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Gold occurrence in the footwall of the Lappberget Deposit, Garpenberg Mine, Sweden: Implications for recovery efficiency
Department of Geology and Geological Engineering, Université Laval, Québec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada.
Luleå University of Technology, Department of Civil, Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering, Geosciences and Environmental Engineering.ORCID iD: 0000-0001-9823-1664
Luleå University of Technology, Department of Civil, Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering, Geosciences and Environmental Engineering.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-2634-6953
Luleå University of Technology, Department of Civil, Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering, Geosciences and Environmental Engineering.ORCID iD: 0000-0003-4711-7671
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2024 (English)In: Ore Geology Reviews, ISSN 0169-1368, E-ISSN 1872-7360, Vol. 171, article id 106174Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

By-product metals have a significant potential to bring additional economic benefits to mines. However, a detailed characterization of their distribution is generally required to fulfill this potential and should preferably be integrated into a geometallurgical assessment. This contribution presents a detailed mineralogical and textural investigation of gold-bearing phases at the footwall of the Zn–Pb–Ag–(Cu–Au) Lappberget Deposit, Garpenberg Mine, Sweden, using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscope with energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (LA-ICPMS), and bulk chemical analysis applied to drill core and Knelson concentrator samples. Gold is a by-product at the Garpenberg mine, but it is unclear how the mineralogy, occurrence, and distribution of gold-bearing phases impact on gold recoveries during mineral processing. Our results show that Au-dominant electrum is the most abundant gold-bearing phase in the footwall of the Lappberget deposit, occurring strongly associated to sulfides in a variety of textures and grain sizes. Electrum grains commonly occur within sulfide borders, as inclusions, intergrowth and overgrowths of chalcopyrite, pyrite, galena, sphalerite, and pyrrhotite. Gangue minerals may also contain disseminated electrum and inclusions. Electrum grain sizes range from ∼5 µm to 300 µm, predominantly below 100 µm. The potential of sulfide lattice-bound invisible gold in the form of solid-solution gold and colloidal gold was also investigated, showing Au depletion within the analyzed sulfide carriers. The analysis of the concentrate samples from the Knelson gravity concentrator showed 584 and 431 ppm of gold content. High degree of liberation is observed among the gold-bearing phases in the concentrate, and gold recovery is highest among fractions coarser than 106 µm mesh. Pyrite and galena are the most abundant minerals in the concentrate samples. The gold-bearing phases were categorized based on its mineralogy, texture, grain size, and association and their influence on gold processing, especially textures and grain size, which implicates its liberation in milling and recovery by the gravity separator.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Elsevier, 2024. Vol. 171, article id 106174
Keywords [en]
Gold characterization, Gold as a by-product, Geometallurgy of gold, Lappberget ore, Garpenberg Mine
National Category
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary Metallurgy and Metallic Materials
Research subject
Ore Geology
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:ltu:diva-108390DOI: 10.1016/j.oregeorev.2024.106174ISI: 001284501400001Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85199718431OAI: oai:DiVA.org:ltu-108390DiVA, id: diva2:1885692
Note

Validerad;2024;Nivå 2;2024-08-14 (sofila);

Full text license CC BY 4.0

Available from: 2024-07-24 Created: 2024-07-24 Last updated: 2024-12-16Bibliographically approved

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Tiu, GlacialleJansson, NilsWanhainen, ChristinaGhorbani, Yousef

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