John B. McHugh

Concentration of gold in natural waters

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to investigate the amount of gold present in natural waters. One hundred and thirty-two natural water samples were collected from various sources and analyzed for gold by the latest techniques. Background values for gold in natural waters range from

Anomalous gold, antimony, arsenic, and tungsten in ground water and alluvium around disseminated gold deposits along the Getchell Trend, Humboldt County, Nevada

Ground-water, alluvium, and bedrock samples were collected from drill holes near the Chimney Creek, Preble, Summer Camp, and Rabbit Creek disseminated gold deposits in northern Nevada to determine if Au and ore-related metals, such as As, Sb, and W, are being hydromorphically mobilized from buried mineralized rock, and, if they are, to determine whether the metal-enriched ground water is reacting with the alluvial material to produce a geochemical anomaly within the overburden. Results of chemical analyses of drill-hole water samples show the presence of hydromorphic dispersion anomalies of Au, As, Sb, and W in the local ground-water systems associated with these deposits. Background concentrations for Au in the ground water up-gradient from the buried deposits was less than 1 nanogram per liter (ng/L), near the deposits the Au values ranged from 1 to 140 ng/ L, and in drill holes penetrating mineralized rock, concentrations of Au in the ground water were as high as 4700 ng/L. Highest concentrations of Au were found in ground-water samples where the measured Eh and the distribution of arsenic species, arsenite [As(III)] and arsenate [As(V)], indicated oxidizing redox potentials. Similarly, As, Sb, and W concentrations in the ground water near the deposits were significantly enriched relative to concentrations in the ground water up-gradient from the deposits. In general, however, the highest concentrations of As, Sb, and W occurred in ground-water samples where the measured Eh and the distribution of arsenic species indicated reducing conditions. Arsenic concentrations ranged from 9 to 710 micrograms per liter (μg/L); Sb, from less than 0.1 to 250 μg/L; and W, from 1 to 260 μg/L. In addition, analysis of sequential dissolution and extraction solutions of drill cuttings of alluvium and bedrock indicate geochemical anomalies of gold and ore-related metals in the overburden at depths corresponding to the location of the present-day water table. This relationship suggests that water-rock reactions around these buried deposits are active and that this information could be very useful in exploration programs for concealed disseminated gold deposits.

Simulation of natural acid sulfate weathering in an Alpine Watershed

Streams with acidic sulfate compositions (pH less than 3.5) are naturally generated in the alpine Geneva Creek Basin of the southern Rocky Mountains, an area underlain by Proterozoic metamorphic and igneous rocks that are intruded by Tertiary felsic stocks with associated pyritic alteration. These naturally acidic waters are similar in composition to more familiar man-made acid mine waters or to surface waters acidified by sulfate precipitation. Detailed study of the stream compositions has revealed the principal reactions driving the weathering process and was used to estimate the relative effects of snowpack ionic input versus the solute contribution from acid attack in soil zones and groundwater. In the Geneva Creek Basin, atmospheric sources of solute represent a minor component to the stream water composition, except for chloride, which can be used to determine the fraction of contribution. The weathering process is a balance between oxidation of sulfides, dissolution of silicates, formation of the clay minerals vermiculite, kaolinite, and smectite, carbonate neutralization, and precipitation of ferric and aluminum oxyhydroxides and aluminum sulfate. The chemical analyses of snow samples, multiple samples of water from Geneva Creek and its tributaries, and the composition of primary and secondary minerals identified in the basin serve as input to a mass balance geochemical model, which facilitates the interpretation of the principal geochemical processes.

Gold in natural water: A method of determination by solvent extraction and electrothermal atomization

A method has been developed using electrothermal atomization to effectively determine the amount of gold in natural water within the nanogram range. The method has four basic steps: (1) evaporating a 1-L sample; (2) putting it in hydrobromic acid-bromine solution; (3) extracting the sample with methyl-isobutyl-ketone; and (4) determining the amount of gold using an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The limit of detection is 0.001 μg gold per liter. Results from three studies indicate, respectively, that the method is precise, effective, and free of interference. Specifically, a precision study indicates that the method has a relative standard deviation of 16–18%; a recovery study indicates that the method recovers gold at an average of 93%; and an interference study indicates that the interference effects are eliminated with solvent extraction and background correction techniques. Application of the method to water samples collected from 41 sites throughout the Western United States and Alaska shows a gold concentration range of < 0.001 to 0.036 μg gold per liter, with an average of 0.005 μg/L.

Origin of concretionary Mn-Fe-oxides in stream sediments of Maine, U.S.A.

Abstract Studies of stream and sediment-pore waters largely explain the genesis of concretionary Mn-Fe-oxides in Maine. Waters of two small streams near Jackman, Maine, were studied in terms of pH, Eh, dissolved oxygen, dissolved organic carbon, dissolved Mn, total dissolved Fe, and ferrous and ferric Fe. Pyrite Creek has profuse concretions and coatings of Mn-Fe-oxides, whereas West Pyrite Creek has only sparse Mn-Fe-oxide stains. Pyrite Creek drains boggy terrain and West Pyrite Creek drains well-drained terrain. In West Pyrite Creek, stream and subjacent pore waters have chemical characteristics that do not differ greatly. However, dissolved Mn, ferrous Fe, dissolved oxygen, and in situ Eh measurements show that a steep Eh gradient exists between stream and subjacent pore waters of Pyrite Creek. The steep Eh gradient is manifested by the common zonation of coatings and stains on rocks in stream sediment. The bottom zone has no deposition of oxides, the middle zone is red and consists mostly of Fe-oxides, and the upper zone is black or dark-brown and consists of Mn-oxides with varying amounts of Fe-oxides. The zonation agrees with theoretical predictions of oxide stability as one moves from a reducing to an oxidizing environment. At locations where concretionary Mn-Fe-oxides form, pore waters are depleted of oxygen because of abundant decaying organic material in the stream sediment. The pore waters are charged with dissolved Mn and Fe because mechanically deposited Mn-Fe-oxides are remobilized due to the low-Eh conditions. Groundwaters also contribute dissolved Mn and Fe. Stream waters, on the other hand, are oxygenated and the high-Eh conditions result in low concentrations of dissolved Mn and Fe in stream waters because of the insolubility of Mn-Fe-oxides in high-Eh environments. Therefore, concretionary Mn-Fe-oxides form at the interface between pore and stream waters because Mn- and Fe-rich pore waters, which are undersaturated with respect to Mn-Fe-oxides, mix with oxygen-rich stream waters, which are saturated with respect to Mn-Fe-oxides.

Geochemical exploration for copper-nickel deposits in the cool-humid climate of northeastern Minnesota

Abstract Water was used as a medium for geochemical exploration to detect copper-nickel mineralization along the basal zone of the Duluth Complex. Ni2+ is the most important pathfinder for the detection of the mineralized rocks, followed by Cu2+ and SO42− and to a lesser extent Mg2+ and SiO2. A normalized sum plot using these species defines the mineralization more consistently than a single-element plot, mainly because the absence of one variable does not significantly influence the normalized sum value. A hydrogeochemical survey was conducted in an area of known copper-nickel mineralization in the cool-humid climate of northeastern Minnesota. The area is covered with glacial drift, and wetlands are abundant. Modeling of the chemistry of waters indicates that the waters are oxidizing and have a pH of 7 or less. The most important pathfinder species in the waters, Cu2+, Ni2+, and SO42−, are derived from the simple weathering of sulfide minerals and are mobile in the waters in this environment. Plots of Cu and Ni concentrations in soils show that Cu followed by Ni are the most useful indicator elements for delineating copper-nickel mineralization. The ability of soils and water to delineate the mineralization supports the use of both media for geochemical exploration in this cool-humid environment. In the wetlands, abundant water is available and soils are scarce or absent; where soils are abundant, waters are generally scarce or absent. The use of both media is recommended for geochemical exploration in this environment.

Determination of Uranium in Geologic Materials by Laser-Excited Fluorescence

Abstract A laser-excited fluorescence method is described for the determination of trace amounts of uranium in rocks and soils. The limit of detection is less than 1 ppm, and the relative standard deviation ranges from 2.6 to 12.5%. The method was evaluated by using known geological reference samples.

Uranium results for 147 water samples from the Elkhorn Wilderness Study Area, Montana

One hundred forty seven water samples were collected from the Elkhorn Wilderness during the summer of 1977 as a part of a mineral resource assessment study. Each sample was analyzed for uranium. Specific conductance and pH were also measured. Sample analyses and site locations are presented in this report.