FLUID MIGRATION AND ITS ROLE IN THE FORMATION OF PLATINUM-GROUP MINERALS: EVIDENCE FROM THE IMANDROVSKY AND LUKKULAISVAARA LAYERED INTRUSIONS, RUSSIA

Abstract

The Early Proterozoic Imandrovsky (Kola Peninsula) and Lukkulaisvaara (northern Karelia) layered intrusions host various platinum-group element (PGE) deposits. The PGE-bearing chromitite horizon is located in the Lower Zone of the Imandrovsky complex. Platinum-group minerals (PGM) are associated with rare base-metal sulfides and sulfarsenides, and predominantly present as minute (up to 25 ,um) grains enclosed by hydrosilicates and at chromite-silicate grain boundaries. The presence of Cl-bearing minerals in the vicinity of the chromitite layer is of genetic significance. Chlorapatite containing up to 100% of the chlorapatite end-member occurs in individual grains, small veinlets (25–30,μm across) and rims around relatively Cl-poor apatite. Cl-bearing (0.5 wt.% Cl) allanite-(Ce) forms very small (up to 20μm across) veinlets in Cl-poor apatite. The gabbroic sequence of the Lukkulaisvaara intrusion consists of sills and sill-like micro-gabbronorite bodies. A diverse PGM assemblage has been identified in the meta-anorthosite horizon located at the base of one sill. Most of PGM (>70% total PGM) are found enclosed by hydrosilicates. Chlorapatite (> 6.0 wt.% Cl) was recorded, as an intercumulus mineral only, in the lowermost Lukkulaisvaara cumulates, adjacent to a Cu-rich assemblage, which includes an unusual Cu-bearing (0.9–1.9 wt.% Cu) pyrrhotite (?), native copper, weissite and an unknown PtCu5. Deposition of PtCu5 alloy is interpreted as a result of interaction of a late reducing or low-oxidizing fluid with sufficiently oxidized environment. It is suggested that Cl-rich fluids affected the lower portions of both the Imandrovsky and Lukkulaisvaara intrusions similar to the Stillwater and Bushveld complexes. The PGE mineralogy of the Imandrovsky chromitite horizon was strongly influenced by Cl-rich fluids during a magmatic hydrothermal event. We suppose that the base-metal sulfide-PGM occurrences at the contacts of the sill within gabbronorite have been deposited by hydromagmatic H2S-Cl-rich fluids migrating upwards from the lowermost cumulates in the Lukkulaisvaara intrusion. The input of a new magma, from which the micro-gabbronorite sill had crystallized, formed transport channels for fluid migration.