Title
Ore mineralogy, trace element geochemistry and geochronological constraints at the Mollehuaca and San Juan de Chorunga Au-Ag vein deposits in the Nazca-Ocoña Metallogenic Belt, Arequipa, Peru
Date Issued
01 December 2020
Access level
open access
Resource Type
journal article
Author(s)
Universidad Nacional de San Agustín de Arequipa
Publisher(s)
MDPI AG
Abstract
The Mollehuaca and San Juan de Chorunga deposits are hosted in the poorly explored gold and copper trends of the Nazca-Ocoña metallogenic belt in Arequipa, Perú, which extends from Trujillo (9◦S) to Nazca-Ocoña (14◦S). The aim of this study is to characterize the age, occurrence, and distribution of quartz vein-hosted Au-Ag mineralization and associated trace elements (e.g., Hg, Pb, Cu, Zn, and Bi) in these deposits. Here, we present geological mapping, geochemical whole rock inductively coupled plasma (ICP)-MS data of the veins, petrographic observations, backscattered electron images, quantitative SEM-based automated mineralogy, and electron microprobe analyses (EMPA). Despite the fact that there are numerous small-scale gold mines in the Nazca-Ocoña metallogenic belt, there have been few studies that document the origin and geological evolution of these deposits or the implications for decision-making in exploration, metallurgical processing, and environmental management. In this research, we document the host rock age of the mineralized veins (129.2 ± 1.0 Ma; U-Pb in zircon), the mineralization age (95.86 ± 0.05 Ma;40Ar/39Ar in secondary biotite), the occurrence and distribution of Au-Ag in the veins, the mineral zonation present in the vein system, and the zircon geochemistry, in order to provide tools for natural resource management in the metallogenic belt.
Start page
1
End page
21
Volume
10
Issue
12
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Mineralogía
Subjects
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85097682643
Source
Minerals
ISSN of the container
2075163X
Sponsor(s)
Funding: This study was funded by the Center for Mining Sustainability (Universidad Nacional de San Agustín, Arequipa, Perú and Colorado School of Mines).
Sources of information:
Directorio de Producción Científica
Scopus