Early Carboniferous adakitic rocks in the area of the Tuwu deposit, eastern Tianshan, NW China: Slab melting and implications for porphyry copper mineralization

摘要

Existing geochronological and geochemical data for the Early Carboniferous magmatic rocks in the eastern Tianshan, Xinjiang, have been interpreted in a variety of theories regarding petrogenesis and geodynamic setting. The proposed settings include rift, back-arc basin, passive continental margin, island arc, ridge subduction, and post-collisional environment. To evaluate these possibilities, we present new SHRIMP zircon U-Pb geochronology and geochemical data, whole-rock geochemical, Hf isotope, and S isotope data for tonalitic rocks and ores associated with the Tuwu porphyry copper deposit located in the center of the late Paleozoic Dananhu-Tousuquan arc, eastern Tianshan. SHRIMP zircon U-Pb dating indicates that the magmatic activity and thus associated copper mineralization occurred ca.332 Ma. The tonalitic rocks are calc-alkaline granites with A/CNK values ranging from 1.16 to 1.58; are enriched in K, Rb, Sr, and Ba; and are markedly depleted in Nb, Ta, Ti, and Th. They show geochemical affinities similar to adakites, with high Sr, Al2O3, and Na2O contents and La/Yb ratios; low Y and Yb contents; and slight positive Eu anomalies. In situ Hf isotopic analyses of zircons yielded positive initial epsilon(Hf)(t) values ranging from 6.9 to 17.2. The delta S-34 values of the ore sulfides range from -3.0 parts per thousand to +1.7 parts per thousand, reflecting a deep sulfur source. Our results indicate that the paleo-Tianshan oceanic slab was being simultaneously subducted northward beneath the Dananhu-Tousuquan arc, and southward beneath the Aqishan-Yamansu arc during the Early Carboniferous. The Tuwu adakitic tonalitic rocks were derived from the partial melting of the subducted paleo-Tianshan oceanic slab, which was subsequently hybridized by mantle wedge peridotites. The slab-derived magmas have considerably high copper contents and are highly oxidized, thus leading to porphyry copper mineralization. Such Early Carboniferous tonalitic rocks that are widespread in the eastern Tianshan define a province with high potential for copper mineralization. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.