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Iron mineralization at the Songhu deposit, Chinese Western Tianshan: a type locality with regional metallogenic implications

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Abstract

Hosted by volcaniclastics of the Carboniferous Dahalajunshan Formation, the Songhu iron deposit is located in the central segment of the Awulale metallogenic belt, Chinese Western Tianshan. Mineralization and alteration are structurally controlled by orogen-parallel NWW-striking faults. Integrating with mineralogical and stable isotopic analyses based on paragenetic relationships, two types of iron mineralization have been identified. The deuteric mineralization (Type I) represented by brecciated, banded, and disseminated-vein ores juxtaposed with potassic–calcic alteration in the inner zone, which was formed from a magmatic fluid generated during the late stages of regional volcanism. In contrast, the volcanic-hydrothermal mineralization (Type II) is characterized by hydrothermal features occurring in massive and agglomerated ores with abundant sulfides, and was generated from the magmatic fluid with seawater contamination. Two volcaniclastic samples from the hanging and footwall of the main orebody yield zircon U–Pb ages of 327.8 ± 3.1 and 332.0 ± 2.0 Ma, respectively, which indicate Middle Carboniferous volcanism. Timing for iron mineralization can be broadly placed in the same epoch. By reviewing geological, mineralogical, and geochemical features of the primary iron deposits in the Awulale metallogenic belt, we propose that the two types of iron mineralization in the Songhu iron deposit are representative regionally. A summary of available geochronological data reveals Middle–Late Carboniferous polycyclic ore-related volcanism, and nearly contemporaneous iron mineralization along the belt. Furthermore, petro-geochemistry of volcanic–volcaniclastic host rocks indicates that partial melting of a metasomatized mantle wedge under a continental arc setting could have triggered the continuous volcanic activities and associated metallogenesis.

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Acknowledgements

Financial support for this research was provided by China Geological Survey through Geological Survey Project Grant (No. 1212011085527) and National Natural Science Foundation of China Grant (No. 41390444). We thank the No. 7 Geological Party of Xinjiang Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources for their help during fieldworks. We are grateful to Zhen-Yu Chen, Xiao-Dan Chen of Electron Microprobe Laboratory, and De-Fang Wan, Shi-Hong Tian, and Chang-Fu Fan of Stable Isotope Laboratory, Institute of Mineral Resources, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, for their help in EMP and stable isotopic analysis. Wei-Na Zhu, Lu-Ying Jin, Jun-Xing Zhao, Ming-Jian Cao, Ya-Jing Mao, and Ye Tian are thanked for their assistance on experimental analyses and insightful discussions. We thank Prof. Jaayke L. Knipping and Zhaochong Zhang for their careful review and critical comments. Special thanks go to Prof. Wen-Jiao Xiao and Ke-Fa Zhou for their constructive suggestions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Xinjiang Research Center for Mineral Resources, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ürümqi, 830011, China

    Chun-Long Wang & Ke-Zhang Qin

  2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Chun-Long Wang & Ke-Zhang Qin

  3. MLR Key Laboratory of Metallogeny and Mineral Assessment, Institute of Mineral Resources, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Beijing, 100037, China

    Chun-Long Wang & Yi-Tian Wang

  4. Key Laboratory of Mineral Resources, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100029, China

    Chun-Long Wang & Ke-Zhang Qin

  5. Xinjiang Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, Ürümqi, 830000, China

    Lian-Hui Dong

  6. John de Laeter Centre, TIGeR, Applied Geology, Curtin University, Perth, WA, 6845, Australia

    Noreen J. Evans

  7. The No. 7 Geological Party of Xinjiang Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources, Wusu, 833300, China

    Bing Zhang & Yi Ren

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  1. Chun-Long Wang
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  3. Lian-Hui Dong
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  4. Ke-Zhang Qin
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Correspondence to Yi-Tian Wang.

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531_2017_1490_MOESM1_ESM.xls

Electronic Supplementary Material 1: Geochemical data for ore-hosting volcanic-volcaniclastic rocks in the AMB (XLS 54 kb)

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Wang, CL., Wang, YT., Dong, LH. et al. Iron mineralization at the Songhu deposit, Chinese Western Tianshan: a type locality with regional metallogenic implications. Int J Earth Sci (Geol Rundsch) 107, 291–319 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00531-017-1490-9

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