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Atacamite and nantokite in Kaerqueka copper deposit of Qimantag area: Evidence for Cenozoic climate evolution of the Qaidam Basin

  • Environmental Geochemistry
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Abstract

Using a mineralogy method to reflect climate evolution is a new approach to research Cenozoic environmental progression of the Qaidam Basin. In this paper, we present the chemical composition and crystallographic parameter of atacamite, nantokite, and tenorite in cryptocrystalline aggregates from the Kaerqueka copper deposit of Qimantag metallogenic belt by means of electron microprobe and in-situ X-ray diffraction analyses. Atacamite and nantokite occur in an intimate intergrowth as the secondary precipitation of chalcopyrite and bornite filling in the interstitial space of andradite in the Kaerqueka copper deposit, with an average composition of Cl: 12.38 wt.% Cu: 63.76 wt.% O: 21.46 wt.% X-ray microdiffraction shows that the intergrowth contains nantokite with a cubic unit cell a=5.403(2) Å and atacamite with an orthorhombic unit cell a=6.030(3), b=6.883(2), c=9.114(1) Å XRD quantitative calculation shows that the nanometric aggregate contains 36.07 wt.% tenorite, 18.41 wt.% atacamite, and 45.52 wt.% nantokite. The presence of nantokite and atacamite requires saline solutions for their formation and hyper-arid climate conditions for their preservation. Combined with the data of salt lakes and the pollen sequence of western China, we suggest that during the uplift of the Tibetan Plateau and the retreat of the Paratethys, saline water was forced to the surface through a basal fracture zone. In the hyper-arid climate of the Qaidam Basin, the recharge of groundwater by direct precipitation is negligible, and groundwater is derived from inflow from the salt lakes. Thus, atacamite is preserved. In addition, spertiniite in the edge and fractures of atacamite and nantokite may represent wetter climate after the formation of atacamite and nantokite.

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Acknowledgments

This study was jointly supported by the Geological Survey Program of China Geological Survey (No. 1212011121220), the Construct Program of the Key Discipline in Hunan Province, China (No. 2016001). The manuscript benefited from thoughtful comments by Academician Xuanxue Mo of China University of Geosciences. Reviews from two anonymous reviewers have been helpful in the revision. The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12583-017-0548-8.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, 410081, China

    Liwen Yi

  2. Key Laboratory of Metallogenic Prediction of Nonferrous Metals and Geological Environment Monitor, Ministry of Education, Changsha, 410083, China

    Xiangping Gu, Anhuai Lu, Dexian Zhang, Zhiling Wang, Jianping Liu, Shuai Li, Zhengxiang Shu, Cui Yu, Hongyan Zuo & Can Shen

  3. School of Geosciences and Info-Physics, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, China

    Xiangping Gu, Anhuai Lu, Dexian Zhang, Zhiling Wang, Jianping Liu, Shuai Li, Zhengxiang Shu, Cui Yu, Hongyan Zuo & Can Shen

  4. Hunan Institute of Geological Survey, Changsha, 410116, China

    Xiangyu Li

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Yi, L. W., Gu, X. P., Lu, A. H., et al., 2017. Atacamite and Nantokite in Kaerqueka Copper Deposit of Qimantag Area: Evidence for Cenozoic Climate Evolution of the Qaidam Basin. Journal of Earth Science, 28(3): 492-499. doi:10.1007/s12583-017-0548-8. http://en.earth-science.net

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Yi, L., Gu, X., Lu, A. et al. Atacamite and nantokite in Kaerqueka copper deposit of Qimantag area: Evidence for Cenozoic climate evolution of the Qaidam Basin. J. Earth Sci. 28, 492–499 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12583-017-0548-8

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