Dynamics of Ore-Forming Processesof the Stratabound Skarn Copper Depositsof Tongling, Anhui Province

The skarn and ore bodies of the stratabound skarn copper deposits of Tongling, Anhui Province, are both controlled by definite stratigraphic horizons, and they are concordant with the strata. They occur as layers and layer-like bodies in permeable carbonate rocks of the Middle-Upper Carboniferous Huanglong and Chuanshan Formations which are underlain by impermeable shale or siliceous rocks of the Upper Devonian Wutong Formation. The authors study the dynamics of ore-forming processes of the ore deposits with the dynamic model of coupled transport and reaction, and the following results are obtained: The salinity gradient and flow rate of the ore-forming fluids can both promote the mixing and reaction of juvenile water and formation water, and the permeable strata are favourable sites for the intense transport-reaction of mixing and the formation of deposits. (2) As isothermal transport-reaction took place along the bedding of strata, the moving transport-reaction front formed at the contact between the ore-forming fluids and the rocks advanced slowly along the permeable strata, and then stratiform skarn and ore bodies concordant with the strata were formed. (3) The gradient transport-reaction taking place across the isotherms in the cross-bedding direction caused the mineralogical composition to alter gradually from magnesian skarn to sulphide ore bodies.

Geochemical Behaviors of REE and Other Trace Elements during the Formation of Strata-bound Skarns and Related Deposits:A Case Study of the Dongguashan Cu(Au)Deposit,Anhui Province,China

REE and other trace elements in the altered marbles, massive skarns and ores, as well as garnet and quartz were determined in order to examine the behaviors of trace elements during hydrothermal alteration. It is demonstrated that the high-field-strength (HFS) elements Zr, Hf, Th and Nb were immobile while other trace elements were mobile during the formation of skarns and related deposits. REE and ore-forming elements such as Cu and Ag in hydrothermally-altered marbles and skarns were provided primarily by hydrothermal fluids. In the direction transverse of the strata, the more deeply the marbles were altered, the higher the total REE abundance and the larger the negative Eu anomalies would be. The chondrite-normalized REE patterns of skarns are similar to those of the marbles, but the former are distinguished by much higher REE contents and more remarkable negative Eu anomalies. Those patterns were apparently not inherited from the marble protolith, but were controlled by garnets, which were determined by the hydrothermal solutions involved in the infiltration metasomatism. The hydrothermal fluids are characterized by having slightly right-hand dipping REE patterns, being enriched in LREE and having strongly negative Eu anomalies. The uptake of REE from hydrothermal fluids during the growth of garnet crystals resulted in the garnets having similar REE patterns to the hydrothermal fluids. Based on the spatial variation of REE in skarns and the structures of the hosting strata, we can get a better understanding of the transport path and pattern of the fluids involved in the formation of skarns and their related deposits. REE geochemistry investigation can help elucidate the genesis of skarns and skarn-related deposits.

Molybdenite Re-Os,titanite and garnet U-Pb dating of the Magushan skarn Cu-Mo deposit,Xuancheng district,Middle-Lower Yangtze River Metallogenic Belt

The Magushan skarn Cu-Mo deposit is a representative example of the skarn mineralization occurring within the Xuancheng ore district of the Middle-Lower Yangtze River Metallogenic Belt of eastern China.The precise age of an ore deposit is important for understanding the timing of mineralization relative to other geological events in a region and to fully place the formation of a mineral deposit within the geological context of other processes that occur within the study area.Here,we present new molybdenite Re-Os and titanite and andradite garnet U-Pb ages for the Magushan deposit and use these data to outline possible approaches for identifying genetic relationships in geologically complex areas.The spatial and paragenetic relationships between the intrusions,alteration,and mineralization within the study area indicates that the formation of the Magushan deposit is genetically associated with the porphyritic granodiorite.However,this is not always the case,as some areas contain complexly zoned plutons with multiple phases of intrusion or mineralization may be distal from or may not have any clear spatial relationship to a pluton.This means that it may not be possible to determine whether the mineralization formed as a result of single or multiple magmatic/hydrothermal events.As such,the approaches presented in this study provide an approach that allows the identification of any geochronological relationships between mineralization and intrusive events in areas more complex than the study area.Previously published zircon U-Pb data for the mineralization-related porphyritic granodiorite in this area yielded an age of 134.2±1.2 Ma(MSWD=1.4)whereas the Re-Os dating of molybdenite from the study area yielded an isochron age of 137.7±2.5 Ma(MSWD=0.43).The timing of the mineralizing event in the study area was further examined by the dating of magmatic accessory titanite and skarn-related andradite garnet,yielding U-Pb ages of 136.3±2.5 Ma(MSWD=3.2)and 135.9±2.7 Ma(MSWD=2.5),respectively.The dating of magmatic and hydrothermal activity within the Magushan area yields ages around 136 Ma,strongly suggesting that the mineralization in this area formed as a result of the emplacement of the intrusion.The dates presented in this study also provide the first indication of the timing of mineralization within the Xuancheng district.providing evidence of a close genetic relationship between the formation of the mineralization within the Xuancheng district and the Early Cretaceous magmatism that occurred in this area.This in turn suggests that other Early Cretaceous intrusive rocks within this region are likely to be associated with mineralization and should be considered highly prospective for future mineral exploration.This study also indicates that the dating of garnet and titanite can also provide reliable geochronological data and evidence of the timing of mineralization and magmatism,respectively,in areas lacking other dateable minerals(e.g.,molybdenite)or where the relationship between mineralization and magmatism is unclear,for example in areas with multiple stages of magmatism,with complexly zoned plutons,and with distal skarn mineralization.

Geology and geochemistry of Huanggangliang stratabound skarn deposit in Inner Mongolia,China

Over the recent three decades, exploration of a large-size Sn-Fe polymetallic ore deposit at the Huanggangliang, the Da Hinggan Mountains, Inner Mongolia, China, has been largely focused on the premise that the mineralization represents epigenetic magmatic hydrothermal ore deposit in genetic connection with the Mesozoic magmatism. The Huanggangliang Sn-Fe polymetallic ore deposits occurred in Permian strata, with silt- stone/marble of the Zhesi Formation and spilite/andesite/tuff of the Dashizhai Formation. The characteristics of geological and geochemical data demonstrated that sedimentary hydrothermal mineralization occurred during the basin evolution at the Permian, rather than representing epigenetie magmatic hydrothermal genesis with the following evidences. The ore-bearing skarus are stratiform with underlying metasedimentary rocks and overlying volcanic sedimentary rocks. Sedimentary hydrothermal textures and structures are observed in the stratabound ore-bearing skarn such as bedded-laminated skarn and magnetite ores with small-size folding or soft deforma- tion, synsedimentary breccia of skarn and magnetite ores and concentric shell structure of magnetite ores. So the stratabound ore-bearing skarns associated with magnetite ore and micro-disseminated tin, are peculiar examples of exhalite. The REE contents of the stratabound ore-bearing skarns display ∑LREE-rich （36.91×10^-6） but EHREE-depletion （6. 42 ×10^-6） , with positive Eu anomaly （Eu/Eu ＊ 1.28） and negative Ce anomaly （Ce/ Ce ＊ 0.88 ） , which is totally different from REE pattern of the Huanggang magmatic rocks（ with ∑REE 277.73 ×10^-6, ELREE 220.24 ×10^-6, ∑HREE 57.49 ×10^-6, Eu/Eu＊ 0.06, Ce/Ce＊ 1.52） , which is comparable with modern sea-floor hydrothermal fluid,sedimentary hydrothermal ore deposit and associated hydrothermal sedimentary rocks. Calcite samples with δ13CPDB from -5. 400 ‰ to -4. 397 ‰ and δ18SOSMOW from 9. 095 ‰ to 9. 364 ‰ in the stratabound ore-bearing skarns show sedimentary hydrothermal genesis of the Huanggangliang deposit. This proposition is useful not only for interpretation of the genesis of the Huanggangliang large Sn-Fe polymetallic ore deposit but also significant for mineral exploration in the area especially for finding large deposits caused by sedimentary exhalative mineralization processes.

Devonian reef development and strata-bound ore deposits in South China

This study focuses on the close association between Devonian reefs and the strata-bound ore deposits in South China.For the first time,the development of Devonian reefs was subdivided into three stages,respectively as the initial,succeeding and peak stages,and its evolution model is proposed.In Dachang,Nandan county,Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region(Guangxi for short),a large-scale strata-bound ore deposit formed in a Devonian reef,which was affected by marine volcanic activities and Mesozoic magmatic intrusions.The reef-building reached its peak stage at the Givetian,indicating a large-scale build-up of reef and inter-reef depression.In central-eastern Hunan Province,the strata-bound ore deposits belong to low-temperature ore-types without later magmatic intrusions or volcanic activities.In Hunan Province as well as many other localities in South China,the Givetian reefs played important roles in mobilizing ore-forming materials from the surrounding pre-Devonian rocks,providing spaces and passages for transporting hydrothermal fluid,and progressing mineralization and accumulation of ore-forming materials.

Metamorphic Skarns in the Yangla Cu Ore Field,Northwest Yunnan Province,China

The Yangla Copper Ore Field in Northwest Yunnan Province, China, is a large region of deposits dominated by copper-bearing skarns whose origin remains debatable despite numerous studies over the past two decades. We have investigated the geological and geochemical characteristics of the skarns using field and microscopic observations combined with chemical analyses. The results show that the skarns fall into two categories. The first category is metamorphic skarn, which constitute the majority （〉90%） of skarns in the deposit and is characterized by stratiform occurrences conformable to Devonian host strata, anhydrous mineral assemblages such as diopside＋hedenbergite＋quartz, widespread banded structure, fine-grainsize （〈200 μm） and preserved tuff-like textures. Whole-rock major element compositions, REE and trace-element compositions resemble those of the country rock slates or schists. The skarn layers occur at variable distances （0-2 000 m） from Indosinian plutonic bodies. Fracture-filling veins and/or alteration halos are scarce or absent in or near the skarn layers. This category of skarn probably formed by isochemical contact metamorphism of fine calcareous clastic sediments or impure carbonate rocks during emplacement of the plutonic bodies with no significant material migration by hydrothermal fluids involved during the process, in which case metallic enrichment of the skarn layers was present in the protolith of the skarn. The second category is metasomatic skarn with relatively coarse-grained textures （200-〉1 000 μm） and volatile-reach assemblages such as diopside＋tremolite＋scapolite at or near the igneous contact zones, which constitutes only a minor pro-portion of ore compared with metamorphic skarn. Taking into consideration diverse existing opinions about the genetic type of the deposit, we suggest that the geological and whole-rock geochemical characteristics of the skarus are consistent with a metamorphosed and metasomatized SEDEX （sedimentary exhalative deposit） type rather than a hydrothermal metasomatic skarn type.

Geological characteristics and mineralization setting of the Zhuxi tungsten(copper) polymetallic deposit in the Eastern Jiangnan Orogen

The Zhuxi ore deposit is a super-large scheelite(copper) polymetallic deposit discovered in recent years. It grew above copper/tungsten-rich Neoproterozoic argilloarenaceous basement rocks and was formed in the contact zone between Yanshanian granites and Carboniferous-Permian limestone. Granites related to this mineralization mainly include equigranular, middle- to coarse-grained granites and granitic porphyries. There are two mineralization types: skarn scheelite(copper) and granite scheelite mineralization. The former is large scale and has a high content of scheelite, whereas the latter is small scale and has a low content of scheelite. In the Taqian-Fuchun Basin, its NW boundary is a thrust fault, and the SE boundary is an angular unconformity with Proterozoic basement. In Carboniferous-Permian rock assemblages, the tungsten and copper contents in the limestone are both very high. The contents of major elements in granitoids do not differ largely between the periphery and the inside of the Zhuxi ore deposit. In both areas, the values of the aluminum saturation index are A/CNK>1.1, and the rocks are classified as potassium-rich strongly peraluminous granites. In terms of trace elements, compared to granites on the periphery of the Zhuxi ore deposit, the granites inside the Zhuxi ore deposit have smaller d Eu values, exhibit a significantly more negative Eu anomaly, are richer in Rb, U, Ta, Pb and Hf, and are more depleted in Ba, Ce, Sr, La and Ti, which indicates that they are highly differentiated S-type granites with a high degree of evolution. Under the influence of fluids, mineralization of sulfides is evident within massive rock formations inside the Zhuxi ore deposit, and the mean SO_3 content is 0.2%. Compared to peripheral rocks, the d Eu and total rare earth element(REE) content of granites inside the Zhuxi ore deposit are both lower, indicating a certain evolutionary inheritance relationship between the granites on the periphery and the granites inside the Zhuxi ore deposit. For peripheral and ore district plutons, U-Pb zircon dating shows an age range of 152–148 Ma. In situ Lu-Hf isotope analysis of zircon in the granites reveals that the calculated e_(Hf)(t) values are all negative, and the majority range from -6 to -9. The T_(DM2) values are concentrated in the range of 1.50–1.88 Ga(peak at 1.75 Ga), suggesting that the granitic magmas are derived from partial melting of ancient crust. This paper also discusses the metallogenic conditions and ore-controlling conditions of the ore district from the perspectives of mineral contents, hydrothermal alteration, and ore-controlling structures in the strata and the ore-bearing rocks. It is proposed that the Zhuxi ore deposit went through a multistage evolution, including oblique intrusion of granitic magmas, skarn mineralization, cooling and alteration, and precipitation of metal sulfides. The mineralization pattern can be summarized as "copper in the east and tungsten in the west, copper at shallow-middle depths and tungsten at deep depths, tungsten in the early stage and copper in the late stage".