Insights into ore genesis of Ni-Cu-PGE sulfide deposits of the Noril’sk Province (Russia): Evidence from copper and sulfur isotopes

Malitch, K. N.; Latypov, Rais; Badanina, I. Yu.; Sluzhenikin, Sergey F.

doi:10.1016/j.lithos.2014.05.014

Cited by 62 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…The Noril'sk nickel deposits occur within small ski-shaped subvolcanic intrusions, up to 360 m thick and 25 km long, which contain 1.7 billion tons of ore at an average grade of 0.9% Ni (16). The orebodies contain an abundance of highly distinctive globular sulfide ore textures ( Fig.…”

Section: Capped Globular Sulfidesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of degassing of the Noril’sk nickel deposits in the Permian–Triassic mass extinction event

Vaillant

Mungall

2017

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The largest mass extinction event in Earth's history marks the boundary between the Permian and Triassic Periods at circa 252 Ma and has been linked with the eruption of the basaltic Siberian Traps large igneous province (SLIP). One of the kill mechanisms that has been suggested is a biogenic methane burst triggered by the release of vast amounts of nickel into the atmosphere. A proposed Ni source lies within the huge Noril’sk nickel ore deposits, which formed in magmatic conduits widely believed to have fed the eruption of the SLIP basalts. However, nickel is a nonvolatile element, assumed to be largely sequestered at depth in dense sulfide liquids that formed the orebodies, preventing its release into the atmosphere and oceans. Flotation of sulfide liquid droplets by surface attachment to gas bubbles has been suggested as a mechanism to overcome this problem and allow introduction of Ni into the atmosphere during eruption of the SLIP lavas. Here we use 2D and 3D X-ray imagery on Noril’sk nickel sulfide, combined with simple thermodynamic models, to show that the Noril’sk ores were degassing while they were forming. Consequent “bubble riding” by sulfide droplets, followed by degassing of the shallow, sulfide-saturated, and exceptionally volatile and Cl-rich SLIP lavas, permitted a massive release of nickel-rich volcanic gas and subsequent global dispersal of nickel released from this gas as aerosol particles.

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Section: Capped Globular Sulfidesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of degassing of the Noril’sk nickel deposits in the Permian–Triassic mass extinction event

Vaillant

Mungall

2017

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…1c). Also the isotopic composition of S strongly suggests a contribution from country rocks: δ 34 S of economic mineralized intrusions is variable but persistently positive in each intrusion (5-16‰; Grinenko 1985;Li et al 2003Li et al , 2009Naldrett 2004 and references therein;Malitch et al 2014), and markedly higher than the MORB values (e.g. -0.91 ±0.50 ‰; Labidi et al 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…In addition, lateral variations within individual intrusions are quite important (Naldrett 2004). Massive and disseminated sulfides of Kharaelakh, Talnakh, and Noril'sk 1 intrusions have extremely variable and heavy sulfur isotopic signatures: the Kharaelakh intrusion generally shows the heaviest and Noril'sk 1 the lightest compositions, with small difference between massive and disseminated sulfides (Grinenko 1985;Li et al 2003Li et al , 2009aNaldrett 2004 and references therein; Malitch et al 2014). The most recent survey indicates mean δ 34 S of 12.6-12.8 ‰,…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Assimilation of sulfate and carbonaceous rocks: Experimental study, thermodynamic modeling and application to the Noril’sk-Talnakh region (Russia)

Iacono-Marziano

Ferraina

Gaillard

et al. 2017

Ore Geology Reviews

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This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. sulfate and organic matter-rich sedimentary rocks has been proposed as a possible mechanism for the origin of these exceptional sulfide deposits but the interaction process and the reaction paths have never been fully investigated. Here we clarify, by both experimental petrology and thermodynamic modeling, how sulfate and organic matter assimilation occur in mafic-ultramafic magmas, affecting magma composition, crystallization and sulfide saturation.Interaction experiments were conducted at conditions relevant to the emplacement of Noril'sk type intrusions (1200 °C, ~80 MPa) to simulate the assimilation of sulfate and/or organic compounds by ultramafic magmas. We used a picrite from Noril'sk1 intrusion, and coal and anhydrite from the area as starting materials. The experimental results show that the incorporation of anhydrite into the magma occurs by chemical dissolution in the melt, which increases the magma's sulfur content, but suppresses sulfide saturation and reduces olivine crystallization. Extreme assimilation leads to sulfate saturation in the magma and high dissolved sulfur contents of 0.9±0.1 wt.% S. Conversely, coal assimilation promotes sulfide segregation and magma crystallization, while decreasing the dissolved H 2 O content of the melt and increasing the amount of coexisting fluid phase.We also employed gas-melt thermodynamic calculations to quantify the effect of these assimilations on the redox conditions and the S content of the magma, and investigate the role of temperature, pressure, and initial gas content of the magma in the assimilation process. We quantify how sulfate assimilation strongly oxidizes the magma and increases its S content; both effects are intensified by 2 increasing pressure (from 50 to 100 MPa in this study), decreasing temperature (from 1350 to 1200 °C in this study), and decreasing amounts of fluid phase initially coexisting with the magma (from 2 to 0 wt.%). The interaction with organic matter (CH in this study) induces a strong reduction of the magma, even for extremely low degrees of assimilation (few tenths of wt. %), and the dehydration of the melt.We therefore suggest that in the Noril'sk-Talnakh district (1) additional S was supplied to mantle derived magmas by the assimilation of evaporitic rocks, and was transported during magma ascent in the form of dissolved, oxidized S; (2) a substantial reduction of the magma inducing sulfide segregation and important crystallization then occurred due to the interaction with carbonaceous sediments. This mechanism can potentially produce massive sulfide deposits by imp...

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“…Malitch et al (2014) presents the Cu and S isotopic compositions of the sulfides in the economic deposits, subeconomic deposits and non-economic occurrences in the Noril'sk Province in Russia. They consider that the restricted range of δ 65 Cu values of the sulfides may represent the primary signature of the ores.…”

Section: Mineralization System Associated With Permian Large Igneous mentioning

confidence: 99%

Permian large igneous provinces: Characteristics, mineralization and paleo-environment effects

Wang

Shen

2014

Lithos

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Insights into ore genesis of Ni-Cu-PGE sulfide deposits of the Noril’sk Province (Russia): Evidence from copper and sulfur isotopes

Cited by 62 publications

References 47 publications

Role of degassing of the Noril’sk nickel deposits in the Permian–Triassic mass extinction event

Role of degassing of the Noril’sk nickel deposits in the Permian–Triassic mass extinction event

Assimilation of sulfate and carbonaceous rocks: Experimental study, thermodynamic modeling and application to the Noril’sk-Talnakh region (Russia)

Permian large igneous provinces: Characteristics, mineralization and paleo-environment effects

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