Ashern: Mineral Resources

42:271                      MINERAL   RESOURCES    - course outline            ASHERN, Canada

                                                                

      Fall 2014                                No text        Notes on line

       ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -

       1^st week  (Oct. 24/25)           Mineral Resources

                                                             Human Inventions

                                                             Classification of metals

                                                             Mineral deposit types (14)

        2^nd  week                      Non- metals & Industrial Minerals         Test # 1        20 %

        3^rd   week                                   Mineral collecting                     Test # 2        20 %

                                                              Fireworks

                                                              Gems / gemstones

        4^th   week                                    Gem deposits                            Test # 3       20 %

                                                               Pegmatites                          Project due      20 %

                                                         Project Presentations                                         

                                                                                                                         

        5^th week                                 Project Presentations                       Final            20 %

                                                       Gems in Manitoba / Canada

PROJECT: on 1 or more of chemical elements, gems or mineral/rock deposits in

    20%       Manitoba or elsewhere. Very important: include how useful the resource

                    is to our everyday life (example silicon is used in computers, rare earth

                    metals are used in cellphones, etc)

                    Give exciting information about the subject that will be interesting for

                    students to learn about, and hopefully may trigger them to look for more

                    info themselves

NOTES: Google search for “Ashern Mineral Resources”

                Notes to be posted 2 – 3 days before Friday’s class

                                                            lapis lazuli, Afghanistan

The "Rock" found north of Ashern: conglomerate from Canadian Shield brought in by glaciers

Visit to the Graymont Limestone / Quicklime Plant

Mineral Resources                   42:271

Contents

•Periodic Table of Elements

•Mineral Resources

•Standard classification of metals

•Classification of deposit types (14)

•Non-metals & Industrial Minerals

•Mineral Collecting

•Fireworks

•Gems & Gemstones

•Gem deposits

•Gems in Canada

Periodic Table of Elements

•Metals (copper)

•Non metals (oxygen)

•Alkali metals (sodium)

•Alkaline earth metals (magnesium)

•Halogens (chlorine)

•Noble gases (helium)

Name of elements

•Discovered one by one

•Some from the locality where they were found first (Yttrium from Ytterby, Sweden)

•Greek/ Latin roots in most names

•Hydrogen= ydor, hydro (water) + gene (creating)

•Helium is the Greek word for the Sun, because it was discovered there by the spectrum

•Lithium= Greek word for stone, because it comes from rocks not plants (like its neighbors on the Table)

•Oxygen= acid creator (erroneously thought)

•Chlorine= means green-yellow

•Nickel= from Old Nick meaning the Devil, because you get no copper. They thought the reddish mineral would give Cu on smelting

•Molybdenum= meaning “lead” or “a soft, black substance that can be used for writing”

•Antimony= “instead of by itself” or not found by itself, always mixed with other minerals

•Iodine= the color of violet (flower)

•Lanthanum= “easily missed” because it is hidden among other minerals

•Gold= yellow

•Platinum= “small silver” because it is white and usually found with gold

•Uranium= from planet Uranus, discovered at about the same time as the element

The Elements

•Arranged according to atomic number (size of atom)

•From element # 1 to element # 26 (Iron) manufactured by our Sun (the star)

•All higher than # 26 manufactured by supernova explosion of pre-existing stars

Therefore, our solar system is second generation star system (attractive to aliens?)

The Periodic Table

•Tabular arrangement of elements

•Atomic number is # of protons in the nucleus

•Rows called periods, columns are groups

•18 columns, 7 rows with a double row below

•4 rectangular blocks: s-block to the left, p-block to the right, d-block in the middle & f-block below

•The table incorporates “recurring trends”, like similar properties

•Table can also predict properties of new elements

•Atomic number is # of protons in the nucleus- equal to # of electrons

•A new row (period) is created when the atom has a new electron shell & has its first electron

•Elements with the same # of electrons in a particular shell occupy the same column

•Elements with similar properties belong to the same group

•Today, 114 confirmed elements

•Only 98 elements occur naturally

•There are 18 columns or groups

Can change one element to the next

•With a higher atomic number

•Simply by giving it energy

•If unstable, it will give off this extra energy – doing some useful work – and change back to its original

•Example from “Jerusalem Dome of the Rock UFO”

•Flash is when it changes into a higher element, then gives off its energy by climbing up fast while it changes back to its earlier form – the element created is probably element 116 which is unstable

Electronic equipment we use

•Necessary to have good conductors (metals)

•Need special properties of conductors

•Many of these are provided by the REEs

•Rare Earth Elements: China has the bulk of them, but others may have them too

•Need exploration to find them

Where to find information

•Textbooks

•Unfortunately, the textbook for this course is out of print, new one not ready

Info on the web

•Mineral Resource Classification: Wikipedia

•Ore Genesis : Wikipedia

•Hydrothermal circulation: Wikipedia

•Hydrothermal synthesis: Wikipedia

•Volcanogenic massive sulfide ore deposit: Wikipedia

•Seafloor massive sulfide deposits: Wikipedia

Info on elements for project

•Look under name of element / metal

•Look under deposit of that element / metal

•Find something you like or you want to know more about (such as the gems of Manitoba!)

•Make a presentation and/or send by email

Where the metals come from?

•Every rock you pick has traces of metals, but you can’t see them – in trace amounts

•These metals can be absorbed by hot water solutions going through the rocks

•The solutions will also have other solvents like sulfur that can dissolve other metals

•When conditions change along the way the metals can be deposited – they precipitate out

Examples of changing conditions

•Change in temp. or pressure

•Change in rock type

Metals

•Their abundance in rocks of various types has been measured

•In order for them to become “ore” nature has to collect them in some place or trap

•This concentration over millions of years of time has created ore deposits

•The concentration factors of metals varies quite a lot

Table: Concentration of metals into ore

•          abundance               concentration factor

•Al            8.2%                               4

•Fe           5.6 %                               9

•Cu           55 ppm                        180

•Zn           70 ppm                        700

•Au           4 ppb                          1250

•Pt            5 ppb                           1000

Magma

•Dissolves surrounding rocks

•Within a liquid mass, some metals can accumulate if they are heavier, for example

•These “heavies” accumulate at the bottom of magma chamber and can solidify to form a layered deposit when magma cools down, for example, chromium, platinum

Human history and resources

•Stone Age

•Copper Age – but Cu is soft

•Bronze Age    3,000 BC – Cu + Sn (tin)

•Iron Age         1,200 BC

•Many new discoveries since industrialization ~ 200 years ago

Mineral Resources

•Resources (available if feasible) v. reserves (ready to mine)

•Material of economic interest. Needs to be calculated, usually after drilling. Then, called “ore”

•Theories on how materials form in the Earth’s crust: “ore genesis”

•Material has a source, usually magma, then it is transported and deposited in a suitable environment (trap)

Ore genesis processes

•Inside the Earth: magmatic, hydrothermal, metamorphic

•On the surface of the Earth (example, gold nuggets in a river)

Concentration of metals

•One can get a clue of the mineralizing solutions from the so-called “fluid inclusions” or remains of those fluids trapped in the rocks

Fluid Inclusions

•4 common types

•Aqueous: liquid + minor vapor

•Aqueous: vapor + minor liquid

•Aqueous; liquid, vapor, halite, anhydrite

•CO2 – bearing

Compare them to our own blood

•Which passes through our body bringing nourishment, oxygen, etc & removing other substances

•(blood is a solution identical to the sea water)

•Most metal deposits are sulfides

•But metal sulfides are extremely insoluble in pure hot water

•Evidence comes from fluid inclusions: small samples of fluid trapped in minerals

•Inclusions contain a lot of Na, Ca, Mg, Cl & S and metals

•Metals transported as soluble compounds, such as PbCl2 + H2S = PbS + 2HCl

example

•Galena (PbS) precipitated when the lead compound comes in contact with hydrogen sulfide gas

Standard classification of metals

Common ores

•Iron

•Lead-zinc-silver

•Gold

•Platinum

•Nickel

•Copper

•Uranium

•Titanium and zirconium

•Tin, tungsten and molybdenum

•Rare earths, niobium, tantalum, lithium

•Phosphate

•Vanadium

•Gems

•Industrial minerals (sand, gravel, diatomaceous earth, silica sand)

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currently in fashion :

Rare Earths (REEs)

               17

reference: geology.com

Yttrium +

•The 15 Lanthanoids

Scandium

•Also is found together with the others and listed as a REE

All REEs

•Have similar properties

•That is why they are found together

•They are all metals

•They are all sold as oxides

Uses

•In computer memory

•DVDs

•Rechargeable batteries

•Cell phones

•Catalytic converters

•Magnets

•Fluorescent lighting

•etc

Batteries

•For electric  and hybrid cars

Catalysts, phosphors, polishing compounds

•These are used for air pollution control

•Illuminate screens on electronic devices

•Polishing on high quality glass

The Military

•Night vision goggles

•Precision-guided weapons

•GPS equipment

•Make hard alloys for armored vehicles

•Projectiles that shatter in thousands of sharp fragments

Are they rare?

•Not really

•However, they are difficult to find in concentrations high enough to be mined

History

•Before 1950’s no demand

•Found in heavy sands of Brazil & India

•Then, in South Africa’s monazite sands

•Later on, in a California carbonatite

•Demand exploded with the coming of color TV in the 1960’s

•China eventually became the biggest producer

Exploration

•In high gear world wide

•It is believed that China, who produces 90 % of world’s supply, actually only has 50 % of world’s resources

•The rest 50 % are spread in other countries

•So, start looking…

Where to find them

•Alkaline igneous rocks & magmas

•Rare Earth placer deposits

•Residual Rare Earth deposits

•Rare Earth elements in pegmatites

•Other Rare Earth deposit types

•Mineral processing is challenging

Alkaline igneous rocks

•Form from cooling of magma from the mantle

•Process not fully understood

•Rare magma unusually enriched in Zr, Nb, Sr, Ba, Li & the REEs

•More changes as magma ascends through various rocks on the way up

•Great variation in composition of alkaline rocks and their metal deposits

Example of alkaline igneous rocks

•Montreal or Mount Royal

•The hill was a volcano

•So are numerous hills in the vicinity, all lined up. Formed by the movement of the plate over a hot spot

•They have been studied, but their REEs contents not calculated yet

Rare Earth placer deposits

•Weathering of rocks of all kinds yields sediments deposited in rivers, shores & deltas

•Denser minerals such as gold accumulate into placers, also monazite, ilmenite, cassiterite, etc

Residual Rare Earth deposits

•In tropical areas, rocks are deeply weathered to form laterite, an Fe & Al-rich soil

•The process of soil formation concentrates heavy minerals over the underlying bedrock

REEs in pegmatites

•Are generally small, not for commercial  production

Other Rare Earth deposit types

• deposit, Australia is unique

•Fe oxide, Cu-Au with large amounts of Rare Earths and uranium

•However, no method to recover these REEs

•Karst bauxites are enriched in REEs

Mineral processing: a challenge

•The ores of REEs are complex and commonly radioactive

•To separate one metal from one mineral (Cu from chalcopyrite) is simple and easy

•Very challenging to separate 2 or more metals from a single mineral or multiple minerals

•Minerals containing many REEs must be separated and refined. The presence of radioactivity makes it difficult to mine due to to many regulations imposed

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Iron (Fe)

•Mostly magnetite in ancient sediments accumulated on the ocean floor in an oxygen poor atmosphere and acidic water

•Weathering converts magnetite into hematite, much easier to process

•Some deposits within the Pilbara region of W. Australia formed as placer deposits

•They formed by accumulation of hematite gravels called pisolites, which form channel-iron deposits

Iron Formations

•Found in Proterozoic rocks (Precambrian) worldwide

•Large deposits in Ontario & Quebec

•Small occurrences throughout Manitoba – example, near Bissett

•Big production in Michigan (cell phones may not work in some places due to abundant magnetite deposits)

pictures of Iron Formation : magnetite layers are black and chert layers can be red or other colours. Red colour would be similar to the colour of seawater at the time!

Lead-Zinc –Silver

•Form by the discharge of deep sedimentary brine onto the sea floor (SEDEX), or by replacement of limestone, some associated with volcanoes.

•Vast majority of SEDEX deposits are of Proterozoic age, some are of Jurassic age.

•The carbonate replacement type deposits form by degradation of limestone by hydrocarbons which are thought to be important for transporting lead

•The minerals are galena & sphalerite. Silver is found in inclusions within galena

•Silver-rich galena will have a striped appearance (see hand samples)

Gold (Au)

•Form in a very wide variety

•Primary or placer or residual

•Plate tectonics generates gold deposits

•Primary are lode or intrusion-related

•Lodes associated with orogeny or other collision events

•Most lode deposits sourced from metamorphic rocks

•Form by dehydration of basalt during metamorphism

•Gold transported up faults by hydrothermal waters and deposited when the water cools too much to retain gold in solution

•Lode deposits are high-grade, thin, vein or fault-hosted. Usually in quartz veins or reefs

•Usually hosted in basalt or in sediments known as turbidites, although when in faults that may be in granite

•Intrusive-related gold hosted in granite, porphyry or dikes. May also contain copper, tin, tungsten, etc

•These deposits rely on gold existing in the fluids associated with the magma

•Placer deposits form via gravity with gold sinking into a trap or bends in rivers

Gold “Reef”, Quebec – picture

Malartic mine, Quebec –largest in Canada (probably)

west of the pit above, the old East Malartic mine - where I worked. Notice the shaft has an inclined component - that was the shaft going down into the rock

Gold in a chert horizon – picture

Large nuggets in a rock mine: Red Lake, Cadillac mine, Que. & NW Ontario/Man. border

picture from Red Lake

Red Lake mine: rock has 220 oz of gold! worth 330,000 $ at today's prices- sorry out of focus!

Laterite gold

•Form after prolonged weathering of primary gold deposits
Now rock made up of red iron oxide, clays and a bit of native gold

•Example: Ketza deposit in the Yukon – see samples

Uses of Au

•For 70 years it was a standard treatment for rheumatoid arthritis to inject a liquid suspension of gold, which acts like an anti-inflammatory – no one knows why or how

•Windows coated with Au to help reflect the sun in the summer and retain heat in winter

•About 20 % of decorative gold is in the thread of Indian saris

Toronto’s Royal Bank Plaza

•Two 41-and- 26 storey towers

•Has 14,000 windows

•All have very thin coating of 24-carat gold leaf

•2,500 ounces (70.8 kg) of gold worth over 1 million $

Can you change metal into Au?

•Soviet nuclear reactors transformed some lead nuclei into gold

Gold in history

•World production from ancient times to now is about 165,000 tons

•A lot is reused

•Biggest source of gold is in the ocean water, but you can’t recover it

•Alexander inherited 5,000 tons of gold –the bulk of the gold produced prior to zero year -when he conquered Persia (it brought its gold from Uzbekistan / Tajikistan, Persia had none)

Alexander's funeral procession - all made up of gold supposedly

•Egypt has many gold treasures, but the country has no gold – it brought it from Sudan

Pharaoh sarcophagus

•The Incas of ancient Peru had lots of gold from the volcanic / igneous rocks of the Andes

•California “started” with the Gold Rush, later a “Yukon Rush” in the Klondike area (depicted in movies of Charlie Chaplin)

•Latest production comes from the shallow “black smokers” of the Pacific ocean

pictures of gold nuggets (Australia)

The "Hand of Faith" nugget

Platinum (Pt)

•Pt and palladium are generally found within ultramafic rocks

•Source of the metals is rocks that have enough sulfur to form a sulfide mineral while the magma is still liquid

•The sulfide mineral (pyrite, etc) gains platinum by mixing with the bulk of the magma because Pt is chalcophile (it likes Cu) and is concentrated in sulfides

•Sulfide phases only form in ultramafic magmas when the magma reaches sulfur saturation.

•To achieve sulfur saturation magma must get contaminated with sulfur-rich wallrock or mixed with other magma

•Often, Pt is associated with Ni, Cu, Cr and Co deposits

Most of world’s production

•Comes from the Merensky Reef in South Africa, a continuous layer that formed by fractional crystallization within one magma chamber

•Minor production comes from Thompson, Man. and Norilsk, Siberia

•Pt used in seat belts – excellent conductor

Nickel (Ni)

•Two types, as sulfide or laterite

•Sulfide form the same way as Pt deposits

•Ni is a chalcophile element which prefers sulfides, so an ultramafic or mafic rock which has a sulfide phase in the magma may form nickel sulfides.

•Best Ni deposits accumulate at the base of komatiite lavas (Mg-rich)

Thompson / Voisey Bay deposits

•Subvolcanic sills host Ni sulfide deposits formed by deposition of sulfides near the feeder vent. Sulfide was accumulated near the vent due to the less of magma velocity at the vent interface

- see hand samples with pyrrhotite

Sudbury deposits

•The Sudbury Basin or the Sudbury Nickel Irruptive is a major geologic structure in Ontario

•It is the second largest impact crater on Earth as well as one of the oldest (1.8 b.y. old)

•The large impact crater filled with magma rich in Ni, Cu, Pt, Pd, Au & other metals

Picture of the Sudbury Meteorite crater or Basin. Nickel mines along edge of Basin

Norilsk deposits, Siberia

•Largest Ni-Cu-Pd deposits in the world

•Deposit formed 250 m.y. ago during the eruption of the Siberian Trap Igneous Province (STIP). The STIP erupted over I million cubic km of lava, a large portion of it through a series of flat-lying conduits

•The ore formed when the erupting magma became saturated in sulfur, forming globules of sulfides. These sulfides were then “washed” by the continuing torrent of erupting magma & upgraded their tenor with Ni, Cu, Pt & Pd

Satellite picture of the Norilsk mine area

Ni laterite deposits

•Similar to formation of gold laterites except that ultramafic or mafic rocks are required

•Very large olivine-bearing ultramafic intrusions

New Caledonia laterite- picture

Uses of Ni

•The Loonie: bronze plated on pure Ni (7 g wt)

•In CDs, cell phones, batteries, electric shavers, golf clubs, credit cards, etc

Copper (Cu)

•Either formed within sedimentary rocks or in igneous rocks

•Most major copper deposits within the granitic porphyry copper style

•Sedimentary Cu forms in ocean basins. Cu is precipitated by brine from deeply buried sediment (similar to SEDEX zinc)

More information under "Porphyry Copper"

Uranium (U)

•Source is radioactive granites when certain minerals like monazite are leached during hydrothermal activity or by circulation of groundwater

•U is brought into solution by acidic conditions & is deposited when this acidity is neutralized

•Generally this occurs in carbon-bearing sediments within an unconformity

Precambrian Shield

Craton means continental basement

sections of uranium deposits with respect to the unconformity (boundary between two groups of rocks)

picture of "comb quartz", typical of U veins

hand samples of U from Saskatchewan in class

•U also found in coal and in all granites

•Radon gas creates a problem in U mining

•40% of world U in the Olympic Dam deposit in Australia. U in granite & porphyry

Uranium City area, Sask.

•Production from 1960’s until 1982

•Newer high grade deposits discovered under the Athabasca sandstone Basin in N. Sask. have huge reserves & tremendous potential

•Unconformity with underlying basement is the target wherever graphite sediments are present

Titanium & Zirconium (Ti, Zr)

•Mostly found as mineral sands

•By accumulation of heavy minerals in beaches (like placer)

•Titanium as ilmenite, rutile & leucoxene

•Zirconium as zircon

•Thorium in monazite

•All found in granite. After erosion & transportation by rivers into beaches

Zircon: yellow crystals in granite, contain U, Th, used as a opacifier (making things opaque) in ceramics

Tin, tungsten & Molybdenum

•Form in certain type of granites

•Skarn deposits form by reaction of mineralized fluids with the rocks – such as limestone -surrounding the granite

Tin: used in tin cans, making bronze, now produced in Malysia from alluvial deposits

Molybdenum: found with Cu in porphyry deposits. Used in making steel

Tungsten: heavy metal, rare in nature. Used to steel, carbide, lamp filaments

Rare Earths, Niobium, Tantalum, Lithium

•The majority of REEs +tantalum & lithium- found within pegmatite

•Probable origin by metamorphism & igneous activity

•Lithium as spodumene & lepidolite

•Carbonatite intrusions an important source of these elements

Example:

Bernic Lake, Manitoba: Tanco mine

•Lithium

•Cesium - 80% of world's production

•Tantalum

•Columbium

•Beryllium

Hoidas Lake, N. Sask.

50 km north of Uranium City
Most advanced REEs property in Canada (ready for mining)
Named after a WWII pilot who died in action
Contains a significant amount of heavy REEs, such as dysprosium- used in hybrid car components
Unfortunately, there is some U in the ore

Phosphate

•Used as fertilizers

•Immense quantities in sedimentary rocks from the Proterozoic age to now

•The source of P is the skeletons of marine animals

•Another source is intrusions like nepheline syenite & carbonatites

•The P is in apatite & monazite

Vanadium (V)

•Found in blood cells of vanabins in the sea

•Biological processes responsible for the deposits

•Also found in crude oil & oil sands
used to make steel

Tellurium (means from the earth) has accomplished:

•Cheaper photovoltaics

•More robust CDs

•Spectacular pictures from the Hubble telescope

•However, when you work with the metal it enters body and for many months your sweat, urine has a garlic smell!

Classification of deposit types

ORE DEPOSIT MODELS

•14 types

1. Layered mafic-ultramafic intrusions

•Intrusions with Ni-Cu sulfides at the base

•Fractional crystallization with density stratification

•Chromite-rich layers (Cr) – Bird River, Man.

•Other metals: Pt group elements
- Cross Lake: magnetite with Ti

2. Carbonatite Alkaline intrusions: REEs

•Igneous intrusions made up of calcite-dolomite-ankerite with apatite & magnetite

•Alkaline (Na and K rich) volcanic rocks

•Related to continental rifting & alkaline volcanism

•REEs: Ce, Y, La, Sm, Eu

Example from Montreal area

Mont St. Hilaire, Que.

One of the Monteregian hills
Has 3 distinct intrusions: gabbro, nepheline syenite & pegmatites
Famous mineral locality- rare & exotic
366 minerals, 50 of which are “endemic” (type location) 

Most Fe-rich biotite in the world!

carletonite: type locality

purple syenite complex

Monteregian Hills, Montreal area

3. Porphyry Copper intrusions

Porphyritic granitic rocks with a network of chalcopyrite veins

At collision of plate boundaries of Andean type or island arcs – mountains today

Alteration zones with inner potassic, outer sericite & peripheral chlorite-epidote

Fluids from the pluton followed by later lower temp. fluids leaching Cu & S from the magma & surrounding rocks

Porphyry copper deposits

cross section

Alteration zones

example: Cerro Colorado, Panama

The deposit is the whole mountain!

The paths are for exploring & moving the drill

platforms are for drilling

steep terrain

paths are 100 m apart vertically

old volcano in the distance

my map: red is porphyry, green is granite

3D of deposit

Cerro Colorado Cu-Mo deposit

Cu –Mo not visible on surface, they have been oxidized and removed from near surface

The “country rock” is basalt that deposited on the ocean floor

Two main intrusions: a porphyry (red on map) and granite (green). Both are mineralized with a network of veins carrying chalcopyrite (yellow) and molybdenite (bluish) and minor pyrite

Alteration zones

The distribution of the Cu-Mo follows the alteration pattern

Higher grades are in the potassic & sericite zones and lower grades in the chlorite/calcite/epidote zone

There seem to be two separate deposits that formed by the two different intrusions of the area (porphyry & granite)

One of the biggest in the world with reserves over 3 b.tons (reserves calculated down to sea level). Highest elevation is 1,600 m

samples of porphyry type mineralization in class

made headlines in the Northern Miner

The deposit does not reach surface

4. Complex Pegmatites

Late stage of granitic intrusions that have undergone fractional crystallization
The last fraction of the magma would be rich in water & incompatible elements that could not fit into the earlier formed minerals
Li, Be,B,F, Rb, Cs, REE, Th, U, Ti, Zr, Hf, Sn,Nb

picture: large crystals

Lepidolite (lithium)

5. Massive sulfides – Cyprus type

Massive pyrite with Cu & Zn sulfides in pillow basalt (ophiolite)

The ophiolite represent portions of the ocean crust formed at mid-ocean ridges. Seawater circulates through fractured basalt & heated to 400’ C, while metals are leached from basalt and deposited on ocean floor

Part of ocean floor is preserved by thrusting onto adjacent continent

6. Cu-Zn felsic volcanic deposits

Cu & Zn in marine volcanic rocks

In island arcs related to subduction zones

Examples in Japan, Ontario, Quebec

7. Uranium clastic sedimentary deposits

In permeable sandstone that cemented later

U from volcanoes

8. Mississippi Valley carbonate Pb-Zn

Galena, sphalerite, chalcopyrite in porous rocks related to reefs

In dolomite & breccias

Epigenetic ore (after the rock formed)

Cambrian to Carboniferous

Metals from basement. Low-temperature fluids & highly saline with sulfur

Example: Pine Point, NWT

Open pit operation

Pine Point deposits

Galena

Samples showing

Galena – sphalerite with calcite/dolomite

Pockets of sulfur

Pockets of bitumen

The host rock -limestone/dolomite- has been altered by the mineralizing fluids

When you hit the rock with the hammer it smells gasoline (it contains petroleum/oil from remains of marine animals like corals)

9. Banded Iron Formations

ayered with chert

Great lateral extent

Deposited in shallow water (shelf)

Mostly Proterozoic in age

High dissolved content of SiO2 and Fe+2 in seawater from leaching sea volcanoes

10. Aluminum Ore- bauxite

Weathering over any aluminum-rich rock (granite)

Mainly Cenozoic

Clay minerals associated with hematite, limonite

Tropical climate promotes breakdown of feldspars into clays rich in Al. Silica, Iron & other solubles leached out

ALCAN: Canadian co. has smelter in Kitimat, BC

11. Placer deposits: Au, Diamonds & heavy minerals

Pt, Au, diamonds, magnetite, chromite, ilmenite, cassiterite, zircon

Concentration in low-energy areas of stream flow (inner curves of meanders)

World’s largest nugget

12. Tin vein –Cornwall type

Quartz-cassiterite (+/- Tungsten, base metals) veins associated with granite

Intrusions in fold belts or collision of continents

Similarities with porphyry coppers with alteration patterns

Oxides within granite and outer sulfides of Cu, Zn, Pb, antimony

Cornwall, U.K.

Southwest corner of England

People are Celts that have worked the tin mines for ~ 2,500 years

Production from here responsible for Bronze Age

Ancient Greek mariners called the British Isles “the Cassiterides” which means the Tin Islands

In the 1800’s more than 300 mines, declined slowly, none left today

The miners moved to California, S.Africa & Australia. Some into Ireland where they call them “Tinkers” prob. because they worked with tin. The Irish don’t like them, treat them like the gypsies. Their graves are spectacular & spend a fortune on them – see pictures

The Cornish recently became semi-independent and have their own language (Kernow)

Local products: Cornish pasties, clotted cream

Tinkers’ graves

Granite (red), killas (brown), veins (yellow)

Cornish words

Killas is their word for “country rocks” or local rocks

Elvans is how they call the dikes or small intrusions like walls

Mine names usually start with “Wheal”, like Wheal Jane is one of them

granite and metal zoning

old mines

Tin ore

Tin veins

13. Mercury – Almaden type (Spain)

Stratabound disseminated cinnabar (HgS) & native mercury in volcaniclastic sedimentary rock

Permeable sedimentary rocks near volcanic center with faulting

No metamorphism or granite intrusion

Modern hot springs are associated with Hg deposits suggesting ancient deposits formed by circulating hot fluids along faults, with the volcanic rocks acting as the source of the Hg

Low solubility of Hg compounds requires very large amounts of fluid. Hot springs may provide such an environment 

Hg has a low boiling point, it may be transported as a vapor & deposited as pure (native) Hg

Mercury (quicksilver) ore

14. Nickel laterite deposits

Deep weathering of ultramafic rocks in warm humid climate

Enriched in Ni, Co, Cr

Alteration from top down, red & yellow soil (limonite), saprolite, altered ultramafic rocks

Another classification

Abundant Metals
Al
Fe
Mg

Ti

Scarce Metals

Base metals: Zn, Cu, Pb, Sn, Cd, Hg

Ferroalloys : V, Cr, Ni, Co, Mo, W, Mn

Precious metals: Au, Ag

Platinum group metals: Pt, Pd

Rare Earth metals

Lightest & Heaviest

Lithium v. Uranium

Non-metals & Industrial minerals

Limestone, clays, sand, gravel, diatomite, silica, barite, gypsum, talc, perlite, zeolites, etc

Used in construction, ceramics, paints, electronics, filtration, plastics, glass, detergents, paper, agriculture, etc

Fertilizers

Nitrogen

Phosphorus

Potassium

Sulfur

Evaporites

Potash 

Salt (halite)

Gypsum & Anhydrite

Borates

Sodium sulfate

Potash

~ 30 % of world’s supply from Sask.

Reserves for centuries

One danger: flooding by water

1 km deep layers within sedimentary rocks

Devonian age deposited in a cut-off portion of the ocean

Salt (halite)

Groundwater down to about a 200 m depth is fresh

Below that it is saline (brine)

An anomaly (man-made or not) can bring saline water higher up – like south of Winnipeg

Salt in Manitoba

Salts in the Prairies

Gypsum

Making gyprock (drywall, plasterboard)

Raw gypsum is heated and water driven off, then partially re-hydrated, wet product then sandwiched between two heavy sheets of paper and dried

Barite (means “heavy”) & usage

Has a SG of 4.5 (~ double of ordinary rock)

In drilling muds

In pigments, paper industry

In playing cards (denser) – easier to “deal”

Blocks X rays & gamma rays

Silica sand (mostly quartz)

Many, many uses

Found in deposits of sand in non-tropical areas

Making glass, concrete, sandblasting, industrial casting, etc

Fine quartz, however, is dangerous if inhaled (silicosis)

Silicon Valley, California
South part of San Fransisco
Silicon chip semiconductor used in high technology operations (computers)
1/3 of venture capital in the USA raised here
Best place for high tech jobs in the USA
Many universities
Specialists recruited/come from around the world

The many uses of Fluorite

Making glasses, enamel & ceramics

Non-stick Teflon cookware

In production of steel as flux –removes sulfur

Has exceptional optical clarity & used as lenses that show extremely sharp image- for cameras, microscopes & telescopes

Sulfur
Bright yellow crystals at room temperature
Can react as either an oxidant or reducing
Common as sulfide of metals or sulphate
Brimstone (burn stone) used as fumigant
Rotten egg smell (hydrogen sulfide & SO2)
Responsible for smell in cabbage, broccoli, garlic, onion & skunk
In proteins, aminoacids

In Canada, byproduct of natural gas, petroleum & Tar Sands

Carbon

All Life is carbon based (organic chemistry)

Element known since ancient times

Diamond & graphite (good conductor)

Found in limestone, CO2 gas & methane CH3

Forms more compounds than any other element, more than 10 million

Has no melting point, it sublimes

Forms carbides (extremely hard) with tungsten

In order to form Life, carbon needs to get scattered in space as dust from supernova explosions and then later incorporated into a 2nd or 3rd generation star (our Solar System is 3rd)

Graphite

Both USA & EU declared graphite as a strategic mineral

Important in high technology & green energy

80% produced in China, however, reserves are declining

Many uses

Refractories 

Batteries 

Brake linings

Steel making

Laptop computers

Manganese

World’s healthiest foods rich in Mn (cloves, oats, rye, spinach, etc)

We need small amounts in diet

Primary use in making steel

Not found in native (pure) state, usually associated with iron

Name from Magnesia, Greece, confused with magnetite, but Mn NOT magnetic

Found on the ocean floor as nodules, but too difficult to mine, est. 500 billion tons

Can have neurological problems if too much in the body from drinking water, etc

Used as additive to gasoline (instead of lead)

Selenium (=moon)

Found with sulfur

Used in electronics, glassmaking & pigments

Used in medical pills (thyroid problems) & infant formula

Many thyroid problems in Europe after the Yugoslavia war of 2001 when U bombs were used for first time

Neon

One of the noble gases

Inert, not reactive gas

5th most abundant element in the Universe after H, He, C, O

Has a notably bright red light

Used in advertizing signs

Aggregates

and & gravel

Crushed stone

Cement 

Dimension stone

Limestone – common in Manitoba

Granite – expensive, mostly as counter top

Gneiss – expensive, mostly as counter top

Peridotite – green with marble-like finish, Winnipeg Convention Center

Granite porphyry – Regina Government buildings

Limestone / dolomite/cement

Quicklime or calcium oxide (CaO) 

Calcium oxide is obtained by heating limestone at more than 825 degrees C to liberate carbon dioxide gas

If left alone it can grab CO2 from the air to form limestone again

If quicklime is heated to 2,400’C it emits an intense glow, called limelight; was used in old theatres before the advent of electricity

Quicklime is the main ingredient to make cement

(Portland) cement

Bricklayer Joseph Aspdin of Leeds, England first made cement early in 19th cent. by burning powdered limestone and clay in his kitchen stove

To make cement today we use limestone, clay, silica sand and iron ore. They are heated at high temp. and form a rock-like substance that is ground into the extremely fine powder we call cement

cement

Cement is mixed with water to make mortar

Or mixed with sand, gravel and water to make concrete

Other uses of CaO some info from visit to Limestone Quarry

To neutralize acidity in base metal mines, like in Flin Flon who are treating sulfide-rich ore (acidic)

With water it gives out a lot of energy, so it can be used for on-the-spot food warming

Farming to neutralize acidity in soil

In pulp mills

In petroleum industry

Rock/Mineral collecting in Canada

130 clubs 

Bancroft, Ontario: 1 of only 3 in the world, where ancient conditions created nearly every known volcanic & metamorphic rock & mineral 

Mont-St-Hilaire, E of Montreal – among the top 10 in the world sporting 366 minerals

Bay of Fundy: endless varieties of agate also zeolite & amethyst

Thunder Bay: abundant amethyst, even the highways are purple in color. Also agate

Souris pit: agates & petrified wood

Bancroft, Ont.

Major attraction is the mineral-rich pegmatites. They are like magma that could not come to the surface as lava, instead it cooled at depth slowly

Rose quartz (color due to Al?) is prominent

Apatite, sodalite, rare earths, uraninite, zircon

Marble was used across the country

Feldspars, a major product 

Part of ceramics, enamel, pottery

To make paints, soaps, roofing, tiles

Its highest grade to make false teeth

Its lowest grade in whipping up stucco

The elements in FIREWORKS

Ancient Chinese used a mixture of sulfur, saltpeter and charcoal that was very flammable and would explode if put in a miniature amount of space. That was 7th cent.

However, at the same time the “Greek Fire” was invented in 672 AD. Although its composition was a state secret and remained so, it must have been a mixture of things like pine resin, naphtha, quicklime, sulfur & niter

The “Greek Fire” – in Greek, “liquid fire”

Clay grenades filled with Greek Fire

Anatomy of fireworks: many parts 

A launching tube, 3 X the length of the fireworks shells, but exactly the same diameter

When the gunpowder ( 75% saltpeter, 15% charcoal, 10 % sulfur) burns, the heat and gas are trapped & force their way to the surface until an explosion happens & they become airborne

A fuse 

Ingredients

An oxidizer, a reducing agent, a coloring agent, binders and regulators

Oxidizers (chlorate) produce the oxygen to burn the mixture

Reducing agents burn the oxygen to make hot gases

Binders hold the mixture in a lump

Incandescence & luminescence

The light produced from heat is incandescence

Ti & Al used to increase the temp. & cause the firework to burn brighter

Light produced by energy sources other than heat is luminescence

Energy absorbed by an electron will cause it to be excited. When the electron’s energy is lowered it is released as light

Colors

Cu creates blue

Al to give silver & white colors & sparks

Zn makes smoke clouds

Ba for green, Sr, Li for red, Mg for white, Na for gold & yellow

Cl brightens the colors 

Fluorescent Minerals

UV radiation generated by a uv lamp

About 15% of minerals respond well to longwave uv energy

Named after fluorite, the 1st mineral to show it

Longwave LED (Light-emitting Diode) lights are popular, they generate less heat than ordinary ones

You can’t look directly into uv light, it’s like looking at the sun

Also uv light burns the skin

NOTE: for the remainder of the course search Google under "Ashern Gems"