Yellowstone Lake hydrothermal vent systems have been studied using ROV assets to better understand the chemical and mineralogical evolution of the sublacustrine sediments through which the hot spring fluids discharge to the lake floor. Here we focus on the deposits/alteration and coexisting vent fluid chemistry associated with the Deep Hole on the lake floor, east of Stevenson Island. Remote in its location, at 120 m below the lake surface, this region in the northeast portion of Yellowstone Lake is associated with numerous hydrothermal vents and hot springs, providing evidence of high-temperature fluid-mineral interaction and phase separation phenomena. Vapor-dominated hydrothermal fluids issuing from Deep Hole vents attain temperatures in excess of 150 °C and are enriched in magmatically derived H₂S and CO₂. Upon mixing with lake water in the root zone of the hydrothermally active vents, the dissolved gases render the mixed fluid, both acidic and reducing, effectively transforming diatomaceous sediment, with detritally sourced Al and Fe components, to an alteration assemblage dominated by kaolinite, pyrite, and lesser boehmite. These alteration processes have been modeled by computer based simulations, coupling fluid flow and mineral dissolution kinetics, to provide insight on the temporal evolution of the vent system. Results predict rapid dissolution of amorphous silica. The magnitude and rate of silica loss, facilitated by the continuous influx of acidic source fluids, yields an increasingly silica poor alteration mineral sequence with time, characterized by quartz, followed by kaolinite and ultimately boehmite. These data are consistent with the observed decrease in SiO₂/Al₂O₃ ratio of the vent deposits with increasing abundance of trace immobile elements, suggesting significant mass loss with reaction progress. Pyrite is predicted to form from sulfidation of magnetite, with noteworthy decrease in magnetic intensity, as measured for hydrothermally altered sediment in the near-field vent environment. Moreover, hydrogen isotope compositional data for kaolinite, together with δD vent fluid data, suggest temperatures in keeping with the high temperatures measured for the vent deposits and discharging fluid, while supporting the potential use of kaolinite as a geothermometer. The predicted and observed transformation of silica-rich protolith to kaolinite, boehmite, and pyrite underscores the large scale dissolution and removal of silica, with possible implications for the temporal evolution of vent deposits on the lake floor in the Stevenson Island Deep-Hole region.

利用ROV资产对黄石湖热液喷口系统进行了研究，以更好地了解湖底沉积物的化学和矿物学演化，温泉流体通过这些沉积物向湖底排放。在这里，我们重点研究与史蒂文森岛以东的湖底深孔有关的沉积物/蚀变和共存的放空流体化学。黄石湖东北部的这一区域偏远，位于湖面以下120 m，与众多的热液喷口和温泉有关，为高温的流体-矿物相互作用和相分离现象提供了证据。从深孔通风孔散发出来的以蒸汽为主的热液达到超过150°C的温度，并富含岩浆衍生的H ₂ S和CO_2个。在热液活动口的根部与湖泊水混合后，溶解的气体使混合流体呈酸性和还原性，有效地将硅藻土沉积物与铝和铁的成分转化成以高岭石，黄铁矿为主的蚀变组合，以及较小的勃姆石。这些变化过程已通过基于计算机的模拟进行建模，将流体流动和矿物溶解动力学耦合在一起，以提供通风系统随时间变化的见解。结果预测了无定形二氧化硅的快速溶解。酸性源流体的不断涌入促进了二氧化硅损失的幅度和速度，导致随着时间的推移，二氧化硅的蚀变矿物序列越来越贫乏，其特征是石英，其次是高岭石，最后是勃姆石。₂ /铝₂ O ₃排气沉积物的比例随痕量固定元素的丰度增加而增加，表明随着反应的进行，质量损失显着。硫铁矿预计将由磁铁矿的硫化形成，磁强度显着降低，这是在近场通风环境中对水热蚀变沉积物进行测量得出的。此外，高岭石的氢同位素组成数据以及δD排放流体数据表明，温度与排放沉积物和排放流体测得的高温保持一致，同时支持了将高岭石用作地热仪的潜在用途。预测和观察到的富含二氧化硅的原生石向高岭石，勃姆石和黄铁矿的转化强调了二氧化硅的大规模溶解和去除，