The role of fluid-rock reactions on gold-endowment at the Meliadine gold district, Nunavut, Canada: a sulfur isotope study

Orogenic gold deposits, i.e., those consisting of veins associated with ancient faults, represent the major source of gold in Canada, but these deposits form very difficult exploration targets. Gold is one of the most profitable commodities in the Canadian mineral industry, directly contributing to the overall wealth of remote communities. Therefore, the development new and more effective methods to find such gold deposits are in critical need by the mineral industry to reduce exploration costs, risks, and impacts. This project seeks to address this urgent need, by developing and testing of sulfur isotope vectoring to ore. Sulfur isotopes are a highly sensitive tool to trace where potentially auriferous fluids interacted with wall rocks and left a chemical footprint. By understanding their complexity at a variety of scales within the Meliadine gold district, located in Nunavut, it may be possible to vector towards endowed gold lodes, integrating sulfur isotopes into the exploration approaches available to the industry.

Faculty Supervisor:

Crystal LaFlamme

Student:

Partner:

Agnico Eagle Mines Limited

Discipline:

Earth science

Sector:

Mining

University:

Université Laval

Program: