1.

0 Formation of ore deposits/ ore genesis

1.1 Introduction

The geological environment, the earth s has been subjected to various activities and as
a consequence it undergoes a cyclic change through a number of stages such as :

1. Erosion and planning (running down of mountains)

2. Weathering Stage, formation of sedimentary rocks
3. Sedimentary stage. burial in the deep crust –
4. Plutonic stage. When molten rock solidifies within pre-existing rock, it cools slowly,
forming plutonic rocks with larger crystals.(Plutonic – meaning deep underground; it
refers to the hydrothermal process where igneous rocks are formed by solidification at
considerable depths)
5. Orogenic stage –a stage characteristic of forces or events leading to large
structural deformations (folding, faulting, mountain building and igneous
intrusions) of earth lithosphere (crust & uppermost mantle) due to tectonic activity.

2. Concepts of Genesis of Ore

Ore genesis theories generally involve three components: source, transport or conduit, and
trap. The genesis of ore deposit is divided into internal (endogenic) and external
(exogenesis) or surface processes. More than one mechanism may be responsible for the
formation of an ore body.

 Source is required because metal must come from somewhere, and be liberated by
 some process
 Transport is required first to move the metal bearing fluids or solid minerals into the
right position, and refers to the act of physically moving the metal, as well as
 chemical or physical phenomenon which encourage movement
 Trapping is required to concentrate the metal via some physical, chemical
or geological mechanism into a concentration which forms mineable ore. 

The various theories of ore genesis explain how the various types of mineral deposits
form within the Earth's crust. Ore genesis theories are very dependent on the mineral

Syngenetic - A deposit formed at the same time as the rocks in which it occurs.
Ex. Banded Iron Formation
Epigenetic- A deposit introduced into the host rocks at some time after they were deposited
Ex. Valley-type Deposits
GENESIS OF ORE DEPOSITS
Origin Due to Internal Processes

Separation of ore minerals by fractional crystallization during

magmatic differentiation.
Magmatic
Segregation Settling out from magmas of sulfide, sulfide-oxide or oxide melts
which accumulate beneath the silicates or are injected into
country rocks or extruded on the surface.

Pegmatitic Crystallization as disseminated grains or segregations in

Deposition Pegmatites.
Hydrothermal Deposition from hot aqueous solutions of various sources.
Diffusion of ore and gangue forming materials
Lateral Secretion
from the country rocks into faults and other structures.
Pyrometasomatic (skarn) deposits formed by replacement of wall
Metamorphic rocks adjacent to an intrusive.
Processes Initial or further concentration of ore elements by metamorphic
processes.
Origin Due to Surface Processes
Mechanical Concentration of heavy minerals into placer
Accumulation
Sedimentary Precipitation of certain elements in sedimentary environments.
Precipitation
Leaching of soluble elements leaving concentrations of insoluble
Residual Processes
elements.
Secondary or Leaching of certain elements from the upper part of a mineral
Supergene deposit and their reprecipitation at depth to produce higher
Enrichment concentrations.
Volcanic Exhalative Exhalations of sulfide-rich magmas at the surface, usually under
Process marine conditions.

Spatial Distribution of Ore Deposits

It is considered that in certain periods of geological time scale, the deposition of a metal or
group of metals was pronounced; and also that specific regions of the world possess a
notable concentration of deposits of one or more metals.

Mineral deposits are not distributed uniformly through the Earth's crust. Rather,
specific classes of deposit tend to be concentrated in particular areas or regions called
metallogenic provinces.

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Mode of Formation

As hot (hydrothermal) fluids rise towards the surface (magma charged with water, various
acids, and metals in small amounts) through fractures, faults, brecciated rocks, porous layers
and other channels (i.e. like a plumbing system), they cool or react chemically with the
country rock.

Some form ore deposits if the fluids are directed through a structure where the
temperature, pressure and other chemical conditions are favourable for the
precipitation and deposition of ore minerals. The fluids also react with the rocks they
are passing through to produce an alteration zone with distinctive, new minerals.

Characteristic types of hydrothermal ore formations

Cavity Filling

The hydrothermal fluid fills in the cavities within the country rock and based on the shape
of solidified ore mineral several names have been attributed to the ore body shape, such as:

The cavity filling deposits are loosely termed as vein deposits Eg. gold, silver, copper and lead-
zinc. Veins range in thickness from a few centimeters to 4 meters. They can be several hundreds
of meters long and extend to depths in excess of 1,500 meters.

The process of cavity filling has given rise to a vast number of mineral deposits of diverse
forms and sizes. The Vein deposits resulting from cavity filling may be grouped as follows:

 fissure veins, ( it is a tabular ore body that occupies one or more fissures: two
 of its dimensions are much greater than the third)
  shear zone deposits, ( thin sheet like connecting openings of a shear zone)
 stock-works, (interlacing network of small ore bearing veinlets traversing
 a mass of rock.
 saddle reefs,
  ladder veins, and
 replacement veins or veinlet’s

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 Fig .1 Various fissure veins: (A). Chambered vein; (B). Dilation veins; (C).Sheet veins;
(D). En-echelon vein (E). Linked vein

Fig.2 (a) Stockwork

Fig.2(b). Stockwork of a sulphide ore body

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 Fig 3(a) Saddle reef

Fig.3(b) Bendigo Goldfield, Victoria, Australia

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 Fig Ladder vein deposit.

Ladder veins are short, rather regularly spaced, roughly parallel fractures that traverse dikes
(tabular bodies of igneous rock). Their width is restricted to the width of the dike, but they
may extend great distances along it. Ladder veins are not as numerous or important as
fissure veins.

Questions:
Describe the geological processes involved in the formation of mineral resources.

Explain the characteristics and geometry of hydrothermal ore formations?

Geometric Measures of an Ore body

 Axis of ore body: line that parallels the longest dimension of the ore body.

 Pitch (Rake) of ore body: angle between the axis and the strike of the ore body

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ORE DEPOSITS and the Tectonic Cycle
Some definition related to mineral resources:

• Ore is a naturally occurring, in-place, mineral aggregate containing one or more

valuable constituents that may be recovered at a profit under the existing techno-
economic indices. In metal mines, the amount of ore is usually expressed in tons (metric
ton =1000kg),
• Grade is a measurement of the metal content of ore.
• The grade of precious metal ore is usually measured in grams per tonne. The grade of
ore bearing other metals is usually a percentage (the weight for weight proportion of
metal in the ore).
• The grade of ore from a mine changes over time. Mining of a lower grade is likely to
incur (other things being equal) a higher cost per unit weight of extracted metal. The
most important factor in the profitability of a mine is usually the price of the metal that
it produces.
• Dilution is the result of mixing low-grade material with high-grade material during
material production, generally leading to an increase in tonnage and a decrease in mean
grade relative to original expectations.

Reserves of minerals are difficult to determine as the value and costs of extraction and
metallurgical treatment and transportation costs determine whether the resource are potentially
economic. Because of these uncertainties, mineral, mineral exploration is a program that raises
even more uncertainties.

Mine development
Opening a new mine is an expensive, time-intensive operation. Most mines must operate for
years to cover initial start-up costs, the period of capital investment for mine development
without any return on the investment is known as gestation period Mining is the process of
extracting valuable minerals from the earth. Mining involves a number of stages which occur
in a sequence. This sequence of stages is known as the mining sequence. The mining sequence
covers all aspects of mining, including: prospecting for ore bodies, analysis of the profit
potential of a proposed mine, extraction of the desired materials and, once a mine is closed, the
restoration of all lands used for mining to their original state.

Sequence of a mining enterprise

The mining sequence is divided into six stages. Each stage represents a certain period in the
life of a mineral deposit. The stages, ordered chronologically from earliest and following the
order in which they occur, include:

1. Exploration - gather data about potential mineral deposits and acquire the rights to
harvest those mineral deposits
2. Evaluation - determine which mineral deposit has the most profit potential
3. Mine Development - construction of a mine or mines
4. Production - operation of the mine or mines
 5. Closure demolition of the mine or mines and rehabilitation of all lands used for
mining

Mine develop involves construction of various types of openings within the rock mass It is
therefore important to identify the importance of different types of mine openings on the basis
of their specific role in the entire term or life of the mine. Based on these criteria all the mine
openings are categorized into three types of openings, such as:

 Main access to the deposit, which connects the surface and the ore body is also the
 called the primary development opening.
 Net-work of the openings like the levels, cross-cut, raise & winze, etc. – secondary
 opening; which is the access to the stope
 Source of the ore (stope) also termed the tertiary opening.

The role of primary opening is to provide an access to the deposit from the surface and
therefore the life of these openings is as much as the life of the mine. The secondary openings
are next important development openings in terms of the life. The life term of a stope, the
tertiary opening, is the shortest compared to any other opening of the mine.

The primary development is creation of a main access from the surface to underground, such
as shaft, incline, decline, adit etc., and any development which generates a network of openings
connecting the main access and the main production zone (stope) are called the

secondary developmental works. For example, levels, raises & winzes, ore pass, cross-cuts, ore
chutes, u/g electrical sub-station & mechanical workshop, first aid room, etc., are categorized
as secondary development openings. A stope, which the place of main zone of mine production
comes under tertiary development

Stages of Mine Development

Primary Development – access to the deposit

Access to the ore deposit is first operation, which establishes the entry to the mine. For an
underground metal mine, the modes of entry to a deposit are: adit, incline, decline, a vertical
shaft, inclined shaft. Based on the geometry, strike & dip dimensions of the ore deposit, and
depth one or more combinations of different modes of access is decided. Once the deposit is
accessed, in order to commence the mine excavation of ore, various types of constructions
within the rock mass are needed for various engineering purposes. Some of these openings are
vertical, inclined, parallel to the strike and along the dip etc. The shape and the cross section
of the excavation depend primarily on the target production, purpose of the opening
(transportation, ventilation, water outflow, etc.,), nature & stability of the rocks type, the period
of service.

Permanent access and service openings, as shown in the above figure, are expected to
meet rigorous performance specifications over a time span approaching or exceeding the
duration of mining activity for the complete orebody. For example the service shaft must be
capable of supporting high speed operation of cages and skips continuously. Ventilation shafts
and airways must conduct air to and from stope blocks and service areas. Main haulage drives
must permit the safe, high speed operation of loaders, trucks, ore trains and personnel transport
vehicles. In these cases, the excavation are designed and equipped to tolerances comparable
with those on other areas of engineering practice. The mining requirement is to ensure that the
designed performance of the permanent openings can be maintained throughout the mine life.
The magnitudes of the mining induced perturbations at any point in the rock medium
surrounding and overlying an orebody are determined, in part, by the nature and magnitude of
the displacements induced by mining in the immediate vicinity of the orebody.

Selection of a suitable access to the deposit

The decision of selecting the suitable access to the deposit, between a vertical shaft and an
incline is based on the following factors:
  depth of ore deposit, size and shape of ore body,
  surface topography,
 geological condition of the ore and overlying rock mass ( it also includes the strength
 condition of ore body as well as the surrounding rock type.
  time for development,
  method of mining (stoping)
 cost and choice of material handling system.

Secondary development
There are two categories of secondary development; first type is development in the nearest
proximity of the stope, like the stope access levels and the second type of development is
concerned to a stope or in-stope development. The in-stope development such as drill headings
and slot raises, horizontal and vertical openings for personnel access to stope, and ore
drawpoints from the stope. The life of drill headings, slot raises, draw points, sill & crown is
limited to life of the stoping. The openings, such as haulage levels and ore passes which are
developed near stress filed zone of a stope orebody rock. Their operation life approximates that
of adjacent stoping activity.

Parameters considered in the design of stopes- tertiary openings

A stope, as shown below, is the site of ore production in an orebody. The set of stopes generated
during ore extraction usually constitutes the largest excavations formed during the exploitation
of the deposit. The stoping operation, that is, ore mobilization form it’s in situ setting and its
subsequent transportation from the mine void, forms the core of the mine production process.
In order that the stoping operations are safe it is essential to assess rock performance within
the orebody, and in the rock mass adjacent to the orebody. It ensures the efficient
geomechanical and economic performance of the individual stopes, and of the mine as a whole.
The size of stopes is large relative to all the other mine excavations. Therefore the location,
design and operational performance of other excavations connecting the stope and the main
access play a dominant role.