Breccias in epithermal and porphyry deposits: The birth and death of magmatichydrothermal systems

David R. Cooke & Andrew G.S. Davies#

CODES, University of Tasmania
Sericite-chlorite altered polymict rock flour matrix breccia, Acupan Gold Mine, Philippines

# Current Address: TeckCominco,Vancouver

Talk Outline

Breccias - Descriptive Methodology Genetic Classes Overview of Breccia Types in MagmaticHydrothermal Systems Case Study: Kelian Implications for Ore Formation and Exploration

Society of Economic Geologists (SEG)

Established 1920 Three goals:
1.

Sponsor scientific investigations Disseminate results Support the profession globally

2.

www.segweb.org

SEG Membership Demographics

3,600 members in 80 countries 59% of members are non-US 11% of members are students Member affiliation is:

60% Industry (50/50 corporate/self-employed) 28% Academia 12% Government

www.segweb.org

Benefits of SEG Membership

Peer networking

3,600 members print & online directory

Publications

Economic Geology; SEG Newsletter

Discounts on all publications

Professional development

Reduced fees at conferences, short courses, and field trips SEG Traveling Lecturers
www.segweb.org

Brecciation
Rocks break when they fall, cool, grind, explode, corrode, etc. This means that breccias can form in many geological environments:
Sedimentary Volcanic Tectonic Magmatic Hydrothermal
Igneous-cemented breccia: trachyandesite clasts set in a quartz monzonite porphyry cement, cut by quartz-bornite veins with orthoclase alteration halos, E31 prospect, North Parkes, NSW

Breccia Description and Interpretation

Breccias should be described in terms of:
composition (matrix, cement, clasts) texture (clast-supported, jigsaw fit, etc) morphology (pipe, vein, bed, etc.) contact relationships

Genetic nomenclature should only be applied with caution after a breccia has been fully described
Push-up, fall-down, or break-apart breccia?

Breccia Description
Ideal combination:
5
Alteration

+4
Internal organisation

+3
Components A+B+C

+2
Grainsize

+1
Geometry

Minimum Combination: 4 + 3 + 2

1) Geometry
pipe, cone, dyke, vein, bed, irregular, tabular... Contact relationships: sharp, gradational, faulted, irregular, planar, concordant, discordant

Bat Cave breccia pipe, Northern Arizona. (Wenrich, 1985)

Descriptive Names for Breccias

5
Alteration

+4
Internal organisation

+3
Components A+B+C

+2
Grainsize

+1
Geometry

2) Grainsize
microbreccia (< 2mm) or breccia (> 2mm)...

3) Components
A: clasts monomict or polymict Composition: lithic, vein, breccia, juvenile magmatic, accretionary lapilli, mineralised, altered Morphology: angular, subangular, subround, round, faceted, tabular, equant

Descriptive Names for Breccias

5
Alteration

+4
Internal organisation

+3
Components A+B+C

+2
Grainsize

+1
Geometry

3) Components (cont.)
B: matrix rock flour, crystal fragments, lithic fragments, vein fragments texture: banded, laminated, massive grainsize - mud, silt, sand, gravel, pebble, cobble C: cement texture: cockade, massive, drusy, etc. Ore & gangue mineralogy, & grainsize D: open space (vugs)

Descriptive Names for Breccias

5
Alteration

+4
Internal organisation

+3
Components A+B+C

+2
Grainsize

+1
Geometry

4) Internal Organisation
Clast abundance, clast, matrix or cementsupported Clast distribution: jigsaw-fit, rotated, chaotic Massive (non-graded) or graded Stratified or unstratified

5) Alteration
Clasts, matrix or cement Alteration paragenesis
Sericite-altered polymictic rock flour matrix breccia, Braden Pipe, El Teniente

Breccia Facies Associations

Chlorite-altered, jigsaw-fit, in-situ, pyroxene-phyric andesite clast-supported monomictic chlorite-cemented breccia Chlorite-altered, pyroxene-phyric andesite clast-rich, polymictic, clast-supported, massive, jigsaw-fit to rotated rock flour matrix breccia Chlorite-sericite altered, matrixsupported, chaotic, polymict pyroxene-phyric andesite and mudstone-clast-rich rock flour matrix breccia Hematite-carbonatepyrite-chlorite-sericite cemented, polymict pyroxene-phyric andesite and diorite-clast breccia

Chlorite-hematite-carbonate-pyrite-altered, polymict pyroxene-phyric andesite and diorite-clast massive to stratified rock flour breccia and microbreccia

Diorite breccia complex

increased permeability cemented facies

Diorite host rock

Fractured diorite

facies with sub-vertical fabrics

brecciated diorite

Variations in clast types & matrix abundance

rock flour zone, increases inwards

Breccia Genesis
More than one process can be involved in breccia formation
Hydrothermal Breccias

Volcanic Breccias

Magma intrusion into magmatichydrothermal system

Magmatic-hydrothermal breccias
Stockwork veins

Magmatic Breccias
Igneous cement breccias

This overlap means that genetic Phreatic breccias terminology is generally applied inconsistently

Structural control on breccia location

Fault breccias

Tectonic Breccias

Breccias in Magmatic-Hydrothermal Systems

1 - Magmatic-hydrothermal breccias
Permeability enhancement through the formation of a subsurface breccia body allows for focussed fluid flow Can precipitate abundant, well-mineralised cement which contains hypersaline & vapour-rich fluid inclusions Rock flour matrix and clasts may be altered to high temperature mineral assemblages (e.g. biotite) Containment and focussing of volatiles birth of a magmatichydrothermal ore deposit Volatile-saturated intrusion undergoes catastrophic brittle failure due to hydrostatic pressure exceeding lithostatic load and the tensile strength of the wallrocks

Magmatic-Hydrothermal Breccias
Chalcopyrite-cemented monzonite breccia, Mt Polley, British Columbia

Biotite-altered rock flour matrix breccia, Gaby, Chile

Rio Blanco

71o W 0

70o W

Los Pelambres km

50

100 32o S

Pacific Ocean

Largest known breccia-hosted copper-molybdenum porphyry system Located 70 km NE of Santiago, Chile

Los Andes

Rio Blanco Los Bronces

33o S

Santiago

34o S

El Teniente

Rio Blanco - Los Bronces

South

Sur Sur

La Union

Rio Blanco

Los Bronces

Biotite Breccia
Ore at Rio Blanco is hosted in biotite-cemented and biotitealtered rock flour matrix breccias (magmatic breccia)

Biotite breccia, Rio Blanco

Tourmaline Breccia
Ore at Sur-Sur, La Union and Los Bronces is hosted in tourmaline-cemented breccias

Tourm. Bx Los Bronces

Tm-cp-py-qz-anh cement: Sur-Sur breccia

Tourm. bx Sur-Sur

Tourmaline breccia

Sur-Sur XC50

Diorite wallrock

Late- Tourmaline stage breccia rock flour breccia

Biotite breccia
Tm bx cut by RF bx, Rio Blanco

Rock Flour breccia

Breccia-Enhanced Permeability
~2 km paleodepth Farellones Fm
Drawdown of meteoric water?

Buoyant magmatic gas streams up through bx column

Upwelling magmatichydrothermal brines precipitate ore

San Francisco Batholith

~5 km paleodepth

Breccias in Magmatic-Hydrothermal Systems

2 - Phreatomagmatic breccias
Rock flour & milled clasts abundant Surficial and subsurface breccia deposits Bedded and massive breccia facies Venting of volatiles to the surface death of a porphyry deposit shortcut to the epithermal environment

Maar-diatreme breccia complex

2 - 5 km paleodepth

Late intrusion into active hydrothermal system

Diatremes
Diatremes are downward-tapering, cone-shaped breccia
bodies (paleovolcanic vents)
phreatomagmatic and phreatic explosions filled by volcaniclastic debris and collapsed wall rocks subsurface conduits beneath maars

100 m

U.S. Geological Survey / photo by R Russell, 1977

U.S. Geological Survey / photo by D. Dewhurst, 1990

Maars
Maars are 100 m to greater than 3000 m diameter,
monogenetic volcanic craters
surrounded by low aspect ratio tuff rings wet pyroclastic base surge, fallout and re-sedimented volcaniclastic deposits

25 m

U.S. Geological Survey / photo by C. Nye, 1994

U.S. Geological Survey / photo by D. Dewhurst, 1990

Diatremes - Volcanological Model

wet pyroclastic eruptions

Modified after Lorenz, 1973

0m Water Table depressed

Increasing eruption depth > 2500m

No direct link to mineralisation - this model fails to account for common association of diatremes and magmatic-hydrothermal ore deposits

El Teniente Braden Breccia

Worlds largest PCD: 12.4 Gt resource @ 0.63% Cu, 0.02% Mo Part of the deposit has been destroyed by the late stage Braden Breccia Pipe (diatreme complex)

Mine Level #6 (2165m asl) 500 m

< 0.5% Cu

> 0.5% Cu

< 0.5% Cu

> 0.5% Cu
Teniente Host Sequence Sewell Diorite (8.9-7 Ma) Grey porphyry (5.7 Ma) Dacite pipes (5.5 Ma) Dacite dyke (5.3 Ma) Marginal Breccia (4.7 Ma) Braden Breccia (4.7 Ma) Late dacite dykes (4.7 Ma) Hble-phyric dykes (3.8 Ma)

Bedded rock flour matrix polymict breccia facies, Braden Breccia Pipe, El Teniente

Breccias in Magmatic-Hydrothermal Systems

3 Phreatic, hydraulic & fault breccias
Fault breccias: grinding and abrasion may produce gouge, cataclasite, etc Phreatic breccias: in-situ subsurface brecciation (jigsaw fit to rotated textures) Hydraulic breccias - only minor clast transport and abrasion (angular clasts common) Abundant hydrothermal cement Phreatic steam explosions caused by decompression of hydrothermal fluid No direct magmatic involvement epithermal gold deposition

Fault Breccias

2 cm Fault breccia with clasts of quartz-chalcopyrite veins in a rock flour matrix, and with chalcopyrite smeared along the breccia margin, Ridgeway Au-Cu porphyry, NSW

Phreatic Breccias

Porkchop Geyser, posteruption, 1992, Yellowstone

Phreatic Breccias
Gases accumulate beneath a silica seal during upflow of boiling waters

Gas cap in self-sealed geothermal system (Hedenquist & Henley, 1985)

P increase can rupture the hydrothermal seal, triggering a steam explosion & phreatic brecciation

Au-mineralised vein breccia, Acupan

Phreatic Breccias
Depressurisation can affect a significant vertical column of rock (hundreds of metres) and can trigger ore deposition as H2S partitions to the vapour phase

Instantaneous P decrease changes the depth of first boiling (Hedenquist & Henley, 1985)

Phreatic Breccias - Triggers

Seismic rupture Overpressuring and failure of hydrothermal seal Instantaneous unloading (landslip, draining of lake, etc.) Temperature increase (magma water interaction)

Hydrothermal eruption crater, Pocket Basin, Yellowstone. Fragments of lake sediments were deposited in a low aspect ratio ejecta apron after draining of glaciallydammed lake 20-25,000 years ago

Hydrothermal explosion triggered by draining of glacial lake (Muffler et al, 1971)

Phreatomagmatic vs. Phreatic Explosions

Phreatic explosion
no direct magma - water contact at explosion site flashing of water to steam no juvenile magmatic component

Phreatomagmatic explosion
magma - water interaction at the explosion site explosion driven by flashing of water to steam magmatic gas contribution is minor juvenile magmatic component
Eruption of Waimungu Geyser, New Zealand, 1904 (Sillitoe, 1985)

The Kelian Breccia Complex: host to a giant epithermal Au-Ag deposit, East Kalimantan, Indonesia

Singapore

KELIAN

Jakarta

A PhD study by Andrew Davies

Centre For Ore Deposit Research (CODES) University of Tasmania, Australia
1 cm
Native gold disseminated in sphalerite, pyrite and carbonate

Regional geology
Located in uplifted block of Cretaceous volcaniclastic rocks Surrounded by terrestrial and shallow marine sedimentary rocks of the Tertiary Kutai Basin
Indo Muyup Muro Busang

Masupia Ria

Kelian

Mirah

Largest epithermal Au deposit in a NEtrending belt of Miocene low sulfidation epithermal gold deposits

Kelian Au deposit
Alluvial Au discovered by indigenous Dayaks in 1950s Bedrock Au discovered by Rio Tinto in 1975 Main exploration 1986 to 1989 outlined 75 Mt @ 1.8 g/t Au Mining commenced in 1991 Total resource: 92 Mt @ 2.61 g/t Au Total contained Au ~240 Tonnes (~8 Moz) Carbonate, base-metal-rich, low sulfidation epithermal Au-Ag deposit

Kelian geology
U. Cretaceous felsic volcaniclastic basement faulted against Tertiary sediments Andesite and rhyolite intrusions ~ 22 19 Ma Emplacement controlled by NE- and NW-striking faults Phreatomagmatic and phreatic breccia formation Mineralisation and alteration Pliocene unconformity Pit outline Plio-Pleistocene mafic volcanism

Kelian Volcanics
Upper Cretaceous volcanic siltstone, sandstone & breccia

diatreme breccia andesitic intrusion

volcaniclastic sst/slt

60 m

Pumice and crystal-rich subaqueous mass flow deposits (possible subaerial source)

1 cm

Mahakam Group Sedimentary Rocks

Pleistocene unconformity
Scoria breccia, basalt lava flows

30 m

Mudstone and sandstone

QFP intrusion

Eocene to Oligocene carbonaceous mudstone and sandstone Terrestrial and shallow submarine depositional environment

Kelian Breccia Complex Formation

Structural Preparation:
Transpressional fault system Structurally bounded blocks of carbonaceous mudstone juxtaposed against volcaniclastic rocks Miocene surface developed
1500 0

Carbonaceous sediments

500

1000

Volcaniclastic rocks
2000 m

Andesitic intrusions
Late Miocene plagioclase-hornblende-phyric porphryies

diatreme breccia Andesitic intrusion

volcaniclastic sst/slt

60 m

1 cm

Pre-Diatreme Igneous Stage

Intrusion of andesitic stocks Initiation of early hydrothermal system
Qtz - Ser - Pyr / Chl - Cal - Epi alteration
Phreatic Eruptions? Descending meteoric water
0

500

? Early phreatic breccias facilitated ingress of meteoric water

Early hydrothermal system

1000

1500

2000 m

Early Diatreme Stage

Quartz-phyric rhyolitic intrusions - structural control Phreatomagmatic and phreatic eruptions
Subsurface: phreatomagmatic &
0

500

phreatic breccias

1000

Surface: Wet pyroclastic base-

surge deposits

1500

2000 m

Surface phreatomagmatic breccias

Phreatomagmatic base surge deposits dune bed forms Phreatomagmatic fallout accretionary lapilli

volcaniclastic sst/slt

diatreme breccia 20 m

Phreatomagmatic eruptions produced base surge deposits and co-surge fallout Early hydrothermal system was disrupted catastrophically Triggered hybrid and large-scale phreatic brecciation
1 cm

Subsurface phreatomagmatic breccias

Phreatomagmatic breccia juvenile QP clasts diatreme breccia andesitic intrusion volcaniclastic sst/slt Phreatomagmatic breccia

60 m

Subsurface and eruptive facies of a maar-diatreme complex Juvenile magmatic clasts are preserved Polyphase breccias

0.5 cm

1 cm

Main Diatreme Stage

Diatreme deepened and widened by:
Continued explosive

fragmentation

Downward transport in pipes

Block subsidence
0

Brecciation, collapse and

subsidence of diatreme walls

500

Mega-block formation and

disaggregation

1000

Multiple crosscutting breccia pipes

1500

2000 m

Block subsidence breccias

Late Diatreme - Early Hydrothermal Stage

Late stage rhyolite dome emplacement Early auriferous hydrothermal breccias Overlapping diatreme and hydrothermal breccias
Early stage hydrothermal brecciation overlaps phreatomagmatic brecciation

500

Auriferous hydrothermal system

1000

1500

2000 m

Rhyolitic intrusions
brecciated mudstone QFP intrusion 10 m

brecciated mudstone

QFP intrusion

Volcaniclastic sst / slt 150 m

Late Miocene rhyolitic intrusions emplaced into active hydrothermal system Quartz feldspar porphyries
QFP intrusion

Main Hydrothermal Stage

Main stage hydrothermal system
carbonate - adularia - sericite

alteration

Widespread hydrothermal brecciation Gold - silver mineralisation

veins, hydrothermal breccias

500

& disseminations

1000

Hydrothermal Brecciation

1500

2000 m

Vein & Breccia-Hosted Mineralisation

Hydrothermal breccia bodies at Kelian have vein halos that contain infill minerals identical to the breccia cement Base-metal-enriched, Au-Ag (1:1) system Vertically extensive (> 700 m preserved) Five main mineralisation stages Main gold deposition occurred during stages 2 4
1 cm Generalised paragenesis
Ore mineralogy Gangue mineralogy
Sericite quartz

Quartz is only a minor infill component

STAGE 1A/B Pyrite STAGE 2A/B STAGE 3A/B STAGE 3C/D STAGE 4 Sulfosalts Rhodochrosite - quartz STAGE 5 Supergene oxides Kaolinite

Base-metal-sulfides-pyrite Quartz - adularia Kutnahorite dolomite calcite

Hydrothermal breccias
Stage 1 and 2 Pyrite cement Stage 3A Base-metal sulfide cement Stage 3C Carbonate cement Stage 4 Sulfosalt rhodochrosite cement

2 cm

2 cm

2 cm

1 cm

2 cm

Early phreatic breccias: (Explosive brecciation, transport and milling, abundant matrix)

Main stage to late-stage hydraulic breccias: (Non-explosive in-situ brecciation, minor transport and milling, abundant cement)

Veins

1 cm Stage 1A: Sericite - pyrite

Stage 2B: Adularia-quartz

1 cm Stage 2A: Pyrite - quartz 2 cm 1 cm Stage 3C Carbonate infill Stages 1 and 2 Pyrite cement Stage 3A Base-metal sulfide infill Stage 4 Sulfosalt rhodochrosite infill

Post - Hydrothermal Stage

Erosion to Plio-Pleistocene surface: ~1000 m removed Burial by mafic volcanic rocks Maar and associated facies only preserved in subsided blocks
0

500

1000

1500

Location of economic resource

2000 m

Magma Emplacement into Active Hydrothermal Systems

Magma intrusion triggers hybrid phreatomagmatic and phreatic explosions 200 C 300 C
Champagne pool, Waiotapu geothermal area, NZ

Abundant hot fluids in active hydrothermal system, at or near boiling point

Catastrophic disruption of and irreversible changes to chemical and physical conditions in the existing hydrothermal system

Diatremes and Giant Epithermal Deposits

Cripple Creek Yanacocha Baguio Pueblo Viejo Porgera Ladolam Round Mountain El Indio Comstock Lode Mc Donald Hishikari Puchuca-Real Waihi Kelian Au (t) 0 200 400 600 800
Modified after Sillitoe, 1997

Epithermal deposits associated with diatremes Epithermal deposits without diatremes

Brecciation: Implications for Ore Formation

1: Fluid flow in breccia and wall rock

Armoured Lapilli

Yanacocha
Mineralisation both pre- and post-diatreme

Brecciation: Implications for Ore Formation

2: Fluid flow focussed within breccia

Cripple Creek

Brecciation: Implications for Ore Formation

3: Fluid flow focussed within wallrocks
Majority of mineralisation in wall rocks Diatreme breccias act as aquitards Hydrothermal brecciation and fluid flow focussed into wall rocks Phreatomagmatic explosions enhanced hydrothermal system and triggered gold deposition processes
Breccia pipe inhibits fluid flow Post Diatreme Large scale hydrothermal explosions and brecciation

Structurally controlled mineralisation at margins of breccia

Kelian

Possible effects on fluid flow

4: Venting of volatiles and death of a mineralising system Late Stage Diatreme Formation

El Teniente

Porphyry systems - Birth and Death

1. Birth: Magma intrusion and early magmatic-hydrothermal brecciation Hydrothermal system advance Hydrothermal brecciation 2. Death: Magma intrusion into wellestablished hydrothermal system

Catastrophic volatile loss / pressure reduction

Hydrothermal system collapse

Early intrusion insufficient fluids for explosion Intrusion into hydrothermal system

Epithermal systems
3. Rebirth: Flow path created to connect the porphyry and epithermal environments Large scale hydrothermal explosions and brecciation Phreatomagmatic explosions through active system trigger syn and post diatreme hybrid phreatic explosions

Mineralisation in wallrocks

Breccia pipe inhibits fluid flow hydrothermal system enhanced in wallrocks

Structurally controlled mineralisation at margins of diatreme

Conclusions
Careful documentation of breccia facies and their interrelationships is essential prior to attempting genetic interpretations Brecciation can occur in response to a combination of phenomena, making genetic pigeonholing difficult Fluid flow will be affected profoundly by a major brecciation event Changes to the fluid flow regime will be dependent on the nature of the breccia and the wallrocks

Thayer Lindsley - Biography

Thayer Lindsley, described as the greatest mine finder of all time, was born in Yokohama, Japan He took a civil engineering degree at Harvard, and moved to Canada in 1924 with a $30,000 stake from an iron mine in Oregon. In 1928, Lindsley and a group of associates founded Ventures Ltd., as a holding company for various properties. Falconbridge Nickel Mines Limited was incorporated as a Ventures subsidiary in the same year. Thayer Lindsley also founded Frobisher, and either found or was involved in the development of Sherritt Gordon, Giant Yellowknife, Canadian Malartic, United Keno Hill, Lake Dufault and Opemiska Copper, Connemara in Southern Rhodesia and Whim Creek in Australia.
"To be a successful mine finder, one must have determination, knowledge, tenacity, a rugged constitution to withstand the rigors of outdoor life, and enjoy overcoming obstacles of every description. Also, a little dash of imagination and enthusiasm is helpful."

Data Source: http://www.halloffame.mining.ca/halloffame/english/bios/lindsley.html