Unraveling the Effects of Melt–Mantle Interactions on the Gold Fertility of Magmas
Abstract
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 metalsmore »
- Authors:
-
- 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)
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1605434
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC02-06CH11357
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Frontiers in Earth Science
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 8; Journal Issue: (29) ; 02, 2020; Journal ID: ISSN 2296-6463
- Publisher:
- Frontiers Research Foundation
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- ENGLISH
- Subject:
- 58 GEOSCIENCES
Citation Formats
Tassara, Santiago, Reich, Martin, Konecke, Brian A., González-Jiménez, José María, Simon, Adam C., Morata, Diego, Barra, Fernando, Fiege, Adrian, Schilling, Manuel E., and Corgne, Alexandre. Unraveling the Effects of Melt–Mantle Interactions on the Gold Fertility of Magmas. United States: N. p., 2020.
Web. doi:10.3389/feart.2020.00029.
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. Unraveling the Effects of Melt–Mantle Interactions on the Gold Fertility of Magmas. United States. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2020.00029
Tassara, Santiago, Reich, Martin, Konecke, Brian A., González-Jiménez, José María, Simon, Adam C., Morata, Diego, Barra, Fernando, Fiege, Adrian, Schilling, Manuel E., and Corgne, Alexandre. Tue .
"Unraveling the Effects of Melt–Mantle Interactions on the Gold Fertility of Magmas". United States. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2020.00029. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1605434.
@article{osti_1605434,
title = {Unraveling the Effects of Melt–Mantle Interactions on the Gold Fertility of Magmas},
author = {Tassara, Santiago and Reich, Martin and Konecke, Brian A. and González-Jiménez, José María and Simon, Adam C. and Morata, Diego and Barra, Fernando and Fiege, Adrian and Schilling, Manuel E. and Corgne, Alexandre},
abstractNote = {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.},
doi = {10.3389/feart.2020.00029},
journal = {Frontiers in Earth Science},
number = (29) ; 02, 2020,
volume = 8,
place = {United States},
year = {Tue Feb 11 00:00:00 EST 2020},
month = {Tue Feb 11 00:00:00 EST 2020}
}
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