| Abstract: | The nature of gold dispersion in soils and stream sediments associated with a copper-gold-mineralized system in northeastern Thailand has been investigated as a basis for identifying appropriate geochemical exploration techniques for the search for comparable deposits in similar environments.Soils were collected with varying relationships to mineralization as a basis for determining sample representativity, size distribution of gold, variation with soil horizon and possible pathfinder elements. Similarly, stream sediments were collected to estimate sample representativity, size distribution of gold, variation of gold with depth in the stream sediment profile and to compare the relative recoveries of gold in field-panned and laboratory-prepared heavy-mineral concentrates. Samples were analyzed for Au and potential indicator elements by a variety of methods but mostly by instrumental neutron activation analysis.Results indicate the consistent distribution of fine-grained gold in soils which allows Au analysis of relatively small samples from B-horizon soils to be used effectively and reliably to identify the surficial patterns of gold mineralization in the study area. Anomalous patterns of other indicator elements, Co, As, Cu, Sb, W, Pb, Zn, Ag, Fe and Mn, may contribute additional information regarding type of mineralization. This finding indicates the effectiveness of soil surveys in gold exploration, particularly in areas of deep weathering where fresh bedrock exposures are infrequent.Unlike soils, size distributions of gold in stream sediments, as a result of the local flow regime, vary both between sampling sites and at depths within a sampling site. Exploration requires Au analysis of the fine fraction (minus 63 μm) of active stream sediments to reduce the problem of sampling representativity. The presence of coarse-grained gold in the stream channel has drawn attention to the possible benefit of using the conventional field-panning method as a semiquantitative technique for providing immediate results. However, highly erratic distribution of pannable gold on a very local scale together with variable proportions of the total gold recovered in field-panned or heavy-mineral concentrates highlights a potentially serious drawback of the method. Combination of analysis of the minus 63 μm fraction and field panning appears warranted to cover the possible existence of gold of a wide size range in stream sediments.The overall results indicate the utility of geochemical exploration techniques in the search for gold mineralization. However, particular care is necessary in the design and implementation of geochemical techniques to ensure maximum reliability of exploration. |
