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Abstract Gravimetric and stratigraphic data were used to investigate the Paleoproterozoic Araí Paleorift, a failed Statherian continental rift located in the western margin of the São Francisco Craton, where basement and cover were affected by the Neoproterozoic Brasiliano Orogeny. Euler deconvolution, tilt, total horizontal gradient amplitude and upward continuation technics were applied to terrestrial gravimetric data in order to investigate the rift's main faults location, direction and depth, allowing to identify its main horsts, grabens, volcanic and plutonic centers. We found that rift faults occur to a maximum depth of ca. 38 km, but major fault throw occurs from 4 to 8 km deep and attenuates from 8 to 12 km, probably the brittle-ductile transition zone at the time of rifting, practically disappearing at 20 km. Stratigraphic data and basement mapping were used in order to constraint gravimetric results. We classify the Araí Rift as a passive, three-armed failed rift, narrow to divergent type, that produced preferably anorogenic rapakivi-related magmas, most of it still lodged in the crust from surface down to ca. 19 km deep and subsidiary mafic magmatism. The results indicate the deep occurrence of low-density magmas beneath the rift's main axis, detected up to 20 km deep. Correlation to other global Statherian rifts show that the São Francisco Craton was strongly affected by taphrogenesis during the Statherian, together with Siberia, North America and North China cratons. Finally, by comparing our results to recent rifts we found that the Ethiopian rift's morphology is quite similar to the Araí. Surrounding the Tanzanian craton, the Cenozoic East Africa rift system morphology is compared to the Araí-Espinhaço rift system, which surrounds the São Francisco craton. The major contribution of this paper is the recognition of Araí Paleorift surface and subsurface morphology, up to now unknown, over an area of ca. 45.000 km2. Highlights • Araí rift main faults, grabens, horsts and volcanic center are identified. • Rift faults detected at max. depth of 38 km and major fault throw at 4–8 km • Araí rift is classified as passive failed rift, narrow to divergent type. • Anorogenic rapakivi-related magmas are detected down to 19 km. • Araí rift morphology is compared to the East Africa rift system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plutonic rocks from the Mineiro Belt, Brazil record a delayed onset of the transition from TTG to sanukitoid-type magmatism (high Ba-Sr), starting during the Siderian magmatic lull when little juvenile magma was added to the continental crust. Rocks mostly belong to the calc-alkaline series, meta- to peraluminous and originally “I-type”, meaning that oxidized magmas were formed by partial melting of subducted material. The temporal distribution and apparent secular changes of the magmas are consistent with the onset of subduction-driven plate tectonics due to an increase of the subduction angle and opening of the mantle wedge. New isotopic analyses (Sm-Nd whole rock and Lu-Hf in zircon) corroborate the restricted juvenile nature of the Mineiro Belt and confirm the genetic link between the Lagoa Dourada Suite, a rare ca. 2350 Ma high-Al tonalite-trondhjemite magmatic event, and the sanukitoid-type ca. 2130 Ma Alto Maranhão Suite. U-Pb dating of zircon and titanite constrain the crystallisation history of plutonic bodies; coupled with major and trace element analyses of the host rocks, they distinguish evolutionary trends in the Mineiro Belt. Several plutons in the region have ages close to 2130 Ma but are distinguished by the lower concentration of compatible elements in the juvenile high Ba-Sr suite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Field gravimetric and stratigraphic surveys were conducted with the aim to constraint the mechanisms responsible for the initiation of the Stenian-Tonian Paranoá basin, central Brazil, a subject not yet studied in detail. The Paranoá Group crops out in the external zone of the Brasília Belt, a Neoproterozoic orogen in the western margin of the São Francisco Craton. Detailed geological mapping confirmed the existence of a regional scale fault that controlled sedimentation of the Paranoá Group during the deposition of its basal formations, revealing important details about basin initiation and early evolution. Gravimetric modeling indicates the existence of paleorift structures beneath the Paranoá sequence in the study area. Results from both stratigraphic and gravimetric surveys show strong evidence of mechanical subsidence by faulting during basin initiation. Unsorted, angular, clasts cut by quartz veins and brecciated boulders present in the basal conglomerate, support this hypothesis. Basin initiation faults coincide with deeper paleorift faults and are thus interpreted as reactivations of the older Statherian Araí Rift. The reactivations favored an initial regime of mechanical subsidence, dominated by the development of epirogenic arches subsiding at different rates. Apart from faulting activity, the post-basal sequence presents no evidence of rift environment in the strict sense. Besides, the great lateral continuity and relatively constant thickness of facies, indicate that an initial mechanic subsidence rapidly gave way to flexural subsidence during subsequent stages of basin evolution. The Paranoá Group do not present reliable characteristics that would allow its strict classification as a passive margin. Its main stratigraphic characteristics, tectonic location and basement architecture, indicate that the Paranoá Group was deposited in a cratonic margin basin, and may have been either connected to a passive margin basin at times of sea level rise, or evolved to a passive margin later in time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

More than three hundred mafic-ultramafic bodies of different sizes, containing copper sulfide mineralization, are present in the Curaçá River Valley Copper Province, northeastern São Francisco Craton, Bahia State, Brazil, covering an area of about 1700 km 2 . The basement, supracrustal sequence, and mafic-ultramafic intrusive rocks underwent granulite facies metamorphism and were reworked during the evolution of the Itabuna-Salvador-Curaçá Orogeny, resulting in retrograde metamorphism to the amphibolite facies, partial migmatization, and intrusion of granitic and syenitic rocks. During the slow and progressive rise of the terrain, hydrothermal reactions mainly along shear zones retrogressed part of these rocks to assemblages characteristic of the greenschist metamorphic facies. The main orebodies with copper sulfide minerals are associated with pyroxenite, mica-rich (glimmerite) and noritoid rocks. The present investigation focuses on the major Caraíba, Sussuarana, Surubim, and Vermelhos deposits. Chalcopyrite and bornite compose the ore, in a ratio of 70–30%, with copper grade varying between 0.69% and 1.4%, and associated gold and silver. The sulfide minerals are invariably accompanied by magnetite. Two mineralization styles are distinguished: (i) disseminated in non-altered mafic-ultramafic rocks; and (ii) tectonic controlled related to hydrothermal alteration zones. New geochronological data show that quartz-microcline metasomatites of the Caraíba Mine contain Neoarchean inherited zircons (upper intercept at 2723 ± 51 Ma), related to the early stages of magmatism, whereas Orosirian ages (2047 ± 12 and 2042 ± 15 Ma) are related to the main hydrothermal mineralization activity. Norite from the Surubim Mine has a Paleoproterozoic age (2047 ± 11 Ma), and the dated gabbro shows Pb loss in the Neoproterozoic, probably related to the Brasiliano Orogeny (670–490 Ma). Previous studies have demonstrated that the main hydrothermal event is Paleoproterozoic. Phlogopite Ar-Ar dating from the Caraíba Mine yields plateau-ages around 2000–2100 Ma. A cluster of δ 34 S values approaching zero is related to interstitial sulfide minerals in the least-altered ultramafic rocks, while values above and below zero are related to remobilized sulfides. These data support the hypothesis of the existence of a primary (magmatic) mineralizing event, alleged to have precipitated disseminated, interstitial sulfide minerals, and a second (hydrothermal) event, responsible for the economically more important mineralization, which is structurally controlled and related to significant potassic alteration. The sulfide minerals are associated with different generations of magmatic and hydrothermal magnetite, as well as distal plagioclase and microcline alteration halos. The combination of these features reaffirms the concept that the Curaçá Valley deposits may be part of the same alteration system, as described in IOCG deposits, with the deepest deposits being located further south. Based on the data obtained during the present study, it is possible to establish a tectono-metallogenic evolutionary model to explain the genesis of the copper mineralization in the Curaçá Valley. The mafic-ultramafic bodies were emplaced as multiple intrusions in Neoarchean arc-related gneisses and chemical sediments, along with bornite and chalcopyrite mineralization. The sulfide minerals that preserve the characteristics of this stage are chalcopyrite or bornite, both with δ 34 S values around 0‰ V-CDT . A continental collision affected the Caraíba arc and the related sequences between 2100 and 2080 Ma. During this Rhyacian-Orosirian orogeny, deformation and amphibolite-granulite facies metamorphism, the rocks underwent partial melting, and sapphirine formation developed. Between 2050 and 2020 Ma, the main mineralization stage took place at Caraíba, Vermelhos, and Surubim, which corresponds to an earlier stage in the Sussuarana deposits. The southern deposits were formed deeper than those to the north, resulting in less extensive potassic alteration and related hydrothermal mineralization. The sulfide minerals of the deeper deposits have negative δ 34 S (between 0‰ and −6.81‰), to slightly positive values, where the igneous protoliths are best preserved. This alteration took place near the brittle-ductile boundary, mainly associated with ductile structures. The latest stage of mineralization took place between 1950 and 1920 Ma, in the Caraíba, Vermelhos and Surubim deposits, along with major sulfide remobilization in Sussuarana. This stage was characterized by the participation of oxidizing fluids, possibly meteoric waters, which raised the δ 34 S values up to +11.77‰. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The metasedimentary succession of the Minas Supergroup in the Quadrilátero Ferrífero (QFe) region, eastern Brazil, contains important, up to 400 m thick Lake Superior-type Banded Iron Formation (BIF) of the Cauê Formation. These are superposed by dolomitic carbonates of the Gandarela Formation, deposited ca. 2.4 Ga ago and thus probably registering the Great Oxygenation Event (GOE) of the Paleoproterozoic. The Segredo BIF deposit is located in the SW part of the QFe. The structural complexity and the discontinuity of layers challenge local studies on the sedimentary evolution of the Minas Basin. In the Segredo deposit, the stratigraphic sequence of the Minas Supergroup is exposed in the overturned limb of Fábrica Synform, that refold the Dom Bosco Synform. Based on the geological mapping and the study of a 480-m deep drill core, a lithostratigraphic review of the area is proposed, with stacking of the Itabira, Piracicaba, Sabará and Itacolomi groups, from the bottom up. The Itabira Group comprises BIF, intraformational metaconglomerate and dolostone with lateral and vertical interlayering. The chemical and isotopic data from the Cauê and Gandarela formations are defined by variations of the trace element and C-isotopic signatures. The intraformational metaconglomerate is interpreted as gravity flow products at the edges of the carbonate platform. Dolomitic BIFs show positive Eu anomalies and low terrigenous content, thus confirming the contribution of seawater hydrothermal fluids during the precipitation of BIF and carbonates. Negative Ce anomalies reflect a locally oxygenated ocean during precipitation of the Gandarela Formation carbonates. The carbon isotope stratigraphy is marked by δ13C values from around −1.5‰ in the Cauê BIF and around 0‰ in the Gandarela dolomites, indicating normal seawater conditions and deposition probably before the global Lomagundi event. The negatively fractionated values obtained for the Cauê BIF are consistent with previous studies suggesting the operation of microbial Dissimilatory Iron Reduction as an important process in BIF formation. Above the Gandarela carbonates, the occurrence of the Sabará Group through an angular unconformity is for the first time confirmed in the region by the occurrence of detrital sedimentary facies and by U–Pb geochronological data (younger detrital zircon at ca. 2.1 Ga). • Lithostratigraphy review of Itabira and Sabará groups at the Segredo Deposits. • Trace elements and C–O isotopes of the Paleoproterozoic BIF and carbonates (Itabira Group). • U–Pb geochronological data for Sabará Group (younger detrital zircon at ca. 2.1 Ga). • Discussion about the paleoproterozoic BIF and GOE effects at the Minas Basin, Quadrilátero Ferrífero province. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A suite of kimberlite-hosted mantle xenoliths from the Catalão region, southwestern margin of the São Francisco Craton (SFC), Brazil, consists of spinel lherzolites (type I and II) and garnet-phlogopite wehrlites. The chemical composition of these xenoliths provides evidence of enrichment and refertilization of the SFC lithosphere which were caused by distinct metasomatic agents. Garnet-phlogopite wehrlites have porphyroclastic textures and were equilibrated between 1005 and 1010 °C and 2.9–3.0 GPa (∼99 km). They record metasomatism caused by carbonatite and proto-kimberlite melts. Type I spinel lherzolite contains spinel-pyroxene symplectites indicating garnet destabilization due to variations of the P-T conditions. The minerals in this rock were equilibrated between 975 and 990 °C and their chemical compositions contain evidence for carbonatite metasomatism. High-Cr and low-Al clinopyroxene of garnet-phlogopite wehrlites and type I spinel lherzolite have high Mg#, Ca/Al, La/Yb N, Zr/Hf ratios, and high Sr contents, coupled with low to intermediate Ti/Eu and Ti/Nb, which also suggests that they were formed by carbonatite melt. These geochemical features, together with the presence of carbonate inclusions in the olivines, corroborate the interaction with carbonatite melt. The low-Ti-Cr phlogopite (Phl1), which is restricted to only the garnet-phlogopite wehrlites, was probably produced through the release of volatiles components from the carbonatite melt that reacted with garnet porphyroclasts. Furthermore, metasomatic reactions involving garnet-phlogopite wehrlites and a proto-kimberlite melt formed high-Ti-Cr phlogopite (Phl2), consuming the original phlogopite (Phl1). Phl2 occurs as rims around Phl1, as isolated flakes around garnets, and in the matrix of wehrlites. Therefore, we assume that the proto-kimberlite metasomatism responsible for generation of Phl2 occurred prior to the eruption of the host kimberlite magma. Conversely, type II spinel lherzolites (876–915 °C; ∼1.5 GPa) contain evidence of metasomatic reactions with silicate melts. These samples have high cpx/opx ratios (1.10–2.93) with low-Cr and high-Al clinopyroxene, and depleted incompatible trace element compositions. Some clinopyroxene crystals, however, show some enrichment in light rare earth elements (LREE), large ion lithophile elements (LILE), and Ti. Their low Ca/Al, La/Yb N , and Zr/Hf, low Sr contents, high Ti/Eu and Ti/Nb, and a strong positive correlation of Ti with the other high field strength elements (HFSE) and LREE, may indicate that these clinopyroxene crystals were formed by refertilization caused by a silicate melt that was depleted in incompatible elements. Overall, these metasomatic processes suggest a pervasive refertilization of the cratonic lithosphere where the typically depleted peridotites of cratonic regions were replaced by a pyroxene-rich lithology. • Mantle xenoliths from the SW margin of the SFC record pervasive metasomatism. • Wehrlites was formed by reaction of carbonatite melts with peridotite. • Low-Ti-Cr phlogopite records carbonatite metasomatism. • High-Ti-Cr phlogopite indicates proto-kimberlite melt metasomatism. • The shallow mantle (∼50 km) records refertilization caused by silicate melts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cratons, as well as the basement of their marginal orogens, may represent important sites of research regarding the formation and evolution of Archean continental crusts. The Gavião Block is one of the oldest terranes in South America with rocks aged up to 3.6 Ga. Among the Archean units that outcrop in the southern sector of this block is the Santa Izabel Complex, which for the most part is located in the São Francisco Craton, close to its limit with the Araçuaí-West Congo Orogen. This complex has generally been described as comprising ortho- and paraderived rocks that were metamorphosed in high amphibolite facies. Studies in the southern region of this complex have shown the main components: (i) orthogneisses, whose protoliths are the Mesoarchean rocks of the Santa Izabel Magmatic Suite; and (iii) migmatites. and (iv) amphibolitic and metaultramafic enclaves. U-Pb studies (LA-ICPMS and SHRIMP) performed on zircons of the paleosome in metatexites and inherited zircons in migmatites indicate crystallization ages between 3091 ± 24 and 3136 ± 8 Ma for the rocks of the Santa Izabel Magmatic Suite. Inherited zircons aged ca. 3.4 Ga in paleosomes demonstrate the influence of older continental crust in the formation of these rocks. For the Caraguatai Magmatic Suite, the alignment of zircons and monazites suggests a crystallization age around 2.6 Ga. The Rhyacian migmatites were divided into metatexites and diatexites. Diatexites were divided into: (i) discontinuous boudinated early diatexites, which are parallel to stromatic metatexites, composing the gneissic banding. These rocks have diffuse metamorphic banding and features that suggest the action of mylonitization processes; and (ii) late diatexites, forming more continuous bodies, which truncate the gneissic banding. The migmatization occurred in two stages, with time interval between ca. 2.1 Ga and 2.07 Ga. The structural framework reveal the existence of four progressive Rhyacian deformation phases (D n to D n+3 ), and one deformation phase assumed to be Ediacaran (D n+4 ). Gneissic banding is the dominant structure and lithofacies of the Santa Izabel and Caraguatai Magmatic suites, in which metatexites and late diatexites alternate between themselves. This progressive deformation occurred in conditions of high amphibolite facies, with stress fields varying between NW-SE and WSW-ENE. The youngest phase, D n+4 , was associated with distal deformations related to the evolution of the intracontinental Araçuaí-West Congo Orogen with a WSW-ENE stress field. The combined data suggest a complex evolution for the Gavião Block, involving juvenile accretion, crustal reworking, deformation and metamorphism/migmatization from the Paleoarchean to the early Rhyacian. Almost all elements of the evolutionary stages of the Gavião Block can be recognized in the study area, setting it as a natural laboratory to unravel the evolutionary history of this sector of the South American continental crust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ticunzal Formation is exposed in the northern portion basement of the external zone of the Brasília Fold Belt and corresponds to a sequence of biotite-garnet paragneisses and mica-graphite schists with mineral assemblages indicating retrograde metamorphism under greenschist facies conditions. The formation displays local mylonitic structures and is intruded syn-to post-tectonically by 2.11–2.16 Ga peraluminous plutons of the Aurumina Suite. Detrital zircon U-Pb ages, Nd model ages between 2.23 and 2.88 Ga and geochemical data reflect a provenance probably represented by the 2.20 and 2.46 Ga tonalitic/granodioritic rocks of the Almas-Dianópolis terrane, exposed northwards of the study area. Zircon U-Pb geochronology and field observations suggest an age interval for the deposition of the precursor sediments of the Ticunzal Formation between 2.16 and 2.19 Ga. Raman spectroscopy analyses on graphite indicate high-crystallinity internal structures consistent with peak metamorphic temperatures between 620 and 630 °C. Trace element geochemical data of Ticunzal Formation samples suggest that precursor sediments were deposited in a continental arc-related basin, defining a setting consistent with an active mobile belt at the western margin of the São Francisco Craton during Rhyacian times, as inferred also from the characteristics of rocks from the Almas-Dianópolis terrane and the Aurumina Suite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstarct The Archean and Paleoproterozoic terrane of the northeastern part of the São Francisco Craton shows evidence of a prolonged accretionary history. A major boundary within this portion of the craton is the Contendas-Jacobina lineament, a 600 km-long north-trending left-lateral thrust fault that separates major Archean blocks amalgamated during the Paleoproterozoic orogeny. Different supracrustal sequences occur along this lineament, but the tectonic imbrication erased the original stratigraphy, precluding the reconstruction of the sedimentary and tectonic evolution of the different groups. We investigated the sediment provenance and tectonic setting of the Saúde Complex, located in the northern part of the Contendas-Jacobina lineament and previously taken as part of the Bahia Gold Belt. We found that the Saúde Complex is part of a Paleoproterozoic foreland basin and correlates with the Contendas-Mirante Basin in the south. The correlation with the western Au-bearing Jacobina Basin as a single Paleoproterozoic basin is no longer favorable. The Saúde Complex contains abundant 2.06–2.20 Ga and 2.50–2.68 Ga detrital zircons mainly derived from the eastern Itabuna-Salvador-Curaçá Orogen and reworked Neoarchean rocks within the orogen, mainly the Caraíba magmatic arc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Observations and modeling show that temperature controls crustal rheology and therefore also the orogenic evolution of continent-continent collision zones and the associated tectonic style. In order to explore the effect of temperature in a natural environment, we compare eroded sections through the unusually cold lower Paleozoic North Atlantic Caledonian (Scandian) collision zone and the very hot Brasiliano/Pan-African Araçuaí-West Congo orogen. A cold and stiff subducting Caledonian continental margin was able to subduct as a rather coherent unit to ultrahigh-pressure conditions, twice as deep as the Pan-African/Brasiliano crust that was quickly heated and softened and got involved in partial melting. Furthermore, the Caledonian collision developed large coherent thrust sheets that were transported hundreds of kilometers toward the foreland. This was never achieved in the hot Araçuaí-West Congo orogen, where much of the tectonic stress was absorbed by the partially molten central part of the orogen through magmatic state deformation. Major mylonite zones (thrusts) such as those seen in the Caledonides are therefore less common in the Araçuaí-West Congo orogen. Further, the deep continental subduction in the Caledonides developed a strongly asymmetric collision zone, with rapid variations in pressure and temperature. In contrast, the Araçuaí-West Congo orogen soon developed into a more symmetric geometry due to its easily flowing hot crust, with a relatively flat base and a corresponding plateau in its upper part. Deformation of the cold Caledonian crust was controlled by plate-tectonic stress, while gravitational forces more strongly influenced the hot Brasiliano/Pan-African example. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Stratigraphic, isotopic, and geochronological data from two late Neoproterozoic-aged conglomerate wedges in the southwest São Francisco craton support the interpretation that the Ediacaran Bambuí Group in east-central Brazil was deposited in a foreland basin. The Samburá Formation forms the base of the Bambuí Group in the southwestern part of the Bambuí basin and was deposited synchronously with the Brasília orogeny. It is interpreted to be a sedimentary product of a retrogradational coastal alluvial fan system deposited in an underfilled flexural foredeep during the early stages of foreland basin development sometime between 630 and 560 Ma. The basal Sete Lagoas Formation carbonates were deposited towards the cratonic margin on the forebulge, which provided an ideal environment for carbonate production. The lateral relationship between the Samburá and Sete Lagoas formations further implies that an unconformity was generated by foreland flexure, and that this unconformity separates an early Ediacaran phase of the foreland basin from a late Ediacaran phase. The Lagoa Formosa Formation was deposited in the latter phase, after peak orogenesis, with a provenance that includes post-orogenic granites and zircons as young as 560 Ma. It records a prograding turbidite fan system in the Lagoa Formosa Formation that was deposited during orogenic unroofing and basin-wide shallowing in a filled stage of the foreland basin. A shift from highly enriched δ 13 C values towards global-like carbon isotopes values in carbonates within the Lagoa Formation, in conjunction with the occurrence of banded iron formation, may suggest deposition in a basin with anoxic and ferruginous deep waters in the Bambuí basin in the latest Ediacaran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The low-grade Contendas-Mirante meta-volcano-sedimentary belt (CMB) was previously interpreted as an Archean greenstone belt with the uppermost formation deposited in the Paleoproterozoic. New zircon U-Pb LA-ICP-MS ages on sedimentary groups and granite sheets intrusive in the belt constrain the timing of basin development. Phyllites of the Lower Group and meta-arenites of the Upper Group yielded similar young zircon populations at ca. 2080 Ma, which are interpreted as the maximum deposition age for the entire sequence. The unique exception is the 3273–3338 Ma zircon-bearing quartzite that occurs in spatial association with the 3300 Ma rhyolite. A granite sheet intrusive into metagraywacke of the Lower Group constrains the minimum deposition age of 2045 ± 26 Ma for the CMB. Altogether four main age clusters of detrital zircon grains were recognized, namely 2075–2200 Ma, 2200–2440 Ma, 2500–2770 Ma, 3270–3380 Ma. These age intervals match the ages of igneous and metamorphic rocks in the different terranes that comprise the São Francisco craton. Maximum deposition age for both groups indicates that sedimentation occurred immediately prior the high-grade metamorphism in the adjacent Archean-Paleoproterozoic Jequié Block and Itabuna-Salvador-Curaçá Orogen. These observations, along with coarsening upwards in the sediments, indicate that the CMB represents a foreland basin developed along the eastern margin of the Gavião Block during plate convergence. Paleoarchean basement rocks were reactivated and emplaced into the CMB during basin inversion and is timely correlated with the granitic intrusion. Recognition of older supracrustal fragments is ambiguous, one main example is the 3273–3338 Ma zircon-bearing quartzite, which correlates with the northern Jacobina basin along the Contendas-Mirante lineament (e.g., Bahia gold belt) and may represent part of an Archean intracontinental rift sequence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peraluminous granites and tonalites/granodiorites of the Aurumina Suite crop out in the external zone of the Brasília Fold Belt on the western margin of the São Francisco Craton. Rocks of this suite intrude retrograde medium-grade schists and paragneisses of the Ticunzal Formation and display a magmatic muscovite ± biotite ± garnet assemblage and discrete graphite lamellae. The suite is divided into six members (Au1 through Au6), which grade from synkinematic to post-kinematic in character with ages spanning from 2.11 to 2.16 Ga according to zircon U-Pb data. Compositional features of the Aurumina Suite and associated coeval metaluminous mafic to intermediate plutons suggest an origin by source hybridization processes characterized by reaction between metasedimentary rocks and basaltic melts that would have taken place at shallow depths (pressure < 5 kbar). This is supported by a narrow range of ε NdT values between −4.2 and +0.4 for samples from both peraluminous and metaluminous units. Possible sources could correspond to old reworked crust that might also be related to the origin of ∼2.2 Ga peraluminous magmatic rocks in the Almas-Dianópolis domain, although participation of unknown sources is also feasible. Similarities exist between the peraluminous magmatism of the Aurumina Suite and the Jurassic-Paleogene peraluminous granitic belt of the cordilleran interior of North America in terms of composition, rock association and tectonometamorphic context, which suggest a similar tectonic setting for the Aurumina Suite instead of the collisional setting suggested in previous works. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Goiás Massif is a collage of Archean-Paleoproterozoic terranes that crop out in the central Brazil Northern Brasília Belt and acted as the continental margin onto which Neoproterozoic Brasiliano orogenic events took place. Most belts in the massif formed from 2.2 to 2.0 Ga, a widespread age bracket in the São Francisco-Congo Craton, pericratonic areas and other terranes associated with the formation of the “Atlantica Supercontinent”. However, the genesis of the Goiás Massif has always been a matter of debate due to a sharp crustal thickness contrast marked on surface by the trace of the Rio Maranhão Thrust and widely hypothesized as a suture zone. The hypothesis that this suture would have been formed when a microcontinent was accreted to the rest of the massif during the Neoproterozoic Brasiliano Orogeny is tested in this paper through mapping and zircon geochronology of rocks along the Rio Maranhão Thrust. Our study indicates that units contain Paleoproterozoic ages, have similar geological features to other Goiás Massif 2.2–2.0 Ga terranes and show no evidence of syn-collisional Neoproterozoic magmatism. We therefore reinterpret the available data to propose instead, that the amalgamation of the massif occurred fully in the Paleoproterozoic. First, the gravimetric contrast marked by the Rio Maranhão Thrust represents in fact a Neoproterozoic lower crust delamination event that affected both the Brasiliano Orogen and the terrane it was accreted against, the Campinorte Arc. Second, Serra da Mesa Suite Mesoproterozoic granites intruded both sides of the Rio Maranhão Thrust and thus, indicate the two domains were amalgamated prior to the Mesoproterozoic. Finally, Mesoproterozoic volcanic and plutonic rocks follow the trace of the Rio Maranhão Thrust, suggesting a reactivated intracontinental structure rather than an original product of Brasiliano collision. The Goiás Massif also show important similarities to the São Francisco Craton: a) orogen building and magmatism from 2.2 to 2.0 Ga; b) metamorphic peaks from 2.11 to 2.08 Ga; c) zircon age peaks at ∼1.76 Ga, ∼1.58 Ga and ∼1.2 Ga largely attributed to crustal extension events and d) contiguous seismic signature from massif to craton. These common features allied to our reassessment of central Brazil geochronology and the nature of central Brazil sharp crustal thickness contrast indicate that the Goiás Massif was fully assembled during a 2.2–2.0 Ga Orogeny as part of the western border of the São Francisco(-Congo) paleocontinent. A comprehensive understanding of this orogeny is vital to test the validity of Atlantica and to infer the landmasses later involved in the assembly of Columbia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Archean-Paleoproterozoic Jequié (JB) and Itabuna-Salvador-Curaçá (ISCB) blocks and their tectonic transition zone in the Valença region, Bahia, Brazil are potentially important for ore deposits, but the geological knowledge of the area is still meager. The paucity of geological information restricts the knowledge of the position and of the field characteristics of the tectonic suture zone between these two crustal segments JB and ISCB. Therefore, interpretation of geophysical data is necessary to supplement the regional structural and petrological knowledge of the area as well as to assist mining exploration programs. The analysis of the airborne radiometric and magnetic data of the region has established, respectively, five radiometric domains and five magnetic zones. Modeling of a gravity profile has defined the major density contrasts of the deep structures. The integrated interpretation of the geophysical data fitted to the known geological information substantially improved the suture zone (lower plate JB versus upper plate ISCB) delimitation, the geological map of the area and allowed to estimate the thicknesses of these two blocks, and raised key questions about the São Francisco Craton tectonic evolution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Teofilândia granitoids are representative of the Paleoproterozoic plutonic rocks, which intruded the Serrinha block, an Archean crustal fragment of the Sao Francisco Craton (Bahia, Brazil). Three plutons were emplaced, the Teofilândia granodiorite, the Barrocas trondhjemite and the Santa Rosa granite, respectively dated at 2130, 2127 and 2073 Ma. The two first plutons are calc-alkaline rocks following a trondhjemitic trend. They resemble Archean TTGs (tonalites-trondhjemites-granodiorites) by their major and trace element compositions and especially by their fractionated REE patterns, with very low HREE contents. These juvenile magmas resulted from partial melting of a young mafic protolith, likely represented by the nearby Rio Itapicuru greenstone belt. Barrocas trondhjemite and Teofilândia granodiorite derive from similar sources, possibly at different depths and with a different degree of melting. The rocks were deformed at high temperature during the Trans-Amazonian collision and are therefore pre-collisional and ascribed to a subduction stage. The younger Santa Rosa pluton is a small, syn-to post-collisional granite that derived from anatexis of the Archean crust. It is representative of a second, volumetrically minor, plutonic episode of potassic, shoshonitic or alkaline affinities. The large amount of 2.1 Ga granitoids emplaced in Brazil as well as in the West African craton, suggests that, at that time, a global event of possible mantle origin was responsible for the intense magmatic activity that involved both crustal accretion and crustal reworking in many places of the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New LA-SF-ICP-MS U-Pb zircon dating of high-K granitoids from the Campo Belo metamorphic complex, southern São Francisco Craton (Brazil), reveals a long period (ca. 100 My) of Neoarchean granitic magmatism that post-date the TTG magmatism. The oldest studied pluton is a highly porphyritic biotite orthogneiss emplaced at 2748 ± 5 Ma, followed by a hornblende-biotite orthogneiss (2727 ± 7 Ma). Both granitic bodies were affected by a deformation event prior to the emplacement of the Rio do Amparo, Bom Sucesso and Lavras granitoid plutons at 2716 ± 6 Ma, 2696 ± 6 Ma and 2646 ± 5 Ma, respectively. The Neoarchean granitic magmatism ended with the intrusion of peraluminous leucogranitic dikes at 2631 ± 4 Ma. The 2.73–2.65 Ga Campo Belo granitoids share chemical features of A-type granites, such as high apatite- and zircon-saturation temperatures (mostly > 800 °C), relatively high Fe-number, high total alkalis and characteristic enrichment in LREE and HFSE although most samples of the Rio do Amparo granite have lower HFSE and LREE content that typical A-type granites but very high Th. The high Th content of the Rio do Amparo and Bom Sucesso granites may suggest involvement of Th-orthosilicate in their sources. The trace element composition permits to classify the Campo Belo granitoids as A 2 -type granites, suggesting derivation from partial melting of TTG-crustal sources likely in an extensional setting. Significant reworking of Mesoarchean crust is suggested by mostly negative εNd i values (Rio do Amparo: −2.0 and +3.1; Bom Sucesso: −3.6, −3.1 and +0.9; Lavras: −2.5 and −0.2) and old Nd model ages (T DM close to 3.1 Ga), although with probable involvement of juvenile material (T DM of 2.7–2.9 Ga). This contrasts with Neoarchean granites of the northern São Francisco and Congo cratons characterized by negligible juvenile imprint. The 2.75–2.63 Ga Campo Belo granitoids witness the thermal stabilization of the Archean lithosphere through a major episode of high-K granitoid magmatism between 2760 and 2600 Ma, which affected the whole São Francisco Craton and the northern Congo Craton. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New SHRIMP U-Pb zircon dating indicates that, contrary to previous thought, part of the Archean crust in the southern São Francisco Craton (SFC), NW of the Jeceaba Bom Sucesso Lineament was affected by the Paleoproterozoic Transamazonian orogeny. The Kinawa migmatite is a reworked part of the Archean crust in the southern SFC, and occurs within the Cláudio Shear Zone, a NE-NW crustal-scale structure. The protolith of the migmatite is a metagranodiorite that has an U-Pb zircon crystallization age of 2704 ± 3 Ma coeval with the voluminous potassic magmatism in the region. Moreover, the εHf (t=2704) data suggests a slightly evolved crust (−1.5 to −6.1) and thus a relatively long crustal residence (∼700 Ma). Surprisingly, the migmatite itself yielded much younger ages of 2034 ± 32 Ma and 2048 ± 25 Ma, which coincide with the ages of the Mineiro Belt and Mantiqueira Complex. The distribution of ages using data from the literature and this study show that within the Archean domain the occurrence of Paleoproterozoic ages is restricted to the Cláudio Shear Zone. Inherited zircon crystals from all samples yield Neoarchean ages (∼2.7 Ga), and similar Hf signatures to the metagranodiorite protolith (εHf (t=2704) = −5.5 to −0.5). The εHf (t) signatures of the Kinawa migmatite are heterogeneous and record two events, one is interpreted to be the formation of the protolith with lower 176 Hf/ 177 Hf (at ∼2.7 Ga) and the other with higher 176 Hf/ 177 Hf (at ∼2.05 Ga) as the anatexis that produced the migmatite. An important result is that the migmatite had two sources. Two samples are consistent with derivation from an evolved crust comparable with the metagranodiorite protolith (e.g. 176 Lu/ 177 Hf ∼0.01 and εHf (t=2034) −13.4 to −17), but the other sample has much less negative values (εHf (t=2048) = −4.6 to −8.7), which requires a different source with much lower 176 Lu/ 177 Hf, and therefore younger, possibly Post-Archean material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Araçuaí-West Congo orogen is a confined orogen, formed by the inversion of a gulf of the São Francisco-Congo paleocontinent during the Neoproterozoic assembly of Gondwana. In this convergent process, fragments of the gulf's continental margin were tectonically dismembered and involved in the growing orogenic pile, and these domains are now exposed by the erosion as basement inliers within the orogen. These basement assemblages (i.e. rocks older than 1.8 Ga) occupy almost 30% of the orogen and occur in various domains along its external zone , amid Meso-to Neoproterozoic metaigneous and metasedimentary rocks. The main recognized basement domains are named Itarantim, Gavião, Porteirinha, Guanhães, Gouveia, Quadrilátero Ferrífero, Mantiqueira and Juiz de Fora (South America), and Kimezian (Africa). They comprise Archean gneisses, granitoids and metavolcanosedimentary sequences and various Rhyacian-Orosirian plutonics and supracrustal units, whose history trace back to the Minas-Bahia orogeny, event responsible for the assembly of the São Francisco-Congo paleocontinent. In this paper we present a detailed and unprecedented review of literature that aims to condensate the state-of-the-art of the geological knowledge about each of these basement inliers and, based on that, to discuss and propose paleogeographic scenarios for the Minas-Bahia orogeny. Due to the confined nature of the Araçuaí orogen, all their basement inliers correspond to fragments of the São Francisco-Congo paleocontinent reworked during the Neoproterozoic Brasiliano orogeny. In the context of the Rhyacian-Orosirian Minas-Bahia orogeny, Guanhães, Gouveia, Porteirinha and Gavião domains are understood as parts of the continents involved in the collision, while the Mantiqueira, Kimezian, Juiz de Fora and Itarantim domains mostly record magmatic arcs, formed in various environments. This review revealed that the density of geological information available for each basement inlier is very uneven, and that there are many gaps for further investigation in all the domains. • We present the state-of-the art of the geological knowledge about the basement inliers of the Araçuaí orogen • Basement assemblages (>1.8 Ga) occupy ca. 30% of the Araçuaí-West Congo orogen, in various domains along its external zone • As Araçuaí is a confined orogen, all their basement inliers are reworked fragments of the S. Francisco-Congo paleocontinent • We discuss the tectonic significance of each basement inlier, in light of paleogeographic scenarios for Minas-Bahia orogeny • The density of geological information about each basement inlier is uneven,with many gaps for further investigation [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The western part of the Gavião Block (São Francisco Craton) is one of the oldest fragments of the South American Platform. It comprises the Riacho de Santana Gneissic Migmatitic complex, the Santa Isabel complex and the Riacho de Santana greenstone belt. TDM ages of country rocks of these units reveal that the main accretion periods were: 3.9 Ga, 3.2 – 3.0 Ga and 2.6 Ga. The Gneissic Migmatitic complex yields U-Pb age of 3648±69 Ma, while the negative εNdt value is compatible with crustal reworking. The Rb-Sr isochron provided age of 3247±120 Ma, tentatively interpreted as migmatization event. U-Pb data indicate that crystallization of a rock from the Santa Isabel Complex occurred at 2954 ± 100 Ma ago,with migmatization at 2748 ± 100 Ma ago (Rb-Sr isochron). This complex displays TDM ages of 3.3 – 3.1 Ga and variable εNdt parameters (-4.7 to +0.3), which suggest juvenile and reworking processes from Mesoarchean protholiths with short crustal residence time. Relative the metamafic (tholeiitic) rock from the Riacho de Santana greenstone belt, at least one of the samples indicates anomalous fractionation, yields a 2.6 Ga TDM age whereas the U-Pb crystallization age is 2218±18 Ma. This suggests crustal contamination of the particular mantle source. Shortly after, the country rocks were intruded by the (U/Pb = 2054 ± 8 Ma) Guanambi batholith which was mainly derived from Archean protholiths (TDM ages of 2.8 – 2.7 Ga). Eventually, tectonic and thermal overprints took place in the study area during Meso- and Neoproterozoic periods, as indicated by K-Ar apparent ages and lower intercept age of a U-Pb discordia line from rocks of the Riacho de Santana Gneissic Migmatitic Complex. We believe that these younger episodes reflect the onset of the Northern Espinhaço intracratonic system and the Neoproterozoic dynamics, respectively, as similar as recorded over the Paramirim Corridor.

Gameleira lamprophyres are dykes and mafic microgranular enclaves associated with the shoshonitic Gameleira monzonite. This association belongs to the Paleoproterozoic alkaline magmatism from Serrinha nucleus, northeast Brazil. The liquidus paragenesis is diopside, pargasite, apatite and mica. Reverse zoning was identified in the groundmass alkali feldspar and was related to the undercooling of lamprophyric magma during the emplacement, with high growth rate of pargasite/edenite inducing disequilibrium between feldspars and liquid. Chemical data indicate that the lamprophyres are basic rocks (SiO2 < 48 wt%), with alkaline character (Na2O + K2O > 3 wt%) and potassic signature (K2O/Na2O ≈ 2). High contents of MgO and Cr are consistent with a signature of a primary liquid, and such concentrations, as well as Al, K, P, Ba, Ni- and light rare earth elements, are consistent with an olivine-free metasomatic mantle source enriched in amphibole, clinopyroxene and apatite. By contrast, the ultrapotassic lamprophyres from Morro do Afonso, contemporaneous alkaline ultrapotassic magmatism in Serrinha nucleus, were probably produced by melting of a clinopyroxene-phlogopite-apatite enriched-source. The identification of different mineral paragenesis in the source of potassic and ultrapotassic lamprophyres from Serrinha nucleus can contribute to the understanding of the mantle heterogeneities and tectonic evolution of this region.Os lamprófiros Gameleira são formados por diques e enclaves máficos microgranulares associados ao monzonito shoshonítico Gameleira. Esta associação pertence ao magmatismo alcalino Paleoproterozóico do núcleo Serrinha, nordeste do Brasil. A paragênese no liquidus é formada por diopsídio, pargasita, apatite e mica. Zonamento inverso foi identificado no feldspato alcalino da matriz e relacionado ao super-resfriamento do magma lamprofírico durante sua colocação, com alta taxa de crescimento da pargasita/edenita induzindo desequilíbrio entre os feldspatos e o líquido. Dados químicos indicam que os lamprófiros são rochas básicas (SiO2 < 48%), com caráter alcalino (Na2O + K2O > 3%) e assinatura potássica (K2O/Na2O ≈ 2). Elevados conteúdos de MgO e Cr são consistentes com uma assinatura primária, e tais concentrações, assim como os conteúdos de Al, K, P, Ba, Ni, e terras raras leves são consistentes com uma fonte mantélica metassomatizada sem olivine, enriquecida em anfibólio, clinopiroxênio e apatita. Por outro lado, os lamprófiros ultrapotássicos de Morro do Afonso, magmatismo alcalino contemporâneo no núcleo Serrinha, foram produzidos por uma fonte enriquecida em clinopiroxênio, flogopita e apatita. A identificação de diferentes paragênesis minerais na fonte de lamprófiros potássicos e ultrapotássicos do núcleo Serrinha pode contribuir para a compreensão das heterogeneidades do manto e a evolução tectônica desta região.

Occurrences of diamictites with a probable glacial origin underlying limestones north of Campo Formoso – BA around Araras village, had already been described by some authors during the 60´s and 70´s. Some of these occurrences have been recorded in some geological maps of 1/100,000 scales and even in others of smaller scales. The importance of these occurrences which have been studied in greater detail is increased because of the now identified litho-structural similarities (and probable stratigraphic correlation) with those of Ituaçu, América Dourada, Morro do Chapéu (all of which overlie the ChapadaDiamantina Group), as well as with those in the northern part of the São Francisco Craton (Patamuté, Bendegó etc. overlying TTG rock units of the basement). For all these cases there is evidence of foreland tectonics associated to the centripetal vergence of the Neoproterozoic fold belts, marginal to the craton. There are some additional observations of these rock units occurring in the level of the “Sul-americana Surface”, thus demonstrating deep levels of erosion, which may be partially responsible for the present geographic separation of the whole original litho-stratigraphic context. Nevertheless it seems very clear that these records have somehow been sparsely distributed in the Cryogenian paleogeographic scenery, which may be an additional argument to contest the Snow Ball Earth theory. Some selected geological sections were undertaken in thesurroundings of Araras which made it possible to discriminate 4 types of litho-structural relationships between the Jacobina Group (Orosirian) and the overlying diamictites of the São Francisco (Bebedouro Fm. Cryogenian).

The Glória quartz-monzodiorite, one of the mafic plutons of the Paleoproterozoic Mineiro belt, is intrusive into banded gneisses, amphibolites, schists and phyllites of the Rio das Mortes greenstone belt, in the southern portion of the São Francisco Craton, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The Glória quartz-monzodiorite yields a SHRIMP U-Pb zircon age of 2188 ± 29 Ma, suggesting a tectonic relationship with the pre-collisional phase of the Mineiro belt. According to the Nd isotopic evidence (epsilonNd(T) = -3.4; T DM = 2.68 Ga) the original magmas was formed by a mixture among Archean crustal material and Paleoproterozoic juvenile magma. The Glória quartz-monzodiorite shows metaluminous and calc-alkaline tendency with intermediate K content, comparable to that of volcanic-arc rocks. The primary mineralogical assemblage was partly modified by metamorphism, dated between 2131-2121 Ma in nearby coeval plutons. Such metamorphism is significantly older than the reported metamorphic episodes of the Mineiro belt in the Quadrilátero Ferrífero region (2059-2041 Ma) in the eastern portion of the study area. This evidence, together with chemical and isotopic data from other mafic and felsic plutons coeval with the Glória quartz-monzodiorite, indicate a tectonic and magmatic migration within the Mineiro belt from west to east.O Quartzo Monzodiorito Glória é um corpo plutônicomáfico associado à evolução Paleoproterozóica do Cinturão Mineiro. Este é intrusivo em gnaisses bandados, anfibolitos, xistos e filitos do Greenstone Belt Rio das Mortes, na porção sudeste do Cráton São Francisco, Estado de Minas Gerais, Brasil. Este corpo possui idade de cristalização SHRIMP (em zircão) de 2188 ± 29 Ma, enquanto os isótopos de Nd (épsilonNd(T) = -3,4; T DM = 2,68 Ga) apontam que sua fonte magmática envolveumaterial juvenil paleoproterozóico contaminada por protólitos arqueanos. As rochas do Quartzo Monzodiorito Glória são metaluminosas, cálcio-alcalinas de médio K e apresentam características geoquímicas assemelhadas com representantes de arco vulcânico. Em termos geocronológicos o pluton Glória relaciona-se ao estágio pré-colisional na região central do Cinturão Mineiro, sendo mais antigo que plutons com características químicas semelhantes que ocorrem no Quadrilátero Ferrífero. Sua mineralogia primária foi parcialmente substituída porminerais metamórficos, relacionados a um evento datado entre 2131-2121 Ma. Esse episódio é significantemente mais antigo que o evento metamórfico registrado emgranitóides do Cinturão Mineiro no Quadrilátero Ferrífero, ali datado entre 2059-2041 Ma. A integração do conjunto de idades radiométricas (U/Pb e 207Pb/206Pb), dados geoquímicos e isotópicos de corpos plutônicos máficos e félsicos Paleoproterozóicos, relacionados ao estágio pré-colisional do Cinturão Mineiro, sugere a migração tectônica do arco magmático de oeste para leste.

In this study we present U–Pb and Hf isotope data combined with O isotopes in zircon from Neoarchean granitoids and gneisses of the southern São Francisco craton in Brazil. The basement rocks record three distinct magmatic events: Rio das Velhas I (2920–2850 Ma), Rio das Velhas II (2800–2760 Ma) and Mamona (2750–2680 Ma). The three sampled metamorphic complexes (Bação, Bonfim and Belo Horizonte) have distinct ε Hf vs. time arrays, indicating that they grew as separate terranes. Paleoarchean crust is identified as a source which has been incorporated into younger magmatic rocks via melting and mixing with younger juvenile material, assimilation and/or source contamination processes. The continental crust in the southern São Francisco craton underwent a change in magmatic composition from medium- to high-K granitoids in the latest stages, indicating a progressive HFSE enrichment of the sources that underwent anatexis in the different stages and possibly shallowing of the melting depth. Oxygen isotope data shows a secular trend towards high δ 18 O (up to 7.79‰) indicating the involvement of metasediments in the petrogenesis of the high potassium granitoids during the Mamona event. In addition, low δ 18 O values (down to 2.50‰) throughout the Meso- and Neoarchean emphasize the importance of meteoritic fluids in intra-crustal magmatism. We used hafnium isotope modelling from a compilation of detrital zircon compositions to constrain crustal growth rates and geodynamics from 3.50 to 2.65 Ga. The modelling points to a change in geodynamic process in the southern São Francisco craton at 2.9 Ga, from a regime dominated by net crustal growth in the Paleoarchean to a Neoarchean regime marked by crustal reworking. The reworking processes account for the wide variety of granitoid magmatism and are attributed to the onset of continental collision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-silica rhyolites having U–Pb zircon ages of 3303 ± 11 Ma occur along the eastern border of the Gavião Block (Brazil) associated with the Contendas-Mirante and Mundo Novo supracrustal belts. Unlike many Archean greenstone sequences, they are not interlayered with mafic to intermediate units. Instead, they belong to an inter-related plutonic–volcanic system, together with granitic massifs having similar zircon crystallization ages of ca. 3293 ± 3 Ma and 3328 ± 3 Ma and plotting along the same geochemical trends as the rhyolites. The rhyolites show well-preserved primary volcanic features such as magma flow textures and euhedral phenocrysts. High emplacement temperatures are indicated by petrographic evidence (β-quartz phenocrysts), zircon saturation temperatures (915–820 °C) and geochemical data, especially high SiO 2 (74–79 wt.%) together with elevated Fe 2 O 3(T) (~ 3 wt.%), MgO (0.5–1.5 wt.%) and low Al 2 O 3 (< 11 wt.%). The rhyolites show homogeneous trace element ratios (La/Yb N 4.8 ± 1.8; Eu N /Eu* ~ 0.55; Sr/Y ~ 0.7) and negative ԐHf (3.3 Ga) from 0 to − 7, indicating derivation from a single crustal source for both occurrences. Specifically, the rhyolites would have derived from extraction and eruption of highly silicic residual liquid formed by crystallization of granitic magma in a relatively shallow (< 10 km) reservoir, now represented by the granite massifs. The granite magma was formed by melting or differentiation of material similar to the diorite gneiss that occurs regionally. The 3.30 Ga volcanic–plutonic systems formed after a period of crustal growth and stabilization of a thick continental lithosphere, represented by massive 3.40–3.33 Ga TTG and medium to high-K calk-alkaline magmatism in the Gavião Block. The 3.30 Ga-old rhyolites and granites would therefore have formed in an intracontinental tectonic setting after the formation and stabilization of new continental crust, and accordingly would represent the first stages of rifting and continental break-up. Intraplate magmatism and intracrustal differentiation processes took place on Earth at 3.3 Ga and produced magmas that were distinct from Archean TTGs, questioning the reliability (or at least the uniqueness) of “intraplate models” to explain the origin of the latter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Carrancas Formation outcrops in east-central Brazil on the southern margin of the São Francisco craton where it comprises the base of the late Neoproterozoic Bambuí Group. It is overlain by the basal Ediacaran cap carbonate Sete Lagoas Formation and was for a long time considered to be glacially influenced and correlative with the glaciogenic Jequitaí Formation. New stratigraphic, isotopic and geochronologic data imply that the Carrancas Formation was instead formed by the shedding of debris from basement highs uplifted during an episode of minor continental rifting. Reddish dolostones in the upper Carrancas Formation have δ 13 C values ranging from +7.1 to +9.6‰, which is a unique C isotopic composition for the lowermost Bambuí Group but similar to values found in the Tijucuçu sequence, a pre-glacial unit in the Araçuaí fold belt on the eastern margin of the São Francisco craton. The stratigraphic position below basal Ediacaran cap carbonates and the highly positive δ 13 C values together indicate a Cryogenian interglacial age for the Carrancas Formation, with the high δ 13 C values representing the so-called Keele peak, which precedes the pre-Marinoan Trezona negative δ 13 C excursion in other well characterized Cryogenian sequences. Hence, The Carrancas Formation pre-dates de Marinoan Jequitaí Formation and represents an interval of Cryogenian stratigraphy not previously known to occur on the southern margin of São Francicso craton. Documentation of Cryogenian interglacial strata on the São Francisco craton reinforces recent revisions to the age of Bambuí Group strata and has implications for the development of the Bambuí basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Brejo Seco mafic-ultramafic Complex (BSC) occurs at the extreme northwest of the Riacho do Pontal Orogen Internal Zone, in the northern margin of the São Francisco Craton in Northeast Brazil. The stratigraphy of this medium size (3.5 km wide and 9 km long) layered intrusion consists of four main zones, from bottom to top: Lower Mafic Zone (LMZ; mainly troctolite), Ultramafic Zone (UZ; mainly dunite and minor troctolite); Transitional Mafic Zone (TMZ; mainly troctolite) and an Upper Mafic Zone (UMZ; gabbro and minor anorthosite, troctolite, and ilmenite magnetitite). Ni-Cu-PGE mineralization occurs at the contact of the UZ with the TMZ, consisting of an up to 50 m thick stratabound zone of disseminated magmatic sulfides. An Mg-tholeiitic affinity to the parental magma is indicated by the geochemical fractionation pattern, by the magmatic crystallization sequence and by the elevated Fo content in olivine. A Sm Nd isochron yielded an age of 903 ± 20 Ma, interpreted as the age of crystallization, with initial εNd = 0.8. Evidence of interaction of the BSC parental magma with sialic crust is given by the Rare Earth and trace element patterns, and by slightly negative and overall low values of εNd (900 Ma) in between −0.2 and +3.3. Contrary to early interpretations that it might constitute an ophiolite complex, based mainly on the geochemistry of the host rocks (Morro Branco metavolcanosedimentary complex), here we interpret the BSC as a typical layered mafic-ultramafic intrusion in continental crust, related to an extensional regime. The BSC is chrono-correlated to mafic dyke swarms, anorogenic granites and thick bimodal volcanics of similar age and tectonic setting in the São Francisco Craton and surrounding areas. Intrusion of the BSC was followed by continued lithospheric thinning, which led to the development of the Paulistana Complex continental rift volcanics around 888 Ma and ultimately to plate separation and the generation of new oceanic crust (Monte Orebe Complex) around 820–650 Ma ago. Thus, the BSC provides a benchmark for the onset of Tonian continental rifting in this area, and is an important marker for the processes of Rodinia breakup and dispersion recorded in South America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Riacho do Pontal Orogen (RPO) is part of the extensive Brasiliano/Pan-African orogenic system in northeastern South America (Borborema Province). This region is crucial for understanding the Neoproterozoic evolution of West Gondwana because it occupies a strategic position between three of its most important constituents, namely the São Francisco/Congo, Amazon and West Africa cratons. Based on lithostratigraphic, lithochemical, geochronological and isotopic data, a five-stage model for the geodynamic evolution of the RPO and adjacent areas in the Borborema Province is proposed: (1) rift phase – Development of a triple junction rift system at ca. 900–820 Ma ago, probably related to the emplacement of a mantle plume and leading to intense mafic–ultramafic magmatism of the Brejo Seco layered intrusion (ca. 900 Ma). This was followed by the development of a continental rift system testified by the Paulistana Complex metavolcanosedimentary sequence (ca. 882 Ma); (2) drift phase – With continued lithospheric thinning, the rift system further evolved to a broad passive margin in the northern São Francisco craton edge, represented by the Barra Bonita Formation platformal sediments. The drift phase culminated in the development of true oceanic crust, represented by the Monte Orebe ophiolite, around 820–630 Ma ago; (3) convergence phase – At circa 630–620 Ma, onset of subduction in the Borborema Province caused the inversion of the basins, obduction of oceanic crust slices, and sedimentation of the Mandacaru Formation syn-orogenic greywackes; (4) collisional phase – Continental collision between the São Francisco craton (lower plate) and the Pernambuco-Alagoas block (upper plate) occurred around 620–590 Ma, with the stacking of the Casa Nova nappes upon the lower plate, crustal thickening, deformation, metamorphism, melt generation and intrusion of the syn-collisional Rajada Suite two-mica granites; (5) lateral escape phase – The collisional stage was followed by a lateral escape tectonics stage around 590–530 Ma, that generated the western branch of the E–W trending Pernambuco Shear Zone, which truncates the northern part of the orogen and displaces its counterparts in the Transversal Zone in a dextral-sense shear. This phase was accompanied by extensive alkaline magmatism in the form of the Serra da Aldeia/Caboclo suites. Thus, the RPO represents a complete plate tectonic cycle that spans the whole Neoproterozoic and preserve excellent time markers for both the break-up and dispersion of the Rodinia Supercontinent fragments and for the re-amalgamation of those fragments in West Gondwana. The interpretation of a complete Wilson Cycle in this area challenges current views of the Borborema Province as a coherent block since Paleoproterozoic times (part of the Atlantica Supercontinent); suggesting, instead, a dynamic setting where multiple plates interacted to form the heart of West Gondwana. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The southern portion of the Gavião Paleoplate is composed by Archean orthogneisses, Archean-Paleoproterozoic metavolcano-sedimentary rocks and Siderian-Rhyacian-Orosirian granitoids. Petrographic, geochemical, U–Pb (Laser Ablation, ICPMS) and Sm-Nd data are presented for five Paleoproterozoic granitoids that were recently mapped: Jussiape II, Lagoa das Almas, Humaitá, Belo Campo and Broco granitoids. These granitoids present U–Pb zircon (LA-ICPMS) ages of 2052 ± 43, 2114 ± 24, 2140 ± 9, 2049 ± 23 and 2038 ± 8 Ma, respectively. In addition to these granitoids, another twenty-five ones were identified and studied by several authors, resulting in a total of twenty-nine plutons. Despite the previous petrography, geochemistry and geochronology studies that have been performed, no model had been proposed to explain the tectonic setting of this extensive granitogenesis. Integration of the new data and the literature has been done and corresponds to the second part of the article. Based on U–Pb dating and geochemical data, Siderian-Rhyacian-Orosirian granitoids of the southern Gavião Paleoplate were classified into five groups, or five suites: 1 (2324 ± 6 to 2091 ± 6.6 Ma), 2a (2054 −6/+8 to 2041 ± 23 Ma), 2b (2066 ± 37 to 2019 ± 32 Ma), 2c (2058 ± 8 to 1852 ± 50 Ma) and 2d (2049 ± 12 to 1929 ± 16 Ma). The granitoids of Group 1 present heterogeneous deformation, while the granitoids of groups 2a to 2d are generally not deformed. Usually the rocks are potassic, but sodic granitic rocks can be found in samples of groups 1, 2c and 2d. Several chemical classification parameters are presented and discussed herein, but it is noteworthy that the granitoids of Group 1 are mainly classified as calcic to calc-alkalic, while the rocks of the second group are mostly classified as alkalic ones. In the remaining groups, the samples vary between calc-alkalic and alkali-calcic. The ε Nd values range between 4.0 and −15.4 and suggest an important and varied share of the continental crust in the formation of these rocks. The Humaitá granitoid probably presents the lowest contribution from the continental crust in its genesis. The rocks from Group 1 were generated as the product of an active continental margin arc situated eastwards from the southern portion of the Gavião Paleoplate. The spatial distribution between the granitoids of groups 1 and 2a suggests westwards subduction and led to a cordilleran model for the Western Bahia Magmatic Arc. Continental collision between the Gavião and Jequié paleoplates occurred around 2.09 Ga and was followed by the setting of late-collision granitoids of groups 2a to 2d. The comparison between the tectonic model presented in this study and other existing models that explain the Siderian-Rhyacian-Orosirian granitogenesis of the Mineiro Belt and Mantiqueira Complex suggests a continuation of the Western Bahia Magmatic Arc and of the collisional orogen that followed, towards the south. The Western Bahia Magmatic Arc emplacement occurred before the Paleoproterozoic granitogenesis of the Serrinha (Bahia-Brazil) and Congo (Africa) paleoplates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Quadrilátero Ferrífero is a metallogenic district (Au, Fe, Mn) located at the southernmost end of the São Francisco craton in eastern Brazil. In this region, a supracrustal assemblage composed of Archean greenstone and overlying Neoarchean–Paleoproterozoic sedimentary rocks occur in elongated keels bordering domal bodies of Archean gneisses and granites. The tectonomagmatic evolution of the Quadrilàtero Ferrífero began in the Paleoarchean with the formation of continental crust between 3500 and 3200 Ma. Although this crust is today poorly preserved, its existence is attested to by the occurrence of detrital zircon crystals with Paleoarchean age in the supracrustal rocks. Most of the crystalline basement, which is composed of banded gneisses intruded by leucogranitic dikes and weakly foliated granites, formed during three major magmatic events: Rio das Velhas I (2920–2850 Ma), Rio das Velhas II (2800–2760 Ma) and Mamona (2760–2680 Ma). The Rio das Velhas II and Mamona events represent a subduction-collision cycle, probably marking the appearance of a modern-style plate tectonic regime in the Quadrilátero Ferrífero. Granitic rocks emplaced during the Rio das Velhas I and II events formed by mixing between a magma generated by partial melting of metamafic rocks with an end member derived by recycling gneissic rocks of older continental crust. After deformation and regional metamorphism at ca. 2770 Ma, a change in the composition of the granitic magmas occurred and large volumes of high-K granitoids were generated. The ca. 6000 m-thick Minas Supergroup tracks the opening and closure of a basin during the Neoarchean–Paleoproterozoic, between 2600 and 2000 Ma. The basal sequence involves continental to marine sediments deposited in a passive margin basin and contain as a marker bed the Lake Superior-type Cauê Banded Iron Formation. The overlying sediments of the Sabará Group mark the inversion of the basin during the Rhyacian Minas accretionary orogeny. This orogeny results from the collision between the nuclei of the present-day São Francisco and Congo cratons, generated the fold-and thrust belt structure of the Quadrilátero Ferrífero. Afterwards, the post- orogenic collapse resulted in the deposition of the Itacolomi Group and in the genesis of the dome-and-keel structure. In this paper, we review current knowledge about the 1500 Ma long-lasting tectonomagmatic and structural evolution of the Quadrilátero Ferrífero identifying the most compelling open questions and future challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This geochronological and isotopic study focuses on one of the Archean-Paleoproterozoic basement domains of the São Francisco craton reworked in the Araçuaí orogen, the Porteirinha domain, Brazil. It also includes a thorough compilation of the U–Pb geochronological data related to the adjacent Archean and Rhyacian terranes from the São Francisco craton and Araçuaí orogen. The main target of this study is the TTG gneisses of the Porteirinha complex (Sample 1). The gneiss dated at 3371 ± 6 Ma unraveled a polycyclic evolution characterized by two metamorphic overprinting episodes, dated at 3146 ± 24 Ma (M 1 ) and ca. 600 Ma (M 2 ). The former (M 1 ) is so far the most reliable evidence of the oldest metamorphic episode ever dated in Brazil. The latter (M 2 ), in turn, is endemic in most of the exposed eastern cratonic margin within the Araçuaí orogen. Whole-rock Sm–Nd analysis from the gneiss provided a slightly negative εNd (t3370) = - 0.78 value, and a depleted mantle model (T DM ) age of 3.5 Ga, indicating derivation mainly from the melting of a ca. 3.5 Ga tholeiitic source. Sample 2, a K-rich leuco-orthogneiss from the Rio Itacambiriçu Complex, was dated at 2657 ± 25 Ma and also presents a ca. 600 Ma M 2 overprinting M 2 age. The other two analyses were obtained from Rhyacian granitoids. Sample 3 is syn-collisional, peraluminous leucogranite from the Tingui granitic complex, showing a crystallization age of 2140 ± 14 Ma and strong post-crystallization Pb*-loss, also ascribed to the Ediacaran overprinting. Accordingly, it is interpreted as a correlative of the late Rhyacian (ca. 2150-2050 Ma) collisional stage of the Mantiqueira orogenic system/belt (ca. 2220-2000 Ma), overprinted by the Ediacaran collage. Sample 4 is a Rhyacian post-orogenic (post-collisional), mixed-source, peralkaline, A 1 -type suite, with a crystallization age of 2050 ± 10 Ma, presenting an important post-crystallization Pb*-loss related to Ediacaran collision. The focused region records some of the oldest magmatic and metamorphic events ever found in the São Francisco craton basement, a ca. 3.4 Ga TTG generation and ca. 3.1 Ga metamorphism, as well as two younger orogenic events: the Rhyacian (2.15–2.05 Ga), accretionary event, correlated to the Mineiro belt, and the Ediacaran Brasiliano overprinting, event imposed by the Araçuaí orogen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bambuí Group, the most extensive carbonate- siliciclastic cover on the São Francisco craton, has been a matter of debate because of its potential correlations to global glacial events. Unfortunately, most available chemostratigraphic data came from samples collected on surface rock exposures, ever susceptible to the aggressive chemical weathering that characterizes the southeastern Brazil. On the other hand, we present here high-resolution chemostratigraphic studies based on C, O and Sr isotopic data from 53 samples collected along a weathering-free, continuous, 175 m thick sedimentary succession. This succession was recovered by borehole drilling in the southwestern São Francisco craton, where occur the Carrancas and Sete Lagoas formations, the lowermost units of the Bambuí Group. The drill cores reveal extremely irregular contacts between the basal diamictite and its basement, an Archaean foliated granodiorite. Geochronological and sedimentological data strongly suggest that the diamictite represents a lodgement till. This glaciogenic deposit is covered by a limestone succession which starts with impure carbonates showing aragonite pseudomorph fans and thin bands of black shale. The limestone pile grades to a marl-mudstone interval, which turns to a carbonate with biological components, succeeded by stromatolitic dolomite at the top. C and O isotopic signatures (referred to V-PDB) allow to the subdivision of the lower carbonate-pelite section into three intervals. The first isotopic interval corresponds to a cap carbonate, and displays negative values of δ13C (c. -4‰), and a large oscillation of the δ18O (-6 to -15‰). The Interval II shows a striking homogeneity in δ13C and δ18O, around 1‰ and -7‰, respectively. At the top, Interval III shows a large positive excursion of the δ13C (up to 8‰) and δ18O (-8 to -3‰) values. Unaltered 86Sr/87Sr ratios range from 0.7075 to 0.7077, mainly at the top of the section. The geochemistry of the carbonates is controlled by their terrigenous content (mostly quartz and clay minerals) which is concentrated in the lower units. Samples free of terrigenous contamination show Y/Ho ratios ranging from 25 to 50, suggesting a freshwater input during carbonate deposition. It is concluded that the diamictite has a glaciogenic origin and is covered by a cap carbonate. This pair has been identified along the basin and is related to one of the main Neoproterozoic glaciations. Discrepancy between the 86Sr/87Sr values and the global variation curves can be related to freshwater input during the carbonate deposition. Based on the regional tectonic context, the Bambuí Basin may have been a restricted marine basin, totally or partially surrounded by mountain ranges within Gondwana, in the Neoproterozoic/Paleozoic boundary. In its early stages, the sedimentation was influenced by a global glacial event, whose melting phase was responsible by freshwater input in the basin. The gradual rise of the temperature was followed by an increase of the biological activity. Finally, a sudden increase in the biological activity could have been driven by paleogeographic changes caused by the active tectonic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Detrital zircon ages are an important tool to study the provenance and evolution of sedimentary rocks, and currently there is a general lack of such studies in greenstone belt basins. In this paper, we combine field observations and in situ U–Pb/Lu–Hf detrital zircon analyses to constrain the evolution of a large, ancient convergent basin in SE Brazil. The Maquiné Group (the uppermost clastic sequence of the Rio das Velhas Greenstone Belt) was deposited during a fundamental shift in the evolution of the southern São Francisco Craton that ended with closure of the greenstone belt basin and the stabilization of the continental crust at ca. 2730–2700 Ma. We show that detritus accumulated in the Maquiné basin derived from uplifted nearby source rocks and that sedimentation was marked by drastic upward lithological changes (from flysch to molasse-type sedimentation). The restricted distributary provenance (marked by a strong uni-modal age spectra at 2770–2780 Ma) requires that sedimentation was concomitant with exhumation of a proximal 2770–2780 Ma TTG magmatic arc. The entire detrital zircon spectra show that maximum deposition ages are very close to the timing of deposition, and confirm that deposition occurred during or immediately after tectonic convergence. Variations in ɛHf (t) values support the idea that the Archaean crystalline crust of the craton was built by crust–mantle mixing processes with a successive decrease of values in zircons crystallized after 3100 Ma. In a regional context, our dataset supports previous interpretations of a long-lived evolution of the southern São Francisco Craton comprising a succession of magmatic arcs and Archaean convergent basins. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

U–Pb baddeleyite ages demonstrate the presence of three dyke generations within the NW-trending Pará de Minas swarm (São Francisco craton, South America), dated at ca. 1795 Ma (1798 ± 4, 1791 ± 7 and 1793 ± 18 Ma), ca. 1710 Ma (1702 ± 13 and 1717 ± 11 Ma) and 766 ± 36 Ma. These ages have implications for the São Francisco-Congo (SF-Congo) craton within the Rodinia and Columbia supercontinent configurations. At 1795 Ma, the Rio de la Plata craton (1790 ± 5 Ma Uruguayan dykes), Amazonian craton (1790–1780 Ma Avanavero LIP), Sarmatia (1789 ± 3 Ma Tomashgorod dyke), North Australia (1790 ± 4 Ma Hart dolerites) and the North China craton (1790–1770 Ma Taihang-Xiong’er event) could potentially have been “next-door neighbours” to the SF-Congo craton. Possible matches at 1710 Ma are the 1750–1700 Ma Bilyakchan-Ulkan complex and coeval dykes in the Siberian craton and the 1730 Ma Miyun dyke swarm in NCC. Given large uncertainties, the 766 ± 36 Ma age may be compared with the age of the 790 Ma Niquelândia complex in adjacent Goias state, the 799 Ma Gannakouriep dykes in the Kalahari craton, the 780 Ma Gunbarrel LIP of western Laurentia, the 760 Ma Mount Rogers LIP of eastern Laurentia and the 755 Ma Mundine Well event (western Australia). We propose a reconstruction in which the SF-Congo is attached to North China and Siberia, which existed from 1790 to 1380 Ma when SF-Congo and North China broke away from Siberia, and until 930 Ma when North China separated from SF-Congo. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study is focused on speleogenesis of the Toca da Boa Vista (TBV) and Toca da Barriguda (TBR), the longest caves in South America occurring in the Neoproterozoic Salitre Formation in the São Francisco Craton, NE Brazil. We employ a multidisciplinary approach integrating detailed speleomorphogenetic, lithostratigraphic and geological structure studies in order to reveal the origin of the caves, their functional organization and geologic controls on their development. The caves developed in deep-seated confined conditions by rising flow. The overall fields of passages of TBV and TBR caves represent a speleogenetically exploited large NE–SW-trending fracture corridor associated with a major thrust. This corridor vertically extends across the Salitre Formation allowing the rise of deep fluids. In the overall ascending flow system, the formation of the cave pattern was controlled by a system of sub-parallel anticlines and troughs with NNE–SSW dominant orientation, and by vertical and lateral heterogeneities in fracture distribution. Three cave-stratigraphic stories reflect the actual hydrostratigraphy during the main phase of speleogenesis. Cavities at different stories are distinct in morphology and functioning. The gross tree-dimensional pattern of the system is effectively organized to conduct rising flow in deep-seated confined conditions. Cavities in the lower story developed as recharge components to the system. A laterally extensive conduit network in the middle story formed because the vertical flow from numerous recharge points has been redirected laterally along the highly conductive unit, occurring below the major seal — a scarcely fractured unit. Rift-like and shaft-like conduits in the upper story developed along fracture-controlled outflow paths, breaching the integrity of the major seal, and served as outlets for the cave system. The cave system represents a series of vertically organized, functionally largely independent clusters of cavities developed within individual ascending flow cells. Lateral integration of clusters occurred due to hydrodynamic interaction between the flow cells in course of speleogenetic evolution and change of boundary conditions. The main speleogenetic phase, during which the gross cave pattern has been established and the caves acquired most of their volume, was likely related to rise of deep fluids at about 520 Ma or associated with rifting and the Pangea break-up in Triassic–Cretaceous. This study highlights the importance of speleogenetic studies for interpreting porosity and permeability features in carbonate reservoirs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]