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Title: Unraveling the Effects of Melt–Mantle Interactions on the Gold Fertility of Magmas

Journal Article · · Frontiers in Earth Science
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [4];  [5];  [2];  [2];  [6];  [7];  [7]
  1. Universidad de Chile, Santiago (Chile); Yale Univ., New Haven, CT (United States)
  2. Universidad de Chile, Santiago (Chile)
  3. Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX (United States)
  4. Univ. de Granada (Spain)
  5. Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)
  6. American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, NY (United States)
  7. Univ. Austral de Chile, Valdivia (Chile)
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The oxidation state of the Earth’s mantle and its partial melting products exert a key control on the behavior and distribution of sulfur and chalcophile and siderophile elements between the mantle and crust, underpinning models of ore deposit formation. Whether the oxidized nature of magmas is inherited from the asthenospheric mantle source or acquired during ascent and differentiation is vigorously debated, limiting our understanding of the mechanisms of extraction of sulfur and metals from the mantle. Here, we focused on the redox-sensitive behavior of sulfur in apatite crystallized from quenched alkaline basaltic melts preserved within a peridotite xenolith from the El Deseado Massif auriferous province in southern Patagonia. We took advantage of this unique setting to elucidate the redox evolution of melts during their ascent through the subcontinental lithospheric mantle (SCLM) and grasp the inner workings of the Earth’s mantle during gold metallogenesis. Our data reveal that an initially reduced silicate melt (ΔFMQ -2.2 to -1.2) was oxidized to ΔFMQ between 0 and 1.2 during percolation and interaction with the surrounding peridotite wall-rock (ΔFMQ 0 to +0.8). This process triggered changes in sulfur speciation and solubility in the silicate melt, boosting the potential of the melt to scavenge ore metals such as gold. We suggest that large redox gradients resulting from the interaction between ascending melts and the surrounding mantle can potentially modify the oxidation state of primitive melts and enhance their metallogenic fertility. Among other factors including an enriched metal source and favorable geodynamic conditions, redox gradients in the mantle may exert a first-order control on the global-scale localization of crustal provinces endowed with gold deposits.

Research Organization:
Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-06CH11357
OSTI ID:
1605434
Journal Information:
Frontiers in Earth Science, Vol. 8, Issue (29) ; 02, 2020; ISSN 2296-6463
Publisher:
Frontiers Research FoundationCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
ENGLISH
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 8 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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