An Example of Miocene Epithermal Ag-Zn-Pb-Sn Mineralization in the Andean Tin Belt
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The Cortaderas Zone, Pirquitas Mine, NW Argentina: An Example of Miocene Epithermal Ag-Zn-Pb-Sn Mineralization in the Andean Tin Belt by Evan Thomas Slater A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science (MSc) in Geology The Faculty of Graduate Studies Laurentian University Sudbury, Ontario, Canada © Evan Slater, 2016 THESIS DEFENCE COMMITTEE/COMITÉ DE SOUTENANCE DE THÈSE Laurentian Université/Université Laurentienne Faculty of Graduate Studies/Faculté des études supérieures Title of Thesis Titre de la thèse The Cortaderas Zone, Pirquitas Mine, NW Argentina: An Example of Miocene Epithermal Ag-Zn-Pb-Sn Mineralization in the AnActing Dean Tin Belt Name of Candidate Nom du candidat Slater, Evan Degree Diplôme Master of Science Department/Program Date of Defence Département/Programme Geology Date de la soutenance September 7, 2016 APPROVED/APPROUVÉ Thesis Examiners/Examinateurs de thèse: Dr. Daniel Kontak (Supervisor/Directeur(trice) de thèse) Dr. Andy McDonald (Co-supervisor/Co-directeur(trice) de thèse) Dr. Michael Schindler (Committee member/Membre du comité) Approved for the Faculty of Graduate Studies Approuvé pour la Faculté des études supérieures Dr. Shelley Watson Madame Shelley Watson Dr. Marcos Zentilli Acting Dean, Faculty of Graduate Studies (External Examiner/Examinateur externe) Doyenne intérimaire, Faculté des études supérieures ACCESSIBILITY CLAUSE AND PERMISSION TO USE I, Evan Slater, hereby grant to Laurentian University and/or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or for the duration of my copyright ownership. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also reserve the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. I further agree that permission for copying of this thesis in any manner, in whole or in part, for scholarly purposes may be granted by the professor or professors who supervised my thesis work or, in their absence, by the Head of the Department in which my thesis work was done. It is understood that any copying or publication or use of this thesis or parts thereof for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. It is also understood that this copy is being made available in this form by the authority of the copyright owner solely for the purpose of private study and research and may not be copied or reproduced except as permitted by the copyright laws without written authority from the copyright owner. ii Abstract The Pirquitas mine, located in the highly elevated Puna plateau region of NW Argentina hosts Ag-rich polymetallic mineralization that defines the southern limit of the prolific Andean Tin Belt. Approximately 500 m north of its currently active open pit is the Cortaderas Zone which hosts the large Ag-Zn-rich Cortaderas Breccia whose nature and origin were previously unknown. This thesis serves as the first academic study of the Cortaderas Zone that incorporates data pertaining to its geological setting, metal distributions, breccia bodies, mineralogy, ore textures, alteration and fluid inclusions to interpret the origin of its mineralization. The results of this study suggest that the Cortaderas Zone represents the high-level and distal expression of the richly endowed hydrothermal system once present at the Pirquitas mine. Its mineralization formed in a dynamic intermediate-sulfidation epithermal system where ore formation was facilitated by transient fluctuations in confining pressure that were caused by cyclical opening and closing of the system. These insights into the formation of the Cortaderas Zone have implications for understanding the formation and subsequent modification of ores in epithermal settings globally. Key Words: Pirquitas mine, Andean Tin Belt, Puna plateau, epithermal ore deposits, fluid inclusions, colloform textures, dendritic textures, sulfosalts, hydrothermal breccias iii Co-Authorship Statement This thesis consists of two manuscripts (Chapters 1 and 2) co-authored by the candidate, Dr. Daniel Kontak and Dr. Andrew McDonald. The candidate performed the following tasks: drill core descriptions, sampling, photographing, ore petrography, fluid inclusion petrography and thermobarometry, spatial treatment of whole rock geochemical data in three dimensions, SEM analysis and interpretation, EMPA and LA-ICP-MS data interpretation, and powdered XRD analysis and interpretation. The two thesis supervisors contributed geological ideas related to their respective specialties through conversations with the candidate and through written comments and edits. Acknowledgments I am grateful to my supervisors Dr. Daniel Kontak and Dr. Andrew McDonald for providing their support and encouragement throughout the study. I thank the staff of Silver Standard Resources Inc. for providing transport, accommodation and resources while accessing the mine site. The exploration team at the Pirquitas Mine have a vast wealth of geological knowledge that was passed on through discussions with the authors. The exploration team included, but was not limited to Carl Edmunds, Nicholas Larcher, Juan Terrazas, Javier Ceballos, Angus Innes, Carlos Juarez and Jorge Peralta. This work was funded in part by Silver Standard Resources Inc., a Goodman School of Mines graduate scholarship and a Society of Economic Geologists Canada Foundation research grant. The LA-ICP-MS was operated by Dr. Joe Petrus of Laurentian University, the SEM was managed by Dr. William Zhe of Laurentian University’s Central Analytical Facility and the EMP was operated by Dr. Kirk. Ross. iv Table of Contents Abstract……………………………………………………………………………………….......iii Co-Authorship Statement………………………………………………………………………...iv Acknowledgements…………………………………………………………………………........iv Table of Contents……………………………………………………………………………...….v List of Figures………………………………………………………………………………. ….vii List of Tables……………………………………………………………………………..…….viii Chapter 1 Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... 2 1.0 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 3 2.0 Background ............................................................................................................................... 3 2.1 Epithermal Deposits .............................................................................................................. 3 2.2 The Andean Tin Belt ............................................................................................................. 5 2.3 Regional Geology .................................................................................................................. 7 2.4 Mine Geology ...................................................................................................................... 11 3.0 Methods .................................................................................................................................. 13 3.1 Sample Collection and Preparation ..................................................................................... 13 3.2 Whole Rock Geochemistry and Geochemical Modelling ................................................... 14 3.3 Electron Microprobe (EMP)................................................................................................ 15 3.3 Powdered X-ray Diffraction (XRD) .................................................................................... 15 3.4 Fluid Inclusion Analysis ..................................................................................................... 15 4.0 Results ..................................................................................................................................... 16 4.1 General Characteristics ....................................................................................................... 16 4.2 Metal Distributions .............................................................................................................. 16 4.3 Breccia Descriptions ........................................................................................................... 21 4.4 Mineralization and Alteration ............................................................................................. 24 Paragenesis ............................................................................................................................ 28 Stage I .................................................................................................................................... 28 Stage II ................................................................................................................................... 29 Stage III ................................................................................................................................. 31 Stage IV ................................................................................................................................. 31 Stage V .................................................................................................................................. 32 Stage VI ................................................................................................................................