Geotectonic setting and metallogeny of the northern São Francisco craton, Bahia, Brazil

Abstract

This paper aims at establishing a tectonic and temporal framework to characterize the metallogenic processes that contributed to the origin of the mineral provinces in the northern São Francisco Craton. Many Archean mineralizations (eg. massive sulfide zinc, lead, zinc and copper, besides magnesiteetalc, ironetitaniumevanadium, iron, chromite and manganese) were generated before the assembly of the Craton. Deposits of chromite, nickel, gold and emerald were produced during the Paleoproterozoic orogenic cycle, when the Craton was amalgamated into the Atlantica paleocontinent. An extension event is recorded in the Neoproterozoic, during the breakup of Rodinia, associated with deposits of phosphorite and uranium. Kimberlite diamond and gold mineralization were generated during the Brasiliano orogenic cycle, coeval with the amalgamation of West Gondwana. A long-lasting and rather uniform crustal stress is recorded in the area during the Cambrian period. Resetting of the isotopic and magnetic systems that affected the Neoproterozoic sediments of the Irecê Basin at about 520 Ma was attributed to the regional-scale fluid migration and mineralization in the aftermath of the Brasiliano orogenic cycle.