In situ mineral geochemistry as a guide to ore-forming processes

Abstract

Isotopic and trace element analyses are essential to our understanding ore-forming processes, but traditionally these techniques have required bulk digestion of rocks and minerals. Recent advances in in situ microanalytical techniques permit us to analyse samples on a mineral-by mineral basis and probe the chemistry of individual growth bands in minerals, providing a near-continuous record in any zoned mineral. This thesis is composed of five studies using the in situ geochemistry of 'gangue' (non-ore) minerals to elucidate cryptic ore-forming processes that are obscured using conventional analyses. The first half of this thesis presents coupled isotopic and trace element analyses in quartz and pyrite from magmatic-hydrothermal Cu-Au deposits. These studies revealed complex chemical zonation, providing a detailed record of cryptic fluid chemistry and depositional processes. A distinct isotopic signature and residual metastable silica hydrates in quartz microcrystals from the El Indio deposit, Chile provided the first evidence for silica maturation in a high-temperature environment and the first evidence for non-equilibrium isotope fractionation in quartz. The second half of this thesis focuses on the trace element chemistry of minerals from the Bellevue Core, a ~3 km drillcore intersecting the upper half of the Bushveld Complex, South Africa - the largest known repository of platinum-group elements (PGEs). These studies revealed a prospective PGE horizon and provide the first evidence for extensive equilibration of plagioclase in cumulate rocks.