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Aaron Zimmerman

Other affiliations: Swarthmore College
Bio: Aaron Zimmerman is an academic researcher from Colorado State University. The author has contributed to research in topics: Molybdenite & Geochronology. The author has an hindex of 12, co-authored 28 publications receiving 790 citations. Previous affiliations of Aaron Zimmerman include Swarthmore College.

Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used ID-NTIMS data to provide a clear Late Archean-Early Paleoproterozoic age for the Malanjkhand deposit and by implication for its calc-alkaline granitoid host.

186 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a new Reference Material (RM) for Re-Os geochronology, a molybdenite powder acquired from the Henderson mine and mill in Colorado, has been characterized by two independent laboratories using isotope dilution and NTIMS.

134 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The Apuseni-Banat-Timok-Srednogorie magmatic-metallogenic belt (ABTS) as discussed by the authors is a large metallogenic province in the Balkan-South Carpathian system in southeastern Europe.
Abstract: The Apuseni–Banat–Timok–Srednogorie magmatic–metallogenic belt (ABTS belt), forms a substantial metallogenic province in the Balkan-South Carpathian system in southeastern Europe. The belt hosts porphyry, skarn, and epithermal deposits mined since pre-Roman times. Generally, the deposits, prospects, and occurrences within the belt are linked to magmatic centers of calc-alkaline affinity. Fifty-one rhenium-osmium (Re–Os) ages and Re concentration data for molybdenites define systematic geochronologic trends and constrain the geochemical-metallogenic evolution of the belt in space and time. From these data and additional existing geologic-geochemical data, a general tectonic history for the belt is proposed. Mineralization ages in Apuseni-Banat, Timok, and Panagyurishte (the central district of the larger E–W Srednogorie Zone) range from 72–83, 81–88, and 87–92 Ma, respectively, and clearly document increasing age from the northwestern districts to the southeastern districts. Further, Re–Os ages suggest rapidly migrating pulses of Late Cretaceous magmatic–hydrothermal activity with construction of deposits in ~1 m.y., districts in ~10 m.y., and the entire 1,500 km belt in ~20 m.y. Ages in both Timok and Panagyurishte show systematic younging, while deposit ages in Banat and Apuseni are less systematic reflecting a restricted evolution of the tectonic system. Systematic differences are also observed for molybdenite Re concentrations on the belt scale. Re concentrations generally range from hundreds to thousands of parts per million, typical of subduction-related Cu–Au–Mo–(PGE) porphyry systems associated with the generation of juvenile crust. The geochronologic and geochemical trends are compatible with proposed steepening of subducting oceanic slab and relaxation of upper continental plate compression. Resulting influx of sub-continental mantle lithosphere (SCML) and asthenosphere provide a fertile metal source and heat, while the subducting slab contributes connate and mineral dehydration fluids, which facilitate partial melting and metal leaching of SCML and asthenosphere. Cu–Au–Mo–(PGE) porphyry deposits may develop where melts are trapped at shallow crustal levels, often with associated volcanism and epithermal-style deposits (South Banat, Timok, and Panagyurishte). Mo–Fe–Pb–Zn skarn deposits may develop where felsic melts are trapped adjacent to Mesozoic limestones at moderate crustal levels (North Banat and Apuseni). Systematic spatial variations in deposit style, commodity enrichment, Re–Os ages, and Re concentrations support specific tectonic processes that led to ore formation. In a post-collisional setting, subduction of Vardar oceanic crust may have stalled, causing slab steepening and rollback. The slab rollback relaxes compression, facilitating and enhancing orogenic collapse of previously thickened Balkan-South Carpathian crust. The progression of coupled rollback-orogenic collapse is evidenced by the width of Late Cretaceous extensional basins and northward younging of Re–Os ages, from Panagyurishte (~60 km; 92–87 Ma) to Timok (~20 km; 88–81 Ma) to Apuseni-Banat (~5 km; 83–72 Ma). Generation of a well-endowed mineral belt, such as the ABTS, requires a temporally and spatially restricted window of magmatic–hydrothermal activity. This window is quickly opened as upper plate compression relaxes, thereby inducing melt generation and ingress of melt to higher crustal levels. The window is just as quickly closed as upper plate compression is reinstated. The transient tectonic state responsible for economic mineralization in the ABTS belt may be a paleo-analogue to transient intervals in the present subduction tectonics of SE Asia where much mineral wealth has been created in the last few million years.

102 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyzed molybdenite specimens from 135 localities with known ages from 2.91 billion years (Ga) to 6.3 million years (Ma) to reveal two statistically significant trends.

69 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors presented Re-Os radiometric ages for Middle Triassic organic-rich shales from two biostratigraphically defined sections at Svalbard and the Svalis Dome in the Barents Sea.

59 citations


Cited by
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Porphyry Cu systems are the most widely distributed mineralization types at convergent plate boundaries, including porphyry deposits centered on intrusions; skarn, carbonate-replacement, and sediment-hosted Au deposits in increasingly peripheral locations; and superjacent high and intermediate-sulfidation epithermal deposits as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Porphyry Cu systems host some of the most widely distributed mineralization types at convergent plate boundaries, including porphyry deposits centered on intrusions; skarn, carbonate-replacement, and sediment-hosted Au deposits in increasingly peripheral locations; and superjacent high- and intermediate-sulfidation epithermal deposits. The systems commonly define linear belts, some many hundreds of kilometers long, as well as occurring less commonly in apparent isolation. The systems are closely related to underlying composite plutons, at paleodepths of 5 to 15 km, which represent the supply chambers for the magmas and fluids that formed the vertically elongate (>3 km) stocks or dike swarms and associated mineralization. The plutons may erupt volcanic rocks, but generally prior to initiation of the systems. Commonly, several discrete stocks are emplaced in and above the pluton roof zones, resulting in either clusters or structurally controlled alignments of porphyry Cu systems. The rheology and composition of the host rocks may strongly influence the size, grade, and type of mineralization generated in porphyry Cu systems. Individual systems have life spans of ~100,000 to several million years, whereas deposit clusters or alignments as well as entire belts may remain active for 10 m.y. or longer. The alteration and mineralization in porphyry Cu systems, occupying many cubic kilometers of rock, are zoned outward from the stocks or dike swarms, which typically comprise several generations of intermediate to felsic porphyry intrusions. Porphyry Cu ± Au ± Mo deposits are centered on the intrusions, whereas carbonate wall rocks commonly host proximal Cu-Au skarns, less common distal Zn-Pb and/or Au skarns, and, beyond the skarn front, carbonate-replacement Cu and/or Zn-Pb-Ag ± Au deposits, and/or sediment-hosted (distal-disseminated) Au deposits. Peripheral mineralization is less conspicuous in noncarbonate wall rocks but may include base metal- or Au-bearing veins and mantos. High-sulfidation epithermal deposits may occur in lithocaps above porphyry Cu deposits, where massive sulfide lodes tend to develop in deeper feeder structures and Au ± Ag-rich, disseminated deposits within the uppermost 500 m or so. Less commonly, intermediate-sulfidation epithermal mineralization, chiefly veins, may develop on the peripheries of the lithocaps. The alteration-mineralization in the porphyry Cu deposits is zoned upward from barren, early sodic-calcic through potentially ore-grade potassic, chlorite-sericite, and sericitic, to advanced argillic, the last of these constituting the lithocaps, which may attain >1 km in thickness if unaffected by significant erosion. Low sulfidation-state chalcopyrite ± bornite assemblages are characteristic of potassic zones, whereas higher sulfidation-state sulfides are generated progressively upward in concert with temperature decline and the concomitant greater degrees of hydrolytic alteration, culminating in pyrite ± enargite ± covellite in the shallow parts of the litho-caps. The porphyry Cu mineralization occurs in a distinctive sequence of quartz-bearing veinlets as well as in disseminated form in the altered rock between them. Magmatic-hydrothermal breccias may form during porphyry intrusion, with some of them containing high-grade mineralization because of their intrinsic permeability. In contrast, most phreatomagmatic breccias, constituting maar-diatreme systems, are poorly mineralized at both the porphyry Cu and lithocap levels, mainly because many of them formed late in the evolution of systems. Porphyry Cu systems are initiated by injection of oxidized magma saturated with S- and metal-rich, aqueous fluids from cupolas on the tops of the subjacent parental plutons. The sequence of alteration-mineralization events charted above is principally a consequence of progressive rock and fluid cooling, from >700° to <250°C, caused by solidification of the underlying parental plutons and downward propagation of the lithostatic-hydrostatic transition. Once the plutonic magmas stagnate, the high-temperature, generally two-phase hyper-saline liquid and vapor responsible for the potassic alteration and contained mineralization at depth and early overlying advanced argillic alteration, respectively, gives way, at <350°C, to a single-phase, low- to moderate-salinity liquid that causes the sericite-chlorite and sericitic alteration and associated mineralization. This same liquid also causes mineralization of the peripheral parts of systems, including the overlying lithocaps. The progressive thermal decline of the systems combined with synmineral paleosurface degradation results in the characteristic overprinting (telescoping) and partial to total reconstitution of older by younger alteration-mineralization types. Meteoric water is not required for formation of this alteration-mineralization sequence although its late ingress is commonplace. Many features of porphyry Cu systems at all scales need to be taken into account during planning and execution of base and precious metal exploration programs in magmatic arc settings. At the regional and district scales, the occurrence of many deposits in belts, within which clusters and alignments are prominent, is a powerful exploration concept once one or more systems are known. At the deposit scale, particularly in the porphyry Cu environment, early-formed features commonly, but by no means always, give rise to the best ore-bodies. Late-stage alteration overprints may cause partial depletion or complete removal of Cu and Au, but metal concentration may also result. Recognition of single ore deposit types, whether economic or not, in porphyry Cu systems may be directly employed in combination with alteration and metal zoning concepts to search for other related deposit types, although not all those permitted by the model are likely to be present in most systems. Erosion level is a cogent control on the deposit types that may be preserved and, by the same token, on those that may be anticipated at depth. The most distal deposit types at all levels of the systems tend to be visually the most subtle, which may result in their being missed due to overshadowing by more prominent alteration-mineralization.

2,211 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
24 Nov 2015-ACS Nano
TL;DR: Insight is provided into the theoretical modeling and understanding of the van der Waals forces that hold together the 2D layers in bulk solids, as well as their excitonic properties and growth morphologies.
Abstract: The isolation of graphene in 2004 from graphite was a defining moment for the “birth” of a field: two-dimensional (2D) materials In recent years, there has been a rapidly increasing number of papers focusing on non-graphene layered materials, including transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), because of the new properties and applications that emerge upon 2D confinement Here, we review significant recent advances and important new developments in 2D materials “beyond graphene” We provide insight into the theoretical modeling and understanding of the van der Waals (vdW) forces that hold together the 2D layers in bulk solids, as well as their excitonic properties and growth morphologies Additionally, we highlight recent breakthroughs in TMD synthesis and characterization and discuss the newest families of 2D materials, including monoelement 2D materials (ie, silicene, phosphorene, etc) and transition metal carbide- and carbon nitride-based MXenes We then discuss the doping and functionalization of 2

2,036 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The case for these petrogenetic models for adakites and high Mg andesites is best made in the Archean, when higher mantle geotherms resulted in subducting slabs potentially reaching partial melting temperatures at shallow depths before dehydration rendered the slab infusible as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Based on a compilation of published sources, rocks referred to as adakites show the following geochemical and isotopic characteristics: SiO2 ≥56 wt percent, Al2O3 ≥15 wt percent, MgO normally <3 wt percent, Mg number ≈0.5, Sr ≥400 ppm, Y ≤18 ppm, Yb ≤1.9 ppm, Ni ≥20 ppm, Cr ≥30 ppm, Sr/Y ≥20, La/Yb ≥20, and 87Sr/86Sr ≤0.7045. Rocks with such compositions have been interpreted to be the products of hybridization of felsic partial melts from subducting oceanic crust with the peridotitic mantle wedge during ascent and are not primary magmas. High Mg andesites have been interpreted to be related to adakites by partial melting of asthenospheric peridotite contaminated by slab melts. The case for these petrogenetic models for adakites and high Mg andesites is best made in the Archean, when higher mantle geotherms resulted in subducting slabs potentially reaching partial melting temperatures at shallow depths before dehydration rendered the slab infusible. In the Phanerozoic these conditions were likely only met under certain special tectonic conditions, such as subduction of young (≤25-m.y.-old) oceanic crust. Key adakitic geochemical signatures, such as low Y and Yb concentrations and high Sr/Y and La/Yb ratios, can be generated in normal asthenosphere-derived tholeiitic to calc-alkaline arc magmas by common upper plate crustal interaction and crystal fractionation processes and do not require slab melting. An assessment of several arc volcanic suites from around the world shows that most adakite-like compositions are generated in this way and do not reflect source processes. Similarly, rare adakite-like intrusive rocks associated with some porphyry Cu deposits are the evolved products of extensive crustal-level processing of calc-alkaline basalt-andesite-dacite-rhyolite series magmas. If slab melts contribute to such magmas, their geochemical signatures would have been obliterated or rendered ambiguous by subsequent extensive open-system processes. In Archean terranes, where adakitic and high Al tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite (TTG) magma series rocks are more common, porphyry Cu deposits are rare and, where found, are associated with normal calc-alkaline suites rather than adakites. The two different magma series are compositionally distinct in terms of several major and trace element parameters. Common upper plate magmatic processes such as melting-assimilation-storage-homogenization (MASH) and assimilation-fractional-crystallization (AFC) affecting normal arc magmas can be demonstrated to explain the distinctive compositions of most adakite-like arc rocks, including high Mg andesites and especially those rare examples associated with porphyry Cu deposits. In contrast, slab melting can in most cases neither be proved nor disproved and is therefore unsatisfactory as a unique factor in porphyry Cu genesis.

739 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a full-plate, topological model of the Neoproterozoic that maps the evolution of the tectonic plate configurations during this time is presented.

473 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: For example, trace-metal/TOC ratios can provide insight into the degree of watermass restriction and estimates of deepwater renewal times in restricted anoxic marine systems.

388 citations