271

The Canadian Mineralogist

Vol. 57, pp. 271-294 (2019)
DOI: 10.3749/canmin.1800079

AN OCCURRENCE OF PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION IN THE

YERINGTON DISTRICT, NEVADA

SIMONE E. RUNYON§
Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Wyoming, 1000 E University Ave, Laramie, Wyoming 82071, USA
Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institute of Washington, 5251 Broad Branch Road NW, Washington, D.C. 20015, USA

FRANK K. MAZDAB
Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721-0077, USA

PILAR LECUMBERRI-SANCHEZ
Department of Earth & Atmospheric Science, University of Alberta, 1-26 Earth Sciences Building,
Edmonton, Alberta, T6G 2E3, Canada

MATTHEW STEELE-MACINNIS
Department of Earth & Atmospheric Science, University of Alberta, 1-26 Earth Sciences Building,
Edmonton, Alberta, T6G 2E3, Canada

ERIC SEEDORFF
Department of Geosciences, University of Arizona, 1040 E 4th Street, Tucson, Arizona 85721-0077, USA

M. DARBY DYAR
Department of Astronomy, Mt. Holyoke College, 206 Kendade Street, South Hadley, Massachusetts 01075, USA

ABSTRACT

Texturally destructive phlogopite-rich alteration occurs as a narrow, curvilinear zone with a width of ,0.5 to 3 m exposed
discontinuously over ~1 km along strike in eastern exposures of the Yerington batholith, Yerington district, Nevada. The
phlogopite is preferentially oriented and defines foliation, suggesting that the alteration zone has accommodated structural
deformation. The mineral association consists of near-endmember phlogopite with local clusters of euhedral dravitic to oxy-
dravitic tourmaline crystals. Tourmaline-hosted fluid inclusions are high-density aqueous inclusions that generally homogenize
between 230 and 330 8C and contain ~7–20 wt.% NaCl equivalent. The alteration is hosted within the Luhr Hill porphyritic
granite and, although timing of the alteration is unclear, it likely postdates and is unrelated to well-known porphyry systems in
the district. The phlogopite-rich assemblages represent an unusual style of Mg-K-rich alteration of a granitoid without exposed
adjacent ultramafic or dolomitic carbonate units. Phlogopite-rich alteration is potentially related to the circulation of moderately
saline to hypersaline external fluids through the Luhr Hill porphyritic granite.

Keywords: Yerington, Nevada, phlogopite, hydrothermal alteration, oxy-dravite.

§
Corresponding author email address: srunyon@uwyo.edu

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 272
INTRODUCTION
Hydrothermal alteration is characterized by mass
balance changes relative to protolith composition in a
variety of geologic settings and temperature-pressure
conditions (e.g., Meyer & Hemley 1967, Seedorff et
al. 2005). In porphyry copper settings, the general
characteristics and spatial distribution of typical
alteration assemblages have proven reasonably sys-
tematic worldwide (e.g., Lowell & Guilbert 1970,
Gustafson & Hunt 1975, Seedorff et al. 2005, Sillitoe
2010). Briefly, this alteration zonation commonly
consists of higher-temperature, proximal potassic
alteration in the central portion, with a transition
outward and upward to sericitic and advanced argillic
alteration and eventually to distal, low-temperature
propylitic alteration. Seedorff et al. (2008) recognized
greisen (coarse muscovite) alteration in the deep roots
of porphyry systems, which Runyon et al. (2017)
documented in the Yerington district. In some systems,
sodic-calcic (Na-Ca) alteration occurs at depth,
proximal to distal to the porphyry center, and
transitions upward to sodic alteration. Sodic-calcic
and Na alteration reflect the influx of externally
derived brines during hydrothermal circulation (e.g.,
Dilles et al. 1995, 2000).
The volumetrically minor but distinctive alteration
style reported here was discovered at Luhr Hill in the
Yerington district of western Nevada. It consists of
near-endmember phlogopite with minor (oxy-)dravitic
tourmaline, K-feldspar, titanite, and relict zircon. This
alteration constitutes a previously undocumented form
of Mg-rich hydrothermal alteration that postdates
Jurassic Na-Ca alteration and is likely unrelated to
the porphyry systems in the district. The phlogopite-
rich alteration is anomalous in that it represents Mg-
rich hydrothermal alteration without Mg-rich rocks
exposed nearby. This alteration locally hosts centime-
ter-scale, sparry tourmaline forming dense but friable
clusters of gemmy crystals. This paper describes the
mineralogy and textural relationships of the phlogo-
pite-rich alteration.
Previous reports of Mg-rich forms of hydrother-
mal alteration have been generally associated with
ultramafic igneous rocks, sedimentary rocks of
carbonate/dolomitic or (meta-) evaporitic origin, or
diverse rock compositions altered by fluids such as
seawater. In each case, the source of the Mg is either
Mg-rich host rocks, intrusive rocks, or fluids (e.g.,
Hodgkinson et al. 2015). The geologic setting of the
alteration described here differs to varying degrees
from these aforementioned settings. We consider the
implications of phlogopite-rich alteration at Luhr Hill
in terms of fluid and cation sources and temporal
relationships.
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THE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST
DISTRICT GEOLOGY
The Yerington district is well known due to the
abundance of porphyry copper and skarn systems
related to the Yerington batholith and broadly
associated iron oxide-copper-gold occurrences. Many
of these systems occur immediately peripheral to the
batholith (Harris & Einaudi 1982, Carten 1986, Dilles
& Einaudi 1992, Dilles et al. 1992, Dilles & Proffett
1995, Dilles et al. 2000, Einaudi 2000, Barkoff et al.
2017, Runyon et al. 2015, 2017) and display vertical
(paleo-depth) exposure of the system provided by
normal faulting and structural tilting (Proffett 1977,
Dilles & Wright 1988). The 169–168 Ma Yerington
batholith and associated ore deposits formed in an arc
following transition from marine to non-marine
conditions under arid to hyper-arid surface conditions
(Dilles 1987, Proffett & Dilles 2008, Barton et al.
2011).
There are three major intrusive phases of the
batholith; porphyry copper deposits formed around
steeply dipping porphyry dikes that intrude the
youngest major phase of the batholith, the Luhr Hill
porphyritic granite (Dilles 1987). A Jurassic quartz
monzodiorite porphyry (Jgpd unit of Proffett & Dilles
1984) cross-cuts the Luhr Hill porphyritic granite and
has characteristics similar to units in the Buckskin
range dated as ~165 Ma (Proffett 2007). The
Yerington district underwent significant amounts of
erosion following Jurassic volcano-plutonic emplace-
ment and was cut and dismembered by multiple
generations of normal faults beginning at ~14 Ma
(Proffett 1977, Dilles & Gans 1995), resulting in ~908
tilting westward (Proffett 1977, Dilles & Wright
1988). Cross-sectional views of the Tertiary volcanic
rocks and the underlying Yerington batholith and
associated hydrothermal systems are exposed across
the district (Proffett 1977, Geissman et al. 1982, Dilles
& Wright 1988).
Luhr Hill is located east of the Singatse Range and
contains deep exposures of the Yerington batholith
(Proffett 2007, Runyon et al. 2017). The contact of the
Luhr Hill porphyritic granite cupola with Triassic and
Jurassic host rocks is exposed at present surface on the
eastern side of Luhr Hill. Hydrothermal alteration at
Luhr Hill includes Na-Ca alteration (andesine-actino-
lite 6 epidote assemblages) and coarse muscovite
veins and alteration, best developed in northeastern
exposures of Luhr Hill (Runyon et al. 2017). These
styles of hydrothermal alteration are fairly common in
porphyry systems in the southwestern United States.
Coarse muscovite alteration is interpreted to have
formed from magmatic-hydrothermal fluids exsolved
from the Yerington batholith, whereas the Na-Ca
alteration is interpreted to have formed from the
 PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION IN THE YERINGTON DISTRICT, NEVADA 273

FIG. 1. Geologic maps. (A) Simplified geologic map of the Yerington district, Nevada (modified after Proffett & Dilles 1984).
(B) Tertiary erosion surface map from Dilles et al. (2000). (C) Alteration map showing the exposures of phlogopite-
dominated alteration (modified from Proffett 2007 and Runyon et al. 2017). The southernmost exposure of the WNW
trending dike, originally mapped as a Luhr Hill granite porphyry dike by Proffett & Dilles (1984), was remapped as quartz
monzodiorite porphyry by Proffett (2007). QMD porph. ¼ Jurassic quartz monzodiorite porphyry. LH porph. dikes ¼ Luhr
Hill porphyry dikes. Luhr Hill porph. gr. ¼ Luhr Hill porphyritic granite. McLeod Hill QMD ¼ McLeod Hill quartz
monzodiorite. Triassic host rocks include Triassic rhyolite, andesite, and granite.

circulation of external brines due to thermal input from
the intrusion of the batholith. The timing of alteration
documented in this study is unclear: it is possible that
it formed relatively soon after the Jurassic Na-Ca
alteration events, or that it accompanied Miocene (or
younger) normal faulting.
METHODS
Alteration was mapped at scales of 1:6000 and
1:3000 using a modified version of the Anaconda
method (Runyon et al. 2017). Samples were prepared
as grain mounts and doubly polished thin sections.
Thin sections and grain mounts were analyzed with a
Cameca SX100 electron microprobe in the Michael J.
Drake Electron Microprobe Laboratory at the Univer-
sity of Arizona (see Runyon 2017).
Fluid-inclusion microthermometry was conducted
using a USGS-type heating/freezing stage mounted on
an Olympus BX53 microscope. The stage was
calibrated using synthetic fluid inclusions according
to the triple point of CO2 (–56.6 8C), the triple point of
H2O (0.01 8C), and the critical point of H2O (374.1
8C). Precision and accuracy of the temperature
measurements are estimated to be ~60.1 8C at
subzero temperatures and 60.5 8C for the high-

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 274 THE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST

FIG. 2. Macroscopic features of phlogopite-dominated alteration from Luhr Hill, Yerington, Nevada. (A) Foliated Luhr Hill
porphyritic granite with a foliated porphyry dike (outlined with a dashed line). Foliation strikes northwest and dips northeast. (B)
Outcrop of phlogopite-rich alteration in the Luhr Hill porphyritic granite with a narrow band of tourmaline-rich rock highlighted
with dashed lines. Inset shows outcrop scale. (C) Representative samples of sparry tourmaline-bearing alteration from Luhr Hill.
The white arrows highlight tourmaline crystals .1 cm in length. The black arrows point to zones of phlogopite. The whitish
patches in the larger hand sample are K-feldspar. (D) Relict K-feldspar megacrysts in phlogopite-altered Luhr Hill porphyritic
granite. (E) Ostensibly unaltered, sheared porphyry dike with rounded K-feldspar phenocrysts. (F) Phlogopite-altered Luhr Hill
porphyritic granite with relict megacrysts (white) replaced by fine-grained phlogopite (phl) and darker green patches of
tourmaline (tur). (G) Close-up of phlogopite alteration with tourmaline crystals in phlogopite matrix. (H) Cut surface of altered
coarsely crystalline body with white euhedral plagioclase (pl) crystals in dark grey-green phlogopite with red-brown mixture of
rutile-leucoxene (rt-leuc) at the bottom of the image.
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 PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION IN THE YERINGTON DISTRICT, NEVADA 275

FIG. 3. Element maps. Element maps of (A) ostensibly unaltered Luhr Hill porphyritic granite with purple-grey K-feldspar
megacrysts. Panel (B) shows element maps of phlogopite-altered Luhr Hill porphyritic granite with relict K-feldspar
megacrysts, with pale brown phlogopite on the top half and dark grey phlogopite on the bottom half. Pale brown phlogopite
is oriented to the right on element maps. Panel (C) shows phlogopite-altered Luhr Hill porphyritic granite with relict K-
feldspar megacryst replaced by a mixture of dravite and plagioclase. Dashed boxes on (A), (B), and (C) show areas covered
by element maps. K-feldspar megacrysts in unaltered Luhr Hill porphyritic granite (A) have been previously altered to
plagioclase and are partially replaced by phlogopite in (B), and have been partially replaced by plagioclase, phlogopite, and
dravite in (C). Quartz [visible as bright red areas in the Si panel of (A)] is not preserved in the phlogopite-altered granite (B)
or (C), where the highest Si contents are in relict feldspar.

temperature (.100 8C) data. Low-temperature mea-
surements were done using the temperature cycling
method described in detail by Goldstein & Reynolds
(1994). Salinities were calculated using the ice-
liquidus model of Bodnar (1993) and pressure
corrections used the model of Bodnar & Vityk
(1994), both calculated using the program HOKIE-
FLINCS-H2O-NACL (Steele-MacInnis et al. 2012).
Laser ablation ICP-MS analyses were obtained
using a Thermo Element2 sector field inductively
coupled plasma-mass spectrometer (ICP-MS) connect-
ed to a Cetac 213 nm Nd-YAG laser ablation system at
the Lowell Institute for Mineral Resources. The NIST
glass SRM 610 (Pearce et al. 1997) was used as the
external standard and was tested every 10 analyses.
Each analysis consisted of 40 s of background

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 276 THE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST

TABLE 1A. ELECTRON MICROPROBE COMPOSITIONS OF PHLOGOPITE

Sample lh tm lh tm lh tm LHMR LHMR LHMR LHMR LHMR

Description g35 g25 g1 core Replacing Ksp Core Core
SiO2 (wt.%) 41.98 41.58 39.97 40.15 39.55 41.25 39.78 40.27
TiO2 0.38 0.29 0.26 0.24 0.24 0.35 0.33 0.40
Al2O3 18.37 18.79 18.87 18.73 19.02 19.30 19.55 18.67
Cr2O3 bdl bdl 0.01 bdl 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01
V2O3 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.04 0.03 0.03
Fe2O3* 0.16 0.16 0.17 0.17 0.16 0.16 0.17 0.16
FeO* 0.58 0.57 0.62 0.61 0.58 0.59 0.60 0.59
MnO 0.01 0.04 bdl 0.01 0.01 bdl bdl bdl
MgO 24.34 24.41 25.23 23.80 23.75 22.27 22.92 24.00
SrO 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.02 0.02
BaO bdl 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.01 0.03 0.01 bdl
Na2O 0.08 0.08 0.08 0.13 0.06 0.08 0.05 0.14
K2O 10.54 10.60 9.51 10.45 10.45 10.66 10.51 10.47
CaO 0.01 bdl bdl bdl 0.03 bdl bdl bdl
Ga2O3 bdl bdl 0.01 bdl bdl bdl bdl 0.01
ZnO 0.01 bdl 0.01 bdl 0.01 0.01 bdl 0.02
F 0.82 0.94 0.68 0.86 0.95 0.85 0.76 0.79
H2O# 4.00 3.93 3.99 3.87 3.80 3.90 3.90 3.92
Subtotal 101.33 101.48 99.49 99.09 98.67 99.52 98.65 99.51
–O¼F –0.34 –0.40 –0.29 –0.36 –0.40 –0.36 –0.32 –0.33
Total 100.99 101.09 99.20 98.73 98.27 99.16 98.33 99.18
IV
Si (apfu) 2.87 2.84 2.78 2.82 2.79 2.87 2.80 2.81
IV
PAl 1.13 1.16 1.22 1.18 1.21 1.13 1.20 1.19
(IV) 4.00 4.00 4.00 4.00 4.00 4.00 4.00 4.00
VI
Al 0.35 0.36 0.32 0.37 0.37 0.46 0.42 0.35
VI
Fe3þ 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01
VI
Fe2þ 0.03 0.03 0.04 0.04 0.03 0.03 0.04 0.03
VI
Mg 2.48 2.49 2.61 2.49 2.50 2.31 2.40 2.50
VI
Ti 0.02 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.02
VI
vac 0.10 0.09 0.00 0.09 0.07 0.17 0.11 0.08
P
(VI) 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00
A
Na 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.02
A
K 0.92 0.93 0.84 0.94 0.94 0.95 0.94 0.93
A
vac 0.07 0.06 0.15 0.05 0.05 0.04 0.05 0.05
P
(A) 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
X
F 0.18 0.20 0.15 0.19 0.21 0.19 0.17 0.17
X
OH#
P 1.82 1.80 1.85 1.81 1.79 1.81 1.83 1.83
(X) 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00 2.00
assigned
P
Fe3þ/ Fe 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2

Elements sought but not detected: Cl, Ca, Zn, Ni, Co, Y, Zr, P, Sc, Sn, and S.
P
Muscovite normalized to 11 O þ 2 OH with Fe3þ/ Fe assigned.
2þ 3þ 2þ
* All Fe
P originally measured as Fe . Fe2O3 and FeO (and Fe and Fe apfu) are based on an assigned ratio of 0.2
Fe3þ/ Fe.
#
H2O wt.% and OH apfu calculated by stoichiometry.

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 PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION IN THE YERINGTON DISTRICT, NEVADA 277

TABLE 1B. LA-ICP-MS COMPOSITIONS OF PHLOGOPITE

LHMR LHMR LHMR LHMR LHMR LHMR LHMR LHMR

(lg/g) Phl Rpl Phl Rpl Phl Rpl Phl Rpl Phl Rpl Phl Rpl Phl Rpl Phl Rpl
Li ,307.4 ,231.0 ,298.0 ,266.4 ,238.5 ,274.9 ,251.3 ,278.2
Be ,83.6 ,66.2 ,93.4 ,83.9 ,74.6 ,89.2 ,90.9 ,105.1
B ,51.2 ,46.4 ,62.2 ,61.9 ,55.1 ,65.8 ,60.5 ,70.1
Na ,456.7 382.7 ,545.6 ,514.7 ,461.1 ,566.7 ,558.9 ,718.1
Mg 138650 138650 138650 138650 138650 138650 138650 138650
Al 117011 107829 107731 115009 117423 104791 93655.5 105706
Si 263966 232622 294949 265248 267086 251236 241281 224164
P ,1912.3 ,1507.7 ,2191.1 ,2056.6 ,1841.9 ,2218.8 2391.6 ,2628.3
K 103149 72435.1 79113 74673.8 69310.8 99252.1 87055 61112.4
Ca ,8294.3 ,6464.2 ,9077.3 ,8323.6 ,7441.8 ,8847.3 ,8350.9 ,9823.4
Sc 25.8 13.0 ,18.23 27.6 ,14.6 ,17.7 ,17.0 ,20.2
Ti 1747.6 1616.0 1667.1 1568.5 1539.3 1700.8 1547.3 1315.7
V 230.0 191.9 233.1 196.5 228.3 211.6 207.2 206.6
Mn ,53.6 126.5 113.0 83.4 131.9 ,60.4 ,57.1 164.9
Cu ,24.0 ,18.8 ,26.4 23.9 ,21.0 ,25.5 ,24.6 ,28.6
Zn ,90.6 ,72.1 ,100.4 ,94.0 ,84.0 ,99.2 ,93.9 ,113.0
Ga ,12.2 11.0 ,13.9 ,12.5 12.48 ,13.5 ,13.0 ,15.2
As ,74.2 ,59.3 ,83.1 ,74.3 71.6 ,81.5 ,74.4 ,88.6
Rb 953.5 823.1 910.6 994.4 829.2 894.3 782.6 838.0
Sr ,7.7 ,6.1 ,8.3 ,7.9 ,7.0 ,8.1 ,7.8 ,9.1
Y ,2.5 ,2.2 ,3.1 3.0 ,2.3 ,2.8 ,2.8 ,3.3
Nb ,3.3 ,2.6 ,3.9 ,3.2 ,2.8 ,3.9 ,3.8 ,4.4
Mo ,24.0 ,19.4 ,26.8 ,24.0 ,21.4 ,24.9 ,.1 ,28.5
Sn ,27.4 ,21.9 ,31.6 ,27.9 ,25.0 ,30.0 ,28.1 ,33.3
Cs 23.8 35.1 30.8 48.6 28.5 30.8 20.7 31.2
Ba 245.3 268.5 298.2 343.0 304.9 253.5 243.5 253.0
Lu ,1.8 ,1.4 ,1.9 ,1.4 ,1.2 ,1.9 ,2.0 ,1.9
Ta 1.4 1.5 ,1.9 ,1.4 ,1.2 ,1.7 ,1.4 ,1.8
W ,1.7 ,2.2 ,2.8 ,1.5 3.2 ,3.5 ,3.0 ,3.5
Tl 3.3 3.3 2.1 3.0 3.8 2.9 2.7 2.2
Pb 20.4 21.7 11.3 39.7 10.5 7.4 17.5 22.1

* Data normalized using SILLS software (Guillong et al. 2008) and implementing external standardization to NIST 610
and internal standardization to 13.8 wt.% MgO (from microprobe data).

followed by 40 s of mineral ablation at a pulse rate of
20 Hz using a spot size of 50 lm. The data were
processed using SILLS software (Guillong et al.
2008). The raw counts-per-second data were converted
to concentrations using the average MgO concentra-
tion from EPMA analysis as the internal standard.
Most major-element concentrations obtained through
this procedure fall within the same intervals as those
obtained from microprobe analyses.
Tourmaline Fe oxidation state was determined by
Mössbauer spectroscopy at 295 K using a WEB
Research (now SEE Co) W100 spectrometer at Mount
Holyoke College and a ~60 mCi 57Co source in Rh.
Approximately 250 mg of each sample was crushed
under acetone and heaped undiluted (due to low Fe
content) into a sample mount. Spectra were corrected
to remove fractionation of the baseline due to
Compton scattering of 122 keV c rays by electrons
within the detector. Experimental times were 24 hr.
Spectra were collected in 2048 channels and corrected
for nonlinearity. Mössbauer spectra were fit using the
Mexdisd program, which was created by Eddie de
Grave and Toon van Alboom of Ghent University,
Flanders, Belgium, and provided by the former.
Mexdisd solves the full hyperfine interaction Hamil-
tonian for multiple distributions and minimizes the
chi-squared deviation between the fitted and experi-
mental spectrum using center shift (CS), quadrupole
shift (QS), full width at half maximum, hyperfine field,
distribution area, and asymmetry and angle parameters
(relating to the electric field gradient, EFG) as free
parameters.
Geochemical calculations of phase equilibria were
conducted using the SUPCRT package (Johnson et al.

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 278 THE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST

FIG. 4. Microscopic features of alteration. (A) XPL image of phlogopite strongly foliated around apparently undeformed
tourmaline (tur) cluster. (B) XPL image of phlogopite showing varying degrees of preferential orientation. (C) BSE image
of zoned tourmaline, with oxy-dravitic compositions in the darker, homogenous core of the crystal and dravitic
compositions at the lighter, terminated crystal end (top of image). Fibrous phlogopite also shows compositional zoning on
the bottom edge of the tourmaline crystal. (D) BSE image showing compositional zoning in tourmaline, with a light band of
fibrous dravitic tourmaline between two darker, homogeneous oxy-dravitic crystals. (E) SEM image of K-feldspar (kfs) and
dravite (tur) in contact. The red box shows inset for panel (F), where a reaction rim can be observed between the K-feldspar
(on right) and dravite (on left). The dravite contains brighter grey inclusions along the rim, which are likely K-feldspar.

1992), with additional thermodynamic data for dravite
from Mazdab (1994) summarized by Anovitz &
Hemingway (1996). These data, along with other
natural tourmaline compositions, were tested by
Garofalo et al. (2000).
PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION
The phlogopite-rich alteration is hosted in the Luhr
Hill porphyritic granite (Fig. 1A–B) ~0.4 km west of
the intrusive contact between the porphyritic granite
and Mesozoic host rocks. This contact represents the
west-tilted floor of the batholith. The phlogopite-rich
alteration is exposed in discontinuous outcrops that
form a roughly N–S, curvilinear trace in map view,
spanning approximately 1 km, ranging from ~0.5 to 3
m thick in current exposure (Fig. 1C). Foliation
defined by phlogopite alignment occurs intermittently
within the phlogopite alteration (Fig. 2A–B). The

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 PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION IN THE YERINGTON DISTRICT, NEVADA
FIG. 5. Mössbauer spectra of tourmaline samples from this
study. The top panel (LHMR) shows the Mössbauer
spectrum of tourmaline sampled from the center of
phlogopite-dominated alteration, in which 18% of the
total Fe is Fe3þ. The bottom panel (LHMR-P) shows the
Mössbauer spectrum of tourmaline intergrown with
plagioclase preserved in less intense phlogopite-dominat-
ed alteration, in which 12% of the total Fe is Fe3þ.
micaceous alteration is foliated in two directions,
either striking 0838 to 1168 and dipping moderately to
steeply south or striking 3058 to 3108 and dipping
moderately to the northeast. The authors did not
observe clear relative ages between the two foliation
directions. Northwest-striking foliation orientations
are also reported in an ostensibly unaltered porphyry
dike near the northernmost exposures of the phlogo-
pite-rich alteration and previously reported in a Luhr
Hill porphyry dike near the eastern contact with
Triassic host rocks (Fig. 1C, 2E; Proffett 2007). The
phlogopite alteration (Fig. 2A–B) is rich in pale-
colored mica but is distinct from coarse muscovite
alteration in the vicinity because of the lack of discrete
veins, notably stronger foliation of the phlogopite, and
local clusters of sparry tourmaline within the phlog-
opite-rich alteration (Fig. 1C, 2B–C; Runyon et al.
2017).
The Luhr Hill porphyritic granite ranges from
ostensibly fresh to strongly Na-Ca altered (andesine-
actinolite 6 epidote assemblages) along the contact
with the phlogopite-rich alteration. The boundary
between ostensibly unaltered Luhr Hill porphyritic
granite and phlogopite alteration is gradational. The
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by Rutgers University user
279
outermost zone is characterized by texturally pre-
served porphyritic granite with phlogopite 6 tourma-
line replacing K-feldspar megacrysts and fine- to
coarse-grained (,1 mm to .1 cm) phlogopite and
minor titanite replacing the ground mass (Fig. 2D, F).
In the most intense alteration, the porphyritic texture is
completely replaced by variably aligned phlogopite
with minor titanite, relict 6 minor hydrothermal K-
feldspar (Fig. 2C, G), and relict zircon. Tourmaline
occurs discontinuously in phlogopite-rich alteration as
friable intergrown clusters up to several centimeters in
length, is most commonly developed in the center of
the alteration zone, and rarely composes up to ~10
vol.% of the alteration (Fig. 2B). The tourmaline forms
radial sprays or is aligned parallel to phlogopite
foliation and is commonly intergrown with anhedral,
untwinned, cloudy white K-feldspar (Fig. 2C, F–G,
3B–C).
The phlogopite-rich alteration overprints a ~1 m
wide coarse crystalline body consisting of euhedral
plagioclase crystals from 4 mm to 1.5 cm in length,
quartz, and red-brown masses 1 mm to .1 cm in
diameter of rutile and leucoxene crystals hosted in the
Luhr Hill porphyritic granite. The coarse crystalline
body also contains dark green-grey phlogopite in vugs
or potentially replacing original mafic minerals (Fig.
2H). Rare, light green tourmaline interstitial to quartz
and plagioclase in this body ranges from 0.5 to 3.5 cm
in length and is 3 mm wide.
Small volumes of coarse muscovite veins and
alteration are present in the vicinity of the phlogopite-
rich alteration. Clear timing relationships between the
coarse muscovite veins and alteration and phlogopite-
rich alteration were not observed. At least one Na-Ca
alteration event predated phlogopite-dominated alter-
ation, as phlogopite replaces andesine–oligoclase after
K-feldspar megacrysts.
Phlogopite, tourmaline, and other phases in
phlogopite-rich alteration
The phlogopite is near-endmember in composition
(Table 1A) with minor variation in Mg, K, Al, and Si
with respect to the average composition: (Na0.01
K0.92A0.07)(Al0.37FeT0.05Ti0.02Mg2.48A0.08)(Si2.82Al1.18
O10)(F0.19OH1.81). Magnesium zoning is evident in
back-scattered electron images (Fig. 4C–D). The
phlogopite contains minor Cs, Rb, As, and V and
trace amounts of Tl, W, Ta, and Lu (Table 1B). The
majority of phlogopite in the phlogopite-rich alteration
is pale brown, but phlogopite adjacent to and
overprinting the coarse-crystalline body is dark grey
(Fig. 3B). Though broadly compositionally similar,
dark grey phlogopite contains slightly more Fe and
less Mg than the light brown variety.
 TABLE 2A. ELECTRON MICROPROBE COMPOSITIONS OF TOURMALINE 280

Sample lh tm lh tm lh tm lh tm
lh tm lh tm lh tm g29 g29 lh tm lh tm g1 g1 lh tm LHMR LHMR

by Rutgers University user

g36 g36 g29 inner inner g29 g25 LHMR LHMR LHMR lh tm Inner Inner g1 Inner LHMR Inner LHMR
Description core rim edge band band core core rim core core g25 Rim band band Rim band Rim band Core
SiO2 (wt.%) 37.09 37.25 37.32 37.76 37.42 38.04 36.80 35.66 36.34 36.43 36.06 37.24 37.00 36.51 36.60 36.45 36.60 36.84
TiO2 0.17 0.39 0.07 0.09 0.58 0.17 0.07 0.52 0.17 0.30 0.10 0.47 0.56 0.33 0.28 0.19 0.28 0.14
Al2O3 36.70 32.57 32.35 32.01 32.51 35.70 37.72 32.33 32.59 35.54 32.73 33.14 31.93 29.56 34.49 36.71 34.49 36.74
Cr2O3 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01
V2O3 bdl bdl 0.06 0.05 bdl bdl bdl bdl 0.03 bdl 0.04 bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl
Fe2O31 0.05 0.49 0.95 1.00 0.35 0.09 0.07 0.61 0.56 0.09 1.25 0.38 0.70 1.64 0.18 0.08 bdl bdl
FeO1 0.30 3.26 3.90 4.10 1.42 0.37 0.30 2.52 2.30 0.38 5.11 1.56 2.86 6.74 0.75 0.31 bdl bdl
MnO bdl bdl bdl 0.01 bdl bdl 0.01 0.01 bdl bdl 0.02 0.01 0.03 0.01 0.01 bdl 0.01 bdl
MgO 9.12 9.46 8.73 8.69 10.50 9.18 8.56 9.77 9.85 9.54 7.75 10.31 9.81 8.24 9.86 8.85 9.86 8.98
SrO 0.05 0.13 0.06 0.06 0.09 0.05 0.05 0.12 0.04 0.05 0.08 0.09 0.14 0.10 0.05 0.07 0.05 0.05
BaO bdl bdl 0.02 bdl bdl 0.01 bdl 0.02 bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl 0.01 0.01 bdl bdl bdl
Na2O 2.11 2.36 2.26 2.09 1.97 1.95 1.92 2.28 2.19 1.81 2.42 1.90 2.26 2.24 2.08 2.13 2.08 2.15
K2O 0.02 0.04 0.02 0.02 0.01 0.03 0.01 0.02 0.29 bdl 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.02
CaO 0.93 0.91 0.53 0.46 1.18 0.91 0.90 1.15 0.43 0.67 0.54 1.28 1.13 1.01 0.98 0.88 0.98 0.81
Ga2O3 bdl bdl 0.01 0.01 bdl 0.02 0.02 0.01 0.01 bdl 0.03 0.01 0.02 0.03 bdl bdl bdl 0.01
NiO 0.01 0.01 0.01 bdl 0.01 0.01 0.01 bdl 0.01 0.01 bdl 0.01 bdl 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01
Sc2O3 bdl 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.02 bdl 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.02 0.03 0.01 0.01 0.04 0.17 0.01 0.17 bdl
B2O3* 10.93 10.79 10.73 10.75 10.81 10.93 10.94 10.58 10.66 10.80 10.61 10.85 10.74 10.52 10.79 10.82 10.79 10.88
F bdl 0.17 0.31 0.18 0.40 0.02 bdl 0.18 0.21 bdl 0.14 0.35 0.22 0.25 0.15 bdl 0.15 bdl
Cl bdl bdl 0.02 0.01 bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl 0.01 bdl bdl bdl bdl
THE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST

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OH# 2.67 2.64 2.62 2.62 2.64 2.67 2.67 2.58 2.60 2.64 2.59 2.65 2.62 2.57 2.63 2.64 2.63 2.66
O or OH# 1.71 1.73 1.76 1.74 1.76 1.70 1.71 1.71 1.74 1.72 1.71 1.76 1.73 1.72 1.73 1.69 1.73 1.70
Subtotal 97.50 97.87 97.38 97.32 97.28 97.49 97.41 95.81 95.74 95.68 96.94 97.64 97.46 97.28 96.47 96.51 95.52 96.64
–O¼F 0.00 –0.07 –0.13 –0.08 –0.17 –0.01 0.00 –0.08 –0.09 0.00 –0.06 –0.15 –0.09 –0.11 –0.07 0.00 –0.07 0.00
Total 101.87 102.17 101.62 101.61 101.51 101.85 101.79 100.03 99.99 100.03 101.19 101.91 101.71 101.47 100.76 100.85 99.82 101.00
IV
Si (apfu) 5.90 6.00 6.05 6.11 6.02 6.05 5.85 5.86 5.93 5.86 5.91 5.96 5.99 6.03 5.90 5.85 5.90 5.88
IV
PAl 0.10 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.15 0.14 0.07 0.13 0.09 0.04 0.01 0.00 0.10 0.14 0.10 0.12
T(IV) 6.00 6.00 6.05 6.11 6.02 6.05 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.03 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00
VI
Al 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 5.75 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00
VI
Fe3þ 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.20 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
P
Z(VI) 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00 6.00
VI
Al 0.77 0.18 0.18 0.10 0.16 0.69 0.91 0.12 0.19 0.61 0.23 0.22 0.08 0.00 0.45 0.80 0.45 0.80
VI
Fe2þ 0.04 0.44 0.53 0.55 0.19 0.05 0.04 0.35 0.31 0.05 0.70 0.21 0.39 0.93 0.10 0.04 0.12 0.05
by Rutgers University user
TABLE 2A. CONTINUED.

Sample lh tm lh tm lh tm lh tm
lh tm lh tm lh tm g29 g29 lh tm lh tm g1 g1 lh tm LHMR LHMR
g36 g36 g29 inner inner g29 g25 LHMR LHMR LHMR lh tm Inner Inner g1 Inner LHMR Inner LHMR
Description core rim edge band band core core rim core core g25 Rim band band Rim band Rim band Core
VI
Fe3þ 0.01 0.06 0.12 0.12 0.04 0.01 0.01 0.08 0.07 0.01 0.15 0.05 0.09 0.00 0.02 0.01 0.00 0.00
Mg 2.16 2.27 2.11 2.09 2.52 2.18 2.03 2.39 2.40 2.29 1.89 2.46 2.37 1.99 2.37 2.12 2.37 2.14
V 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
Sc 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.02 0.00 0.02 0.00
Ti 0.02 0.05 0.01 0.01 0.07 0.02 0.01 0.06 0.02 0.04 0.01 0.06 0.07 0.04 0.03 0.02 0.03 0.02
P
Y(VI) 3.00 3.00 2.95 2.89 2.98 2.95 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 2.97 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00
A
Ca 0.16 0.16 0.09 0.08 0.20 0.16 0.15 0.20 0.07 0.11 0.10 0.22 0.20 0.18 0.17 0.15 0.17 0.14
A
K 0.00 0.01 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.06 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
A
Na 0.65 0.74 0.71 0.66 0.61 0.60 0.59 0.73 0.69 0.57 0.77 0.59 0.71 0.72 0.65 0.66 0.65 0.66
A
Sr 0.00 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.00
A
Pvac 0.18 0.09 0.19 0.26 0.17 0.23 0.25 0.06 0.17 0.31 0.12 0.18 0.08 0.09 0.17 0.18 0.17 0.19
A 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
X
POH# 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00
V 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00
X
F 0.00 0.08 0.16 0.09 0.20 0.01 0.00 0.09 0.11 0.00 0.07 0.18 0.11 0.13 0.08 0.00 0.08 0.00
X

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Cl 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
X
OH# 0.31 0.50 0.51 0.61 0.38 0.22 0.31 0.56 0.74 0.63 0.63 0.42 0.46 0.66 0.46 0.31 0.48 0.33
X #
PO 0.69 0.42 0.33 0.30 0.42 0.77 0.69 0.34 0.15 0.37 0.30 0.40 0.43 0.21 0.46 0.69 0.44 0.67
W 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00 1.00
PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION IN THE YERINGTON DISTRICT, NEVADA

assigned B 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00 3.00

Elements sought but not detected: Co, Y, P, Sn, S. Lithium contents of tourmaline, measured with LA-ICP-MS (see Table 2B), were modest and irregular; tourmaline
compositions were calculated without Li based on these data.
P
Tourmaline normalized to T(IV), Y(VI), Z(VI) ¼ 15.
1 3þ
Fe2O3 and FeO (and Fe and Fe2þ apfu) are from Mössbauer data.
#
H2O wt.%, OH, and O calculated by charge balance incorporating Mössbauer data.
* B2O3 calculated by stoichiometry and falls within average LA-ICP-MS results (see Table 2B).
281
 282 THE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST

TABLE 2B. LA-ICP-MS COMPOSITIONS OF TOURMALINE

Sample (lg/g) LHMR LHMR LHMR LHMR LHMR LHMR

Li7 ,650.3 ,1856.7 ,2155.3 ,1734.5 ,2115.0 ,1699.7
Be9 ,116.5 353.77 ,443.7 ,423.0 ,523.2 ,428.0
B11 28896.7 47879 44476.1 40208.4 35105.1 35659.6
Na23 11330.7 8188.7 25752.1 ,2279.0 4082.7 ,2328.1
Mg24 54254.5 54254.5 54254.5 54254.5 54254.5 54254.5
Al27 272829 294177 295223 144595 199917 222816
Si29 210787 368708 239730 188742 297901 249211
P31 ,3349.7 ,8649.2 ,9960.6 ,9738.0 ,11865.5 ,9930.0
K39 3031.6 ,484.3 ,561.9 ,496.9 ,605.3 ,498.4
Ca43 24363.5 ,41500.5 ,48777.1 ,43850.8 ,53608.3 ,44845.5
Sc45 29.9 ,73.0 ,85.1 ,82.6 ,100.9 ,84.9
Ti48 1157.0 856.7 1129.1 1283.4 1136.3 585.9
V51 275.3 301.4 283.1 314.2 276.6 128.0
Mn55 ,97.9 ,255.7 ,292.8 ,278.3 1160.0 ,284.4
Cu63 ,45.8 ,121.5 ,143.5 ,126.4 ,154.5 ,127.9
Zn66 ,168.9 ,428.3 ,493.4 ,476.0 ,583.4 ,481.6
Ga71 ,21.7 ,57.0 ,66.4 ,63.03 ,77.3 ,65.2
As75 ,141.9 ,373.1 ,443.0 ,393.6 ,481.0 ,400.7
Rb85 ,37.3 ,100.9 ,117.1 ,106.6 ,130.1 ,105.4
Sr88 728.7 585.3 648.6 430.6 498.0 302.3
Y89 ,5.3 ,13.2 ,12.5 ,12.0 ,14.9 ,14.3
Nb93 ,5.9 ,15.3 ,18.5 ,16.7 ,20.5 ,16.7
Mo98 ,45.0 ,117.0 ,141.0 ,127.0 ,155.4 ,128.5
Sn120 ,54.5 ,144.0 ,162.9 ,150.2 263.9 ,151.9
Cs133 ,20.0 ,52.8 ,61.0 ,55.5 ,67.7 ,56.5
Ba138 42.8 ,26.6 ,31.0 ,29.4 ,36.0 ,30.3
Lu175 ,3.3 8.9 ,9.2 ,10.0 ,12.4 ,9.2
Ta181 ,2.8 5.8 ,6.8 ,7.0 ,8.8 ,7.7
W184 ,5.4 ,12.5 ,11.3 ,9.9 ,12.7 ,12.4
Tl205 ,1.2 ,5.4 ,4.5 ,3.5 ,4.5 ,4.9
Pb208 ,3.8 16.4 14.0 ,8.0 ,10.1 ,10.9

Note: Data normalized using SILLS software (Guillong et al. 2008), implementing external standardization to NIST
610 and internal standardization to 5.4 wt.% MgO (from electron microprobe data).

Tourmaline species within the phlogopite-rich alter-
ation range from oxy-dravite in the cores to dravite in the
rims (Fig. 5, Tables 2A–B, 3). The most Al-rich
tourmaline (with concomitant low Fe) normalizes to
oxy-dravite with a formula of [(Ca 0.16 Na 0.60
K 0.01 A 0.23 )(Al 0.91 Fe 2þ0.05 Mg 2.03 Ti 0.01 )(Al 6 )(Si 5.85
Al0.15O18)(BO3)3(OH)3(O0.77OH0.23)], whereas the most
Fe-rich tourmaline normalizes to dravite with a formula
of [(Ca0.18Na0.72Sr0.01A0.09)(Fe2þ0.68Fe3þ0.21Mg2.03
Sc0.01Ti0.04)(Al5.76Fe3þ0.24)(Si6O18)(BO3)3(OH)3(O0.21
OH0.41F0.13)]. Tourmaline contains between 12 and 18
mol.% Fe3þ/RFe (Fig. 5, Table 3). The oxy-dravite cores
are compositionally homogeneous with lower Fe contents
(Fig. 4C–D) and lower Ti (0.01–0.02 apfu) than dravitic
rims (0.01–0.07 apfu). Dravite occurs in rims and thin,
fibrous bands between homogeneous oxy-dravite crys-
tals. Scalloped boundaries between oxydravite cores and
dravite overgrowths may represent dissolution-repreci-
pitation features (Fig. 4; Dutrow & Henry 2000, Henry et
al. 2003). The dravite is somewhat variable in major- and
minor-element composition (Table 2A) and compara-
tively Fe-rich with respect to oxy-dravite (Fig. 4C–D).
Other minerals present in the phlogopite-rich
alteration include K-feldspar, titanite, fluorapatite, and
zircon (Table 4). Hydrothermal alkali feldspar is
referred to as K-feldspar throughout because it lacks
structural characterization and apparent tartan twinning.
The K-feldspar in the phlogopite-rich alteration occurs
as: (1) white, relict K-feldspar megacrysts wholly or
partially replaced by phlogopite (Fig. 2D, F); (2) white,
relict igneous K-feldspar megacrysts replaced by
andesine 6 tourmaline with oligoclase rims (Fig. 3B);
(3) volumetrically minor, small (500 lm), euhedral
K-feldspar interspersed in phlogopite-rich zones; and
(4) anhedral inclusions in tourmaline along grain
boundaries (Fig. 4F). These styles of K-feldspar are

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by Rutgers University user
 PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION IN THE YERINGTON DISTRICT, NEVADA
TABLE 3. MÖSSBAUER RESULTS FOR TOURMALINE
LHMR
d 0.16
D 0.47
C 0.40
Area 18
d 0.36
D 1.06
C 0.30*
Area
d 1.07
D 1.88
C 0.45
Area 34
d 1.07
D 2.42
0.24
Area 24
%Fe3þ 18
A2 1.21
* Indicates fixed parameter.
d ¼ isomer shift in mm/s, D ¼ quadrupole splitting in
mm/s, C ¼ linewidth at half maximum in mm/s.
distinct from the euhedral, purple-grey, igneous per-
thitic microcline megacrysts in unaltered Luhr Hill
porphyritic granite (Dilles 1987; Fig. 3A). Euhedral,
disseminated K-feldspar suggests that minor volumes
formed synchronously with phlogopite formation.
Fluid inclusions
Fluid inclusions are abundant in tourmaline from
the phlogopite-rich alteration. Three fluid inclusion
assemblage types were identified based on morphol-
ogy and distribution (Fig. 6; Table 5). The first type
consists of small (,1–15 lm), irregular, high-density
aqueous inclusions that formed along healed frac-
tures. These inclusions homogenize between 196 to
329 8C and display final ice melting between –4.1
and –6.4 8C. The second type consists of elongate,
high-density aqueous fluid inclusions in fibrous bands
of tourmaline, typically 5–25 lm long but rarely
more than 3 lm wide. These inclusions mostly
homogenize between 218 and 306 8C and show final
ice melting at –5.2 to –8.8 8C. However, a few
inclusions in these assemblages homogenize .380
8C and show ice melting between –13.4 and –16.6 8C.
The third type consists of variably sized (~2–50 lm,
average ~15 lm), irregular to negative crystal-
shaped, high-density aqueous inclusions dispersed
within the cores of tourmaline. Inclusions in these
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by Rutgers University user
283
assemblages mostly homogenize between 228 and
305 8C and show final ice melting between –5.3 and
LHMR-P –9.3 8C. However, some inclusions in these assem-
0.15* blages homogenize at temperatures .330 8C and
0.51 show final ice melting between –11.9 and –13.3 8C.
0.30* Also within the cores, we observed scattered, larger
9 inclusions (several tens of micrometers) that contain
a transparent, cubic daughter mineral inferred to be
halite. These halite-bearing inclusions mostly showed
halite melting at temperatures .330 8C, with one
3 halite-bearing inclusion showing halite melting at
1.09 325 8C (Table 5).
2.06 The majority of analyzed inclusions in all assem-
0.64 blages homogenize between ~200 and 300 8C and
59 contain liquid with salinities of ~6–12 wt.% NaCl.
Fluid inclusions with higher homogenization temper-
atures and higher salinities (15–20 wt.% NaCl
equivalent) are most common in the fibrous, dravitic
rims on tourmaline. Hypersaline inclusions that record
salinities of ~40–45 wt.% NaCl equivalent or more
12
occur only in the oxy-dravitic cores of the tourmaline
1.66 and record the highest homogenization temperatures
(.330 8C). These high-salinity, high-temperature
inclusions appear to represent the earliest phase of
tourmaline precipitation.
Tourmaline may have formed pre-, syn-, or post-
extension, and so we present a range of pressure-
corrected temperatures of formation for fluid inclu-
sion data (Table 5). At 2 kbar, corresponding to
estimated paleodepths prior to extension, inferred
trapping temperatures range from 321 to 588 8C. At 1
kbar, corresponding to intermediate paleodepths
during extension, inferred trapping temperatures
range from 258 to 450 8C. At 200 bar, corresponding
to near-surface depths at the late stages or after
extension, inferred trapping temperatures range from
208 to 317 8C. However, roughly 30% of the
inclusions observed homogenize .330 8C; these
temperatures have not been included in the pres-
sure-corrected data because they mostly correspond
to the higher salinity (brine) inclusions hosted in the
oxy-dravitic tourmaline cores.
Mass balance
Mineral modal abundances and mineral composi-
tion data were used to calculate an estimated whole-
rock composition for the phlogopite-rich alteration
(Fig. 3, Table 6). The estimated SiO2, Na2O, and CaO
contents are lower than reported contents of fresh Luhr
Hill porphyritic granite (Table 6; Dilles 1987) and
estimated MgO and K2O contents are significantly
higher than reported contents of fresh Luhr Hill
porphyritic granite (Dilles 1987). These patterns
remain consistent when the estimated whole rock
 284
TABLE 4. ELECTRON MICROPROBE COMPOSITIONS OF FELDSPAR

Sample LHMR ,100 lm, LHMR ,100 lm, LHMR ,100 lm, LHMR K-feldspar LHMR-2 Core LHMR-2 Core LHMR-2 Rim

by Rutgers University user

Description euhedral feldspar euhedral feldspar euhedral feldspar replaced by phl feldspar phenocryst K-feldspar megacryst K-feldspar megacryst
SiO2 (wt.%) 63.36 64.09 64.20 63.56 61.40 59.60 60.75
TiO2 bdl 0.02 bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl
Al2O3 18.51 18.72 18.85 18.60 24.97 26.09 25.88
Fe2O3* bdl 0.04 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.03 0.03
MnO bdl bdl 0.03 0.01 bdl bdl 0.01
MgO 0.06 0.12 0.01 0.46 0.01 bdl 0.01
CoO bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl 0.02 bdl
NiO 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 bdl bdl bdl
Ga2O bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl 0.01 0.01
V2O3 0.01 bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl bdl
Cr2O3 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 bdl bdl 0.01
CaO bdl bdl bdl bdl 5.68 6.93 5.33
SrO 0.03 0.03 0.02 0.02 0.34 0.35 0.30
BaO 0.01 0.02 bdl 0.11 bdl 0.03 0.02
Na2O 0.15 0.13 0.18 0.16 8.11 7.78 9.36
K2O 16.47 16.49 16.56 16.35 0.27 0.09 0.11
F bdl 0.01 0.03 bdl 0.03 0.01 bdl
Subtotal 98.60 99.68 99.93 99.30 100.84 100.96 101.85
–O¼Cl,F 0.00 0.00 –0.01 0.00 –0.02 0.00 0.00
Total 98.60 99.68 99.92 99.30 100.82 100.96 101.85
THE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST

IV
Si (apfu) 2.98 2.97 2.97 2.96 2.70 2.64 2.66

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IV
PAl 1.02 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.30 1.36 1.34
T(IV) 4.00 4.00 4.00 4.00 4.00 4.00 4.00
A
Ca 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.27 0.33 0.20
A
Na 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.01 0.69 0.67 0.80
A
K 0.99 0.98 0.98 0.99 0.02 0.00 0.01
A
P Sr 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.01 0.01 0.01
A 1.00 0.99 1.00 1.01 0.98 1.01 1.02
Mineral K-feldspar K-feldspar K-feldspar K-feldspar oligoclase andesine oligoclase
Ca/(NaþCa) 0.28 0.33 0.24

Elements sought but not detected: Y, P, Cl, Sn, S, and As. phl ¼ phlogopite.
P
Feldspar normalized to T site ¼ 4.
* All Fe originally measured as Fe2þ. Fe2O3 and FeO (and Fe3þ and Fe2þ apfu) are for charge balance.
 PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION IN THE YERINGTON DISTRICT, NEVADA 285

FIG. 6. Plane polarized light images of tourmaline-hosted fluid inclusions. Panels (A) and (B) show an example of a large (~25
lm), high-density aqueous inclusion with a transparent daughter mineral in the core of a tourmaline crystal. Panel (C) shows
a large (~30 lm), high-density aqueous inclusion with a transparent daughter mineral aligned parallel to the c axis of a
tourmaline crystal. Panels (D) and (E) show thin, fibrous fluid inclusions hosted in dravitic crystals between oxy-dravitic
tourmaline cores. Panels (F) and (G) show areas of irregular high-density aqueous inclusions in tourmaline. Panels (H) and
(I) show large (.25 lm), high-density aqueous inclusions aligned parallel to the c axis of a tourmaline crystal.

composition of the phlogopite-rich alteration is Hydrogen isotopes

normalized to unaltered Luhr Hill porphyritic granite
using the method of Grant (1986) (normalized to Zr).
If dravite formed synchronously with the phlogopite
alteration, B2O3 would also have been added during
alteration. The closest Mesozoic host rocks exposed
near the phlogopite-rich alteration (presently ~0.4 km
east) are dominated by Triassic metavolcanic rocks
and Cretaceous granite. Therefore, this is the first
report of Mg-dominated alteration in the Yerington
district that is not within or adjacent to a carbonate
host, such as magnesian skarns hosted in dolomitized
Mason Valley Limestone (Harris & Einaudi 1982,
Einaudi 2000).
Phlogopite from the alteration zone yielded dD of
75% and –80% (Table 7). Fluid dD compositions of
–50% to –55% for an estimated formation tempera-
ture of 400 8C, –31% to –37% at 300 8C, and –5% to
þ1% at 200 8C were calculated based on Al, Mg, and
Fe mole fractions of phlogopite (Suzuoki & Epstein
1976). Tourmaline from the pervasive replacement
yielded dD of –59.3%, and tourmaline intergrown
with quartz within the coarse-grained body yielded
60%. Calculated dD of fluids in equilibrium with
Mg-rich tourmalines (Kotzer et al. 1993) yielded
43% 6 1% at 500 8C, –27% 6 1% at 400 8C, and
5% 6 1% at 300 8C.

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 286 THE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST

TABLE 5. FLUID INCLUSION DATA

FIA^ Te Tm,ice Th,L-V Ts wt.% NaCl eq. Trapping T 8C P * (bar) Comments

1 –13.3 234 17.2 330 1600 ,5 lm equant inclusion
265 530
1 231 ,5 lm equant inclusion
1 –6.1 205 9.3 301 1600 fracture? perpendicular to c
236 530
1 –6.4 283 9.7 408 1600 fracture? perpendicular to c
321 530
1 –5.1 196 8.0 292 1600 fracture? perpendicular to c
227 530
–4.1 298 6.6 438 1600 fracture? perpendicular to c
1 340 530
1 243 fracture? perpendicular to c
1 329 fracture? perpendicular to c
2 –13.4 244 17.2 343 1600 elongate parallel to c
276 530
2 –20.5 –14.8 306 18.5 426 1600 elongate parallel to c
342 530
2 –16.6 289 19.9 400 1600 elongate parallel to c
322 530
2 254 elongate parallel to c
2 –6.6 249 9.9 360 1600 elongate parallel to c
284 530
2 272 530 elongate parallel to c
2 –8.8 249 12.6 356 1600 elongate parallel to c
283 530
2 218 elongate parallel to c
2 260 elongate parallel to c
2 –5.2 256 8.1 373 1600 elongate parallel to c
292 530
3 –19.5 –15.9 negative crystal shape (30 lm),
dispersed in tourmaline core
3 –5.3 243 8.3 353 1600 dispersed in tourmaline core
277 530
3 –8.6 243 12.4 347 1600 dispersed in tourmaline core
275 530
3 –8.8 253 12.6 362 1600 dispersed in tourmaline core
287 530
3 249 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 253 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 –11.9 234 15.8 331 1600 dispersed in tourmaline core
265 530
3 –6 259 9.2 374 1600 dispersed in tourmaline core
294 530
3 –22.8 –9.3 246 13.2 351 1600 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 279 530 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 .330 325 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 237 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 –8.1 239 11.8 343 1600 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 278 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 306 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 239 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 246 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 256 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 229 dispersed in tourmaline core

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 PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION IN THE YERINGTON DISTRICT, NEVADA 287

TABLE 5. CONTINUED.

FIA^ Te Tm,ice Th,L-V Ts wt.% NaCl eq. Trapping T 8C P * (bar) Comments

3 249 dispersed in tourmaline core
3 255 dispersed in tourmaline core

^ FIA ¼ fluid inclusion assemblage as denoted in the text. 1 ¼ small (,1–15 lm), irregular, high-density aqueous
inclusions that formed along healed fractures. 2 ¼ elongate, high-density aqueous fluid inclusions in fibrous bands of
tourmaline, typically 5–25 lm long but rarely more than 3 lm wide. 3 ¼ variably sized (~2–50 lm, average ~15 lm),
irregular to negative-crystal shaped, high-density aqueous inclusions dispersed within the cores of tourmaline.
* Pressure estimate of 1600 bar (~6 km paleodepth) representative of formation at pre-extension depths (i.e., depths
in the roots of the porphyry system; Runyon et al. 2017). Pressure estimate of 530 bars represents trapping during
extension and exhumation at ~2 km paleodepth.

DISCUSSION lower temperatures and lower salinities during subse-

The elongate phlogopite-rich alteration exposures
and pervasive foliation in the phlogopite suggest
accommodation of structural deformation within the
alteration zone. The alteration may have: (1) formed
before structural deformation and localized faulting;
(2) formed largely syn-deformation, the fault serving
as a pathway for contemporaneous hydrothermal
fluids; or (3) formed largely after deformation, the
fault serving as a pre-existing pathway for hydrother-
mal fluids. The third option seems unlikely, consider-
ing the strong foliation. Syn-deformational fluid flux
through the shear zone and continuous growth of the
weaker, deforming matrix phase (e.g., phlogopite)
promote the formation of narrow zones of strain
localization and the development of strong foliation
within otherwise weakly deformed or undeformed
regions, which is consistent with our observations
(White et al. 1980). We infer that tourmaline – a
relatively hard, coherent phase – was ‘‘shielded’’ from
the deformation by accommodation of strain by soft,
platy phlogopite (e.g., White et al. 1980; Fig. 4A).
Inferred trapping temperatures range from 321 to
588 8C at depths of 2 kbar (estimated paleodepth
before extension) and from 208 to 317 8C at 200 bar
(Table 5). Earliest-formed oxy-dravite contains fluid
inclusions that show evidence of a high-salinity fluid
(40–45 wt.% NaCl equivalent) with temperature
higher than 330 8C (after pressure correction, likely
.450 8C). These fluids are similar, though not
necessarily related to, the brines associated with Na-
Ca alteration in the Yerington district. Later, less
saline fluid inclusions (8–13 wt.% NaCl equivalent) in
dravitic tourmaline rims have fairly wide ranges of
homogenization temperatures, from 200 to 300 8C,
suggesting that they record gradual tourmaline growth
or fracture healing during cooling. Tourmaline forma-
tion occurred during progressive temperature and
salinity decrease, with early oxy-dravite crystallization
at higher temperatures and fluid salinities followed by
quent dravite formation.
Phlogopite hydrogen isotopic compositions (–75%
to –80%) are similar to those of muscovite from
nearby coarse muscovite veins (–74%) and are heavier
than those of Na-Ca alteration minerals nearby (–91%
to –101%). The calculated isotopic compositions of
fluids in equilibrium with dravite and phlogopite are
similar to each other, suggesting a similar fluid and
formation temperature, and overlap with the compo-
sition of basinal brines or modified seawater associated
with sodic-calcic or late sodic fluids in the Yerington
district (Dilles & Einaudi 1992).
The phlogopite-rich alteration is characterized by
depletion in Si, Fe, Na, and Ca and addition of K and
Mg (Fig. 3): these patterns are distinctive compared to
the alteration typical of porphyry systems. Loss of Si
and Fe is consistent with Na-Ca alteration driven by
saline brines along a warming path but are inconsistent
with Na-Ca alteration in the loss of Na and Ca and
increased K (e.g., Dilles et al. 1995). These trends,
along with increased Mg, appear to be explained by
the transition from earlier albite-stable alteration to
later phlogopite-stable alteration (Fig. 7), and therefore
may reflect overprinting of earlier sodic-calcic alter-
ation by subsequent phlogopite-rich alteration which is
likely unrelated to the porphyry systems in the district.
Fluid evolution
Oxy-dravite is related to a high temperature, high-
salinity fluid that evolved to, or was overprinted by, a
lower temperature, lower-salinity hydrothermal fluid
responsible for phlogopite alteration 6 dravitic
tourmaline. Oxy-dravite generally forms from oxidiz-
ing, saline fluids or fluids with low H2O activity
(Henry et al. 2008, Henry & Dutrow 2012, Dutrow &
Henry 2018). Overgrowths of dravite on cores of
oxydravite may suggest: (1) increased H2O activity,
(2) decreased aluminum activity, (3) increased mag-
nesium activity, or (4) some combination of these
changes in hydrothermal fluids during the growth of

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 288 THE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST

TABLE 6. ESTIMATION OF WHOLE-ROCK COMPOSITION

Mineral Composition* Volume %#

Phlogopite (K0.8,A0.2)(Al0.35,Fe0.04,Ti0.01,Mg2.50,A0.10)(Si2.87,Al1.30)O10(F0.20,OH1.80) 89.5
K-feldspar (K0.98,Na0.02)(Al1.03,Si2.97)O8 5.0
Dravite (Ca0.15,K0.01,Na0.65,Sr0.01,A0.18)(Al0.46,Fe0.25,Mg2.26,Ti0.03)(Al5.99,Fe0.01)(Si5.95,Al0.05) 5.0
O18(BO3)3(OH)3(F0.09,OH0.40,O0.51)
Titanite CaTiSiO5 0.5
Zircon ZrSiO5 0.5
Apatite Ca5(PO4)3(F,OH) 0.5

Estimated oxide wt.% Oxide wt.% unless otherwise noted

Phlogopite-rich alteration Luhr Hill Porphyritic Granite^
SiO2 40.26 SiO2 67.4
Al2O3 19.57 Al2O3 15.6
MgO 22.28 MgO 1.12
FeO 0.18
Fe2O3 0.57 Fe2O3 2.71
MnO 0.01 MnO 0.03
TiO2 0.43 TiO2 0.42
Na2O 0.18 Na2O 4.08
K2O 9.08 K2O 3.88
CaO 0.23 CaO 2.92
P2O5 0.21 P2O5 0.16
F 0.71 F n.r.
H2O 3.67 H2O n.r.
ZrO2 0.34 Zr 141 ppm
B2O3 0.54 B n.r.
Subtotal 98.27 Subtotal 99.7

* Composition represents an average from microprobe compositions.

#
Volume percent estimated from hand sample and thin section observation.
^ Oxide weight percent of unaltered Luhr Hill porphyritic granite from Dilles (1987): all Fe reported as Fe2O3. n.r. ¼ not
reported.

TABLE 7. HYDROGEN ISOTOPE ANALYSES

Sample Occurrence Mineral dD% Min XMg~ T 8C^ dD% H2O*

LH-m2_m Phlogopite from light brown pervasive Phlogopite –74.12 0.86 400 –49
phlogopite alteration 300 –30
LHMR Phlogopite from light brown pervasive Phlogopite –74.72 0.79 400 –50
phlogopite alteration 300 –31
LITPEG-phl Dark grey phlogopite from coarse Phlogopite –80.22 0.79 400 –55
crystalline body 300 –37
LHMR Tourmaline from pervasive phlogopite Tourmaline –59.28 400 –27
alteration 300 –5
LHPEG-to Tourmaline intergrown with plagioclase Tourmaline –59.98 400 –28
from coarse crystalline body 300 –5

* H2O compositions for phlogopite determined using equations from Suzuoki & Epstein (1976). H2O compositions for
tourmaline determined using method of Kotzer et al. (1993).
^ Temperatures estimated from fluid inclusion data.
~
XMg determined by electron microprobe compositions for dD% H2O calculated using Suzuoki & Epstein (1976).

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 PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION IN THE YERINGTON DISTRICT, NEVADA
FIG. 7. Stability fields of the minerals observed in phlogopite
alteration for the pressure-temperature pairs estimated from
fluid inclusion thermometry. To reflect the quartz-destruc-
tive nature of alteration, aSiO2 in solution has been set to an
order of magnitude below saturation. Contours represent
a[B(OH)3] in solution at dravite-saturated conditions. Note
that the a[B(OH)3] contours are indicative of the trends in
solubility change, but their absolute value is dependent on
the aluminum activity and pH chosen for calculations (log
Al3þ ¼ –8 and pH ¼ 3 for these diagrams). Panel (A) shows
the highest temperature phase relations based on highest
temperature pressure-corrected fluid inclusion microther-
mometry data. Panel (B) shows intermediate temperature
and (C) shows our lower temperature phase relations,
although tourmaline and/or phlogopite formation may
extend to still lower temperatures (e.g., 200 8C).
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289
tourmaline; they may also represent secondary fluids
after initial phlogopite-oxy-dravite formation. The
evolution in tourmaline composition is likely related
to an increase in H2O activity, as earlier oxydravitic
cores contain high-salinity brines characterized by low
values of aH2O; during progressive tourmaline growth,
fluid salinity decreased to ,10 wt.% NaCl equivalent
in the lower temperature fluids.
At 450 8C, K-feldspar is stable in the presence of
fluids with a broad compositional range (Fig. 7A).
Given the fluid evolution described above, increasing
concentrations of Na in the fluid (e.g., input of high-
salinity brines, Dilles & Einaudi 1992) and decrease of
temperature could be responsible for alteration of K-
feldspar to albite-phlogopite. Both of these factors
would lead to co-precipitation of phlogopite and
dravite. However, no significant intergrowth of dravite
and phlogopite has been observed. In contrast,
increasing the aMg2þ/aHþ2 of the fluid would cause
destabilization of tourmaline-plagioclase assemblages
to phlogopite-dominated alteration with no additional
dravite precipitated (Fig. 7), which is more consistent
with our textural observations.
Fluids capable of producing this metasomatism
are not atypical in hydrothermal systems (e.g.,
Giggenbach 1988, Seedorff et al. 2005). The K/Na
implied by early K-feldspar replacement of Na-
plagioclase (~1:10 or less, by atomic fraction; Fig.
7) is consistent with typical fluid compositions
reported for a variety of hydrothermal settings
(Giggenbach 1988, Bodnar et al. 2014). Later
phlogopite would become stable in the presence of
fluids with fairly modest Mg concentrations (100 to
10,000 ppm) at pH higher than 2–3 at 250 8C. These
data indicate that phlogopite alteration could have
been favored by somewhat elevated Mg concentra-
tions (as in a sedimentary brine; Yardley 2005),
neutral to weakly acidic pH, or both.
The phlogopite-rich alteration is Fe-poor and Mg-
K-rich. An Fe-Mg-K-rich fluid may have become
depleted in Fe by wall-rock reaction along the flow
path, becoming relatively Mg enriched. An Mg-K-rich,
modestly acidic fluid continuing on its flow path would
scavenge Si, Na, Ca, and Fe from the rock, generating
phlogopite alteration, and not affect earlier-formed
(oxy-)dravite due to high Mg activity. Iron-oxide
dominated veins in the McLeod Hill quartz monzo-
diorite in the next fault block to the east (e.g., the
Bluejay vein) may provide evidence for stripping Fe
out of solution. These Fe oxide-rich veins, commonly
interpreted to have formed in association with the
upward and outward fluid flow of deep Na-Ca fluids
circulated by heat from the Yerington batholith (Dilles
et al. 2000), may predate the phlogopite-rich alter-
 290 THE CANADIAN MINERALOGIST

FIG. 8. Composition diagram comparing dravite from Luhr Hill to tourmaline compositional ranges from multiple alteration
assemblages from Collins (2010). The Luhr Hill dravite overlaps with dravite from sodic assemblages, with minor overlaps
with dravite from sericitic assemblages as reported in Collins (2010).

ation. Better temporal constraints are required to test
this potential relationship.
Timing relationships
Geochemical data are consistent with early oxy-
dravitic tourmaline formed during Na-Ca alteration.
Precipitation of tourmaline along the schorl-dravite
join has been documented in Na and Na-Ca alteration
in the district which is associated with the convective
circulation of external saline fluids established by the
Yerington batholith (Fig. 8; Carten 1981, 1986, Dilles
1984, Dilles & Einaudi 1992, Dilles et al. 1995, 2000,
Collins 2010).
The timing of the phlogopite-rich alteration
remains poorly constrained. The first possibility is
that that phlogopite-rich alteration formed during
cooling of the Luhr Hill porphyritic granite (~168
Ma). Alteration patterns and supporting geochemical
evidence indicate that external brines were repeatedly
convected from the paleosurface or from wall rocks for
distances of .5 km into the Yerington batholith,
especially along porphyry dikes (Fig. 1C; Dilles &
Einaudi 1992, Dilles et al. 1995, Dilles et al. 2000). In
this case, the phlogopite-rich alteration at Luhr Hill
would have formed from convection of saline external
fluids from the paleosurface or from evaporitic wall
rocks adjacent to the batholith, perhaps encountering a
local fault at depth. If phlogopite-rich alteration
formed nearly contemporaneously with Jurassic Na-
Ca alteration, the simplest explanation for the
paragenesis from Na-Ca assemblages (andesine-actin-
olite 6 epidote) to phlogopite-dominated assemblages
would be either an increase in the relative Mg
concentration of the fluid or a progressive decrease
in temperature and/or pressure of the system.
A second possibility is that the phlogopite-rich
alteration is related to the circulation of fluids due to
thermal input from younger quartz monzodiorite
porphyry dikes in eastern Luhr Hill (165 Ma, Fig.
1C, Proffett 2007) or from the Shamrock batholith
(~165–166 Ma, Dilles & Wright 1988).
Finally, the age of the phlogopite-rich assemblages
is virtually unconstrained at the younger end, so the
alteration could be mid-Cenozoic or younger. Ceno-
zoic surficial brines were present in the region (e.g.,
Papke 1976) but probably were not nearly as
voluminous in the Cenozoic as in the Jurassic
(Battles & Barton 1995, Barton et al. 2011). Numerous
normal faults were active in the district during various
time intervals since ~14 Ma (Proffett 1977, Dilles &
Gans 1995, Surpless et al. 2002). Saline fluids driven

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 PHLOGOPITE-RICH ALTERATION IN THE YERINGTON DISTRICT, NEVADA
by crustal extension, with or without an additional
thermal drive, could have formed the observed
phlogopite-rich assemblages. Despite the uncertain
timing of formation, the phlogopite-rich alteration is
distinct from other forms of alteration in the district as
the only documented occurrence of Mg-rich alteration
in the Yerington district not formed in or adjacent to
carbonate hosts (Harris & Einaudi 1982, Einaudi
2000). Similar Mg-rich alteration lacking carbonate
host rocks may occur elsewhere in Yerington, but the
authors are unaware of any that have been reported at
this time.
Comparison with global examples of Mg-rich
alteration
Common examples of phlogopite-rich associations
include kimberlite-related alteration, Mg-skarns, meta-
evaporites, and blackwall alteration, each of which
generally has an obvious source of Mg in evaporite
units, dolomite, or (ultra-)mafic host rocks. The source
of Mg in the phlogopite-rich alteration at Luhr Hill is
less obvious. There are no voluminous Mg-rich host
rocks exposed in the vicinity of the phlogopite-rich
alteration and no exposed or inferred kimberlitic
magmas in the Yerington district. Evaporitic brines
and seawater are common sources of Mg-rich fluids
and would likely have been available sporadically in
the Yerington district since the Jurassic. Seawater
brine, trapped in Jurassic evaporites within the district,
is interpreted to be responsible for Na-Ca alteration
associated with the Yerington batholith. The Ludwig
gypsum mine (presently ~13 km west of the
phlogopite-rich alteration) and the Regan Quarry
(presently ~10 km southeast of the phlogopite-rich
alteration) exploit the upper evaporitic member of the
Jurassic Ludwig Formation, which crops out in minor
exposures ~5 km southwest of the phlogopite-rich
alteration (Proffett & Dilles 1984). Saline basinal
brines were also likely available at and following the
onset of Basin and Range extension in closed
evaporitic basins (Papke 1976, Dilles & Einaudi
1992). The deep circulation of (relatively) Mg-rich
basinal brines may be responsible for the formation of
phlogopite-rich alteration at Luhr Hill, which repre-
sents Mg-K-rich metasomatism. The source of B could
also be such brines, although magma-derived B should
not be precluded without additional B isotope studies
of tourmaline.
CONCLUSIONS
The phlogopite-rich alteration is unlike other forms
of Mg-rich alteration previously documented in the
Yerington district, Nevada and appears to postdate
Jurassic Na-Ca alteration. The volumetrically minor
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291
exposures of phlogopite-rich alteration represent an
addition of Mg and K, a removal of Ca, Fe, and Si, and
are not observed to be spatially related to Mg-rich host
rocks. The phlogopite-forming fluids are interpreted to
be non-magmatic saline fluids, likely of basinal origin,
potentially associated with earlier sodic-calcic alter-
ation. Geochemical modeling and fluid-inclusion data
suggest that early formation of oxy-dravite was driven
by fairly high temperature (~450 8C), high salinity
(~40–45 wt.% NaCl) fluids, and that both temperature
and salinity decreased during subsequent alteration.
Decrease in temperature combined with relatively
enriched Mg concentrations typical of saline basinal
fluids (Yardley 2005) and moderately acidic pH
(perhaps coupled with decreasing sodium-to-potassi-
um ratio) favored stabilizing the phlogopite-rich
assemblage. Phlogopite-dominated alteration repre-
sents a previously undescribed form of Mg-rich
alteration in the Yerington district. At present, our
model for alteration genesis is incomplete. Remaining
questions regarding the origin of these unique
metasomatic rocks – particularly the cause(s) of Mg-
rich alteration in the apparent absence of a proximal
Mg-rich protolith – deserve further study.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thanks to Anton Beran and an anonymous reviewer
for comments on this article; the manuscript was
significantly improved as a result of their feedback.
Special thanks to Hank Ohlin and Nevada Copper for
bringing SER to Yerington for the Luhr Hill mapping
project. Grants from the Geological Society of America
and the Society of Economic Geologists awarded to
SER supported this work. PLS and MS-M acknowledge
support through NSERC Discovery Grants. The Lowell
Institute for Mineral Resources supported LA-ICP-MS
analyses. We thank Ken Domanik, Wyatt Bain, and
Shaunna Morrison for laboratory assistance, Elizabeth
Sklute for Mössbauer data processing, and Mark Barton
for discussion. We value continuing conversations with
other geologists working in the Yerington district,
especially John Dilles.
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