Zircon crystallization and the lifetimes of ore-forming magmatic-hydrothermal systems

Research Article| August 01, 2011 Zircon crystallization and the lifetimes of ore-forming magmatic-hydrothermal systems Albrecht von Quadt; Albrecht von Quadt Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Michaela Erni; Michaela Erni Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Klara Martinek; Klara Martinek Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Melanie Moll; Melanie Moll Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Irena Peytcheva; Irena Peytcheva Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Christoph A. Heinrich Christoph A. Heinrich Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Albrecht von Quadt Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Michaela Erni Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Klara Martinek Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Melanie Moll Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Irena Peytcheva Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Christoph A. Heinrich Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Clausiusstrasse 25, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 06 Dec 2010 Revision Received: 07 Mar 2011 Accepted: 13 Mar 2011 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 © 2011 Geological Society of America Geology (2011) 39 (8): 731–734. https://doi.org/10.1130/G31966.1 Article history Received: 06 Dec 2010 Revision Received: 07 Mar 2011 Accepted: 13 Mar 2011 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation Albrecht von Quadt, Michaela Erni, Klara Martinek, Melanie Moll, Irena Peytcheva, Christoph A. Heinrich; Zircon crystallization and the lifetimes of ore-forming magmatic-hydrothermal systems. Geology 2011;; 39 (8): 731–734. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G31966.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Magmatic-hydrothermal copper ore formation involves multiple pulses of subvolcanic porphyry intrusion, vein opening, and hydrothermal ore deposition. It is driven by larger subjacent magma reservoirs, acting as the source of fluid and ore-forming components. High-precision U-Pb ages of individual zircon crystals from porphyries immediately predating and postdating Cu-Au mineralization at Bingham Canyon (Utah, United States) and Bajo de la Alumbrera (northwestern Argentina) show a significant spread of reliably concordant ages. This demonstrates zircon crystal formation over a protracted period of ∼1 m.y., which is interpreted to record the lifetime of the magma reservoir from which porphyries and ore fluids were extracted. The youngest zircons in all pre-ore and post-ore intrusions overlap within a much shorter time interval of 0.32 m.y. at Bingham Canyon and 0.090 m.y. at Alumbrera; these youngest zircons of each intrusion are interpreted to bracket the maximum duration of porphyry emplacement and ore formation to short periods, consistent with thermal constraints. This study illustrates that age brackets based on individual magmatic zircon grains are geologically more informative than the calculation of means and standard deviations based on apparently normal age distributions in zircon populations. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.