Stable and radiogenic isotopes as tracers for the origin, mixing and subsurface history of fluids in submarine shallow-water hydrothermal systems

Abstract

The shallow-water hydrothermal system in Tutum Bay on the west side of Ambitle Island, Papua New Guinea provides us with an exceptional opportunity to study isotope systematics in a near shore setting. Compared to seawater, the hydrothermal fluids in Tutum Bay have lower values for δD, δ 18O, δ 13C, and 87Sr and higher values for 3H, δ 34S(SO 4) and δ 18O(SO 4). The δ 18O and δD records for vents 1 and 4 indicate that fluid compositions remained stable over an extended period. Interpretation of isotope data clearly demonstrates the predominantly meteoric origin of Tutum Bay hydrothermal fluids, despite their location in a marine environment. δ 18O and δD values are identical to mean average annual precipitation in eastern Papua New Guinea. The hypothesis that these fluids are a simple product of mixing between seawater and onshore hydrothermal fluids from the Waramung (W-1) and Kapkai (W-2) thermal areas has been rejected, because the observed δ 37Cl, 3H, δ 34S(SO 4) and δ 18O(SO 4) values cannot be explained by a simple mixing model. The application of δ 18O(SO 4) and δ 13C thermometers in combination with 3H values corroborates the three-step model of Pichler et al. [Pichler, T., Veizer, J., Hall, G.E.M., 1999. The chemical composition of shallow-water hydrothermal fluids in Tutum Bay, Ambitle Island, Papua New Guinea and their effect on ambient seawater. Marine Chemistry 64 (3) 229–252], where (1) phase separation in the deep reservoir beneath Ambitle Island produces a high temperature vapor that rises upward and subsequently reacts with cooler ground water to form a low pH, CO 2-rich water of approximately 150–160 °C, (2) caused by the steep topography, this CO 2-rich fluid moves laterally towards the margin of the hydrothermal system where it mixes with the marginal upflow of the deep reservoir fluid. This produces a dilute chloride water of approximately 165 °C, and (3) possibly the entrainment of minor amounts of ground or seawater during its final ascent.