Petrological, mineralogical and geochemical constraints of PGE-Ni-Cu mineralization in the platreef and implications for mineral exploration

金属的持续供应对经济发展和增长至关重要，因为金属是工业化社会的支柱。该项目旨在提高我们对主要含铂（Pt）、钯（Pd）和金（Au）但也含有大量铑（Rh）、镍（Ni）和铜（Cu）的矿床的成因和分布的理解。这些金属有着广泛的用途.例如，除了作为投资工具的价值外，铂和钯是催化过程中的基本元素，在包括汽车工业在内的几个部门中对污染控制的需求很高。该项目提供了一个独特的机会，可以详细描述全球已知最大的铂、钯、铝矿化作用之一：Platreef（南非布什维尔德火成岩杂岩）。该项目将解决两个基本问题：（a）哪些过程控制了矿化的空间分布和厚度变化？(b)什么样的特殊特征可以作为“勘探矢量”，以更好地确定已知矿化的范围，并在其他地方找到类似的矿床？(in南非和世界各地，包括加拿大的未开发的北部）。这些问题的答案将使矿产勘探更有效，成本效益更高，更成功地找到新的矿床。该项目是围绕高素质人才的培训和几个研究生（4个硕士和2个博士）将直接参与该项目。除了工业合作伙伴，该项目还得到了加拿大两项倡议的支持：伊丽莎白二世女王钻禧奖学金计划和国际发展研究中心（IDRC）。NSERC的支持有助于实现两个加拿大机构的目标，即促进研究和与发展中国家的合作，以及在英联邦国家的大学中建设技术能力。

A continuous supply of metals is essential for economic development and growth because metals are thebackbone of industrialized societies. This project aims to improve our understanding of the genesis anddistribution of deposits containing primarily platinum (Pt), palladium (Pd), and gold (Au) but also containingsignificant amounts of rhodium (Rh), nickel (Ni), and copper (Cu). These metals have a wide range ofapplications. For example, in addition to their value as investment instruments, Pt and Pd are essential elementsin catalytic processes and in high demand for pollution control in several sectors, including the automotiveindustry.The project provides a unique opportunity to characterize, in detail, one of the largest known Pt, Pd, Aumineralizations worldwide: the Platreef (Bushveld Igneous Complex, South Africa). The project will addresstwo fundamental questions: (a) which processes controlled the spatial distribution and variations in thethickness of the mineralization?; (b) what particular characteristics can be used as 'exploration vectors' to betterdefine the extent of known mineralization and find similar deposits elsewhere? (in South Africa andworldwide, including Canada's unexplored north). Answers to these questions will make mineral explorationmore efficient, cost-effective, and more successful in finding new deposits.The project is designed around the training of highly-qualified personnel and several graduate students (4MSc and 2 PhD) will be directly involved in the project. In addition to the industrial partner, the project issupported by two Canadian initiatives: the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Scholarship Program and theInternational Development Research Centre (IDRC). NSERC support contributes to fulfil the goals of the twoCanadian institutions in fostering research and collaboration with developing countries and buildingtechnological capacity in universities of Commonwealth countries.