| Title | Indicator mineral and till geochemical signatures of the Broken Hammer Cu-Ni-PGE-Au deposit, North Range, Sudbury Structure, Ontario, Canada |
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| Author | McClenaghan, M B ;
Ames, D E; Cabri, L J |
| Source | Geochemistry: Exploration, Environment, Analysis 2019 p. 1-20, https://doi.org/10.1144/geochem2019-058  Open Access |
| Image |  |
| Year | 2019 |
| Alt Series | Natural Resources Canada, Contribution Series 20190313 |
| Publisher | Geological Society |
| Document | serial |
| Lang. | English |
| Media | paper; on-line; digital |
| File format | pdf |
| Province | Ontario |
| Area | Broken Hammer; Sudbury; Sudbury Structure; Canada |
| Lat/Long WENS | -81.6667 -80.6833 47.0000 45.2500 |
| Subjects | metallic minerals; Science and Technology; sperrylite; chalcopyrite; gold; pyrite; quartz monzonites; millerite |
| Illustrations | location maps; geological sketch maps; pie charts |
| Program | Targeted Geoscience Initiative (TGI-5) Intrusion/Porphyry ore systems - porphyry processes - mineral markers |
| Released | 2019 12 05 |
| Abstract | The Broken Hammer Cu-Ni-PGE-Au footwall deposit in the North Range of the Sudbury Structure in Canada consists of a shallow surface zone of vein-hosted and vein stockwork-hosted mineralization within
Sudbury breccia developed in the quartz monzonite Levack Gneiss Complex. The surface of the deposit consists of a 2-120 cm wide chalcopyrite vein and numerous smaller veins dominated by chalcopyrite-magnetite-millerite with trace gold, platinum group
minerals, tellurides, bismuthides and selenides. The Laurentide Ice Sheet flowed southward across the region depositing a sandy till that contains abundant sperrylite (hundreds of grains), chalcopyrite, pyrite and gold in the heavy mineral fraction
down-ice of mineralization. Mineral liberation analysis of the <0.25 mm heavy mineral fraction of metal-rich till identified a broader suite of PGM and sulfides than visual identification methods. The <0.063 mm fraction of till displays a strong
geochemical signature of the mineralization for Pd, Pt, Au, Cu and Ag and, to a lesser extent, Bi, Te and Sn; however, geochemical signatures are not detectable as far down-ice as indicator minerals. Till sampling has not been used for exploration in
the Sudbury region because of the abundant outcrop and the use of geophysical and prospecting techniques. This study demonstrates that indicator mineral and till geochemical methods are useful exploration tools for the region. The presence of
sperrylite and chalcopyrite in oxidized till indicates that even thin (<1 m) highly weathered till is an effective sample medium here. |
| Summary | (Plain Language Summary, not published)
This journal paper reports the surficial indicator mineral and geochemical signatures of a copper- Platinum Group Mineral deposit in the Sudbury Mining
Camp. The data will be useful to those exploring the Sudbury region and elsewhere in the glaciated terrain of Canada. The research was funded by the Geological Survey of Canada's Targeted Geoscience Initiative. |
| GEOSCAN ID | 321056 |
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