Combined analysis of resistivity and induced polarization tomography for 3D modelling and preliminary volume estimation of the possible gold mineralization zones in the Simi locality, Adamawa, Cameroon

Abstract

The present study attempts to combine direct current and induced polarization methods for 3D geological modelling and preliminary volume estimation of gold mineralization targets in the Simi locality, Adamawa, Cameroon. To begin, resistivity and chargeability data were collected along seven profiles oriented in N150E using the electrical tomography technique. A geological investigation was also carried out and allowed in addition to the geological formations to highlight the existence of gold mineralization in the study area. The interpretation of the inversion results was done by taking into consideration the geological field data and the existing resistivity charts. The 3D distribution of the interpreted sections allowed us to make a horizontal correlation between the different sections and to elaborate the 3D geological model of the study area by using the deterministic inverse distance method. The estimated model indicates a volume of 621,130.625 m 3 of the possible gold complex. The gold complex was then divided into two mineralization domains based on chargeability ranges (mV/V): A first domain is associated with a major mineralization zone (39-60 mV/V) with a volume of 10,842 m 3 , and a second domain is associated with secondary mineralization zone (18-39 mV/V) with a volume of 610,288 m 3 . This model allows to compartmentalize the gold complex and can be used as a base model for the gold investigation in the study area.