TOMO 2 - Volcanismo y Magmatismo

MIOCENE INTRUSIONS OF THE CENTRAL ANDES:

PRELIMINARY GEOCHEMISTRY AND U/PB GEOCHRONOLOGY
Katja Deckart1, Estanislao Godoy2 and Alfredo Bertens3*
1. Departamento de Geología, Universidad de Chile, Plaza Ercilla 803, Santiago, Chile.
kdeckart@cec.uchile.cl
2. SERNAGEOMIN, Avda. Sta. María 0104, Casilla 10465, Santiago, Chile.
3. Department of Geology, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, Surrey TW20 0EX,
UK.. *Dirección actual: Exploraciones Mineras S.A., Av. Apoquindo 4775, Santiago, Chile.

The Mio-Pliocene magmatism developed between latitudes 33º-34ºS and 70º-70º30’E

formed numerous intrusions and stocks hosted by andesitic and subaerial flows and volcaniclastics
of either the Miocene Farellones Formation or the older (Eocene to Early Miocene) Abanico Formation
(Vergara et al., 1988; Fuentes et al., 2002). The nature of these intrusives and stocks varies overall
between granodiorite, (quartz-) monzodiorite, diorite, tonalite and subvolcanic dacitic and andesitic
porphyries (e.g., López-Escobar et al., 1979; Thiele, 1980) but their individual radiometric information
is either imprecise or not existent. The latter are generally associated with world class Cu(-Mo)
porphyry deposits, from north to south: Los Pelambres (31°42’S), Río Blanco-Los Bronces (33°08’S)
and El Teniente (34°05’S). Whereas Los Pelambres is of late Miocene age (Bertens et al., 2003;
this volume), the central and southern deposits are coeval and of early Pliocene age (e.g., Deckart et
al, 2005, unpublished data; Maksaev et al., 2004). Magma source discussions have been repeatedly
focused on mineral deposits and therefore petrogenetic analysis are scarce for the slightly older and
coeval barren intrusives.
We herein present new precise U/Pb LA-ICPMS geochronological data on single zircon
grains of two selected intrusives, one located adjacent to the Rio Blanco-Los Bronces Cu(-Mo)
deposit and the other in between the metallogenic fringe of 33-34°S, central Andes (Fig.1).
Furthermore, preliminary major and trace element geochemistry will permit first comparisons with
other barren intrusions located in the study area.

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RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Geochronology: The two selected intrusives, San
Francisco Batholith (SFB; 33°10’S) and Yerba
Loca pluton (YL; 33°15’-18’S) (Fig. 1), are
historically assigned to the magmatic group of
Miocene age. Ages of the San Francisco
Batholith, which in the mine district of Rio Blanco-
Los Bronces hosts mineralization, ranges between
18.5 Ma and 11.3 Ma obtained through K-Ar
and 40Ar-39Ar methods. However, a recently
published zircon U/Pb IDTIMS age of 11.96 ±
0.40 Ma (Deckart et al., 2005) was interpreted
as crystallization age of the analyzed unit at the
mine. The barren Yerba Loca intrusion, located
southeast of SFB, had not been dated before.
New LA-ICPMS ages were obtained on single
zircon grains from both intrusions yielding
crystallization ages of 11.16 ± 0.07 Ma for a
sample located adjacent to the mine site and
14.74 ± 0.13 Ma for a sample collected ca. 8
km to the southeast. However, identical ages of
Figure 1. Schematic geology map with the San
Francisco Batholith and Yerba Loca granitoid 14.88 ± 0.16 Ma and 14.94 ± 0.14 Ma were
locations, central Andes.
obtained for the more southerly, and partially
coeval YL intrusion.
Geochemistry: Primarily geochemical results for the quartz-monzodioritic Late Miocene SFB (56.3-
62.4 wt.-% SiO2) and YL (54.0-57.5 wt.-% SiO2) intrusions show a high-K calc-alkaline to calc-
alkaline and metaluminous character. Both intrusions are classified as volcanic arc granites after

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 TOMO 2 - Volcanismo y Magmatismo

Pearce et al. (1984). SFB and YL major element contents indicate plagioclase involvement and both
clinopyroxene as well as olivine mineral suppression during differentiation processes.
Trace elements (Rb, Ba, Sr, Th, U, Nd, La and Pb) show a closer affinity to an enriched
rather than to a normal MORB and display a strong negative Nb-anomaly.
A comparison between the herein presented new data and the one in Deckart and Godoy
(2006) shows that the selected barren intrusive bodies from latitude 33° to 34°S in the central Andes
range from 14.9 to 10.3 Ma and are overall very similar in their major and some of their trace
element compositions but reflect increasing transition metal element (Cu, Cr, Co, Ni, V, Zn)
concentrations with decreasing distance to mineral districts.
The presented results belong to a research project in progress and will be completed with
rare earth elements and Sr-Nd-Hf isotope geochemistry, in order to continue the discussion on
mantle source involvement and differentiation processes which might have occurred in these magmas.
Furthermore, a more detailed comparison between barren and fertile intrusives is envisaged to
understand the possible mechanisms involved in the formation of zones of highly mineralized and
barren intrusive rocks distributed in an alternating pattern, starting from Los Pelambres in the north to
Rio Blanco-Los Bronces and El Teniente in the central and southern part of the Mio-Pliocene magmatic
belt of the central Andes.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This project is financed through the still ongoing Chilean grant of the Fundación Andes no.
13960 / 32.

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