Microfabric analyses applied to the Witwatersrand gold- and uranium-bearing conglomerates: constraints on the provenance and post-depositional modification of rock and ore components

Microfabrics of detrital quartz grains and quartz cement of four gold- and uranium-bearing conglomerates of various goldfields of the Witwatersrand Basin, South Africa, were investigated by optical and cathodoluminescence microscopy. The study revealed that the vast majority of quartz grains (<5 mm) originate from felsic magmatic source rocks. Cherts and polymineralic mineral grains, pointing to greenschist to amphibolite facies metasedimentary rocks, follow in abundance, whereas diagenetic to weakly metamorphosed quartzites are subordinate. Material from hydrothermal vein quartz is almost completely lacking, both in the sand and in the pebble fraction. No obvious relationships are discernible between the varying proportions of detrital siliciclastic components of the different reefs and their ore grades. Assuming a sedimentological control of gold distribution, this finding supports multiple sources for the detrital components, which were thoroughly mixed during transport. The post-depositional history of the sediments is characterized by a complex polyphase succession of deformation, cementation and hydrothermal alteration events. Both fragmentation and pressure solution features within detrital quartz, quartz cement and round grains of pyrite, zircon, chromite and uraninite demonstrate that these materials were present in the conglomerates during diagenesis, and, thus, are true detrital grains with abraded, rounded grain morphologies. By analogy, it is assumed that gold is also a detrital component, although most of the gold grains display characteristics of hydrothermal overprinting. During subsequent metamorphism, micro-shear zones are developed, and brittle–ductile crystal–plastic deformation and limited quartz recrystallization occur. Maximum temperatures of about 350 °C were reached on the prograde metamorphic path. Recrystallization and redistribution of detrital siliciclastic and ore minerals took place, and various hydrothermal/metamorphic minerals including chlorite, sericite, pyrophyllite and chloritoid were formed. These redistribution processes involved existing detrital minerals only and were generally isochemical because little evidence exists for the development of a secondary porosity and permeability that would allow major external inputs into the Witwatersrand conglomerates. Most of the gold grains have hydrothermal characteristics, as evidenced by their authigenic, crystalline shapes and their chemical compositions. However, these features are regarded to result from overprinting. Most likely, the gold grains experienced more drastic modifications relative to other ore components because of the ductile and mobile nature of gold. The retrograde metamorphic path is characterized by percolating radioactive fluids at T<300 °C, recorded by radiation damage indicated by cathodoluminescence alteration rims along quartz grain boundaries and microcracks. The degrees of radiation damage observed are proportional to the uranium contents of the conglomerate ores. The collective evidence of our study supports the modified placer model for the genesis of the Witwatersrand ores. This model explains most of the observations on the detrital mineral assemblage and its post-depositional modification elegantly and in a satisfactory manner.