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Characteristics of the Cibaliung Gold Deposit: Miocene Low‐Sulfidation‐Type Epithermal Gold Deposit in Western Java, Indonesia
Author(s) -
Harijoko Agung,
Ohbuchi Yukiko,
Motomura Yoshinobu,
Imai Akira,
Watanabe Koichiro
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
resource geology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.597
H-Index - 43
eISSN - 1751-3928
pISSN - 1344-1698
DOI - 10.1111/j.1751-3928.2007.00011.x
Subject(s) - geology , geochemistry , sphalerite , illite , galena , pyrite , mineralization (soil science) , fluid inclusions , sulfide minerals , argillic alteration , hydrothermal circulation , quartz , mineralogy , andesite , clay minerals , volcanic rock , volcano , paleontology , soil science , soil water
Middle Miocene (11.18–10.65 Ma) low sulfidation‐type epithermal gold mineralization occurred in the Cibaliung area, southwestern part of Java Island, Indonesia. It is hosted by andesitic to basaltic andesitic lavas of the Middle Miocene Honje Formation (11.4 Ma) and is covered by Pliocene Cibaliung tuff (4.9 Ma). The exploration estimates mineral resource of approximately 1.3 million tonnes at 10.42 g/t gold and 60.7 g/t silver at a 3 g/t Au cut‐off. This equates to approximately 435,000 ounces of gold and 2.54 million ounces of silver. That resource resulted from two ore shoots: Cibitung and Cikoneng. Studies on ore mineralogy, hydrothermal alteration, geology, fluid inclusion, stable isotopes and age dating were conducted in order to characterize the deposit and to understand a possible mechanism of preservation of the deposit. The ore mineral assemblage of the deposit consists of electrum, naumannite, Ag‐Se‐Te sulfide minerals, chalcopyrite, pyrite, sphalerite and galena. Those ore minerals occur in quartz veins showing colloform–crustiform texture. They are enveloped by mixed layer clay illite/smectite zone, which grades into smectite zone outward. The temperature of mineralization revealed by fluid inclusion study on quartz in the veins ranges from 170 and 220°C at shallow and deep level, respectively. The temperature range is in agreement with the temperature deduced from the hydrothermal alteration mineral assemblage including mixed layered illite/smectite and laumontite. The mineralizing fluid is dilute, with a salinity <1 wt% NaCl equivalent and has stable isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen composition indicating a meteoric water origin. Although the deposit is old enough that it would have been eroded in a tropical island arc setting, the coverage by younger volcanic deposits such as the Citeluk tuff and the Cibaliung tuff most probably prevented this erosion.