The Genesis and Evolution of Metallic Ore Deposits Systems: Insights and Constraints from Mineralogy and Geology

金属矿床系统的起源和演化：矿物学和地质学的见解和约束

• 批准号: DDG-2015-00001
• 负责人: McDonald, Andrew
• 金额: $ 0.73万
• 依托单位: Laurentian University of Sudbury
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Development Grant
• 财政年份: 2016
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2016-01-01 至 2017-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=612406
• 关键词: Genesis; Evolution; Metallic; Ore; Deposits

Intrusion-related Au and magmatic Fe-Ni-Cu-PGE ore deposits are the most important source of metallic minerals produced in Canada. With increasing demands being made for the strategic metals produced, there is a critical need to better understand how the minerals that host these elements and their ore deposits, form and change through time, in an effort to improve exploration methods and enhance mineral-processing techniques. To achieve this, research will be conducted into the crystal-chemistry and geological occurrence of two widespread groups of minerals, precious-metal (gold, platinum-group elements) minerals and base-metal sulfides of the pyrrhotite family. Despite the direct relevance of these mineral groups to ore deposits and the impact that a better understanding of them would have on ore-deposit research, our knowledge of what these minerals are and what they can indicate about rocks in which they develop is generally lacking. This can be attributed to: (i) their occurrence in complex intergrowths and small grain-sizes; (ii) variable, poorly defined, chemistries and crystal structures and (iii) comprehensive studies that integrate mineralogical data with geological data (structures, fluids, etc.). The proposed research is novel in scope as it will address the very basic components of ore deposits, the minerals themselves, filling knowledge gaps that exist in our understanding of the distribution and character of these minerals. The program will build upon the existing strengths and expertise of the applicant and will involve a significant training component that will increase the number of highly qualified personnel available with specialized skills in demand by the mining and minerals sectors. It will involve existing and novel, lab-based techniques required to address the complex, atomic-scale issues related to these minerals, complemented by larger-scope, field-based studies that will provide firm data related to the provenance and geological history of the rocks in which the minerals occur. The research goals of the program will be to: (1) document the crystal-chemical variations in precious-metal minerals and pyrrhotite that exist; (2) derive information regarding conditions of formation, based on the chemistry and crystal structures of these minerals and (3) apply the data obtained to understand how ore deposits develop and evolve through time.

与侵入体有关的金、铁、镍、铜、铂等岩浆型矿床是加拿大最重要的金属矿物来源。随着对战略金属的需求日益增加，迫切需要更好地了解承载这些元素及其矿床的矿物是如何随着时间的推移而形成和变化的，以便改进勘探方法和提高矿物加工技术。为此，将对两大类广泛存在的矿物，即贵金属（金、铂族元素）矿物和磁黄铁矿族的贱金属硫化物的晶体化学和地质产状进行研究。尽管这些矿物群与矿床有着直接的联系，而且更好地了解它们会对矿床研究产生影响，但我们对这些矿物是什么以及它们对它们发育的岩石的指示作用的了解通常是缺乏的。这可归因于：(i)它们以复杂的共生体和小粒度出现；（二）多变、定义不清的化学和晶体结构；（三）综合矿物学数据和地质数据（结构、流体等）的综合研究。拟议的研究在范围上是新颖的，因为它将解决矿床的最基本组成部分，矿物本身，填补我们对这些矿物的分布和特征的理解中存在的知识空白。该方案将以申请人的现有优势和专门知识为基础，并将包括一个重要的培训组成部分，以增加具有采矿和矿物部门所需的专门技能的高素质人员的数量。它将涉及解决与这些矿物有关的复杂的原子尺度问题所需的现有的和新颖的实验室技术，并辅之以更大范围的实地研究，这些研究将提供与矿物所在岩石的来源和地质历史有关的可靠数据。该计划的研究目标将是：(1)记录存在的贵金属矿物和磁黄铁矿的晶体化学变化；(2)根据这些矿物的化学和晶体结构得出有关形成条件的信息；(3)应用所获得的数据来了解矿床如何随着时间的推移而发展和演化。