ECONOMIC GEOLOGY REPORT 32 GEOLOGY OF CANADIAN TUNGSTEN OCCURRENCES ROBERT MULLIGAN 1983 © Minister of Supply and Services Canada 1984 Available in Canada through authorized bookstore agents and other bookstores or by mail from Canadian Government Publishing Centre Supply and Services Canada Ottawa, Ontario, Canada KIA OS9 and from Geological Survey of Canada 601 Booth Street Ottawa, Ontario, Canada KIA OE8 A deposit copy of this publication is also available for reference in public libraries across Canada Cat. No. M43-32/1984 Canada: $10.00 ISBN 0-660-11486-0 Other countries: $12.00 Price subject to change without notice Critical Readers K.M. Dawson G.B. Leech Original manuscript received: 30 - 01 - 78 Final approved for publication: 74 - 11 -78 Preface Preface One of the objectives of the Geological Survey of L'une des preoccupations majeures de la Commission Canada is to develop a national data base concerning mineral geologique du Canada est I'amelioration constante d'une base occurrences from which evaluations of the distribution and de donnees nationale des venues minerales qui permet de nature of our non-hydrocarbon mineral resources can be juger d'une fa<;on rationnelle la distribution spatiale et la made. The results of detailed studies on metallic and nature des ressources minerales autres que les hydrocarbures. nonmetallic elements of economic importance to Canada are Les resultats detailles d'etudes sur les elements metalliques published by the Survey in the Economic Geology Report et non metalliques qui revetent une importance economique series, which in the past decade has included reports on pour Ie Canada ont ete publies par la Commission dans la titanium, vanadium, tin and tantalum. Serie geologie economique ou, it y a une dizaine d'annees, on pouvait y voir en bonne place, des etudes, notamment sur Ie titanium, Ie vanadium et Ie tantal. The physical characteristics of tungsten make it an Les caracteristiques physiques du tungstene Ie haussent important industrial mineral. It is very hard and dense, and a un niveau important dans I'industrie mineralej de fait, c'est has a higher melting point than any other metal. It is ductile un metal qui possede une durete et une densi te elevees, il a Ie and even very fine tungsten wires have high tensile strength. plus haut point de fusion des metaux, il est, de plus, tres Tungsten is used for filaments in electric light bulbs and ductile, propriete qui conserve meme a des cables tres fins electr ic tubes. Tungsten carbide is one of the hardest une haute resistance a la tractionj il est utilise aussi, comme materials known and is widely used in machine tools. filaments d'ampoules et de tubes electriques. Un derive, le Tungsten is also an important constituent of many superalloys carbure de tungstene, s'avere un des materiaux les plus and nonferrous alloys because of its high melting point and resistants d'ou son emploi en grande quantite dans les resistance to corrosion and oxidation. Because of tungsten's machines-outils. II faut signaler aussi que Ie tungstene entre industrial importance, Canada requires an adequate and d'une fa<;on tres significative dans les superalliages et dans secure suppl y. les alliages non ferreux a cause de son haut point de fusion et de sa resistance a la corrosion et a I'oxidation. ftant donne son importance marque dans l'industrie minerale, le Canada en a besoin pour son marche actuel et futur. In this report Dr. Mulligan discusses the world distribu­ Dans ce rapport, M.R. Mulligan etudie les gisements de tion, geochemistry, mineralogy and classification of tungsten tungstene du point de vue geochimique et mineralogique, il en deposits. He lists all known Canadian occurrences and donne une classification et en indique la distribution describes the geology and metallurgy of the most important planetaire. L'auteur a catalogue toutes les venues connues au of these. Canada et iI donne, pour les plus importantes d'entre elles, des descriptions geologiques et metallurgiques. D.J. McLaren Le directeur general de la Director General Commission geologique du Canada Ottawa, March 1980 Geological Survey of Canada Ottawa, mars 1980 D.J. McLaren CONTENTS I Abstract/Resume 2 Introduction Part 1. World distribution and production, geochemistrY,mineralogy and general geology of tungsten deposits 3 World and Canadian production and prices 4 Geochemistry of tungsten 4 Chemistry and theoretical geochemistry 5 Abundance of tungsten in rocks 8 Tungsten in rock-forming minerals and accessories 8 Mineralogy of tungsten minerals 9 Mineral identification and analysis for tungsten 10 General geology 10 World distribution of tungsten deposits 10 Host rocks and tectonic environment II Metallogenic epochs 13 Relationship to structure 13 Classification of tungsten deposits 13 Magmatic disseminations in granite 14 Pegmatites 14 Greisen and quartz greisen veins 14 Porphyry deposits 15 Skarns 17 Feldspathic (pegmatitic) quartz veins 18 Quartz and quartz-carbonate veins 18 Stratabound deposits 19 Hot springs, brines, and evaporites 19 Relationship to granite 19 Transportation and deposition 21 Scheelite-wolframite relationship 21 Association of tungsten with other metals 21 Molybdenum 22 Tin and beryllium 22 Gold 22 Antimony and mercury 22 Iron and other sulphides Part 2. Description of Canadian tungsten occurrences 23 Appalachian Region 23 Newfoundland 23 Grey River 24 Geology 24 Mineralization 25 Nova Scotia 25 Moose River gold district 27 New Brunswick granitic belts 27 Mount Pleasant (Brunswick Tin Mines) 27 General geology 28 Description of rock units 29 Structure 29 Metasomatic alteration 30 Mineralogy 31 Mineralized zones and ore reserves 31 Metal zoning 31 Geochemistry of rocks and ores 31 Origin of deposits 31 Burnt Hill Tungsten Mine 32 Nicholas Denys 32 Quebec Appalachian Belt 32 Canadian Shield 32 Grenville Province 32 Southern Province 32 Foster Township 34 Superior Province 34 Val d'Or area 34 Opemiska mine, Chibougamau area 34 Timmins area 34 Porcupine Camp 36 Kidd Creek (and South Bay mine) 36 Tribag (Briar Court Mines), Algoma district 36 Kenora district 36 Sandy beach Lake, Zealand Township 36 Redvers Lake 36 Falcon Lake:'" West Hawk Lake area 36 Churchill Province 37 Northern Tungsten 37 Churchill and Slave provinces 37 Fox Group 37 Slave Province 37 Yellowknife-Beaulieu district 38 Gilmour Lake area 38 Tibbitt Lake 38 Storm Group and Goodrock Gold Mines 38 Con, Rycon and Negus gold mines 38 Bear Province 39 Cordilleran Region 39 East Tungsten Zone 39 West Tungsten Zone 40 Groups and individual deposits 40 East Kootenay district 40 West Kootenay district 40 Emerald, Feeney, Invincible and Dodger mines 45 Regal Silver 45 Central southern British Columbia 46 Southwestern British Columbia 46 Bridge River and Tyaughton Creek 47 Central British Columbia 47 Anticlimax 47 Cariboo district 47 Hardscrabble 47 Ada and Silver groups 48 Manson Creek area 48 Central west British Columbia 48 Deer Horn mine 48 Whitewater 48 Glacier Gulch 48 Hazelton area 5 I Terrace area 51 Alice Arm area 5 I Stewart area, Portland Canal 51 Northern British Columbia and southern Yukon 51 Blue Light 52 Logjam Creek 53 A tlin distr ict 53 Line Lake 53 Black Diamond Mine, Boulder Creek 53 Adera 53 Fiddler (Yukon Tungsten) 54 East Yukon and western Northwest Territories 56 Canada Tungsten mine 63 MacTung (AMAX Northern) 67 McQuesten-Mayo district 69 Central and southwest Yukon 69 Canadian Creek 69 Northern Yukon 69 Bibliography 79 Appendix. Canadian tungsten occurrences and geological characteristics Tables 3 IA. World production of tungsten ores and concentrates 4 I B. Canadian tungsten production, trade and consumption, 1966-1976 5 2. Valence and ionic radii of tungsten and some associated elements 6 3. Geochemical abundance of tungsten in rocks 12 4. Types of tungsten deposits 16 5. Skarn minerals 44 6. Lithophile element content of granite and skarn, Emerald mine area 55 7. Analyses of granitic rocks and skarns, east Yukon - Northwest Territories in pocket Map 1556A. Mineral deposits, tungsten in Canada Plates 25 J. Wolframite-scheelite ore, Grey River 29 2. Felsite and ore, Mount Pleasant 44 3. Skarn ore, East Dodger mine 50 4. Scheelite vein ore, Red Rose mine 52 5. Skarns and associated rocks, Blue Light 52 6. Plagioclase-rich scheelite skarn, Blue Light 57 7. Canada Tungsten open-pit mine 60 8. Banded tremolite-pyrrhotite skarn, Canada Tungsten 61 9. High-grade scheelite ore, Canada Tungsten 61 10. Thin section of high-grade scheelite ore, Canada Tungsten 64 I J. MacTung, North Face and granitic terrane 64 12. Leaching of graphitic hornfels along quartz veins, MacTung 65 13. Alteration of garnet in skarn, MacTung 66 14. Quartz-biotite-scheelite vein in skarn, Mac Tung 66 15. Scheelite in quartz-biotite vein, MacTung Figures 4 J. Tungsten concentrate prices, 1950-1976 18 2. Temperature-H 20-CO 2 relationship for skarn reactions 21 3. Scheelite-wolframite relation to FICO 2 concentration 24 4 .. Geology, Grey River tungsten deposit, Newfoundland 26 5. Geological setting, Moose River "Scheelite Mine", Nova Scotia 28 6a. Geology plan, Mount Pleasant tungsten deposit, New Brunswick 28 6b. Diagrammatic cross-section, Mount Pleasant 30 7. Geological setting, Burnt Hill tungsten mine, New Brunswick 33 8. Tungsten occurrences, Foster Township, Ontario 35 9. Porcupine area and scheelite veins at Hollinger Mine, Ontario in pocket 10. Tungsten occurrences and geological setting, Yellowknife-Beaulieu area, Northwest Territories in pocket lIa. Geological setting, Emerald and associated tungsten deposits, British Columbia 43 lib. Cross-section, East Dodger tungsten mine and Jersey lead-zinc mine, British Columbia 45 12. Geology and tungsten occurrences, Bridge River - Tyaughton Creek, British Columbia 49 13. Geological setting, Red Rose and associated deposits, Hazelton, British Columbia 54 14. Proterozoic belts and tungsten occurrences, east Yukon - Northwest Territories 58 15a. Geology plan and workings, Canada Tungsten mine, Mackenzie District 59 15b.