Earth Science Frontiers ›› 2020, Vol. 27 ›› Issue (2): 60-78.DOI: 10.13745/j.esf.sf.2020.3.12

Previous Articles     Next Articles

An integrated investigation of ore-forming fluid evolution in porphyry and epithermal deposits and their implication on exploration

NI Pei(), CHI Zhe, PAN Junyi   

  1. Institute of Geo-fluids/School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023 China
  • Received:2020-02-10 Revised:2020-03-11 Online:2020-03-25 Published:2020-03-25

Abstract:

Porphyry and epithermal deposits are the world’s most economically important resources for copper, molybdenum, gold, and silver. These two types of deposits are globally related in space and time. Hydrothermal fluid evolution is a critical process contributing to the mineralization in porphyry and epithermal deposits. The investigation for the properties and evolution of ore-forming fluids of porphyry and epithermal deposits is essential for exploring the process of metal precipitation, and it is also helpful in revealing the inherent genetic relationship between them. In this paper, we summarized the typical fluid inclusion characteristics, the standard fluid evolution process and metal precipitation mechanism in porphyry and epithermal metallogenic domains. The summary was based on literature review and case studies of the Fujiawu porphry type Cu-Mo (-Au) deposit, Tongcun Mo deposit, and the Qiucun and Ancun epithermal Au deposits. Furthermore, this paper also discusses the vapor transportation model of metal and fluids from the porphyry to the epithermal environment, and finally illustrates the application of large-scale fluid mapping as an exploration method using the Zijinshan Cu-Au deposit in Fujian as an example.

Key words: porphyry deposit, epithermal deposit, fluid evolution, metal precipitation mechanism, ore exploration

CLC Number: