Authigenic Phyllosilicates in Sand Layers from the Mudflats of Saline Lakes in the Northern Great Prairies, Saskatchewan

ABSTRACT The mudflats of saline lakes are amenable to authigenic clay formation due to the high ionic strength of the solutions driven by evaporative concentration and due to the fluctuating wet/dry cycles. However, the mudflats of saline lakes have received relatively little study given the challenges in sampling unstable sediments coupled with post-depositional alterations that make direct relationships to the climate difficult. In an effort to gain a better understanding of the authigenic phyllosilicates present, the mudflats of 17 sulfate-rich saline lake basins across southern Saskatchewan were sampled. The <2 μm fraction was separated from the sediments and analyzed utilizing X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy, bulk chemical analysis via digestion and inductively coupled optical emission spectroscopy, and visible and near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy. The mudflat sediments were characterized as highly variable and were classified based on particle size into sediment classes A (clay-rich), B (unsorted till), and C (sand). Despite the high variability in sorting and thickness of the sedimentary layers, the phyllosilicates were distinctive within each class independent of the basin. Phyllosilicates in sediment class A were characterized by well-crystalline dioctahedral (Al) clays similar to the surrounding soils with smectite > illite > kaolinite > chlorite. Phyllosilicates from sediment class B displayed highly variable characteristics ranging between classes A and C. Clays from sediment class C were dominated by illite with decreasing proportions of smectite, kaolinite, and chlorite. The illite in the sand lenses was poorly formed, with broad reflections in the XRD patterns indicative of small crystallite size or high disorder, which is consistent with an authigenic nature. The clays in class C were rich in iron (Fe) and magnesium (Mg) and displayed lath-like morphologies common with authigenic illite forming in sandy porous sediments. The sand lenses of mudflats represent viable targets for finding authigenic clay minerals in detrital-rich sediments to use in understanding past climates on Earth and Mars.

Naldrettite (Pd2Sb): A new find in Brazil and comparison with worldwide occurrences

ABSTRACT Naldrettite (Pd2Sb) is a PGM discovered in 2005 in Mesamax Northwest deposit, Ungava region, Quebec, Canada. Before and after its approval, PGM with the naldrettite type composition have been reported from a number of localities worldwide. Most frequently, naldrettite has been documented in magmatic Ni–Cu–PGE sulfide deposits, hydrothermal veins in porphyry coppers of the Cu–Au type, and PGE deposits of Alaskan-type zoned intrusions. Naldrettite has been occasionally found in metasomatic Sb–As sulfide ore, metamorphic Ni–oxide ore, and podiform chromitites, although these occurrences have not been fully constrained by solid chemical analyses or paragenetic reconstruction. In this paper we report the first discovery of naldrettite in Brazil. This new finding occurs in a chromitite sample collected in the Luanga Complex, a Neo-archaean layered intrusion in the Carajás Mineral Province. Paragenetic association with alteration assemblages (ferrianchromite, Fe-hydroxides, chlorite) suggests precipitation of naldrettite from metamorphic hydrothermal fluids. The average composition of the Luanga sample (Pd1.76Pt0.24)Σ2.00(Sb0.57As0.43)Σ1.00 shows major substitution of Pt and As. These elements were derived from the breakdown of primary sperrylite, and were incorporated in naldrettite deposited by percolating fluids, at temperature below 350 °C (maximum temperature registered by the crystallization of associated chlorite). An overview of documented occurrences indicates that naldrettite can form in a variety of igneous rocks (ultramafic, mafic, felsic), even involving minimal concentrations of Pd and Sb. Crystallization of naldrettite generally occurs in the post-magmatic stage due to the activity of hydrothermal fluids containing volatile species Sb, As, Bi, Te, and Pd due to its higher mobility compared with the other PGE. A major issue concerns the origin of fluids that can be: (1) “residual”, after the main crystallization of the host magma, (2) “metamorphic”, during regional metamorphism or serpentinization, and (3) “metasomatic”, emanating from an exotic magma intrusion. The combination of two or three of these factors is the most likely process observed in the naldrettite-bearing complexes.

Sulfide mineral chemistry and platinum-group minerals of the UG-2 chromitite in the northern limb of the Bushveld Igneous Complex, South Africa

ABSTRACT The UG-2 chromitite layer, with its elevated platinum-group element content, is a key marker horizon in the eastern and western limbs of the Bushveld Igneous Complex and the largest platinum-group element chromite-hosted resource of its kind in the world. In contrast, much less is known about its stratigraphic equivalent in the northern limb, the “UG-2 equivalent” (UG-2E) chromitite. Recent studies on chromite mineral chemistry show similarities between the UG-2 and sections of the UG-2E, but also that the UG-2E was partially contaminated by assimilation of local metasedimentary rocks. Here, we provide a detailed characterization of sulfide minerals and platinum-group minerals in a suite of samples from the UG-2E and compare the results with data obtained from a reference suite of samples from the UG-2. Results from petrographic observations, electron probe microanalysis, laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry, quantitative evaluation of materials by scanning electron microscopy, and δ34S isotopes show that: (1) sulfide minerals in the UG-2E and UG-2 consist mainly of pentlandite-chalcopyrite-pyrrhotite, but pyrrhotite is significantly more abundant in the UG-2E and almost absent in the UG-2; (2) iron contents in pentlandite from the UG-2E are significantly higher than in the UG-2; (3) platinum-group element contents within sulfide minerals are different between the two chromitites; (4) UG-2E platinum-group minerals are dominated by arsenides and bismuthotellurides, and by alloys and platinum-group element-sulfide minerals in the UG-2; (5) sulfide mineral chemistry and δ34S values indicate some crustal contamination of the UG-2E; and (6) sulfide mineral and secondary silicate mineral textures in both the UG-2E and UG-2 are indicative of minor, millimeter- to centimeter-scale, hydrothermal alteration. From our observations and results, we consider the UG-2E chromitite in the northern limb to be the equivalent to the UG-2 in the eastern and western limbs that has been contaminated by assimilation of Transvaal Supergroup footwall rocks during emplacement. The contamination resulted in UG-2E sulfide mineral elemental contents and platinum-group mineral types and abundances that are distinct from those of the UG-2 in the rest of the Bushveld.

Nano- and Micrometer-Sized PGM in Ni-Cu-Fe Sulfides from an Olivine Megacryst in the Udachnaya Pipe, Yakutia, Russia

ABSTRACT This paper focuses on a nanoscale study of nano- and micrometer-size Os-rich mineral particles hosted in a Ni-Fe-Cu sulfide globule found in an olivine megacryst from the Udachnaya pipe (Yakutia, Russia). These platinum-group element mineral particles and their host sulfide matrices were investigated using a combination of techniques, including field emission gun electron probe microanalyzer, field emission scanning electron microscopy, and focused ion beam and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The sulfide globule is of mantle origin, as it is hosted in primitive olivine (Fo90–93), very likely derived from the crystallization of Ni-Fe-Cu sulfide melt droplets segregated by liquid immiscibility from a basaltic melt in a volume of depleted subcontinental lithospheric mantle. Microscopic observations by means of field emission scanning electron microscopy and single-spot analysis and mapping by field emission gun electron probe microanalyzer reveal that the sulfide globule comprises a core of pyrrhotite with flame-like exsolutions (usually <10 μm thickness) of pentlandite, which is irregularly surrounded by a rim of granular pentlandite and chalcopyrite. Elemental mapping by energy dispersive spectroscopy (acquired using the high-resolution transmission electron microscopy) of the pyrrhotite (+ pentlandite) core reveals that pentlandite exsolution in pyrrhotite is still observable at the nanoscale as fringes of 100 to 500 nm thicknesses. The sulfide matrices of pyrrhotite, pentlandite, and chalcopyrite contain abundant nano- and micrometer-size platinum group element mineral particles. A careful inspection of eight of these platinum group element particles under focused ion beam and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy showed that they are crystalline erlichmanite (OsS2) with well-developed crystal faces that are distinctively oriented relative to their sulfide host matrices. We propose that the core of the Ni-Fe-Cu sulfide globule studied here was derived from a precursor monosulfide solid solution originally crystallized from a sulfide melt at >1100 °C, which later decomposed into pyrrhotite and the pentlandite flame-like exsolutions upon cooling at <600 °C. Once solidified, the solid monosulfide solid solution reacted with non-equilibrium Cu-and Ni-rich sulfide melt(s), giving rise to the granular pentlandite in equilibrium with chalcopyrite now forming the rim of the sulfide globule. Meanwhile, nano- to micron-sized crystals of erlichmanite crystallized directly from or slightly before monosulfide solid solution from the sulfide melt. Thus, Os, and to a lesser extent Ir and Ru, were physically partitioned by preferential uptake via early formation of nanoparticles at high temperature instead of low-temperature exsolution from solid Ni-Fe-Cu sulfides. The new data provided in this paper highlight the necessity of studying platinum group element mineral particles in Ni-Fe-Cu sulfides using analytical techniques that can image nanoscale textural features in order to better understand the mechanisms of platinum group element fractionation in magmatic systems. These processes may play a crucial role in controlling the background geochemical budgets for siderophile and chalcophile elements in a wide range of mantle-derived magmas.

Distribution of sulfides and PGE minerals in the picritic and taxitic gabbro-dolerites of the Norilsk 1 intrusion

ABSTRACT Disseminated ores in the Norilsk 1 intrusion were studied to elucidate the typomorphic features of sulfides and noble metal mineralizations in picritic and taxitic (or lower olivine) gabbro-dolerites. The former are characterized by the development of a low-sulfur sulfide association (troilite, Fe-rich pentlandite, talnakhite, chalcocite, native copper) while the latter exhibits a high-sulfur association (monoclinic pyrrhotite, Ni-rich pentlandite, pyrite, heazlewoodite). The contact between these types of rocks is geochemically and mineralogically contrasting. The mineralogical and geochemical zoning directed from the roof to the base of each layer is expressed by an increase in the Cu content (and chalcopyrite) in ores, an increase in the concentration of Ni in pentlandite and S in pyrrhotite in line with a decrease of the crystallization temperature, and an increase in sulfur fugacity in the same direction. Zoning of Pd(Pt) mineralization in picritic and taxitic (olivine) gabbro-dolerites is uniform and characterized by the distribution of Pd-Sn compounds in the upper parts (together with Pd-Pb minerals in picritic rocks) and Pd-As compounds in the lower parts of the sections according to a drop in temperature. Such reverse zoning contradicts the typical mechanism of differentiation by fractional crystallization, and possibly suggests a fluid-magmatic nature. Mineralogical and geochemical features in platinum group element-Cu-Ni-bearing rocks are consistent with the idea that different stages of multi-pulse intrusions of mafic-ultramafic magmas with different compositions formed the picritic and taxitic gabbro-dolerites of the Norilsk region.

The chromian spinels of the Lyavaraka ultrabasic complex, Serpentinite Belt, Kola Peninsula, Russia: Patterns of zoning, hypermagnesian compositions, and early oxidation

ABSTRACT The maximum value of Mg# [= 100Mg/(Mg + Fe2+ + Mn)] in chromium-bearing spinel-group minerals (Chr) in the Ultrabasic Core Zone (UCZ) of the Lyavaraka orthopyroxenite – harzburgite – dunite complex of the Serpentinite Belt in the Kola Peninsula is 54.5–67.5. Such highly magnesian compositions of spinel are associated with notable enrichments of ferric iron (Fe3+# 58–63). There are two generations of accessory Chr in the UCZ unit. The first generation occurs as inclusions in olivine that is not unusually magnesian (Mg# 90.3), and the second is closely associated with serpentine. The compositional series of Chr at Lyavaraka attains more aluminous compositions than was observed in nearby intrusive bodies. The anomalously high level of Mg in Chr, also manifest in ilmenite, is mainly a result of the high intrinsic fugacity of oxygen attained locally in the melt. A progressive buildup in H2O and increase in fO2 likely resulted from efficient vesiculation and selective loss of H2 from the Al-undepleted komatiitic magma crystallizing in a shallow setting. The chromian spinel forming in such a modified magma is virtually unzoned in Mn, and a minor quantity of Mn is also present in olivine and orthopyroxene. In contrast, zinc is strongly partitioned in the core of Chr, as it is relatively incompatible in the coexisting olivine and orthopyroxene at that stage. Zinc efficiently partitioned into the H2O-enriched melt, which crystallized as the pegmatitic orthopyroxenite near the contacts at Lyavaraka. A high potential of oxidation appears to be characteristic of all orthopyroxenite – harzburgite – dunite suites of the Serpentinite Belt formed from a primitive melt of komatiitic composition.

Oberthürite, Rh3(Ni,Fe)32S32 and torryweiserite, Rh5Ni10S16, two new platinum-group minerals from the Marathon deposit, Coldwell Complex, Ontario, Canada: Descriptions, crystal-chemical considerations, and comments on the geochemistry of rhodium

ABSTRACT Oberthürite, Rh3(Ni,Fe)32S32, and torryweiserite, Rh5Ni10S16, are two new platinum-group minerals discovered in a heavy-mineral concentrate from the Marathon deposit, Coldwell Complex, Ontario, Canada. Oberthürite is cubic, space group , with a 10.066(5) Å, V 1019.9(1) Å3, Z = 1. The six strongest lines of the X-ray powder-diffraction pattern [d in Å (I)(hkl)] are: 3.06(100)(311), 2.929(18)(222), 1.9518(39)(115,333), 1.7921(74)(440), 1.3184(15)(137,355) and 1.0312(30)(448). Associated minerals include: vysotskite, Au-Ag alloy, isoferroplatinum, Ge-bearing keithconnite, majakite, coldwellite, ferhodsite-series minerals (cuprorhodsite–ferhodsite), kotulskite, and mertieite-II, and the base-metal sulfides, chalcopyrite, bornite, millerite, and Rh-bearing pentlandite. Grains of oberthürite are up to 100 × 100 μm and the mineral commonly develops in larger composites with coldwellite, isoferroplatinum, zvyagintsevite, Rh-bearing pentlandite, and torryweiserite. The mineral is creamy brown compared to coldwellite and bornite, white when compared to torryweiserite, and gray when compared chalcopyrite and millerite. No streak or microhardness could be measured. The mineral shows no discernible pleochroism, bireflectance, or anisotropy. The reflectance values (%) in air for the standard COM wavelengths are: 36.2 (470 nm), 39.1 (546 nm), 40.5 (589 nm), and 42.3 (650 nm). The calculated density is 5.195 g/cm3, determined using the empirical formula and the unit-cell parameter from the refined crystal structure. The average result (n = 11) using energy-dispersive spectrometry is: Rh 10.22, Ni 38.83, Fe 16.54, Co 4.12, Cu 0.23 S 32.36, total 100.30 wt.%, which corresponds to (Rh2Ni0.67Fe0.33)Σ3.00(Ni19.30Fe9.09Co2.22Rh1.16Cu0.12)∑31.89S32.11, based on 67 apfu and crystallochemical considerations, or ideally, Rh3Ni32S32. The name is for Dr. Thomas Oberthür, a well-known researcher on alluvial platinum-group minerals, notably those found in deposits related to the Great Dyke (Zimbabwe) and the Bushveld complex (Republic of South Africa). Torryweiserite is rhombohedral, space group , with a 7.060(1), c 34.271(7) Å, V 1479.3(1), Z = 3. The six strongest lines of the X-ray powder-diffraction pattern [d in Å (I)(hkl)] are: 3.080(33)(021), 3.029(58)(116,0110), 1.9329(30)(036,1115,1210), 1.7797(100)(220,0216), 1.2512(49)(0416), and 1.0226(35)(060,2416,0232). Associated minerals are the same as for oberthürite. The mineral is slightly bluish compared to oberthürite, gray when compared to chalcopyrite, zvyagintsevite, and keithconnite, and pale creamy brown when compared to bornite and coldwellite. No streak or microhardness could be measured. The mineral shows no discernible pleochroism, bireflectance, or anisotropy. The reflectance values (%) in air for the standard COM wavelengths are: 34.7 (470 nm), 34.4 (546 nm), 33.8 (589 nm), and 33.8 (650 nm). The calculated density is 5.555 g/cm3, determined using the empirical formula and the unit-cell parameters from the refined crystal structure. The average result (n = 10) using wavelength-dispersive spectrometry is: Rh 28.02, Pt 2.56, Ir 1.98, Ru 0.10, Os 0.10, Ni 17.09, Fe 9.76, Cu 7.38, Co 1.77 S 30.97, total 99.73 wt.%, which corresponds to (Rh4.50Pt0.22Ir0.17Ni0.08Ru0.02Os0.01)∑5.00(Ni4.73Fe2.89Cu1.92Co0.50)Σ10.04S15.96, based on 31 apfu and crystallochemical considerations, or ideally Rh5Ni10S16. The name is for Dr. Thorolf (‘Torry') W. Weiser, a well-known researcher on platinum-group minerals, notably those found in deposits related to the Great Dyke (Zimbabwe) and the Bushveld complex (Republic of South Africa). Both minerals have crystal structures similar to those of pentlandite and related minerals: oberthürite has two metal sites that are split relative to that in pentlandite, and torryweiserite has a layered structure, comparable, but distinct, to that developed along [111] in pentlandite. Oberthürite and torryweiserite are thought to develop at ∼ 500 °C under conditions of moderate fS2, through ordering of Rh-Ni-S nanoparticles in precursor Rh-bearing pentlandite during cooling. The paragenetic sequence of the associated Rh-bearing minerals is: Rh-bearing pentlandite → oberthürite → torryweiserite → ferhodsite-series minerals, reflecting a relative increase in Rh concentration with time. The final step, involving the formation of rhodsite-series minerals, was driven via by the oxidation of Fe2+ → Fe3+ and subsequent preferential removal of Fe3+, similar to the process involved in the conversion of pentlandite to violarite. Summary comments are made on the occurrence and distribution of Rh, minerals known to have Rh-dominant chemistries, the potential existence of both Rh3+ and Rh2+, and the crystallochemical factors influencing accommodation of Rh in minerals.

Genesis of the Jinbaoshan PGE-(Cu)-(Ni) deposit: Distribution of chalcophile elements and platinum-group minerals

ABSTRACT The Jinbaoshan platinum group element-(Cu)-(Ni) deposit in southwest China is a sulfide-poor magmatic platinum-group element deposit that experienced multiple phases of post-magmatic modification. The sulfide assemblages of most magmatic Ni-Cu-platinum-group element deposits in China and elsewhere in the world are dominated by pentlandite-pyrrhotite-chalcopyrite with lesser magnetite and minor platinum-group minerals. However, Jinbaoshan is characterized by (1) hypogene violarite-pyrite 1-millerite-chalcopyrite and (2) supergene violarite-(polydymite)-pyrite 2-chalcopyrite assemblages. The platinum-group minerals are small (0.5–10 μm diameter) and include moncheite Pt(Te,Bi)2, mertieite-I Pd11(Sb,As)4, the atokite Pd3Sn – rustenburgite Pt3Sn solid solution, irarsite IrAsS, and sperrylite PtAs2 hosted mainly by violarite, silicates (primarily serpentine), and millerite. The platinum-group minerals occur in two sulfide assemblages: (1) mertieite-I-dominant (with irarsite, palladium, and Pd-alloy) in the hypogene assemblage and (2) moncheite-dominant (with irarsite, sperrylite, and atokite) in the supergene assemblage. Palladium and intermediate platinum-group elements (Os, Ir, Ru) are concentrated mainly in violarite, polydymite, and pyrite 2. Platinum is seldom hosted by base metal sulfides and occurs mainly as discrete platinum-group minerals, such as moncheite, sperrylite, and merenskyite. Violarite and polydymite in the Jinbaoshan deposit contain more Pb-Ag than pentlandite and pyrrhotite in the Great Dyke and Lac des Iles deposit. The formation of the sulfide assemblages in Jinbaoshan can be interpreted to have occurred in three stages: (1) a magmatic Fe-Ni-Cu sulfide melt crystallized Fe-Ni monosulfide and Cu-rich intermediate solid solutions, which inverted to a primary pyrrhotite-pentlandite-chalcopyrite-magnetite assemblage; (2) an early-secondary hypogene voilarite-millterite-pyrite 1-chalcopyrite assemblage formed by interaction with a lower-temperature magmatic-hydrothermal deuteric fluid; and (3) a late-secondary supergene violarite-polydymite-pyrite 2-chalcopyrite assemblage formed during weathering. Late-magmatic-hydrothermal fluids enriched the mineralization in Pb-Ag-Cd-Zn, which are incompatible in monosulfide solid solution, added Co-Pt into violarite, and expelled Pd to the margins of hypogene violarite and millerite, which caused Pd depletion in the hypogene violarite and the formation of mertieite-I. Supergene violarite inherited Pd and intermediate platinum-group elements from primary pentlandite. Thus, the unusual sulfide assemblages in the Jinbaoshan platinum-group element-(Cu)-(Ni) deposit results from multiple overprinted post-magmatic processes, but they did not significantly change the chalcophile element contents of the mineralization, which is interpreted to have formed at high magma:sulfide ratios (R factors) through interaction of crustally derived sulfide and a hybrid picritic-ferropicritic magma derived from subduction-metasomatized pyroxenitic mantle during impingement of the Emeishan plume on the Paleo-Tethyan oceanic subduction system.

Structural and chemical characterization of dienerite, Ni3As, and its revalidation as a mineral species

ABSTRACT Dienerite, ideally Ni3As, was discovered in 1919 near Radstadt (Salzburg, Austria) and its description and chemical characterization date back to the 1920s. The paucity of reliable experimental data, as well as the absence of any other documented occurrences of such a mineral in over 80 years, led to the supposition of a typographic error in the transcription of the original chemical analysis, suggesting the mineral might in fact be nickelskutterudite [(Ni,Co,Fe)As3]. As a consequence, the mineral was discredited and deleted in the post-2006 IMA list of valid mineral species. Nonetheless, several minerals having a metal/As ratio close to 3:1 and a description fitting that of dienerite were reported after its discreditation. Here we report the discovery of minute inclusions in a sample of josephinite from Josephine Creek (Oregon, USA) exhibiting high optical and electron reflectance. Structural and chemical investigations unequivocally showed that a mineral having cubic structure [a = 9.6206(9) Å, sp. gr. I3d; R1 = 0.0353] and ideal chemical formula Ni3As does exist, suggesting that dienerite could in fact be a valid species. The proposal to revalidate dienerite has been approved by the Commission on New Minerals, Nomenclature and Classification (IMA-Proposal 19-E). The neotype is deposited in the mineralogical collections of the Natural History Museum, University of Florence, Italy, under catalogue number 3364/I.

Redox-controlled chalcophile element geochemistry of the Polaris Alaskan-type mafic-ultramafic complex, British Columbia, Canada

ABSTRACT The Early Jurassic Polaris Alaskan-type intrusion in the Quesnel accreted arc terrane of the North American Cordillera is a zoned, mafic-ultramafic intrusive body that contains two main styles of magmatic mineralization of petrologic and potential economic significance: (1) chromitite-associated platinum group element (PGE) mineralization hosted by dunite (±wehrlite); and (2) sulfide-associated Cu-PGE-Au mineralization hosted by olivine (±magnetite) clinopyroxenite, hornblendite, and gabbro-diorite. Dunite-hosted PGE mineralization is spatially associated with thin discontinuous layers and schlieren of chromitite and chromitiferous dunite and is characterized by marked enrichments in iridium-subgroup PGE (IPGE) relative to palladium-subgroup PGE (PPGE). Discrete grains of platinum group minerals (PGM) are exceedingly rare, and the bulk of the PGE are inferred to reside in solid solution within chromite±olivine. The absence of Pt-Fe alloys in dunite of the Polaris intrusion is atypical, as Pt-enrichment of dunite-hosted chromitite is widely regarded as a characteristic feature of Alaskan-type intrusions. This discrepancy appears to be consistent with the strong positive dependence of Pt solubility on the oxidation state of sulfide-undersaturated magmas. Through comparison with experimentally determined PGE solubilities, we infer that the earliest (highest temperature) olivine-chromite cumulates of the Polaris intrusion crystallized from a strongly oxidized ultramafic parental magma with an estimated log f(O2) > FMQ+2. Parental magmas with oxygen fugacities more typical of volcanic arc settings [log f(O2) ∼ FMQ to ∼ FMQ+2] are, in turn, considered more favorable for co-precipitation of Pt-Fe alloys with olivine and chromite. More evolved clinopyroxene- and hornblende-rich cumulates of the Polaris intrusion contain low abundances of disseminated magmatic sulfides, consisting of pyrrhotite and chalcopyrite with minor pentlandite, pyrite, and rare bornite (≤12 wt.% total sulfides), which occur interstitially or as polyphase inclusions in silicates and oxides. The sulfide-bearing rocks are characterized by strong primitive mantle-normalized depletions in IPGE and enrichments in Cu-PPGE-Au, patterns that resemble those of other Alaskan-type intrusions and primitive arc lavas. The absolute abundances and sulfur-normalized whole-rock concentrations (Ci/S, serving as proxy for sulfide metal tenor) of chalcophile elements, including Cu/S, in sulfide-bearing rocks are highest in olivine clinopyroxenite. Sulfide saturation in the relatively evolved magmas of the Polaris intrusion, and Alaskan-type intrusions in general, appears to be intimately tied to the appearance of magnetite. Fractional crystallization of magnetite during the formation of olivine clinopyroxenite at Polaris resulted in reduction of the residual magma to log f(O2) ≤ FMQ+2, leading to segregation of an immiscible sulfide melt with high Cu/Fe and Cu/S, and high PGE and Au tenors. Continued fractionation resulted in sulfide melts that were progressively more depleted in precious and base chalcophile metals. The two styles of PGE mineralization in the Polaris Alaskan-type intrusion are interpreted to reflect the evolution of strongly oxidized, hydrous ultramafic parental magma(s) through intrinsic magmatic fractionation processes that potentially promote sulfide saturation in the absence of wallrock assimilation.