Geochemistry of coarse quartz sinter overlying an Early Cretaceous Serra Geral quartz andesite flow, Fronteira Oeste Rift, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Abstract

Sinter overlying the first quartz andesite flow at the base of the Serra Geral Group is a surface manifestation of intense hydrothermal processes operating in the Paraná Basin during the Early Cretaceous. The coarse quartz sinter from western Rio Grande do Sul state was studied in satellite images, field surveying, optical petrography, scanning electron microscopy, and electron probe microanalyses, including backscattered electron images and chemical analyses of rocks. Quartz forms large crystals (10 cm) because it was either deposited in a dilute aqueous solution or recrystallized from fine-grained sinter. Well-crystallized chamosite — an iron aluminosilicate (Fe-chlorite) — occurs in quartz crystals, partly associated with fractures. The composition of chamosite is akin to that in ore deposit associations. Noble metals in two sinter samples are present in concentrations of 0.1 ppm Ag and 15 ppb Au. The contents of Ba, Bi, Cu, Mo, S, and W are low but are significant. The present description of sinter quartz signals the presence of a major paleo-hotspring field in the Fronteira Oeste Rift, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, that mertis further study to fully characterize the extent and metallogenetic endowment (Au-Ag-Cu) of the epithermal province.