As jazidas de talco no contexto da história metamórfica dos metadolomitos do grupo Itaiacoca, PR

Abstract

Four main types of talc occurrences have been recognized in the Proterozoic metadolomites of the Itaiacoca Group, Paraná State, southern Brazil: a) talc schists along transcurrent shear zones; b) incipient talc formation along fractures and bedding planes; c) irregular pockets of fine-grained, massive talc; d) retrometamorphic talc associated with lenses of olivine, diopside, tremolite, calcite and quartz in the contact zone with the neighbouring granites. Of these, only types (a) and (c) form ore deposits. The Itaiacoca Group underwent four metamorphic episodes: 1) greenschist facies regional metamorphism during the Neoproterozoic Brasiliano orogeny; 2) thermal metamorphism along the contact with the Neoproterozoic Cunhaporanga granite batholith; 3) hydrothermalism related to transcurrent shear zones, that formed large volumes of talc schists and irregular pockets of fine-grained massive talc; 4) small-scale thermal metamorphism related to Mesozoic diabase dikes. The Itapirapuã transcurrent shear zone marks the contact between the Itaiacoca Group and the Proterozoic Três Córregos granite batholith, and the main talc deposits are aligned along its branches. Enhanced permeability due to shearing provided channels for percolation of the silica-rich aqueous solutions that reacted with the metadolomite to form the talc deposits. Minor amounts of talc occur along fractures and sedimentary layering. The massive pockets of talc (type c) that replaced the metadolomite probably formed statically at lower temperatures by the activity of hydrothermal fluids introduced through a network of microfractures.