Discovery Of Mineral Deposits Research Articles

MINERAL POTENTIAL OF STRATEGICAL AND CRITICAL MINERAL RAW MATERIALS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF HIGH TECHNOLOGICAL INDUSTRY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

The paper briefly describes the state system of regional geological study of the subsoil, implemented by Rosnedra and VSEGEI, which provides an assessment of the country's mineral resource potential for strategic types of minerals. In 2022, VSEGEI completed the compilation of a set of digital monometal maps of distribution patterns and prediction of strategic and critical types of minerals in the Russian Federation at a scale of 1:2.5 M in GIS format. Reserves of these types of minerals were assessed based on the state accounting system, and an expert reassessment of inferred resources was carried out. As a result, regional predictive criteria concerning the localization of areas promising for the discovery of mineral deposits were developed. Recommendations were given on the organization of additional site appraisal-200/2 and (or) geological and mineragenic mapping-200 on specific nomenclature sheets, promising for exploration for strategic types of minerals

Geoelectrical model of the Earth’s crust along the Shu-Sarysu geotraverse according to magnetotelluric soundings

Purpose. To study and assess the possibility of effective application of electrical prospecting by magnetotelluric sounding (MT-sounding) and to determine the range of geological problems to be solved in the geoelectric conditions of the Shu-Sarysu geotraverse. Methodology. The issues of methodology of modern technologies of field observations, peculiarities of processing and interpretation of MT-sounding data are considered, which showed that modern instrumental and methodical electrical survey technologies of MT-sounding allow obtaining results of field measurements of increased reliability, due to their accuracy, productivity, mobility, noise immunity, level of automation. To identify the main features of the geoelectric structure of the Earth’s crust and the upper mantle, the modern technique of interpreting MT data allows for 1, 2D inversion of the effective curves of apparent resistivity and impedance phase. Findings. Based on MT-sounding data, a geoelectric section of the Shu-Sarysu geotraverse was constructed, characterizing the position and morphology of five geoelectric boundaries in the crustal section in the 0–40 km depth interval. The identified five geoelectric horizons show good coincidence with the conventional seismic horizons and confidently correlate with the geological references established by GIS data. Originality. On the basis of MT-sounding studies, the geological interpretation of the structure of suprasalt and subsalt structural-formation complexes is presented; the geological efficiency of MT-sounding electrical prospecting in revealing the complex structures in the conditions of the Shu-Sarysu geotraverse is shown. On the basis of model constructions of the geoelectric section, new data on the deep geological structure of the Shu-Sarysu geotraverse were obtained: new data on the structure of Mesozoic terrigenous-sedimentary rock complexes and the Paleozoic part of the section with the allocation of the supposed faults; on the basis of MT-sounding results, recommendations for further detailed geological exploration work were given. Practical value. A comprehensive interpretation is recommended of the obtained MT-sounding data together with the results of geological and geophysical research on the regional profile in order to establish search criteria for the discovery of mineral deposits and the prospects of gas content in the area.

Visualization and interpretation of geochemical exploration data using GIS and machine learning methods

Geochemical exploration has provided significant clues for mineral exploration and has helped discover many mineral deposits. Although various methods, including classic statistics, multivariate statistics, geostatistics, fractal/multifractal models, and machine learning algorithms, have been successfully employed to process geochemical exploration data, efficient interpretation and visualization of geochemical exploration data in support of the discovery of mineral deposits remain challenging. In this study, a workflow for intelligent interpretation and visualization of geochemical exploration data, defined as processing geochemical survey data with support of a geographical information system (GIS) and machine learning algorithms, was proposed. The effectiveness of the intelligent interpretation and visualization of geochemical exploration data supported by GIS and machine learning algorithms was demonstrated using a case study of processing a regional-scale geochemical survey dataset collected from Sichuan Province, China. Future research should add more advanced mathematical and statistical models, such as deep learning algorithms, into GIS to support the intelligent interpretation and visualization of geochemical exploration data.

Organizational activity of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR in participation of the delegation of Soviet scholars in the First Plenum of the International Society for the Exploration of the Arctic Regions by Means of the Airship (Aeroarctic) and its results

The subject of this research is the exploration of Arctic, its economic development, and use of resources on the scientific basis as the crucial policy avenue of the Soviet Union. The International Society for the Exploration of the Arctic Regions by Airship (Aeroarctic) made a significant contribution to the research of the Russian Arctic. The success and performance of the Soviet members of this society largely depended on the organizational and norm-setting measures taken by the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR and its commissions in the late 1920s. For elucidation of the role of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR in organizing international cooperation of the Soviet scholars, the article employs the materials from the State Archive of the Russian Federation and St. Petersburg Central State Archive of Scientific and Technical Documentation. Among noteworthy results of international cooperation within the framework of “Aeroarctic” are the following: 1) organization of the 2nd Congress of Aeroarctic Society held in Leningrad in 1928; 2) inclusion of the possibility of establishing trans-Arctic air routes between Europe and America in the five-year plan of research activity of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute for 1928 – 1933. In the activity of the Council of People's Commissars on the issues of Soviet participation in “Aeroarctic”, the author observes the proclivity for providing the procesude for recognition of the Arctic territories of the USSR by the global community; as well as protect the Soviet Arctic territories from the claims of foreign states. The second half of 1920s marks a major breakthrough in development of the Arctic in the USSR reflected in conduct of regular scientific research, acquisition of reliable knowledge on this remote part of the Earth, discovery of mineral deposits, which also allowed among strengthening defense potential of the country.

Dispersion of gold and other metals by trees, gravels and soils near Boddington Gold Deposit, Western Australia

South west Western Australia is host to some of the world's largest mineral deposits including bauxite, Ta and Au. The giant Boddington Gold Mine exploits one such deposit and is located in forested areas south east of Perth. Exploration for Au in this area has concentrated on sampling surficial Fe-rich lateritic residuum and its degradation products and was how Boddington was originally discovered; it has a multi-element signature. Despite its location in forest there has been little biogeochemistry undertaken in this area or consideration of whether trees (including eucalypts) are agents of dispersion of metals in this terrain. Eucalyptus trees have been shown to be responsible for forming anomalies above gold deposits in semi-arid areas of Australia and the location of Boddington in a humid environment provided an important comparison in which to investigate this possibility.The Golden Triangle Au prospect near Boddington Gold Deposit is located on the flank of a small lateritic hill. Limited shallow drilling has identified sub-economic mineralisation with some metre composite cuttings grading >1ppm Au. A selection of different trees and shrubs, organic soil and ferruginous pisoliths were collected over a surface traverse of 800m at 50m intervals from across the prospect. Samples were analysed for major elements, Au and several pathfinder metals. Additional foliage samples were collected from the same trees over mineralisation and background to test for sample heterogeneity.Golden Triangle vegetation samples were generally anomalous in Au and pathfinder elements (e.g. Ag, Bi, W and Sn). For example, Banksia and Macrozamia had elemental anomalies in Bi and Ag located directly above or down slope of mineralisation although for Eucalyptus the anomaly over mineralisation itself was poorly defined. Topsoil containing organic matter overlying the ferruginous pisoliths was particularly anomalous in Au (mean of 47ppb against of background of <5ppb). Pathfinder element anomalies were present in all sample media (soil, vegetation and pisoliths) although the specific elements and tenor of the anomaly varied between sample media.The results demonstrate a biotic (plant) influence on the dispersion of metallic elements at Golden Triangle prospect. This process of dispersion may serve to not only disperse and dilute metals in the regolith but potentially create a larger exploration target to detect the presence of the mineralisation. The anomalous metal content of the pisoliths themselves may be due to an earlier biotic mechanism of metal mobilisation from the deeper regolith or be solely a result of inorganic processes as previously thought. The sampling of deep-rooted trees and soil beneath them may assist in the discovery of mineral deposits in areas where there is transported material or leached regolith.

Geographical environment determinism for discovery of mineral deposits

The spatial distribution of metallic mineral deposits discovered in China during 1901 to 2007 shows that nearly 85% of the total 2906 metallic mineral deposits with the magnitude greater than medium-size are located on the southeastern side of the famous Heihe-Tengchong “geo-demographic demarcation line”. This spatial pattern is consistent with the population distribution of China, indicating that the spatial distribution of discovered mineral deposits may be related to exploration level that is strongly restricted by the geographic environments. We found that the number of discovered deposits per unit area in explored regions increases with the exploration level, following a power-law model. From this model, if the geological, geochemical and geophysical exploration in the NW region of the geo-demographic demarcation line reaches the same level as that in the SE region of the line, about 2000 metallic mineral deposits with magnitudes greater than medium-size remain to be discovered in the NW region of China.

Boom towns: restoring the urban American dream

Boom Towns: Restoring the Urban American Dream Stephen J. K. Walters Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 2014, 210 pp. The image of a boom town is commonly used to describe exceptional conditions through which a village suddenly becomes a city. Often such conditions are the discovery of mineral deposits that attracts industry and commerce. While in their booming condition, such towns are oases of societal flourishing relative to their preceding state. In Boom Towns, Stephen J. K. Walters, a professor of economics at Loyola University in Baltimore, explains that cities in general have the capacity perpetually to be forms of boom towns. Cities can serve as magnets to attract people and capital, thus promoting the human flourishing that has always been associated with cities at their best. It is different if cities are at their worst, as Walters explains in bringing Jane Jacobs's Death and Life of Great American Cities into his explanatory ambit. There are no natural obstacles to cities occupying the foreground of societal flourishing. There are obstacles to be sure, but these are man-made. Being man-made, they can also be overcome through human action, at least in principle even if doing so in practice might be difficult. Walters's analytical framework is centered on property rights and the ownership of capital. The boundary between boom towns and bust towns depends significantly on how towns treat property rights and, thereby, the returns owners are able to obtain from their capital investments in a city. Such capital is immobile, which makes it potentially subject to banditry and extortion by city officials. To the extent cities practice such hostage-taking, investment in those cities will be discouraged and bust-like conditions will emerge. Walters uses recent experience in the presence of state-wide tax limitations in California and Massachusetts to support his thesis. San Francisco and Boston had experienced significant declines in population until tax limits were imposed at the state level. In consequence, the return to capital invested in those cities increased and the decline in population was reversed. While security of private property is pivotal for the generation of boom towns, flourishing cities also require public property that is well managed and complementary to the commercial and industrial efforts of its residents. Cities, however, may manage public property badly, undermining flourishing in those cities. Bad management of public property reduces the return to private capital just as surely as extortionate taxation does. Such bad management can take the form of lavish spending on public construction projects as well as failing to provide clean and secure public spaces. The latter example is illustrated by what is known as the window fallacy, whereby allowing broken windows to accumulate signals a weak resolve to provide security for property, which in turn induces deterioration within the city by reducing the value of property rights. Walters hits his target head on in stressing the pivotal significance of property rights in accounting for the condition of cities, with the margin between flourishing and deteriorating cities governed by how property rights are treated within cities. Walters's analytical framework makes heavy use of Jane Jacobs's Death and Life of Great American Cities. In places I think he asks this framework to bear more weight than it is truly able to support. In this respect, a form of flying buttress could be constructed from other work by Jane Jacobs. In particular, I would recommend Cities and the Wealth of Nations and Systems of Survival. I could even add a third book, Dark Age Ahead, for its ability to portray the world that could He ahead of us if the insights contained within Boom Towns are ignored. In Cities and the Wealth of Nations, Jacobs explained that societal flourishing is a by-product of flourishing at the level of cities. …

Colonial Geological Survey Service

AN important part of a comprehensive plan for the economic development of the British Colonies is a thorough investigation of their mineral resources. This involves a considerable expansion of the Colonial geological surveys and the completion of maps on reconnaissance and more detailed scales with the view to discovery of mineral deposits and the determination of their economic significance. Such a programme of investigation offers geologists a wide range of interest—scientific and economic—with the added attraction of pursuing field-work under varied geographical and climatic conditions. There is place, too, for those who wish to specialize in petrology, mineralogy, economic geology, geophysics, etc. Most Colonial geological surveys offer opportunities for research, and men are encouraged to do new work and prepare for research degrees. Wherever possible they are given facilities also to study special subjects related to their work. A considerable number of geologists will be required during the next four years and a slightly lesser number in succeeding years to carry out such a programme. The vacancies in view are announced so far as possible in advance so that men who desire an active life of field-work may be encouraged to pursue geological studies with reasonable prospect of securing an appointment in the Colonial Geological Survey Service. The vacancies anticipated during the next few years are as follows : 1948–52, an average of 25 a year ; 1953–56, an average of 15 a year. The Colonies in which these vacancies will occur include the following : Kenya, Uganda, Tanganyika Territory, Northern Rhodesia, Nyasaland, Bechuanaland, Swaziland, Nigeria, Gold Coast, Sierra Leone, British Guiana, British Honduras, Malaya, North Borneo, Sarawak, and certain other smaller Colonies. The posts offered are, in general, permanent and pensionable in themselves, or such as to lead to permanent and pensionable posts ; temporary service would ordinarily count for pension where there has been no break in service. The qualification required is a good honours degree in geology, preferably supplemented by a research degree, or research experience. Forms of application for appointment to the Colonial Geological Survey Service are obtainable on request from the Director of Recruitment (Colonial Service), Colonial Office, 15 Victoria Street, London, S.W.I.

Preservation of the Fauna of the Empire

IN a short address at the general meeting of the Society for the Preservation of the Fauna of the Empire, the chairman, Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell, made a strong appeal for the consolidation of the position in regard to animal reserves within the Empire. At present the continued existence of faunal reserves depends upon the goodwill of individual governments or individual parliaments. The discovery of mineral deposits, the demand for timber, and other possible eventualities, may lead to particular reserves being thrown open to traffic or trade, with disastrous effects to the animal population, which cannot be herded into new areas at the will of man. What is needed for the permanent protection of those faunas, which are rapidly becoming relict faunas, is the raising of the status of their native territory in certain cases from temporary reserves to permanent national parks. The Society, which since its foundation has worked so strenuously on behalf of the Empire's threatened animals, has often appealed, with reasoned arguments founded upon the reports of its own observers, to the Colonial Office, but so far without success. The alteration would involve no extra expenditure; ultimately, indeed, the national parks by proper administration would bring in a certain amount of revenue; the surplus earned by the Game Department of Kenya, under strictly regulated conditions, was £15,022 in 1930. At present their creation would cost nothing, and would mean permanent security for the animals and plants in the reserved regions.