An evaporated seawater origin for the ore-forming brines in unconformity-related uranium deposits (Athabasca Basin, Canada): Cl/Br and δ37Cl analysis of fluid inclusions

2011 ◽  
Vol 75 (10) ◽  
pp. 2792-2810 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonin Richard ◽  
David A. Banks ◽  
Julien Mercadier ◽  
Marie-Christine Boiron ◽  
Michel Cuney ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fluid Inclusions ◽  
Uranium Deposits ◽  
Athabasca Basin

Fluid evolution along the Patterson Lake corridor in the southwestern Athabasca Basin: constraints from fluid inclusions and implications for unconformity-related uranium mineralization

2021 ◽  
pp. geochem2020-029
Author(s):  
M. Rabiei ◽  
G. Chi ◽  
E.G. Potter ◽  
V. Tschirhart ◽  
C. MacKay ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fluid Inclusion ◽  
Fluid Inclusions ◽  
Fluid Pressure ◽  
Uranium Deposits ◽  
Hydrothermal Conditions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Athabasca Basin ◽  
Link Type ◽  
Basement Faults ◽  
Supplementary Material

The Patterson Lake corridor (PLC) in the southwestern margin of the Athabasca Basin hosts several high-grade uranium deposits. These deposits are located in the basement up to 900 m below the unconformity surface, raising questions about their affiliation with typical unconformity-related uranium (URU) deposits elsewhere in the basin. Based on cross-cutting relationships four pre- and three syn- to post-mineralization quartz generations were identified. Fluid inclusion analyses indicate that pre-mineralization fluids have salinities ranging from 0.2 to 27.2 Wt% NaCl equiv. (avg. 9.0 Wt%), whereas syn-mineralization fluids have salinities ranging from 8.8 to 33.8 Wt% NaCl + CaCl2 (avg. 25.4 Wt%), with NaCl- and CaCl2-rich varieties. The homogenization temperatures (Th) of fluid inclusions from pre-mineralization quartz range from 80 ° to 244 ℃ (avg. 147 ℃), and from syn-mineralization quartz range from 64 ° to 248 ℃ (avg. 128 ℃). Fluid boiling is indicated by the co-development of liquid-dominated and vapor-dominated fluid inclusions within individual fluid inclusion assemblages (FIA) from the syn-mineralization quartz and is related to episodic fluid pressure drops caused by reactivation of basement faults. Our results indicate that composition and P-T conditions of the ore fluids in the PLC are comparable to those of typical URU deposits in the Athabasca Basin, indicating that the uranium deposits in the PLC formed under similar hydrothermal conditions. Episodic reactivation of basement faults was an important driving force to draw uraniferous fluids from the basin and reducing fluids from the basement to the mineralization sites, forming deep basement-hosted deposits.Thematic collection: This article is part of the Uranium Fluid Pathways collection available at: https://www.lyellcollection.org/cc/uranium-fluid-pathwaysSupplementary material:https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.c.5510179

Radiolysis evidenced by H2-O2 and H2-bearing fluid inclusions in three uranium deposits

1988 ◽  
Vol 52 (5) ◽  
pp. 1155-1167 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jean Dubessy ◽  
Maurice Pagel ◽  
Jean-Michel Beny ◽  
Hilbert Christensen ◽  
Bernard Hickel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fluid Inclusions ◽  
Uranium Deposits

Chemical brecciation processes in the Sue unconformity-type uranium deposits, Eastern Athabasca Basin (Canada)

2003 ◽  
Vol 80 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 241-258 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Lorilleux ◽  
M Cuney ◽  
M Jébrak ◽  
J.C Rippert ◽  
P Portella
Keyword(s):  
Uranium Deposits ◽  
Athabasca Basin

scholarly journals Metal-rich fluid inclusions provide new insights into unconformity-related U deposits (Athabasca Basin and Basement, Canada)

2015 ◽  
Vol 51 (2) ◽  
pp. 249-270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonin Richard ◽  
Michel Cathelineau ◽  
Marie-Christine Boiron ◽  
Julien Mercadier ◽  
David A. Banks ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fluid Inclusions ◽  
Athabasca Basin

scholarly journals Paragenetic and petrographic study of uranium mineralization along the Midwest Trend, Northeastern Athabasca Basin

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Peter Ferguson ◽  
Guoxiang Chi ◽  
Charles Normand ◽  
Patrick Ledru ◽  
Odile Maufrais-Smith
Keyword(s):  
Mineral Resource ◽  
Genetic Model ◽  
Uranium Deposit ◽  
Current Model ◽  
Uranium Mineralization ◽  
Mining District ◽  
Uranium Deposits ◽  
Athabasca Basin ◽  
Technical Report ◽  
Petrographic Study

The Athabasca Basin in northern Saskatchewan is host to many world-class uranium deposits associated with the unconformity between the Paleoproterozoic sandstone of the basin and the underlying crystalline basement (Jefferson et al., 2007).  While the style and tonnage of these deposits vary, the current genetic model for unconformity-related uranium deposits has been a practical tool for exploration in the Athabasca Basin. However, the factors which control the location and formation of these deposits is still not fully understood. A paragenetic and petrographic study of mineralization along the Midwest Trend, located on the northeastern margin of the Athabasca Basin, aims to refine the current model and to address the general problem: What are the factors which control mineralization and non-mineralization? The Midwest Trend will be used as a "modèle réduit" for uranium mineralization, as it displays many features characteristic of unconformity type deposits. The Midwest Trend comprises three mineral leases that encompass two uranium deposits, the Midwest Main and Midwest A (Allen et al., 2017a, b). Mineralization occurs along a NE-trending graphitic structure, and is hosted by the sandstone, at the unconformity, and in much lesser amounts in the underlying basement rocks. Petrographic observations aided by the use of RAMAN spectroscopy and SEM-EDS, have been used to create a paragenetic sequence of mineralization (Fig.1). Future work will focus on fluid inclusion studies using microthermometry, LA-ICP-MS, and mass spectrometry of contained gases. References:Allen, T., Quirt, D., Masset, O. (2017a). Midwest A Uranium Deposit, Midwest Property, Northern Mining District, Saskatchewan, NTS Map Area 741/8: 2017 Mineral Resource Technical Report. AREVA Resources Canada Inc. Internal Report No. 17-CND-33-01. Allen, T., Quirt, D., Masset, O. (2017b). Midwest Main Uranium Deposit, Midwest Property, Northern Mining District, Saskatchewan, NTS Map Area 741/8: 2017 Mineral Resource Technical Report. AREVA Resources Canada Inc. Internal Report No. 17-CND-33-01. Jefferson, C.W., Thomas, D.J., Gandhi, S.S., Ramaekers, P., Delaney, G., Brisbin, D., Cutts, C., Portella, P., and Olson, R.A., 2007: Unconformity-associated uranium deposits of the Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan and Alberta. Geological Survey of Canada, Bulletin 588, p. 23–67.

Geological environment of the Cigar Lake uranium deposit

1993 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 653-673 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Bruneton
Keyword(s):  
Uranium Deposit ◽  
Transitional Zone ◽  
Uranium Deposits ◽  
Athabasca Basin ◽  
Structural Framework ◽  
Basement Rocks ◽  
Metamorphic Basement ◽  
Basement Ridge ◽  
Archean Basement ◽  
East West

The Cigar Lake uranium deposit occurs within the Athabasca Basin of northern Saskatchewan, Canada. Like other major uranium deposits of the basin, it is located at the unconformity separating Helikian sandstones of the Athabasca Group from Aphebian metasediments and plutonic rocks of the Wollaston Group. The Athabasca Group was deposited in an intra-continental sedimentary basin that was filled by fluviatile terrestrial quartz sandstones and conglomerates. The group appears undeformed and its actual maximum thickness is about 1500 m. On the eastern side of the basin, the detrital units correspond to the Manitou Falls Formations where most of the uranium deposits are located. The Lower Pelitic unit of the Wollaston Group, which lies directly on the Archean basement, is considered to be the most favourable horizon for uranium mineralization. During the Hudsonian orogeny (1800–1900 Ma), the group underwent polyphase deformation and upper amphibolite facies metamorphism. The Hudsonian orogeny was followed by a long period of erosion and weathering and the development of a paleoweathering profile.On the Waterbury Lake property, the Manitou Falls Formation is 250–500 m thick and corresponds to units MFd, MFc, and MFb. The conglomeratic MFb unit hosts the Cigar Lake deposit. However, the basal conglomerate is absent at the deposit, wedging out against an east–west, 20 m high, pre-Athabasca basement ridge, on top of which is located the orebody.Two major lithostructural domains are present in the metamorphic basement of the property: (1) a southern area composed mainly of pelitic metasediments (Wollaston Domain) and (2) a northern area with large lensoid granitic domes (Mudjatik Domain). The Cigar Lake east–west pelitic basin, which contains the deposit, is located in the transitional zone between the two domains. The metamorphic basement rocks in the basin consist mainly of graphitic metapelitic gneisses and calcsilicate gneisses, which are inferred to be part of the Lower Pelitic unit. Graphite- and pyrite-rich "augen gneisses," an unusual facies within the graphitic metapelitic gneisses, occur primarily below the Cigar Lake orebody.The mineralogy and geochemistry of the graphitic metapelitic gneisses suggest that they were originally shales. The abundance of magnesium in the intercalated carbonates layers indicates an evaporitic origin.The structural framework is dominated by large northeast–southwest lineaments and wide east–west mylonitic corridors. These mylonites, which contain the augen gneisses, are considered to be the most favourable features for the concentration of uranium mineralization.Despite the presence of the orebody, large areas of the Waterbury Lake property remain totally unexplored and open for new discoveries.

Hydrothermal Rare Earth Element (Xenotime) Mineralization at Maw Zone, Athabasca Basin, Canada, and Its Relationship to Unconformity-Related Uranium Deposits

2017 ◽  
Vol 112 (6) ◽  
pp. 1483-1507 ◽  
Author(s):  
Morteza Rabiei ◽  
Guoxiang Chi ◽  
Charles Normand ◽  
William J. Davis ◽  
Mostafa Fayek ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rare Earth ◽  
Rare Earth Element ◽  
Earth Element ◽  
Uranium Deposits ◽  
Athabasca Basin

Geochemistry of the Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan, Canada, and the Unconformity-related Uranium Deposits Hosted By It

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Alexandre
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Composition ◽  
Large Data ◽  
Aluminum Phosphate ◽  
Enrichment Factors ◽  
Uranium Deposits ◽  
Average Chemical Composition ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Athabasca Basin ◽  
Ore Bodies ◽  
Five Elements

Abstract A large data set comprising near-total digestion analyses of whole rock samples from the Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan, Canada (based principally on the Geological Survey of Canada open file 7495), containing more than 20,000 analyses, was used to define the average chemical composition of Athabasca Group sandstones and of unconformity-related uranium deposits hosted by the basin. The chemical composition of unaltered and un-mineralized Athabasca Group sandstones is dominated by Al (median Al2O3 of 1.14 wt.%), Fe (median Fe2O3 of 0.24 wt.%), and K (median K2O of 0.11 wt.%; Si was not measured), corresponding mostly to the presence of kaolin, illite, and hematite, in addition to the most-abundant quartz. The median concentration of U in the barren sandstones is 1 ppm, with 5 ppm Th, 3 ppm Pb, and 56 ppm ΣREE. Other trace elements present in significant amounts are Zr (median of 100 ppm), Sr (median of 69 ppm), and B (median of 43 ppm), corresponding to the presence of zircon, illite, and dravite. The elements most enriched in a typical Athabasca Basin unconformity-related uranium deposit relative to the barren sandstone are U (median enrichment of ×710), Bi (×175), V (×77), and Mg (×45), followed by five elements with enrichment factors between 20 and 30 (Co, Mo, K, As, and Ni). These correspond to the presence in the ore bodies of alteration minerals (dravite, kaolinite, illite, chlorite, aluminum-phosphate-sulfate minerals, and a suite of sulfide minerals) and are similar to what has been observed before. These elements are similar to the typical pathfinder elements described above known deposits, but their usefulness has to be assessed based on their relative mobility in the predominantly oxidizing Athabasca Basin sandstones.

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