Paleoproterozoic SEDEX-type stratiform mineralization overprinted by Mesozoic vein-type mineralization in the Qingchengzi Pb-Zn deposit, Northeastern China

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jseaes.2019.104009Get rights and content

Highlights

  • Ore-forming fluids of stratiform mineralization belong to a NaCl-H2O system.

  • Those of vein-type mineralization are attributed to a NaCl-H2O-CO2 system.

  • Ore-forming materials of vein-type mineralization were partly from stratiform ores.

  • Paleoproterozoic stratiform mineralization is typical of SEDEX-type deposits.

  • Vein-type mineralization represents a moderate-temperature hydrothermal deposit.

Abstract

The Qingchengzi Pb–Zn deposit is located in the northeastern Jiao–Liao–Ji Belt (JLJB), North China Craton (NCC). Field observation and age dating indicate that the deposit was formed from Paleoproterozoic sedimentary exhalative (SEDEX) stratiform mineralization overprinted by Late Triassic hydrothermal vein-type mineralization. Five types of fluid inclusions (FIs) are identified in the quartz grains, based on petrography and laser Raman spectroscopy: liquid-rich two-phase (type 1), vapor-rich two-phase (type 2), CO2-bearing (types 3a and 3b), and CO2-pure (type 4). Quartz from the SEDEX stratiform ores contains only type 1 FIs, and hydrogen-oxygen isotopic compositions indicate that the ore-forming fluids were magmatic water-derived. The ore-forming fluids were likely of medium-temperatures and low-salinity, and belonged to a NaCl–H2O hydrothermal system. Quartz from the vein-types contains all five types of FIs, and the ore-forming fluids may have belonged to a medium-temperature, low-salinity NaCl–H2O–CO2 hydrothermal system. Hydrogen-oxygen isotopes indicate that the vein-type ore-forming fluids were derived from magmatic-meteoric mixed source. Rare-earth element (REE) and sulfur-lead isotopic compositions indicate that ore-forming materials of the SEDEX stratiform mineralization were derived from the wall-rocks and magma, wheres those of the vein-type mineralization were derived from Late Triassic granitic magma, wall-rocks, and the Paleoproterozoic SEDEX ores.

Based on field geological and geochronological data, we propose the following regional metallogenic model: (1) SEDEX mineralization occurred during the Paleoproterozoic post-collisional extension in the JLJB; (2) vein-type mineralization was generated by the north-dipping subduction of the Yangtze Craton beneath the NCC, which led to continent-continent collision and slab break-off in the Late Triassic.

Introduction

The Paleoproterozoic Jiao–Liao–Ji Belt (JLJB; also called the Liaoji Belt; Zhai and Santosh, 2011) is a narrow, elongate domain that trends NE–SW for 700 km from eastern Shandong, through eastern Liaoning and southern Jilin, in China, and extends into northern North Korea (Fig. 1). The belt is located in the eastern North China Craton (NCC, Fig. 1c) and is one of the most important and oldest tectonic/metallogenic belts within the NCC (Liu et al., 2014a, Cai et al., 2017, Xu et al., 2018). This belt records a long and complicated history of magmatism, tectonic deformation, multi-stage metamorphic evolution, and crustal reworking (Liu et al., 2014b, Xu et al., 2018). In recent decades, magmatic–hydrothermal Au–Ag deposits (e.g., Xiaotongjiapuzi, Baiyun, and Gaojiapuzi; Zhang et al., 2016a, Zhang et al., 2019, Liu et al., 2019), stratiform–vein Pb–Zn deposits (e.g., Qingchengzi; Yu et al., 2009, Ma et al., 2016, Duan et al., 2017), and non-metallic deposits (e.g., talc, borate, and magnesite in the Dashiqiao area, southern Liaoning, China; Tang et al., 2009, Misch et al., 2018) have been discovered in the JLJB. The Qingchengzi Pb–Zn deposit is one of the largest deposits in the JLJB (located in the northeastern part of the belt, Fig. 1c) and consists of at least 10 ore blocks, including the Zhenzigou, Xiquegou, Diannan, Benshan, Nanshan, Mapao, and Erdao blocks (Dong, 2012, Ma et al., 2016). This deposit contains >85,000 tons of Pb and 69,000 tons of Zn (LDQMCL, 2016), and exhibits stratiform and vein mineralization types.

The mining history of the Qingchengzi Pb–Zn deposit extends back to the Ming dynasty (>400 years ago; Wang et al., 2016, Ma et al., 2016), and relevant theoretical research began during the 1900s. Many studies have investigated the geological characteristics of the deposit (Wang et al., 2010, Dong, 2012), the sources of ore-forming fluids and materials (Ma et al., 2012a, Ma et al., 2012b, Ma et al., 2013a, Ma et al., 2013b, Yang et al., 2015a, Yang et al., 2016, Duan et al., 2017), diagenesis, and metallogenic geochronology (Yu et al., 2009, Duan et al., 2012, Duan et al., 2014, Ma et al., 2016). However, the ore genesis and metallogenic models of the deposit are still debated, partly because of inaccuracies in the dating methods employed in previous isotopic studies, and this limits our understanding of the ore-forming fluids and materials.

Several metallogenic models have been proposed for the Qingchengzi Pb–Zn deposit. Zhang (1984) proposed a metamorphic origin. Jiang, 1987, Jiang, 1988 studied the O, C, Pb, and S isotopes of ore bodies and wall-rocks, and proposed that the initial source of ore-forming materials was mainly from seafloor volcanic eruptions, classifying the deposit as a sedimentary–metamorphic–hydrothermal stratabound Pb–Zn deposit. Liu and Ai, 2001, Xue et al., 2003, and Duan et al. (2017) proposed various versions of a Mesozoic hydrothermal mineralization model based on isotopic data and trace-element analyses. Liu et al. (2007) studied the genesis of siliceous rocks and syngenetic faults in the Qingchengzi deposit and suggested that seafloor exhalative sedimentation and mineralization occurred during the early stage of the formation of the deposit.

Two different types of mineralization (stratiform and vein-type) have been identified in the Qingchengzi Pb–Zn deposit, but data from previous studies are insufficient to clearly constrain the ore genesis. We therefore, investigated the stratiform and vein-type mineralization to determine the ore genesis of this deposit.

In this study, three representative ore blocks (Zhenzigou, Diannan, and Xiquegou) were selected for systematic analysis of ore deposits. Here, we present the results of fluid inclusion microthermometry and laser Raman spectroscopy, stable (H–O–S) and radiogenic (Pb) isotopic analyses, and ore rare-earth element (REE) analyses of the stratiform and vein-type mineralization in the Qingchengzi Pb–Zn deposit. These new datasets allow us to explore the sources of ore-forming fluids and materials, discuss the mineral precipitation mechanism, and ascertain the ore genesis of the two different mineralization types, with the aim of providing a better understanding of Pb–Zn metallogenesis in the northeastern JLJB.

Section snippets

Geological setting

The NCC is the largest cratonic block in China and contains rocks as old as ca 3.8 Ga (Liu et al., 1992, Song et al., 1996, Lu et al., 2006, Wang et al., 2017). It covers ~1.5 × 106 km2 in northern China, the southern part of northeastern China, Inner Mongolia, Bohai Bay, and the northern Yellow Sea (Fig. 1a; Zhao et al., 2005). The NCC is surrounded by several large orogenic belts, namely, the Central Asian Orogenic Belt in the north, the Central China Orogen in the southwest, the

Stratigraphy

The Qingchengzi Pb–Zn ore district is located in the northeastern JLJB (Fig. 1c). The strata exposed within the ore district are mainly sedimentary–metamorphic rocks of the Paleoproterozoic Liaohe Group and Quaternary sediments (Fig. 2). Within the ore district, the Liaohe Group consists of the Langzishan, Gaojiayu, Dashiqiao, and Gaixian formations (from bottom to top; the Li’eryu Formation is missing). The Langzishan Formation is not exposed in the ore district and consists mainly of

Fluid inclusions

Fluid inclusion (FI) petrography, microthermometry, and laser Raman spectroscopy were performed at the Laboratory of Geological Fluid, Jilin University (Changchun, China). Samples for FI study were collected from underground mine ore of the Qingchengzi Pb–Zn deposit (Nos. 2, 320, 319, and 289 ore bodies of the Zhenzigou ore block, No. 3 ore body of the Diannan ore block, and No. 426 ore body of the Xiquegou ore block). Doubly polished thin sections (~0.20 mm thick) were made from 54 quartz

Fluid inclusions

Petrographic studies and inclusion analyses focused on fluid inclusion assemblages (FIAs, Goldstein and Reynolds, 1994). A group of inclusions trapped synchronously represents a true FIA if the inclusions were trapped along the same primary growth zone in quartz, or along the same healed fracture (Goldstein and Reynolds, 1994, Goldstein, 2001, Goldstein, 2003). In the Qingchengzi deposit, it is difficult to identify FIs in quartz grains that meet these criteria (especially as the stratiform

Stratiform mineralization

The FI study shows that hydrothermal quartz grain from the stratiform ores contain only type 1 inclusions, which exhibit medium-temperatures (221–246 °C, mean = 234 °C) and low-salinities (4.0–6.9 wt% NaCl eq.), as determined by observations of phase transitions during heating experiments. Results indicate that the ore-forming fluids of stratiform mineralization belonged to a NaCl–H2O system characterized by medium-temperatures and low-salinities (Fig. 8 and Table 1). The salinities of type 1

Conclusions

Our comprehensive study of FIs, ore REEs, and H–O–S–Pb isotopic systematics of the Qingchengzi Pb–Zn deposit leads to the following conclusions.

  • (1)

    The ore bodies are divided into two types: stratiform and vein. Ore-forming fluids of the SEDEX stratiform mineralization belonged to a NaCl–H2O system characterized by medium-temperatures and low-salinities, and were derived from primary magmatic water with the involvement of material from wall-rocks and magma. Stratiform mineralization occurred during

Declaration of Competing Interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge three anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments, which greatly improved the quality of this manuscript. We thank Prof. Khin Zaw and Miss Diane Chung for handling of the manuscript and editorial input. We are grateful to Juliana Useya from University of Zimbabwe and Chunkit Lai from the Universiti Brunei Darussalam for kindly helping with English editing. We are also grateful to the staff of the Analytical Laboratory at the Beijing Research Institute of Uranium

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