Geology topics

Jeffrey L. Mauk

Publications and source records attributed to Jeffrey L. Mauk.

30 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

USGS2016

Geometallurgy of ironsand from the Waikato North Head deposit, New Zealand

The Waikato North Head deposit produces a magnetic mineral concentrate from Quaternary sands that formed in a coastal setting in the North Island of New Zealand. Detailed examination of the magnetic mineral fraction of the different stratigraphic horizons mined at Waikato North Head shows that the youngest units yield concentrates with significant concentrations of gangue minerals that are included as composite grains, inclusions in titanomagnetite, and as gangue grains with titanomagnetite inclusions. The most abundant gangue minerals in the magnetic fractions of all mined units are pyroxene and amphibole; feldspar, quartz, and biotite are less abundant. The magnetic minerals, which are predominantly titanomagnetite, are used as feed for the Iron Plant in New Zealand Steel’s Glenbrook Steel Mill. From time to time, excessive accretion formation impacts the operation of the rotary reduction kilns of the Iron Plant. Olivine group minerals are the most common silicate phase in these accretions, and we hypothesise that the silicon and magnesium in these minerals are derived from the gangue minerals that are included in the magnetic mineral concentrate from the ironsands. Although various remediation processes are possible, the simplest and most cost effective would appear to be ensuring adequate blending of material from different stratigraphic units, particularly when the youngest strata are being mined in the deposit.

Book chapter↗

USGS2016

Ore mineralogy and textural zonation in the world-class epithermal Waihi Vein System, Hauraki Goldfield

The Waihi district in the Hauraki Goldfield of New Zealand contains adularia-sericite epithermal gold-silver veins that have produced more than 7.7 Moz gold. The outermost veins of the district (Martha, Favona, Moonlight, and Cowshed) contain abundant colloform, cherty, and black quartz fill textures, with minor crustiform and massive quartz. The central veins (Amaranth, Trio, and Union) contain predominantly massive and crustiform textures, and these veins are also commonly coarser grained than outermost veins. Pyrite, sphalerite, galena, chalcopyrite, electrum, and acanthite occur in both outermost and central veins; base metal sulfide minerals typically increase in abundance in deeper samples. Antimony-, arsenic-, and selenium-bearing minerals are most abundant in the Favona and Moonlight veins, whereas base metal sulfide minerals are more abundant in the central veins at Correnso. Throughout the Waihi vein system, electrum is by far the most widespread, abundant, and significant gold-bearing mineral, but LA-ICP-MS analyses show that arsenian pyrite also contains some gold. Mineralogical and textural data are consistent with the central veins forming at a deeper structural level, or from hydrothermal fluids with different chemistry, or both.

Book chapter↗

USGS2016

Exploration and geology of the Karangahake and Rahu epithermal Au-Ag deposits, Hauraki Goldfield

Karangahake was the third largest gold producer in the Hauraki goldfield. In 2009, New Talisman Gold mines was granted a mining permit, and plans are underway to commence underground mine development of the Maria vein, which has a maiden Ore Reserve (consistent with the 2012 JORC Code) of 28 800 oz Au and 127 800 oz Ag. Exploration drilling at Rahu, located 2 km north of Karangahake has identified polymictic hydrothermal breccias and quartz veins that are strongly gold anomalous. Some quartz vein clasts within the breccia have up to 8.7 g/t Au, suggesting the presence of higher grade quartz vein(s) either below or directly adjacent to the breccias. A controlled source audio-frequency magnetotelluric (CSAMT) survey at Rahu revealed that strongly resistive zones extend below the Barbara and Eunice anomalies to at least 300 m depth and likely correspond to areas of increased silicification, breccias and/or veins. Future drilling will focus on these targets. Detailed geophysical, alteration and fluid inclusion studies have been undertaken at Karangahake, Rahu and Ascot (c 1 km NW of Rahu). Karangahake and Rahu both occur within a broad demagnetised zone, c 4.2 × 2.7 km, in which magnetite has been destroyed by strong hydrothermal alteration. At Karangahake, andesite and overlying minor rhyolite are replaced by adularia, chlorite, illite, pyrite, plus minor albite, epidote and calcite, which have formed from upwelling chloride waters that at depth were hotter than 280°C. At Rahu, localised adularia coupled with complex distributions of illite and interstratified illite-smectite, suggest cooler (c 180° to 240°C) and more focused fluid flow, as well as inferred cool groundwater influx. Fluid inclusion data suggest veins at Karangahake, Rahu and Ascot formed beneath palaeowater tables at 920 m, 440 m and 430 m relative to current sea level (asl), respectively. At Ascot, the presence of silica sinter at 135 m asl, which formed at the palaeosurface, is shallower compared to the fluid inclusion depth estimate and suggests that the palaeowater table here rose some 300 m during hydrothermal activity due to burial, resulting in overprinting. This overprint may also have occurred at Karangahake and Rahu, but the evidence is inconclusive; although burial during hydrothermal activity could explain the exceptional 700 m vertical range of mineralisation at Karangahake and raises the possibility of concealed mineralisation at depth elsewhere within the Karangahake alteration envelope.

Book chapter↗

USGS2015

Fluid inclusion chemistry of adularia-sericite epithermal Au-Ag deposits of the southern Hauraki Goldfield, New Zealand

Microthermometry, laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), and Raman spectroscopy have been used to determine the temperature, apparent salinity, and composition of individual fluid inclusions in adularia-sericite Au-Ag epithermal veins from the Karangahake, Martha, Favona, and Waitekauri deposits, southern Hauraki goldfield, New Zealand. Quartz veins contain colloform to crustiform bands that alternate with coarse-grained quartz and amethyst. The ore mineralization occurs only in colloform to crustiform bands. Analyses of individual fluid inclusions by LA-ICP-MS identify Na as the most abundant cation, together with variable concentrations of K, Ca, Rb, Sr, Sb, and As. Rare inclusions have detectable Li, Al, and Ba concentrations, although recorded Al concentrations with values up to 231 ppm in Al-free quartz may reflect an accidentally captured mineral phase rather than fluid itself. The Na content ranges from ~260 to 10,200 ppm for inclusions in quartz and ~9,700 to 13,700 ppm for inclusions in amethyst. Antimony is the second most commonly detected element in both quartz- and amethyst-hosted inclusions; this element is also detected in the host mineral. Concentrations of Sb and As range from 0.3 to 988 ppm and from 3.33 to 418 ppm, respectively, and are most commonly detected in inclusions from the Karangahake and Martha deposits. The poor correlation between the Na content with either Sb or As suggests that Sb and As were transported as neutral hydroxyl complexes of Sb(OH)3 and As(OH)3. Both Au and Ag occur at concentrations that are less than their respective detection limits (ppm). Geochemical modeling of the microthermometric and LA-ICP-MS data obtained from individual fluid inclusions suggests that fluids responsible for the quartz deposition were neutral to alkaline and that adiabatic boiling is the most effective mechanism for both gold and silica precipitation. The presence of single-phase vapor-only fluid inclusions in some mineralized samples indicates that local flashing may have contributed to deposition of Au and Ag. Assuming adiabatic boiling under hydrostatic pressure, samples from the Karangahake deposit (Maria vein) were deposited from low-salinity fluids (<3.9 wt % NaCl equiv) at temperatures between 225° and 262°C and at depths of 270 to 575 m below the former water table. The average deep reservoir fluid temperature estimated from the Na/K geothermometer is 287°C, and the steam loss during boiling ranges between 8 and 17%. Fluid inclusions in quartz from the Martha deposit trapped dilute fluids with salinity less than 1.7 wt % NaCl equiv. The coexisting liquid-rich (homogenization temperature, Th = 189°–225°C) and vapor-rich inclusions (Th = 205°–243°C) suggest formation at depths of 200 to 400 m below the water table. According to the Na/K geothermometer, the deep reservoir fluid temperature was near 295°C, and the steam loss during boiling ranged between 15 and 23%. Pseudosecondary inclusions in amethyst display salinity around 4.0 wt % NaCl equiv and homogenization temperatures between 218° and 241°C. Secondary inclusions are slightly more dilute (3.2–4.2 wt % NaCl equiv), with homogenization temperatures between 213° and 242°C. Fluid inclusions in quartz from the Waitekauri deposit homogenize from 210° to 265°C and contain less than 1.2 wt % NaCl equiv. A thin quartz vein that occurs between the Jubilee and Scotia deposits contains coexisting liquid- and vapor-rich inclusions; their homogenization temperatures indicate a formation depth of 300 m below the former water table. The calculated deep reservoir fluid temperature is around 283°C and the steam loss is estimated to be between 13 and 18%. LA-ICP-MS analyses show that in some cases different fluid inclusion assemblages (FIAs) within a single sample trapped fluids with variable chemistries. These differences likely reflect modification of a single parent fluid through mineral dissolution and precipitation, water/rock interactions, boiling and vapor loss, conductive cooling, and mixing.

Economic Geology↗

USGS2015

GIS-Based Identification of Areas with Mineral Resource Potential for Six Selected Deposit Groups, Bureau of Land Management Central Yukon Planning Area, Alaska

This study, covering the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Central Yukon Planning Area (CYPA), Alaska, was prepared to aid BLM mineral resource management planning. Estimated mineral resource potential and certainty are mapped for six selected mineral deposit groups: (1) rare earth element (REE) deposits associated with peralkaline to carbonatitic intrusive igneous rocks, (2) placer and paleoplacer gold, (3) platinum group element (PGE) deposits associated with mafic and ultramafic intrusive igneous rocks, (4) carbonate-hosted copper deposits, (5) sandstone uranium deposits, and (6) tin-tungsten-molybdenum-fluorspar deposits associated with specialized granites. These six deposit groups include most of the strategic and critical elements of greatest interest in current exploration. This study has used a data-driven, geographic information system (GIS)-based method for evaluating the mineral resource potential across the large region of the CYPA. This method systematically and simultaneously analyzes geoscience data from multiple geospatially referenced datasets and uses individual subwatersheds (12-digit hydrologic unit codes or HUCs) as the spatial unit of classification. The final map output indicates an estimated potential (high, medium, low) for a given mineral deposit group and indicates the certainty (high, medium, low) of that estimate for any given subwatershed (HUC). Accompanying tables describe the data layers used in each analysis, the values assigned for specific analysis parameters, and the relative weighting of each data layer that contributes to the estimated potential and certainty determinations. Core datasets used include the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Alaska Geochemical Database (AGDB2), the Alaska Division of Geologic and Geophysical Surveys Web-based geochemical database, data from an anticipated USGS geologic map of Alaska, and the USGS Alaska Resource Data File. Map plates accompanying this report illustrate the mineral prospectivity for the six deposit groups across the CYPA and estimates of mineral resource potential. There are numerous areas, some of them large, rated with high potential for one or more of the selected deposit groups within the CYPA.

Alaska↗

USGS2015

Permissive tracts for sediment-hosted lead-zinc-silver deposits in the Islamic Republic of Mauritania (phase V, deliverable 73)

Although Mississippi Valley-type (MVT) deposits have not been recognized in Mauritania there are permissive tracts for these deposits in the regionally extensive Proterozoic carbonate rocks of the Taoudeni Basin. Permissive tracts for undiscovered MVT Pb-Zn-Ag deposits in the Proterozoic carbonate units are supported by the occurrences of MVT mineral and alteration assemblages, presence of evaporites, proximity to major orogenic events that have produced MVT ores elsewhere, red bed sequences and basal aquifers that may have been potential brine migration pathways for large MVT hydrothermal systems. Permissive tracts for SEDEX (sedimentary exhalative) deposits coincide with those for MVT deposits. However, the geodynamic setting of the Taoudeni Basin is unlike that of SEDEX ores elsewhere on Earth, and therefore the potential for this class of deposits must be rather low. SEDEX deposits occur along tectonically active, shale dominated passive margins or in intracontinental rift basins.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2015

Mineral wealth, natural economic resources of New Zealand: Chapter 12 in A continent on the move - New Zealand geoscience revealed

No abstract available.

Book chapter↗

USGS2014

Geochemistry of magnetite from porphyry Cu and skarn deposits in the southwestern United States

A combination of petrographic observations, laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), and statistical data exploration was used in this study to determine compositional variations in hydrothermal and igneous magnetite from five porphyry Cu–Mo and skarn deposits in the southwestern United States, and igneous magnetite from the unmineralized, granodioritic Inner Zone Batholith, Japan. The most important overall discriminators for the minor and trace element chemistry of magnetite from the investigated porphyry and skarn deposits are Mg, Al, Ti, V, Mn, Co, Zn, and Ga—of these the elements with the highest variance for (I) igneous magnetite are Mg, Al, Ti, V, Mn, Zn, for (II) hydrothermal porphyry magnetite are Mg, Ti, V, Mn, Co, Zn, and for (III) hydrothermal skarn magnetite are Mg, Ti, Mn, Zn, and Ga. Nickel could only be detected at levels above the limit of reporting (LOR) in two igneous magnetites. Equally, Cr could only be detected in one igneous occurrence. Copper, As, Mo, Ag, Au, and Pb have been reported in magnetite by other authors but could not be detected at levels greater than their respective LORs in our samples. Comparison with the chemical signature of igneous magnetite from the barren Inner Zone Batholith, Japan, suggests that V, Mn, Co, and Ga concentrations are relatively depleted in magnetite from the porphyry and skarn deposits. Higher formation conditions in combination with distinct differences between melt and hydrothermal fluid compositions are reflected in Al, Ti, V, and Ga concentrations that are, on average, higher in igneous magnetite than in hydrothermal magnetite (including porphyry and skarn magnetite). Low Ti and V concentrations in combination with high Mn concentrations are characteristic features of magnetite from skarn deposits. High Mg concentrations (<1,000 ppm) are characteristic for magnetite from magnesian skarn and likely reflect extensive fluid/rock interaction. In porphyry deposits, hydrothermal magnetite from different vein types can be distinguished by varying Ti, V, Mn, and Zn contents. Titanium and V concentrations are highly variable among hydrothermal and igneous magnetites, but Ti concentrations above 3,560 ppm could only be detected in igneous magnetite, and V concentrations are on average lower in hydrothermal magnetite. The highest Ti concentrations are present in igneous magnetite from gabbro and monzonite. The lowest Ti concentrations were recorded in igneous magnetite from granodiorite and granodiorite breccia and largely overlap with Ti concentrations found in hydrothermal porphyry magnetite. Magnesium and Mn concentrations vary between magnetite from different skarn deposits but are generally greater than in hydrothermal magnetite from the porphyry deposits. High Mg, and low Ti and V concentrations characterize hydrothermal magnetite from magnesian skarn deposits and follow a trend that indicates that magnetite from skarn (calcic and magnesian) commonly has low Ti and V concentrations.

Arizona, New Mexico↗

USGS2014

The chemistry of hydrothermal magnetite: a review

Magnetite (Fe 3 O 4 ) is a well-recognized petrogenetic indicator and is a common accessory mineral in many ore deposits and their host rocks. Recent years have seen an increased interest in the use of hydrothermal magnetite for provenance studies and as a pathfinder for mineral exploration. A number of studies have investigated how specific formation conditions are reflected in the composition of the respective magnetite. Two fundamental questions underlie these efforts — (i) How can the composition of igneous and, more importantly, hydrothermal magnetite be used to discriminate mineralized areas from barren host rocks, and (ii) how can this assist exploration geologists to target ore deposits at greater and greater distances from the main mineralization? Similar to igneous magnetite, the most important factors that govern compositional variations in hydrothermal magnetite are (A) temperature, (B) fluid composition — element availability, (C) oxygen and sulfur fugacity, (D) silicate and sulfide activity, (E) host rock buffering, (F) re-equilibration processes, and (G) intrinsic crystallographic controls such as ionic radius and charge balance. We discuss how specific formation conditions are reflected in the composition of magnetite and review studies that investigate the chemistry of hydrothermal and igneous magnetite from various mineral deposits and their host rocks. Furthermore, we discuss the redox-related alteration of magnetite (martitization and mushketovitization) and mineral inclusions in magnetite and their effect on chemical analyses. Our database includes published and previously unpublished magnetite minor and trace element data for magnetite from (1) banded iron formations (BIF) and related high-grade iron ore deposits in Western Australia, India, and Brazil, (2) Ag–Pb–Zn veins of the Coeur d'Alene district, United States, (3) porphyry Cu–(Au)–(Mo) deposits and associated (4) calcic and magnesian skarn deposits in the southwestern United States and Indonesia, and (5) plutonic igneous rocks from the Henderson Climax-type Mo deposit, United States, and the un-mineralized Inner Zone Batholith granodiorite, Japan. These five settings represent a diverse suite of geological settings and cover a wide range of formation conditions. The main discriminator elements for magnetite are Mg, Al, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Zn, and Ga. These elements are commonly present at detectable levels (10 to > 1000 ppm) and display systematic variations. We propose a combination of Ni/(Cr + Mn) vs. Ti + V, Al + Mn vs. Ti + V, Ti/V and Sn/Ga discriminant plots and upper threshold concentrations to discriminate hydrothermal from igneous magnetite and to fingerprint different hydrothermal ore deposits. The overall trends in upper threshold values for the different settings can be summarized as follows: (I) BIF (hydrothermal) — low Al, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Zn, Ga and Sn; (II) Ag–Pb–Zn veins (hydrothermal) — high Mn and low Ga and Sn; (III) Mg-skarn (hydrothermal) — high Mg and Mn and low Al, Ti, Cr, Co, Ni and Ga; (IV) skarn (hydrothermal) — high Mg, Al, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni and Zn and low Sn; (V) porphyry (hydrothermal) — high Ti and V and low Sn; (VI) porphyry (igneous) — high Ti, V and Cr and low Mg; and (VII) Climax-Mo (igneous) — high Al, Ga and Sn and low Mg and Cr.

Ore Geology Reviews↗

USGS2012

Permissive tracts for sediment-hosted lead-zinc-silver deposits in Mauritania (phase V, deliverable 72): Chapter J1 in Second projet de renforcement institutionnel du secteur minier de la République Islamique de Mauritanie (PRISM-II)

In 1996, at the request of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, a team of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists produced a strategic plan for the acquisition, improvement and modernization of multidisciplinary sets of data to support the growth of the Mauritanian minerals sector and to highlight the geological and mineral exploration potential of the country. In 1999, the Ministry of Petroleum, Energy, and Mines of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania implemented a program for the acquisition of the recommended basic geoscientific information, termed the first Projet de Renforcement Institutionnel du Secteur Minier (Project for Institutional Capacity Building in the Mining Sector, PRISM-I). As a result of the PRISM-I efforts, a great deal of new geological, geophysical, geochemical, remote sensing, and hydrological data became available for evaluation and synthesis. However, the Ministry of Petroleum, Energy, and Mines recognized that additional work was required to extract the full benefit of the data before it could be of greatest use to the international community and of benefit to the Mauritanian minerals and development sector. To achieve this benefit, the Ministry of Petroleum, Energy, and Mines implemented a second Projet de Renforcement Institutionnel du Secteur Minier (PRISM-II) in 2006 to consolidate, synthesize, and interpret all of the existing data, create a new 1:1,000,000 scale geologic map, and define the mineral resource potential of the country. A consortium in which the USGS was the lead scientific agency carried out the majority of the PRISM-II work. In 2008, the USGS Mauritania Minerals Project was interrupted due to political changes in Mauritania. PRISM-II work resumed in 2011, and was completed in 2013 with the delivery of over 40 separate written reports and plates, an access file containing the Mauritanian National Mineral Deposits Database, and an interactive GIS containing all of the multi-disciplinary data and interpretive areas of mineral resource potential in Mauritania. This report contains the USGS results of the PRISM-II Mauritania Minerals Project and is presented in cooperation with the Ministry of Petroleum, Energy, and Mines of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania. The Report is composed of separate chapters consisting of multidisciplinary interpretive reports with accompanying plates on the geology, structure, geochronology, geophysics, hydrogeology, geochemistry, remote sensing (Landsat TM and ASTER), and SRTM and ASTER digital elevation models of Mauritania. The syntheses of these multidisciplinary data formed the basis for additional chapters containing interpretive reports on 12 different commodities and deposit types known to occur in Mauritania, accompanied by countrywide mineral resource potential maps of each commodity/deposit type. The commodities and deposit types represented include: (1) Ni, Cu, PGE, and Cr deposits hosted in ultramafic rocks; (2) orogenic, Carlin-like, and epithermal gold deposits; (3) polymetallic Pb-Zn-Cu vein deposits; (4) sediment-hosted Pb-Zn-Ag deposits of the SEDEX and Mississippi Valley-type; (5) sediment-hosted copper deposits; ( 6) volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits; (7) iron oxide copper-gold deposits; (8) uranium deposits; (9) Algoma-, Superior-, and oolitic-type iron deposits; (10) shoreline Ti-Zr placer deposits; (11) incompatible element deposits hosted in pegmatites, alkaline rocks, and carbonatites, and; (12) industrial mineral deposits. Additional chapters include the Mauritanian National Mineral Deposits Database are accompanied by an explanatory text and the Mauritania Minerals Project GIS that contains all of the interpretive layers created by USGS scientists. Raw data not in the public domain may be obtained from the Ministry of Petroleum, Energy, and Mines in Nouakchott, Mauritania.

Open-File Report↗

USGS2012

Mauritania – A greenfields exploration opportunity in northwestern Africa

No abstract available.

Society of Economic Geologists Newsletter↗

USGS2002

Stratigraphy of the Proterozoic Revett Formation, Coeur d'Alene District, Idaho

The Proterozoic Revett Formation of the Belt Supergroup contains three informal members that can be identified throughout the Coeur d'Alene mining district of northern Idaho. The lower Revett Formation is dominated by quartzite, but also contains intervals of siltite. The middle Revett consists predominantly of siltite, though quartzite and argillite locally form significant intervals. The upper Revett consists of intervals of quartzite that alternate with intervals of siltite and/or thin-bedded argillite. These units show dramatic changes in thickness and sedimentary facies within the Coeur d'Alene mining district; changes that are more abrupt and extreme than seen elsewhere in the Belt basin. The regionally significant Osburn fault bisects the district, with 20 to 30 km of post-mineralization right-lateral strike-slip offset. South of this fault, the upper Revett is 640 m thick at the Bunker Hill mine in the west, 450 to 500 m thick in the centrally located Silver Belt, and over 550 m thick at the Reindeer Queen deposit to the east. North of the Osburn fault, the upper Revett is approximately 120 m thick in the vicinity of the Lucky Friday mine, but abruptly thins to 45 to 90 m to the north and northeast, in the southern end of the western Montana copper sulfide belt. The middle Revett Formation south of the Osburn fault appears to be 400 to 450 m thick. North of the Osburn Fault, the middle Revett thins to approximately 120 m in the Lucky Friday area, and to approximately 60 m at Military Gulch. The lower Revett Formation is approximately 1650 m thick south of the Osburn fault, but thins to 400 to 450 m thick to the north of the Osburn fault. Observed thickness changes support previous hypotheses that the current Osburn fault coincides with a Proterozoic synsedimentary fault that controlled sedimentation in this region.

Open-File Report↗