ALBERT

Description: The Don Manuel porphyry copper system, located in the Miocene–Pliocene metallogenic belt of central Chile, contains spatially zoned alteration styles common to other porphyry copper deposits including extensive potassic alteration, propylitic alteration, localized sericite-chlorite alteration and argillic alteration but lacks pervasive hydrolytic alteration typical of some deposits. It is one of the youngest porphyry copper deposits in the Andes. Timing of mineralization and the hydrothermal system at Don Manuel are consistent with emplacement of the associated intrusions (ca. 4 and 3.6 Ma). Two molybdenite samples yielded consistent ages of 3.412 ± 0.037 and 3.425 ± 0.037 Ma. 40Ar/39Ar ages on hydrothermal biotites (3.57 ± 0.02, 3.51 ± 0.02, 3.41 ± 0.01, and 3.37 ± 0.01 Ma) are associated with potassic alteration. These ages are younger than the youngest intrusion by ~300 k.y. recording the cooling of the system below 350 °C. Such a time gap can be explained by fluxing of hot magmatic fluids from deeper magmatic sources.

Description: The 4·0–3·6 Ma Don Manuel igneous complex (DMIC), central Chile, provides a window into igneous processes involved in magma genesis associated with porphyry-style copper mineralization. This study uses petrographic, petrological, geochemical and isotopic data to examine the evolution of magmas from the mid- to lower-crustal source region to shallow emplacement. The data provide evidence for progressive oxidation of magma during differentiation and ascent, fractionation of Cl from S through degassing, and the late-stage, near-solidus removal of Cl from the system. Magmas of basaltic andesite to rhyolite composition were produced by polybaric differentiation of hydrous parental mafic magmas. Variations in crustal differentiation depths led to variable suppression of plagioclase saturation that is recorded in distinctive strontium versus anorthite evolution patterns. Hydrous, derivative magmas generated over a wide range of pressures were episodically emplaced into the shallow crust at depths between 3·5 and 5 km. Intermediate porphyry dikes closely associated with copper mineralization contain diverse crystal cargoes indicating significant magma mixing. These crystal cargoes represent samples of crystal mush entrained from different depths, as well as crystals originating in different magmas and crystals grown in situ from hybridized magmas. Mafic enclaves containing plagioclase and amphibole compositions that match those of the basaltic andesites occur within biotite tonalite, testifying to magma mingling during ascent. Sulfur and chlorine contents of apatite within the different DMIC units record variable degassing and decoupling of volatile components with sulfur showing variations of three orders of magnitude compared with one order of magnitude for chlorine. The hypabyssal nature of the DMIC affords a detailed, integrated record of magmatic differentiation processes occurring within trans-crustal magmatic systems of the sort thought to characterize many crustal arc settings and play a fundamental role in driving porphyry-style copper mineralization.