Russian Geology and Geophysics 52 (2011) 193207 www.elsevier.

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Formation conditions of placers in the TapsaKaakhem gold zone (Tuva) and their relation to primary sources
S.G. Prudnikov a,*, N.B. Kononenko b, L.I. Petrova a
a

Tuva Institute for Exploration of Natural Resources, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, ul. Internatsionalnaya 117a, Kyzyl, 667007, Russia b Krasnoyarskgeolsemka JSC, ul. Berezina 3a, Krasnoyarsk, 660020, Russia Received 22 May 2009; accepted 16 November 2009

Abstract The formation conditions of placers within the TapsaKaakhem gold zone (Tuva) have been determined, and the relation between primary and placer gold deposits has been studied. Polycyclicity in the valleys of the region resulted in the formation of gold placers of various morphologies with stratified producing reefs in loose sediments differing in composition and age: OligoceneLower Pliocene, Eopleistocene Lower Pleistocene, Middle Pleistocene, and Upper Pleistocene. A complex relation between placers and their primary sources has been established. In general, the macrocomposition of gold in the producing reefs of different ages reflects the composition of gold from the primary sources. From older to younger producing reefs, gold fineness varies more widely, showing a trend toward smaller values. This suggests that undiscovered primary sources belonging to another association exist in the source area. The same is confirmed by a drastic change in the typomorphic features, grain size, and roundedness of gold in the longitudinal section of the Bai-Syut River valley. The peculiarities of gold from placers formed by the rewashing of glacial drift have been established. In the Kopto placer, nuggets are widespread (10 mm), which fully retained the shape inherent to vein gold. Apparently, the nuggets were transported to the placer with glacial drift in quartz gravel, which protected them from rounding. Quartz crumbled completely, and gold became free in situ under frost action. The presence of nuggets in the Kopto placer permits predicting a cluster distribution of gold in the known thin quartz veins. 2011, V.S. Sobolev IGM, Siberian Branch of the RAS. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: gold; placers; typomorphic features; nuggets; Tuva

Introduction Commercial gold placers have been known in Tuva since 1848. As a result of intense mining of alluvial placers, the major deposits in the region are almost worked out, the primary sources of placers being in most cases unknown. In recent years, new and poorly known morphogenetic types of placers have been discovered in some gold zones (ancient weathering crust, buried Neogene drainage network, gold-bearing glacial drift and outwash). All this leads us to reassess the gold potential of Tuva in light of the present-day knowledge. The typomorphism of the composition, grain size, and shape of native gold reflects the type of the primary source of placers and is of great help in predicting and prospecting for primary gold sources and new types of placers (Nesterenko, 1991). The TapsaKaakhem zone of primary and placer gold deposits compares favorably with the other districts of

Tuva and is key to solving this problem for the entire region. This is because it hosts the largest number of known gold occurrences belonging to different associations and associated placers of widely varying ages. The authors determined the formation conditions of placers in the TapsaKaakhem gold zone (Tuva), studied the relationship between primary and placer gold deposits in the region, and traced the variation in the typomorphic features of gold in the primary sourceplacer system at different stages of placer development.

Geological structure of the region The TapsaKaakhem zone of primary and placer gold deposits spans the Kaakhem deep fault and the BurenOndum geanticline south of it (Fig. 1). The zone contains many primary and placer gold occurrences (Kilchichakov and Tokunov, 1971; Zaikov et al., 1981). The Kaakhem deep fault coincides with a same-named shear zone, which is an important gold-bearing structure (Rogov et al., 1979). It stretches in a near-EW direction as

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: prudnikov_s@inbox.ru (S.G. Prudnikov)

1068-7971/$ - see front matter D 201 1 , V . S. Sabolev IGM, Siberian Branch of the RAS. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.rgg.2010.12.013

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an elongated trench 1525 km wide and ~150 km long. It consists of Late Riphean terrigenous rocks and to a lesser extent, of the Tapsa Formation of volcanic rocks metamorphosed to greenschists and intruded by the Tannuola complex (Kaakhem pluton). Both the volcanosedimentary and plutonic rocks in the fault zone show extensive foliation and cleavage. Goldquartz mineralization is widespread and of fairly diverse morphology: single quartz veins, streaks, stockworks, or quartz reefs. Less widespread are gold-bearing beresites, which occur predominantly within intrusions, especially near their endocontacts, as well as goldlistwanite and chromitePGE occurrences, which are associated with ultramafic rocks in the Kaakhem ophiolite belt. In the center of the fault zone, the TapsaKopto gold zone is located. It unites the gold placers of the Kopto and Tapsa Rivers and their tributaries, the Proezdnoe gold deposit and some gold occurrences in an area of ~50 km2. Nearly all of them are located inside the Kopto granitoid intrusion (Kaakhem pluton). The BurenOndum structuralfacies block zone lies south of the Kaakhem deep fault. It is a field of Late RipheanLower Cambrian volcanosedimentary and carbonate rocks intruded by the granitoids of the Tannuola complex (KoptoBai-Syut pluton). The Bai-Syut gold zone is located here, with many gold occurrences and goldsulfideskarn deposits, confined to the contact between a granodiorite intrusion and effusivecarbonate rocks (Tardan deposit; Soruglug-Khem, Kopto, and Barsuche ore occurrences). Commercial gold accumulations are found in zones of crush and hydrothermal reworking of skarns. The orebodies in this district are of lenticular, veinlike, or nestlike shape. Structurally, they are divided into three groups: lenticular bodies in tectonic zones at gabbroidlimestone exocontacts; veinlike bodies confined to deformations at the contact between limestones and effusive rocks a short (hundreds of meters) distance from the intrusion; lenticular bodies in crush zones among limestones. Ruptures play a great role in the distribution of gold occurrences: gold-bearing quartz veins and beresites as well as crushed veins and foliated zones (Tardan-2 ore occurrence) are associated with them (Zaikov et al., 1981). Placers are known near the Bai-Syut and Soruglug-Khem rivers and their tributaries in the Bai-Syut district.

Evolution of the placers in the region The placer formation in the study region is closely related to the general conditions surrounding the structure and topography development in the NeogeneQuaternary. The

studies conducted by S.G. Prudnikov (Kalinin et al., 2006) permitted distinguishing two major epochs of placer formation: Neogene and Quaternary. They are separated by the Upper Pliocene stage of relative tectonic quiescence fostering the formation of planation surfaces, the development of chemical-weathering crusts, and the trenching of river valleys which began incising before. The placer-formation epochs, marked by differentiated discontinuous neotectonic translation, are divided into the following erosionaccumulation stages: OligoceneLower Pliocene (N1 2), EopleistoceneLower Pleistocene (QEI), Middle Pleistocene (QII), Upper Pleistocene (Q1 III), and Upper PleistoceneHolocene (QIIIH) (Fig. 2). Polycyclicity in the valleys of the region resulted in the formation of gold placers of various morphologies with stratified producing reefs in loose sediments differing in composition and age (Prudnikov and Mikhailov, 2002). The vast majority of placers are of the floodplain-valley type, and placers of the terrace, terraceridge, and ravine types are significantly fewer. Placers belonging to a buried Neogene drainage network have been found in recent years in the Bai-Syut River basin, and we associate the potential of gold mining in Tuva with exactly these placers. In the OligoceneLower Pliocene (N1 2), when the primary sources just begin opening, so-called ancient Neogene topography forms. It comprises the planation surface (peneplain) with the enclosed ancient Neogene valleys of the Bai-Syut, Kopto, and Tapsa Rivers and their major tributaries. The valleys of ancient rivers had a steep V-shaped cross-section, with downcutting to a depth of 250 m. In the present-day topography, they are preserved as fragments buried under alluvium at the bottom of the local Kopto and Tapsa basins at a depth of over 30 m or on the sides and at the bottom of the Bai-Syut and Soruglug-Khem River valleys. Wash consists of boulders and pebbles cemented by red-brown clay (aN1 2). The elevated clay content and red color of the sediments are probably due to the redeposition of chemical-weathering crusts in the lower part of the valley sides, which may have taken place during the early sedimentation. This stage is marked by the formation of low-grade primary placers, owing to the nearby redeposition of gold-bearing weathering crusts and the upper reefs of primary sources. The EopleistoceneLower PleistoceneMiddle Pleistocene stage (QEIQII) is related to the main stage of recent tectonics. Differentiated block movements result in the crushing of the ancient Neogene topography into small blocks and its radical reworking, the scouring of Neogene valleys, and the formation of the present-day drainage network. This

Fig. 1. Geological structure of the center of the TapsaKaakhem zone of primary and placer gold deposits. 1, overbank alluvium (aIII-H); 2, talus and proluvium (dpIII-H); 3, glacial drift (gIII2) (a), outwash (fgIII2) (b); 4, zone of the second Middle Pleistocene glaciation (gII4) and the direction of this glaciation; 5, Devonian deposits, Kyzylbulak Group (D1-2kz): porphyries, plagioporphyries, felsites, lava breccia, porphyrites; 6, Silurian deposits, Derzig Formation (S1-2dr): red sandstones, 2-3tn): tonalites (), diorites (); 8, Late Riphean gravelstones, and conglomerates interbedded with limestones; 7, Tannuola gabbro-dioriteplagiogranite complex (C deposits, Tapsa Formation (R3tp): sandstones, tuffaceous sandstones and gravelstones, siltstones, conglomerates, mafic granulites, amphibolechlorite schists, limestones; 9, Riphean deposits, Tumat-Taiga Formation, Middle Subformation (R3tm2): basaltic and andesitic porphyrites interbedded with limestones; 10, skarns; 11, gold occurrences; 12, deposits; 13, placers; 14, faults; 15, nugget sampling site; 16, section lines, drillholes, their numbers; 17, intrusions: I, Kopto; II, KoptoBaiSyut; 18, gold zones: TK, TapsaKopto; B, Bai-Syut.

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mary sources with the most exposed producing reef and from the scoured placers of all the previous epochs. During the 2 ), which followed the warm Kuekhtanar Chibit glaciation (gQIII interglacial in the early Upper Pleistocene, moraine forms in the Kopto and Tapsa River basins as a result of mountain-valley glaciation. The Upper PleistoceneHolocene activation (QIIIH) was slight and resulted in the disseminated gold mineralization of the overbank deposits. Typomorphism of native gold and relations between the placers and their primary sources The present primary sources of gold in the TapsaKaakhem zone of primary and placer gold deposits (Tuva) belong to the goldsulfideskarn, goldsulfide, and goldquartz types (Table 1). Goldlistwanite and chromitePGE sources are less widespread. Goldsulfideskarn mineralization is located predominantly within the Bai-Syut gold zone, at the Tardan deposit and the Tardan-2, Soruglug-Khem, and other ore occurrences. The Tardan deposit and the Soruglug-Khem ore occurrence are structurally and compositionally identical and differ only in the characteristics and content of gold. They are the main sources of gold for placer formation in the Soruglug-Khem Creek valley and in the middle reaches of the Bai-Syut River. Here, gold permanently contains Cu (0.0280.727 wt.%) and is unaffected by high-grade supergene alteration. Its fineness varies slightly (900950), averaging 914 (Fig. 3). Goldsulfide mineralization is observed mainly in crush zones located among chloritized and carbonatized skarns and magnetiteactinolitechlorite metasomatites. Goldquartz mineralization within the granodiorite intrusion predominates in the TapsaKopto gold zone (Proezdnoe deposit), but is not so widespread in the Bai-Syut area (Tardan-2 ore occurrence). The relation between placers and their primary sources was studied in the Soruglug-Khem and Bai-Syut areas. The stratified producing reefs of the placers are located in elements of the ancient Neogene drainage network, at second bottoms of different ages, and especially in the floodplain part of valleys. This permitted tracing how the typomorphic features of gold changed in the primary sourceplacer system at different stages of the placer development in the Oligocene Lower Pliocene (N1 2), EopleistoceneLower Pleistocene (QEI),
1 Middle Pleistocene (QII), and Upper Pleistocene (QIII ).

Fig. 2. Cross-section of the Bai-Syut River valley. 1, silt; 2, clay; 3, sand; 4, blocks, rubble; 5, boulders; 6, pebble gravel, gravel; 7, red clays; 8, yellow pebble gravel; 9, bedrock; 10, placers. Alluvium during tectonic and geomor1 phological activation: Holocene (aQH), Upper Pleistocene (aQIII ), Middle Pleistocene (aQII), EopleistoceneLower Pleistocene (aQE-I), and Lower Pliocene (aN1 2). Upper Pleistocene talusproluvial, proluvial, and taluseolian deposits 2 (dp, p, dvQIII ). Middle Pleistocene talus and solifluction deposits (dsQII).

time was marked by the opening of the vast majority of orebodies and the formation of placers associated with EopleistoceneLower Pleistocene (aQEI) and Middle Pleistocene (aQII) alluvium. Now this alluvium forms, respectively, second and alluvial erosion terraces on the block uplifts. It consists of boulders, gravel, and pebbles cemented by red-brown and green-brown clay. Zones with different gold content in the placers are directly related to the scouring of the ancient gold-bearing valley at this stage: the gold reserves are scarce where the ancient valley is preserved and become ampler (and reach a maximum) where it is scoured. In the late Middle Pleistocene, the most extensive (Chuya, gQ4 II) glaciation began in the AltaiSayan region, which played an important role in the placer formation. Since the Bai-Syut area lies beyond the zone of glaciation, the influence of glaciation was indirect: under severe periglacial conditions, extensive soil flow took place in the region with the formation of talussolifluction loam and rubble. On the contrary, the TapsaKopto area lies in the zone of glaciation, and this process directly influenced the placer formation. As a result of neotectonic activation in the MiddleUpper Pleistocene, downcutting continues along with the formation of the floodplain part of the valleys, infilled with alluvium in 1 ). Alluvium at this the first half of the Upper Pleistocene (aQIII stage formed during the warm interglacial (Kuekhtanar), marked by intense fluvial activity, and consists of well washed, rounded, and sorted gray-green sand, gravel, and pebbles. This stage was marked by the formation of the most productive floodplain-valley placers supplied both from pri-

Typomorphism of gold from the Soruglug-Khem placer The Soruglug-Khem Creek, the right tributary of the Bai-Syut River, is 5 km long, with a narrow floodplain (up to 80 m). Fragments of the alluvial and second rock-defended terraces are preserved in the right valley side, and a fragment of the ancient Neogene drainage network is buried under a talusproluvial fan over 30 m thick. The placer belongs to the floodplain-valley, terrace, and terraceridge types. It was

S.G. Prudnikov et al. / Russian Geology and Geophysics 52 (2011) 193207 Table 1. Variations in the composition of gold from hypogene ores Ore association Gold fineness, Trace elements, wt.% Morphology of gold grains

197

Deposit, ore occurrence Tardan

Half-oxidized gold-sulfide-skarn ores Gold-quartz ores in skarns Gold-quartz ores in granitoids Gold-sulfide ores

900950, average 914

Cu 0.0280.727

Sliced, lumpy, dendritic, rarely euhedral crystals (cubes, octahedra, rhombic dodecahedra), sometimes elongated prismatic crystals Massive, tabular, dendritic, transitional from tabular to lumpy and lumpy-elongated, often with a spongy surface. Occasional spongy, ameboid, and rodlike grains Single-crystal, tabular, lumpy-tabular Sliced, lumpy, dendritic, rarely euhedral crystals (cubes, octahedra, rhombic dodecahedra), sometimes elongated prismatic crystals Irregular single crystals, their intergrowths; less often, tabular, dendritic, spongy, and lumpy grains, sometimes very fine shotty and tear-shaped grains

Mostly 810910

Tardan

880900 In magnetite 940960 or (rarely) higher; in actinolite 960 and higher

Tardan-2 Tardan

Gold-beresite and 880900 gold-listwanite ores Gold-bearing gabbro 876 Gold-quartz ores in granitoids 830860, seldom 760770

Cu 0.007, Pb 0.003

Proezdnoe

formed by the destruction of a same-named ore occurrence, which is directly connected to it in the upper part of the valley and partly owing to the destruction of the gold-bearing ancient Neogene valley (Fig. 1). The grain-size composition of gold from the placer was studied by sieve analysis. The grain-size composition of native gold from the Soruglug-Khem placer is the following (Table 2). Fine gold particles less than 0.25 mm (62%) and 0.500.25 mm (33%) in size predominate in goldsulfide ores within skarns at the Soruglug-Khem ore occurrence. In the Neogene residual placer, on the contrary, coarse gold over 1 mm (96%) in size predominates dramatically and its content decreases to 60% with decreasing age. Therefore, it is presumed that gold was sorted during the intense erosionaccumulation activity of a Neogene river, which gave rise to the producing reefs. Coarser gold accumulated near the primary source, and fine gold particles migrated from the SoruglugKhem Creek to the Bai-Syut River. The coarse-gold content

of the placer in the second terrace decreases sharply because the Neogene and Quaternary drainage networks are separated in plan. The coarse-gold content of the alluvial terrace increases again to 87%, because the Neogene placer is scoured, and decreases regularly to 60% in the floodplain-valley placer. The morphological types of gold are presented in Table 3. According to the table, irregular gold grains (lumpy, anhedral, and of other interstitial shapes) predominate dramatically in the placer, regardless of the stratigraphic datum. This reflects the morphology inherited from vein gold which fills fissures and interstices. The data obtained imply medium-depth mineralization occurring increasingly in fissures and streaks, which dominate over idiomorphic (wiry, rodlike) shapes, typical of shallow deposits (Petrovskaya, 1973). By roundedness, gold grains were divided into four groups: unrounded, subrounded, rounded, and well-rounded (Table 4). The ratio between these groups gives an insight into the stages

Fig. 3. Composition of native gold from the hypogene ores of the Tardan deposit. a, Gold fineness histogram; b, Cu and Ag content.

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Table 2. Grain-size composition of native gold (wt.%) in the section of the Soruglug-Khem placer Stratigraphic datum (age) of the placer Grain size, mm (wt.%) more than 1.0
1 ) Floodplain-valley (aQIII

1.00.5 32.5 9.7 29 3.4 3.84

0.50.25 5.7 3.1 5.1 0.7 33.03

less than 0.25 1.5 0.1 0.4 62.23

60.3 87.1 65.5 95.9 0.90

Alluvial-terrace (aQII) Second-terrace (aQE-I) Ancient residual (aN1 2)

Soruglug-Khem occurrence

Table 3. Morphology of gold from the Soruglug-Khem placer Stratigraphic datum (age) of the placer Grain morphology, % lumpy
1 ) Floodplain-valley (aQIII

tabular 19.2 22.9 28.5 20.9

crystalline 2.4 0.3

elongated 1.9 1.7 0.9

dendritic 5 5.7 2

73.4 69.5 37.5 78.2

Alluvial-terrace (aQII) Second-terrace (aQE-I) Ancient residual (aN1 2)

Table 4. Roundedness of gold from the Soruglug-Khem placer Stratigraphic datum (age) of the placer Roundedness, % well-rounded
1 ) Floodplain-valley (aQIII

rounded 19.2 14.3 17.3 20

subrounded 71.3 67.6 60.9 44.5

unrounded 9.5 18.1 21.8 35.5

Alluvial-terrace (aQII) Second-terrace (aQE-I) Ancient residual (aN1 2)

of placer formation (incipient, young, mature, dying, and reviving placers) (Filippov, 1987). In the Neogene residual placer, subrounded (44%) and unrounded (35%) gold predominates. In the floodplain-valley placer, the content of subrounded gold increases regularly to 71% with decreasing age. The content of rounded gold at different stratigraphic datums is 14 to 20%, and well-rounded gold is absent. The content of unrounded gold in the Neogene placer is 35% and decreases regularly to 9% in the floodplain-valley placer. This corresponds to mature placers in V.E. Filippovs classification (1987). The trace-element content of placer gold was studied on a scanning microscope. Out of 81 gold grains of the representative monomineralic fraction, 19% contain Cu, 6% are of heterogeneous composition, while 75% did not show a noticeable compositional zoning (heterogeneity). The quantitative macrocomposition of native gold was studied by X-ray microanalysis at the Analytical Center of the UIGGM (Novosibirsk) by analyst E.N. Nigmatulina. In the study region,

the major macroimpurities in native gold are Ag and Cu, with rare Hg. The content of these elements in gold determines its fineness. The data obtained are shown on gold-fineness histograms (Figs. 35). The fineness of native gold in samples from the reefs of different ages in the Soruglug-Khem placer changes in a different way from that of gold from goldsulfideskarn ores. Gold at the deposit is fine (900940) and affected by slight supergene alteration. In the Neogene residual placer, gold fineness varies more widely, with predominant medium fineness (712927). In the second and alluvial terraces, coarse gold predominates even more dramatically (679834). In the floodplain-valley placer, fineness varies still more widely (697914). Four types are distinguished: medium copper gold (765875), moderately fine gold (843925), medium gold (765835), and coarse gold (697727). Copper gold at the ore occurrence is associated with magnetite (intergrowths). Copper-free gold is associated with quartz and sulfides. These data suggest that the Soruglug-

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Typomorphism of gold from the Bai-Syut placer The Bai-Syut River valley lies at the margin of the Kyzyl basin at an elevation of 7601200 masl and hosts the longest (25 km) and most problematic placer in Tuva. Floodplain-valley and terrace placers have been mined here since 1910. In recent years the Tuva Geological Survey (Mikhailov and Prudnikov, 1998) has found fragments of the ancient Neogene placer in many ridges, and its mining has begun in Tuva. The main primary sources of the lower and middle parts of the placer are the Tardan goldsulfideskarn deposit and numerous ore occurrences. The primary source of the upper part of the placer is unknown. The variation in the typomorphic features of native gold in producing reefs of different ages and in the longitudinal section of the Bai-Syut placer was studied using data from sieve analyses in seven sections (R-175R-280) and eight drillholes (BL-310BL-350), obtained by the authors during prospecting in 19982000 (Prudnikov and Mikhailov, 2002). The age groups of gold differ substantially in fineness, macroimpurity composition, and other typomorphic features. Eluvial gold is moderately fine and shows a significantly wider variation in fineness (800970) than that from the Tardan deposit (900940) (Fig. 6). In general, the fineness of native gold in the samples from reefs located in the second and alluvial terraces is close to that of gold in the samples from the Neogene placer, but slightly coarser (770) (Fig. 7). Gold from the floodplain-valley reef located in the middle of the valley shows the widest fineness variation (600 1000). Coarse (600700) gold occurs among terrace gold of varying fineness. The variation in the fineness of gold from the lower part of the valley is slight and close to that at the Tardan deposit, with slightly predominant medium fineness (830930) (Fig. 8). The greatest supergene alteration of gold is observed in the Neogene and EopleistoceneLower Pleistocene reefs. It is

Fig. 4. Fineness histograms for gold from the Soruglug-Khem placer. a, Ancient Neogene placer (N1 2); b, second-terrace placer (QE-I); c, alluvial-terrace placer (QII).

Khem placer contains goldsulfideskarn and goldsulfide quartz mineralization. Apparently, the Soruglug-Khem placer has some other undiscovered primary sources. This is evidenced by the fact that gold fineness varies significantly more widely in the placer than in the known primary sources. Coarse gold predominates, like in underproductive ore associations and gold-bearing gabbroids.

1 Fig. 5. Composition of gold from the Soruglug-Khem floodplain-valley placer (QIII ). a, Gold fineness histogram (average 807); b, Cu and Ag content.

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Fig. 6. Composition of gold from the ancient Neogene Bai-Syut placer (N1 2). a, Gold fineness histogram; b, Cu and Ag content.

manifested in changing internal structure, recrystallization, and the formation of fine-gold rims of different thickness (Fig. 9). Apparently, the latter formed in the presence of an ancient Neogene chemical-weathering crust. Fine-rimmed gold is found in the Middle Pleistocene reef and almost absent from the Upper Pleistocene one. Gold in reefs of different ages contains Cu and correlates well with ores at the Tardan deposit. When the Cu content of native gold from the ores and placer was compared, the placer was found to be poorer in Cu. The low Cu content of gold from the ancient Neogene reef in the Bai-Syut placer is accounted for by the migration of gold at this stage from the upper parts of the orebodies, predominantly Cu-poor skarn sulfide ones. The grain-size composition of exogenic gold in the section of the Bai-Syut placer varies in the following way (Table 5): the specific content of gold less than 0.5 mm in size increases, and that of gold 1.00.5 mm and more in size decreases with

Fig. 7. Fineness histograms for gold from the Bai-Syut placer. a, Second-terrace placer, Sypuchii Ridge (QE-I); b, alluvial-terrace placer, mouth of the SoruglugKhem Creek (QII).

distance from the primary source (OligoceneLower Pliocene to Upper Pleistocene). The morphology of gold is determined from the shape and roundedness of grains (Tables 6, 7). Subrounded gold (82%) predominates in the floodplain-valley reef of the Bai-Syut placer, and unrounded gold accounts for up to 16%. Much unrounded gold occurs in the reefs of the second terrace and in the eluvial reef (22 and 17%, respectively). The content of rounded gold is high in the eluvial reef (25%) but decreases sharply to 2% in the floodplain one, probably because of incoming vein gold. In general, lumpy and tabular gold predominates dramatically in the Bai-Syut placer. The grain size, roundedness, and morphology of gold show an extremely nonuniform distribution in the longitudinal section of the floodplain-valley placer (Fig. 10). Three grainsize peaks are distinguished: (1) prospecting lines R-175R-240, with predominant fairly coarse (over 1 mm) gold. The primary source is a scoured ore field at the Tardan goldsulfideskarn deposit; (2) line R-280, with predominant fairly coarse (over 1 mm) gold. The primary source is unknown; (3) lines BL-342BL-350, with predominant coarse gold (2.01.0 mm). Occasional gold grains (53 mm) which appear in the upper part of the placer make up 35% by weight. The content of medium gold (1.00.5 mm) averages 10%. The primary source is unknown. By the roundedness and shape of grains, two segments are distinguished in the placer: (1) lower, lines R-175R-280, with dramatically predominant subrounded gold of a tabular, or more rarely, lumpy shape. Unrounded grains are rare. Apparently, the placer was formed by the rewashing of more ancient placers; (2) upper, lines BL-310BL-350, with predominant subrounded lumpy gold and a lot of unrounded gold. The latter predominates only along line BL-310 (56%), and its content varies from 18 to 31% higher up the valley. The placer may have formed by the destruction of ancient placers and incoming gold from reopened primary sources both in the upper segment and sides of the valley.

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1 Fig. 8. Fineness histograms for native gold from the Bai-Syut floodplain-valley placer (QIII ). a, Middle of the placer; b, lower part of the placer.

Fig. 9. Fine rim of gold from the Bai-Syut placer. a, b, c, Neogene; d, e, EopleistoceneLower Pleistocene.

Thus, there is a complex relation between the Bai-Syut and Soruglug-Khem placers and their primary sources. It is manifested in the fineness, macroimpurity composition, and other typomorphic features of gold from each age group. According to histograms, gold fineness in the Bai-Syut floodplain-valley placer varies widely (600990), which is due to the variation in gold fineness in the primary sources. In the middle and lower reaches, the placer forms predominantly by the destruction of the Tardan goldsulfideskarn deposit. The abrupt change in the typomorphic features of gold near line R-280 suggests the presence of an undiscovered primary source in the upper segment of the Bai-Syut River valley which differs from the known Tardan goldsulfide skarn deposit.

Conditions of nugget formation in the Kopto placer Unlike the Bai-Syut River, the Kopto and Tapsa Rivers are located at the margin of the mountain-valley glaciers of Upper 2 ) and Middle Pleistocene Chuya Pleistocene Chibit (gQIII
4 (gQII ) glaciation. Therefore, here glaciation directly affected the placer formation during the interglacial and postglacial periods. Moraine from the last Upper Pleistocene (Chibit) glaciation, which is best preserved in the present-day topography, abounds in the Kopto and Tapsa Rivers headwaters. It hosts huge amounts of loose glacial debris which formed by erosion of both bedrock, including gold-bearing rocks, and preglacial alluvium with placers. Valley glaciers from more ancient, Middle Pleistocene (Chuya) glaciation descended

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Table 5. Grain-size composition of native gold (wt.%) in the section of the Bai-Syut placer Stratigraphic datum (age) of the placer Grain size of gold, mm more than 1.0
1 ) Floodplain-valley (aQIII

1.00.5 15.0 56.0 21.1 3.84

less than 0.5 51.0 44.0 32.5 95.26

34.0 46.4 0.90

Second-terrace (aQE-I) Ancient residual Primary source (aN1 2)

Table 6. Roundedness of gold from the Bai-Syut placer Stratigraphic datum (age) of the placer Roundedness, % well-rounded
1 ) Floodplain-valley (aQIII

rounded 2 18 25

subrounded 82 60 58

unrounded 16 22 17

Second-terrace (aQE-I) Ancient residual (aN1 2)

Table 7. Morphology of gold from the Bai-Syut placer Stratigraphic datum (age) of the placer Grain morphology, % lumpy
1 ) Floodplain-valley (aQIII

tabular 39.4 48 43

crystalline 0.5

elongated 0.6 3

dendritic 0.5 3

59 49 54

Second-terrace (aQE-I) Ancient residual (aN1 2)

below the boundary of the last glaciation. Judging by the fact that this drift is poorly preserved, it was considerably rewashed by river flows during the interglacial, incorporated into alluvium and served as an intermediate reservoir for alluvial placers. The Kopto placer is the largest in the TapsaKaakhem gold zone and has a complex structure (Figs. 1, 11). Block tectonics formed the stepped heterogeneous section of the valley. It comprises an uplift block in the upper part (above the Kvartsevyi Creek) and the Kopto intermontane depression in the lower part. The upper part of the valley is a trough with fragments of rock-defended terraces. The alluvium which forms the floodplain part is 10 m thick. Below, at the boundary with the depression the valley section undergoes an abrupt stepped overdeepening (up to 40 m) because of block subsidence, with the formation of buried placers of different age: a deep thalweg and a series of hanging placers. Thus, in the upper part of the valley, the placer is confined to the near-bedrock part of the floodplain alluvium and occurs among well-washed boulders, gravel, and pebble gravel. These deposits formed during the Kuekhtanar interglacial by the rewashing of Middle Pleistocene glacial drift. In the lower part of the valley, within the Kopto intermontane depression, the placer under study is hanging and underlain by false bedrock consisting of yellow-brown clays.

The present section is focused on the study of 39 gold nuggets found in the Kopto placer with the direct participation of the authors. Although they are one of the grain-size groups of native gold in the placer, they stand out owing to their unusual shape. In general, the nuggets have fully retained the shape inherent to vein gold. They are unrounded or slightly rounded and often intergrown with quartz. According to analysis, the grain-size composition of gold from the Kopto placer (2000 g) is the following (wt.%): over 10 mm, 4.5; 105 mm, 1; 52 mm, 10.45; 21 mm, 30.23; 10.5 mm, 28.66; 0.50.25 mm, 21.59; less than 0.25 mm, 3.57. The sample was taken from the hanging bed of the placer in the center of a wide valley (500 m) at a depth of 7 m from an active permafrost layer. This precludes the penetration of nuggets into the placer directly from the adjacent valley sides (Fig. 11). Analysis revealed the presence of 39 nuggets with a total weight of 108.7 g (5.5 wt.%). The largest grain measures 31.9 9.2 7.0 mm and weighs 12.45 g, and the smallest one measures 6.2 5.0 4.3 mm and weighs 0.823 g. In the classification of N.V. Petrovskaya (Petrovskaya, 1993), the nuggets from the Kopto placer are small or medium-sized and make up three morphological groups. Group 1 consists of exposed gold streaks of anhedralfissure shape (Fig. 12). Fourteen nuggets which belong to this group are flat gold grains elongated in plan or, more rarely

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Fig. 10. Typomorphic features of gold along the Bai-Syut placer. a, Grain size; b, grain morphology: 1, lumpy; 2, tabular; 3, crystalline; 4, elongated; 5, isometric; 6, dendritic; c, roundedness: 1, rounded; 2, subrounded; 3, unrounded.

isometric, with sinuate edges and a hollow-and-hummock surface. The nuggets measure from 1.8 1.1 to 5.8 2.5 cm. They have retained the shape inherent to vein gold; they are unrounded or slightly rounded, with uncrumpled projections and apophyses. Local smoothing and crumpled edges are often observed, suggesting that the nuggets were probably transported in quartz gravel which protected them. In this case, only those parts of gold grains which stuck out of quartz gravel were smoothed. Apparently, quartz crumbled completely already in situ. Group 2 is anhedral gold, specifically of the cement and interstitial types (Fig. 12). It consists of gold accumulations cementing fragments of previously deposited minerals. They develop in crush zones of vein quartz and early sulfides. Gold is unrounded or slightly rounded, with uncrumpled apophyses and projections. Quartz crumbling is observed. Quartz in intergrowths develops fissures filled with iron hydroxides. Group 3 consists of nuggets which can be called hemidiomorphic (Fig. 12). They consist of an anhedral core overgrown

with crystals; correspondingly, they formed in two mineralization stages. The overgrowths are octahedra or rhombic dodecahedra; some of them are skeletal. An overview of nugget formation and alteration in placers was given by S.G. Moskvitin et al. (1997). When placers form, nuggets are affected by the same factors which formed auriferous sands in placers. These authors distinguish three stages: separation from the gangue, nugget formation, and nugget alteration. The first stage is an early placer formation, when a shapeless nugget appears in alluvium after the destruction of an orebody. The second one coincides with the main period of placer formation when the nugget alters in alluvium. The fragment is mechanically affected by the surrounding alluvium. Quartz crumbling is accompanied by the crumpling, riveting, and smoothing of gold streaks, apophyses, and projections into a compact mass around the nugget core. At the third stage, the gold placer is rewashed many times with active nugget riveting, smoothing, and abrasion, until it completely loses its original shape.

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nugget retains its original shape. The nugget itself is unrounded but some of its parts are smoothed and crumpled. This is because it altered inside the quartz gangue. Goldquartz mineralization is widespread in the region and morphologically diverse. However, the primary sources of nuggets are unknown. Quartz veins at the Proezdnoe deposit are several centimeters (pinches) to 1.5 m (swells) thick. Gold grains are 0.001 to 1.52 mm in size. No nuggets were found. The rest of the ore occurrences are thin quartz veins (up to 1020 cm) with gold clusters. In general, they are not commercial (up to 0.6 ppm Au). According to literature data (Samusikov, 2005; Smolin, 1970), the primary sources of nuggets in other regions of Russia are also small and thin veins (mainly up to 10 cm). Here, gold is concentrated in local clusters with a low gold content in between. As a rule, such veins are not explored. Since they contain cluster gold mineralization and prospectors most often classify them as noncommercial, slightly gold-bearing veins. Thus, gold clusters in the Kopto River basin may be found in thin quartz veins.

Fig. 11. Geological cross-section of the Kopto River valley. 1, silt; 2, clay; 3, sand; 4, blocks, rubble; 5, boulders; 6, pebble gravel, gravel; 7, red loams; 8, yellow pebble gravel; 9, bedrock; 10, placers; 11, sampling site. Alluvium during tectonic and geomorphological activation: Lower Pliocene (aN1 2), EopleistoceneLower Pleistocene (aQE-I), Middle Pleistocene (aQII), Upper Pleis1 tocene (aQIII ), and Holocene (aQH). Upper Pleistocene talus and proluvium 2 (dpQIII ).

Conclusions 1. Differentiated block movements along neotectonic faults were crucial to the initiation and development of topography and placer formation in the TapsaKaakhem gold zone. Polycyclicity in the valleys of the region resulted in the formation of morphologically diverse gold placers with stratified producing reefs in loose sediments differing in composition and age: OligoceneLower Pliocene, Eopleistocene Lower Pleistocene, Middle Pleistocene, and Upper Pleistocene. 2. A complex relation between the Bai-Syut and SoruglugKhem placers and their primary sources has been established. Native gold in the study region varies considerably in fineness (its value and variation patterns). In general, the macrocomposition of gold in producing reefs of different ages reflects the composition of gold from their primary sources. The main distinguishing feature of Neogene eluvial gold is a wider fineness variation relative to the primary source. This is explained by natural factors: the vertical zoning of mineralization and the erosion of orebodies. Also, eluvial gold underwent the greatest supergene alteration. The latter is manifested in changing internal structure, recrystallization, and the formation of fine-gold rims and intergranular streaks. Apparently, the fine rims formed in the presence of ancient Neogene chemical-weathering crust. From older to younger producing reefs, gold fineness varies more widely, showing a trend toward smaller values. This suggests that undiscovered primary sources belonging to another association exist in the source area. The same is confirmed by the drastically changing typomorphic features of gold in the longitudinal section of the Bai-Syut River valley. 3. The peculiarities of gold from placers formed by the rewashing of glacial drift have been established. In the Kopto placer, nuggets are widespread (10 mm), and fully retained

The nuggets from the Kopto placer (>10 mm) have a well-pronounced shape inherent to vein gold and do not follow the suggested scenario for nugget formation. As a rule, they are unrounded or slightly rounded and clearly belong to the crystalline, drusy, dendritic, cement, interstitial, or lumpy types. Iron hydroxide films cover the surface of the gold grains, and hollows in the grains contain quartz inclusions. At the same time, some prominent parts of the grains are crumpled. Undoubtedly, the nuggets from the Kopto placer only separated from the gangue and were slightly altered. Unlike the nuggets, fine (<10 mm) gold particles from the placer look like typical rounded placer gold (Fig. 13). We assign the Kopto placer to those formed partly or fully by the rewashing of glacial drift. This accounts for the unusual shape of its nuggets. They accumulated as follows. As a result of exaration of orebodies during the Middle Pleistocene Chuya 4 (gQII ) glaciation, gold in the quartz gangue enters glacial drift in the Kopto valley. Afterward, during the Kuekhtanar inter1 glacial (aQIII ) glacial drift is rewashed, sorted, and incorporated into the alluvium. During this time the nuggets are present in quartz gravel. At the second stage, the nugget release is overlapped by the action of permafrost, which appeared during the subsequent Upper Pleistocene Chibit glaciation. Permafrost action and cryodiagenesis are manifested in the extra crushing and differentiation (owing to multiple freezingthawing cycles) of alluvial rocks, quartz crumbling, and in situ release of the nuggets from the quartz gangue. Thus, in general, the

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Fig. 12 (continued on next page).

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Fig. 12. Morphology of gold nuggets from the Kopto placer.

Fig. 13. Gold from the placers: a, Kopto River, alluvial terrace; 17 mm; b, O-Khem River, the left tributary of the Tapsa; 0.57 mm.

the shape inherent to vein gold. Apparently, the nuggets were transported to the placer with glacial drift in quartz gravel, which protected them from rounding. Quartz crumbled completely, and gold became free in situ under frost action. 4. The presence of nuggets in the Kopto placer permits predicting a cluster distribution of gold in the known thin quartz veins. The study was supported by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (grants no. 06-05-64118-a, 11-05-00097a).

References
Filippov, V.E., 1987. Modeling the Formation Conditions of Alluvial Gold Placers. Extended Abstract of Cand. Sci. (Geol.Mineral.) Dissertation. Kazakh Inst. of Mineral Resources, Alma-Ata. Kalinin, Yu.A., Roslyakov, N.A., Prudnikov, S.G., 2006. Gold-Bearing Weathering Crusts in South Siberia [in Russian]. Geo, Novosibirsk. Kilchichakov, K.M., Tokunov, V.F., 1971. Gold mineralization in the TapsaKaakhem zone, in: Geology of the Tuva ASSR [in Russian]. Kyzyl, Issue 2, pp. 104109.

S.G. Prudnikov et al. / Russian Geology and Geophysics 52 (2011) 193207 Moskvitin, S.G., Anisimova, G.S., Zhdanov, Yu.Ya., 1997. Native Gold in Yakutia (Kular Region) [in Russian]. Nauka, Novosibirsk. Nesterenko, G.V., 1991. Prediction of Gold Mineralization Based On Placers (Evidence from South Siberia) (Transactions of the Institute of Geology and Geophysics SB AS) [in Russian]. IGiG SO AN, Novosibirsk, Vol. 796. Petrovskaya, N.V., 1973. Native Gold (Overview, Typomorphism, and Genesis) [in Russian]. Nauka, Moscow. Petrovskaya, N.V., 1993. Gold Nuggets [in Russian]. Nauka, Moscow. Prudnikov, S.G., Mikhailov, V.V., 2002. The role of neotectonics in the formation of gold placers in the southern Kaakhem rift zone, in: The State and Development of Natural Resources in Tuva and Adjacent Regions of Central Asia. Geoecology of the Natural Environment and Society

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(Transactions of the Tuva Inst. for Exploration of Natural Resources) [in Russian]. TuvIKOPR, Kyzyl, pp. 4755. Rogov, N.V., Zaikov, V.V., Bukharov, N.S., Ussar, R.T., 1979. Ore-bearing crush zones in Tuva, in: Geology of the Tuva ASSR [in Russian]. Kyzyl, Issue 4, pp. 8699. Samusikov, V.P., 2005. Gold nuggets: where do they form? in: WeatheringCrust Placers and Deposits: Facts, Problems, and Solutions (XIII Int. Meeting on the Geol. of Weathering-Crust Placers and Deposits) [in Russian]. Perm, pp. 256258. Smolin, A.P., 1970. Gold Nuggets in the Urals [in Russian]. Nedra, Moscow. Zaikov, V.V., Lebedev, V.I., Tyulkin, V.G., Grechishcheva, V.N., Kuzhuget, K.S., 1981. Ore-Bearing Rocks in Tuva [in Russian]. Nauka, Novosibirsk.

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