| Title | Discovering the next generation of copper porphyry deposits using mineral markers |
| Download | Download (whole publication) |
| |
| Licence | Please note the adoption of the Open Government Licence - Canada
supersedes any previous licences. |
| Author | Plouffe, A ;
Kjarsgaard, I M; Kobylinski, C H; Hattori, K; Petts, D C;
Venance, K E; Ferbey, T |
| Source | Targeted Geoscience Initiative: 2018 report of activities; by Rogers, N (ed.); Geological Survey of Canada, Open File 8549, 2019 p. 321-331, https://doi.org/10.4095/313666  Open Access |
| Year | 2019 |
| Publisher | Natural Resources Canada |
| Document | open file |
| Lang. | English |
| Media | on-line; digital |
| Related | This publication is contained in Targeted Geoscience
Initiative: 2018 report of activities |
| File format | pdf |
| Province | British Columbia |
| NTS | 92I; 92P; 93A; 93B |
| Area | Fraser River; Cache Creek; Kamloops; Merritt; Likely; Williams Lake |
| Lat/Long WENS | -124.0000 -120.0000 53.0000 50.0000 |
| Subjects | economic geology; surficial geology/geomorphology; geochemistry; mineralogy; tectonics; mineral deposits; mineral exploration; exploration methods; mineral potential; porphyry deposits; copper;
molybdenum; gold; silver; ore mineral genesis; mineralization; epidote; zircon; glacial deposits; tills; till analyses; glacial features; ice flow; isotopic studies; isotope ratios; cerium; neodymium; europium; antimony geochemistry; arsenic
geochemistry; tectonic setting; intrusions; batholiths; metamorphism; hydrothermal systems; alteration; bedrock geology; lithology; igneous rocks; intrusive rocks; granodiorites; monzo-granites; diorites; monzonites; tonalites; volcanic rocks; host
rocks; mass spectrometer analysis; trace element analyses; scanning electron microscope analyses; electron probe analyses; Neogene; Canadian Cordillera; Gibraltar Deposit; Granite Mountain Batholith; Gibraltar Mine; Mount Polley Deposit; Woodjam
Deposit; Highland Valley Deposit; Chilcotin Group; Nicola Group; Takomkane Batholith; Thuya Batholith; Guichon Creek Batholith; Sheridan Creek Stock; ice-flow directions; Phanerozoic; Cenozoic; Tertiary; Mesozoic; Jurassic; Triassic |
| Illustrations | location maps; geoscientific sketch maps; plots; graphs; photomicrographs |
| Program | Targeted Geoscience Initiative (TGI-5) Knowledge Management Coordination |
| Program | Targeted Geoscience Initiative (TGI-5) Intrusion/Porphyry ore systems - porphyry processes - mineral markers |
| Released | 2019 03 01 |
| Abstract | The composition of epidote and zircon in till and bedrock around copper porphyry mineralization in south-central British Columbia are investigated as an indicator towards deposits covered by glacial
sediments. At the Gibraltar porphyry deposit, new dating reveals that the Mine phase of the Granite Mountain batholith was emplaced during three intrusive pulses at ca. 205, 213 and 219 Ma. Zircon Ce4+/Ce3+ ratios, a potential fertility proxy,
progressively decrease from an average of 681 in the earliest mineralized intrusive Mine phase (219 Ma) to 193 in the younger intrusive phase (202-207 Ma). Zircon with Ce4+/Ce3+ values greater than 400, corresponding to a Ce/Nd ratio of 20, are most
likely derived from the mineralized Mine phase. Two zircon grains with Ce/Nd ratios greater than 20 were identified in a till sample less than 1 km down-ice from mineralization. Epidote grains in till from three porphyry localities (Mount Polley,
Woodjam, and Gibraltar) and bedrock from Woodjam were analyzed to test the hypothesis that a simple correlation plot of Sb versus As could be used to differentiate epidote that formed in metamorphic versus hydrothermal settings. Our preliminary
results show a significant overlap between the As and Sb concentrations in epidote grains from till and epidote from the alteration zones at the Woodjam prospect. Future work will investigate whether epidote in till with low As (< 10 ppm) and Sb (<1
ppm) levels could be derived from regionally metamorphosed rocks of the Nicola Group. |
| Summary | (Plain Language Summary, not published)
The Targeted Geoscience Initiative (TGI) is directed towards providing next generation knowledge and methods to facilitate more effective targeting of
buried mineral deposits. The program aims to enhance the effectiveness of exploration for Canada's major mineral systems by resolving foundational geoscience problems that constrain the geological processes responsible for the liberation metals from
their source region, transportation of these ore metals and control their eventual deposition. TGI supports projects on gold, Ni-Cr-PGE, porphyry-style mineralization, uranium and volcanic- and sedimentary-hosted base metal mineralization ore
systems, with each project divided into subprojects focused on resolving specific knowledge gaps by integrating data and studies from multiple sites across Canada. Herein, we present interim results and interpretations from a selection of the
research activities currently being conducted under the auspices of TGI. |
| GEOSCAN ID | 313666 |
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