Open AccessIndicator mineral signatures of the Sisson W-Mo deposit, New Brunswick: part 2 till
Author(s) -
M B McClenaghan,
MA Parkhill,
Allen A. Seaman,
A. G. Pronk,
S A Averill,
J M Rice,
M Pyne
Publication year - 2014
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.4095/293349
Subject(s) - geology , galena , wolframite , molybdenite , geochemistry , mineral , sphalerite , arsenopyrite , pyrite , mineral exploration , mineralogy , chalcopyrite , chemistry , fluid inclusions , tungsten , paleontology , quartz , organic chemistry , copper
An indicator mineral case study was carried out around the Sisson W-Mo deposit, one of the largest W deposits in the world. The work was carried out as part of the Geological Survey of Canada's (GSC) Targeted Geoscience Initiative 4 (TGI-4), a collaborativefederal geoscience program with a mandate to provide industry with the next generation of geoscience knowledge and innovative techniques that will result in more effective targeting of buried mineral deposits. This indicator mineral study is the first case study around a major W-Mo deposit inglaciated terrain. It is also the first indicator mineral case study in any terrain to identify a broad range of indicator minerals for this deposit type, in addition to the commonly known minerals scheelite and molybdenite.Indicator minerals for the Sisson W-Mo deposit include the primary ore minerals scheelite, wolframite, and molybdenite, as well as secondary ore minerals chalcopyrite, joseite, native Bi, bismutite, bismuthinite, galena, sphalerite, arsenopyrite, pyrrhotite, and pyrite. Indicator minerals in 10 kgtill samples clearly define glacial dispersal at least 10 km down-ice (southeast) of the deposit. The presence of coarse (0.5-2.0 mm) indicator minerals indicates proximity (<1 km) to the source. Thus, the use of heavy mineral sampling in regional exploration programs for W-Mo deposits isrecommended. A 2 km spacing of surface till samples is likely sufficiently dense to detect the glacial dispersal train from the Sisson deposit, as well as its polymetallic nature.