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SummaryMagnetite-apatite (MtAp) deposits have attracted considerable attention due to their complex genesis and economic importance. These deposits are rich in magnetite ore and can bear significant rare-earth elements, but their exact formation mechanisms remain controversial. This study aims to understand the formation processes of MtAp deposits by investigating the role of iron-rich magmatic liquids. Focusing on the El Laco deposit, northern Chile, we follow the hypothesis that iron-rich liquids separate from silicate magma through liquid immiscibility. Building on previous research, this study employs a three-phase one-dimensional (1D) mechanical model to simulate the separation and accumulation of immiscible iron-rich melts within increasingly crystalline magma. The model reproduces the previously suggested transition from isolated droplet settling to an interconnected drainage network and quantifies the relative efficiency of both modes of phase separation. Using scaling analysis, we define porous, mush, and suspension flow regimes and construct a regime diagram for three-phase flow. The results indicate that the separation efficiency of immiscible iron-rich melts is maximised in the mush flow regime at intermediate crystallinity. The model-derived accumulation rate of iron-rich melts can be used to estimate the time required to form magnetite deposits of a given scale. Our findings support the physical viability of the liquid immiscibility hypothesis for the genesis of MtAp deposits, offering new insights into the mechanical efficiency of melt separation and contributing to a broader understanding of the formation mechanisms of other valuable deposits that have been linked to immiscible melts.

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s):

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Jiliang Wang, Ang Li, Wei Zhang, Jin Sun, Jiecheng Zhang, Xueqing Zhou, Shiguo Wu

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Weijia Sun, Hrvoje Tkalčić, Marco G. Malusà, Ludmila Adam, Qingya Tang, Sheng Wang, Zhi Wei, Yongxin Pan

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Peter Methley, Clancy Z. Jiang, Justin V. Strauss, Nicholas J. Tosca

Publication date: Available online 26 August 2025

Source: Advances in Space Research

Author(s): Yuca C. Chen, Zachary M. Dorris, Eun-Suk Seo, Vladimir S. Ptuskin

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): N.G. Pasqualon, A.J. Pietruszka, V.A. Finlayson, V.D. Wanless, A. Balbas, M.J. Cunningham, J.G. Konter

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Lorenzo Petracchini, Stefano Tavani, Marco Brandano, Eugenio Carminati, Claudio Chiarabba, Alessia Conti, Roberto Devoti, Paolo Galli, Mimmo Palano, Giuseppe Pezzo, Laura Scognamiglio, Elisa Tinti, Andrea Billi

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Meredith A. Calogero, Francis Nimmo, Remco C. Hin

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Shaun Lovejoy, Andrej Spiridonov, Rhisiart Davies, Raphael Hebert, Fabrice Lambert

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Kana Amano, Jean-Christophe Viennet, Pierre Beck, François Guyot, Sergey Yaroslavtsev, Dimitrios Bessas, Aleksandr Chumakov, Ludovic Delbes, Olivier Poch, Mathieu Roskosz

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Jonas M. Schneider, Thorsten Kleine

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Shuyang Sun, Yanick Ricard, Stéphanie Durand, Eric Debayle

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Zhenyu Xu, Yazhou Yang, Longlong Zhang, Shuai Li, Hongwei Li, Panpan Zhang, Mengyuan Zhang, Haolin Yin, Mengze Tao, Zichen Wei, Hao Zhang, Lianghai Xie, Minge Liu, Yingqi Ma, Yongliao Zou, Yang Liu, Jianwei Han

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Peng Dong, Xing Li, Kaiwen Xia, Jianbing Peng

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Liang Xue, Robert Moucha, Christopher A. Scholz, John Naliboff

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Yinlin Ji, Supeng Zhang, Hannes Hofmann, In-Wook Yeo, Shemin Ge, Günter Zimmermann, Shouding Li

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Haotian Zhang, Yan Chen, James G. Ogg, Zhiming Sun, Paul B. Wignall, Meng Wang, Haoxun Zhang, Xiaoyu Zhang, Yang Zhang, Keke Huang, Hongliang Lu, Baochun Huang, Mingsong Li

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): S.E. Guvercin, S. Barbot, L. Zhang, Z. Yang, J. Platt, C. Seyler, N. Phillips

Publication date: 1 November 2025

Source: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Volume 669

Author(s): Sebastián Núñez-Jara, Patricia Martínez-Garzón, Grzegorz Kwiatek, Yehuda Ben-Zion, Georg Dresen, Dirk Becker, Fabrice Cotton, Marco Bohnhoff