CHEMICAL SPECIATION OF GOLD IN ARSENOPYRITE

Abstract

The speciation of Au in gold-bearing arsenopyrite (FeAsS) from four gold deposits (Olympiada, Sentachan, Sao Bento and Sheba) was determined by micro-X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) on grains well characterized microscopically and by electron-microprobe and secondary-ion mass spectrometry analyses and images. “Invisible” gold in arsenopyrite occurs in two apparently mutually exclusive chemical forms: chemically bound and elemental. Arsenopyrite from the Sentachan, Sao Bento and Sheba deposits contains chemically bound gold. With comparable constituent electronegativities and a white-line feature in the XANES indicating unoccupied Au 5d-states, but absorption-edge positions comparable to Au 1+ species, the bonding is interpreted as being covalent rather than ionic. The invisible gold in arsenopyrite from the Olympiada deposit, on the o ther hand, occurs as very small particles of Au 0 , probably less than a few nanometers in diameter. Micro-XANES data for the Olympiada and Sentachan arsenopyrite support earlier results obtained by 197 Au Mossbauer spectroscopy on arsenopyrite concentrates. In some arsenopyrite crystals, the gold concentration is closely related to growth zoning. This feature represents c onditions during crystallization and does not correlate with the chemical form of the gold. Similarly, selenium, where present, correlates with gold in some deposits and not in others, irrespective of the gold speciation. The finding of two types of invis ible gold in arsenopyrite from different deposits has beneficial implications for extractive metallurgy.