Adakites, High-Nb Basalts and Copper–Gold Deposits in Magmatic Arcs and Collisional Orogens: An Overview

Geochronology, Geochemistry, and Lu-Hf Isotopic Compositions of Monzogranite Intrusion from the Chang’anpu Mo Deposit, NE China: Implications for Tectonic Setting and Mineralization

The Chang’anpu Molybdenum deposit occurs in the monzogranite intrusions in the Lesser Khingan Mountains-Zhangguangcai Mountains metallogenic belt. Previous work focused on the study of deposits, including geological characteristics, mineralization time, S-Pb isotope, etc. However, systematic petrogeochemical study of monzogranite intrusion and comparative analysis with other porphyry deposits in the region are lacking. Three monzogranite dating samples yield LA-ICP-MS zircon weighted mean 206Pb/238U ages of 174.7 ± 1.3 Ma, 174.9 ± 1.4 Ma, and 174.3 ± 1.8 Ma, respectively, indicating that the magmatism occurred in the middle Jurassic of Mesozoic. The 14 monzogranite samples show alkali rich and relatively high silica content (up to 84.39%) with the differentiation index (DI) ranges from 86 to 96, showing that monzogranite have been subjected to fractional crystallization during its evolution; the depletion of Ba, Sr, P, Nb, Ti, and Eu also indicates that the rock has undergone crystallization fractionation, the monzogranite belong to the highly fractionated I-type. Positive εHf(t) values (6.72–8.85) and young TDM2 (551–673 Ma) of the monzogranite indicate that the formation of Chang’anpu monzogranite intrusion is related to the partial melting of juvenile lower crust, originated from the Mesoproterozoic depleted mantle. The magmatism and related Mo mineralization in the Chang’anpu deposit occurred in an active continental margin setting associated with westward subduction of the Paleo-Pacific plate beneath the Eurasian plate.

Formation of Gold Alloys during Crustal Differentiation of Convergent Zone Magmas: Constraints from an AU-Rich Websterite in the Stanovoy Suture Zone (Russian Far East)

Gold is typically transported by mafic and evolved magmas into the upper crust to be deposited in shallow oxidized porphyry and epithermal environments. However, the magmatic behavior of gold is still poorly understood and warrants further attention. Additional insights into the magmatic evolution of gold and other noble metals can be provided by investigations of primitive convergent zone magmas and products of their differentiation that contain primary-textured Au-alloys. One of the best examples of such Au-rich ultramafic cumulates is the Triassic (232–233 Ma) Ildeus intrusion, which was emplaced within the Mesozoic Stanovoy subduction zone in the Russian Far East. Some websterites from the Ildeus intrusion, representing cumulates crystallized from a primitive convergent zone magma, are enriched in Au (up to 596 ppm) and contain abundant Cu-Ag-Au micro-particles. Most of these Au-alloy micro-particles display compositions similar to those previously found in explosive pyroclastic rocks in the Lesser Khingan iron district, mantle wedge peridotites in Kamchatka and Cretaceous adakites in the Stanovoy suture zone. Textural and compositional characteristics suggest that Cu-Ag-Au alloys precipitated from a primitive calc-alkaline melt during its crustal differentiation in a Mesozoic paleo-subduction zone. Some large Cu-Ag-Au grains display an internal honeycomb-like structure with alternating Cu-rich and Cu-poor zones. Heating experiments under atmospheric conditions recorded a substantial loss of Cu from primary magmatic Cu-Ag-Au alloys, which appears to be a process characteristic of oxidized hydrothermal ore systems. We suggest that the later-stage hydrothermal alteration of differentiated igneous conduits containing magmatic gold alloys results in the formation of Cu-free gold mineralization comparable to the upper crustal porphyry and epithermal environments.