FORMS OF OCCURRENCE OF METALS IN SECONDARY DISPERSION HALOS OF THE BEREGOVO DEPOSIT

Abstract

Geochemical prospecting for ore deposits requires the identification and subsequent assessment of ore-generated multicomponent anomalies. For this purpose, the forms of occurrence of indicator elements of ore mineralization must be experimentally investigated. Our experimental geochemical study was done on the best known feature of the Beregovo Hills, Transcarpathia, the lead-zinc deposits of the same name. Veins and associated zones of veinlet-disseminated ore here consists of galena, sphalerite, chalcopyrite and subordinate arsenopyrite, pyrite, hematite and fahlores. Our experimental work on ascertaining the forms of occurrence of the main ore elements in secondary dispersion halos of the Beregovo deposits has shown that in the weathered mantle and drift the halos have both salt and mechanical components. The general trend for all three elements, when considered in vertical sections, is that their forms change from less soluble mineral compounds in the weathered mantle to more soluble in the drift, and then appear in association with organic matter in soil (clearly for Cu and Zn, but slightly for Zn). The identification of a large number of oxidized mineral forms in the drift confirms the feasibility of using hydrochloric acid extracts in geochemical prospecting for drift-covered polymetallic mineralization.