9/29/2007

ORE MINERALS EXPLORATION

Mainly water
Always brines dissolved salts :
NaCl, KCl, CaSO4, CaCl2

Salinity ranges from + 3.5 wt% to 10x

salinity of seawater

Such brines capable

to dissolve : Au,, Ag,
p
g,
Cu, Pb, Zn

High temperatures increase the

effectiveness of brines to dissolve metals
Handout - 5

@ Rosana, MF 2007

@MFR2007

Moves upwards of hydrothermal solution

Magmatic

Cool & dissolved minerals precipitate

Continuous over large period of time

Ground water

Convection cell is required to maintain constant

precipitation

Seawater

Upward movement slow precipitation over wide area, may not form an
ore body

Meteoric water

Rapid movement rapid cooling & precipitation over limited area, form
an ore body

Regional
metamorphism
@MFR2007

@MFR2007

Boiling, rapid pressure decrease, reaction with wall rock, mix with
seawater rapid precipitation and concentration, may form an ore
deposit
3

@MFR2007

9/29/2007

Imperial Valley,
southern
California

In 1962, oil drilling struck a 350oC brine at 1.5 km depth

As brine flowed upward and cooled, deposited siliceous
Over 3 months, + 8 tons precipitated contain 20 wt% Cu
and 8 wt % Ag

Red Sea

In 1964, oceanographers discovered a series of hot,

dense brines at the bottom of Red Sea
The sediments at the bottom, contain ore minerals as
chalcopyrite, sphalerite and galena
Red Sea is a stratabound mineral deposit is the making

East Pacific Rise

In 1978, deep-sea submarines, at 21oN, found 300oC hot

spring along oceanic ridge, 2500 m bsl
Precipitated a blanket of sulphide minerals around the
vents
This analogue of VMS deposit
@MFR2007

@MFR2007

Epithermal
deposits

Skarn
deposits

Volcanogenic
Massive
S l hid
Sulphide
(VMS)
deposits

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

Porphyry
deposits

@MFR2007

9/29/2007

Intrusionrelated:intermediatetofelsic
igneousrocktypes;hypabyssal,usually
p p yy
pophyrytic

Miningofperipheralpreciousmetal
depositsledtodiscoveryofporphyries

Largetonnage(minimum20Mtat0.1%
copper)

Porphyrieswerenotimportantuntil
engineeringadvancesallowedbulk
mining

Lowgrade

Suchlowgradedepositswerenot
profitableuntilfrothflotationwas
developed

Includesomeorallof:copper(Cu),
l d
ll f
( )
molybdenum(Mo),gold(Au),silver(Ag)

Earlydepositsminedwereall
supergeneenrichedores
9

@MFR2007

Au
only

10

@MFR2007

y Copperreserves
C

CuMo-Ag

y Goldreserves

Mo +/- CuW
Au-Ag
Au
Ag

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

11

@MFR2007

12

9/29/2007

Generalkindsofgranites igneousderivedvs.

Relativelyshallowemplacement twotofour

sedimentaryderivedmagmas
y
g
Importanceofoxidationstate(roughlyequivalentto
oxygencontentofmagma)

Compositionrangesfromgranodiorite toquartz

kilometers
monzonite
Mineralizationgenerallyfollowsseveralpulsesof
magmatism
Acompanying oxidationcapleachedofsulphides with

secondaryenrichmentMany
y
y depositsareassociatedwith
p
convergentplateboundariesandareasofandesitic
volcanism,formingalongthedestructiveplatemargins
andabovethesubduction zones;afewformatcontinent
continentcollisionzonesorinislandarcregimes
@MFR2007

13

Withintheframeworkofthevolcanicislandarc,

Inthesimplestcase,zonesfromshellsoutwardfrom

comefromawayorallochtothonous
y
terranes and
CircumPacificMesozoictoCenozoicdeposits
Orogenic beltsandcontinetal margins
Postamalgamation(construction)depositsarelinked
toacontinentalarcandtheintrusionareinvaried
hostrocks

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

14

@MFR2007

theassociatedintrusion
Inmanydepositsmultipleoverprintingeventsare

recorded
Youngereventsoverprintandmaydestroyoldergeologic

features
Alterationassemblagesareinfluencedbythe

compositionoftherockbeingaltered

15

@MFR2007

16

9/29/2007

Propylitic
fringe zone
silicic core
zone
Potassic inner
zone

Phyllic middle
zone

Argillic variois
zones
17

@MFR2007

Siliceous

Potassic

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

Quartz flooding replacement and quartz

veins;
May alter all rock components

18

@MFR2007

Propylitic

Generally fringes other alteration; quartz and potassic

feldspar are stable
Mineralogy: plagioclase replaced by albite, epidote,
montmorillonite, and carbonate, mafic minerals (hornblende
and biotite mainly) replaced by chlorite and epidote
(sometimes actinolite or tremolite)
Ass min : apatite, hm, anh, ankerite. Ore min :< py, cpy

Phyllic

Intermediate conditions
Mineralogy: quartz, sericite, pyrite (generally)
Ass min : chl, ill, rutile. Ore min : cpy (< 0.5 vol %), py (~ 10%)
as veinlet and diss grains

Near-magmatic conditions, all rock

components may alter
Key minerals orthoclase-biotite,
orthoclase biotite or
orthoclase-chlorite or orthoclase-biotitechlorite and quartz, intermediate plagioclase
Ass min : sericite, anhydrite, apatite. Ore min
: mg, cpy, bn, py (high temp alt)

Argillic
19

@MFR2007

Variablw intensity
Mineralogy: quartz, kaolinite (lesser montmorillonite), chlorite
Adv argillic : (>>kao, diaspore, qtz ~amorph, andalusite,
corundum). Ore min : py (dom), cpy and bn.

20

9/29/2007

Generally, siliceous, potassic and prophylitic, phyllic

than
th argillic
illi

How: Dioritic to granitic intrusions cool just

beneath volcanoes (and hence are associated
with porphyritic rocks).
rocks)
The Cu (?Au) is concentrated in the water within
the crystallizing magma. During the final stages
of crystallization, the water can explosively boil
(because the pressure is released), which
fractures the intrusion and surrounding rock,
depositing the Pyrite and Cu Sulphides
(Chalcopyrite) in veins and fractures.
fractures
The fluids can also react with limestone,
precipitating massive Pyrite and Chalcopyrite
skarn deposits

But the order often varies and the cycle may repeat

These are dynamic, evolving systems

21

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

Occur as
veins, coating
fractures and
disseminated

Often with
associated
gangue
minerals: qtz,
ca, ser, chl,
etc

Totally within
the host
intrusion

Partially in the
stock and
partially in the
host rock

Sulphides :
Chalcopyrite (CuFeS2)
Bornite (Cu5FeS4)
Molybdenite (MoS2)
Pyrite (FeS2)

23

22

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

Oxides :
Hematite (Fe2O3)
Magnetite (Fe3O4)
Chalcocite
Malachite
Azurite
Chrysocolla
Ferrimolybdenite

24

9/29/2007

Low g
grade core

May be
dissolved in the
magma or
moved in fluids,
for example in a
chloride brine

Bornite > chalcopyrite zone +/- molybdenite

Chalcopyrite > bornite zone
Chalcopyrite + pyrite zone

Intrusions
ffrom zones off
melting or
scavenged
during
emplacement

Pyrite dominant fringe

Exterior base and precious metal deposit

Country rock
leached,
transported, redeposited

25

@MFR2007

Cooling of the
host fluid
Pressure
changes such
as could be
caused by
venting to the
surface

Chemical
reactions with
the wall rock
@MFR2007

@MFR2007

26

@MFR2007

Ass with emplacement and cooling of

melt
(i) Fase heat transfer and zoned alteration
(ii) Fase exsolution of magmatic fluids

Dilution of the
host fluid

Late stage cooling & metal deposition

Boiling of the
host fluid
27

@MFR2007

Post mineral phyllic, argillic,

advanced argillic overprint

28

9/29/2007

Paragenetic sequence in porphyry Cu-Au systems

Retrogradesequence

Prograde sequence

@MFR2007

29

30

@MFR2007

Cu-Mo : quartz bearing ; granodiorite, granite

Composite
(clusters of
coeval
intrusions)

Porphyritic

Quartz
monzonite to

High
Hi h silica,
ili
alkali-rich (Na
and K)
granite

Cu-Au : quartz-free : diorite, monzonite, syenite

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

31

@MFR2007

32

9/29/2007

Common
gangue
minerals

Metallic
minerals

Country rock generally altered to biotite hornfels

Mineralization fracture-controlled,
fracture-controlled breccias

common
Multiple episodes of mineralization
Generally early barren veins, MoS2-bearing
veins, then late weakly mineralization to barren
veins

Molybdenite
MoS2

Quartz

Pyrite FeS2

Flourite

Marginal or
peripheral
tungsten, tin,
copper, lead and
zinc

33

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

Alteration
adjacent to
veins

Alteration in
the granitic
host rocks

Potassic

Calcite

Phyllic

Zeolite

Albitic

Chalcedony
(silica)

Argillic

Clay
35

34

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

Gold

Bismuth

Tellurium

Arsenic

36

9/29/2007

Dykes and granitic rocks with

p
p y
porphyritic
textures
Detailed knowledge of their tectonic setting, geology,
alteration patterns, and geochemistry

Breccia zones with angular or locally

rounded fragments; look for
sulphides between fragments or in
fragments

Sophisticated genetic models incorporating these

features will be used to design and control future
exploration program

Epidote and chlorite alteration

37

@MFR2007

38

@MFR2007

Grasberg Mine

Grasberg, Iran Jaya

2.5 Bt @1.1%Cu; 1.1 g/t Au

Quartz and sericite alteration

Secondary biotite alteration especially if partly

bleached and altered
Fractures coated by sulphides, or quartz veins with
sulphides. To make ore, fractures must be closely
spaced; generally grades are better where there are
several orientations (directions)
Geochemical soil or stream silt sampling, copper is
the best pathfinder element
40
@MFR2007

@MFR2007

39

@MFR2007

10

9/29/2007

@MFR2007

41

@MFR2007

42

Batu Hijau, Sumbawa

1.5 Bt @ .45%Cu; 0.31 g/t Au

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

43

@MFR2007

44

11

9/29/2007

Tonalite ~ Diorite of Tertiary age

JA6 (Bench 330)

A family
vein
D vein

Bornite-Digenite
dominant

Bornite & Chalcopyrite

Chalcopyrite
dominant &
trace of Pyrite

45

@MFR2007

A veins in Potassic
A-veins

75 micron

1 cm

46

@MFR2007

400 mRL

B veins in Potassic
B-veins

200 mRL

0 mRL

Ultimate Pit

Cu-sulphides + Au veinlets
and disseminations

D-veins in Ch overprint

-200
200 mRL

-400 mRL

Au-Cu ore
@MFR2007

@MFR2007

250
Meters

Ty with clasts, no A-B veins

Cu-Au veinlets

47

@MFR2007

Au >= 1.0 g/t

Au >= 0.5 < 1.0 g/t

Au >= 0.2 < 0.5 g/t

Weathered Zone

48

12

9/29/2007

To be continue
contin e

@MFR2007

@MFR2007

49

13