The Horto-Baratinha itabirite-hosted iron ore: A basal fragment of the Espinhaço basin in the eastern São Francisco Craton

The Horto-Baratinha (HBD) iron ore deposit is located at the eastern border of São Francisco Craton, comprising BIF-hosted high-grade bodies (>60 wt.% Fe) associated with polydeformed quartz-mica-schists, amphibole-schist of Statherian maximum deposition age, enclosed by Statherian granitoids of the Borrachudos Suite and Neoarchean gneiss. All the sequence is crosscut by undeformed dikes and sills of pegmatitic bodies probably formed during Late Ediacaran-Cambrian. The metasedimentary sequence is stratigraphically correlatable with the Orosirian-Statherian Serra da Serpentina and Serra de São José Groups that comprise the basal units of the Espinhaço Supergroup and was intensively segmented into distinct tectonic blocks. The sedimentary/diagenetic bedding of the metamorphosed BIF (itabirite) is generally transposed by an axial planar schistosity. The lamellar hematite from itabirite is the oldest iron oxide generation, which was formed during the syn-deformational stage, parallel-oriented to the rock foliation. The (keno)magnetite grains from itabirite, iron ore and pegmatite bodies developed as idioblasts that grew over the foliation formed during late and post-deformational stages. Magnetite oxidizes subsequently to martite and granular hematite. Coarse lamellar hematite crystals randomly oriented in the border of the pegmatitic bodies also formed during the post-deformational stage due to hydrothermal reaction with itabirite. The country rocks have undergone at least three stages of deformation developed during the syn-collisional and late-collisional (Ediacaran to early-Cambrian) phases of the Brasiliano Orogeny: stage 1 with the development of a pervasive foliation (S₁), parallel to axial plane to tight folds and transposition of all sedimentary structures; stage 2 with folding of S₁; stage 3 with refolding of S₁. Both fold systems interfere with each other making up a dome and basin refolding shape. During the late-collisional (Ediacaran to early-Cambrian) and post-collisional/gravitational collapse (Cambrian) the sequence was intruded by anatectic pegmatitic bodies, which are part of the Eastern Brazilian Pegmatite Province, one of the most significant pegmatitic regions worldwide. The fluid related with these intrusions could be related with the Si leaching, crystallization of magnetite and granular hematite, and consequent formation of high-grade iron bodies.     

Mineralogy and geochemistry of Al-phosphate and Al-borosilicate-bearing metaquartzites of the northern Serra do Espinhaço (State of Bahia, Brazil)

Summary The investigated Al-phosphate- and Al-borosilicate-bearing metaquartzite horizon belongs to the Middle Proterozoic Serra de Vereda member of the São Marcos Formation of the northern Espinhaço fold belt. Outcrops are located in the NNW–SSE trending hills of the Serra de Canas/Cana Brava (Northern Serra do Espinhaço, State of Bahia, NE Brazil) about 10km west of the town of Boquira. Sky blue lazulite and deep blue to lilac dumortierite are enriched in layers which sometimes show relic cross bedding. The occurrence of hematite patches and layers is typical. In rocks of type A, phosphorus contents range from 1.89wt.% to 10.73wt.% P₂O₅ and boron contents are mostly below 10ppm whereas in the rocks of type B phosphorus contents are below 1% and boron contents reach 2600ppm with a mean value of 1139ppm. REE distribution patterns of rocks are predominantly controlled by the amount of xenotime, monazite and zircon. Oxygen thermometry on quartz and hematite and the stability of kyanite, augelite, trolleite and berlinite allow to estimate the minimum metamorphic peak P-T conditions at 475°C and 3.8kbar i.e. within the stability field of scorzalite–lazulite and dumortierite. The association of Al-phosphates with hematite layers provides evidence for the deposition of the metaquartzite protolith in a seawater-fed sabkha-like sand flat fringing the Espinhaço rift. It is proposed that apatite, Al-phosphates and Al-borosilicates were chemically precipitated together with iron hydroxides from pore fluids. The antithetic behaviour of phosphorus and boron contents in the metaquartzites is the consequence of an influx of toxic boron-rich water that drastically affected algae populations and consequently reduced phosphorus precipitation.     

The Bedded Chert,banded iron‐formation problem

The characteristics of Bedded Cherts and Banded Iron‐Formations are summarised. As, following O'Rourke's work, the latter are considered as not confined to the Precambrian, the only significant difference between the two formations is shown to be the low iron content of Bedded Cherts. This difference it is suggested is due to Bedded Cherts having been deposited in a virtually continuously acid to weakly alkaline environment, whereas Banded Iron‐Formation was precipitated under an alternation of acid and alkaline conditions yielding siliceous and iron‐rich layers respectively. Such chemical precipitation of either Bedded Chert or Banded Iron‐Formation was in some examples of each type of formation rhythmically interrupted by the deposition of clastic sediment.     

Record of Early Tonian mafic magmatism in the central Espinhaço (Brazil): New insights for break-up of the Neoproterozoic landmass ancestor of São Francisco-Congo paleocontinent

Petrological characterization, U–Pb geochronology, Lu–Hf analyses and major and trace element data from mafic intrusions in the Central Espinhaço (central portion of the Brazilian shield) are used here to investigate the geological significance of the Early Neoproterozoic magmatism in the context of the São Francisco-Congo paleocontinent. These mafic bodies are represented by medium to coarse-grained metagabbros with plagioclase, amphibole and clinopyroxene. Zircon U–Pb isotopic data from two samples yielded weighted mean ²⁰⁶Pb/²³⁸U ages of 895 ​± ​3.4 ​Ma (MSWD ​= ​1.7) and 896 ​± ​2.4 ​Ma (MSWD ​= ​0.64), regarded as the best estimates for the crystallization age of these mafic rocks. Major and trace element data (including REEs) show that the gabbros originated from a subalkaline tholeiitic magma, typical of intraplate magmatism. Such rocks are slightly enriched in LREEs and LILEs and depleted in HFSEs. Our new isotope and geochemical data, along with regional knowledge, indicate that these metagabbros mark the beginning of an important Tonian-age extensional tectonic event of the landmass of which the São Francisco-Congo paleocontinent was part (Rodinia supercontinent or Central African block?). We furthermore suggest that these rocks belong to a prominent suite of Tonian-age mafic rocks that mark a diachronic breakup attempt of this landmass which may have occurred from south to north along the Espinhaço mountain range.     

The link between hydrothermal epigenetic copper mineralization and the Caçapava Granite of the Brasiliano Cycle in southern Brazil

Base-metal deposits in the Caçapava do Sul Copper Province are hosted by both volcanosedimentary rocks of the Bom Jardim Group and by metamorphic rocks of the Passo Feio Formation, and show a spatial relationship to the Caçapava Granite. These associations have led to much controversy about the genesis of the base-metal deposits, which has been at least partly resolved by precise dating using SHRIMP (Sensitive High Resolution Ion Microprobe) U/Pb zircon studies combined with S, Pb, and Sr isotope trace studies.The Passo Feio Formation is Neoproterozoic in age and was derived from a complex continental source, as shown by the presence of xenocryst zircons of Archaean, Paleoproterozoic, and Neoproterozoic ages. It was metamorphosed at ca. 700 Ma. The syntectonic Caçapava Granite that intruded the supracrustal rocks of the Passo Feio Formation at 562 Ma was derived from an old sialic basement.Lead-isotope data are consistent with a 562 Ma age for the base-metal sulphide deposits sited in the Passo Feio Formation. The least-radiogenic compositions lie between the field of the isotopic compositions of the Caçapava Granite and rocks of the Passo Feio Formation, suggesting that Pb in the sulphide deposits may have been derived from both sources. The Pb, like that in the Caçapava Granite and Passo Feio Formation, was derived from a primitive crustal source. Sulphur isotope data from the base-metal sulphide deposits in the Passo Feio Formation are compatible with a mixed sedimentary and magmatic source.The most logical model for ore genesis, based on the isotopic data and spatial relationships, is that magmatic metal-bearing fluids from Caçapava Granite leached metals from the Passo Feio Formation and that the deposited sulphides therefore show mixed isotopic signatures. However, there is also some isotopic evidence from the Caçapava Granite itself that suggests assimilation of S-bearing rocks of the Passo Feio Formation during emplacement. Thus, isotopic signatures could have been inherited from assimilated metal sulphides at this stage, and deposition could have been entirely from Caçapava Granite-derived magmatic fluids.Importantly, the inferred 562±8 Ma age for the deposits in the Passo Feio Formation is younger than the well-constrained age of 594±5 Ma for the Camaquã/Santa Maria deposits. Thus, the epigenetic sulphides in the Passo Feio Formation cannot be the source of these deposits as previously suggested. Other isotopic data also argue against such a model.     

The Carrancas Formation,Bambuí Group: A record of pre-Marinoan sedimentation on the southern São Francisco craton,Brazil

The Carrancas Formation outcrops in east-central Brazil on the southern margin of the São Francisco craton where it comprises the base of the late Neoproterozoic Bambuí Group. It is overlain by the basal Ediacaran cap carbonate Sete Lagoas Formation and was for a long time considered to be glacially influenced and correlative with the glaciogenic Jequitaí Formation. New stratigraphic, isotopic and geochronologic data imply that the Carrancas Formation was instead formed by the shedding of debris from basement highs uplifted during an episode of minor continental rifting. Reddish dolostones in the upper Carrancas Formation have δ¹³C values ranging from +7.1 to +9.6‰, which is a unique C isotopic composition for the lowermost Bambuí Group but similar to values found in the Tijucuçu sequence, a pre-glacial unit in the Araçuaí fold belt on the eastern margin of the São Francisco craton. The stratigraphic position below basal Ediacaran cap carbonates and the highly positive δ¹³C values together indicate a Cryogenian interglacial age for the Carrancas Formation, with the high δ¹³C values representing the so-called Keele peak, which precedes the pre-Marinoan Trezona negative δ¹³C excursion in other well characterized Cryogenian sequences. Hence, The Carrancas Formation pre-dates de Marinoan Jequitaí Formation and represents an interval of Cryogenian stratigraphy not previously known to occur on the southern margin of São Francicso craton. Documentation of Cryogenian interglacial strata on the São Francisco craton reinforces recent revisions to the age of Bambuí Group strata and has implications for the development of the Bambuí basin.     

The Guarani Aquifer System: estimation of recharge along the Uruguay–Brazil border

The cities of Rivera and Santana do Livramento are located on the outcropping area of the sandstone Guarani Aquifer on the Brazil–Uruguay border, where the aquifer is being increasingly exploited. Therefore, recharge estimates are needed to address sustainability. First, a conceptual model of the area was developed. A multilayer, heterogeneous and anisotropic groundwater-flow model was built to validate the conceptual model and to estimate recharge. A field campaign was conducted to collect water samples and monitor water levels used for model calibration. Field data revealed that there exists vertical gradients between confining basalts and underlying sandstones, suggesting basalts could indirectly recharge sandstone in fractured areas. Simulated downward flow between them was a small amount within the global water budget. Calibrated recharge rates over basalts and over outcropping sandstones were 1.3 and 8.1% of mean annual precipitation, respectively. A big portion of sandstone recharge would be drained by streams. The application of a water balance yielded a recharge of 8.5% of average annual precipitation. The numerical model and the water balance yielded similar recharge values consistent with determinations from previous authors in the area and other regions of the aquifer, providing an upper bound for recharge in this transboundary aquifer.     

Metallogeny of the Northern S?o Francisco Craton, Bahia, Brazil

Please refer to the attachment(s) for more details.     

Inliers of banded iron‐formation in the Proterozoic Wyloo Group sediments near Paraburdoo,Western Australia

Two inliers with a total outcrop length of 3000 m and a maximum width of 200 m, consisting of a sedimentary klippe (olistolith) and an olistostrome (both composed of banded iron‐formation and shale belonging to the Hamersley Group) occur within the Mininer Turbidite Member of the Wyloo Group, south of Paraburdoo, W.A., 2500 m from the top of the Hamersley Group proper. The olistostrome is a typical debris slide produced by slumping of unconsolidated material. The klippe was rafted into position as a solid block by a turbidity current.

The pattern of mineralisation within the banded iron‐formation part of the klippe, which is identified as being from the Brockman Iron Formation, together with evidence from the basal conglomerate of the Wyloo Group, shows that the formation of the Hamersley iron ore deposits commenced prior to the deposition of the Wyloo Group sediments.     

Model for the development of rhythmically banded wollastonite-hedenbergite skarns at the Dal’negorsk deposit,southern Russian Far East

Skarns at the Dal’negorsk boron deposit belong to the infiltration type. In their outer contact zone (bounded by limestone and consisting of wollastonite + hedenbergite), rhythmically banded textures developed, with alternating wollastonite and hedenbergite bands. The petrological study and modeling of the process that produced them led us to propose a mechanism for the genesis of such textures. They are thought to form as a consequence of a dissipative structure in the infiltrating solution and its interaction with the rock. The dissipative structure itself resulted from the instability of the equilibrium state of the skarn-solution system and the development of pervasive spatial oscillations in the redox potential of the solution. The progressive development of the banded texture was associated with a change in the dissipative structure because of the existence of feedback (mutual influence) between the structure of the solution and the texture of the rock. The rhythms generated thereby are of several orders (as follows from their thicknesses and the distances between them), which is an indication of a large-scale invariance of the developing texture. The simulation of the process involved the analysis of a system of kinetic equations, the stability of the equilibrium, and the conditions of the stability of spatial oscillations in the concentrations of major components in the solution. A necessary condition of the stability of the dissipative structure is a low velocity of fluid filtration, which should be no higher than a critical value, with the latter controlled by kinetic parameters of the system. The proposed model can be modified and adapted for rhythmically banded skarns of other composition and for banded hydrothermal mineralized veins with the aim of constraining the petrogenetic conditions and elucidating the role of banded textures as precipitators of ore and minor components of the solution.     

Magnetotelluric characterization through the Ambargasta-Sumampa Range: The connection between the northern and southern trace of the Río de La Plata Craton – Pampean Terrane tectonic boundary

The South American Platform was part of the Western Gondwana, a collage of plates of different ages assembled in late Neoproterozoic to Cambrian times. The Transbrasiliano Lineament, a continental shear belt that transversely intersects this platform from NE to SW, has its southern expression in the tectonic boundary between the Río de La Plata Craton and the Pampean Terrane. Magnetotelluric long-period data in a W–E profile (29°30′ S) that crosses the Ambargasta-Sumampa Range and the Chaco-Pampean Plain were obtained to connect information of this mostly inferred tectonic boundary. A 2-D inversion model shows the Chacoparanense basin, Río Dulce lineament, Ambargasta-Sumampa Range and Salina de Ambargasta in the upper crust. At mid-to-lower crust and 40 km to the east of the Ambargasta-Sumampa Range, a discontinuity (500–2000 Ω m) of 20-km-wide separates two highly resistive blocks, the Río de La Plata Craton (6000–20,000 Ω m) in the east, and the Pampean Terrane (5000–20,000 Ω m) in the west. This discontinuity represents the tectonic boundary between both cratons and could be explained by the presence of graphite. The geometry of the Pampean Terrane suggests an east-dipping paleo-subduction. Our results are consistent with gravimetric and seismicity data of the study area. A more conductive feature beneath the range and the tectonic boundary was associated with the NE–SW dextral transpressive system evidenced by the mylonitic belts exposed in the Eastern Pampean Ranges. This belt represents a conjugate of the mega-shear Transbrasiliano Lineament and could be explained by fluid–rock interaction by shearing during hundreds of years. The eastern border of the Ambargasta-Sumampa Range extends the trace of the Transbrasiliano Lineament. The electrical Moho depth (40 km to the west and 35 km to the east) was identified by a high electrical contrast between the crust and upper mantle. The upper mantle shows a resistive structure beneath the Río de La Plata Craton that could have been originated by stationary delamination by the presence of hydrated lithosphere.     

Spinifex-textured komatiites in the south border of the Carajas ridge,Selva Greenstone belt,Carajás Province,Brazil

Spinifex-textured komatiites in the Selva greenstone belt are the first unequivocal examples of komatiites in the Transition Subdomain of the Carajás Mineral Province. Outcrops of spinifex-textured komatiites, located ∼1.5 km to the south of the Carajás ridge, were discovered during regional exploration for Ni–Cu–(PGE) sulfide deposits by VALE. They are associated with a 3.8 km long unit consisting of variable types of ultramafic rocks (talc schist, serpentinite and spinifex-textured komatiite). This ultramafic unit follows the steep dipping NW–SE trending Selva greenstone belt composed mainly by quartz-chlorite schists (interpreted as metasediments) and chlorite-actinolite schists (interpreted as metabasalts). Greenschist facies metamorphic parageneses characterize all rock types in the Selva greenstone belt.The komatiitic rocks in the Selva belt comprise a sequence of flows consisting of an upper spinifex-textured layer and a lower olivine cumulate layer. Although the spinifex and cumulus textures are well preserved in the field, the primary mineralogy of the komatiites has been completely replaced by greenschist facies metamorphic minerals. Platy olivine spinifex texture, consisting of an array of roughly parallel olivine plates, and random spinifex texture, consisting of randomly oriented olivine plates, are the most common primary volcanic textures in komatiites in the Selva greenstone belt. Platy and random spinifex texture is defined by former plates of olivine replaced by serpentine with minor actinolite, chlorite and magnetite, alternating with former matrix replaced by abundant actinolite and minor chlorite, talc, serpentine, and magnetite. The domains between olivine plates in both platy and random spinifex-textured rocks contain irregular arrays of fine-grained parallel crystals, representing primary fine-grained “quench” clinopyroxene crystals replaced by actinolite.Spinifex-textured komatiites have MgO contents bracket between 22.8 and 26.9 wt.%, and cumulate textured komatiites have MgO contents up to 40.6 wt.%. When plotted vs MgO contents, most major and minor elements fall on well-defined linear trends indicating control by olivine fractionation or accumulation. Komatiites from the Selva and Seringa (located in the Rio Maria Domain) belts are Al-undepleted with Al₂O₃/TiO₂ ratios close to 20. Results for CaO, Na₂O, and REE suggest that these elements were mobile and their abundances have been modified during metasomatic alteration. REE contents in some samples are very high (up to 40 times primitive mantle values) and REE patterns vary from flat (La/Yb_MN ∼ 1) to highly enriched in LREE (La/Yb_MN up to ∼ 10). The REE mobility may be related to hydrothermal alteration associated to Cu–Au mineralization in the region.The identification of spinifex-textured komatiites close to the Carajás Basin suggests the continuation of 3.0–2.9 Ga greenstone belts of the Rio Maria Domain within the Transition Subdomain, and enlarges the area with potential to host komatiite-associated Ni–Cu–PGE deposits.     

SHRIMP U–Pb zircon geochronology and Nd signatures of supracrustal sequences and orthogneisses constrain the Neoproterozoic evolution of the Pernambuco–Alagoas domain,southern part of Borborema Province,NE Brazil

The Borborema Province is the western part of a major Brasiliano belt that extends from Brazil through NW Africa in pre-drift reconstructions. This province resulted from convergence and collision among the West African, Congo-São Francisco, and Amazonian cratons about 600 Ma. This study focuses on the Pernambuco–Alagoas (PEAL) domain, which is a complex of magmatic, migmatitic, and metamorphic rocks, located in the southern part of the Borborema Province. U–Pb geochronology and Sm–Nd data for metasedimentary sequences (Rio Una, Inhapi) of the PEAL domain and a sample from a sequence of the Transversal Zone domain suggest that their deposition occurred during a Cryogenian extensional event, within the interval 850–631 Ma (or slightly younger). This extensional event occurred in the PEAL, Transversal Zone, and Sergipano domains before the onset of the Brasiliano collision and was followed by syn- and post-collisional magmatism. The Rio Una sequence and the sequence from Transversal Zone domain were deposited over a Rhyacian (ca. 2.0–2.2) basement having a juvenile Palaeoproterozoic Nd signature, whereas the Inhapi sequence was deposited over an Early Neoproterozoic (Tonian) basement. The deposition of the studied sequences is coeval with metasedimentary sequences to the north and south in other domains of the Borborema Province. However, differences in Nd isotopic signatures between the sequences from PEAL, Transversal Zone, and Sergipano domains suggest that they were formed in distinct basins. Metasedimentary sequences from the PEAL domain have Meso- and Palaeoproterozoic T _DM model ages. These data suggest that the orogens where the metasedimentary sequences are located have a strong ensialic component. T _DM model ages of ca. 1.0 Ga and εNd (0.6 Ga) values around zero recorded in granites from the southern part of the PEAL, suggesting that juvenile material was accreted to the southern part of the PEAL domain crust during the Tonian. The migmatites from the PEAL domain have a wide range of T _DM ages along with a wide range of εNd (0.6 Ga) values. The transition between the northern and southern parts of the PEAL domain denotes the approximate northern margin of a Late Mesoproterozoic to Early Neoproterozoic rift.     

Mineralogy and trace-element geochemistry of the high-grade iron ores of the Águas Claras Mine and comparison with the Capão Xavier and Tamanduá iron ore deposits, Quadrilátero Ferrífero, Brazil

Several major iron deposits occur in the Quadrilátero Ferrífero (QF), southeastern region of Brazil, where metamorphosed and heterogeneously deformed banded iron formation (BIF) of the Cauê Formation, regionally called itabirite, was transformed into high- (Fe >64%) and low-grade (30%?2O₃, with a higher amount of detrimental impurities, especially MnO, in the soft ore. Both hard and soft ores are depleted in trace elements. The high-grade ores at the Águas Claras Mine have at least a dual origin, involving hypogene and supergene processes. The occurrence of the hard, massive high-grade ore within “fresh” dolomitic itabirite is evidence of its hypogene origin. Despite the contention about the origin of the dolomitic itabirite (if this rock is a carbonate-rich facies of the Cauê Formation or a hematite–carbonate precursor of the soft high-grade ore), mineralogical and geochemical features of the soft high-grade ore indicate that it was formed by leaching of dolomite from the dolomitic itabirite by meteoric water. The comparison of the Águas Claras, Capão Xavier and Tamanduá orebodies shows that the original composition of the itabiritic protore plays a major role in the genesis of high- and low-grade soft ores in the QF. Under the same weathering and structural conditions, the dolomitic itabirite is the more favorable to form high-grade deposits than siliceous itabirite. Field relations at the Águas Claras and Capão Xavier deposits suggest that it is not possible to form huge soft high-grade supergene deposits from siliceous itabirite, unless another control, such as impermeable barriers, had played an important role. The occurrence in the Tamanduá Mine of a large, soft, high-grade orebody formed from siliceous itabirite and closely associated with hypogene hard ore suggests that large, soft, high-grade orebodies of the Quadrilátero Ferrífero, which occur within siliceous itabirite, have a hypogene contribution in their formation.     

Mineralogical,micromorphological and geochemical transformations in the initial steps of the weathering process of charnockite from the Caparaó Range,southeastern Brazil

X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray Fluorescence (XRF), optical microscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy coupled with Energy Dispersive Spectrometry (SEM-EDS) and Electron Probe micro-analyser (EPMA) and Wavelength-Dispersive Spectroscopy (WDS) were conducted on charnockite from the Caparaó Suite and its alteration cortex to determine the mineralogical, micromorphological and geochemical transformations resulting from the weathering process. The hydrolysis of the charnockite occurred in different stages, in accordance with the order of stability of the minerals with respect to weathering: andesine/orthopyroxene, pargasite and alkali feldspar. The rock modifications had begun with the formation of a layer of incipient alteration due to the percolation of weathering solutions first in the pressure relief fractures and then in cleavage and mineral edges. The iron exuded from ferromagnesian minerals precipitated in the intermineral and intramineral discontinuities. The layer of incipient alteration evolves into an inner cortex where the plagioclase changes into gibbsite by direct alitisation, the ferromagnesian minerals initiate the formation of goethitic boxworks with kaolinitic cores, and the alkali feldspar initiates indirect transformation into gibbsite, forming an intermediate phase of illite and kaolinite. In the outer cortex, mostly traces of alkali feldspar remain, and they are surrounded by goethite and gibbsite as alteromorphics, characterising the formation of the isalteritic horizon that occurs along the slope and explains the bauxitization process at the Caparaó Range, SE Brazil.     

Origin of high fluoride contents in groundwater of the Santa Maria Formation, Guarany Aquifer System, southern Brazil

Fluoride anomalies （up to 11 mg/L） have been detected in the porous confined Santa Maria Aquifer （Guarany Aquifer System） in the central region of Rio Grande do Sul State, southern Brazil, leading to endemic fluorosis. Two hypotheses are investigated concerning the fluoride origin： contamination by long-term phosphate-fertilizer application due to extensive tobacco plantation or lithogeochemical affiliation from regional rocks. The results are discussed based on statistical and geochemical modeling and stable isotope data of water, nitrate and sulfate. Field monitoring of phreatic and confined aquifer during two years and laboratory leaching and retention experiments were performed. Regional statistical analysis （factorial and cluster analysis） on the basis of 350 wells discriminates four different hydrochemical groups in the confined aquifer, considering magnesium, calcium bicarbonate, sodium chlorinate and sodium bicarbonate as specific parameters. The last two groups reach higher fluoride contents and represent deeper aquifer levels where geochemical modeling shows carbonates （calcite and dolomite） are of super-saturation. The laboratory experiments confirmed that local soils with high CTC and aluminum contents （Udults） represent an efficient geochemical barrier, preserving the aquifer from fluoride contamination and supporting remediation strategies for fluoride removal. δ^18O and δD groundwater data and the local meteoric water line （LMWL） indicate that local precipitation is the main groundwater recharge source in the area.     

Accretion of Grenvillian terranes to the southwestern border of the R��o de la Plata craton, western Argentina

A comprehensive review of the geological, geochronological, and isotopic features of the Mesoproterozoic Grenvillian terranes attached to the southwest of the Río de la Plata craton in Early Paleozoic times is presented in this paper. They are grouped into the northern (sierras de Umango, Maz and del Espinal and surroundings), central (Sierra de Pie de Palo, southern Precordillera and Frontal Cordillera), and southern (San Rafael and Las Matras Blocks) segments. The Mesoproterozoic basement consists mainly of arc related, intermediate to acidic and mafic?Cultramafic rocks of 1,244?C1,027?Ma, with juvenile, Laurentian affinity. Exception to it is the Maz Group, with a protracted history and reworked character. They are affected by 846?C570?Ma, extensional magmatism in the northern and central segments, which represents the Neoproterozoic breakup of the Rodinia supercontinent. Successive passive margin sedimentation is registered in Late Neoproterozoic (~640?C580?Ma) and Cambro-Ordovician (~550?C470?Ma) times. The southern segment is noted for the younger sedimentation alone, and for showing the exclusive primary unconformable relationship between the Mesoproterozoic basement and Early Ordovician cover. The effects of Early Paleozoic Famatinian orogeny, associated with the collisions of Cuyania and Chilenia terranes, are recorded as main phase (480?C450?Ma), late phase (440?C420?Ma), and Chanic phase (400?C360?Ma). Among them, the tectonothermal climax is the Ordovician main phase, to which klippe and nappe structures typical of collisional orogens are related in the northern and central segments. Preliminary data allow us to suggest a set of paired metamorphic belts, with an outboard high-P/T belt, and an inboard Barrowian P/T belt.     

The Early Cretaceous Jacuí Group,a newly discovered volcaniclastic–epiclastic accumulation at the top of the Paraná Basin,southern Brazil

The presence of volcaniclastic rocks related to the silicic magmatism within the Serra Geral Formation has been a matter of long-standing debate. In this paper, we present extensive documentation that supports the presence and abundance of these rocks in the Jacuí Group, a newly discovered volcaniclastic and epiclastic accumulation in southern Brazil. The Jacuí Group is composed of two interfingered stratigraphic units, the Volta Alegre and Tupanciretã formations, and it represents the uppermost stratigraphic unit of the Paraná Basin. The Volta Alegre Formation is primarily composed of resedimented volcaniclastic tuffites, the pyroclasts which were sourced from the Santa Maria subgroup of the Palmas-type of the Serra Geral Formation. The Tupanciretã Formation is composed of fluvial and aeolian deposits transported towards the north–northwest. Deposition of the Jacuí Group began in the Early Cretaceous (∼132 Ma) and was coeval with the acidic volcanism of the Santa Maria subgroup. This group was deposited in a probable interior sag basin that represents either the beginning of the extension in the inner part of the continent that subsequently migrated to the east or the far-field impact of extensional processes that preceded the break-up of Gondwana and the opening of the South Atlantic Ocean.     

Geochemistry and Si–O–Fe isotope constraints on the origin of banded iron formations of the Yuanjiacun Formation,Lvliang Group,Shanxi, China

Banded iron formations (BIFs) within the Lvliang region of Shanxi Province, China, are hosted by sediments of the Yuanjiacun Formation, part of the Paleoproterozoic Lvliang Group. These BIFs are located in a zone where sedimentation changed from clastic to chemical deposition, indicating that these are Superior-type BIFs. Here, we present new major, trace, and rare earth element (REE) data, along with Fe, Si, and O isotope data for the BIFs in the Yuanjiacun within the Fe deposits at Yuanjiacun, Jianshan, and Hugushan. When compared with Post Archean Australian Shale (PAAS), these BIFs are dominated by iron oxides and quartz, contain low concentrations of Al₂O₃, TiO₂, trace elements, and the REE, and are light rare earth element (LREE) depleted and heavy rare earth element (HREE) enriched. The BIFs also display positive La, Y, and Eu anomalies, high Y/Ho ratios, and contain ³⁰Si depleted quartz, with high δ¹⁸O values that are similar to quartz within siliceous units formed during hydrothermal activity. These data indicate that the BIFs within the Yuanjiacun Formation were precipitated from submarine hydrothermal fluids, with only negligible detrital contribution. None of the BIF samples analyzed during this study have negative Ce anomalies, although a few have a positive Ce anomaly that may indicate that the BIFs within the Yuanjiacun Formation formed during the Great Oxidation Event (GOE) within a redox stratified ocean. The positive Ce anomalies associated with some of these BIFs are a consequence of oxidization and the formation of surficial manganese oxide that have preferentially adsorbed Ho, LREE, and Ce^4 +; these deposits formed during reductive dissolution at the oxidation–reduction transition zone or in deeper-level reducing seawater. The loss of Ce, LREE, and Ho to seawater and the deposition of these elements with iron hydroxides caused the positive Ce anomalies observed in some of the BIF samples, although the limited oxidizing ability of surface seawater at this time meant that Y/Ho and LREE/HREE ratios were not substantially modified, unlike similar situations within stratified ocean water during the Late Paleoproterozoic. Magnetite and hematite within the BIFs in the study area contain heavy Fe isotopes (⁵⁶Fe values of 0.24–1.27‰) resulting from the partial oxidation and precipitation of Fe^2 + to Fe^3 + in seawater. In addition, mass-independent fractionation of sulfur isotopes within pyrite indicates that these BIFs were deposited within an oxygen-deficient ocean associated with a similarly oxygen-deficient atmosphere, even though the BIFs within the Yuanjiacun Formation formed after initiation of the GOE.