PGE AND PGM IN THE LUANGA MAFIC-ULTRAMAFIC INTRUSION IN SERRA-DOS-CARAJAS (PARA STATE, BRAZIL)

The late Archean, Luanga mafic-ultramafic complex intrudes an Archean greenstone belt, that is mainly composed of ultramafic and mafic metavolcanics. The Luanga intrusion consists of dunite, peridotite, gabbro and norite; chromitite seams and layers are present in the ultramafic rocks. A metamorphic overprint transformed the primary paragenesis into a serpentine-talc-chlorite-tremolite and magnetite association. The magnetite is commonly altered to Fe-hydroxides. Unaltered chromite commonly displays atoll-like textures and a chemical composition typical of stratiform chromites (Cr2O3 below 45 wt%). Base-metal sulfides, base-metal alloys, platimum-group minerals and platinum group element bearing phases are present in the form of inclusions in the silicate assemblages and in or on the edges of chromite grains. The main minerals detected are pentlandite, pyrrhotite, millerite, chalcopyrite and mackinawite, Fe-Ni alloy, braggite, sperrylite and platinum group elements (PGE) bearing sulfo-arsenides. Braggite is associated with the chromite, whereas sperrylite lies on the edges of or is included in silicates. The PGE content of the massive and disseminated chromitites is dominated by Pt (up to 8900 ppb) and the chondrite-normalized PGE profile shows a cuspidal shape with a Pt peak. The main hypothesis for the source of the PGE-rich magma, which fractionated the chromitite-bearing ultramafic magma, consists of a relatively primitive mantle that partially melted in the late Archean.