Abstract:
The Jinchuan Ni-Cu deposit is the largest magmatic Ni-Cu sulfide deposit in China. Previous studies shown that there is a high degree of contamination in the mineralization process of the Jinchuan deposit, but the source of the contaminating material and the mechanism that causes the sulfide melt segregation from the magma are still controversial. In this paper, we use a combination of multiple S (δ
34S+Δ
33S) and Fe (δ
56Fe) isotopes to trace the contaminated crustal materials during the mineralization process of the Jinchuan deposit, especially the influence of sulfur in Archean sedimentary rocks on the sulfur saturation of the Jinchuan deposit. The Δ
33S value of sulfide minerals in the segment Ⅰ and Ⅱ of the Jinchuan deposit is from −0.07‰ to 0.22‰, which exceeds the Δ
33S value of mantle-derived magma and is completely different from the Δ
33S value of pyrite (−0.04‰~−0.08‰) in the wall rock of the Jinchuan deposit, indicating that the contamination of the Jinchuan magma should occur at depth and have nothing to do with its direct wall rock. The δ
56Fe value of pyrrhotite in the Jinchuan deposit is from −1.07‰ to −0.33‰. Calculations show that the δ
56Fe value of Jinchuan parent magma in equilibrium with the sulfide melt is −0.7‰, which is far lower than the normal mantle-derived basaltic magma range. In addition, pyrrhotite in sulfide ores with positive Δ
33S values usually has very low δ
56Fe values, and Δ
33S-δ
56Fe values have a significant negative correlation, indicating that the sulfide segregation in the Jinchuan parent magma may be due to the contamination of pyrite in Archean sedimentary rocks.