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Trace-element geochemistry of molybdenite from porphyry Cu deposits of the Birgilda-Tomino ore cluster (South Urals, Russia)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 March 2018

Olga Y. Plotinskaya*
Affiliation:
Institute of Geology of Ore Deposits, Petrography, Mineralogy, and Geochemistry Russian Academy of Sciences (IGEM RAS), Staromonetny per. 35, Moscow 119017, Russia
Vera D. Abramova
Affiliation:
Institute of Geology of Ore Deposits, Petrography, Mineralogy, and Geochemistry Russian Academy of Sciences (IGEM RAS), Staromonetny per. 35, Moscow 119017, Russia
Elena O. Groznova
Affiliation:
Institute of Geology of Ore Deposits, Petrography, Mineralogy, and Geochemistry Russian Academy of Sciences (IGEM RAS), Staromonetny per. 35, Moscow 119017, Russia Institute of Experimental Mineralogy Russian Academy of Sciences (IEM RAS), Chernogolovka, Moscow region 142432, Russia
Svetlana G. Tessalina
Affiliation:
John de Laeter Centre for Isotope Research & The Institute for Geoscience Research (TIGeR), Curtin University, Kent St, Bentley, WA 6102, Australia
Reimar Seltmann
Affiliation:
Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, UK
John Spratt
Affiliation:
Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, UK
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Abstract

Mineralogical, electron microprobe analysis and laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry data from molybdenite within two porphyry copper deposits (Kalinovskoe and Birgilda) of the Birgilda-Tomino ore cluster (South Urals) are presented. The results provide evidence that molybdenites from these two sites have similar trace-element chemistry. Most trace elements (Si, Fe, Co, Cu, Zn, Ag, Sb, Te, Pb, Bi, Au, As and Se) form mineral inclusions within molybdenite. The Re contents in molybdenite vary from 8.7 ppm to 1.13 wt.%. The Re distribution within single molybdenite flakes is always extremely heterogeneous. It is argued that a temperature decrease favours the formation of Re-rich molybdenite. The high Re content of molybdenite observed points to a mantle-derived source.

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Article
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © The Mineralogical Society 2018
Figure 0

Fig. 1. Geological maps of the Birgilda-Tomino ore cluster: (a) the Kalinovskoe deposit, modified after Grabezhev et al. (2000); (b) modified after Chelyabinskgeolsiomka JSC and Puzhakov (1999); (c) The Birgilda deposit, simplified after Narykova et al. (2015). The inset in (a) shows the East-Uralian volcanic terrane highlighted in grey and the yellow star indicates the position of the Birgilda-Tomino ore cluster.

Figure 1

Fig. 2. Molybdenite from Kalinovskoe: (a,b) sample K-3/112.7, molybdenite (Mol) and chalcopyrite (Ccp) in quartz (Qtz) veinlet in a sericite-chlorite (Ser + Chl) rock; (c,d) sample K-1050/157.5, molybdenite and chalcopyrite cutting a quartz veinlet in an altered diorite; (e,f) sample K-8/100.6, pyrite (Py) and magnetite (Mt) in a quartz veinlet with minor molybdenite; (g,h) sample K-2210/73.4, quartz-sericite altered (Phy) diorite with nests of molybdenite; (h) molybdenite intergrown with chalcopyrite and overgrown by matildite (Mat). ‘SEM’– scanning electron microscope images; (a,c,e,g) – hand specimens; (b,d) – reflected light images.

Figure 2

Fig. 3. Molybdenite (Mol) from Birgilda: (ac) sample Bir-1101/237, molybdenite nests intergrown with chlorite, albite (Ab) and biotite (Bi) in selvages of a quartz veinlet; (df) sample Bir-1101/291.2, molybdenite intergrown with pyrite, chalcopyrite, epidote (Ep), albite and K-feldspar (Kfs); (g,h) sample Bir-4905/294.4, molybdenite overgrown by calcite (Cal), muscovite (Mu) and chlorite; (i) sample Bir-42/84, molybdenite flakes in basalt altered to an albite, epidote assemblage with magnetite, titanite (Tit) and chalcopyrite. ‘SEM’ – scanning electron microscope images; (a,d,g) – hand specimens; (e) – reflected light images.

Figure 3

Table 1. Molybdenite-bearing samples selected for this study.

Figure 4

Table 2. Re-Os ages and abundance results for the molybdenite samples studied.

Figure 5

Table 3. Summary EMPA data for trace elements in molybdenite (wt.%).

Figure 6

Fig. 4. Molybdenite from Kalinovskoe: (a,b) sample K-8/100.6, (a) SEM image of a deformed molybdenite flake showing the locations of the EMPA analyses; (b) ReLα X-ray map of the same area; (c,d) sample K-1050/157.5, (c) SEM image of a molybdenite flake with EMPA profile, (d) ReLα X-ray map; (ei) sample K-3/112.7 – (e) SEM image of a molybdenite aggregate with the positions of the EMPA analyses and the LA-ICP-MS profiles, (f) ReLα X-ray map of the same area; (h,i) the LA-ICP-MS spectra for the profiles 2 and 4, respectively; (j) sample K-2210/73.4 with positions of the LA-ICP-MS analyses and profiles; (k) LA-ICP-MS spectra for line 1.

Figure 7

Table 4. Summary of molybdenite chemistry (LA-ICP-MS data); the full data are presented in Appendix 2.

Figure 8

Table 5. Correlation coefficients for trace elements in molybdenite from the Kalinovskoe site inferred from LA-ICP-MS data: significant* correlation coefficients are highlighted in bold.

Figure 9

Fig. 5. Molybdenite from Birgilda, samples Bir-42/84 (a,b) and Bir-4905/294.4 (c). (a) SEM image of molybdenite flakes; (b) ReLα X-ray map of a fragment of a and the EMPA profile across the flake (the position is indicated by a red arrow); (c) SEM image of a molybdenite ‘semi-rosette’ with the positions of the EMPA and LA-ICP-MS profiles; (d,e) fragments of (c) with the EMPA profiles; (f) ReLα X-ray map of (c); (g) LA-ICP-MS spectra for line 5.

Figure 10

Fig. 6. Molybdenite from Birgilda, sample Bir-1101/291.2: (a) SEM image of a molybdenite aggregate showing the positions of the LA-ICP-MS profiles; (b) ReLα X-ray map of the same area; (c) LA-ICP-MS spectra for line 3; (d–f) fragments of (a) with EMPA profiles.

Figure 11

Fig. 7. Molybdenite from Birgilda, sample Bir-1101/237: (a) SEM image of a molybdenite ‘rosette’ showing the position of the LA-ICP-MS profile; (b) calibrated map of the Re content (wt.%); (c) LA-ICP-MS spectra for line 6; (d,e) fragments of (a) with EMPA profiles.

Figure 12

Fig. 8. Binary diagrams for selected trace elements in molybdenite (LA-ICP-MS data).

Figure 13

Table 6. Correlation coefficients for trace elements in molybdenite from the Birgilda site inferred from LA-ICP-MS data: significant* correlation coefficients are highlighted in bold.

Figure 14

Fig. 9. Compositional variations of chlorite intergrown with molybdenite from Kalinovskoe and Birgilda. [R3+] is the sum of the trivalent cations in the octahedral sites. Classification of chlorites after Bailey (1988).

Figure 15

Table 7. Chemical composition of chlorite (wt.%) associated with molybdenite and calculated temperature (°C); see Appendix 3 for the full data.

Figure 16

Fig. 10. Two types of fluid inclusions measured at the Kalinovskoe (a,b) and Birgilda (c,d) sites. (a) quartz overgrown by molybdenite, reflected light, sample К-2010/73.4; (b) enlarged fragment of (a) in transmitted light, inclusions of VL1L2- and V-types; (c) quartz intergrown with a molybdenite rosette, reflected light, sample Bir-4905/294.5; (d) enlarged fragment of (c) in transmitted light, inclusions of VL type.

Figure 17

Fig. 11. Homogenization temperatures vs. salinity (a) and homogenization temperature vs. eutectic temperatures (b) for individual fluid inclusions.

Figure 18

Table 8. Microthermometric data for primary fluid inclusions in quartz from molybdenite-bearing samples from the Kalinovskoe and Birgilda sites.

Figure 19

Fig. 12. Mean T (°C) vs. mean wt.% Re from the EPMA analyses (Table 3). Error bars are shown for 1 sd. The temperature was calculated after Kotelnikov et al. (2012) (Table 2). The correlation coefficient is given for the whole dataset excluding sample Bir-42/82.

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