Geochemistry of the Limahe Intrusion in the Panxi District, SW China:Discussion on the Relationship to the Emeishan Basalts

The Limahe intrusion is a typical rock hosting Cu-Ni sulfide deposit in the Panxi district.The major element, trace element and Sr-Nd isotopic geochemical data are reported in this study both firstly and systemically. Age-corrected (87Sr/86Sr)t and εNd(t) isotope values, ranging from 0.687062 to 0.709298, from -0.6 to -4.13 respectively, are partly overlap the field of the Emeishan basalt and OIB,and they lie between upper crust and OIB generally. The similar patterns between the Limahe intrusion and the picrites of the Emeishan large igneous province imply the genetic relationship to the Emeishan basalts. Their lower Nb/U (<30), higher (La/Nb)PM and (Th/Ta) PM ratio values (>1) indicate contamination of the upper crust material. The correlation between MgO and major oxides reflects the fractional crystallization of olivine, clinopyroxene and minor plagioclase in the deep-seated chamber. Therefore increased SiO2 and lowered FeO by the upper crustal contamination may trigger immiscible sulfide melt, which then flowed along the structural fracture and intruded into gabbro-diorite, resulting in the formation of Cu-Ni sulfide orebody.