Sulfide-rich dunite within a thick Moho transition zone of the northern Oman ophiolite: Implications for the origin of Cyprus-type sulfide deposits

Peculiar dunites, in part wehrlitic, that contain up to 3 vol.% sulfides from a thick (~ 1000 m) Moho transition zone (MTZ) are found along Wadi Thuqbah in the northern Oman ophiolite. We discuss their relevance to the formation of Cyprus-type massive sulfide deposits near the surface. Field observations suggest that the sulfide-rich MTZ dunites are of late-intrusive origin. The sulfides form composite grains with magnetite and form angular clasts, which are enclosed or cut by magnetite. The sulfide part is composed of homogeneous pyrrhotite and vermicular intergrowth of pyrrhotite and pentlandite. Sulfide inclusions in clinopyroxene comprise pyrrhotite with pentlandite blebs, free of magnetite. Olivines in the sulfide-rich dunite characteristically show low NiO contents (0.1–0.3 wt.%) relative to a high Fo value (~ 91), and as such they do not lie on a Fo–NiO trend of ordinary sulfide-free MTZ dunites–wehrlites. This low-Ni olivine was precipitated from a high-Mg magma that had segregated Ni-rich sulfide melts. The pentlandite–pyrrhotite intergrowth was formed by subsolidus exsolution at low temperatures (< 200 °C) from high-temperature mono-sulfide solid solution. Iron released from olivine during serpentinization produced magnetite, which was combined with the sulfides to form the composite grains. In-situ S isotope ratios of the sulfides (δ34S = 0.7–2.8) are slightly higher than mantle values but lie within the range for magmas from oceanic island arcs, such as the Marianas. The δ34S are lower than those for sulfate from seawater and MORB-related sulfides, such as TAG (Trans-Atlantic Geotraverse) deposits. One of the Cyprus type massive sulfide deposits (Aarja) from the crustal section of the same area shows similar S isotope ratios to the sulfides in the Thuqbah sulfide-rich dunites/wehrlites, indicating their genetic linkage. The Aarja sulfide deposit was formed within the V2 lavas, which are relatively sulfur-rich and of an off-axis origin, as a result of high-temperature seawater circulation. The Thuqbah sulfide-rich dunite possibly represents an igneous root of the Cyprus-type massive sulfide deposit of Aarja formed in an off-ridge magmatic-hydrothermal system.

► Sulfide-rich dunites were found from a thick MTZ of Oman ophiolite.
► Sulfides are pyrrhotite and pentlandite, and olivines are low in NiO.
► Sulfides are similar in S isotopic ratio to one of Cyprus-type ore deposits upsection.
► S supplied with water from the slab promoted partial melting of the then mantle wedge.