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Gold Mineralization of the Sepola District in Mali, Africa: Occurrence Characteristics of Gold and Fluid Inclusion Study  

Heo, Chul-Ho (Overseas Mineral Resources Group, Mineral Resources Research Division, Korea Institute of Geosciences and Mineral Resources(KIGAM))
Publication Information
Economic and Environmental Geology / v.42, no.3, 2009 , pp. 167-175 More about this Journal
Abstract
The geology of Sepola district in Mali is consisted of Birrimian group with metasedimentary rocks of lower Proterozoic and volcanoclastics, and later intrusive igneous rocks. Ore diposit in this district has the characteristics of vein- and disseminated-type gold deposit which was formed by infilling the secondary fracture zones related to the large-scale fault zone of NW direction within Birrimian group. It is confirmed as promising that Barani district has the gold grade of 0.53${\sim}$9.21 g/t with the extension of 1.3 km and width of 1 to 20.1 m. The ore mineralogy is simple with electrum, pyrite and galena. Fineness of gold grain ranges from 848 to 915(average 891) indicating mesothermal to hypothermal environment. Fluid inclusions are classified as liquid-rich type I. gas-rich type II and liquid-$CO_2$ bearing type III. Primary and pseudosecondary inclusions homogenize from 236 to 393$^{\circ}C$ with salinity of 0.0 to 8.6 wt% NaCl. Secondary inclusions homogenize from 103 to 184$^{\circ}C$ with salinity of 0.7 to 8.6 wt.%. From the relationship between homogeniztion temperature and salinity, it may be thought that auriferous fluid experienced dilution and cooling through inflow of meteoric water after fluid unmixing derived from pressure decrease in the temperature range of 400 to 250$^{\circ}C$. From the massive occurrence of quartz vein, simple mineralogy with paucity of sulfide, and presence of liquid-$CO_2$ bearing with high homogenization temperature, it is thought that gold mineralization in Sepola district correspods to the mesothermal to hypothermal ore deposit.
Keywords
Africa; Mail; Sepola; mineralogy; fluid inclusion;
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