Microchemical Studies of Placer and Lode Gold in the Klondike District, Yukon, Canada: 2. Constraints on the Nature and Location of Regional Lode Sources

Microchemical signature of alluvial gold from two contrasting terrains in Cameroon

“…Elements alloyed with Au such as Ag, Hg and Cu are frequently used in such investigations. For example, gold fineness in combination with Hg and Cu concentrations in individual placer gold grains were useful in differentiating primary gold sources in the Klondike District in Yukon Territory Canada (Chapman et al, 2010). Morrison et al (1991) interpreted alloy composition data from a wide range of sources and concluded that alluvial gold grains from mesothermal primary sources have average fineness values between 800 and 1000 while similar grains from epithermal systems have fineness values between 0 and 1000.…”

“…Also, orogenic gold is differentiated from epithermal gold by its generally low Ag content (Chapman et al, 2009). Such Ag ranges alongside Hg content of gold grains have been used by Chapman et al (2010) to characterize lode and placer gold grains in the Klondike District in Yukon Territory Canada in an attempt to reconstruct the nature and extent of the primary mineralization and enhance future exploration efforts in the western Klondike District. Though the significance of Cu as a gold alloy has received less attention in the study of orogenic gold, its application to identifying placer gold related to magmatic events has been shown to be reliable (Moles et al, 2013).…”

Gold grade variation and particle microchemistry in exploration pits of the Batouri gold district, SE Cameroon

“…gold grains, alloyed elements and grain morphology (e.g. Chapman et al, 2000aChapman et al, ,b, 2009Chapman et al, , 2010Chapman and Mortensen, 2006;Moles et al, 2013). The suitability of the microchemical technique lies in the fact that the core composition of particulate gold in soils and stream sediments reflects the composition of the gold in the lode sources or bedrock.…”

The genesis of gold mineralisation hosted by orogenic belts: A lead isotope investigation of Irish gold deposits

“…A gold alloy characterised by relative high levels of Cu and containing Cu sulphide inclusions from Balwoges, Co. Donegal is most likely related to a local porphyry stock. The occasional presence of Te-bearing minerals as inclusions at localities in Wexford and Wicklow was cited as evidence of a magmatic influence (Chapman et al, 2006), however subsequent regional scale studies in the Yukon Canada have shown that the presence of some Te-bearing minerals as inclusions (including Bi-Te) is not diagnostic of a magmatic association (Chapman et al, 2010(Chapman et al, , 2011. Nevertheless, the strong Bi-Te signature in placer gold at Curraghinalt is consistent with a magmatic influence which accords with the conclusions from previous studies Parnell et al, 2000), and this association most likely relates to the source rocks involved.…”