Regional Studies and Specific Deposits

Regional Studies and Specific Deposits deals with regional studies of strata-bound and stratiform ore deposits. Topics covered include the geological association between coal and metallic ores; the genesis of iron ores in banded iron-formation (BIF) by supergene and supergene-metamorphic processes; mineral zoning in sediment-hosted copper deposits; and the formation of gossans. The role of hydrothermal karst phenomena in the formation of Mississippi Valley-type deposits is also discussed. Comprised of five chapters, this volume begins with a review of the geological association of coal and metallic ores, focusing in particular on which metallic accumulations could be expected to be possibly present, within or close to the coal. The next chapter examines the origin of strata-bound enrichment deposits derived from BIF and presents the basic conceptual model for BIF-derived iron ores. The evolution of sulfide mineral zonation in low-temperature, sediment-hosted copper deposits is then evaluated. The book also describes the processes underlying the formation of gossans before concluding with an analysis of the hydrothermal karst phenomena as a factor in the development of Mississippi Valley-type deposits. This handbook will be useful to students, practitioners, and researchers in the fields of energy and earth sciences, mineralogy, mining, and metallurgy.