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Isotope geochemistry tracks the maturation of submarine massive sulfide mounds (Iberian Pyrite Belt)

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Abstract

The massive sulfide deposits of the southern Iberian Pyrite Belt (IPB) occur as shale-hosted exhalative mounds or shallow sub-seafloor replacive bodies that formed at the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary in anoxic bottoms. The geochemistry of the mineralization and the host shale from some of the major deposits, including a detailed 50-m-thick section through the Migollas orebody, shows a marked textural and vertical zonation that is also reflected in the chemical, textural, and isotopic variations of pyrite and carbonates. Pyrite evolves from primary framboids and colloform aggregates to late euhedral crystals, which accompanies a redistribution of the contained base metals and grain coarsening. SIMS analyses depict an extreme variability of δ34S values from − 42.3 to + 4.4‰ with a gradual increase that is related to the textural maturation. There is also a systematic rise in the 87Sr/86Sr ratios (0.70846 to 0.71354), δ13C (− 12.2 to − 5.2‰) and δ18O values (+ 14.1 to + 27.8‰) of the associated carbonates, which evolve from early dolomite to late siderite. This evolution evidences the maturation of the exhalative mineralization during mixing between two fluids: modified seawater enriched in biogenically derived reduced sulfur and upflowing hydrothermal fluids. Early sulfides precipitated in the seawater-mound interface. Towards the core of the mounds, there was an increasing influence of deep fluids that modified the early mineral textures and the isotopic signatures. This evolution is similar to that observed in modern submarine hydrothermal systems and confirms the importance of mound refining in the evolution of fossil exhalative mounds and the formation of economic ores.

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Acknowledgments

This study has been funded by Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (Spain) through the projects CGL-2011-23207, BES-I-14-07980, and BES-I-15-09166. We acknowledge MATSA, Somincor-Lundin Mining Corporation and Avrupa Minerals for the access to drillholes and underground mine operations. We would like to thank F. Couffignal, U. Dittman, D. Rhede, J. M. Fuenlabrada, C. Galindo, A. Fernández, and A. Granados for their technical help during the analyses and acknowledge the geological discussions on the field with J. M. Pons, B. Caballero, L. Sánchez, J. Relvas, B. MacFarlane, V. Araujo and C. Conde. Comments by B. Lehmann, D. Huston, B. E. Taylor, S. Gleeson, and C. Mota Utanda have significantly improved earlier versions of the manuscript. This is Inkaba/Iphakade contribution number 213 and AEON (Africa Earth Observatory Network) contribution number 182.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Astrobiología (CSIC-INTA), Torrejón de Ardoz, 28850, Madrid, Spain

    Jesús Velasco-Acebes

  2. Instituto de Geociencias (CSIC-UCM), 28040, Madrid, Spain

    Fernando Tornos

  3. Helmholtz Zentrum Potsdam, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, 14473, Potsdam, Germany

    Abiel T. Kidane & Michael Wiedenbeck

  4. AEON-Earth Stewardship Science Research Institute, Nelson Mandela University, Port Elizabeth, South Africa

    Abiel T. Kidane

  5. Max-Planck-Institut für marine Mikrobiologie, 28359, Bremen, Germany

    Abiel T. Kidane

  6. Dpto. Mineralogía y Petrología, Facultad de Ciencia y Tecnología, Universidad del País Vasco UPV/EHU, 48080, Bilbao, Spain

    Francisco Velasco

  7. Laboratorio de Biogeoquímica de Isótopos Estables, Instituto Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra IACT (CSIC-UGR), 18100, Armilla, Granada, Spain

    Antonio Delgado

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  1. Jesús Velasco-Acebes
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  2. Fernando Tornos
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  3. Abiel T. Kidane
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  4. Michael Wiedenbeck
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  5. Francisco Velasco
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Correspondence to Jesús Velasco-Acebes.

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Velasco-Acebes, J., Tornos, F., Kidane, A.T. et al. Isotope geochemistry tracks the maturation of submarine massive sulfide mounds (Iberian Pyrite Belt). Miner Deposita 54, 913–934 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00126-018-0853-x

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