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Native bismuth in the form of metallic melt has been considered instrumental to the formation of some metallic ore deposits via a mechanism dubbed the "Liquid Bismuth Collector Model." Here, we provide petrographical documentation of trail‐forming, μm‐sized blebs of native bismuth in cassiterite–quartz veins from the Santa Bárbara greisen Sn deposit in the Rondônia tin province of northern Brazil. These inclusions suggest the trapping of a Bi melt that took place during vein formation, in a mechanism similar to the entrapment of fluid inclusions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dissolution cavities in weathered pebbly quartzite of the ~2.5-Ga Moeda Formation at Capanema, Quadrilátero Ferrífero of Minas Gerais, Brazil, are decorated with suspended filaments of opaline silica. The filaments sustain xenotime-hematite aggregates in the open space. Xenotime occurs as inclusions in buds and botryoidal aggregates of hematite. The filamentous structures consist of strand-forming buds, hypha-like extensions, and thin strands that compose mat-like arrangements. They resemble microbial filaments that were replaced by opaline silica and fossilized. The occurrence of spherical hematite as protuberances on hematite-free opaline hyphae is interpreted as accretion of dissolved iron onto extracellular polymers. Phosphate sites in polymeric substances expelled from the microbial filaments might have adsorbed yttrium and heavy rare-earth elements from groundwater to the iron-accreting polymers. These would have resulted in botryoidal aggregates of hematite with xenotime inclusions. The presence of authigenic xenotime in the weathering zone opens a new possibility to constrain the evolution of lateritic profiles by xenotime geochronology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The Palaeo-Mesoproterozoic metasiliciclastic rocks of the southern Serra do Espinhaço, Minas Gerais, Brazil, are host to historically important alluvial deposits of diamonds and gold. Detrital gold grains often comprise Au–Pd–Pt intermetallic compounds, with low Ag contents, which contain inclusions of tourmaline and titaniferous hematite (up to ~6wt.% TiO2). The latter minerals connect the alluvial mineralisation to the rutile–hematite–quartz veins and tourmalinisation observed in the quartzitic country rocks of the alluvial gravel. The quartzite (Sopa-Brumadinho Formation of lacustrine to fan-deltaic origin) is affected by pervasive B metasomatism with F-bearing tourmaline replacing the recrystallised quartz fabric. The tourmaline belongs to the alkali group, with Mg/(Mg+Fe) and X/(X+Na) ratios in the ranges from 0.5 to 0.7 and 0.18 to 0.29, respectively, where X represents vacancies in the X site. Boron-isotopic values of tourmaline vary from ~1 to −10.4‰ δ11B. The B-isotope range, in conjunction with the Na–Mg-rich tourmaline composition, and the widespread occurrence of tourmalinite in the Sopa-Brumadinho Formation suggest a derivation from non-marine evaporitic brines. Brines are capable of transporting otherwise immobile Ti and explain, under oxidising conditions, the fractionation of Ag from Pd to precipitate palladiferous gold with extremely high Pd/Ag ratios. Zirconium-in-rutile and Ti-in-quartz temperatures for a variety of hematite-rich veins suggest episodic vein emplacement over a temperature range from around 500°C to ~350°C. Cross-cutting relationships and episodic vein emplacement indicate a late-Brasiliano age. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A 40Ar/39Ar age of 75 ± 6 Ma (2σ) was obtained for aggregates of Mn-Ba oxide intergrown with palladiferous gold and Pd-Pt minerals, representative of near-surface bonanza Au-Pd-Pt mineralization that triggered the gold rush to Serra Pelada in northern Brazil. The mineralization occurs in goethite-rich tectonic breccia and records recurrent fault displacement in the still active Cinzento strike-slip fault system. The goethite-rich tectonic breccia is truncated by the bonanza-style Au-Pd-Pt-Mn-Ba enrichment, with which tabular hematite is spatially associated on a micrometric scale. The tabular hematite is coarsely crystalline, >5 µm in grain size, and lines cavity walls in the goethite-rich breccia. The presence of coarsely crystalline tabular hematite constrains the metalliferous overprint to temperatures in excess of about 100°C. We suggest that the bonanza mineralization is a Late Cretaceous, epithermal-like, fault-breccia system that overprinted Paleoproterozoie intrusion-related Au-Pd-Pt mineralization preserved at depth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We delineate an approximately 240-km-long, north-trending Au-Pd-Pt belt in Minas Gerais, Brazil, which hosts hydrothermal Pd-Pt-bearing gold mineralization in its southern part (Quadrilatero Ferrifero and Itabira district) and alluvial Pd-Pt-Au mineralization in its northern part (southern Serra do Espinhaco). The hydro-thermal Pd-Pt-bearing gold mineralization, locally known as jacutinga, occurs as late-orogenic quartz-hematite-(talc-kaolinite) veins, which truncate the Brasiliano regional tectonic foliation of the itabiritic host rocks of the Paleoproterozoic Itabira Iron Formation. The alluvial Pd-Pt-Au mineralization occurs as botryoidal Pd-Pt nuggets and delicate palladiferous gold aggregates in clastic and organic-rich valley infill on quartzite and hematitic rocks of the Paleo- to Mesoproterozoic Espinhago Supergroup. The Au-Pd-Pt belt follows the regional trend of major thrust faults related to the -0.6 Ga Brasiliano orogeny, and the hydrothermal jacutinga mineralization could be regarded as an oxidized variant of the orogenic gold deposit spectrum. Secondary botryoidal and arborescent Pt-Pd aggegates and primary (detrital) Au-Pd grains are peculiar to the alluvial pla-tiniferous deposits of the northern part of the belt in the Serra do Espinhago. We suggest that their source was jacutinga-style vein mineralization, as deduced from abundant detrital hematite and rutile, and the discovery of detrital hongshiite, a Pt-Cu alloy that forms bonanza pockets within jacutinga at Itabira. Reconnaissance laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry analyses for trace metals in the botryoidal Pt-Pd grains show that they have elevated Tl and Se contents of 0.9 to 354 and 54 to 2,700 ppm, respectively. These elements correlate positively, with a Tl/Se ratio of about 0.08, a value that contrasts with Tl/Se >1 for hongshiite from the hydrothermal jacutinga system at Itabira. The low and roughly constant Tl/Se ratios of the alluvial samples are close to the average value of 0.12 for fluvial waters. We suggest that the botryoidal Pt-Pd aggregates grew in situ by electrochemical metal accretion from dilute solutions carrying Pt and Pd from the dissolution of detrital Pt-Pd minerals from jacutinga. The connection between jacutinga and platiniferous alluvia indicates that there is a prospective trend of about 240 km for Pd-Pt-bearing gold mineralization reaching from Ouro Preto to Diamantina. The very high oxidation state required for efficient low-temperature aqueous mobilization of Pt, Pd, and Au was apparently controlled by the quartzitic and hematitic rocks in the Serra do Espinhaco, but not in the southern belt where greenstone rocks buffered fluids to moderate pH and lower oxidation states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Selenium is a trace, but characteristic element in the bonanza-style mineralisation of palladiferous gold that triggered two major gold rushes in Brazil (Minas Gerais and Serra Pelada). The auriferous mineralisations of Gongo Soco and Itabira, Minas Gerais, and Serra Pelada, Pará, have Pd–O-bearing, dark-coloured ferruginous coatings on gold (ouro preto). Depending upon the amount of palladium alloyed with gold, a number of seleniferous minerals of palladium and platinum can be found: chrisstanleyite, Ag2Pd3Se4, a phase analogous to tischendorfite, Pd8Hg3Se9, an argentiferous palladseite-like phase, empirical Pd5(Hg,Sb,Ag)2Se6 and (Pd,Sb,Ag,Hg)5Se4, at Gongo Soco; palladseite, ideally Pd17Se15, and sudovikovite, PtSe2, at Itabira; and, exclusively to Serra Pelada, empirical Pd9PtSe2, Pd9Se2, Pd3(Se,Bi) and (Pd,Hg,Pb)3Se. This mineralogical signature of selenium is typical of hydrothermal vein-type deposits formed at relatively low temperatures. Although the synthetic Pd9Se2 equivalent is stable at temperatures over 390 °C, fluid inclusion data suggest lower temperatures of formation (<150 °C). The exclusiveness of Se-bearing, alloy-like phases of palladium to Serra Pelada testifies to its very Pd-rich hydrothermal system. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Zinnwaldite major and trace element composition was assessed via EPMA and LA-ICP-MS. • Magmatic to hydrothermal transition is recorded in the mica compositions. • Composition of the granite mica can be used as a pathfinder for greisen bodies and veins. • Mica from ore facies counter-intuitively has a lower rare metal content. • Changes in the Nb/Sn ratio in mica can be used as a proxy for the rock/fluid ratio. The tin-greisens of the Rondonia Tin Province, Brazil, are related with the intrusion of a 995−975 Ma evolved rapakivi granite suite interpreted as post-collisional with respect to the Grenvillian orogeny during assembly of Rodinia. Lithium-iron mica ('zinnwaldite') is the main mineral in late- to post-magmatic and ore stages of such greisens, and has the potential of being a recorder of the mineralization processes. We provide bulk rock geochemistry of granite, greisen, and greisenized granite, coupled with in-situ major and trace element analyses in mica. Trace element and Li contents in mica were assessed via LA-ICP-MS analysis to avoid interference from ore-mineral inclusions. There is a large-scale zoning (hundreds of meters) of the composition of magmatic mica within the massif. Within 200 m of greisen zones, the mica composition in granite becomes similar to hydrothermal greisen mica, i.e. mica composition is suggested as a proximity indicator for greisen. Mica records the evolution of the system from magmatic to hydrothermal. Early-magmatic mica is Li, Rb and F poor and Mg, Ti and Fe rich, as opposed to greisen mica. Rare metals (e.g. Sn, Ta, W) display complex behavior, as their content in mica increases from magmatic to transitional stages, but decreases from transitional to ore (greisen and vein) stages. This can be explained by a complex interaction between enrichment of metals in the fluid, crystallization order of HFSE-bearing minerals, a decrease in the acceptance of HFSE in mica due to Ti depletion, and a change in the system from melt-dominated to fluid-dominated. Depletion of rare metals in mica can be an important factor for mineralization, since binding these metals to silicates reduces the amount of ore minerals. In granite, up to 86 % of Sn is bound to mica, while in greisen, up to 95 % of it is available to form cassiterite. Niobium behaves differently than other rare metals, likely due to its very high initial partition coefficient in mica and its lower solubility in fluids when compared to Sn and Ta. As such, changes in the Nb/Sn ratio in mica can be used as a proxy for the rock/fluid ratios. Mica pseudomorphs after feldspar in greisenized granite have anomalously high Sr contents inherited from their albite precursor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Supergene aggregates of platinum–palladium (Pt–Pd) intermetallic compounds from the Córrego Bom Sucesso alluvial deposit, Minas Gerais, Brazil, are coated with abundant, poorly crystalline nanoparticles of anatase (TiO2). The anatase coating is widespread, suggesting that the surface of the Pt–Pd grains catalytically destabilised Ti, which was likely dissolved by organic ligands in the ground waters. Association of TiO2 nanocrystallites with organic matter further suggests that biogenic processes could have mediated their formation. These anatase-coated Pt–Pd grains demonstrate an unexpected Ti mobility in supergene environments. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Platinum-rich nuggets offer an opportunity for understanding how precious metals accumulate. We analyzed the selenium (Se) isotopic composition of Se-rich (102-103 µg g-1) platinum-palladium (Pt-Pd) nuggets from a recent placer deposit in Minas Gerais, Brazil, for which a biogenic origin has been inferred. We obtained Se isotopic values with a relatively narrow range (d82/76SeNIST3149 = -17.4‰ to -15.4‰ ± 0.2‰, two standard deviations [2 SD]). The Pt-Os age of the nuggets is 181 ± 6 Ma (2 SD). The data indicate that the nuggets did not form in the recent placer deposit, but by replacement of hydrothermal vein minerals at ~70 °C and at least 800 m below the surface. The high abundance and extreme isotopic composition of Se as well as the presence of other biophilic elements like iodine, organic carbon, and nitrogen within the nugget matrix are consistent with a microbial origin. Although abiogenic reduction of Se oxyanions cannot be ruled out, the nuggets plausibly record Se-supported microbial activity in the deep biosphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The enigmatic botryoidal nuggets of platinum (Pt) and palladium (Pd) from Córrego Bom Sucesso in the southern Serra do Espinhaço, Minas Gerais, Brazil, are considered to have formed during supergene alteration of placer deposits. This requires hitherto unidentified precious-metal enrichment processes and is inconsistent with Pt–Os age of 180 Ma that entails formation at depth, as recently proposed. Here we report the first mercury (Hg) and helium (He) isotopic determinations of Pt–Pd nuggets. Mercury isotopic compositions have a mass-independent fractionation (MIF) signature with an odd-mass deficit (Δ199Hg = − 0.22 ± 0.04; 1SD, n = 15), which requires aqueous photochemical reduction of Hg (II). Extremely low 3He/4He (<0.001 R a) and extremely high concentrations of He (up to 1.9 × 1017 at/g) are indicative of nugget formation from He-enriched fluids within the quartzite sequence of the Espinhaço basin, not from meteoric surface water. The data are consistent with a nugget-forming setting in the deep biosphere, as a result of groundwater interaction with Pt–Pd–Hg minerals in Pan-African-Brasiliano post-orogenic veins. We propose that the negative Hg-MIF signature was inherited from the vein minerals that originally acquired their Hg from Earth's surface during the intracratonic sedimentation of the Proterozoic Espinhaço basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New analytical developments have made radiogenic helium (4He) applicable to archeological gold artifacts for age determinations. Here we report the application of the U/Th-4He method to the direct dating of gold from the historically important gold deposit in Diamantina, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The U/Th-4He age of 515 ± 55 Ma for the Diamantina gold is corroborated by a new U/Pb age of 524 ± 16 Ma for rutile recovered from auriferous pockets. These ages tie the Diamantina gold mineralization to the Brasiliano orogenic event, in the context of the Gondwana amalgamation. Our results indicate that U/Th-4He dating of gold is possible, opening new perspectives for the dating of gold deposits without assuming contemporaneity between gold and datable hydrothermal minerals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Metasiliciclastic rocks predominate in the lower units of the Palaeo-Mesoproterozoic Espinhaço Supergroup, in the southern Serra do Espinhaço, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The lower units also comprise rocks with locally preserved igneous fabrics, but which have very unusual chemistries. These rocks, collectively known as hematitic phyllite, are characterised by abundant fine-grained muscovite, i.e. sericite, and variable amounts of titaniferous hematite, rutile and tourmaline. Currently, the hematitic phyllite has been interpreted as a metamorphosed palaeosol after basaltic rocks and, as such, has been used as a palaeoclimatic indicator. However, the lateritic nature of the hematitic phyllite cannot unambiguously be determined because of the K metasomatism, hematitisation and tourmalinisation recorded in the hematitic phyllite and in the arenaceous country rocks. Here we report the B-isotopic and chemical compositions of tourmaline from the hematitic phyllite. Our δ11B data are in the range between −15‰ and 4‰. The tourmaline compositions fall along the povondraite–"oxy-dravite" join, which defines a meta-evaporitic tourmaline trend. A meta-evaporitic B source is constrained by the B-isotopic data as non-marine. Our model for the hematitic phyllite suggests that B- and K-rich brines were derived from the metamorphic dewatering of non-marine evaporites. Such brines extensively altered volcanic rocks of basaltic and rhyolitic compositions, leading to tourmaline-bearing, hematite–sericite assemblages of the hematitic phyllite. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Uranium–Pb dating of zircon from a metavolcanic layer within the Itabira iron formation, or Cauê Itabirite, Quadrilátero Ferrífero of Minas Gerais, Brazil, indicates that its deposition occurred at 2.65Ga, i.e., considerably earlier than proposed by previous geochronological studies, which suggested deposition between 2.58Ga (detrital zircon age from the underlying Moeda Formation) and 2.42Ga (Pb–Pb isochron age from dolomitic rocks of the immediately overlying Gandarela Formation). The new age has major implications for the geology of the Quadrilátero Ferrífero and connects it with the Neoarchaean iron formation of the Carajás mineral province. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Synchrotron radiation-induced X-ray fluorescence (SR-XRF) spectrometry was applied to determine iodine concentrations in alluvial Pt–Pd aggregates with delicate morphological features from Córrego Bom Sucesso, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The millimetre-sized botryoidal and rod-shaped grains of alluvial Pt–Pd–Hg intermetallic compounds have surprisingly high concentrations of iodine, in the range from 10 to ~120μg/g. Because iodine is a strongly biophile element, known to be enriched in peatlands and plant remains in soils by microbial activity, its concentration in the Pt–Pd nuggets suggests biogenic precious-metal fixation in the aqueous alluvial milieu. Biogenic and inorganic processes, such as bioreduction and electrochemical metal accretion, could mutually have contributed to the growth of nanoparticles, formed on organic templates, to millimetric Pt–Pd nuggets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]