• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.233-244
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• 1991

A biotite that substantially altered to chlorite and vermiculite in hornblende gneiss from Cheonyang, Korea, has been investigated with electron microprobe analysis. The data show the general variational trends of Ti and K-leaching with increased weathering. However, the chloritization is characterized by Si- conservative reaction and relatively dramatic increase of Al-for-(Fe+Mg) octahedral substitution, whereas the vermiculitization is characterized by total Mg-conservative and Ca-enriching exchange reaction. In the initiating stage the vermiculitization proceeded in a continuous decrease of the Al-for-Si tetrahedral substitution and an increase of the Al-for-(Fe+Mg) octahedral substitution, supporting the currently accepted weathering process. But it differs in the late stage, in which AI(IV) and Fe increase significantly. Recalculations of the structural formular for vermiculite on the basis of several assumptions indicate that the oxidation of Fe is necessary for vermiculite to form the reasonable strutural formular. The relative timing of the oxidation of Fe probably occurs in the late stage, supported by the substantial increase of the Al-for-Si tetrahedral substitution.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.38 no.3 s.172
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• pp.347-353
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• 2005

The geology of the Tumbang Lapan area consists of Permian to Carboniferous metamorphic rocks, Cretaceous granitic rocks, and Permian to Tertiary sedimentary and volcanic rocks. Three faults are developed in surveyed area, and are functioned as channels of the hydrothermal solution which farmed quartz veins within tuff3. In the mineralized area, argillic and propylitic alterations are dominant. Argillic altered rocks show the alteration mineral assemblages of kaolinte+sericite+quartz+chlorite+pyrite. Mineral association in propylitic alteration is chlorite+epidote+feldspar+quartz+pyrite+ magnetite. Vein type, fracture filling, stockwork are observed in survey area. As a result of analysis of samples from quartz veins and altered rocks, some mineralized rocks showed $0.01\~4.6g/t$ of gold.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.9-20
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• 1991

Gusi pyrophyllite deposit is located in the Haenam volcanic field in the southwestern part of the Korea Peninsula. This area is known for the occurrences of pyrophyllite, alunite and dickite. This volcanic field is composed of andesite, rhyolite and pyroclastic rocks of late Cretaceous age The pyroclastic rocks are hydrothermally altered to pyrophyllite and kaolin minerals forming the Gusi deposits. The hydrothermally altered rock can be classified into the following zones on the basis of their mineral assemblages: quartz, pyrophyllite, dickite and illite-smectite zones, from the centre to the margins of the alteration mass. Such mineral assemblages indicate that the country rocks, most of which are the lower Jagguri Tuff, were altered by strongly acidic hydrothermal solutions with high aqueous silica and potassium activity and that the formation temperature of pyrophyllite is higher than $265^{\circ}C$. The mechanism of the hydrothermal alteration is considered to be related to felsic magmatism.

• Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.141-150
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• 2010

Basaltic ash of Udo tuff cone, Jeju Island, was almost fresh across strata, but significantly altered toward surface by supergene process. The supergene alteration of the Udo tuff was examined by using X-ray diffraction, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, and electron microprobe analysis for elucidating the alteration process of basaltic ash in terrestrial environments. Fresh ash particles were composed of glass matrix, plagioclase, olivine, and pyroxene. The glass matrix was selectively replaced inward by colloform alteration rinds of Fe-Ti-rich amorphous silicate nanogranules and smectite, often leaving glass core at the center of larger ash particles. Some of the dissolved species released from the altered ash particle precipitated as fine honycomb aggregates of smectite on the pore walls, contributing to the cementation and lithification of volcanic ash.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.175-188
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• 1998

This paper describes the internal structures and K-Ar ages of fault gouges collected from the Dongnae fault zone. This fault zone is internally zoned and occurs in the multiple fault cores. A fault core consists of thin gouge and narrow cataclastic zones that are bounded by a much thicker damage zone. Intensity of deformation and alteration increases from damage zone through cataclastic zone to gouge zone. It is thought that cataclasis of brittle deformation was the dominant strain-accomodation mechanism in the early stage of deformation to form the gouge zone and that crushed materials in the regions of maximum localization of fault slip subsequently moved by cataclastic flow. Deformation mechanism drastically changed from brittle processes to fluid-assisted flow along the gouge zone as the high porosity and permeability of pulverzied materials during faulting facilitated the influx of the hydrothermal fluids. Subsequently, the fluids reacted with gouge materials to form clay minerals. Fracturing and alteration could have repeatedly taken place in the gouge zone by elevated fluid pressures generated from the reduction of pore volume due to the formation of clay minerals and precipitation of other materials. XRD analysis revealed that the most common clay minerals of the gouge zones are illite and smectite with minor zeolite and kaolinite. Most of illites are composed of 1Md polytype, indicating the products of hydrothermal alteration. The major activities of the Dongnae fault can be divided into two periods based upon K-Ar age data of the fault gouges : 51.4∼57.5Ma and 40.3∼43.6Ma. Judging from the enviromental condition of clay mineral formation, it is inferred that the hydrothermal alteration of older period occured at higher temperature than that of younger period.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.177-212
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• 1976

The Shap granite encloses well developed quartz veins and veinlets containing molybdenite in association with other ore sulphide minerals. The preliminary study of the geochemical aspects of the granite stock and mineralisation of molybdenite in comparison with the porphyry deposits is carried out; the distribution of major, minor and ore metal elements in wall rocks, altered envelope and veins, and the molybdenum mineralisation, mainly in connexion with hydrothermal alteration are discussed. The molybdenite and other ore mineralisation, especially bismuthinite and chalcopyrite, are spatially closely related to the hydrothermal alteration adjacent to the veinings, and are dominant where the strong orthoclase alteration has taken place. A pattern of alteration and mineralisation can be recognised and forms the basic for the subdivision of the quarry into several distinct zones, which correspond with the sequence of alteration and mineralisation. The veins, veinlets and their alteration haloes can be further subdivided into a series of concentric zones.

• Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
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• v.19 no.4 s.50
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• pp.325-336
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• 2006

Domestic serpentinite is one of the important industrial minerals utilizing in the iron manufacturing company such as POSCO in Korea. Serpentinite is distributed in the Ulsan Fe deposit, Andong, Hongseong-Cheongyang, and Gapyeong areas. This study tries to interpret the relationship among the formation of carbonate rocks, iron mineralization, and serpentinite alteration throughout the study of field occurrence, mineralogy, and chemical compositions. Serpentine is formed by the break-down of olivine and pyroxene of parent peridotite. The serpentinization is inferred to be formed by the hydrothermal fluid derived from intruded Cretaceous granite and the addition of meteoric water. Variation of major oxides such as $SiO_2,\;Fe_2O_3$, and MgO in serpentinized rocks are controlled by the degree of serpentinization and Fe mineralization. Variation of $Al_2O_3$ and CaO contents of altered rocks is dependent on the amount of the residual minerals such as calcite and homblende, and on the degree of chloritization. The presence of carbonate rocks reported in the sedimentary origin or igneous origin (carbonatite) provided a geological environment to form skarn type Fe deposit regardless of its origin. The geological processes of Ulsan Fe deposits are inferred to be formed as the order of the formation of carbonate rocks ${\to}$ the intrusion of Cretaceous granite ${\to}$ serpentinization ${\to}$ Fe mineralization by the interprelation of field occurrence and mineralogical characteristics.

• Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.13-22
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• 2009

The study area is a tunnelling section passing through the Yangsan Fault zone. Kyungbu express highway and national road 35 are located above the tunnel. Previous study showed that fault gouge and fault breccia were widely distributed in the tunnelling section with a maximum width of 100 m. From the present study, it is found that sedimentary rocks consisting mainly of shale are distributed at the eastern block of the Yangsan Fault and these rocks are not subject to mechanical fracturing and hydrothermal alteration. On the other hand, dacitic tuff distributed at the western block of the Yangsan Fault is largely affected by mechanical fracturing and hydrothermal alteration. The large fault zone of $50{\sim}130m$ width was formed by complex processes of mechanical fracturing and hydrothermal alterations such as chloritization, sericitization, and kaolinization. Based on the characteristics of mechanical fracturing and hydrothermal alterations, the Yangsan fault zone in the study area is geotechnically classified as four zones: unaltered zone, altered zone, altered fractured zone, and fault gouge zone. These zones show different degrees and aspects in mechanical fracturing and hydrothermal alterations, resulting in different engineering properties.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.305-312
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• 2005

Degrees of serpentinization from the original rocks of Choongnam serpentinites such as dunite and harzburgite are well matched with O'Hanley's textural stages of serpentinites (1996). Colors of chromian spinels in serpentinites are brown and/or red in dunites, and red in harzburgite. Also, colors of chromian spinels changed darker from brown and/or red according to the degree of serpentinization and more darker by steatitization because of increasing Fe ions.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.44 no.6
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• pp.463-474
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• 2011

The Haenam epithermal mineralized zone is located in the southwestern part of South Korea, and hosts low sulfidation epithermal Au-Ag deposit (Eunsan-Moisan) and clay quarries (Okmaesan, Seongsan, and Chunsan). Epithermal deposits and accompanying hydrothermal alteration related to Cretaceous volcanism caused large zoned assemblages of hydrothermal alteration minerals. Advanced argillic-altered rocks with mineral assemblages of alunite-quartz, alunite-dickite-quartz, and dickite-kaolinite-quartz exposed on the Okmaesan, Seongsan, and Chunsan area. Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER), with three visible and near infrared bands, six shortwave infrared bands, and five thermal infrared bands, was used to identify advanced argillic-altered rocks within the Haenam epithermal mineralized zone. The distinct spectral features of hydrothermal minerals allow discrimination of advanced argillic-altered rocks from non-altered rocks within the study area. Because alunite, dickite, and kaolinite, consisting of advanced argillic-altered rocks within the study area are characterized by Al-O-H-bearing minerals, these acid hydrothermal minerals have a strong absorption feature at $2.20{\mu}m$. The band combination and band ratio transformation cause increasing differences of DN values between advanced argillic-altered rock and non-altered rock. The alunite and dickite-kaolinite of advanced argillic-altered rocks from the Okmaesan, Seongsan, and Chunsan have average DN values of 1.523 and 1.737, respectively. These values are much higher than those (1.211 and 1.308, respectively) of non-altered area. ASTER images can remotely provide the distribution of hydrothermal minerals on the surface. In this way good relation between ASTER spectra analysis and field data suggests that ASTER spectral analysis can be useful tool in the initial steps of mineral exploration.