Mineral Deposits
the mechanism responsible for
Mineral Occurrence
- concentration of a mineral that is of
scientific or technical interest
Mineral Deposit
- mineral Occurrence of sufficient size and
grade or concentration to enable
extraction under the most favorable
conditions
Ore Deposit
- mineral deposit that has been tested and
known to be economically profitable to
mine
Aggregate
- rock or mineral material used as filler in
cement, asphalt plaster, etc: generally
used to describe rion- metallic deposits
Ore
- naturally-occurring material from which a
mineral or minerals of economic value can
be extracted
Minerals Important to Society
Ore Minerals
- naturally-occurring material from which a
mineral or minerals of economic value can
be extracted.
Industrial Minerals
- are defined as rocks or resources from
the Earth that are utilized because of their
physical and chemical characteristics
Gems
- are unearthed and valued for their
sparkle, beauty and its contribution to
jewelry, cosmetics and medicine
Mineral resources classified according to
concentrating the valuable substance.
1. Magmatic Ore Deposits
- valuable substances are concentrated
within an igneous body through magmatic
processes such as:
Crystal settling
- the sinking of crystals because of their
greater density, sometimes aided by
magmatic convection (from basaltic
magma).
 chromite (FeCr2CO4)
 magnetite (Fe3O4)
 platinum (Pt)
Fractional crystallization
- the compound is mixed with a solvent,
heated, and then gradually cooled so that,
as each of its constituent components
crystallizes, it can be removed in its pure
form from the solution
 large crystals of quartz
 feldspars
 muscovite
2. Hydrothermal Ore Deposits
- concentration of valuable substances by
hot aqueous (water-rich) fluids flowing
through fractures and pore spaces in
rocks.
Hydrothermal solutions
- are hot, residual watery fluids derived
during the later stages of magma
crystallization and may contain large
amount of dissolved metals.
Types of Hydrothermal Ore Deposits
 Vein Type Deposits
 Disseminated Deposits
 Massive Sulfide Deposits
  Strata Bound Ore Deposits
Vein Type Deposits
- usually inclined and discordant and
typically narrow. Most occur in fault or
fissure openings.
- Mineral deposits: Gold, Silver Copper,
Lead Zinc, Mercury
Disseminated Deposits
- Deposits in which the ore minerals are
distributed as minute masses (very
low concentration) through large
volumes of rocks.
- Occurrence is common for porphyry
copper deposits
Massive sulfide deposit
- Precipitation of metals as sulfide
minerals such as sphalerite (ZnS) and
chalcopyrite (CuFeS2) occurs when hot
fluids that circulated above magma
chambers at oceanic ridges.
Strata Bound Ore Deposits
- This deposit is formed when the
dissolved minerals in a hydrothermal
fluid precipitate in the pore spaces of
unconsolidated sediments on the
bottom of a lake or ocean.
- Such minerals may contain economic
concentrations of lead, zinc, copper,
galena (PbS) sphalerite (ZnS) and
chalcophyrite (CuFeS2)
3. Sedimentary Ore Deposits
- substances are concentrated by chemical
precipitation from lake or sea water.
- the term sedimentary mineral deposit is
restricted to chemical sedimentation,
where minerals containing valuable
substances are precipitated directly out of
water
Evaporite Deposits
- This type of deposit typically occurs in a
closed marine environment where
evaporation is greater than water inflow.
As most of the water evaporates, the
dissolved substances become more
concentrated in the residual water and
would eventually precipitate
 Halite (NaCl)
 sylvite (KCI)
 gypsum
 borax
Iron Deposits
- These deposits are made up of repetitive
thin layers of iron-rich chert and several
other iron bearing minerals such as
hematite and magnetite. Iron formations
appear to be of evaporite type deposits
and are mostly formed in basins within
continental crust during the Proterozoic (2
billion years or older)
4. Placer Ore Deposits
- Deposits formed by the concentration of
valuable substances through gravity
separation during sedimentary processes
- Usually aided by flowing surface waters
either in streams or along coastlines.
5. Residual Ore Deposits
- type of deposit that results from the
accumulation of valuable materials
through chemical weathering processes
- During the process, the volume of the
original rock is greatly reduced by
leaching.
Factors for the Formation of Residual
Deposit
 parent rock composition
 climate
 relief