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

Tassara, Santiago; Reich, Martin; Konecke, Brian A.; González-Jiménez, José María; Simon, Adam C.; Morata, Diego; Barra, Fernando; Fiege, Adrian; Schilling, Manuel E.; Corgne, Alexandre

doi:10.3389/feart.2020.00029

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

Journal Article · Mon Feb 10 23:00:00 EST 2020 · Frontiers in Earth Science

DOI:https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2020.00029· OSTI ID:1605434

Tassara, Santiago ^[1]; Reich, Martin ^[2]; Konecke, Brian A. ^[3]; González-Jiménez, José María ^[4]; Simon, Adam C. ^[5]; Morata, Diego ^[2]; Barra, Fernando ^[2]; Fiege, Adrian ^[6]; Schilling, Manuel E. ^[7]; Corgne, Alexandre ^[7]

Universidad de Chile, Santiago (Chile); Yale Univ., New Haven, CT (United States)
Universidad de Chile, Santiago (Chile)
Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States); NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX (United States)
Univ. de Granada (Spain)
Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)
American Museum of Natural History (AMNH), New York, NY (United States)
Univ. Austral de Chile, Valdivia (Chile)

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.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

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, Journal Name: Frontiers in Earth Science Journal Issue: (29) ; 02, 2020 Vol. 8; ISSN 2296-6463

Publisher:: Frontiers Research FoundationCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: ENGLISH

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