Abstract
Polish sediment-hosted stratiform copper deposits associated with Zechstein sediments are one of the country’s most valuable natural resources and the basis for its copper industry. The paper presents the history of their research and current exploration. Although documented deposits and their identified resources are described and characterized, much attention is paid to areas located outside of them, including those where geological exploration is currently underway. The gradual depletion of shallow Cu–Ag reserves in the Lubin-Sieroszowice district and elsewhere in the world requires exploration for deeper-seated deposits. To expand resources, time span and scale of copper production in Poland, exploration and definition of new prospects is of great importance. Thirty-five prospective areas with hypothetical and speculative resources have been delineated in SW Poland, including the most prospective areas adjacent to the Cu–Ag Lubin-Sieroszowice deposit. The paper also focuses on those parts of the Fore-Sudetic Monocline where new copper deposits were recently identified. Their resources are described along with the methodology of establishing their boundaries, which differs from recommended Polish threshold parameters not taking into account the depths exceeding 1500 m. Intelligent modern mining and ore processing technologies are considered as a prerequisite for future profitable development of deposits at deeper levels.
Highlights
Recorded global resources of copper are estimated at 668.21 Gt of ore at 0.45% of Cu, containing3035 Mt Cu, including 130.01 Gt of ore with a grade of 0.49% Cu, with mineral reserves in the amount of 641 Mt Cu [1]
This study focuses on the exploration potential of prospective areas by comparison with the operated L-S deposits to establish the directions of further prospecting and research
The deep water facies is characterized by its consistent thickness of 20–60 cm and is composed of alternating clay and carbonate laminae, with brighter laminae embedded in a dark matrix consisted of a mixture of clay and organic material
Summary
Recorded global resources of copper are estimated at 668.21 Gt of ore at 0.45% of Cu, containing. The most important source of copper produced in the world in addition to porphyry copper deposits involves sediment-hosted stratiform copper deposits (SSC) [6,7,8,9,10] These deposits are characterized by variable resources in the range of 1.6 to 170 Mt (at 0.7–4.2% Cu), with a median of. Ore is processed by pulverizing and flotation, copper-silver concentrates are smelted in shaft and flash furnace smelters and refineries in Legnica and Głogów Their production capacity amounts to 540 kt of electrolytic copper and 1200 tons of silver a year. The aim of this paper is to characterize the prospective areas to determine the undiscovered resource base that meets specified minimum geological and economic criteria related to current mining and production practices, including those for grade, quality, thickness and depth. This study focuses on the exploration potential of prospective areas by comparison with the operated L-S deposits to establish the directions of further prospecting and research
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
