Geochronology and Isotope Geochemistry of the Yingfang Pb-Zn-Ag Deposit: Implications for Large-Scale Metallogeny along the Northern Flank of the North China Craton

Xiaoyan Liu,Lin Li,Yujie Li,M Santosh,Shengrong Li

doi:10.3390/min11040353

Xiaoyan Liu, Lin Li + Show 3 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/min11040353

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Abstract

The northern flank of the North China Craton (NCC) hosts a linear zone of gold, molybdenum, silver, lead, and zinc polymetallic ore deposits. Among these, the Yingfang Pb-Zn-Ag deposit is located in the central part of the Yanshan–Liaoxi metallogenic belt (YLMB) which extends for approximately 1000 km and forms part of the major mineralized zone. In this study, we characterize the mineralization and trace the ore genesis based on new sulfur and lead isotopic geochemistry and evaluate the timing of mineralization from Rb-Sr isotope dating of sulfides. The pyrite δ34S values range from +3.2‰ to +5.8‰ with a mean at +4.07‰, close to the values of mantle and meteorite sulfur. The 206Pb/204Pb values range from 16.833 to 18.956, 207Pb/204Pb from 15.374 to 15.522, and 208Pb/204Pb from 37.448 to 37.928. Five samples of sulfide, from the Yingfang deposit, yield a Rb-Sr isochron age of 135.7 ± 4.1 Ma. This age is close to the age of the adjacent Niujuan Ag-Au deposit and the associated Er’daogou granite, suggesting a close relationship between magmatism and metallogeny in this region. The S and Pb isotopes of the regional silver polymetallic deposits show similar sources of ore-forming materials. According to a compilation of the available age data on the Mesozoic ore deposits in the northern flank of the NCC, we divide the mineralization into the following four periods: 240–205 Ma, 190–160 Ma, 155–135 Ma, and 135–100 Ma. Mesozoic magmatism and mineralization in the Yingfang deposit mainly took place at 245 Ma and 145–135 Ma. We correlate the Pb-Zn-Ag mineralization to metallogeny associated with large-scale inhomogeneous lithosphere thinning beneath the NCC.

Highlights

According to our new data and those from previous work, we evaluate the relationship between magmatism and Ag, Pb, and Zn polymetallic mineralization with a view to understanding the link between regional geodynamics and Ag, Pb, and
Most of the samples in this study are collected from the main mineralization stage (Stage II) and are well crystallized without any fractures, and the Rb-Sr isochron age, in this study (135.7 ± 4.1 Ma), can be used to constrain the mineralization age of the Yingfang deposit
On the basis of previous studies and the results presented in this study (Table 4), we suggest that the Mesozoic mineralization in the central segment of the northern flank of the North China Craton (NCC) can be divided into the following four periods (Figure 10): Middle–Late Triassic (240–205 Ma), Early–Middle Jurassic

Summary

Introduction

The northern flank of the North China Craton (NCC) hosts several important gold, molybdenum, silver, lead, and zinc polymetallic ore deposits in China (Figure 1a,b) [1,2,3]. These deposits occur in an east–west trending linear zone that extends for almost 1500 km. Three main metallogenic belts are defined, from west to east, termed the Langshan–. Yanshan–Liaoxi, and Liaodong-Ji’nan metallogenic belts (Figure 1b) [4,5,6]. Orogen; (c) Distribution of the silver and polymetallic deposits in the Yanshan–Liaoxi metallogenic belt (modified from [9]).

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