| Title | Sphalerite and kimberlite indicator minerals in till from the Zama Lake region, northwest Alberta (NTS 84L and 84M) |
| Download | Downloads |
| |
| Licence | Please note the adoption of the Open Government Licence - Canada
supersedes any previous licences. |
| Author | Plouffe, A ;
Paulen, R C; Smith, I R; Kjarsgaard, I M |
| Source | Geological Survey of Canada, Open File 5692, 2008, 32 pages; 1 CD-ROM, https://doi.org/10.4095/224673  Open Access |
| Links | Canadian Database of Geochemical Surveys, downloadable
files
|
| Links | Banque de données de levés géochimiques du Canada,
fichiers téléchargeables
|
| Year | 2008 |
| Alt Series | Alberta Energy and Utilities Board / Alberta Geological Survey, Special Report 96 |
| Publisher | Natural Resources Canada |
| Document | open file |
| Lang. | English |
| Media | CD-ROM; digital; on-line |
| File format | readme
|
| File format | pdf (Adobe® Reader®); xls (Microsoft Excel); jpg; txt |
| Province | Alberta |
| NTS | 84L; 84M |
| Area | Zama Lake; Hay Lake; Zama City; Bistcho Lake; Jackfish Point; Hay River; Rainbow Lake; High Level |
| Lat/Long WENS | -120.0000 -118.0000 60.0000 58.0000 |
| Subjects | economic geology; surficial geology/geomorphology; sphalerite; indicator elements; kimberlites; diamond; mineral potential; glacial deposits; tills; till samples; till analyses; till geochemistry; drift
prospecting; mineral exploration; pebble counts; pebble lithology; mineral assemblages; heavy minerals; heavy mineral analyses; gold; galena; bulk samples; glacial history; deglaciation; ice movement directions; ice flow; ice transport directions;
dispersal patterns; mineral distribution; source rocks; carbonate rocks; quartzites; clasts; geochemical analyses; mineralogical analyses; anomalies; zinc; mineralization; electron probe analyses; pyrope; garnet; diopside; chromite; chromium;
ilmenite; size fractionation; scanning electron microscope analyses; Great Slave Lake Shear Zone; Pine Point Lead Zinc Deposit; Last Glacial Maximum; Laurentide Ice Sheet; Canadian Shield; Interior Plains; Phanerozoic; Cenozoic; Quaternary; Mesozoic;
Cretaceous; Paleozoic; Precambrian |
| Illustrations | sketch maps; digital elevation models; pie charts; plots; tables; photographs; photomicrographs |
| Program | Targeted Geoscience Initiative (TGI-2), 2003-2005 |
| Program | Northern Resources Development Program |
| Program | Alberta Geological Survey, Funding Program |
| Program | British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, Funding Program
|
| Released | 2008 01 01 |
| Abstract | This report presents the results and interpretations of the heavy mineral assemblages and pebble lithologies of 19 bulk till samples collected in northwest Alberta, from the region of a sphalerite
dispersal train originally reported by Plouffe et al. (2006a). Indurated pebbles in the 4-8 mm sized fraction of till dominantly consist of distally-derived bedrock lithologies: Canadian Shield rocks, Paleozoic carbonates, and quartzite. Three till
samples contain mineralized clasts with visible pyrite and marcasite. Kimberlite indicator minerals (KIMs) in till, including Cr-pyrope, Cr-diopside and chromite are present in trace amounts (1 to 2 grains) in nine samples. Although the KIM counts
are low, the samples with KIMs do cluster in the Zama Lake - Zama City area. The source, proximal or distal, is unknown and remains to be identified. Seven out of the 19 till samples contain sand-sized sphalerite grains, with the strongest anomaly
consisting of 989 sphalerite grains recovered from a 34 kg till sample. The sphalerite is dominantly in the 0.25 to 0.5 mm fraction (900 grains) with smaller amounts (89 grains) in the 0.5 to 1.0 mm size range. The new data indicate that the
sphalerite dispersal train first identified by Plouffe et al. (2006a) could cover an area of over 4000 km2. The bedrock source(s) of the sphalerite in till remains to be discovered. |
| GEOSCAN ID | 224673 |
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