RUI: Investigating the relationship between magmatic processes and copper mineralization at the Lights Creek Stock.

RUI：研究 Lights Creek 库存的岩浆过程和铜矿化之间的关系。

• 批准号: 2240250
• 负责人: Hannah Aird
• 金额: $ 28.11万
• 依托单位: Chico State Enterprises
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-08-01 至 2026-07-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2240250&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: RUI; Investigating; relationship; between; magmatic

As the world transitions to green energy over the next few decades, there will be an increasing demand for metals. This is one of the most overlooked issues in the energy transition. All metals come from minerals, and smaller ore deposits will become more economically viable as the larger ones are depleted. This project will investigate the relationships between the processes that formed a small pluton in northern California and the formation of its associated copper ore deposits. The three small iron oxide-copper-gold (IOCG) deposits of the Lights Creek Stock are being assessed as a future source of copper. IOCG deposits form when groundwater and magmatic fluids alter existing rocks along fractures. The fluids change the minerals in the rocks and deposit new copper minerals along the fractures. This can create a concentration of copper minerals which may become economic to mine. An understanding of how magmatic processes affect copper mineral formation can provide information about where to search for similar deposits elsewhere. This work will be carried out by three graduate students, up to twelve undergraduate independent researchers, and will also encompass three class projects. “Real” research experiences (i.e. when the instructor also doesn’t know the answer) have been shown to be very important in helping STEM students to feel like the real scientists they are, increasing their self-confidence and identity as scientists. This project will support three classes of students to carry out a real research project in the classroom, dramatically increasing student exposure to research in CSU-Chico’s geology program, as less than half of undergraduate students typically carry out independent research with a faculty member. The findings of these class projects will be integrated with the findings of the independent researchers to broaden understanding of the formation of the Lights Creek Stock.The goal of this work is to investigate the temporal and geochemical relationship between magmatic processes and copper mineralization within the Lights Creek Stock (LCS), a granitoid intrusion in the northern Sierra Nevada that hosts three IOCG (iron oxide copper gold) copper deposits. Proposed work will test two hypotheses: 1) LCS was emplaced through multiple pulses of magma over several million years; and 2) the LCS-hosted Superior, Moonlight and Engels IOCG deposits are geochemically related to one another, and were formed from the reaction between late-stage hydromagmatic fluids from the LCS and meteoric fluids. The Dixie Fire in 2021 intensely burned this densely vegetated area, revealing new outcrops and allowing for more detailed fieldwork than has previously been possible. Detailed field descriptions and sample collection of the granitoid rocks will aid reevaluation of a historic model for LCS formation through petrographic, geochemical and geochronological analysis of the lateral variation within the stock. Vertical variation within the LCS will be assessed through similar analyses of drillcore samples during three course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) undertaken by students in a Junior-level petrology class. These vertical and lateral data will be integrated to produce a model for petrogenesis of the LCS (Hypothesis 1). The petrogenesis of the Superior and Engels IOCG deposits will be analyzed individually as MS projects through detailed core logging of several cores, supported by petrography, geochemistry and alteration geochronology (Hypothesis 2). The integration of the IOCG and LCS petrogenetic models will produce a bigger picture model to relate the IOCG deposits to the magmatic history of the LCS, which can then be scaled up throughout the northern Sierra Nevada and analogous regions throughout the world. This work will also train up to twelve undergraduate and three graduate students in research methods in igneous petrology and economic geology, as well as engaging three semesters of students in authentic research experiences. Research has shown that taking part in a research experience increases a student’s STEM identity, self-efficacy, and persistence in the field. CUREs increase access to research experiences to a broader and more diverse range of students, so are classed as a high-impact pedagogical practice.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

随着世界在未来几十年向绿色能源过渡，对金属的需求将不断增加。这是能源转型中最容易被忽视的问题之一。所有金属都来自矿物，随着大型矿床的枯竭，小型矿床将变得更具经济可行性。本项目将调查形成北方加州一个小岩体的过程与其伴生铜矿形成之间的关系。Lights Creek Stock的三个小型氧化铁-铜-金（IOCG）矿床正在被评估为未来的铜来源。当地下水和岩浆流体沿沿着断裂改变现有岩石时，IOCG矿床就形成了。流体改变了岩石中的矿物，并沿着裂隙存款新的铜矿物。这可以产生铜矿物的集中，这可能对采矿来说是经济的。了解岩浆过程如何影响铜矿的形成可以提供有关在其他地方寻找类似矿床的信息。这项工作将由三名研究生，多达12名本科生独立研究人员进行，并将包括三个类项目。“真实的”研究经验（即当教师也不知道答案时）已被证明在帮助STEM学生感觉自己是真实的科学家方面非常重要，增加了他们作为科学家的自信和身份。该项目将支持三个班的学生在课堂上开展真实的研究项目，大大增加学生接触研究CSU-奇科的地质学计划，因为不到一半的本科生通常与教师进行独立研究。这些课程项目的发现将与独立研究人员的发现相结合，以拓宽对Lights Creek Stock形成的理解。这项工作的目标是调查Lights Creek Stock（LCS）内岩浆过程和铜矿化之间的时间和地球化学关系，位于内华达州北方塞拉山脉的花岗岩类侵入体，有三个IOCG（氧化铁铜金）铜矿。拟议的工作将测试两个假设：1）LCS是通过数百万年来的多次岩浆脉冲侵位的; 2）LCS托管的上级，月光和恩格斯IOCG矿床在地球化学上彼此相关，是由LCS后期水岩浆流体和大气流体之间的反应形成的。2021年的迪克西大火强烈烧毁了这个植被茂密的地区，揭示了新的露头，并允许进行比以前更详细的实地调查。详细的现场描述和样本采集的花岗岩类岩石将有助于通过岩相学，地球化学和地质年代学分析的股票内的横向变化的LCS形成的历史模型的重新评估。LCS内的垂直变化将通过在三个课程为基础的本科生研究经验（CURE）进行的学生在初级岩石学类的岩心样品的类似分析进行评估。这些垂直和横向数据将被整合，以产生LCS的岩石成因模型（假设1）。上级和Engels IOCG矿床的岩石成因将作为MS项目，通过对多个岩心进行详细的岩心测井，并得到岩石学、地球化学和蚀变地质年代学的支持（假设2）。IOCG和LCS岩石成因模型的整合将产生一个更大的图像模型，将IOCG矿床与LCS的岩浆历史联系起来，然后可以在整个北方Sierra内华达州和世界各地的类似地区按比例放大。这项工作还将培养多达12名本科生和3名研究生在火成岩岩石学和经济地质学的研究方法，以及从事三个学期的学生在真实的研究经验。研究表明，参加研究体验可以提高学生的STEM身份，自我效能感和在该领域的持久性。CURE为更广泛和更多样化的学生提供了更多的研究经验，因此被归类为高影响力的教学实践。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响力审查标准进行评估来支持。