Rare Earth, Major and Trace Elements in the Kunimiyama Ferromanganese Deposit in the Northern Chichibu Belt, Central Shikoku, Japan

Abstract. Rare earth, major and trace element geochemistry is reported for the Kunimiyama stratiform ferromanganese deposit in the Northern Chichibu Belt, central Shikoku, Japan. The deposit immediately overlies greenstones of mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB) origin and underlies red chert. The ferromanganese ores exhibit remarkable enrichments in Fe, Mn, P, V, Co, Ni, Zn, Y and rare earth elements (excepting Ce) relative to continental crustal abundance. These enriched elements/ Fe ratios and Post-Archean Average Australian Shale-normalized REE patterns of the ferromanganese ores are generally analogous to those of modern hydrothermal ferromanganese plume fall-out precipitates deposited on MOR flanks. However in more detail, Mn and Ti enrichments in the ferromanganese ores are more striking than the modern counterpart, suggesting a significant contribution of hydrogenetic component in the Kunimiyama ores. Our results are consistent with the interpretation that the Kunimiyama ores were umber deposits that primarily formed by hydrothermal plume fall-out precipitation in the Panthalassa Ocean during the Early Permian and then accreted onto the proto-Japanese island arc during the Middle Jurassic. The presence of strong negative Ce anomaly in the Kunimiyama ores may indicate that the Early Permian Panthalassa seawater had a more striking negative Ce anomaly due to a more oxidizing oceanic condition than today.     

Mineralogy and geochemistry of a Late Permian coal in the Dafang Coalfield, Guizhou, China: influence from siliceous and iron-rich calcic hydrothermal fluids

This paper describes the influence of siliceous and iron-rich calcic low-temperature hydrothermal fluids (LTHF) on the mineralogy and geochemistry of the Late Permian No. 11 Coal (anthracitic, R_r=2.85%) in the Dafang Coalfield in northwestern Guizhou Province, China. The No. 11 Coal has high contents of vein ankerite (10.2 vol.%) and vein quartz (11.4 vol.%), with formation temperatures of 85 and 180 °C, respectively, indicating that vein ankerite and vein quartz were derived from low-temperature calcic and siliceous hydrothermal fluids in two epigenetic episodes. The vein quartz appears to have formed earlier than vein ankerite did, and at least three distinct stages of ankerite formation with different Ca/Sr and Fe/Mn ratios were observed.The two types of mineral veins are sources of different suites of major and trace metals. Scanning electron microscope and sequential extraction studies show that, in addition to Fe, Mg, and Ca, vein ankerite is the dominant source of Mn, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn in the coal, and the contents of these five elements are as high as 0.09% and 74.0, 33.6, 185, and 289 μg/g, respectively. In contrast, vein quartz is the main carrier mineral for platinum-group elements (PGEs) Pd, Pt, and Ir in the coal, and the contents of Pd, Pt, and Ir are 1.57, 0.15, and 0.007 μg/g, respectively. Sequential extraction showed a high PGE content in the silicate fraction, up to 10.4 μg/g Pd, 1.23 μg/g Pt, and 0.05 μg/g Ir, respectively. It is concluded that the formation of ankerite and quartz and the anomalous enrichment of trace elements in the No. 11 Coal in the Dafang Coalfield, Guizhou, result from the influx of calcic and siliceous low-temperature hydrothermal fluids.     

9: Processes of tectonism, magmatism and mineralization: Lessons from Europe

Metallogenic provinces in Europe range in age from the Archaean to the Neogene. Deposit types include porphyry copper and epithermal Cu–Au, volcanic-hosted massive sulphide (VMS), orogenic gold, Fe-oxide–Cu–Au, anorthosite Fe–Ti-oxide and sediment-hosted base-metal deposits. Most of them formed during short-lived magmatic events in a wide range of tectonic settings; many can be related to specific tectonic processes such as subduction, hinge retreat, accretion of island arcs, continental collision, lithosphere delamination or slab tear. In contrast, most sediment-hosted deposits in Europe evolved in extensional, continental settings over significant periods of time. In Europe, as elsewhere, ore formation is an integral part of the geodynamic evolution of the Earth's crust and mantle. Many tectonic settings create conditions conducive to the generation of water-rich magma, but the generation of ore deposits appears to be restricted to locations and short periods of change in temperature and stress, imposed by transitory plate motions. Crustal influence is evident in the strong structural controls on the location and morphology of many ore deposits in Europe. Crustal-scale fault–fracture systems, many involving strike-slip elements, have provided the fabric for major plumbing systems. Rapid uplift, as in metamorphic core complexes, and hydraulic fracturing can generate or focus magmatic–hydrothermal fluid flow that may be active for time spans significantly less than a million years. Once a hydrologically stable flow is established, ore formation is strongly dependent on the steep temperature and pressure gradients experienced by the fluid, particularly within the upper crust. In Europe, significant fracture porosity deep in the crystalline basement (1%) is not only important for magmatic–hydrothermal systems, but allows brines to circulate down through sedimentary basins and then episodically upward, expelled seismically to produce sediment-hosted base-metal deposits and Kupferschiefer copper deposits. Emerging research, stimulated by GEODE, can improve the predicting power of numerical simulations of ore-forming processes and help discover the presence of orebodies beneath barren overburden.     

中国叠生型铁矿床成矿特征探讨

叠生成矿作用主要是指早期成矿作用被晚期成矿作用叠加、复合和改造。晚期成矿作用的性质常与早期成矿作用不同,也就是说,在早先己有矿床(或矿体、矿源层)的基础上,叠加复合了晚期成矿作用,即成矿时间上有先后、空间产出上有重叠、并对早先形成的矿床进行复杂的复合、叠加和改造,使成矿作用具有多样性、复杂性,并可形成大矿、富矿。铁矿床中叠生成矿作用广泛发育。按矿床或矿体产出和形成的地质特征,中国叠生型铁矿床可分为风化淋滤型、热液叠加改造型和热液叠加复合型3个亚类。风化淋滤型铁矿床在中国分布有限,规模不大,工业利用价值不大,因而中国的叠生型铁矿床主要是指热液叠加改造型和热液叠加复合型两个亚类。热液叠加改造型主要是指早期的铁矿床(或矿体、矿源层)经后期热液叠加改造,使早期的较贫铁矿床(或矿体、矿源层)成为较富铁矿床(或矿体),这是中国BIF型铁矿床中最重要的富铁矿类型,以鞍本地区弓长岭二矿区为典型代表。弓长岭二矿区铁矿,早期在新太古代形成条带状磁铁石英岩(2528 Ma,贫矿石),后期在古元古代,含矿热液交代改造贫铁矿形成富铁矿(1840 Ma)。热液叠加复合型主要是指后期脉型铁(或稀土元素等)矿床叠加在早期(沉积或其他成因)铁等矿床上而形成的矿床,如白云鄂博铁-铌-稀土元素矿床和黔西菱铁矿矿床。白云鄂博铁-铌-稀土元素矿床的形成与火成碳酸岩有关,在中元古代(1.3 Ga)左右,区内火成碳酸岩的侵位,在早期主要形成以岩浆熔离作用为主的铁-铌-稀土元素矿,晚期叠加了加里东期稀土-铌矿化热液脉。古陆边缘构造带或陆内活化带是形成叠生型铁矿床的有利构造空间,较大的地球化学块体,为形成多期、多成因的矿床提供物质来源,叠生型铁矿床的形成明显受构造的控制。叠生成矿是复杂地质过程的一种具体表现。热液叠加改造型和热液叠加复合型的叠生型铁矿床的形成是因中国独特的大地构造环境决定的。叠生成矿作用的研究,尚处在初步阶段。加强对叠生成矿作用的研究,了解其形成的地质背景、成矿机制、作用过程、控矿因素等,对发展矿床学研究,认识区域成矿特征和指导地质找矿具有重要的理论和实际意义。     

西藏拿若铜(金)矿床隐爆角砾岩流体包裹体研究

隐爆角砾岩是西藏拿若矿床的重要组成部分,赋存厚大的铜矿体。笔者将隐爆角砾岩中流体分成两个主要期次,并对这两期流体开展包裹体研究。通过包裹体岩相学和显微测温认为:角砾中的石英(早期)包裹体形状均匀呈椭圆形,大小主要在2~5μm;胶结物中石英(晚期)包裹体形状可见椭圆状、长条状和近方形,大小主要在2~7μm。早期流体的包裹体可分为两个阶段,均一温度分别为早阶段280~368℃和晚阶段208~305℃,盐度分布为(4.65~12.73)%Na Cleq。晚期流体的包裹体同样可分为两个阶段,其均一温度分别为早阶段309~588℃和晚阶段232~335℃,盐度变化为(3.55~12.51)%Na Cleq,两个阶段的流体分别属于高温、中低盐度和中高温、中低盐度流体。L-V型包裹体激光拉曼分析显示:包裹体中气泡成分主要为气态H2O和少量CO2。拿若矿床至少经历两次隐爆作用,由晚期沸腾热液引起,并未成矿。成矿作用发生于隐爆角砾岩形成之后。     

Reflectance spectroscopic characterisation of mineral alteration footprints associated with sediment-hosted gold mineralisation at Mt Olympus (Ashburton Basin,Western Australia)

Hydrothermal ore deposits are typically characterised by footprints of zoned mineral assemblages that extend far beyond the size of the orebody. Understanding the mineral assemblages and spatial extent of these hydrothermal footprints is crucial for successful exploration, but is commonly hindered by the impact of regolith processes on the Earth's surface. Hyperspectral drill core (HyLogger?-3) data were used to characterise alteration mineralogy at the Mt Olympus gold deposit located 35 km southeast of Paraburdoo along the Nanjilgardy Fault within the northern margin of the Ashburton Basin in Western Australia. Mineralogy interpreted from hyperspectral data over the visible to shortwave (400–2500 nm) and thermal (6000–14500 nm) infrared wavelength ranges was validated with X-ray diffraction and geochemical analyses. Spaceborne multispectral (ASTER) and airborne geophysical (airborne electromagnetic, AEM) data were evaluated for mapping mineral footprints at the surface and sub-surface. At the deposit scale, mineral alteration patterns were identified by comparing the most abundant mineral groups detected in the HyLogger data against lithology logging and gold assays. Potential hydrothermal alteration phases included Na/K-alunite, kaolin phases (kaolinite, dickite), pyrophyllite, white mica, chlorite and quartz, representing low-T alteration of earlier greenschist metamorphosed sediments. The respective zoned mineral footprints varied depending on the type of sedimentary host rock. Siltstones were mainly characterised by widespread white-mica alteration with proximal kaolinite alteration or quartz veining. Sandstones showed (1) distal white mica, intermediate dickite, and proximal alunite + kaolinite or (2) widespread white-mica alteration with associated intervals of kaolinite. In both, sandstones and siltstones, chlorite was distal to gold mineralisation. Conglomerates showed distal kaolinite/dickite and proximal white-mica/dickite alteration. Three-dimensional visualisation of the gold distribution and spatially associated alteration patterns around Mt Olympus revealed three distinct categories: (1) several irregular, poddy, SE-plunging zones of >0.5 ppm gold intersected by the Zoe Fault; (2) sulfate alteration proximal to mineralisation, particularly on the northern side of the Mt Olympus open pit; and (3) varying Al^IVAl^VISi^IV_–1(Mg,Fe)^VI_–1 composition of white micas with proximity to gold mineralisation. Chlorite that developed during regional metamorphic or later hydrothermal alteration occurs distal to gold mineralisation. ASTER mineral mapping products, such as the MgOH Group Content used to map chlorite (±white mica) assemblages, showed evidence of correlation to mapped, local structural features and unknown structural or lithological contacts as indicated by inversion modelling of AEM data.     

Evidence for a shock-metamorphic breccia within a buried impact crater,Lake Raeside,Yilgarn Craton,Western Australia

Mineral exploration drilling 60 km west of Leonora in 2008 intersected >95 m of poorly consolidated granitoid-dominated breccia at the base of a Cenozoic paleochannel beneath Lake Raeside. The breccia, initially interpreted as a kimberlite, is composed of poorly consolidated fragments of granitic gneiss, felsite and metamorphosed mafic rock within a matrix of fine to medium-grained breccia. Microscopic examination revealed quartz grains displaying well-developed planar deformation features (PDFs) dominated by the ω? {1013} planar set, diaplectic silica glass and diaplectic plagioclase glass. These features constitute the diagnostic hallmarks of shock metamorphism owing to high-velocity impact of a large meteorite or asteroid. The PDFs in quartz grains of the breccia are distinctly different from metamorphic deformation lamellae produced tectonically or in diatremes. Airborne total magnetic intensity data suggest an outline of an 11 km-diameter crater, consistent with the significant thickness of the shock-metamorphosed breccia at >95 m, suggestive of the existence of a large impact structure.     

鄂尔多斯盆地纳岭沟铀矿床绿泥石特征及地质意义

纳岭沟铀矿床位于鄂尔多斯盆地北部,具有明显的后期热液作用的特征,矿体空间展布主要受控于绿色-灰色砂岩的过渡界面,与绿泥石化的蚀变砂岩关系密切。通过对纳岭沟铀矿床不同颜色砂岩中的绿泥石进行详细的岩相学研究和电子探针化学成分分析,依据绿泥石的成因与共生矿物的关系,识别出绿泥石主要的3种类型:填隙物型绿泥石,片状与黄铁矿共生型绿泥石以及黑云母蚀变型绿泥石;同时通过绿泥石的Fe-Si图解确定了纳岭沟铀矿床不同颜色砂岩中的绿泥石主要为铁镁绿泥石和密绿泥石。根据Al/(Fe+Mg+Al)-Mg/(Fe+Mg)的关系图解确定出不同颜色砂岩中的绿泥石具有铁镁质流体和泥质两种来源,通过绿泥石中主要阳离子与镁的关系图解和计算得出的绿泥石形成温度共同确定出绿泥石是多期次的中低温热液流体作用的产物。综合研究表明,纳岭沟铀矿床的绿泥石形成至少经历了温度稍高的还原性流体和温度稍低的氧化性流体等两个期次的流体作用,稍高温的还原性流体与成矿关系更为重要。与绿泥石形成有关的热液流体作用不仅带入了部分铀,还促进了铀的活化和运移。     

陕县宽坪银多金属矿区地质特征与成矿规律

陕县宽坪银多金属矿位于崤山矿集区内,已探明银铅锌储量达中等以上规模。通过研究矿区地质特征,认为矿体主要受构造蚀变带控制,在含矿热液的多期、多阶段交代和充填作用下,在构造有利部位富集成矿。     

广东厚婆坳整装勘查区锡多金属矿资源潜力分析

利用广东厚婆坳整装勘查区内的典型矿床、重点工作区、其他矿床的潜力评价成果,建立了8个定量预测模型区;然后通过综合信息分析,按热液型、斑岩型2种矿床类型在厚婆坳整装勘查区分别圈定并优选了最小预测区,进行资源量估算;最后对最小预测区进行归并整理,形成综合预测区,在此基础上提出了勘查部署建议。