Submarine silica-rich hydrothermal activity during the earliest Cambrian in the Tarim Basin,Northwest China

Siliceous rocks were widely deposited in many continents during the Ediacaran–Cambrian (E–C) transition. Based on detailed field investigations in the Aksu area of the Tarim Basin in Northwest China, this study presents evidence of a submarine silica-rich hydrothermal system preserved in the E–C boundary successions. This system consists of a lower stockwork silica-dominant vein swarm zone in the karstified dolostone of the uppermost Ediacaran Qigebulake Formation, which terminates directly under the overlying bedded chert and black shale succession of the lowermost Cambrian Yurtus Formation. The stockwork vein swarms were filled dominantly by a wide spectrum of silica precipitates (amorphous silica, chalcedony, spherulite, fine to coarse quartz) with subordinate pyrite, Fe-(oxyhydr)oxide, and barite. The host dolostones that were dissected by the vein swarms also suffered extensive silicification and recrystallization. The vertical stacking relationship of silica-dominant vein swarms and overlying bedded chert suggests they were formed by an identical low-temperature, silica-rich diffusive submarine hydrothermal system in the earliest Cambrian. This suggestion is further supported by fluid inclusion microthermometry (T_h 40–200°C) of the quartz-barite vein fills. In this case, silica-rich hydrothermal fluids were channelled and precipitated partially along the stockwork veins in the antecedent karstified dolostone and vented mostly into seawater, promoting widespread deposition of bedded chert on the seafloor of Tarim Basin in the earliest Cambrian. This study provides a useful clue and analogue to understand the widespread silica deposition and coeval vast oceanic and geochemical changes during the E–C transition in the Tarim Basin and elsewhere.     

Chert spheroids of the Monterey Formation,California (USA): early‐diagenetic structures of bedded siliceous deposits

Chert spheroids are distinctive, early‐diagenetic features that occur in bedded siliceous deposits spanning the Phanerozoic. These features are distinct in structure and genesis from similar, concentrically banded ‘wood‐grain’ or ‘onion‐skin’ chert nodules from carbonate successions. In the Miocene Monterey Formation of California (USA), chert spheroids are irregular, concentrically banded nodules, which formed by a unique version of brittle differential compaction that results from the contrasting physical properties of chert and diatomite. During shortening, there is brittle fracture of diatomite around, and horizontally away from, the convex surface of strain‐resistant chert nodules. Unlike most older siliceous deposits, the Monterey Formation still preserves all stages of silica diagenesis, thus retaining textural, mineralogical and geochemical features key to unravelling the origin of chert spheroids and other enigmatic chert structures. Chert spheroids found in opal‐A diatomite form individual nodules composed of alternating bands of impure opal‐CT chert and pure opal‐CT or chalcedony. With increased burial diagenesis, surrounding diatomite transforms to bedded porcelanite or chert, and spheroids no longer form discrete nodules, yet still display characteristic concentric bands of pure and impure microcrystalline quartz and chalcedony. Petrographic observations show that the purer silica bands are composed of void‐filling cement that precipitated in curved dilational fractures, and do not reflect geochemical growth‐banding in the manner of Liesegang phenomena invoked to explain concentrically banded chert nodules in limestone. Chertification of bedded siliceous sediment can occur more shallowly (< 100 m) and rapidly (< 1 Myr) than the bulk silica phase transitions forming porcelanite or siliceous shale in the Monterey Formation and other hemipelagic/pelagic siliceous deposits. Early diagenesis is indicated by physical properties, deformational style and oxygen‐isotopic composition of chert spheroids. Early‐formed cherts formed by pore‐filling impregnation of the purest primary diatomaceous beds, along permeable fractures and in calcareous–siliceous strata.     

Activity of Silica-Rich Hydrothermal Fluid and Its Impact on Deep Dolomite Reservoirs in the Sichuan Basin, Southern China

Well-developed dissolution pores occur in the dolomites of the Sinian Dengying Formation, which is an important oil and gas reservoir layer in the Sichuan Basin and adjacent areas in southern China. The pores are often filled with quartz, and some dolomites have been metasomatically altered to siliceous chert. Few studies have documented the characteristics, source or origin of silica-rich fluids and their effects on the dolomite reservoir. The peak homogenisation temperatures(T_h) of fluid inclusions in pore-filling quartz are between 150℃ and 190℃, with an average of 173.7℃. Gases in the inclusions are mainly composed of CO_2, CH_4 and N_2. Compared with host dolomite, pore-filling quartz and metasomatic chert contain higher amounts of Cr, Co, Mo, W and Fe, with average concentrations of 461.58, 3.99, 5.05, 31.43 and 6666.83 ppm in quartz and 308.98, 0.99, 1.04, 13.81 and 4703.50 ppm in chert, respectively. Strontium levels are lower than that in the host dolomite, with average concentrations in quartz and chert of 4.81 and 11.06 ppm, respectively. Rare earth element compositions in quartz and chert display positive Eu anomalies with a maximum δEu of 5.72. The δD_(SMOW) values of hydrogen isotopes in water from quartz inclusions vary from-85.1‰ to-53.1‰ with an average of-64.3‰, whereas the δ~(18)O_(SMOW) values range from 7.2‰ to 8.5‰ with an average of 8.2‰. The average ~(87)Sr/~(86)Sr ratios in quartz and chert are 0.711586 and 0.709917, respectively, which are higher than that in the host dolomite. The fluid inclusions, elemental and isotopic compositions demonstrate that the formation of quartz and chert was related to silica-rich hydrothermal fluid and that the fluid was the deep circulation of meteoric water along basement faults. Interactions with silica-rich hydrothermal fluids resulted in densification of dolomite reservoirs in the Dengying Formation through quartz precipitation and siliceous metasomatism. However, it increased the resistance of the host dolomite to compaction, improving the ability to maintain reservoir spaces during deep burial. Evidence for silica-rich hydrothermal activity is common in the Yangtze Platform and Tarim Basin and its influence on deep dolomite reservoirs should be thoroughly considered.     

Radiolarian Age of Chert-hosted Bedded Manganese Deposits from the Gen-otani Mine in the Tamba District, Northern Kyoto City, Japan

Abstract. Numerous bedded manganese deposits sporadically distributed throughout the Tamba district, southwestern Japan are intercalated within chert sequence. It is well known that radiolarian remains are commonly included in both bedded manganese deposits and host cherts. The Gen‐otani mine, one of these deposits, is located at Otani, Keihoku‐Shimonaka, northern Kyoto City. Chemical composition and age of the chert sequence at the mine were examined. Mainly according to SiO₂ and MnO contents together with lithology, the chert sequence is divided into three sections; lower massive chert, middle bedded manganese deposit and upper bedded chert sections. Radiolarian faunas consisting of middle Jurassic species such as Eucyrtidiellum unumaense, Dictyomitrella(?) kamoensis, Parvicingula dhimenaensis, Sethocapsa aitai, Sethocapsa kodrai, Transhsuum brevicostatum, Tricolocapsa plicarum, Unuma echinatus and others were extracted from both the middle manganese section and overlying bedded chert of the upper section. This examination reveals that the bedded manganese deposit at the Gen‐otani mine formed until Bajocian to early Bathonian (middle Middle Jurassic) in age.     

Hydrothermal venting activities in the Early Cambrian,South China: Petrological,geochronological and stable isotopic constraints

Multi-episodic (three episodes at least) hydrothermal silica chimneys are identified in the black chert successions (up to ～ 100 m thick locally), overlain by thick black shales (up to a few 100 m thick), in the Ediacaran–Cambrian boundary successions along the southern marginal zone of the Yangtze Platform, South China. Their occurrences are constrained within the lowermost Cambrian by the SHRIMP U–Pb zircon dating and stable isotopic chemostratigaphic data, and are stratigraphically coincident with the negative isotopic excursions of organic carbon (～ 10‰ VPDB in magnitude) and sulfide sulfur (between 0 and 10‰ CDT), i.e., in bases of Nemakit–Daldynian and Tommotian stages in the Lower Cambrian. In this case, a causal link could have existed between which the hydrothermal venting could have released huge amounts of reduced silica-rich hydrothermal fluids with abundant ¹³C-depleted greenhouse gases (methane) and volcanic-originated H₂S into the ocean and/or atmosphere, resulting in an extreme warm climate and oceanic anoxia, oceanic chemical perturbation, and subsequent massive precipitation of silica (chert), and large-magnitude negative isotopic excursions of organic carbon and sulfide sulfur. This scenario provides a unique chance to explore the causes of apparent tectono-depositional, oceanic and geochemical perturbations during this critical interval in South China and elsewhere.     

Chert occurrences in carbonate turbidites: examples from the Upper Jurassic of the Betic Mountains (southern Spain)

In Upper Jurassic carbonate turbidites of the Betic mountains (southern Spain), chert occurs in three morphologies: bedded chert, nodular chert and mottled chert. The last refers to a weak dispersed and selective silification which gives a speckled appearance to the rock. The three types of chert are formed by replacement of limestones and are associated with different calcareous facies. Turbidite packstones of Saccocoma and peloids, and turbidite lime mudstones of pelagic material contain bedded and nodular cherts. The silicification textures are mainly micro- and cryptocrystalline quartz, with local chalcedonic quartz (both length-fast and length-slow) which is more common in the packstones. Only mottled chert is produced where calcareous breccia beds are silicified. Mottled chert consists of micro- and cryptocrystalline quartz, length-slow chalcedonic quartz and mosaics or individual crystals of euhedral megaquartz. Beds and nodules are the result of early diagenetic silicification, with silica derived from the calcitization and dissolution of radiolarians and, subordinately, sponge spicules, whereas mottled chert is the consequence of later silicification in a probably Mg-rich environment. Early silicification is mainly confined to turbidite beds and only rarely occurs in the interbedded pelagic limestones. Turbidite sedimentation favours silicification because rapid burial of the transported siliceous tests prevents silica from the dissolution of tests passing into overlying sea water. A silica-rich interstitial fluid develops in the turbidite layer and this migrates to more permeable zones giving rise to bedded and nodular chert.     

Germanium/silica ratios in diagenetic chert nodules from the Ediacaran Doushantuo Formation,South China

Germanium/silica (Ge/Si) ratios of dolostone- and mudstone-hosted chert nodules from the Ediacaran (635–542 Ma) Doushantuo Formation in the Yangtze Gorges area, South China, are reported. These chert nodules typically have a calcite rim, a pyrite rim, and a silica core, the latter sometimes containing disseminated pyrite. The silica core was precipitated by early diagenetic replacement of carbonate and silty/muddy sediments. Two types of chert nodules are identified based on their mineralogy and geochemistry. Type-1 chert nodules are poor in disseminated pyrite in the silica core. They also have low Al, and show a strong positive correlation between Al contents and Ge/Si with a near-zero or negative intercept. In contrast, Type-2 chert nodules contain abundant disseminated pyrite in the silica core and show a weakly positive correlation between Ge/Si ratios and Al contents (with a large positive intercept on the Ge/Si axis). The Ge/Si of Doushantuo nodules are greater than those of Cretaceous deep-sea cherts, suggesting that the Ge/Si ratio of Ediacaran seawater/porewater was greater than the Cretaceous due to the more effective discrimination against Ge by inorganic opal precipitation relative to biogenic opal precipitation. The positive correlation between Ge/Si and Al can be interpreted using a mixing model with a pure chert (characterized by a low Ge/Si ratio) and an Al-rich endmember (characterized by a high Ge/Si ratio). The latter is most likely represented by a clay component, but the model-based estimate of the Ge/Si ratio inferred for the Al-rich (clay) endmember is much higher than that of Phanerozoic clay minerals. These high Ge/Si ratios for the clay endmember may be related to the generally high Ge/Si ratio of Ediacaran seawater, but could also be related to clay–organic matter interactions. Organic matter absorbed to clays could provide an additional source of Ge because certain organic molecules are known to have a high affinity for Ge due to their strong metal ion-chelating properties. The high Ge/Si ratio of the Al-rich endmember in Type-1 chert nodules suggests that Ge in porewaters from which these cherts precipitated may have been dominated by Ge–organic complexes. The low Ge/Si ratio inferred for the Al-rich endmember in Type-2 chert nodules is therefore taken to indicate that Ge was released from organic matter, perhaps due to anaerobic degradation of organic matter (accompanied by the formation of pyrite), and was redistributed between clay–organic endmembers and pure chert, resulting in a non-zero intercept in the Ge/Si vs. Al₂O₃ plots. These observations suggest that a strong terrestrial influence in a restricted sedimentary basin or a high content of dissolved organic carbon in Ediacaran seawater and porewater may have contributed to the dominance of Ge–organic complexes in the Doushantuo basin in the Yangtze Gorges area.     

Volcanic degassing,hydrothermal circulation and the flourishing of early life on Earth: A review of the evidence from c. 3490-3240 Ma rocks of the Pilbara Supergroup,Pilbara Craton,Western Australia

New data gathered during mapping of c. 3490–3240 Ma rocks of the Pilbara Supergroup in the Pilbara Craton show that most bedded chert units originated as epiclastic and evaporative sedimentary rocks that were silicified by repeated pulses of hydrothermal fluids that circulated through the footwall basalts during hiatuses in volcanism. For most cherts, fossil hydrothermal fluid pathways are preserved as silica ± barite ± Fe-bearing veins that cut through the footwall and up to the level of individual bedded chert units, but not above, indicating the contemporaneity of hydrothermal silica veining and bedded chert deposition at the end of volcanic eruptive events. Silica ± barite ± Fe-bearing vein swarms are accompanied by extensive hydrothermal alteration of the footwall to the bedded chert units, and occurred under alternating high-sulphidation and low-sulphidation conditions. These veins provided pathways to the surface for elements leached from the footwall (e.g., Si, Ba, Fe) and volcanogenic emissions from underlying felsic magma chambers (e.g., CO₂, H₂S/HS⁻, SO₂).Stratigraphic evidence of shallowing upward and subsequent deepening associated with the deposition of Warrawoona Group cherts is interpreted to relate to the emplacement of subvolcanic laccoliths and subsequent eruption and/or degassing of these magmas. Heat from these intrusions drove episodes of hydrothermal circulation. Listric normal faulting during caldera collapse produced basins with restricted circulation of seawater. Eruption of volcanogenic emissions into these restricted basins formed brine pools with concentration of the volcanogenic components, thereby providing habitats suitable for early life forms.Fossil stromatolites from two distinct stratigraphic units in the North Pole Dome grew in shallow water conditions, but in two very different geological settings with different morphologies. Stratiform and domical stromatolites in the stratigraphically lower, c. 3490 Ma, Dresser Formation of the Warrawoona Group are intimately associated with barite and chert precipitates from hydrothermal vents, suggesting that component microbes may have been chemoautotrophic hyperthermophiles. Evidence of shallow water to periodically exposed conditions, active growth faulting and soft sediment deformation indicates that the volcanogenic emissions were erupted into a shallow water, tectonically active caldera and concentrated therein to produce an extreme habitat for early life.Widespread conical and pseudocolumnar stromatolites in the c. 3400 Ma, Strelley Pool Chert at the base of the unconformably overlying Kelly Group occur in shallow marine platform carbonates. Silicification was the result of later hydrothermal circulation driven by heat from the overlying, newly erupted Euro Basalt. The markedly different morphology and geological setting of these only slightly younger stromatolites, compared with the Dresser Formation, suggests a diversity of microbial life on early Earth.The biogenicity of putative microfossils from this and younger hydrothermal silica veins in the Warrawoona Group remains controversial and requires further detailed study.     

中扬子地区早寒武世构造-沉积样式与古地理格局

前寒武纪-寒武纪转折期是地球历史演化的重要阶段之一,不仅纪录了后生动物的产生、灭绝以及加速分异的过程,同时也伴随着全球构造重组、长期全球性海洋缺氧、海洋地球化学明显的变化等。为了更好地认识这一重要时期地球表层环境演变及动力机制,我们对鄂西-湘西北地区下寒武统地层(相当于第1、2阶)进行了详细的沉积相和层序分析,在3大岩相组合(碳酸盐岩、硅岩、黑色泥岩/页岩)中识别出了16种主要岩相类型,并根据岩相时空变化识别出4个沉积层序(S1～S4)。在寒武纪开始时,湘西碳酸盐台地发生暴露,而台缘南侧发生裂陷,台地北侧的湘西北地区(如石门杨家坪)也发生大幅沉陷,但往北至三峡地区变浅,过渡为碳酸盐台地,形成两隆两凹的古地貌格局,这种巨大侧向地形差异(起伏)指示伸展构造背景下的断块掀斜作用,这种构造作用在寒武纪早期呈幕式活动,从而控制了该时期的沉积作用、沉积样式及其空间分布,并以沉积层序体现,因此每一层序代表了一幕从构造(拉张)强化到衰减过程的沉积响应。在构造幕的开始阶段,由于强的拉张和断裂掀斜作用,湘西碳酸盐台地发生暴露或变浅,而在该台缘南侧发生断陷,形成断阶,深部富硅热液流体沿断裂向上运移到断阶海底形成浅海热液喷流系统(硅烟囱),所以此处层序底部往往由一套特殊的硅质沉积(如有多管-孔丘状硅岩、脉状硅岩或漏斗状/楔状硅岩体)组成。此带向东南盆地方向,由于热液活动衰减和海水影响的增强,主要发育层状硅岩。从湘西北至三峡地区,层序底部一般由薄层状硅岩(常含泥质)组成,且向台地方向量减少(但碳酸盐岩增多)。在构造幕晚期,由于构造活动衰减,热液硅通量大幅减少,除深水盆地外,碳酸盐工厂恢复生产,因此层序上部主要由碳酸盐岩组成(深水盆地除外)。从第四构造幕热液活动后,盆地基底热衰减迅速,深部硅输入通量大幅减少,并在扬子地块发生大范围均匀挠曲沉降和快速海平面上升,造成碳酸盐台地淹没,形成了牛蹄塘组(或同期)富有机质黑色岩系。从此后,中扬子地区进入了一个新的构造-沉积演化时期。     

湘西地区前寒武纪-寒武纪转折期碳酸盐-硅泥质沉积体系的截然转换:地层-沉积样式,形成机理及意义

前寒武纪一寒武纪转折期是地球历史演化的重要阶段之一,不仅纪录了后生动物的产生、灭绝以及加速分异的过程,同时也伴随着海洋地球化学明显的变化、长期全球性海洋缺氧等.为了更好地认识这一重要时期地球表层环境演变及动力机制,我们对湘西地区台地一盆地转换带不同沉积类型及空间变化进行了重点解剖,发现寒武纪最早期该地区在台一盆转换带上...     

Mineralogical and Geochemical Characteristics of the Utanobori Gold Deposit in Northern Hokkaido,Japan

The Utanobori gold deposit is a low‐sulfidation, epithermal vein‐type deposit located in northern Hokkaido, Japan. The deposit is hosted by conglomerate, sandstone, and tuff of the Middle to Late Miocene Esashi Formation. These rocks were hydrothermally altered. Silica sinters and quartz‐adularia veins are common in the deposit. The quartz‐adularia veins either contain a ginguro band, which corresponds to the main gold‐bearing vein (Type 1 Veins), or do not contain a ginguro band but contain minor adularia (Type 2 Veins). Type 1 Veins are divided into three stages with 12–14 substages. Ore minerals identified include electrum, naumannite, chlorargyrite, bromargyrite, an unidentified Fe‐Sb mineral, and an Fe‐(Sb)‐As mineral. These ore minerals formed in the main mineralization stages I (bands I‐b and I‐d) and II (band II‐a). Scanning electron microscopy with cathodoluminescence images show that cathodoluminescence‐dark microcrystalline quartz exhibiting colloform (ghost‐sphere) texture is closely associated with ore minerals in the Type 1 Vein and Type 2 Vein, and the Al and K contents of such quartz are commonly >1000 ppm. This indicates that the ore minerals were crystallized from alkaline, silica‐saturated fluids at temperatures <200°C, which initially deposited amorphous silica that was recrystallized to microcrystalline quartz. The average Au content of electrum is 52.5 at% Au (n = 10), 65.7 at% Au (n = 20), and 55.5 at% Au (n = 5) in bands I‐b, I‐d, and II‐a, respectively, of Type 1 Veins. The δ³⁴S_CDT values of two fine‐grained disseminated pyrites in the altered conglomerate and bedded tuff in the argillic altered zone are ?4.3 and ?4.2‰. Ar‐Ar dating on adularia yielded 13.6 ± 0.06 Ma, 13.6 ± 0.07 Ma, and 13.6 ± 0.06 Ma for the stages I, II, and III of the Type 1 Vein, respectively. K‐Ar ages determined on adularia in the silica sinter and on whole‐rock of glassy rhyolite of the Esashi Formation are 15.0 ± 0.4 Ma and 14.6 ± 0.4 Ma, respectively. These radiometric ages indicate that silica sinter associated with the rhyolitic volcanic rocks formed prior to the main gold mineralization.     

Origin and variability of a terminal Proterozoic primary silica precipitate,Athel Silicilyte,South Oman Salt Basin,Sultanate of Oman

The Precambrian–Cambrian Athel Silicilyte is a 400 m thick, salt‐encased siliceous succession in the South Oman Salt Basin. It is a self‐sourcing hydrocarbon reservoir and comprises up to 95% microcrystalline quartz and exhibits wavy discontinuous lamination, comprising thin, alternating organic‐rich and silica‐rich layers. Textures and geochemical fingerprinting indicate that it is a primary precipitate formed by microbially mediated precipitation of silica from sea water, within the water column at the sulphidic/oxic interface. The unique occurrence of the Athel Silicilyte in the terminal Proterozoic implies that optimal conditions for this style of silica precipitation occurred only briefly. Basin anoxia, coupled with the growth of microbial mats, low pH and high silica pore water saturations, created optimal chemical conditions for silica precipitation. Volumes of microcrystalline quartz are highest within the transgressive and early highstand systems tract and towards the centre of the Athel Basin. At the basin margins, and within the late highstand systems tract, volumes of microcrystalline quartz decreased as the volume of detrital sediment increased. Mass‐balance calculations indicate that silica‐enriched sea water would have been supplied to the basin by infrequent marine incursions that replenished ambient sea water in the upper part of the water column. In conclusion, precipitation of the Athel Silicilyte was driven by the coincidence of basin restriction, limited clastic input, availability of organic matter and water column anoxia. The observation that there are few documented examples of chert deposits younger than ca 700 Ma, prior to the Cambrian explosion, suggests that although silica budgets within marine basins probably remained high prior to the evolution of silica‐secreting organisms, direct precipitation from sea water was restricted. This is tentatively related to the gradual increase in alkalinity of sea water through the Palaeo‐Proterozoic and Meso‐Proterozoic, such that silica precipitation could only occur through the coincidence of basin anoxia and low siliciclastic input.     

Chemistry and Sulfur Isotopes in a Chert-dominant Sequence around the Stratiform Manganese Deposit of the Noda-Tamagawa Mine, Northern Kitakami Terrane, Northeast Japan: Implication for Paleoceanographic Environmental Setting

Abstract. Chemistry and sulfur isotopes are analyzed for a series of rocks in the chert‐dominant sequence around the stratiform manganese ore deposit of the Noda‐Tamagawa mine in the northern Kitakami Terrane, northeast Japan. The sequence is litholog‐ically classified into six units in ascending order: lower bedded chert, lower black shale, massive chert, manganese ore, upper black shale, and upper bedded chert. The rocks around the manganese ore deposit exhibit anomalous enrichment in Ni (max. 337 ppm), Zn (102) and U (30) in the upper part of lower bedded chert, Mo (122), Tl (79) and Pb (33) in the lower black shale, MnO, Cu (786) and Co (62) in the manganese ore, and As (247) and Sb (17) in the upper black shale. The aluminum‐normalized profiles reveal zonal enrichment of redox‐sensitive elements around the manganese bed: Zn‐Ni‐Fe‐Mo‐U(‐Co), Tl‐Pb(‐Mo), Mn‐Fe‐Cu‐V‐Cr‐Co(‐Zn) and As‐Sb in ascending order. The uppermost part of the lower bedded chert and black shale exhibit negative Ce/Ce* values, whereas the massive chert, manganese ore and lower part of the upper bedded chert display positive values. The isotopic δ³⁴S values are 0±6 % in the lower part of the lower bedded chert, ‐19 to ‐42 % in the upper part of the lower bedded chert, ‐36 to ‐42 % in the lower black shale, ‐28 to ‐35 % in the massive chert, manganese ore and upper black shale, and ‐23±5 % in the upper bedded chert. Thus, there is a marked negative shift in δ³⁴S values in the lower bedded chert, and an upward‐increasing trend in δ³⁴S through the manganese ore horizon. The present data provide evidence for a change in the paleoceanographic environmental resulting from inflow of oxic deepwater into the stagnant anoxic ocean floor below the manganese ore horizon. This event is likely to have triggered the precipitation of manganese oxyhydroxides. The redistribution of redox‐sensitive elements through the formation of metalliferous black shale and manganese carbonate ore may have occurred in association with bacterial decomposition of organic matter during early diagenesis of initial manganese oxyhydroxides.     

Characteristics of Triassic epithermal Au mineralization at the Q prospect,Chatree mining area,Central Thailand

The Chatree deposit is located in the Loei‐Phetchabun‐Nakhon Nayok volcanic belt that extends from Laos in the north through central and eastern Thailand into Cambodia. Gold‐bearing quartz veins at the Q prospect of the Chatree deposit are hosted within polymictic andesitic breccia and volcanic sedimentary breccia. The orebodies of the Chatree deposit consist of veins, veinlets and stockwork. Gold‐bearing quartz veins are composed mainly of quartz, calcite and illite with small amounts of adularia, chlorite and sulfide minerals. The gold‐bearing quartz veins were divided into five stages based on the cross‐cutting relationship and mineral assemblage. Intense gold mineralization occurred in Stages I and IV. The mineral assemblage of Stages I and IV is characterized by quartz–calcite–illite–laumontite–adularia–chlorite–sulfide minerals and electrum. Quartz textures of Stages I and IV are also characterized by microcrystalline and flamboyant textures, respectively. Coexistence of laumontite, illite and chlorite in the gold‐bearing quartz vein of Stage IV suggests that the gold‐bearing quartz veins were formed at approximately 200°C. The flamboyant and brecciated textures of the gold‐bearing quartz vein of Stage IV suggest that gold precipitated with silica minerals from a hydrothermal solution that was supersaturated by boiling. The δ¹⁸O values of quartz in Stages I to V range from +10.4 to +11.6‰ except for the δ¹⁸O value of quartz in Stage IV (+15.0‰). The increase in δ¹⁸O values of quartz at Stage IV is explained by boiling. P_H2O is estimated to be 16 bars at 200°C. The f_CO2 value is estimated to be 1 bar based on the presence of calcite in the mineral assemblage of Stage IV. The total pressure of the hydrothermal solution is approximately 20 bars at 200°C, suggesting that the gold‐bearing quartz veins of the Q prospect formed about 200 m below the paleosurface.     

Geological and geochemical constraints on the genesis of the Xiangquan Tl-only deposit,eastern China

The Xiangquan Tl deposit, located in the northern part of the Middle–Lower Yangtze Valley metallogenic belt, eastern China, is the only known Tl-only deposit. It is hosted in micritic limestone, marl and mudstone of the Lower Ordovician Lunshan Formation. The orebodies are controlled by the Xiao–Xiaolongwang–Dalongwang anticline and two reverse faults, and are generally stratabound and lenticular. Tl is only ore metal contained in disseminated, massive, brecciated and banded ores. The ore is composed of Tl-bearing pyrite, and gangue minerals quartz, fluorite, barite and carbonate. Alteration minerals include fluorite, barite, fine grained quartz and carbonate. Tl occurs isomorphously replacing iron in the lattice of pyrite, and less commonly as tiny independent Tl-bearing minerals which may be lafossaite (TlAsS₂) or lorandite (TlCl) appearing as 0.1–1 μm-sized cubic crystals. Xiangquan is a submarine sedimentary deposit and demonstrates that Tl, as a normally dispersed element, can form not only part of poly-metallic deposits but also as independent Tl deposits.     

浙西底本剖面皮园村组硅质岩元素地球化学特征及成因分析

埃迪卡拉—寒武纪（Ediacaran-Cambrian, E-C）过渡时期在下扬子地区沉积了一套层状黑色硅质岩,在浙西底本剖面称为皮园村组,大致对应于上扬子地区的留茶坡组或老堡组。该套硅质岩普遍具有高有机碳含量和强烈富集铀（U）、钒（V）、钼（Mo）等氧化还原敏感元素的特征,与早寒武世沉积的黑色泥岩共称为黑色岩系,其成因存在争议。文章对浙西地区皮园村组硅质岩开展了系统的主量、微量和稀土元素地球化学研究,探讨了其物质来源和成因。研究表明：（1）如此大范围的深水沉积的硅质岩仅靠热液提供硅质来源是很难形成的,海底热液对其影响很小;（2）埃迪卡拉纪末期生物降解产物对硅质岩的形成具有重要作用,但因为缺乏可靠的古生物证据,目前还不能判定构成硅质岩的物质是否主要来源于生物体,仅能推断生物活动对硅质岩的形成有一定的影响;（3）皮园村组硅质岩主要是化学沉积的产物,二氧化硅主要来源于大陆硅酸盐矿物的风化。     

Micro‐scale silicon isotope heterogeneity observed in hydrothermal quartz precipitates from the >3.7 Ga Isua Greenstone Belt,SW Greenland

Pillow basalt and chert form integral lithologies comprising many Archean greenstone belt packages. To investigate details of these lithologies in the >3.7 Ga Isua Greenstone Belt, SW Greenland, we measured silicon isotope compositions of quartz crystals, by secondary ion mass spectrometry, from a quartz‐cemented, quartz‐amygdaloidal basaltic pillow breccia, recrystallized chert and chert clasts thought to represent silica precipitation under hydrothermal conditions. The recrystallized chert, chert clasts and quartz cement have overlapping δ³⁰Si values, while the δ³⁰Si values of the quartz amygdules span nearly the entire range of previously published values for quartz precipitates of any age, despite amphibolite facies metamorphism. We suggest that the heterogeneity is derived from kinetic isotope fractionation during quartz precipitation under disequilibrium conditions in a hydrothermal setting, consistent with the pillow breccia origin. On the basis of the present data, we conclude that the geological context of each sample must be carefully evaluated when interpreting δ³⁰Si values of quartz.     

湘桂地区泥盆纪硅岩Rb-Sr、Sm-Nd同位素地球化学特征及构造沉积背景研究

泥盆纪时,由于扭张裂谷作用,华南地区形成复杂的台盆相间格局.层状硅岩广泛分布,一般与凝灰岩互层,产出于狭长的台间盆地(或沟槽)中.为了揭示湘桂地区硅岩形成机制、分布及与断裂活动的关系,进行了系统的Rb-Sr、Sm-Nd同位素研究.研究结果表明研究区硅岩(87Sr/86Sr)₀值一般在0.721 000~0.731 000之间,表明硅岩形成时受到陆源和海水的影响.硅岩Nd同位素模式年龄(t_DM或t_2DM)和ε_Nd(0)值大多分布区间分别为1.5~2.1与-16~-21,表明硅质来源于深部元古代地壳.ε_Nd(0)值(-0.22~14.7)高的一些地区,大多沿狭长海槽分布,表明硅质可能来源于深部地幔,通过延伸到地幔的地块边缘断裂带上升到地表.     

The vein-type barite mineralization of the Draïssa ore field,Ougarta; SW- Algeria: mineralogy,trace elements and halogens

The Draïssa barite vein system in the Ougarta district is located in southwestern Algeria. It is the principal mineral deposit of economic interest of the area. The mineralization is hosted by Cambrian sedimentary rocks that unconformably overlie Precambrian formations. The mineralized structures consist mostly of barite and quartz with minor sulfide minerals and trend dominantly NE-SW, NW-SE, and E-W. Siliceous alteration zones are associated with the vein system. Samples of barite ore are characterized by low total REE contents ranging from 9 to 50 ppm and positive Eu (2–2.15 ppm) and Y (1.2–11.1 ppm) anomalies, indicating hydrothermal activity during mineralization. Halogen data of the barite show that the Cl/Br molar ratio is 189:571 and the Na/Br ratio is 34:376, indicating that the sulfur was derived from seawater. The Ba-enrichment trend in the volcanic rocks of Draïssa is interpreted as possible probable source of the Ba (424–3039 ppm Ba). It appears that the barite-quartz deposits were formed in two stages. Endogenous fluids deposited the primary vein materials, consisting of quartz associated with copper sulfides. Exogenous fluids (cold seawater) became heated during ascendant fluid movement. Mineralization was governed by convective motions and the barite and galena fillings were deposited in openings created by normal faulting.     

Geology,ore facies and sulphur isotopes of the Koushk vent-proximal sedimentary-exhalative deposit,Posht-e-Badam Block,Central Iran

The Koushk zinc–lead deposit in the central part of the Zarigan–Chahmir basin, central Iran, is the largest of several sedimentary–exhalative (SEDEX) deposits in this basin, including the Chahmir, Zarigan, and Darreh-Dehu deposits. The host-rock sequence consists of carbonaceous, fine-grained black siltstone with interlayered rhyolitic tuffs. It corresponds to the upper part of the Lower Cambrian volcano-sedimentary sequence that was deposited on the Posht-e-Badam Block due to back-arc rifting of the continental margin of the Central Iranian Microcontinent. This block includes the late Neoproterozoic metamorphic basement of the Iran plate, overlain by rocks dating from the Early Cambrian to the Mesozoic. Based on ore body structure, mineralogy, and ore fabric, we recognize four different ore facies in the Koushk deposit: (1) a stockwork/feeder zone, consisting of a discordant mineralization of sulphides forming a stockwork of sulphide-bearing dolomite (quartz) veins cutting the footwall sedimentary rocks; (2) a massive ore/vent complex, consisting of massive replacement pyrite, galena, and sphalerite with minor arsenopyrite and chalcopyrite; (3) bedded ore, with laminated to disseminated pyrite, sphalerite, and galena; and (4) a distal facies, with minor disseminated and laminated pyrite, banded cherts, and disseminated barite. Carbonatization and sericitization are the main wall-rock alterations; alteration intensity increases towards the feeder zone. The δ³⁴S composition of pyrite, sphalerite, and galena ranges from?+6.5 to?+36.7‰. The highest δ³⁴S values correspond to bedded ore (+23.8 to?+36.7‰) and the lowest to massive ore (+6.5 to?+?17.8‰). The overall range of δ³⁴S is remarkably higher than typical magmatic values, suggesting that sulphides formed from the reduction of seawater sulphate by bacteriogenic sulphate reduction in a closed or semi-closed system in the bedded ore, whereas thermochemical sulphate reduction likely played an important role in the feeder zone. Sulphur isotopes, along with sedimentological, textural, mineralogical, and geochemical evidences, suggest that this deposit should be classified as a vent-proximal SEDEX ore deposit.