scholarly journals Temporal and geochemical evolution of the Guichon Creek Batholith and Highland Valley porphyry copper district, British Columbia: implications for generation and tectonic setting of porphyry systems

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
J B Whalen ◽  
W J Davis ◽  
R A Anderson
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Porphyry Copper ◽  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Geochemical Evolution ◽  
Porphyry Systems

Geochemical evolution of copper-bearing granitic rocks of Guichon Creek Batholith, British Columbia, Canada

1976 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 199-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. A. Olade
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Porphyry Copper ◽  
Source Region ◽  
Element Distribution ◽  
Granitic Rocks ◽  
Geochemical Evolution ◽  
Trace Element Distribution ◽  
Apparent Lack ◽  
South Central ◽  
Normal Differentiation

The Guichon Creek batholith, located in south-central British Columbia, is host to numerous porphyry copper deposits that are considered as being closely related to the pluton. Variations in major and trace element distribution are consistent with a model of crystallization-fractionation of a K-poor calc-alkaline magma of intermediate composition. Relatively low Rb and Rb/Sr values, and high K/Rb ratios are consistent with Sr isotopic ratios that suggest a subcrustal source region for the generation of the magma, probably by partial melting of subducted oceanic crust at relatively shallow depths.Cu, like other femic elements, (Zn, Mn, V, Ni, Co, Ti) generally decreases with increasing fractionation, which reflects normal differentiation trends. The apparent lack of positive correlation between Cu contents of rocks and ore potential of intrusive units may be explicable if mineralization is regarded as an independent by-product of magma generation, rather than the result of differentiation processes. Close relationships between trace metal values and degree of fractionation emphasize the need for assigning different background values to each intrusive unit, during geochemical exploration.

scholarly journals Geochemical Characteristics and Tectonic Setting of Amphibolites in Ifewara Area, Ife-Ilesha Schist Belt, Southwestern Nigeria

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony Temidayo Bolarinwa ◽  
Adebimpe Atinuke Adepoju
Keyword(s):  
Rare Earth ◽  
Rare Earth Elements ◽  
Major Element ◽  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Crustal Contamination ◽  
Geochemical Evolution ◽  
Schist Belt ◽  
Southwestern Nigeria ◽  
Eu Anomaly ◽  
Ree Patterns

Trace and Rare Earth Elements (REEs) data are used to constrain the geochemical evolution of the amphibolites from Ifewara in the Ife-Ilesha schist belt of southwestern Nigeria. The amphibolites can be grouped into banded and sheared amphibolites. Major element data show SiO2 (48.34%), Fe2O3 (11.03-17.88%), MgO (5.76-9.90%), CaO (7.76-18.6%) and TiO2 (0.44-1.77%) contents which are similar to amphibolites in other schist belts in Nigeria. The Al2O3 (2.85-15.55%) content is varied, with the higher values suggesting alkali basalt protolith. Trace and rare earth elements composition reveal Sr (160-1077ppm), Rb (0.5-22.9ppm), Ni (4.7-10.2ppm), Co (12.2-50.9 ppm) and Cr (2-7ppm). Chondrite-normalized REE patterns show that the banded amphibolites have HREE depletion and both negative and positive Eu anomalies while the sheared variety showed slight LREE enrichment with no apparent Eu anomaly. The study amphibolites plot in the Mid Oceanic Ridge Basalts (MORB) and within plate basalt fields on the Zr/Y vs Zr discriminatory diagrams. They are further classified as volcanic arc basalt and E-type MORB on the Th- Hf/3- Ta and the Zr-Nb-Y diagrams. The amphibolites precursor is considered a tholeiitic suite that suffered crustal contamination, during emplacement in a rifted crust.

scholarly journals Igneous Rock Associations 26. Lamproites, Exotic Potassic Alkaline Rocks: A Review of their Nomenclature, Characterization and Origins

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 119-142
Author(s):  
Roger H. Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Partial Melting ◽  
Lithospheric Mantle ◽  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Alkaline Rock ◽  
Mantle Metasomatism ◽  
Geochemical Evolution ◽  
Alkaline Rocks ◽  
Isotopic Compositions ◽  
Economic Significance ◽  
Rock Types

Lamproite is a rare ultrapotassic alkaline rock of petrological importance as it is considered to be derived from metasomatized lithospheric mantle, and of economic significance, being the host of major diamond deposits. A review of the nomenclature of lamproite results in the recommendation that members of the lamproite petrological clan be named using mineralogical-genetic classifications to distinguish them from other genetically unrelated potassic alkaline rocks, kimberlite, and diverse lamprophyres. The names “Group 2 kimberlite” and “orangeite” must be abandoned as these rock types are varieties of bona fide lamproite restricted to the Kaapvaal Craton. Lamproites exhibit extreme diversity in their mineralogy which ranges from olivine phlogopite lamproite, through phlogopite leucite lamproite and potassic titanian richterite-diopside lamproite, to leucite sanidine lamproite. Diamondiferous olivine lamproites are hybrid rocks extensively contaminated by mantle-derived xenocrystic olivine. Currently, lamproites are divided into cratonic (e.g. Leucite Hills, USA; Baifen, China) and orogenic (Mediterranean) varieties (e.g. Murcia-Almeria, Spain; Afyon, Turkey; Xungba, Tibet). Each cratonic and orogenic lamproite province differs significantly in tectonic setting and Sr–Nd–Pb–Hf isotopic compositions. Isotopic compositions indicate derivation from enriched mantle sources, having long-term low Sm/Nd and high Rb/Sr ratios, relative to bulk earth and depleted asthenospheric mantle. All lamproites are considered, on the basis of their geochemistry, to be derived from ancient mineralogically complex K–Ti–Ba–REE-rich veins, or metasomes, in the lithospheric mantle with, or without, subsequent contributions from recent asthenospheric or subducted components at the time of genesis. Lamproite primary magmas are considered to be relatively silica-rich (~50–60 wt.% SiO2), MgO-poor (3–12 wt.%), and ultrapotassic (~8–12 wt.% K2O) as exemplified by hyalo-phlogopite lamproites from the Leucite Hills (Wyoming) or Smoky Butte (Montana). Brief descriptions are given of the most important phreatomagmatic diamondiferous lamproite vents. The tectonic processes which lead to partial melting of metasomes, and/or initiation of magmatism, are described for examples of cratonic and orogenic lamproites. As each lamproite province differs with respect to its mineralogy, geochemical evolution, and tectonic setting there is no simple or common petrogenetic model for their genesis. Each province must be considered as the unique expression of the times and vagaries of ancient mantle metasomatism, coupled with diverse and complex partial melting processes, together with mixing of younger asthenospheric and lithospheric material, and, in the case of many orogenic lamproites, with Paleogene to Recent subducted material.

scholarly journals Himalayan and Trans Himalayan granitic rocks in and adjacent to Nepal and their mineral potential

1981 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
A. H. G. Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Root Zone ◽  
Porphyry Copper ◽  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Granitic Rocks ◽  
Main Central Thrust ◽  
Southern Tibet ◽  
Late Mesozoic ◽  
The North ◽  
Augen Gneiss ◽  
Host Rocks

Granitic rocks occupying eight distinct tectonic settings can be recognized in the Himalayas and   Transhimalayas.  In the Lower Himalayas geographical belt a few plutons of two-mica granite intrude the lowest unit of the Nawakot Complex or Midland Group. More extensive are sheet- like lies of augen gneiss intrusive within a possibly thrust bounded succession carbonates and graphitic schists beneath the Main Central Thrust to the north. The most abundant granites in the Lower Himalayas are the two- mica cordierite- bearing granite within klippen; minor tin and tungsten mineralization is associated with these plutons, which are of late Cambrian age. Within the Higher Himalayas above the Main Central Thrust, the ‘Central Crystallines’ or Central Gneisses include pegmatites and pegmatitic granites intrusive into gneisses of probable early Proterozoic age; these have same potential for ruby, sapphire, aquamarine and possibly spodumene. Further north within the Higher Himalayan succession a southern belt of anatectic two- mica granites and leucogranites of mid-Tertiary age is favorable for tin, tungsten and uranium mineralization; a northern belt of granites or gneisses is of uncertain age and origin. North of the Indus Suture in the Transhimalayas extensive batholiths of hornblende granodiorite representing the root zone of a late Mesozoic to early Eocene volcanic arc are associated with porphyry copper deposits. Further north in southern Tibet the tectonic, setting for reported granitic bodies of  Tertiary  age  is  uncertain; their location suggests that they could be favorable host rocks for tin, uranium and porphyry molybdenum mineralization.

Glacial Isostatic Adjustment Modelling of the Coast Mountains of British Columbia and Southeastern Alaska

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maximilian Lauch ◽  
Thomas James ◽  
Lucinda Leonard ◽  
Yan Jiang ◽  
Joseph Henton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Mass Loss ◽  
Thermal Emission ◽  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Ice Age ◽  
High Mass ◽  
Cascadia Subduction Zone ◽  
Climate Projections ◽  
Coast Mountains ◽  
Crustal Motion

<p>The Coast Mountains in British Columbia and southeastern Alaska contain around 9040 km<sup>2 </sup>of glaciers and ice fields at present. While these glaciers have followed an overall trend of mass loss since the Little Ice Age (or LIA around 300 years before present), the past decade has seen a significant increase in melting rate that is likely to continue due to the effects of climate change. The region is home to a complex tectonic setting, having proximity to the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather transform plate boundary in the northern region and the Cascadia subduction zone (CSZ) in the southern region, which has an associated active volcanic arc underlying the glaciated area. Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) glacier melt data collected between 2000 and 2019 represent a melt rate that is averaged between periods of relatively low mass loss (2000-2009) and high mass loss (2010-2019). As a preliminary test, this average melt rate was assumed to be constant back to the LIA. A history of gridded ice thicknesses was calculated to create an ice loading model for input to a series of forward modelling calculations to determine the crustal response. Predictions of vertical crustal motion are compared to available Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) measurements of uplift rate to constrain Earth rheology. The results using this simplified loading model favour a thin lithosphere (around 20-40 km thick) and asthenospheric viscosities on the order of 10<sup>19</sup> Pa s. These values are significantly lower than those of rheological profiles used in extant global GIA models, but are in general agreement with previous GIA modelling of the forearc region of the CSZ. To improve the glacial history model, the Open Global Glacier Model (OGGM), driven by historic climate data and statistically downscaled climate projections, is being employed to create a more accurate loading model and refine our estimates of Earth rheology and regional crustal motion. The best-fitting models will be employed to separate GIA and tectonic components of crustal motion and to generate improved regional sea-level projections.</p>

Mesozoic – early Cenozoic volcanism, plutonism, and mineralization in southern British Columbia: A plate tectonic synthesis

1977 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. 1611-1624 ◽  
Author(s):  
John R. Griffiths
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Subduction Zone ◽  
Subduction Zones ◽  
Tectonic Setting ◽  
Spatial Relationship ◽  
Plate Tectonic ◽  
Time Space ◽  
Cenozoic Volcanism ◽  
Volcanic Belts ◽  
Early Cenozoic

Three time–space profiles have been constructed using geologic data from British Columbia between 49° N and 56° N. They illustrate variations across the Cordillera, (1) in the stratigraphic and tectonic setting of volcanism, (2) in the age and modal type of granitoids, and (3) in the distribution and types of copper and lead deposits related to volcanic and plutonic rocks. These profiles provide the basis for a plate tectonic synthesis of the Mesozoic–Cenozoic geology, illustrated by six true-scale cross sections.The preferred model has, in the Triassic, two eastward-dipping subduction zones, giving rise to the copper-rich Karmutsen and Nicola–Takla volcanics respectively. After collision of the two volcanic belts by the Early Jurassic, a single eastward-dipping subduction zone remained active until the Eocene. Magmas produced by partial melting and fractionation of subducted lithosphere occurred across the western 300 km of the Cordillera, leading to thickening of the crust, and eventually to anatectic melting to generate large batholiths now containing pendants of volcanics. Jurassic and later geologic and metallogenic events across the eastern 500 km of the Cordillera are the results of an increased heat flux through inhomogeneous crust of varying thickness, comprised of relict ocean floor, continental margin sediments, older volcanics, and ancient cratonic basement. This results in patterns of metamorphism, volcanism, and plutonism which have no simple spatial relationship to the subduction zone.

Seismic and potential‐field imaging of the Guichon Creek batholith, British Columbia, Canada, to delineate structures hosting porphyry copper deposits

Geophysics ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 65 (5) ◽  
pp. 1418-1434 ◽  
Author(s):  
Baishali Roy ◽  
Ron M. Clowes
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Seismic Reflection ◽  
Porphyry Copper ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Low Grade ◽  
Depth Range ◽  
Porphyry Copper Deposits ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Copper Deposits ◽  
South Central

The Guichon Creek batholith (GCB), located in south‐central British Columbia, contains several large, low‐grade copper deposits of considerable economic importance. The surface geology of the Guichon batholith and its surrounding region have been well mapped; however, little information about subsurface features is available. The batholith consists of four major phases, emplaced radially outward, which can be separated on the basis of their texture and composition. Previous interpretation of gravity data suggests a mushroom‐shaped structure for the batholith. Data from Lithoprobe seismic reflection line 88-11, acquired across the batholith in 1988, reveal weakly coherent east‐dipping reflections on the west side and west‐dipping reflections on the east in the upper 10 km. To determine if these are related to structures associated with the batholith, we reprocessed the upper 6 s with particular emphasis on applications of signal enhancement techniques (e.g., pattern recognition methods, refraction statics, dip moveout corrections) and correlation of the improved subsurface images with the geological environment associated with porphyry copper deposits. Low near‐surface velocities correlate well with the phases of the batholith hosting the major copper deposits, which structurally lie in faulted and brecciated regions. Although the top 1.5 km cannot be imaged by the regional‐scale seismic reflection data, the reprocessed seismic section helps define the edges of the batholith, its various concentric phases, and the stem in the depth range of 1.5 to 10 km. The seismic results are complemented by 2.5-D (profile sense) modeling and 3-D inversion of regional‐scale gravity and high‐resolution aeromagnetic data. These show a low‐density and low‐magnetic‐susceptibility region associated with the batholith that extends to more than 10 km depth. The region of active mining interest lies above a circular low‐susceptibility area at 2 km depth and a low‐velocity region. Integrated interpretation of geophysical results and geological observations indicates the GCB is a funnel‐shaped feature in which mineralization is located above the stem of the batholith.

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