The Cogne magnetite deposit (Western Alps, Italy): a Jurassic seafloor ultramafic-hosted hydrothermal system?

The Cogne magnetite deposit (Western Alps, Italy) is the largest in a series of apatite and sulphide-free magnetite orebodies that are hosted in serpentinites belonging to western Alpine ophiolitic units. The nearly endmember composition of magnetite, which is unusual for an ultramafic setting, and the relatively high tonnage of the deposit (18 ∙ 10^6 tons at 45-50 wt% Fe) make Cogne an intriguing case study to explore magnetite-forming processes in ophiolites. The Cogne magnetite shows variable textures, including nodular ores, veins and fine-grained disseminations in serpentinites after mantle peridotites and totally serpentinized melt-impregnated peridotites (troctolites). An increase in Co/Ni ratio from magnetite-poor serpentinized peridotites (0.05) to nodular ores (>1) is observed. Trace element analyses of magnetite from different sites and lithologies by laser-ablation inductively-coupled mass spectrometry indicate that magnetites have typically hydrothermal compositions, characterized by high Mg and Mn (median values up to ~24100 and ~5000 ppm, respectively), and low Cr, Ti and V (median values up to ~30, ~570 and ~60 ppm, respectively). Moreover, the variations in trace element compositions distinguish magnetite that has hydrothermal fluid-controlled composition [highest (Mg, Mn, Co, Zn)/Ni ratios] from magnetite whose composition is affected by host-rock chemistry (highest Ni ± Ti ± V). U-Th-Pb dating of magnetite-associated uraninite constrains the formation of the deposit to the Late Jurassic (ca. 150 Ma), during an advanced stage of the opening of the Alpine Tethys. Thermodynamic modelling of fluid-rock interactions indicates that fluids produced by seawater–peridotite or seawater–Fe-gabbro are not sufficiently Fe-rich to account for the formation of the Cogne deposit. This suggests that fractionation processes such as phase separation were critical to generate hydrothermal fluids capable to precipitate large amounts of magnetite in various types of ultramafic host-rocks. The oceanic setting and geochemical and mineralogical similarities with some modern ultramafic-hosted volcanogenic massive sulphide deposits on mid-ocean ridges suggest that the exposed mineralized section at Cogne may represent the deep segment of a seafloor, high-temperature (~300–400°C) hydrothermal system. The occurrence of similar magnetite enrichments in present-day oceanic settings could contribute to explain the presence of significant magnetic anomalies centred on active and inactive ultramafic-hosted hydrothermal fields.