assemblage of the Hatu gold district (west Junggar,Xinjiang, NW China): Implications for metallogenic evolution

The Hatu, Qi-III, and Qi-V gold deposits in the Hatu–Baobei volcanic–sedimentary basin (west Junggar, Xinjiang) represent the proximal, middle, and distal parts of the Hatu gold district, respectively. Orebodies of these deposits mainly consist of Au-bearing quartz veins and altered host rocks with disseminated sulfide minerals. Six types of pyrite in these mines are studied here to illustrate ore-formation processes. Sedimentary pyrite, including framboidal and fine-grained pyrite, occurs in mudstone-bearing sedimentary rocks or altered volcanic–sedimentary rocks. Framboidal pyrite formed during redox changes in sedimentary layers. Hydrothermal pyrite contains five subgroups, from Py1 to Py5. Porous Py1 formed prior to gold mineralization, and is overgrown by Py2 that contains inclusions of sulfide minerals and native gold. Coarser Py3 coexists with arsenopyrite and native gold, and contains the greatest As concentrations. Gold and antimony are also preferentially concentrated in arsenian Py2 and Py3. The Au–As-deficient Py4 and Py5 formed during the post-ore process. There is a negative correlation between the As and S contents in Py1, Py2, and Py3, implying the substitution of sulfur by arsenic. Gold precipitated under relatively reducing condition in framboid- and graphite-bearing tuffaceous rocks. Cesium, Rb, Sr, La, Ce, Au, As, Sb, Cu, and Pb are concentrated in altered host rocks. The Au-bearing quartz veins and disseminated sulfide mineral orebodies were formed via a co-genetic hydrothermal fluid and formed during different stages. The variation of fO₂ during fluid/rock interactions, and crystallization of arsenian pyrite were major factors that controlled gold precipitation.     

长岭凹陷深层天然气藏中CO_2及CH_4充注次序的流体包裹体证据

对长岭凹陷深层天然气藏储层——营城组火山岩中发育的流体包裹体进行了详细研究,结果表明在火山岩发育的石英、方解石细网脉中均存在较多的碳质流体包裹体,单个包裹体激光拉曼光谱分析结果表明其主要为CO2及CH4两种类型的碳质包裹体。其中方解石细网脉体中发育有原生及次生CH4包裹体,而含CO2包裹体多以原生包裹体产于石英细网脉中。很多含CO2包裹体的石英细脉中发现了含CH4包裹体的方解石脉体的角砾,这就表明石英细脉形成晚于方解石细脉。营城组火山岩储层中CO2及CH4包裹体的产状特征研究表明,松辽盆地深层天然气藏的形成系火山岩成岩后CO2及CH4等气体不同期次充注的结果,CH4气的充注时间早于CO2气,火山岩中发育的原生孔隙及次生裂隙为上述气体的充注和聚集提供了重要通道。     

P-T-X conditions of hydrothermal fluids and precipitation mechanism of stibnite-gold mineralization at the Wiluna lode-gold deposits,Western Australia: conventional and infrared microthermometric constraints

The Wiluna lode-gold deposits are located in the Archean Wiluna greenstone belt, in the northern sector of the Norseman-Wiluna belt in the Yilgarn Craton of Western Australia. They are hosted in subgreenschist facies meta-basalts, and controlled by the Wiluna strike-slip fault system and associated shear veins and breccias. The 13 individual lode-gold deposits have produced around 115 t Au from 1901 to 1946 and 1986 to today. Historically, they also produced 38.3 t As and 3.5 t Sb. Gold formed in two stages: stage 1 gold-pyrite-arsenopyrite is finely disseminated in the wallrock and breccia fragments, whereas stage 2 gold-stibnite is located in massive shear veins and breccia matrix, as fracture-fill and in banded-colloform textured veins. Stibnite-gold orebodies only occur in some of the deposits (e.g., Moonlight and northern part of the West Lode) and also display a restricted vertical extent, being preserved only in the uppermost 200 m of stibnite-bearing lodes.Petrographic, conventional, and infrared microthermometric and laser-Raman analysis on stibnite-bearing quartz veins and breccias reveal that the antimony- and gold-rich hydrothermal fluid was of mixed H₂O-NaCl-CO₂±CH₄ type. Microthermometric measurements reveal maximum homogenization temperatures of 340 °C (average 290±25 °C), and a wide range of salinities between 0.2 and 23 eq. wt% NaCl. Aqueous-carbonic fluid inclusions contain variable X_CO2+CH4 (0.03 to 0.82), with the carbonic phase containing a maximum X_CH4 of 0.21.Combined petrographic and microthermometric evidence suggests that the fluid inclusion properties reflect fluid immiscibility of a low-salinity, medium X_CO2+CH4, homogeneous parent fluid at about 290 °C and pressures between 700 and 1,700 bar. Fluid immiscibility was triggered by cyclic pressure release during fault-zone movement. The decompression (adiabatic cooling) of the hydrothermal fluids shifted the ore fluid to lower temperatures, significantly reduced the degree of stibnite undersaturation, and caused stibnite to precipitate. The deposition of stibnite reduced the ore-fluid H₂S concentration, thereby destabilized gold bisulfide complexes in solution, and caused gold precipitation locally. This mechanism explains the intimate spatial association of stibnite and gold in quartz veins and breccias in the stibnite-gold orebodies at Wiluna.Editorial handling: B. Lehmann     

Geochemical features of ore fluid for gold deposits related to alkaline rocks in China

Fluid inclusion studies of 5 gold deposits connected with alkaline rocks show that quartz separated from auriferous quartz veins contains abundant three-phase CO2-NaCl-H2O inclusions and two-phase CO2-dominated ones,measuring 5-20um in diameter,Homogenization temperatures of the fluid inclusions are mostly within the range of 150-300℃,and the salinities,mainly 0.2wt%-12 wt%(NaCl),Gold mineralizations occurred at depths of 1.4-2.8km,The most striking character of fluid composition is that among the cations,Na^ in dominant,followed by K^ ,Ca^2 ,among the anions,Cl^- is slightly higher than SO4^2-,In the evaporate,H2O is dominant,followed by CO2,The pH values are mainly within the range of 6.5-8.5,indicating that the ore-forming solutions are alkaline in nature.The hydrogen and oxygen isotopic ratios indicate that the ore fluid is composed mainly of magmatic water.With the dropping of temperature in the ore fluid,the contents of CO2 decreased while the salinity increased.The relations between Au and other components of the ore fluid are discussed in the paper,and it is concluded that in these deposits,Chlorides,H2S,SiO2,CO2,etc.in the fluid all are involved in the migration and concentration of Au.     

Features of the Ore Forming Process on the Dvoinoye Epithermal Au–Ag Deposit (Western Chukotka)

The results of thermobaric geochemical study of ores of the Dvoinoye epithermal Au–Ag deposit are considered. Study of the fluid inclusions has shown that the ores were formed from low-salinity hydrothermal solutions with Na, Ka, and Mg chlorides and CO₂, HS^–, CH₄ trace fluxes at the time when the temperature dropped from 370 to 130°C. The results are compared with data obtained from the closely located Kupol and Sentyabr’skoye deposits.     

Study on the evolution of ore-formation fluids for Au-Sb ore deposits and the mechanism of Au-Sb paragenesis and differentiation in the southwestern part of Guizhou Province, China

Ore deposits (occurrences) of Au, As, Sb, Hg, etc. distributed in Southwest Guizhou constitute the important portion of the low-temperature metallogenic domain covering a large area in Southwest China, with the Carlin-type Au and Sb deposits being the most typical ones. In this paper the Au and Sb ore deposits are taken as the objects of study. Through the petrographic analysis, microthermomitric measurement and Raman spectrophic analysis of fluid inclusions in gangue minerals and research on the S and C isotopic compositions in the gold ore deposits we can reveal the sources of ore-forming materials and ore-forming fluids and the rules of ore fluid evolution. Ore deposits of Au, Sb, etc. are regionally classified as the products of ore fluid evolution, and their ore-forming materials and ore fluids were probably derived mainly from the deep interior of the Earth. Fluid inclusion studies have shown that the temperatures of Au mineralization are within the range of 170-361℃,the salinities are 0.35 wt%-8 wt% NaCl eq.; the temperatures of Sb mineralization are 129.4-214℃ and the salinities are 0.18 wt%- 3.23 wt% NaCl eq.; the ore-forming fluid temperatures and salinities tend to decrease progressively. In the early stage (Au metallogenic stage) the ore-forming fluids contained large amounts of volatile components such as CO2, CH4, N2 and H2S, belonging to the H2O-CO2-NaCl fluid system; in the late stage (Sb metallogenic stage) the ore-forming fluids belong to the Sb-bearing H2O-NaCl system. The primitive ore-forming fluids may have experienced at least two processes of immiscibility: (1) when early ore-bearing hydrothermal solutions passed through rock strata of larger porosity or fault broken zones, CO2, CH4, N2 would escape from them, followed by the release of pressure, resulting in pressure release and boiling of primitive homogenous fluids, thereafter giving rise to their phase separation, thus leading to Au unloading and mineralization; and (2) in the late stage (Sb metallogenic stage ) a large volume of meteoric water was involved in the ore-forming fluids, leading to fluid boiling as a result of their encounter, followed by the drop of fluid temperature. As a result, the dissolubility of Sb decreased so greatly that Sb was enriched and precipitated as ores. Due to differences in physic-chemical conditions between Au and Sb precipitates, Au and Sb were respectively precipitated in different structural positions, thus creating such a phenomenon of Au/Sb paragenesis and differentiation in space.     

Fluid inclusions,stable isotopes and gold deposition at Björkdal,northern Sweden

The Björkdal gold deposit is located in the eastern part of the Early Proterozoic Skellefte district in northern Sweden. The ore zone is hosted by a granitoid which intrudes a 1.9 Ga old supracrustal sequence and consists of a network of quartz veins between two shear zones. The ore mineralogy, alteration assemblages, ore fluid characteristics and general setting of the Björkdal deposit reveal many similarities with mesothermal Archean systems. Three types of fluids are represented by fluid inclusions observed in quartz, scheelite and calcite. The first type consists of a CO₂-rich fluid which is syngenetic with the formation of the quartz veins. These inclusions occur in quartz and scheelite. Isotopic equilibrium temperatures derived from quartz-scheelite pairs reflect depositional temperatures around 375 °C. Molar volumes of the carbonic fluid inclusions, ranging down to 55 cm³mole, indicate a maximum lithostatic trapping pressure of 1.8 kbar. These fluids were generated at depth in conjunction with early orogenic magma-forming processes. The gold was introduced to the vein system by the carbonic fluid but the gold was deposited after reactions between this fluid and the wall-rock, producing a slightly alkaline, more CH₄-rich aqueous type 2 fluid. Fluid inclusions of this chemically modified fluid indicate that the precipitation of the gold, together with pyrrhotite, pyrite and chalcopyrite, occurred under heterogenous conditions at a temperature of 220 °C and a hydrostatic pressure of 0.5 kbar. The gold deposition occurred from fluids with a δ ¹⁸O signature of around +8‰ and δD values close to zero per mil. Any metamorphic influence on the stable isotopic signatures is regarded as minimal. The isotope data suggest rather that a surface-derived fluid component had access to the vein system during this process. At a post-vein forming stage (metamorphic stage ?) a secondary episode of gold mobilization occurred as suggested by the aqueous type 3 inclusions trapped in cross-cutting microfractures in quartz and randomly in calcite, and with homogenization temperatures between 145–220 °C and a salinity up to 11eq. wt.% NaCl. The Skellefte district is a major ore province, which forms a 200 by 50 km area in northern Sweden (Fig. 1), comprising numerous stratabound massive sulfide ore deposits. During the last decade epigenetic gold deposits have received increasing interest from a prospecting point of view. The Björkdal deposit is one of several epigenetic gold discoveries made recently in the Skellefte district. In 1985 a geochemical survey, designed on a grid-pattern basis, revealed a gold anomaly about 12 km north-east of the Boliden community and three years later the Björkdal gold mine was in operation. The annual production is about 960 000 metric tons of ore (1992) and the total reserves are estimated at a minimum of 7 Mton of ore with a gold grade of 2.9 ppm. This paper reports on the geological features of the Björkdal deposit and discusses the genesis of the deposit on basis of fluid inclusions and distribution of oxygen and hydrogen isotopes.     

Gold ore-forming fluids of the Tanami region, Northern Australia

Fluid inclusion studies have been carried out on major gold deposits and prospects in the Tanami region to determine the compositions of the associated fluids and the processes responsible for gold mineralization. Pre-ore, milky quartz veins contain only two-phase aqueous inclusions with salinities ≤19 wt% NaCl eq. and homogenization temperatures that range from 110 to 410°C. In contrast, the ore-bearing veins typically contain low to moderate salinity (<14 wt% NaCl eq.), H₂O + CO₂ ± CH₄ ± N₂-bearing fluids. The CO₂-bearing inclusions coexist with two-phase aqueous inclusions that exhibit a wider range of salinities (≤21 wt% NaCl eq.). Post-ore quartz and carbonate veins contain mainly two-phase aqueous inclusions, with a last generation of aqueous inclusions being very CaCl₂-rich. Salinities range from 7 to 33 wt% NaCl eq. and homogenization temperatures vary from 62 to 312°C. Gold deposits in the Tanami region are hosted by carbonaceous or iron-rich sedimentary rocks and/or mafic rocks. They formed over a range of depths at temperatures from 200 to 430°C. The Groundrush deposit formed at the greatest temperatures and depths (260–430°C and ≤11 km), whereas deposits in the Tanami goldfield formed at the lowest temperatures (≥200°C) and at the shallowest depths (1.5–5.6 km). There is also evidence in the Tanami goldfield for late-stage isothermal mixing with higher salinity (≤21 wt% NaCl eq.) fluids at temperatures between 100 and 200°C. Other deposits (e.g., The Granites, Callie, and Coyote) formed at intermediate depths and at temperatures ranging from 240 to 360°C. All ore fluids contained CO₂ ± N₂ ± CH₄, with the more deeply formed deposits being enriched in CH₄ and higher level deposits being enriched in CO₂. Fluids from deposits hosted mainly by sedimentary rocks generally contained appreciable quantities of N₂. The one exception is the Tanami goldfield, where the quartz veins were dominated by aqueous inclusions with rare CO₂-bearing inclusions. Calculated δ ¹⁸O values for the ore fluids range from 3.8 to 8.5‰ and the corresponding δD values range from −89 to −37‰. Measured δ ¹³C values from CO₂ extracted from fluid inclusions ranged from −5.1 to −8.4‰. These data indicate a magmatic or mixed magmatic/metamorphic source for the ore fluids in the Tanami region. Interpretation of the fluid inclusion, alteration, and structural data suggests that mineralization may have occurred via a number of processes. Gold occurs in veins associated with brittle fracturing and other dilational structures, but in the larger deposits, there is also an association with iron-rich rocks or carbonaceous sediments, suggesting that both structural and chemical controls are important. The major mineralization process appears to be boiling/effervescence of a gas-rich fluid, which leads to partitioning of H₂S into the vapor phase resulting in gold precipitation. However, some deposits also show evidence of desulfidation by fluid–rock interaction and/or reduction of the ore-fluid by fluid mixing. These latter processes are generally more prevalent in the higher crustal-level deposits.