Genetic implications of pyrite chemistry from the Palaeoproterozoic Olary Domain and overlying Neoproterozoic Adelaidean sequences, northeastern South Australia

Sulphide mineralisation associated with rocks from the Palaeoproterozoic Olary Domain (OD) and overlying Neoproterozoic Adelaidean sequences has undergone a complex history of metamorphism and remobilisation. In this study, new trace element and sulphur isotopic analyses of pyrites from a large number of deposits and paragenetic generations are combined with an existing data set to build up a sequence of mineralising events linked to the tectonometamorphic evolution of the region. The typically high Co/Ni ratios (>10) indicate that early strata-bound pyrite precipitated from a volcanic-related fluid, which had fluctuating activities of the two metals during the early stages of the evolution of the Willyama basin. This period of mineralisation was followed by a diagenetic concentration of sulphide mineralisation at the horizon known as the Bimba Formation, which occurred as a result of the differing redox conditions between the upper and lower sequences in the Willyama Supergroup. During the Mesoproterozoic (similar to 1600 to 1500 Ma) Olarian Orogeny, metamorphic remobilisation of strata-bound pyrite resulted in an epigenetic signature; the trace element concentrations of this generation were controlled primarily by the proximity of mineralisation to the mafic intrusive bodies found throughout the terrane. Further reworking of existing sulphides during the Delamerian Orogeny and associated granitoid-intrusive rocks led to the formation of a new generation of epigenetic pyrite that occurs in quartz veins in the Adelaidean sequences and veins that crosscut Olarian fabrics in the Olary Domain. delta(34)S results range from 16parts per thousand to 11parts per thousand, but most data fall between 2parts per thousand and 4parts per thousand. This association is suggestive of an initial uniform deep-seated crustal reservoir of sulphur, which has been repeatedly tapped throughout the metallogenic history of the region. The isotopic outliers can be explained by the input of biogenic sulphur or sulphur derived from oxidised, possibly evaporitic, sediments, respectively. Previous workers have invoked the Kupferschiefer and the Zambian Copperbelt as analogues to mineralisation processes in the Olary Domain. This study shows that delta(34)S and trace element data are suggestive of some affinities with the aforementioned analogues, but a more likely link can be made between epigenetic remobilisation in the Olary region and the iron oxide copper gold (IOCG) style of mineralisation found at the nearby Olympic Dam deposit. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.