Mineralogical and Geochemical Study of the Ni-Cu-Co-Au-Ag-PGE Sulfides of the Discovery Zone, Nickel Mountain Gabbro Complex, British Columbia

位于镍山辉长杂岩中的E&L矿床是不列颠哥伦比亚省已知的第二大岩浆镍铜硫化物成矿带，也是在艾斯凯裂谷内发现的第一个。这项拟议的研究将研究一条异常高品位的块状硫化物Ni-Cu-PGE矿化带，该矿化带主要赋存于靠近E&L侵入体的变质沉积岩中。这种矿化被称为发现区，由Garibaldi Resources Corp.(GRC)于2016年发现，但人们对矿化的来源仍知之甚少。块状硫化物岩片显示了镍、铜、钴和贵金属的浓度从底部到顶部的系统变化。这为理解硫化物熔体的分异机制提供了一个独特的新机会。该项目的目标是识别发现带内矿化的地质控制，并了解板片内成分多样性是如何起源的，以及这种矿化与E&L侵入体中结构可变的橄榄辉长岩所赋存的浸染状和块状硫化物有何关系。这项研究将利用原生野外和钻探岩心观察、全岩硫化物地球化学以及矿物结构和成分数据，评估原生岩浆与晚期岩浆和岩浆后控制作用对矿化组成的相对作用。这些数据将被用来产生发现区矿化的成因模型，用于评估和改进GRC在镍山辉长岩杂岩体内寻找更多硫化物矿化的勘探战略。

The E&L deposit in the Nickel Mountain Gabbro Complex is the second largest known zone of magmatic nickel-copper sulfide mineralization in British Columbia and the first to be discovered within the Eskay Rift. The proposed research will examine a zone of unusually high-grade massive sulfide Ni-Cu-PGE mineralization, largely hosted by metasedimentary rocks adjacent to the E&L Intrusion. The mineralization, known as the Discovery Zone, was discovered in 2016 by Garibaldi Resources Corp. (GRC), but the origin of the mineralization remains poorly understood. The massive sulfide sheet shows systematic changes in the concentrations of Ni, Cu, Co, and precious metals from base to top. This offers a unique and new opportunity to understand the mechanisms responsible for the differentiation of sulfide melts. The objectives of this project are to identify the geological controls of the mineralization within the Discovery Zone and to understand how the compositional diversity within the sheet originated, and how this mineralization relates to the disseminated and massive sulfides hosted by the variable-textured olivine gabbro of the E&L Intrusion. The study will utilize primary field and drill core observations, whole-rock sulfide geochemistry, and mineral textural and compositional data to evaluate the relative roles of primary magmatic versus late magmatic and post-magmatic controls on the composition of the mineralization. These data will be used to produce a genetic model for the Discover Zone mineralization, which will be used to assess and improve GRC's exploration strategy in the search for additional sulfide mineralization within the Nickel Mountain Gabbro Complex.