A genetic model for Volcanic-Associated Massive Sulfide Deposits, an overview of progress made and problems remaining Harold L.

Gibson* (Mineral Exploration Research Centre, Laurentian University) Sudbury, Ontario, P3E 2C6, hgibson@nickel.laurentian.ca James M. Franklin (Franklin Geosciences Ltd.) Mark D. Hannington (Geological Survey of Canada) Volcanic-associated massive sulfide (VMS) deposits are major sources of copper and zinc and, to a lesser extent lead, silver, gold, cadmium, selenium, tin, bismuth and minor amounts of other metals. Genetic and empirical models of VMS deposits were initially based on detailed deposit and more regional studies of well preserved ancient examples, particularly those in well exposed and established mining districts in Canada, Japan, Australia and Scandinavia. However, the discovery of actively forming black smoker deposits on the East Pacific Rise at 21oN in 1977, and subsequent discoveries, validated and refined the existing syngenetic model. Studies of actively forming deposits along mid-ocean ridges, in back-arc and incipient spreading environments have, and will continue to make, significant contributions to our understanding of the primary mineralogy and mineral chemistry, the temperature and composition of the mineralizing fluid and growth mechanisms for massive sulfide deposits. Studies of ancient deposits, on the other hand, are better suited to unraveling the volcanological and structural history of VMS deposits and the distribution and types of alteration assemblages as the hanging wall and footwall strata are available for examination and study. Some of the significant advances and problems remaining include: Tectonic Setting Approximately 80% of the worlds VMS deposits occur in arc-related successions and the remainder occur in ophiolitic successions that generally are back-arc rifts or rifted marginal basins (Franklin et al., 1999). Within most tectonic environments the deposits formed in an extensional volcanic environment related to rifting, either within an arc or back-arc environment, in oceanic arcs or near the convergence of oceanic with continental crust. However, criteria used for establishing the tectonic setting of VMS deposits in ancient successions typically focus on host rock composition and not paleogeographic reconstruction. The latter requires comprehensive volcanological, sedimentological and structural studies. Thus, the tectonic settings of ancient VMS deposits are, at best, inferred because of uncertainties resulting from the scale of observation, and the quality of geological and geochemical data available. Host Rock Composition Some Archean and Phanerozoic VMS deposits are hosted by rhyolite with specific trace element compositions (FI, FII, and FIII rhyolites; Lesher et al. 1986; Barrie, et al., 1993; Lentz, 1999). The association of VMS deposits with FII and FIII rhyolite types appears to be independent of time and, perhaps, tectonic environment. What are the processes responsible for the specific rhyolite compositions and how are these processes related to the formation of VMS deposits? Answers to these questions will significantly impact on area selection during reconnaissance exploration programs. Volcanic Environment VMS deposits occur within both mafic and felsic submarine volcanic centers. The deposits occur in both volcaniclastic and flow-dominated successions (+/- sedimentary rocks). Abundant volcanological and compositional evidence from individual deposits and mining districts indicate that VMS deposits occur in both deep (>1000m) and shallow (<1000m) water environments (Gibson et al., 1999). Within any volcanic center the structural control on the location of VMS deposits is pronounced. At the deposit scale, VMS deposits are

VMS model - progress and problems spatially associated with synvolcanic faults and commonly occur within volcanic vents (both mafic and felsic) that are localized along synvolcanic structures.The characteristic clustering of VMS deposits reflects their preferential development within volcanic centres. However, within each volcanic center VMS deposits typically occupy a single stratigraphic interval which represents only a small fraction of the total stratigraphic thickness of the host volcanic complex. Clearly more attention must be directed towards their volcanological attributes and the role, and timing, of spatiallyrelated intrusive rocks. Subvolcanic Intrusions Subvolcanic intrusions are large, sill-like, multiphase plutons interpreted to represent the intrusive equivalent of a deeper magma chamber that fed the volcanic succession (Galley, 1993). Geochronological studies of several of these intrusions suggest they are partially coeval with and partially younger than the succession into which they were emplaced (Mortenson, 1987; Richard, 1998). They are significant for three main reasons. First, they are emplaced within the core of a volcanic edifice, thus their recognition, even at a reconnaissance scale, can point to the principal volcanic centres for the succession in question. Second, structures which controlled the limits of the intrusion, and phases within the intrusion, are commonly the same structures which controlled the principal eruptive centres within the overlying strata, accommodated subsidence, and localized hydrothermal discharge which may have formed VMS deposits. Are subvolcanic intrusions, in part or in whole, the heat source required to drive a hydrothermal convective system responsible for the deposits, or are they a manifestation of a high-heat flow environment, or do they represent a magmatic source for some of the metals and sulphur? Magmatic Fluid Contribution The large size of some VMS deposits, unusually high base or precious metal content, and an anomalous content of unusual elements (such as Sn, Hg, Bi, Se, etc..), as well as limited fluid and melt inclusion evidence has been cited in support of a magmatic fluid component to VMS deposits. Although seemingly an academic question, a magmatic fluid component would affect exploration philosophy by developing new criteria and techniques aimed at unravelling the petrogenetic history of an area rather than focusing on other attributes, such as semiconformable alteration. Semiconformable Alteration Semiconformable alteration occurs as large, regionally extensive areas, up to tens of kilometers along strike, of hydrothermally altered rock. These zones have been recognized and documented in successions hosting VMS deposits where it is interpreted to be a product of subseafloor hydrothermal convective systems (MacGeehan, 1978; Gibson, et al., 1983; Skirrow and Franklin, 1994). Although some semiconformable alteration assemblages are associated with metal depletion there is still uncertainty about their emplacement time and, therefore, the role of semiconformable alteration in the formation of VMS deposits. More quantitative hydrologic modeling of convective systems and subvolcanic intrusions is required, constrained by regional-scale stable isotope, mineralogical and chemical studies. Proximal (Pipe) Alteration Alteration associated with the discharge zones that immediately underlie all VMS deposits has been extensively studied. It has been shown to form through both the interaction of high-temperature hydrothermal fluid (Fe, Mn, base metal addition) and with locally advected fluids (Mg alteration) with the adjacent rock. Except for the Kuroko deposits, minimal attention has been given to hanging wall alteration. Such zones are subtle but diagnostic indicators of VMS deposits, and their documentation will enhance the discovery of new deposits, particularly in undeformed terrains.

VMS model - progress and problems Metal Zoning and Paragenesis VMS deposits exhibit a pronounced vertical and lateral zonation in their sulphide mineralogy and chemical composition. This zonation is interpreted to be a product of a zone refining processes whereby a lower temperature pyrite-sphalerite sulfide assemblage was replaced by a higher temperature chalcopyrite-pyrrhotite assemblage (Lydon, 1988). The distribution of gold may also be explained by zone refining. However, the variable Au content of VMS deposits and the occurrence of Au-rich VMS deposits is poorly understood. Au content may be a product of the efficiency of the zone refining process, or of variations in the chemical and physical (boiling) characteristics of hydrothermal fluids and their Au concentration at the time of Au saturation and precipitation (Hannington and Scott, 1989; Huston and Large, 1989). The economic significance of Au-rich VMS deposits will demand answers to these and other questions that perhaps will be found in continued research directed at quantifying relationships between precious metal-rich epithermal and VMS deposits, as well as expanding new research initiatives directed at modern, shallow water, Au-rich deposits (Hannington et al., 1999). Deposit Morphology Research conducted on VMS deposits of the modern seafloor has clearly demonstrated that massive sulfide deposits form by chimney collapse, hydraulic fracturing and precipitation of sulfides within the sulphide lens (Lydon, 1988). Research conducted primarily on ancient massive sulfide deposits indicates that sulfide lenses also grow by the subsurface precipitation of sulfides within void spaces in permeable volcaniclastic or sedimentary strata, immediately below the seafloor, and by replacement of these strata (Gibson et al., 1999). Subseafloor sulphide growth is an efficient mechanism with respect to metal entrapment, but constraints on replacement processes are poorly understood as is their effect on metal zonation and alteration. Deposit Size It is well established that VMS deposits occur in a natural geometric progression in size with approximately 80% of the deposits falling into a 0.1 to 10 M tonnes size range and about 50% of these are <1 M tonnes (Boldy, 1977; Sangster, 1980). There is still only limited consensus on which processes/environments are responsible for the formation of giant, high-grade deposits and the factors that control their location. References Barrie,C.T., Ludden, J.N. and Green,T.H., 1993. Geochemistry of volcanic rocks associated with Cu-Zn and Ni-Cu deposits in the Abitibi Subprovince. Economic Geology, 88, p.1341-1358. Boldy, J., 1977. (Un)Certain Exploration Facts from Figures. CIMM Bulletin, May 1977, p.86-95. Franklin, J.M., Hannington, M.d., Barrie, C.T. and Jonnason, I.R., 1999. Tectonic Classification of VMS deposits. Cordilleran Round-Up, MDRU Short Course Notes, Vancouver, B.C. Galley, A.G., 1993. Semiconformable alteration zones in volcanogenic massive sulphide districts. Journal of Geochemical Exploration, 48, p.175-200. Gibson, H.L., Morton, R.l. and Hudak, G., 1999. Submarine Volcanic Processes, Deposits And Environments Favorable For The Location Of Volcanic-associated Massive Sulfide Deposits. In Barrie, C.T., and Hannington, M.D. (Eds) Volcanic-associated massive sulfide deposits: Processes and examples in modern and ancient settings. Reviews in Economic Geology, v.8., p.13-51.

VMS model - progress and problems Gibson, H.L., Watkinson, D.H. and Comba, C.D.A., 1983. Silicification: hydrothermal alteration in an Archean geothermal system within the Amulet Rhyolite Formation, Noranda, Quebec. Economic Geology, 78, p. 954-971. Hannington, M.D., Poulson, H., Thompson, J. and Sillitoe,R., 1999. Volcanogenic gold and epithermalstyle mineralization in the VMS environment. In Barrie, C.T., and Hannington, M.D. (Eds) Volcanicassociated massive sulfide deposits: Processes and examples in modern and ancient settings. Reviews in Economic Geology, v.8, p.325-356. Hannington, M.D. and Scott, S.D., 1989. Gold mineralization in volcanogenic massive sulfides: Implications of data from active hydrothermal vents on the modern seafloor. In Keays, R.r., Ramsay, W.R.H., and Groves, D.I. (Eds) The geology of gold deposits: The perspective in 1988. Economic geology Monograph 6, p. 491-507. Huston, D.L. and Large, R.R., 1989. A chemical model for the concentration of gold in volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits. Ore Geology Reviews, 4, p. 171-200. Lentz, D., 1998. Petrogenetic evolution of felsic volcanic sequences associated with Phanerozoic volcanic-hosted massive sulphide systems: the role of extensional geodynamics. Ore Geology Reviews, 12, p. 289-327. Lesher, C.M., Goodwin, A.M., Campbell, I.H., and Gorton, M.P., 1986. Trace-element geochemistry of ore associated and barren felsic metavolcanic rocks in the Superior province, Canada. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 23, p.222-237. Lydon, J.W., 1988. Volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits Part 2: Genetic Models. Geoscience Canada, 15, p. 43-65. MacGeehan, P.J., 1978. The geochemistry of altered volcanic rocks at Matagami, Quebec: a geothermal model for massive sulfide genesis. Canadian Journal of Earth Science, 15, p.551-570. Mortenson, J.K., 1987. Preliminary U-Pb zircon ages for volcanic and plutonic rocks of the Noranda-Lac Abitibi area, Abitibi Subprovince, Quebec. In, Current Research, Part A, Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 87-1A, p. 581-590. Richard, M.G., 1998. Evolution of the Flavrian Pluton and its association with VHMS deposits and granitoid-hosted gold deposits of the Noranda Cauldron, Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, Canada. Unpubl PhD thesis, University de Montreal, Montreal, PQ. Skirrow, R.G., and Franklin, J.M., 1994. Silicification and metal leaching in semiconformable alteration beneath the Chisel Lake massive sulphide deposit, Snow Lake, Manitoba. Economic Geology, 89, p. 3150. Sangster, D.F., 1980. Quantitative characteristics of volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits. CIMM Bulletin, February, 1980, p. 74-81. Biographical Note: Harold L. Gibson graduated from Queens and Carleton Universities. After a 12 year career in Exploration he joined the Department of Earth Science at Laurentian University in 1990. Harold's research interests include: 1) development of architectural and depositional models and volcanic facies relevant to VMS exploration; 2) the study of alteration assemblages associated with VMS deposits 3) the petrology and igneous geochemistry of Precambrian and younger (Cretaceous and Tertiary) volcanic rocks; and 4) subaqueous explosive volcanic processes, mechanisms and deposits.