Mineral inclusions in diamonds from the Sputnik kimberlite pipe, Yakutia

The Sputnik kimberlite pipe is a small “satellite” of the larger Mir pipe in central Yakutia (Sakha), Russia. Study of 38 large diamonds (0.7-4.9 carats) showed that nine contain inclusions of the eclogitic paragenesis, while the remainder contain inclusions of the peridotitic paragenesis, or of uncertain paragenesis. The peridotitic inclusion suite comprises olivine, enstatite, Cr-diopside, chromite, Cr-pyrope garnet (both lherzolitic and harzburgitic), ilmenite, Ni-rich sulfide and a Ti-Cr-Fe-Mg-Sr-K phase of the lindsleyite-mathiasite (LIMA) series. The eclogitic inclusion suite comprises omphacite, garnet, Ni-poor sulfide, phlogopite and rutile. Peridotitic ilmenite inclusions have high Mg, Cr and Ni contents and high Nb/Zr ratios; they may be related to metasomatic ilmenites known from peridotite xenoliths in kimberlite. Eclogitic phlogopite is intergrown with omphacite, coexists with garnet, and has an unusually high TiO₂ content. Comparison with inclusions in diamonds from Mir shows general similarities, but differences in details of trace-element patterns. Large compositional variations among inclusions of one phase (olivine, garnet, chromite) within single diamonds indicate that the chemical environment of diamond crystallisation changed rapidly relative to diamond growth rates in many cases. P-T conditions of formation were calculated from multiphase inclusions and from trace element geothermobarometry of single inclusions. The geotherm at the time of diamond formation was near a 35 mW/m² conductive model; that is indistinguishable from the Paleozoic geotherm derived by studies of xenoliths and concentrate minerals from Mir. A range of Ni temperatures between garnet inclusions in single diamonds from both Mir and Sputnik suggests that many of the diamonds grew during thermal events affecting a relatively narrow depth range of the lithosphere, within the diamond stability field. The minor differences between inclusions in Mir and Sputnik may reflect lateral heterogeneity in the upper mantle.     

安徽双河含柯石英硬玉石英岩中流体包裹体的研究

在安徽双河含柯石英石玉石英岩中已识别出５类流体懈裹体，其中早期退变质阶段捕获的包裹体是均一温度低、含盐度较高的水溶包裹体，晚期捕获提均一温度较高、含盐底低的水溶流体包裹体，更晚期的是三相富含ＣＯ２包裹体及均一温度高的气－液两相富Ｃ炮裹体，为限定硬玉石英岩的隆升轨迹提供重要依据，在单相气体包裹体和三相富含Ｃ炮裹体中的气相成分为ＣＯ２和Ｎ２，氮可能来自外部或玉石英岩的原岩。     

安徽铜陵矿集区海底喷流沉积体系的流体包裹体微量元素对比

铜陵矿集区与铜-金(多金属)矿床有关的热液活动主要有两大体系。即与海西期海底喷流沉积有关的热液体系和与矽卡岩矿化有关的燕山期岩浆热液体系。查明这两类热液体系的流体包裹体特征对区域找矿和矿床成因研究都有实际意义。在包裹体岩相学研究基础上，应用ICP-MS技术和热爆提取方法，研究了新桥、冬瓜山、峙门口、铜官山、朝山等矿床具代表性的热液石英中流体包裹体的微量元素、稀土元素特征。结果表明，两类热液体系在流体包裹体特征上有较大的区别，在流体的微量元素和稀土元素特征方面也很不相同。海底喷流沉积体系的热液石英中流体包裹体与岩浆热液体系的相比。稀土总量较高，LREE／HREE比值较大，δEu不明显。且Mo／(W Sn)比值较高，反映流体中成矿物质的深源特征；Ga／T1、Rb／Cs大。Zr／Hf低，也不同于岩浆热液体系。     

南秦岭十里坪锑矿床成矿时代及成因的初步研究

十里坪锑矿床受赵川陆缘隆_滑构造的主滑脱拆离带的控制。矿体呈脉状赋存于韧_脆性主滑脱带上部的脆性次级断层_节理中,矿石类型主要为萤石石英辉锑矿型。围岩为太古宙_元古宙变质岩系,围岩蚀变弱。成矿流体属H2O_CO2_NaCl体系,流体包裹体盐度w(NaCleq)为3.6%～11.3%,均一温度为109～232℃,形成压力大致为800×105Pa。硫、铅同位素研究表明,矿质主要来源于变火山岩围岩;氢、氧同位素显示,成矿流体以大气降水为主,初步将该矿床定为变质岩源就地式大气降水热液矿床。矿石中萤石Sm_Nd等时线年龄为(392±24)Ma,与南秦岭北部晚古生代拗陷区热水喷流_沉积成矿时代相一致,它们都形成于秦岭微板块泥盆纪非造山裂解阶段。     

Silica-rich Melts in Quartz Xenoliths from Vulcano Island and their Bearing on Processes of Crustal Anatexis and Crust-Magma Interaction beneath the Aeolian Arc, Southern Italy

Quartz-rich xenoliths in lavas and pyroclastic rocks from VulcanoIsland, part of the Aeolian arc, Italy, contain silicic meltinclusions with high SiO₂ (73–80 wt %) and K₂O (3–6wt %) contents. Two types of inclusions can be distinguishedbased on their time of entrapment and incompatible trace element(ITE) concentrations. One type (late, ITE-enriched inclusions)has trace element characteristics that resemble those of themetamorphic rocks of the Calabro-Peloritano basement of theadjacent mainland. Other inclusions (early, ITE-depleted) havevariable Ba, Rb, Sr and Cs, and low Nb, Zr and rare earth element(REE) contents. Their REE patterns are unfractionated, witha marked positive Eu anomaly. Geochemical modelling suggeststhat the ITE-depleted inclusions cannot be derived from equilibriummelting of Calabro-Peloritano metamorphic rocks. ITE-enrichedinclusions can be modelled by large degrees (>80%) of meltingof basement gneisses and schists, leaving a quartz-rich residuerepresented by the quartz-rich xenoliths. Glass inclusions inquartz-rich xenoliths represent potential contaminants of Aeolianarc magmas. Interaction between calc-alkaline magmas and crustalanatectic melts with a composition similar to the analysed inclusionsmay generate significant enrichment in potassium in the magmas.However, ITE contents of the melt inclusions are comparablewith or lower than those of Vulcano calc-alkaline and potassicrocks. This precludes the possibility that potassic magmas inthe Aeolian arc may originate from calc-alkaline parents throughdifferent degrees of incorporation of crustal melts. KEY WORDS: melt inclusions; crustal anatexis; magma assimilation; xenoliths; Vulcano Island     

Genetic significance of fluid inclusions in the CSA Cu–Pb–Zn deposit, Cobar, Australia

CSA mine exploits a ‘Cobar-type’ Cu–Pb–Zn±Au±Ag deposit within a cleaved and metamorphosed portion of the Cobar Supergroup, central New South Wales. The deposit comprises systems of ‘lenses’ that encompass veins, disseminations and semi-massive to massive Cu–Pb–Zn ores. The systems and contained lenses truncate bedding, are approximately coplanar with regional cleavage and similarly oriented shear zones and plunge parallel to the elongation lineation. Systems have extreme vertical continuity (>1000 m), short strike length (400 m) and narrow width (100 m), exhibit vertical and lateral ore-type variation and have alteration haloes. Models of ore formation include classical hydrothermalism, structurally controlled remobilisation and polymodal concepts; syntectonic emplacement now holds sway.Fluid inclusions were examined from quartz±sulphide veins adjacent to now-extracted ore, from coexisting quartz–sulphide within ore, and from vughs in barren quartz veins. Lack of early primary inclusions precluded direct determination of fluids associated with D₂–D₃ ore and vein emplacement. Similarly, decrepitation (by near-isobaric heating) of the two oldest secondary populations precluded direct determination of fluid phases immediately following D₂–D₃ ore and vein emplacement. Post-decrepitation outflow (late D₃ to early post-D₃) is recorded by monophase CH₄ inclusions. Entrained outflow of deeply circulated meteoric fluid modified the CH₄ system; modification is recorded by H₂O+CH₄ and H₂O+(trace CH₄) secondary populations and by an H₂O+(trace CH₄) primary population. The contractional tectonics (D₂–D₃) of ore emplacement was superseded by relaxational tectonics (D_4P) that facilitated meteoric water penetration and return flow.Under D₂ prograde metamorphism, entrapment temperatures (Tt) and pressures (Pt) for pre-decrepitation secondary inclusions are estimated as Tt300–330 °C and Pt1.5–2 kbar≈Plith (the lithostatic pressure). Decrepitation accompanied peak metamorphism (T350–380 °C) in mid- to late-D₃, while in late-D₃ to early post-D₃, essentially monophase CH₄ secondary inclusions were entrapped at Tt350 °C and Pt=1.5–2 kbar≈Plith. Subsequently, abundant CH₄ and entrained meteoric water were entrapped as H₂O+CH₄ secondaries under slowly decreasing temperature (Tt330–350 °C) and constant pressure (Pt1.5–2 kbar). Finally, with increasingly dominant meteoric outflow, H₂O+(trace CH₄) populations record decreasing temperatures (Tt>300 to <350 down to 275–300 °C) at pressures of Phydrostatic<Pt (1 kbar) <Plith (1.5 kbar).The populations of inclusions provide insight into fluid types, flow regimes and P–T conditions during parts of the deposit's evolution. They indirectly support the role of basin-derived CH₄ fluids in ore formation, but provide no insight into a basement-sourced ore-forming fluid. They fully support post-ore involvement of meteoric water. The poorly constrained entrapment history is believed to span 10 Ma from 395 to 385 Ma.     

Structural controls on gold mineralisation and the nature of related fluids of the Paiol gold deposit, Almas Greenstone Belt, Brazil

Chemical analyses suggest that the metavolcanic rocks of the Almas Greenstone Belt (AGB), Tocantins State, Brazil have a continental affinity, possibly related to a continental rift environment. They were metamorphosed to amphibolite facies during a regional tectono-metamorphic event (D_n), retrogressed to greenschist facies assemblages and then hydrothermally altered within dextral strike–slip shear zones (D_n+1). Fracture sets related to D_n+2 intersect S_n+1.The Paiol Gold Mine is one of several mineralised zones within metabasic and meta-intermediate rocks of the AGB. It exploits shoots of sulphide–Au–quartz mineralisation that occupy dilational zones approximately perpendicular to an elongation lineation (L_n+1) within mylonitic foliation S_n+1 (S_n+1=S within the S–C fabric). The dilational zones probably formed due to dextral displacement on sinistrally en echelon C surfaces. Minor amounts of gold may have been introduced or remobilised during D_n+2.Coexisting primary and pseudosecondary fluid inclusions in mineralised quartz veins from ore shoots comprise a high-salinity three-phase type (Type II) and a lower salinity two-phase type (Type I). Homogenisation temperatures for Type II inclusions range from 200 to 410 °C and Type I from 90 to 320 °C. The inclusions and their temperature ranges are believed to reflect heat exchange and some mixing between the two fluid types under relatively constant ambient temperatures, but variable (though broadly declining) fluid temperatures. This took place late in D_n+1 in conjunction with greenschist facies retrogression and localised hydrothermally induced metasomatism.     

Methane-rich fluid inclusions in skarn near the giant REE–Nb–Fe deposit at Bayan Obo, Northern China

We report fluid inclusion data for skarn, formed at the contact between Hercynian granitoids and dolomite of the Proterozoic Bayan Obo Group, in the vicinity of Bayan Obo REE–Nb–Fe deposit, Inner Mongolia, China. Three types of fluid inclusions are identified: two-phase CH₄-rich, three-phase liquid–vapour–solid and two-phase aqueous inclusions. Using microthermometry and laser Raman microprobe analysis to calculate isochores for CH₄-bearing inclusions, we estimate fluid trapping conditions at T=280 to 344 °C and P<1 to 2.3 kbar. Such conditions are compatible with formation of CH₄ inclusions as a result of reaction between graphite in the country rocks (black slate sequence) and fluids derived from magma. The lack of carbonaceous material in the inclusions supports the hypothesis that CH₄ was generated during fluid migration rather than by in situ reaction. In contrast to the skarn, and despite the fact that similar graphite-bearing slates are found in the host rocks, no CH₄-bearing inclusions have been so far reported from Bayan Obo REE ores. We therefore conclude that the skarn-forming fluids in the contact aureole of the Hercynian granitoids were not involved at any stage in the formation of the Bayan Obo deposit.     

Geochemistry of ore-forming fluids and geological significance of the Kuoerzhenkuola gold field in Xinjiang, China

The Kuoerzhenkuola gold field (including the Kuo- erzhenkuola and the Buerkesidai gold deposits), lo- cated 68 km east of Jimunai County in northern Xing- jiang, China, is an important component of the Sawuer gold belt which is the eastward extending part of the Zarma-Sawur gold-copper belt in Kazakhstan. Some studies are concerned with the geology of the gold ores[1―3], the associated volcanic rocks[4], radiogenic isotope[5―8], and the ore-forming environment[8]. Most researchers inferr…     

Zebra dolomitization as a result of focused fluid flow in the Rocky Mountains Fold and Thrust Belt, Canada

Discordant zebra dolomite bodies occur locally in the Middle Cambrian Cathedral and Eldon Formations of the Main Ranges of the Canadian Rocky Mountains Fold and Thrust Belt. They are characterized by alternating dark grey (a) and white (b) bands, forming an ‘abba’ diagenetic cyclicity. These bands developed parallel to both bedding and cleavage. Dark grey (a) bands consist of fine (< 300 μm) non-planar crystalline impure dolomite. The white (b) bands are composed of coarse (up to several millimetres) milky-white pure saddle dolomites (b1) which are often covered by pore-lining zoned dolomite (b2). The b phases often possess a saddle-shaped morphology. In contrast to the replacement origin of the a dolomite, the zoned b2 dolomite rims are interpreted as a cement formed in open cavities. The b1 dolomite is interpreted as the result of recrystallization with diagenetic leaching of non-carbonate components. All the zebra dolomites studied are (nearly) stoichiometric and are characterized by enriched Na and depleted Sr concentrations. Fe and Mn concentrations in these dolomites differ depending on the sample locality. Fluid inclusion data indicate that the dolomites formed from relatively hot (T_H = 130–200 °C), saline (20–23 wt% CaCl₂ eq.) fluids. A diagenetic high temperature origin is also supported by depleted δ¹⁸O values (−20 to −14‰ VPDB). A contribution of ⁸⁷Sr-enriched fluids is reflected in the ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values (0·7091–0·7123). Zebra dolomite development is explained by focused fluid flow, which exploited areas of structural weaknesses (e.g. basin-platform, rim areas, faults, etc.). Expulsion of hot basinal brines in a tectonically active regime generated overpressures, which explains the development of secondary porosity during zebra dolomitization as well as the intra-zebra fracturing at decimetre to micrometre scale.