AIMMGM 2015 Acapulco

Porphyry Cu potential in Mexico:

Transitions from epithermal lithocaps
to veins and tops of porphyry deposits
Overview: linked porphyry & epithermal processes
Transitions between deposit styles
Implications for porphyry exploration in Mexico

Jeffrey W. Hedenquist
Ottawa, Canada

Society of Economic Geologists

Honorary Lecturer

Global Gold Endowment

Skarn

39.3%

plus >70% world Cu

From Goldfarb, 2014;
data from Lipson, 2014

Sonoran gold belt

La India

Mulatos
Orisyvo
Sauzal

Lithocap-hosted
high-sulfidation
deposit
Longo, 2012, a+er Silberman et at.,
1988, Barton et al., 1995, Albinson et
al. 2001, Camprubi et al., 2003,
Valencia-Moreno et al., 2007

Eocene-Olig.
epithermal
Au-Ag belt

Laramide porphyry
belt: Cret.-Eocene
Mulatos
Orisyvo
Sauzal

Lithocap-hosted
high-sulfidation
deposit
Longo, 2012, a+er Silberman et at.,
1988, Barton et al., 1995, Albinson et
al. 2001, Camprubi et al., 2003,
Valencia-Moreno et al., 2007

Eocene-Olig.
epithermal
Au-Ag belt

Porphyry systems

High-sulfidation Au-Cu

Epithermal
veins Au-Ag
(Pb-Zn)

Base of lithocap
(advanced argillic
alteration)

Sillitoe, 2010
Economic Geology

Distal PbZn skarn

Replacement
Zn-Pb-Ag

Porphyry
Cu-Au

Proximal CuAu skarn

Epithermal
or
and
?
porphyry

White Island, New Zealand: Quiet eruption, 1988

800oC hypogene vapors,

with HCl, SO2

Vapor condensates,
pH <1

White Island, New Zealand: drowned fumaroles, 2007

Satsuma Iwojima, Japan

Residual
(vuggy)
quartz

pH 0.2

acidic stream,
pH ~0.6

Porphyry systems

Residual quartz (vuggy),

barren

pH 1-2,
H2SO4
HCl

Base of lithocap

Sillitoe, 2010

Quartz-alunite,
barren

Early: High T magmatic

Coupled brine + vapor
Potassic (~500oC) +
advanced argillic lithocap
Wavy qtz veins, no halo
Cu sulfides (but barren
lithocap)

Porphyry systems

Residual quartz (vuggy)

enargite, Au (HS)
Quartz-alunite

IS veins

Base of lithocap

Sillitoe, 2010

Porphyry
Cu (Au)

Early: High T magmatic

Coupled brine + vapor
Potassic (~500oC) +
advanced argillic lithocap
Wavy qtz veins, no halo
Metal sulfides (barren
lithocap)
Intermediate: Lower T
magmatic, <10 wt% NaCl
Phyllic, white mica (up
to pyrophyllite) (350oC)
Straight qtz veins, halo
Metals (shallow HS ore,
marginal IS veins)

If erosion exposes top of porphyry,

stockwork veins can be mapped

Copper Creek porphyry Cu-Mo deposit, Arizona

240 Mt of M, I & I, 0.74% Cu,
0.013% Mo (0.5% Cu eq cut)
Grade shells projected
to surface
Riedell et al., 2013

0.2% Cu
Elev m
1400

0.5%

1000
600
200

cp-bn

Early halo veins

D veins

1 km

0.2% Cu

0.5% Cu

Early halo
D
vol. % veins
EH veins at surface (>5 vol%)
above 0.5 wt% Cu grade
0-1
shell at ~500+ m depth
5-10
15+

Riedell et al., 2013

But, what if lithocap alteration is present:

shallow erosion level?
Mankayan district,
Philippines

dacite pyroclastics
volcaniclastic
basement

Mohong Hill
quartz-alunite
lithocap

Lepanto high-sulfidation Cu-Au ore

Most ore
(~70%) in
lithocap feeder

Lepanto
fault

Hedenquist et al., 1998;

Chang et al., 2011

Dickite
kaolinite

Quartzalunite
Dickite
kaolinite

1 km

NW end of lithocap:
qtz-alunite cliffs at
unconformity, with
kaolinite halo
Chang et al., 2011

Small
workings,
1-4 g/t Au
Breccias

< 50 ppb Au

1 km
Chang et al., 2011

Lepanto HS:> 0.9

Mt Cu & 102 t Au

Alteration and
Mineralization
Buaki
porphyry

Victoria veins, 11
Mt @ 7.3 g/t Au
+ Ag-Cu-Pb-Zn

FSE porphyry:
892Mt @ 0.5% Cu
& 0.7 g/t Au

Guinaoang
porphyry, 500
Mt @ 0.4% Cu
& 0.4 g/t Au

Teresa veins, 0.8 Mt

@ 5.74 g/t Au
Nayak veins

1 km
Palidan porphyry
Chang et al., 2011

Lepanto - Far Southeast deposits

1.8-2.2 Ma

2 cm

1.45 Ma
1 g/t Au
0.7% Cu

Concepcion and Cinco, 1989; Garcia, 1991;

Arribas et al., 1995; Gaibor et al., 2013

Mo

Lepanto - Far Southeast deposits

500 m

X-section

1) Residual qtz (early, barren)

2) Breccia-hosted enargite
+ Au (sericite stage)
Long section along Lepanto fault
Garcia, 1991; Arribas et al., 1995;
Hedenquist et al., 1998; Chang et al., 2011

Lepanto Far Southeast, Philippines

4 Moz Au, 1 Mt Cu HS & 20+ Moz Au, 5+ Mt Cu porphyry

Long section along Lepanto fault

What information can we get from a

porphyry
Lepanto
barren FSE
lithocap?

Victoria veins

Chang et al., 2011

Victoria IS

Lepanto HS

Vuggy qtz, en
+ Au ore
Qtz-alun (py),
dick-kaol

500 m
Far Southeast
porphyry Cu

Alunite SWIR peak increases closer to intrusive center

High Na/(Na+K)
alunite forms at
higher temperature,
closer
to intrusion
Terraspec,
PIMA

Chang et al., 2011

Yanacocha, Peru
Cerro Yanacocha; 25
Norte, Oeste, Sur, Encajon
(Verde - sulfide)

Maqui Maqui; 3

Moz Au

TapadoCorimayo; 4
La Quinua; 9

oblique aerial to NE

Kupfertal
porphyry
10.7 Ma

San Jose HS
Au mine
10-10.5 Ma

~4 km

CarachugoChaquicocha;
6
Chaquicocha; 8+
San Jose; 4

San Jose, to north (Co. Yanacocha left of tower)

~4 Moz gold in oxidized lithocap

Patchy pyrophyllite / dickite

after residual qtz

Caused by white mica cooling to

pyrophyllite stability; needs SiO2
to form

Patchy
pyrophyllite
replacement,
transition
down to
phyllic, mica

Variable interval between

base of lithocap and top of
porphyry (also direction!)

Base of lithocap: patchy

pyrophyllite (or dickite,
diaspore), transition to white
mica; stockwork veins

Petelovo
Milagros

Calaorco high sulfdn Au

~2 Moz oxide

La Arena, Peru: Lithocap

telescoped on porphyry shoulder
on porphyry
shoulder
La Arena
Cu-Au porphyry

200 m

274 Mt M,I @ 0.33% Cu, 0.24 g Au

0.5
g Au
quartzalunite

0.5 % Cu
phyllic,
mica

potassic
Garay et al., 2012; Rio Alto

, barren

http://pilotgold.com/

Halilaga Cu-Au porphyry, Turkey

168 Mt indicated, 0.30% Cu,

0.31 g/t Au, 0.2 % Cu eq cut

Another barren lithocap on the

shoulder of a porphyry deposit

Co. Cocaez barren lithocap

Co. Cocaez: Barren quartzalunite lithocap (16.1 Ma);

related to Perol porphyry?

Minas Conga: Perol porphyry

(15.8 Ma), 10 km east of
Yanacocha (8-12 Ma)

Perol Au-Cu porphyry

641 Mt, 0.3% Cu, 0.7 g/t Au

Miocene volcanic
arc, Peru:

Year discovery (production)

mid 80s (1993)
2000 (2005)

>100 Moz gold in

northern Peru highsulfidation deposits

1996 (1998)

Southern Peru thought

to be silver district
Alto Chicama, Peru: 14 Moz Au PR
2000 (2004)
1997 (2002)
ARCATA Ag

ARUNTANI

2008: CHUCAPACA

Discovery of Santa Rosa (1997, 0.4 Moz Au)

led to dome-hosted Tucari (2000, 2+ Moz Au)
Reawakened interest in region...

Tucari dome-hosted high sulfidation gold

mine, Aruntani district, southern Peru

Lago
Titicaca

Chucapaca

Aruntani

Gold rush to southern Peru from 2004

Chucapaca: Dacite dome,

lithocap qtz-alunite, low Au grade

Canahuire (pseudo)gossan
diatreme host (intermediate sulfdn)

Discovery

Sept 2008: Buenaventura

Resource, mid 2011: 7.6 Moz Au eq.

Canahuire resource model & pit shell

W

1.3 km

lisation
350
Mineram

100E
300W

Open

g/t Au

700W

Looking North

Intermediate
Think

sulfdn Au-Ag related to diatreme

laterally (figuratively and literally)

Late Cretaceous to Paleocene

Camprub, 2009

Porphyry
Skarn
Epithermal
IOCG

Eocene
Camprub, 2009

Porphyry
Skarn
Epithermal
IOCG

Oligocene
Camprub, 2009

Porphyry
Skarn
Epithermal
HS
IOCG

Miocene to Pliocene
Camprub, 2009

Porphyry
Skarn
Epithermal
IOCG

Mulatos, Sonora

Sauzal, Chihuahua

Camprub, 2013

Epithermal

Porphyry
Skarn

IOCG

Assess level of erosion

Eroded (barren?) lithocaps:
Lithocaps indicate potential
Cocaez,
on shoulder of
Kunk
for deeper ( late Eocene)
deep intrusive
porphyry Cu deposits in Perol,
center
Halilaga
Mexico
IS veins?

Porphyry
Cu-Au?
Sillitoe, 2010

Patchy (dickite)
- pyrophyllite in
valleys; white
mica transition;
stockwork veins

Barren lithocap stage

Lithocap stage

300 m

Hedenquist and Taran, 2013

Epithermal metal stage

High
sulfidation

Intermediate
sulfidation
sm
wm

Cu, Au

Phyllic overprint

White mica (wm)

300 m

Pyrophyllite
Smectite clays (sm)
Enargite Cu-Au-Ag
Veins Au-Ag-(Pb-ZnCu)

Porphyry stockwork
Porphyry Cu-Au

Hedenquist and Taran, 2013

Sulfidation states
Hm
Cp

Mt

Einaudi, Hedenquist
and Inan, 2003

Sulfidation state evolution

Arc
magmas
cv

Lithocap

Einaudi, Hedenquist
and Inan, 2003

(ppm)

pH

Cl

SO4

Al

Fe

Hot
springs

1.1
1.7

2960
-735

18680 1440 651

-4390 -396 -100

209 315 1436

-95 -127 -265

10:1 w/r, 1.2

dilute 1:3

3100

18970

233

1630 75

Ca

48

Na

765

pH 1.1

Hot springs vs. calculated 100oC condensate,

diluted 1:3 (as per isotopic values)

Satsuma Iwojima,
south Kyushu
pH 1.7

Hedenquist and Taran, 2013

Modeled species and minerals with temp decrease (oxidized, f w/r)

Mineral (g)

Concentration (mg/kg)

H2SO4 > H+ + HSO4HCl > H+ + Cl-

Hedenquist and Taran, 2013

ToC

Hi w/r, cooling, alunite dissoln

Screen shot