| Title | Mineralogy and K-Ar geochronology of clay alteration associated with uranium mineralization in the Patterson Lake Corridor, Saskatchewan |
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| Author | Powell, J W ;
Percival, J B; Potter, E G; van der Lelij, R; Xie, R |
| Source | Geochemistry: Exploration, Environment, Analysis vol. 22, geochem2021-061, 2022 p. 1-16, https://doi.org/10.1144/geochem2021-0 |
| Image |  |
| Year | 2022 |
| Alt Series | Natural Resources Canada, Contribution Series 20210228 |
| Publisher | Geological Society of London / Association of Applied Geochemists |
| Document | serial |
| Lang. | English |
| Media | paper; digital; on-line |
| File format | pdf; html |
| Province | Saskatchewan |
| NTS | 74A; 74B; 74C; 74D; 74E; 74F; 74G; 74H; 74I; 74J; 74K; 74L; 74M; 74N; 74O; 74P |
| Area | Patterson Lake |
| Lat/Long WENS | -112.0000 -104.0000 60.0000 56.0000 |
| Subjects | geochronology; Science and Technology; Nature and Environment; uranium; Athabasca Basin |
| Illustrations | location maps; photographs; tables; diagrams; charts |
| Program | Targeted Geoscience Initiative (TGI-5) Uranium ore systems - fluid pathways |
| Released | 2022 09 02 |
| Abstract | The Patterson Lake corridor (PLC) along the southwestern margin of the Proterozoic Athabasca Basin contains high-grade uranium deposits entirely within crystalline basement rocks. Visible-near infrared
- shortwave infrared (VNIR-SWIR) spectroscopy measurements on drill core samples from the Triple R and Arrow deposits exhibit downhole spectral trends related to the crystallinity and thermal maturity of clays (illite and kaolinite) and
mineralization. The K-Ar dates of silt-and-clay size fractions (10-6 micrometres; 6-2 micrometres; 2-0.6 micrometres; 0.6-0.2 micrometres; <0.2 micrometres) from five clay-altered samples decrease with grain size, and span 1608 ± 17 Ma to 1060 ± 14
Ma for the Spitfire discovery (n = 14) and 1342 ± 17 Ma to 289 ± 4.3 Ma for the Arrow deposit (n = 4). Alteration assemblages are broadly similar to basement-hosted deposits in the Athabasca Basin, and K-Ar dates suggest that high-grade uranium
mineralization in the PLC may be, in part, due to hydrothermal remobilization and concentration of the primary ores. Integration of geochronology, clay mineralogy and VNIR-SWIR spectral parameters identify fertile fluid conduits when expanded to
property- or corridor-scales, and provide additional evidence that the ore grades of the Athabasca Basin deposits reflect several stages of hydrothermal mineralization spanning ~1000 Ma. |
| Summary | (Plain Language Summary, not published)
The Targeted Geoscience Initiative (TGI) is a collaborative federal geoscience program that provides industry with the next generation of geoscience
knowledge and innovative techniques to better detect buried mineral deposits, thereby reducing some of the risks of exploration. This contribution defines the type and age of clay mineral alteration associated with the recently discovered Patterson
Lake Corridor uranium deposits located on the southwestern margin of the Athabasca Basin. The results identify the key clay mineral types associated with hydrothermal alteration and uranium mineralization, whereas the age dating provide the first
robust time constraints on the ore systems in the region. The age dates support the hypothesis that several hydrothermal events in the district were responsible for the exceptionally high ore grades. |
| GEOSCAN ID | 328839 |
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