Paleo‐Pacific Plate Subduction and Basement Mobilization Triggered Large‐Scale Formation of Mesozoic Gold Deposits in the Northern Margin of the North China Craton

• Published in: Geochemistry, geophysics, geosystems : G3 Vol. 24; no. 7
• Main Authors: Xiao, Tingting, Sun, Deyou, Lehmann, Bernd, Tian, Zhendong, Gao, Lingjian, Zhang, Duo, Deng, Changzhou, Luo, Anbo, Xu, Yang, Yin, Runsheng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01-07-2023; Wiley
• Subjects: Basement rock; Cratons; Cretaceous; Earth surface; Economic importance; Fluids; Fractionation; Gold; Heat flow; Heavy metals; Isotope composition; Isotopes; Jurassic; Marine sediments; Mercury; Mesozoic; Metallogenesis; Oceans; Plates; Precambrian; Pyrite; Rocks; Scaling; Subduction; China
• ISSN: 1525-2027; 1525-2027
• DOI: 10.1029/2022GC010769

The northern margin of the North China Craton (NNCC) hosts Mesozoic gold deposits of significant economic importance. The metal sources of these gold systems have long been debated with mainly magmatic‐hydrothermal versus metamorphic fluid models. Mercury (Hg) isotopes, which undergo unique mass‐independent fractionation, can provide important insights into the source of metals in gold deposits due to the close association between Hg and Au in such systems. Here, we investigated the Hg isotopic composition of six gold deposits of the Middle Jurassic to Early Cretaceous age and potential source rocks in the NNCC. Variable ∆199Hg values were observed in bulk ore and pyrite samples (−0.28‰ to 0.34‰, n = 51) and coeval granites (−0.21‰ to 0.13‰; n = 25). The negative ∆199Hg values of bulk ore and pyrite samples mostly agree with that observed for metamorphic basement rocks (−0.37‰ to 0.11‰; n = 32). The positive ∆199Hg values of bulk ore and pyrite samples agree with those reported in marine sediments (0‰–0.3‰). So the data suggest binary mixing of ocean‐recycled Hg originated from the subducted oceanic slab, and terrestrial‐recycled Hg from the Precambrian basement in Mesozoic gold deposits. The contribution of Hg (and Au, by analogy) from both reservoirs varies depending on active continental arc versus intracontinental setting and is ultimately controlled by translithospheric heat flow driven by paleo‐Pacific plate subduction.
Plain Language Summary
Photoreduction of Hg(II) on Earth's surface system leads to mass‐independent fractionation of Hg isotopes, resulting in positive and negative Δ199Hg values in marine and terrestrial systems, respectively. Here, we observe negative to positive Δ199Hg values in the Mesozoic gold deposits in the northern margin of the North China Craton. These results suggest binary mixing of ocean‐recycled Hg from the fluids released by subducting oceanic slab or the mantle metasomatized by these fluids, and terrestrial‐recycled Hg from the Precambrian basement in Mesozoic gold deposits. Paleo‐Pacific plate subduction and translithospheric heat flow may have played a key role in the metallogenic metal enrichment of the Mesozoic gold deposits in the northern margin of the North China Craton.
Key Points
Mass‐independent fraction of Hg isotopes is observed in Mesozoic gold deposits in the northern margin of the North China Craton
Positive Δ199Hg values in Mesozoic gold deposits suggest Hg was sourced from lithospheric mantle modified by oceanic subduction
Negative Δ199Hg values in Mesozoic gold deposits suggest that Hg was sourced from the Precambrian basement