Journal article
Carbonates at the supergiant Olympic Dam Cu-U-Au-Ag deposit, South Australia. Part 1: Distribution, textures, associations and stable isotope (C, O) signatures
OB Apukhtina, K Ehrig, VS Kamenetsky, MB Kamenetsky, K Goemann, R Maas, J McPhie, NJ Cook, CL Ciobanu
Ore Geology Reviews | ELSEVIER | Published : 2020
Abstract
The supergiant Olympic Dam Cu-U-Au-Ag deposit in South Australia is a type example of the iron-oxide copper–gold (IOCG) deposit family. Hosted entirely within heterogeneous breccia in 1.59 Ga granite, the deposit contains a volumetrically substantial and mineralogically diverse component of carbonate minerals. Carbonate minerals are always associated with ore minerals (sulfides, uraninite), implying a genetic relationship and providing an opportunity to use gangue carbonates to better understand ore formation. This study provides the first detailed and comprehensive petrographic and chemical/isotopic study of Olympic Dam carbonates, with a particular emphasis on petrography and texture, and ..
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Awarded by Australian Research Council
Funding Acknowledgements
We thank Christine Cook, Christian Dietz and Sandrin Feig (Central Science Laboratory, University of Tasmania) for assistance with SEM imaging, stable isotope mass spectrometry, and electron microprobe analyses. Alex Cherry is thanked for discussing his results on the bedded clastic facies. This study was funded by BHP Olympic Dam's "Stable isotopes (C, S and O) and halogens (CI, F) at Olympic Dam: Evaluation of mantle and crustal contributions to mineralization" project and by the Australian Research Council Linkage Grant LP130100438. Two anonymous reviewers and the editor Franco Pirajno provided insightful comments that helped to improve clarity of presentation and discussion of genetic aspects.