Matteo Clemente, BSc

Utilizing trace element content of pyrite to interpret fluid chemistry of five historic Au deposits in SE Ontario

M. Clemente1, D. Gregory1, E. Hastie1, 2, J. Cann1 
1Department of Earth Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 
2Ontario Geological Survey, Ontario, Canada 

The Grenville Province is a northeast-southwest trending orogenic belt comprising granitoids, greenstones, and metasediments that extend through Ontario and Quebec in Southern Canada. It hosts Au mineralization that was among the first gold deposits mined in Ontario. In this study, samples from five of these historic gold deposits in the Elzevir and Manizaw Terrane in the Central Metasedimentary Belt were analyzed by a combination of reflected light microscopy and laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (LA-ICPMS) to examine trace element content of different generations of pyrite. Understanding the trace element chemistry of pyrite contributes to the understanding of gold deposits in Ontario by interpreting past fluid chemistry and providing evidence of potential significant orogenic gold mineralization events. The study also highlights the potential for Proterozoic gold in Ontario, which is poorly constrained and understood. Twelve Au and pyrite-bearing samples were examined from five historic deposits including Ore Chimney, Dillman-Chard (Black River), Cordova, Dingman, and Bannockburn.