Nickel-PGE Mineral Systems

World class Ni-Cu-PGE ore deposits are the manifestation of larger mineral systems. The CET research is focussed at three scales; 1)  Addressing the gap in research on the cratonic scale controls on camp localisation; 2)  Understanding the controls on camp size; and  3) Increasing the footprint of the deposit. Research is multidciplinary and includes lithogeochemistry, geochronology, structural geology, tectonics, geophyiscs image analysis, and statistics.

Main theme researchers

Prof. Steve Beresford

Dr Marco Fiorentini

Dr ‘Nacho’ Ignacio Gonzalez-Alvarez

Jane Collins (PhD student)

Geoff Heggie (PhD student)

David Mole (PhD student)

Carissa Isaac (PhD student)

Anthony Mamuse (PhD student)

Alex Eves (MSc student)

Marek Locmelis (PhD student GEMOC-CET)

Alex Clark-Hale (Honours’ student)

Matthew Paton (Honours’ student)

Research theme affiliates

Prof. McCuaig, Prof. Mark Barley, Prof. Mike Dentith, Prof. Steffen Hageman, Dr Aurore Joly, Assoc. Prof. Pietro Guj, Dr Nicolas Thebaud, Assoc. Prof. EJ Holden, Vanessa Markwitz, Dr Alok Porwal, Prof. John Miller, Steve Barnes (CSIRO), Dr Belinda Godel (CSIRO)

Major Projects

AMIRA P710a (BHPB, IGO, Norilsk; ARC LINKAGE, MERIWA) The search for a new camp and deposit scale lithogeochemical vector for komatiite-hosted Ni-Cu-(PGE) deposits

Yilgarn Tectonostratigraphy (ARC LINKAGE, BHPB, Norilsk, St Barbera) A multidisciplinary, multi-personnel project fosussed on 1) tracking the evolution of the proto-Yilgarn craton margins and 2) contrasting the cratonic to camp-scale controls on the localisation of komatiite-hosted Ni camp genesis at 2.9 Ga and 2.7 Ga.

Global Nickel Project (Transcontinental Group) A combined automated and manual probablistic targeting approach to Ni-Cu prospectivity in Australia (Tasmania, Queensland, Western Australia) and Zimbabwe

NEW major initiatives

AMIRA 1026 (with Steve Barnes CSIRO) in circulation

Nickel deposits have smaller footprints that hydrothermal ore deposits. This project aims to extend the known footprint of deformed deposits.

Research Initiatives

Controls on sulfide mobility using CT (cat scan tomography)

Mass independent S fractionation and origin of S in Archean Ni-Cu deposits, Yilgarn, Abitibi

Predictive structural controls on massive sulfide remobilisation at the deposit scale Flying Fox, Perseverence

Geophysical imagery of staging chambers beneath Ni-Cu-PGE deposits, Musgraves

Volatile contents in ultramafic rocks and links to Ni-Cu-PGE ore genesis, Agnew-Wiluna Belt, Pechenga, Ivrea, Siberian Traps

Lithogeochemical prospectivity of Large Igneous Provinces and greenstone belts, Musgraves, Bangemall, Sandstone, Lake Johnston

Endowment analysis, controls on clustering and spacing of Ni-Cu deposits and camps

Genesis of the Nebo-Babel Ni-Cu deposit, Musgraves

Genesis of the Speewah Ti-V prospect, Kimberley

The Bulge Ni-Cu-PGE prospect, Duketon

Collaboration

University/Government

AMIRA

CSIRO ‘Minerals Down Under’

GEMOC, Macquarie University

Nancy

Australian National University

Irkutsk

University of Oulu

Milano

Bonn