See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/228668686

Porphyry deposits

Chapter · January 2007

CITATIONS READS
112 24,105

1 author:

W. David Sinclair
Natural Resources Canada
73 PUBLICATIONS 961 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE

All content following this page was uploaded by W. David Sinclair on 27 November 2019.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

 PORPHYRY DEPOSITS
W.D. SINCLAIR
Geological Survey of Canada, 601 Booth Street, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0E8
Corresponding author’s email: sinclair@nrcan.gc.ca

Abstract
Porphyry deposits are the world's most important source of Cu and Mo, and are major sources of Au, Ag, and Sn;
significant byproduct metals include Re, W, In, Pt, Pd, and Se. They account for about 50 to 60% of world Cu produc-
tion and more than 95% of world Mo production. In Canada, they account for more than 40% of Cu production, virtu-
ally all Mo production, and about 10% of Au production. Porphyry deposits are large, low- to medium-grade deposits
in which primary (hypogene) ore minerals are dominantly structurally controlled and which are spatially and geneti-
cally related to felsic to intermediate porphyritic intrusions. They are distinguished from other granite-related deposits
such as skarns and mantos by their large size and structural control, mainly stockworks, veins, vein sets, fractures, and
breccias. Porphyry deposits typically contain hundreds of millions of tonnes of ore, although they range in size from
tens of millions to billions of tonnes; grades for the different metals vary considerably but generally average less than
1%. In porphyry Cu deposits, for example, Cu grades range from 0.2% to more than 1% Cu; in porphyry Mo deposits,
Mo grades range from 0.07% to nearly 0.3% Mo. In porphyry Au and Cu-Au deposits, Au grades range from 0.2 to
2 g/t Au. Associated igneous rocks vary in composition from diorite-granodiorite to high-silica granite; they are typi-
cally porphyritic epizonal and mesozonal intrusions, commonly subvolcanic. A close temporal and genetic relationship
between magmatic activity and hydrothermal mineralization in porphyry deposits is indicated by the presence of inter-
mineral intrusions and breccias that were emplaced between or during periods of mineralization. Porphyry deposits
range in age from Archean to Recent, although most economic deposits are Jurassic or younger.
Résumé
Les gîtes porphyriques constituent, à l’échelle mondiale, la plus importante source de cuivre et de molybdène, une
grande source d’or, d’argent et d’étain, de même qu’une source considérable de métaux récupérés comme sous-produits,
dont le rhénium, le tungstène, l’indium, le platine, le palladium et le sélénium. En outre, ils comptent pour 50 à 60 %
environ de la production mondiale de cuivre et pour plus de 95 % de celle de molybdène. Au Canada, ces proportions
atteignent plus de 40 %, dans le cas du cuivre, presque 100 %, dans celui du molybdène et quelque 10 %, dans celui de
l’or. Les gisements porphyriques consistent en vastes accumulations de minerai à teneur faible ou moyenne où la répar-
tition des minéraux métalliques primaires (hypogènes) est régie principalement par des contrôles structuraux et liée, tant
sur le plan spatial que génétique, à des intrusions porphyriques de composition felsique à intermédiaire. Ils se dis-
tinguent des autres gisements apparentés à des granites, comme les skarns et les mantos, par leur grande taille et leurs
contrôles structuraux, la minéralisation se présentant surtout dans des stockwerks, des filons, des réseaux de filons, des
fractures et des brèches. Ils renferment généralement des centaines de millions de tonnes de minerai, quoique leur vol-
ume peut varier de quelques dizaines de millions de tonnes à des milliards de tonnes. Leurs teneurs en métaux varient
considérablement mais se situent habituellement en moyenne à moins de 1 %. Par exemple, la teneur en Cu des gise-
ments porphyriques de cuivre va de 0,2 % à plus de 1 %, celle en Mo des gisements porphyriques de molybdène, de
0,07 % à presque 0,3 % et celle en Au des gisements porphyriques d’or et de cuivre-or, de 0,2 à 2 g/t. Les roches ignées
qui leur sont associés montrent une composition variant de la diorite-granodiorite au granite fortement siliceux et se
présentent en général sous forme d’intrusions à texture porphyrique épizonales et mésozonales, habituellement subvol-
caniques. Dans les gîtes porphyriques, la présence de brèches et d’intrusions mises en place entre les zones minéral-
isées pendant ou entre les périodes de minéralisation témoigne d’un étroit lien temporel et génétique entre le magma-
tisme et la minéralisation hydrothermale. L’âge des gîtes porphyriques s’étend de l’Archéen à l’Holocène, quoique la
plupart des gisements rentables datent du Jurassique ou d’une époque plus récente.

Definition The metal content of porphyry deposits is diverse. The

Porphyry deposits are large, low- to medium-grade following subtypes of porphyry deposits were defined by
deposits in which primary (hypogene) ore minerals are dom- Kirkham and Sinclair (1995) according to the metals that are
inantly structurally controlled and which are spatially and essential to the economics of the deposit (metals that are
genetically related to felsic to intermediate porphyritic intru- byproducts or potential byproducts are listed in brackets):
sions (Kirkham, 1972). The large size and structural control Cu (±Au, Mo, Ag, Re, PGE)
(e.g. veins, vein sets, stockworks, fractures, 'crackled zones', Cu-Mo (±Au, Ag)
and breccias) serve to distinguish porphyry deposits from a Cu-Mo-Au (±Ag)
variety of deposits that may be peripherally associated, Cu-Au (±Ag, PGE)
including skarns, high-temperature mantos, peripheral
Au (±Ag, Cu, Mo)
mesothermal veins, and epithermal precious-metal deposits.
Secondary minerals may be developed in supergene- Mo (±W, Sn)
enriched zones in porphyry Cu deposits by weathering of W-Mo (±Bi, Sn)
primary sulphides. Such zones typically have significantly Sn (±W, Mo, Ag, Bi, Cu, Zn, In)
higher Cu grades, thereby enhancing the potential for eco- Sn-Ag (±W, Cu, Zn, Mo, Bi)
nomic exploitation. Ag (±Au, Zn, Pb)

Sinclair, W.D., 2007, Porphyry deposits, in Goodfellow, W.D., ed., Mineral Deposits of Canada: A Synthesis of Major Deposit-Types, District Metallogeny,
the Evolution of Geological Provinces, and Exploration Methods: Geological Association of Canada, Mineral Deposits Division, Special Publication No. 5,
p. 223-243.
 W.D. Sinclair

Aitik
Verkhnee Qairaqty Peschanka
Highland Valley Sorskoie
Gaspé Copper Altenberg
Pebble Butte
Bingham Bor
Aqtoghai
Climax Kounrad
Yerington Mount Pleasant Oyu Tolgoi
Morenci Kal’makyr
Kadzharan
Resolution Jinduicheng Dexing
Sar Cheshmeh
Sierrita
Dizon
Malanjkhand

Grasberg

Toquepala
Collahuasi Batu Hijau Panguna
Potosi
Chuquicamata
Haib Coppin Gap
Alumbrera Goonumbla
El Salvador
Boddington
El Teniente

FIGURE 1. Global distribution of porphyry deposits (from Kirkham and Dunne, 2000). World geology is from Chorlton (2004). See Appendix 2 (World) for
deposit details.

For deposits with currently subeconomic grades and ton- Bethlehem and Lornex in the Highland Valley district,
nages, subtypes are based on probable coproduct and Granisle and Bell Copper in the Babine district, Ingerbelle in
byproduct metals, assuming that the deposits were economic. the Copper Mountain district, Brenda, Island Copper, and
Gibraltar. In 2000, production of Cu from Canadian por-
Geographical Distribution phyry deposits amounted to 267,000 t, or about 2% of total
Porphyry deposits occur throughout the world in a series world Cu production and approximately 43% of total
of extensive, relatively narrow, linear metallogenic Canadian Cu production; the major part of Canadian Cu pro-
provinces (Fig. 1). They are predominantly associated with duction was from magmatic Cu-Ni deposits at Sudbury and
Mesozoic to Cenozoic orogenic belts in western North and from numerous volcanogenic massive sulphide (VMS)
South America, around the western margin of the Pacific deposits scattered across the country. About 60% of
Basin, and in the Tethyan orogenic belt in eastern Europe Canadian Cu reserves are in porphyry deposits, largely in the
and southern Asia. However, major deposits also occur Cordillera, but they include a considerable amount of low-
within Paleozoic orogens in Central Asia and eastern North grade Cu resources that are currently subeconomic.
America and, to a lesser extent, within Precambrian terranes. Since 1970, porphyry deposits have become increasingly
The distribution of porphyry deposits in Canada is shown in important sources of Au in Canada (Fig. 3B). In 2000, por-
Figure 2. phyry Cu-Au deposits (e.g. Kemess and Mount Polley) and
porphyry Au deposits (e.g. Troilus) collectively produced
Importance about 15 t Au, representing nearly 10% of total Canadian Au
Porphyry deposits are the world's most important source production.
of Cu and Mo; they account for about 60 to 70% of world Cu Canadian Mo production in 2000 was entirely from por-
production and more than 95% of world Mo production. phyry deposits and totalled 6980 t, of which the Endako por-
Porphyry deposits are also major sources of Au, Ag, and Sn; phyry Mo deposit produced about 71%, the Highland Valley
significant byproduct metals include Re, W, In, Pt, Pd, and porphyry Cu deposit 20%, and the Huckleberry porphyry
Se. Cu-Mo deposit the remaining 9%.
Historical production of Cu and Au from porphyry At present (2006), no porphyry W-Mo or Sn deposits are
deposits in Canada relative to total Canadian production is in production in Canada. From 1983 to 1985, approximately
shown in Figure 3. Canadian production of Cu from por- 1120 t W were produced from the porphyry W-Mo deposit at
phyry deposits began in the 1920s with the exploitation of Mount Pleasant in New Brunswick, and significant W
high-grade ores in the Copper Mountain district, British resources remain at Mount Pleasant and in the Logtung W-
Columbia, although the first significant large-scale produc- Mo porphyry deposit in Yukon Territory. To date, most
tion from a recognized porphyry deposit did not begin until Canadian W production has come from smaller, but higher
1955, from the Copper Mountain deposit at Mines Gaspé, grade, skarn W deposits such as Cantung, Northwest
Quebec. Copper production from porphyry deposits Territories, which has produced more than 50,000 t W. From
increased rapidly in the 1960s and early 1970s with the 1985 to 1992, more than 21,000 t Sn were produced from the
development of deposits in British Columbia such as granite-related, porphyry-type Sn deposit at East Kemptville,

224
 METALS DEPOSIT SIZE (CONTAINED METAL)
(millions of tonnes, except Au and Ag in tonnes)
LARGE MEDIUM SMALL
Cu >2 Cu 0.2-2 Cu <0.2 Cu
Cu-Au >1 Cu and 100 Au 0.1-1 Cu and 10-100 Au <0.1 Cu and 10 Au
Au >250 Au 25-250 Au <25 Au
Cu-Mo >1 Cu and 0.1 Mo 0.1-1 Cu and 0.01-0.1 Mo <0.1 Cu and 0.01 Mo
Mo >0.2 Mo 0.02-0.2 Mo <0.02 Mo
Dublin Gulch W-Mo >0.05 W and 0.1 Mo 0.01-0.05 W and 0.01-0.1 Mo <0.01 W and 0.01 Mo
Sn >0.1 Sn 0.01-0.1 Sn <0.01 Sn
Casino Red Mountain Ag >1000 Ag 100-1000 Ag <100 Ag

Adanac

Schaft Creek Logtung Colomac

Galore Creek
Red-Chris
Sulphurets

Alice Arm District Kemess

Babine District
Glacier Gulch
Mount Milligan
Huckleberry Endako

Mount Polley
Prosperity (Fish Lake) Gibraltar

Highland Valley District

Porphyry Deposits

Island Copper Afton District

Macleod Lake
Brenda
Troilus Gaspé Copper
Setting Net Lake
Trout Lake
Similkameen District

McIntyre
Mount Pleasant

0 100 200 300 400 500

Tribag Matachewan East Kemptville
kilometres

FiGURE 2. Distribution of selected porphyry deposits in Canada (Kirkham and Dunne, 2000). Canadian geology is from Wheeler et al. (1996). See Appendix 1 (Canada) for deposit details.

225
 W.D. Sinclair

Tonnes Copper Cu grades in porphyry Cu-Au deposits are comparable

1,000,000
A to those of the porphyry Cu subtype (Fig. 4), but Au contents
900,000 Total Copper Production
tend to be consistently higher (0.2-2.0 g/t, Fig. 6). Sillitoe
800,000 Porphyry Deposits (1993b) suggested that porphyry Cu deposits should contain
700,000
>0.4 g/t Au to be called Au-rich. However, Au is an impor-
600,000
tant coproduct at grades as low as 0.2 g/t Au (Fig. 7).
500,000
Kirkham and Sinclair (1995) suggested that a 1:1 ratio (i.e. 1
400,000 g/t Au to 1% Cu) could be useful in defining Au-rich por-
300,000 phyry Cu deposits, particularly at higher copper grades;
200,000 Kesler et al. (2002) suggested a slightly lower ratio of about
100,000 0.8:1 should be the division between Au-rich and Au-poor
0 deposits. Although the number of deposits in this class is
1885 1895 1905 1915 1925 1935 1945 1955 1965 1975 1985 1995
limited, deposits such as Grasberg in Indonesia, with a
Tonnes Gold
200.0
resource greater than 2.5 billion tonnes grading 1.1% Cu and
B 1.04 g/t Au (Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc.,
180.0
Total Gold Production Annual Report 2000), indicate that porphyry Cu-Au deposits
160.0
Porphyry Deposits can contain major Au as well as Cu resources. In compari-
140.0
son, the Kemess South deposit in British Columbia con-
120.0
tained a geological resource of about 179 Mt grading 0.23%
100.0
Cu and 0.67 g/t Au prior to mining (Appendix 1 (Canada)).
80.0 Porphyry Au deposits contain 0.8 to 2.0 g/t Au in deposits
60.0 that range in size from about 30 to greater than 200 Mt of ore
40.0

20.0 10.0

10
Cu

0,
0.0

00
Cu-Mo To ngkuangy u
1885 1895 1905 1915 1925 1935 1945 1955 1965 1975 1985 1995

0,
00
Cu-Au

0
Island
FIGURE 3. Canadian production of copper (A) and gold (B) between 1885

t
Au Copper Malanjkhand

and 2000. Data are from Natural Resources Canada and Statistics Canada. Mo La E scondid a
Sn Butte
G rasberg
1.0 A fto n
Los Bronces - R io Blanco
Nova Scotia. Prior to production from East Kemptville, the El Te niente
Cu (%)

Chuquicamat a
only significant production of Sn was from the Sullivan sed- B ingha m
Highland Va lle y C oppe r
imentary exhalative (SEDEX) Pb-Zn-Ag deposit, which pro- McLeod L ake Oy u Tolgo i
Pebble Copper
duced about 10,000 t Sn from 1941 to 1985 (BC MINFILE: Tr oilu s
G ranisle
Kemess Nort h
0.1 Brenda Mount M illigan
http://www.em.gov.bc.ca/Mining/Geolsurv/Minfile). G asp é C opper
Kemess
Minor metals present in significant amounts in some E ast
Kemptville Coppi n G ap
Sout h

Canadian porphyry deposits include Re, In, and PGE.

10
,0
1,

00
10

00
During its operations from 1971 to 1995, the Island Copper
10

,0
0,

0,
10

00
,0

00
00

00

00

t
0
porphyry Cu-Mo deposit produced about 28 t Re (Perelló et
t

t
0.01
1 10 100 1000 10,000 100,000
al., 1995). The Mount Pleasant porphyry Sn-polymetallic Tonnage (106t)
deposits contain more than 600 t In (Sinclair et al., 2006).
FIGURE 4. Cu grades versus tonnage for Canadian and foreign porphyry
Some porphyry Cu-Au deposits contain significant amounts deposits (modified from Kirkham and Sinclair, 1995). Diagonal lines indi-
of PGE; the Afton deposit, for example, has a measured and cate tonnes of contained Cu.
indicated resource of 68.7 Mt grading 1.1% Cu, 0.9 g/t Au,
2.6 g/t Ag, and 0.1 g/t Pd (Bradbrook, 2006). 1.0
Boss Tyrnyau z M ount
10
,0
E mmons 00
M ountai n Tr out Glacier ,0
Quest a 00
L ake Gulch t
Grade and Tonnage M ount

Adanac C limax
Henderso n
Pleasan t
Porphyry deposits are large and typically contain hun- 0.10  E ndako Quart z H ill
Casino
dreds of millions of tonnes of ore, although they range in size Setting Net L ake
Berg Bingha m
Buckingha m
McLeod L ake  El Te niente
from tens of millions to billions of tonnes; grades for the dif- Xingluoken g 
Mo (%)

La E scondida C huquicamat a
ferent metals vary considerably but generally average less Pebbl e C oppe r
0.01 Cerro Colorado (Panama)
than 1% (Appendix 1 (Canada) and Appendix 2 (World)). Canane a
1,
In porphyry Cu deposits, Cu grades range from 0.2% to Brenda
Malanjkhan d
00
0,
00
0
more than 1% (Fig. 4); Mo content ranges from approxi- Cu
t
Island
0.001
mately 0.005 to about 0.03% (Fig. 5); and Au contents range Cu-Mo C oppe r
Cu-Au
from 0.004 to 0.35 g/t (Fig. 6). Ag content ranges from 0.2 Au
10
0,
00
10
to 5 g/t. Re is also a significant byproduct from some por- Mo
W-Mo
10
00
t
,0
0 0
t
0
t

phyry Cu deposits; at Island Copper, for example, Re was 0.0001

1 10 100 1000 10,000 100,000
extracted from molybdenite concentrates that contained as Tonnage (106t)
much as 1200 ppm Re (unpublished data). Some Au-rich
FIGURE 5. Mo grades versus tonnage for Canadian and foreign porphyry
porphyry Cu deposits have relatively high contents of Pt- deposits (modified from Kirkham and Sinclair, 1995). Diagonal lines indi-
group elements (PGE) (Mutschler and Mooney, 1993; cate tonnes of contained Mo.
Tarkian and Stribrny, 1999).
226
 Porphyry Deposits

10.0 1. 8
Porgera Cu
Sulphurets
(Snowfield zone) Cu-Mo Cu
Ladolam (Lihir) Cu-Au 1. 6 Lobo
Cu-Mo
San Filipe Kori Lobo Ok Te di
Kollo Au Cu-Au
Grouse Haile Troilus
Creek Lepanto 1. 4 M art e Au
Far Southeast
Moss Tr oilus
1.0 Lake Refugio Grasberg Lepant o F ar S outheast
Ok Tedi
Pothook Bajo de la Alumbrera 1. 2 Mana g C oppe r
Au (g/t)

(Afton district) Panguna Canyon

Big Onion Oyu Tolgoi

Au (g/t)
(Afton district) Pebble Copper
1. 0 La R eyn a G rasberg
Bell Bingham

10
Lorraine Prosperity (Fish Creek)

,0
Copper Refugi o

00
Kaputusan Dexing

t
Kemess Schaft Creek 0. 8 K emess Taseko Afto n
0.1 South Kemess Nort h
North K emess
McLeod Cerro Colorado Batu Hija u
Island (Panama) S out h
Lake Copper 0. 6 Goonumbla
Sipalay Oy u Tolgoi
M ount Sin Quyen
Gambier Island Milliga n Island C oppe r
Galor e C reek

10
Huckleberry 0. 4 Prosperity

00
10
S ulphurets(Kerr) Candelari a
10

t
(Fis h L ake)
1

t
B ingha m
t
t

0.01 Sa r C h esmeh
1 10 100 1000 10,000 100,000 0. 2 Pebble Malanjkhan d
McLeod L ake
C oppe r
Tonnage (106 t)
0. 0
FIGURE 6. Au grades versus tonnage for Canadian and foreign porphyry 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6
deposits (modified from Kirkham and Sinclair, 1995). Diagonal lines indi- Cu (%)
cate tonnes of contained Au.
FIGURE 7. Au versus Cu grades in Canadian and foreign porphyry deposits
(modified from Kirkham and Sinclair, 1995).
(Fig. 6). At the Troilus deposit, Quebec, production and
reserves to the end of 2002 totalled 71 Mt grading 0.93 g/t 0.25

Au and 0.1% Cu (Appendix 1 (Canada)). C limax

Cu
Porphyry Mo deposits are divided herein into two sub- Cu-Mo
Cu-Au
types; Climax-type and Endako-type, which correspond gen- 0.20
Au
P ine Grov e Mo
erally to Sillitoe's (1980) classification of rift-related and Glacier Gulc h
Boss M ountai n
subduction-related porphyry Mo deposits. Climax-type Henderson
0.15
deposits are large and rich, as exemplified by the Climax and Quest a
Mo (%)

Quart z H ill
Henderson deposits in Colorado, with resources of 907 Mt C opaquir e
Thompson
grading 0.24% Mo and 727 Mt grading 0.17% Mo respec- Creek C oppin Ga p
0.10 Cumobabi
tively. These deposits represent one end of a spectrum of Malala Pebble C oppe r
Mo-bearing deposits, many of which have lower Mo grades E ndako
Buckingha m Moco a Ber g Paramillos Su r
and/or tonnages (Fig. 5). The opposite end of the spectrum in H ighmont McLeod
P ashap
0.05 L ake
terms of grade is represented by the Endako deposit, for Brenda
Mart e
Casino Twin B ingha m
C ollahuasi
Ta urus Butte s
which combined production and reserves to the end of 2002 Lobo Sa r C h esmeh
El Salvador
La E scondida

totalled 341 Mt with an average grade of 0.066% Mo Cerro C olorad o

(Panama)
0.00
(Appendix 1 (Canada)). The dividing line between rift- 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8
related (Climax-type) and subduction-related (Endako-type) Cu (%)
deposits is 0.15% Mo (Sillitoe, 1980), although some FIGURE 8. Mo versus Cu grades in Canadian and foreign porphyry deposits
Endako-type deposits may contain high-grade zones in (modified from Kirkham and Sinclair, 1995).
excess of 0.15% Mo (e.g. Glacier Gulch and Trout Lake,
British Columbia and Red Mountain, Yukon Territory). phyry W-Mo and W deposits, although more data are
Limited data are available for W and Sn grades in most por- required to substantiate such a relationship. These examples
phyry Mo deposits, but some, such as Climax, have pro- illustrate some of the difficulties in making sharp distinc-
duced significant amounts of W and Sn. tions between different porphyry deposit subtypes and one
Porphyry W and W-Mo deposits contain tens of millions reason for viewing porphyry deposits as a single large class
of tonnes to more than 100 Mt at grades of 0.1 to 0.3% W of deposits characterized by diverse metal contents with gra-
(Sinclair, 1995a); porphyry Sn deposits contain tens to hun- dational boundaries between metal subtypes.
dreds of millions of tonnes grading 0.2 to 0.5% Sn (Sillitoe Geological Attributes
et al., 1975; Sinclair, 1995b).
Temporal Distribution
Porphyry Ag deposits are not well represented; the large,
low-grade, vein-stockwork Real de Angeles deposit in Porphyry deposits range in age from Archean to Recent,
Mexico, with reserves of 85 Mt grading 75 g/t Ag, 1.0% Pb, although most are Jurassic or younger (Fig. 9). On a global
and 0.92% Zn (Pearson et al., 1988), is a possible example. basis, the peak periods for development of porphyry deposits
Cu and Mo contents indicate that a continuum exists are Jurassic, Cretaceous, Eocene, and Miocene in age. These
between porphyry Cu and porphyry Mo deposits (Fig. 8). ages also correspond to peak periods of porphyry mineral-
End-member deposits are abundant and important economi- ization in Canada, except for Miocene, of which there are no
cally but deposits with intermediate Cu and Mo contents significant deposits in Canada.
indicate that porphyry Cu deposits, with minor or no Mo, Porphyry-type deposits of Precambrian age are not as well
grade to porphyry Mo deposits with negligible Cu contents represented and, in some cases, their classification is con-
(Westra and Keith, 1981; Kirkham and Sinclair, 1995). A tentious. For example, Goodman et al. (2005) consider
continuum may also exist between porphyry Mo and por- Troilus to be an "orogenic" deposit related to metamorphism,
227
 W.D. Sinclair

180
x
160 Porphyry deposits
Cu +
140 World Deposits Cu-Mo
+ Cu-Au
120 Canadian Deposits x Au
Mo
Number of deposits

W-Mo
100
Sn
Sn-Ag
+
80 Ag x

60
Calc-alkaline volcanic arc
island / continental arc
40
Continental crust
20
Oceanic plate
0
us

ne

e
an

ne
Pa ous

M ne
am c

on ian

Ju ic

e
n

ev n

ic

e
n

Bimodal, basalt-rhyolite volcanism

en
oi

n
ia
ia

en
ria
ia

ss

ss
ro

ce
he

ce
e
ce
oz

on

rm
br

ic

oc
oc
ce

oc
lu

ia

ra
ife

io
io
Eo
rc

ov
er

Pe
Si

Tr

st
ta

lig
le

Pl
A

ot

rd

Felsic volcanism (leucogranites)

ei
re
D
C

O
Pr

ar
O

Pl
C
C

FIGURE 9. Age distribution of porphyry deposits (based on data from +

Kirkham and Dunne, 2000).
x
rather than a premetamorphic porphyry deposit as described
+
by Fraser (1993). In the Chibougamau district, Cu-Au vein
deposits in strongly foliated rocks have been considered to
be shear related (e.g. Archambault et al., 1984) but Pilote et
al. (1995) demonstrated that they are premetamorphic in ori- FIGURE 10. Schematic diagram showing the tectonic settings of porphyry
gin and likely related to the Clark Lake porphyry deposit. deposits (Kirkham and Sinclair, 1995).
Other examples of Precambrian porphyry-type deposits
include Aitik, Sweden (Wanhainen et al., 2003), Climax-type porphyry Mo deposits are typically associ-
Malanjkhand, India (Sikka and Nehru, 1997); Tongkuangyu, ated with anorogenic granites that have been emplaced in
China (Weixing and Dazhong, 1987); Boddington, Australia continental settings, particularly rift or extensional environ-
(Roth et al., 1991); Haib, Namibia (Minnitt, 1986); Setting ments (Fig. 10). The Climax and Henderson deposits, for
Net Lake, Ontario (Ayres et al., 1982), and McIntyre, example, are genetically related to small stocks connected at
Ontario (Mason and Melnyk, 1986). The Coppin Gap Cu- depth to a regional batholith emplaced during active exten-
Mo deposit in Australia, dated at approximately 3.3 Ga (de sion in the Rio Grande rift (Bookstrom, 1981; Carten et al.,
Laeter and Martyn, 1986; Williams and Collins, 1990), is the 1988b, 1993). Endako, on the other hand, is related to a com-
oldest known porphyry deposit in the world. posite batholith that formed in a continental subduction-
related environment (Whalen et al., 2001). Some porphyry
Continental Scale (Geotectonic Environment) Mo deposits, such as Kitsault and Glacier Gulch, occur in
Tectonic Setting areas of continental subduction that are underlain by slab
gaps or windows (Kirkham, 1998). Others appear to have
Porphyry deposits occur in a variety of tectonic settings.
formed during extension in areas adjacent to strike-slip faults
Porphyry Cu deposits typically occur in the root zones of
(e.g. northern Cordillera - Quartz Hill, Adanac, Casmo and
andesitic stratovolcanoes in subduction-related, continental-
Mount Haskins; Fig. 10). The Mount Pleasant W-Mo deposit
and island-arc settings (Mitchell and Garson, 1972; Sillitoe,
in southern New Brunswick is associated with F-rich granitic
1973, 1988a; Sillitoe and Bonham, 1984; Fig. 10). In south-
rocks that have intruded along the Gander-Avalon boundary
ern Arizona, porphyry Cu deposits are associated with
zone during a period of extension possibly related to crustal
granitic rocks emplaced in a continental setting, within or
delamination (Whalen et al., 1994, 1996). A few deposits,
along the margins of calderas that are now largely eroded
such as Questa, New Mexico, are associated with high-silica
(Lipman and Sawyer, 1985). Porphyry Cu-Au deposits, such
rhyolites and granites that formed in continental calderas
as those associated with Triassic and Lower Jurassic silica-
(Lipman, 1988). For most porphyry deposits, however, the
saturated, alkaline intrusions in British Columbia, formed in
depth of erosion is such that caldera settings are conjectural
an island-arc setting, although possibly during periods of
(e.g. Lipman, 1984).
extension. Grasberg and Porgera formed in a continental-
island-arc collisional zone during or immediately following Some porphyry Mo deposits, along with porphyry W-Mo
subduction (Richards and Kerrich, 1993; MacDonald and and porphyry Sn deposits, formed in areas of great continen-
Arnold, 1994). Porphyry Cu deposits in the Yulong belt of tal thickness related to collisional tectonic settings, although
Tibet are related to pull-apart basins in a large, post-subduc- the deposits generally postdate the collision event. Porphyry
tion strike-slip fault (Hou et al., 2003). Porphyry Au deposits Sn deposits in Bolivia, for example, are related to subvol-
of Tertiary age in the Maricunga belt in Chile appear to have canic intrusions that were emplaced in thick continental crust
formed in a continental-arc setting along strike to the north above a relatively shallow-dipping subduction zone (Sillitoe,
from major porphyry Cu deposits of the same general age 1976; Grant et al., 1980).
(Sillitoe, 1992, 1993b; Camus, 2002). Details of each setting and related controls on magma
generation, composition, and emplacement conceivably had

228
 Porphyry Deposits

FIGURE 11. Examples of intermineral dykes and breccias associated with

porphyry deposits. (A) Older porphyry with magnetite and quartz-mag-
netite veins and associated biotite and K-feldspar (potassic) alteration (1)
truncated by an intermineral porphyry dyke with a chilled margin (2); both
the older porphyry and the intermineral porphyry are cut by a bornite- and
chalcopyrite-bearing quartz vein (3). Granisle Cu deposit, Babine district,
British Columbia, GSC 2006-014. (B) Quartz-molybdenite veins in altered
porphyry (1) terminate at contact of intermineral dyke (2); a younger
quartz-molybdenite (3) vein cuts the altered porphyry, earlier veins and the
intermineral dyke. A late quartz-base metal vein (4) cuts all other features.
Kitsault Mo deposit, Alice Arm district, British Columbia, GSC 2006-013.
(C) Intermineral intrusive breccia with a partly digested chalcopyrite frag-
ment (1) and a chalcopyrite-bearing quartz vein fragment (2). The matrix
porphyry is cut by later chalcopyrite-bearing fractures and quartz veins (not
shown). Granisle Cu deposit, Babine district, British Columbia, GSC 2006-
015.

a major influence on the size, metal contents, and nature of to the West Fissure zone in northern Chile, was probably also
individual deposits. However, exceptions to typical settings, a control on the location of major magmatic and hydrother-
such as the Tribag and Jogran porphyry Cu-Mo deposits in mal centres, which might be localized in areas that are pull-
Ontario that apparently are related to a continental rift envi- apart structures at dilational bends. Porphyry Cu and Cu-Au
ronment (Kirkham, 1973; Norman and Sawkins, 1985), and deposits in the Babine district of British Columbia are asso-
the Malmbjerg porphyry Mo deposit in East Greenland, ciated with porphyritic intrusions emplaced within a zone of
which is related to the Iceland mantle plume (Schønwandt, extension related to the development of pull-apart basins sit-
1988; Brooks et al., 2004), indicate that individual porphyry uated between dextral strike-slip faults (McIntyre and
deposits can occur in diverse and unique settings. Villeneuve, 2001). In many districts, however, perhaps
because of intense alteration and multiple intrusions,
Regional Structures regional structural control is obscure.
In some cases, the distribution of porphyry deposits can
be related to regional structures. The Rio Grande rift system Deposit Scale
in the western United States, for example, is the locus for Geological Setting and Related Magmatic Rocks
porphyry Mo deposits (Bookstrom, 1981). The West Fissure Porphyry deposits occur in close association with por-
zone along strike of the Eocene porphyry Cu belt in northern phyritic epizonal and mesozonal intrusions. A close temporal
Chile, from El Salvador in the south to past Collahausi in the relationship between magmatic activity and hydrothermal
north, was active both during and following porphyry mineralization in porphyry deposits is indicated by the pres-
emplacement and hydrothermal activity (Baker and Guilbert, ence of intermineral intrusions and breccias that were
1987). Also within this belt, cross structures apparently con- emplaced between or during periods of mineralization (e.g.
trolled the distribution of individual deposits such as Kirkham, 1971; Fig. 11).
Quebrada Blanca, Collahausi and Escondida (Sillitoe, 1992;
The composition of intrusions associated with porphyry
Richards et al., 2001). The major Philippine strike-slip fault
deposits varies widely and appears to exert a fundamental
system in the northern part of the island arc system, similar

229
 W.D. Sinclair

100
Porphyry
phyre dykes are contemporaneous with felsic igneous rocks
molybdenum at Climax, Henderson, and other porphyry Mo deposits and
Porphyry copper granitoids
granites are likely part of a bimodal suite (Bookstrom, 1981;
10 Bookstrom et al., 1988). In addition to melting lower crustal
rocks, underplated or injected mafic magmas represented by
the lamprophyre dykes may have supplied some volatiles
Fe2O3 / FeO

such as CO2 and SO2 (Keith et al., 1993). At Bingham, Utah,

1
minette dykes that are coeval with ore-related monzonite
s represent mafic alkaline magmas that appear to have mixed
Magnetite serie
ries with the more felsic monzonitic magmas, transferring sub-
Ilmenite se
0.1 stantial amounts of sulphur, copper, and other metals to the
Cu felsic magma and hydrothermal fluids in the process (Keith
Cu-Mo Tin granites et al., 1997). Repeated injections of hot mafic melt into
Cu-Au
0.01 Mo (Climax-type)
colder felsic magmas also would have triggered periodic
Mo (Endako-type) eruptions and magmatic degassing resulting in extensive
W-Mo brecciation and mineralization of surrounding rocks (Hattori
Sn and Keith, 2001).
0.001
40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 Felsic intrusive rocks that are closely associated with
SiO2 (%) some porphyry deposits are characterized by distinct textural
FIGURE 12. SiO2-(Fe2O3/FeO) variation diagram for granitic rocks related
features such as comb-quartz layers (Fig. 13) and other uni-
to porphyry deposits of Cu, Cu-Mo, Cu-Au, Mo, W-Mo, and Sn (modified directional solidification textures (Shannon et al., 1982;
from Kirkham and Sinclair, 1995). The dividing line between the magnetite Kirkham and Sinclair, 1988). Comb-quartz layers occur in
and ilmenite series is from Ishihara (1981) and the field of tin granites is places along the margins and in the upper parts of small
from Lehmann (1990).
intrusions or cupolas. They generally range from less than
control on the metal content of the deposits (Fig. 12). one millimetre to several centimetres or more in thickness
Intrusive rocks associated with porphyry Cu-Au and por- and are separated by interlayers of fine-grained, porphyritic
phyry Au deposits tend to be low-silica (45-65 wt.% SiO2), aplite (Fig. 13A,B). Prismatic quartz crystals in the layers
mafic and relatively primitive in composition, ranging from are oriented roughly perpendicular to the planes of layering
calc-alkaline dioritic and granodioritic plutons to alkalic and appear to have grown on a crystallized aplitic substrate
monzonitic rocks (e.g. Richards, 1990; Ross et al., 1995; inward toward the centre of the intrusion (Fig. 13C). Closely
Snyder and Russell, 1995; Holliday et al., 2002; Wilson et related features include vein dykes and parting veins (Fig.
al., 2003; Cooke et al., 2004). Porphyry Cu and Cu-Mo 13D; Kirkham and Sinclair, 1988; Seedorf et al., 2005).
deposits are associated with intermediate to felsic, calc-alka- Comb-quartz layers are significant because individual layers
line intrusive rocks that range from granodiorite to granite in likely crystallized from pockets of exsolved magmatic-
composition (60-72 wt.% SiO2) (e.g. Kesler et al., 1975; hydrothermal fluid and the development of multiple layers
Titley and Beane, 1981). reflects a continuous supply of magmatic fluid from subja-
cent magma (Lowenstern and Sinclair, 1996). Small stocks
Porphyry deposits of Mo (Climax-type), W-Mo, W, and with abundant comb-quartz layers, therefore, represent con-
Sn, in comparison, are typically associated with felsic, high- duits for large volumes of degassed magmatic-hydrothermal
silica (72-77 wt.% SiO2) and, in many cases, strongly differ- fluids that are capable of producing large porphyry orebod-
entiated granitic plutons (Mutschler et al., 1981; White et al., ies. For example, at the Henderson Mo deposit, two of the
1981; Kooiman et al., 1986; Guan et al., 1988). Intrusions nine associated plutons are characterized by significantly
associated with Endako-type porphyry Mo deposits range greater textural variation, including well developed comb-
more widely in composition, from granodiorite to granite quartz layers (termed “brain rock”); these two plutons are
(65-77 wt.% SiO2, Fig. 12). They also typically have low responsible for about 80% of the Mo mineralization (Carten
fluorine contents (<0.1% F) compared to intrusions associ- et al., 1988a).
ated with Climax-type deposits (Mutschler et al., 1981) and
Endako-type deposits are distinguished as being fluorine- Morphology and Architecture
deficient or fluorine-poor (Theodore and Menzie, 1984;
The overall form of individual porphyry deposits is highly
Linnen et al., 1995; Selby et al., 2000).
varied and includes irregular, oval, solid, or "hollow" cylin-
Oxidation state of granitic rocks, reflected by accessory drical and inverted cup shapes (e.g. Sutherland Brown, 1969;
minerals such as magnetite, ilmenite, pyrite, pyrrhotite, and Lowell and Guilbert, 1970; James, 1971; McMillan and
anhydrite, also influences metal contents of related deposits Panteleyev, 1980). Orebodies may occur separately or over-
(Ishihara, 1981). For example, porphyry deposits of Cu, Cu- lap and, in some cases, are stacked one on top of the other
Mo, Cu-Au, Au, Mo (mainly Climax-type), and W are gen- (Wallace et al., 1968; White et al., 1981; Titley et al., 1986;
erally associated with oxidized, magnetite-series plutons, Carten et al., 1988a). Individual orebodies measure hundreds
whereas porphyry Sn and some Endako-type Mo deposits to thousands of metres in three dimensions. Orebodies are
are related to reduced, ilmenite-series plutons (Fig. 12). characteristically zoned, with barren cores and crudely con-
Small amounts of alkaline magmatic rocks associated centric metal zones that are surrounded by barren pyritic
with calc-alkaline intrusions may be significant for the for- halos with or without peripheral veins, skarns, replacement
mation of related porphyry deposits. For example, lampro- manto zones and epithermal precious-metal deposits (e.g.

230
 Porphyry Deposits

FIGURE 13. Examples of comb-quartz layers in felsic intrusions associated with porphyry deposits. (A) Comb-quartz layers containing molybdenite (Mlb)
separated by aplite interlayers; growth direction from the top to the bottom. Anticlimax Mo deposit, British Columbia, GSC 2006-018. (B) Multiple thin to
thick comb-quartz layers separated by aplite interlayers; growth direction of the quartz crystals in the layers was from the upper right to the bottom left.
Logtung W-Mo deposit, Yukon Territory, GSC 2006-003. (C) Photomicrograph of a comb-quartz layer in aplitic granite showing euhedral termination of
quartz crystals approximately perpendicular to the layer; the very fine-grained texture of the granite adjacent to the crystal faces resulted from pressure
quenching and consequent rapid cooling related to sudden (catastrophic) release of the fluid phase in which the quartz crystals were growing. North zone,
Mount Pleasant Sn deposit, New Brunswick, GSC 204152-T. (D) Contorted comb-quartz layers (growth direction towards the bottom of the photograph) cut
by a parting vein, which consists of quartz veinlets with numerous septa or partings of aplite; one of the quartz veinlets in the parting vein appears to be rooted
at the termination of a comb-quartz layer (arrow). Logtung W-Mo deposit, Yukon Territory, GSC 2006-006.

Einaudi, 1982; Sillitoe, 1988a,b; Jones, 1992). Complex, Mineralogy

irregular ore and alteration patterns are due, in part, to the The mineralogy of porphyry deposits is highly varied,
superposition and spatial separation of mineral and alteration although pyrite is typically the dominant sulphide mineral in
zones of different ages. porphyry Cu, Cu Mo, Cu Au, Au, and Ag deposits, reflecting
Associated Structures and Mineralization Styles the fact that these deposits are huge sulphur anomalies
(Hunt, 1991). In porphyry deposits of the more lithophile
At the scale of ore deposits, associated structures can elements, i.e. Sn, W, and Mo, the overall sulphur and sul-
result in a variety of mineralization styles, including veins, phide mineral contents are lower. Principal ore and associ-
vein sets, stockworks, fractures, 'crackled zones', and breccia ated minerals of the different porphyry deposit subtypes are
pipes (Fig. 14). In large, complex, economic porphyry as follows.
deposits, mineralized veins and fractures typically have a Porphyry Cu, Cu-Mo, and Cu-Mo-Au deposits: Principal
very high density. Orientations of mineralized structures can ore minerals are chalcopyrite, bornite, chalcocite, tennantite,
be related to local stress environments around the tops of enargite, other Cu sulphides and sulphosalts, molybdenite,
plutons or can reflect regional stress conditions (Rehrig and and electrum; associated minerals include pyrite, magnetite,
Heidrick, 1972; Heidrick and Titley, 1982; Linnen and quartz, biotite, K-feldspar, anhydrite, muscovite, clay miner-
Williams-Jones, 1987; Carten et al., 1988a). Where they are als, epidote and chlorite.
superimposed on each other in a large volume of rock, the
combination of individual mineralized structures results in Porphyry Cu-Au deposits: Principal ore minerals are chal-
higher grade zones and the characteristic large size of por- copyrite, bornite, chalcocite, tennantite, other Cu minerals,
phyry deposits. native Au, electrum, and tellurides; associated minerals
include pyrite, arsenopyrite, magnetite, quartz, biotite, K-

231
 W.D. Sinclair

FIGURE 14. Examples of different mineralization styles associated with porphyry deposits. (A) Bornite-bearing quartz veins cutting highly sericitized
Bethsaida granodiorite. Valley Cu deposit, Highland Valley district, British Columbia, GSC 2006-012. (B) Chalcopyrite- and bornite-rich quartz-apatite veins
and veinlets cutting biotite-feldspar porphyry. High-grade ore, Granisle Cu deposit, Babine district, British Columbia, GSC 2006-016. (C) Quartz-molyb-
denite stockwork in sericitized granodiorite porphyry; cross-cutting and offset relationships of molybdenite-bearing fractures and quartz veinlets indicate mul-
tiple stages of mineralization. Kitsault Mo deposit, Alice Arm district, British Columbia, GSC 2006-007. (D) Stockwork of wolframite-bearing fractures cut-
ting intensely altered breccia. Fire Tower zone, Mount Pleasant W-Mo deposit, New Brunswick, GSC 2006-005. (E) Mineralized breccia containing granite
clasts with wolframite-bearing fractures that are truncated at the margins of the clasts, indicating that the granite was mineralized prior to the incorporation
of the clasts in the breccia; wolframite (wf) also occurs as disseminated grains in breccia matrix. Fire Tower zone, Mount Pleasant W-Mo deposit, New
Brunswick, GSC 2006-004. (F) Chalcopyrite disseminated along foliation planes and in a crosscutting quartz vein in deformed biotite-rich mafic breccia.
Troilus Au deposit, Quebec, GSC 2006-010.

232
 Porphyry Deposits

FIGURE 15. Examples of different types of alteration associated with porphyry deposits. (A) Potassic K-feldspar (Kfs) alteration around mineralized quartz
veins in Bethsaida granodiorite. Valley Cu deposit, Highland Valley district, British Columbia, GSC 2006-017. (B) Potassic alteration of granodiorite por-
phyry consisting of pervasive pink K-feldspar and patches of fine-grained hydrothermal biotite (Bt) associated with quartz-molybdenite veinlets. Red
Mountain Mo deposit, Yukon Territory, GSC 2006-008. (C) Quartz-pyrite-chalcopyrite vein stockworks in feldspar porphyry heavily overprinted by sericitic
(phyllic) alteration. Bell Cu-Au deposit, Babine district, British Columbia, GSC 2006-011. (D) Stockwork of wolframite- and molybdenite-bearing fractures
with white selvages of quartz-topaz-fluorite-sericite alteration cutting chloritized granite. Fire Tower zone, Mount Pleasant W-Mo deposit, New Brunswick,
GSC 2006-009.

feldspar, anhydrite, epidote, chlorite, scapolite, albite, cal- chalcopyrite, sphalerite, franckeite, cylindrite, teallite,
cite, fluorite, and garnet. molybdenite, bismuthinite, other sulphides and sulphosalts,
Porphyry Au deposits: Principal ore minerals are native native Ag, and native Bi; associated minerals include pyrite,
Au and electrum; minor amounts of chalcopyrite, bornite, arsenopyrite, loellingite, quartz, K-feldspar, biotite, mus-
and molybdenite may also be present. Associated minerals covite, clay minerals, fluorite, and topaz.
include pyrite, magnetite, quartz, biotite, K-feldspar, mus- Porphyry Ag deposits: Principal ore minerals are freiber-
covite, clay minerals, epidote, and chlorite. gite, stephanite, acanthite, sphalerite, and galena; associated
Porphyry Mo deposits: Principal ore minerals are molyb- minerals include arsenopyrite, pyrrhotite, pyrite, adularia,
denite, scheelite, wolframite, cassiterite, bismuthinite, and quartz, fluorite, and calcite.
native bismuth; minor amounts of chalcopyrite may also be
present. Associated minerals include pyrite, magnetite, Alteration
quartz, K-feldspar, biotite, muscovite, clay minerals, fluo- Hydrothermal alteration is extensive and typically zoned
rite, and topaz. on a deposit scale (Lowell and Guilbert, 1970) as well as
Porphyry W-Mo deposits: Principal ore minerals are around individual veins and fractures (Fig. 15). In many por-
scheelite, wolframite, molybdenite, cassiterite, stannite, bis- phyry deposits, alteration zones on a deposit scale consist of
muthinite, and native bismuth; other minerals include pyrite, an inner potassic zone characterized by K-feldspar and/or
arsenopyrite, loellingite, quartz, K-feldspar, biotite, mus- biotite (± amphibole ± magnetite ± anhydrite; Fig. 15A,B)
covite, clay minerals, fluorite, and topaz. and an outer zone of propylitic alteration that consists of
Porphyry Sn and Sn-Ag deposits: Principal ore minerals quartz, chlorite, epidote, calcite and, locally, albite associ-
are cassiterite, tetrahedrite, argentite, stannite, wolframite, ated with pyrite. Zones of phyllic alteration (quartz + sericite
+ pyrite, Fig. 15C) and argillic alteration (quartz + illite +

233
 W.D. Sinclair

? ments, minerals such as pyrite, magnetite (± hematite), and

SHALLOW anhydrite are common, whereas pyrrhotite is present in more
advanced argillic reduced environments (Rowins, 2000). Fluorine-rich sys-
tems, such as those related to many porphyry Sn and W Mo
? deposits, and Climax-type porphyry Mo deposits, commonly
contain fluorine-bearing minerals as part of the alteration
assemblages. At Mount Pleasant, for example, potassic alter-
ation is rare and the principal alteration associated with the
3.0-1.5 km

Inter- sericitic
mediate W-Mo deposit consists of quartz, topaz, fluorite, and sericite
argillic (Fig. 15D), which is surrounded by propylitic alteration con-
ylitic

sisting of chlorite + sericite (Kooiman et al., 1986).

prop

Similarly, alteration in some low grade Sn deposits in

te
ilica

Australia (e.g. Ardlethan) grades out from a central zone of

K-s

quartz + topaz to zones of sericite and chlorite ± carbonate

(Scott, 1981). Siems (1989) suggested that lithium silicate
alteration (e.g. lithium-rich mica and tourmaline), which
DEEP accompanies Sn, W, and Mo in some granite-related
deposits, is analogous to potassic alteration in porphyry Cu
EARLY 1-2 Ma LATE and Mo deposits.
Phyllic alteration zones are not present in all porphyry
FIGURE 16. Schematic time-depth relations of principal alteration types in deposits. In many deposits in which they are present, how-
Au-rich porphyry Cu systems and other types of porphyry deposits (after ever, phyllic alteration is superimposed on earlier potassic
Sillitoe, 1993b).
alteration assemblages (Carson and Jambor, 1979). At
pyrite ± kaolinite ± smectite ± montmorillonite ± calcite) Chuquicamata in Chile, for example, a zone of intense phyl-
may be part of the zonal pattern between the potassic and lic alteration with associated pyrite that extends to depth in
propylitic zones, or can be irregular or tabular, younger the core of the deposit is superimposed on earlier potassic
zones superimposed on older alteration and sulphide assem- alteration and small amounts of associated Cu sulphides with
blages (e.g. Moyle et al., 1990; Sillitoe, 1993b). The spatial low Cu grades. This phyllic zone contains higher than aver-
and temporal relationships between different types of alter- age Cu grades and, in the weathered zone, oxidation of the
ation are shown schematically in Figure 16. pyrite produced acid leaching that resulted in an extensive
Economic sulphide zones are most closely associated with deep supergene-enriched Cu zone (Ossandón et al., 2001).
potassic alteration, as demonstrated by Carson and Jambor Advanced argillic (high sulphidation) and adularia-type
(1974) for several porphyry Cu and Cu Mo deposits. Sodic (low sulphidation) epithermal alteration zones with associ-
alteration (mainly as secondary albite) is associated with ated precious-metal deposits occur above or near several
potassic alteration in some porphyry Cu-Au deposits, such as porphyry Cu and Cu-Mo deposits (e.g. Far Southeast-
Copper Mountain and Ajax, British Columbia (Preto, 1972; Lepanto, Hedenquist et al., 1998). These alteration zones, in
Barr et al., 1976; Ross et al., 1995). Albitic alteration partly places, show a marked telescoping of older potassic and
overlaps potassic alteration and Cu on the north side of the younger epithermal alteration (Moyle et al., 1990; Sillitoe,
Ingerbelle deposit at Copper Mountain; at the Ajax deposit, 1990, 1993a,b; Setterfield et al., 1991; Vila and Sillitoe,
highest Cu grades occur near, but not in, the most intensely 1991; Eaton and Setterfield, 1993; Richards and Kerrich,
altered albitic rocks. Eaton and Setterfield (1993) indicated 1993). The advanced argillic assemblages include illite,
that the subeconomic Nasivi 3 porphyry Cu deposit in the quartz, alunite, natroalunite, pyrophyllite, diaspore, and high
centre of the shoshonitic Tavua caldera, adjacent to the pyrite content. Adularia assemblages, with quartz, sericite,
epithermal Emperor Au mine in Fiji, contains an albitic, Cu and clay minerals, have lower pyrite contents. Sillitoe
bearing core surrounded by peripheral propylitic alteration (1993a) suggested that advanced argillic or high-sulphida-
and overprinted by younger phyllic alteration. Sodic-calcic tion-type epithermal systems can occur in spatial association
alteration (oligoclase + quartz + sphene + apatite ± actinolite with porphyry Cu, Cu-Mo, Cu-Au, and Au deposits, but not
± epidote) has been documented in the deep root zones with porphyry Mo deposits. Adularia- or low-sulphidation-
beneath potassically altered porphyry Cu deposits at type epithermal systems probably form from more dilute ore
Yerington and Ann-Mason, Nevada (Carten, 1986; Dilles fluids and may or may not occur on the peripheries of por-
and Einaudi, 1992). phyry systems. Sillitoe (1993a) also suggested that base-
Alteration mineralogy is controlled in part by the compo- metal-rich epithermal deposits form from more concentrated
sition of the host rocks. In mafic host rocks with significant NaCl brines and, similar to porphyry deposits, are parts of
iron and magnesium, biotite (± minor hornblende) is the magmatic-hydrothermal systems.
dominant alteration mineral in the potassic alteration zone, Genetic and Exploration Models
whereas K-feldspar dominates in more felsic rocks. In car-
bonate-bearing host rocks, calc-silicate minerals such as gar- A generalized empirical model for porphyry deposits is
net and diopside are abundant. illustrated schematically in Figure 17, which shows a por-
phyry Cu deposit associated with a small subvolcanic por-
Alteration mineralogy is also controlled by the composi-
phyritic intrusion and surrounded by a more extensive pyritic
tion of the mineralizing system. In more oxidized environ-
zone. The larger scale of the hydrothermal system is
234
 Porphyry Deposits

strength of the overlying rocks, fracturing of these rocks

Porphyry intrusion
occurred, permitting rapid escape of hydrothermal fluids into
Breccia
newly created open space. A fundamental control on ore dep-
Volcanic rocks
osition was the pronounced adiabatic cooling of the ore flu-
Clastic sedimentary rocks
Carbonate-rich sedimentary rocks
ids due to their sudden expansion into the fracture and/or
Argillic alteration
breccia systems, thus the importance of structural control on
Pyritic zone
ore deposition in porphyry deposits. Aplitic and micro-
sinter Au, Ag (As, Hg)
graphic textures in granitic rocks associated with porphyry
deposits are the result of pressure-quench crystallization
related to the rapid escape of the ore fluids (Shannon et al.,
EPITHERMAL vein Pb, Zn, Au, Ag 1982; Kirkham and Sinclair, 1988).
breccia and/or vein Modification of the above orthomagmatic model is
Au, Ag (As, Hg)
"INTERMEDIATE" required for at least some, if not most, porphyry deposits, in
pyritic Au (Cu, Zn, Ag)
skarn Cu (Au, Mo, Ag)
view of studies by Shannon et al. (1982), Carten et al.
(1988a), Kirkham and Sinclair (1988), Shinohara et al.
PORPHYRY
vein Au, Ag
(1995) and Cloos (2002). These studies indicate that the
porphyry Cu (Au, Mo, Ag)
small porphyritic stocks associated with porphyry deposits
manto Pb, Zn, Ag, Au
were largely liquid until ore formation was essentially com-
distal Au (As, Sb, Hg) plete and were conduits for enormous volumes of ore-form-
ing fluids produced by degassing of large subjacent magma
FIGURE 17. Schematic diagram of a porphyry Cu system in the root zone of bodies. In the context of porphyry Mo deposits, Shinohara et
an andesitic stratovolcano showing mineral zonation and possible relation- al. (1995) examined various mechanisms of fluid transport,
ship to skarn, manto, "mesothermal" or "intermediate" precious-metal and
base-metal vein and replacement, and epithermal precious-metal deposits including gravitational ascent of bubbles in a static magma,
(Kirkham and Sinclair, 1995). and concluded that convection of the magma itself provided
the most favourable model for the transport of fluids to the
reflected by related, peripheral types of deposits, including
skarn Cu, replacement (manto) Zn, Pb, Ag, Au and various
types of base- and precious-metal veins and breccia-hosted Volcano
deposits.
Magmatic-Hydrothermal Model
The most applicable genetic model for porphyry deposits
is a magmatic-hydrothermal one, or variations thereupon, in
which the ore metals were derived from temporally and
genetically related intrusions. Large polyphase hydrothermal
systems developed within and above genetically related Comb-layered Orebody
intrusions and commonly interacted with meteoric fluids quartz and
aplite
(and possibly seawater) on their tops and peripheries. During
the waning stages of hydrothermal activity, the magmatic-
hydrothermal systems collapsed inward and were replaced
by waters of dominantly meteoric origin. Redistribution, and Bubble
possibly further concentration of metals, occurred in some separation
deposits during these waning stages (Brimhall, 1980;
Descending
Brimhall and Ghiorso, 1983). 5 - 10 km
degassed
Variations of the magmatic-hydrothermal model for por- magma
phyry deposits, commonly referred to as the "orthomag-
matic" model, have been presented by such authors as Ascending
Burnham (1967, 1979), Phillips (1973), and Whitney (1975, nondegassed
1984). These authors envisaged that felsic and intermediate magma
magmas were emplaced at high levels in the crust and under-
went border zone crystallization along the walls and roof of
the magma chamber. As a consequence of this crystalliza-
tion, supersaturation of volatile phases occurred within the Magma chamber
(volume >100 km3)
magma, resulting in separation of volatiles due to resurgent,
or second, boiling. Ore metals and many other components FIGURE 18. Schematic diagram of a convecting magma that is feeding a
were strongly partitioned into these volatile phases, which small subvolcanic intrusion below a porphyry deposit (modified from
became concentrated in the carapace of the magma chamber Shinohara et al., 1995). Fluid separation from the degassing magma occurs
(Christiansen et al., 1983; Candela and Holland, 1986; near the top of the magma column, forming pockets of magmatic-
hydrothermal fluid in which comb-quartz layers grow inward from intru-
Manning and Pichavant, 1988; Candela, 1989; Cline and sion margins. Mineralized vein and fracture stockworks form when the
Bodnar, 1991; Heinrich et al., 1992). When increasing fluid fluid pressure exceeds lithostatic pressure and tensile strength of the sur-
pressures exceeded lithostatic pressures and the tensile rounding rocks.

235
 W.D. Sinclair

site of deposit formation. This model is presented schemati- Source and Evolution of Ore-Forming Fluids
cally in Figure 18. According to this model, fluid-charged, The origin and evolution of metal-bearing fluids responsi-
nondegassed magma rises by convection from a deep magma ble for porphyry deposits are complex, depending on their
reservoir in a column that is about 300 m in diameter at the initial compositions and cooling paths. Although some of the
top. Fluid separation from the magma occurs at a shallow, metal in the deposits may be derived from upper crustal
subvolcanic depth, focusing volatiles near the top of the rocks by meteoric fluids (Sheets et al., 1996), wall rocks of
magma column and producing degassed magma that the intrusions and deposits are generally not considered to be
descends through the nondegassed magma because of its viable sources for the metals in porphyry deposits (Kirkham
lower volatile content and consequently greater density. and Sinclair, 1995). The bulk of the metal content of por-
Areas where ore-forming fluids accumulated in cupolas of phyry deposits appears to have been deposited from highly
intrusions associated with porphyry Mo and W-Mo deposits saline fluids (up to 60% NaCl equiv.) of magmatic derivation
are characterized by abundant comb-quartz layers (Shannon (Hedenquist and Lowenstern, 1994). In some cases, such
et al., 1982; Carten et al., 1988a; Kirkham and Sinclair, 1988; hypersaline fluids may have separated directly from felsic
Lowenstern and Sinclair, 1996). The occurrence of comb- magmas (e.g. Cline and Vanko, 1995; Ulrich et al., 1999,
quartz layers in intrusions associated with some porphyry Cu, 2001; Harris et al., 2003; Webster, 2004). In other cases, the
Cu-Au, and Au deposits, as well as porphyry Mo deposits most primitive fluids exsolved from felsic melts are of low
(Kirkham and Sinclair, 1988; Atkinson and Hunter, 2002; to moderate salinity, containing 2 to 12% NaCl equiv.
Kirwin, 2005), suggests that the Shinohara et al. (1995) (Redmond et al., 2004; Rusk et al., 2004). On ascending
model may be applicable to porphyry deposits in general. from their igneous source and undergoing decompression
Role of Mafic Magmas and cooling, such fluids commonly separate into a low-den-
sity vapour phase and a dense, hypersaline liquid. Although
Another modification to the orthomagmatic model vapour-rich phases can contain significant amounts of met-
involves mixing of mafic magmas with felsic to intermedi- als such as Cu and Au (Rusk et al., 2004), the bulk of the
ate, ore-related calc-alkaline magmas prior to the onset of metal content is partitioned into the hypersaline brines
mineralization. Hot mafic melt injected into colder felsic (Ulrich et al., 2001; Redmond et al., 2004).
magma can trigger vigorous convection leading to cata- Ore minerals may precipitate from the metalliferous fluids
strophic magmatic degassing and explosive venting in sub- in response to adiabatic expansion (decompression) and
volcanic plutons (Sparks et al., 1977), and extensive brec- fluid cooling, chemical effects of phase separation, interac-
ciation and mineralization of surrounding rocks (Hattori and tion with wall rocks, or mixing with meteoric water. In some
Keith, 2001). For example, Dietrich et al. (2000) proposed porphyry copper deposits, such as Bingham and Bajo de la
that magma mixing was responsible for the formation of the Alumbrera, sulphide deposition was primarily due to cooling
Bolivian porphyry tin deposits, which are associated with of metal-rich, saline brines below 400ºC (Ulrich et al., 2001;
small subvolcanic rhyodacite bodies. They suggested that Redmond et al., 2004). In other porphyry copper deposits,
influx of primitive melt into the lower levels of an upper such as Butte and El Salvador, interaction of the magmatic
crustal felsic magma system and subsequent mixing pro- fluid system with meteoric water had a significant impact on
duced hybrid, rhyodacitic melt and triggered volcanic activ- metal deposition (Gustafson and Hunt, 1975; Hemley and
ity. Consequent decompression of the felsic magma system Hunt, 1992). In tin-rich systems, acid neutralization of the
resulted in the release of Sn-W-B-As-bearing magmatic magmatic ore-bearing fluids by feldspar alteration to mus-
vapour phases from the felsic magma that were focused in covite-quartz ± topaz ± fluorite (phyllic alteration) or by
subvolcanic vents to form the deposits. mixing with meteoric water are effective mechanisms for
Mafic magmas may also contribute volatiles and metals to cassiterite deposition (Heinrich, 1990).
the ore-forming fluids. Carten et al. (1993) suggested that,
for high-grade porphyry Mo deposits, volatiles (F, Cl, S, Exploration Methods
CO2) released from underplated and injected saturated mafic Geological Methods
magmas were responsible for stripping metals from the over-
lying felsic magmas. At Bingham, Utah, mafic alkaline Several features of porphyry deposits conducive to explo-
dykes and volcanic rocks that are coeval with ore-related ration are related to their large size. Metal, mineral, and
monzonite contain minute magmatic sulphide globules 1 to alteration patterns tend to be large, concentric, and zoned,
500 µm in size and composed chiefly of pyrite, pyrrhotite thus yielding useful clues to areas with exploration potential.
and chalcopyrite (Keith et al., 1997). Mafic magmas repre- Large pyritic halos, for example, may be used to delineate
sented by these alkaline rocks appear to have mixed with the the extent of the deposits, and also the intensity and com-
more felsic monzonitic magmas prior to mineralization and plexity of the hydrothermal system. In weathered zones,
may have contributed more than half of the S and significant hypogene sulphide minerals are commonly absent due to
amounts of the Cu, Au, and PGE in the Bingham deposit oxidization and leaching but associated silicate and other
(Maughan et al., 2002). Halter et al. (2002) further suggested gangue minerals that remain may serve as guides to ore.
that sulphide melts may control Cu:Au ratios in porphyry Careful study and interpretation of leached cappings have
deposits by preconcentrating Cu and Au during the evolution also been used to differentiate between barren and mineral-
of the magmatic system before volatile saturation. ized deposits, some with major supergene enriched ores
Destabilization of the sulphide melts during the later exsolu- (Blanchard, 1968; Anderson, 1982; Perelló et al., 2001).
tion of chloride-rich volatiles would result in bulk transfer of On a regional scale, the presence of epizonal to mesozonal
metals and sulphur to hydrothermal ore-forming fluids. felsic to intermediate porphyritic intrusions, especially if

236
 Porphyry Deposits

accompanied by large pyritic alteration zones, indicate that Knowledge Gaps

the area could be prospective for porphyry deposits. One of the most fundamental problems in exploration for
Porphyry Cu and Cu-Mo deposits are relatively abundant in porphyry deposits is to identify factors that can distinguish
island- and continental-arc volcanic terranes; porphyry Mo the relatively few fertile igneous complexes from the many
and W-Mo deposits occur mainly in areas of continental that are not. Despite the close association of porphyry
crust characterized by extensional tectonic settings with deposits with intermediate to felsic intrusive rocks and gen-
bimodal mafic and felsic magmatism. For Climax-type por- eral agreement that their formation involves the separation of
phyry Mo deposits in particular, one of the key exploration metalliferous fluids from ore-related magmas, the processes
criteria is a tectonic setting that reflects a changeover from that form porphyry deposits are diverse and significant
compressional to extensional tectonics (Keith et al., 1993). knowledge gaps remain.
Geochemical Methods Role of Tectonic Setting
Porphyry deposits tend to have large geochemical disper- The view that porphyry Cu (±Mo±Au) deposits form in
sion halos and reconnaissance stream sediment and soil geo- subduction-related island arcs associated with converging
chemical surveys have been effective exploration tools in plates is overly simplistic (Richards, 2003). The large
many parts of the world. For deposits that are deeply buried Andean porphyry Cu systems formed during discrete periods
by post-mineralization rocks or sediments, detection of asso- of regional uplift, tectonic shortening, and crustal thickening
ciated geochemical anomalies may require the application of that have been attributed to increased convergence velocity
partial extraction techniques (e.g. Kelley et al., 2003). and convergence angle (Camus, 2002). Giant deposits such
Biogeochemical methods have also been developed for as Bingham and Grasberg, although ultimately related to
detecting porphyry deposits (Dunn et al., 1996; Dunn, 2000), plate convergence, are not located in areas of steady-state
particularly in arid regions (e.g. Chaffee, 1982). subduction and arc volcanism. Climax-type porphyry Mo
In most parts of Canada, interpretation of geochemical deposits occur in tectonic settings that are transitional
data must take into account the effects of glaciation, which between compressional and extensional tectonics (Keith et
can be complex. For example, in the Babine district of al., 1993). Changes or variations in tectonic setting such as
British Columbia, the use of geochemistry for exploration arc reversals, low-angle subduction, and slab window and
has been problematic because of the widespread surficial slab gap environments are other factors that must also be
cover, the variable distribution of glacial, glaciolacustrine, considered (e.g. Soloman, 1990; Kirkham, 1998).
and glaciofluvial sediments, and an incomplete understand-
ing of the glacial history of the region (Carter et al., 1995). Sources of Metals and Sulphur in Porphyry Deposits
However, Levson (2001) demonstrated that ice flow and Ore-related magmas can be generated in various ways,
related glacial dispersion were dominantly southeasterly, ranging from mantle melting to melting and/or assimilation
although they have been influenced locally by topographic of lower or upper crustal rocks, or a subducted plate.
control and by late-glacial, westerly ice flow, and that cop- Consequently, the metals in porphyry deposits may have
per anomalies in basal till can be traced northwesterly in the diverse origins. For example, although Cu, Au, and PGE are
up-ice direction to locate buried mineralization. likely derived primarily from mafic, mantle-derived magmas
(e.g. McInnes et al., 1999; Skewes et al., 2002), other sources
Geophysical Methods
for these metals may include subducted plates (Noll et al.,
The dispersed nature of sulphide distribution in porphyry 1996) and lower crustal rocks (e.g. Lang and Titley, 1998;
deposits is particularly amenable for the application of the Barra et al., 2002). There is general consensus that Mo, W,
induced polarization (IP) method, which was originally and Sn are derived from crustal rocks (Candela and Piccoli,
developed specifically for porphyry Cu exploration (Brant, 2005; Seedorf et al., 2005); however, it is debated whether
1966). Controlled source audio-frequency magnetotelluric the source regions need to be enriched in specific metals such
(CASMT) surveys have proven to be an extremely effective as Sn and W (e.g. Keqin and Jinchu, 1988) or whether mag-
technique for defining the horizontal limits and depth extent matic processes such as fractionation are more important
of porphyry systems (Corry et al., 1988). Magnetic surveys than the primary metal content of magmas (e.g. Lehmann,
can be used to outline porphyry Cu and Cu-Au deposits with 1982). The source of abundant sulphur in porphyry deposits
abundant hydrothermal magnetite, and pyrrhotite- and/or is problematic because of the relatively low solubility of sul-
magnetite-bearing skarn and hornfels zones around por- phur in felsic magmas compared to mafic magmas. To
phyry-related intrusive rocks. Conversely, some deposits are account for this "excess sulphur", Hattori and Keith (2001)
characterized by magnetic lows due to the destruction of have emphasized the role of mafic melt in supplying sulphur
magnetite in phyllic alteration zones. Gamma ray spectrom- to felsic magma and magmatic-hydrothermal fluid. Streck
etry surveys have been used to outline potassic alteration and Dilles (1998), on the other hand, have argued that
zones closely related to mineralized zones in the Mount hydrous magmas may contain abundant oxidized sulphur dis-
Milligan deposit in central British Columbia and the Casino solved as sulphate or anhydrite, and that porphyry ore fluids
deposit in west-central Yukon Territory (Shives et al., 2000). may be enriched in SO2 gas via the breakdown of anhydrite.
Recent developments in remote sensing have included the
application of hyperspectal imaging to outline hydrothermal Controls on Metal Ratios in Porphyry Deposits
alteration around porphyry deposits (e.g. Cudahy et al., Although there is a general relationship between magma
2001; Berger et al., 2003). composition and metal ratios, other factors are likely

237
 W.D. Sinclair

involved. For example, preconcentration of Cu and Au in Eocene calc-alkaline intrusions in the Babine district, Stikine
sulphide melts associated with mafic primitive magmas may terrane, have high potential for porphyry Cu-Au deposits and
exert a fundamental control on Cu:Au ratios in porphyry Cu Late Cretaceous to Eocene calc-alkaline intrusions in the
deposits (Keith et al., 1997; Halter et al., 2002). In contrast, Tatsa Ranges, Stikine Terrane are favourable for porphyry
porphyry Au deposits in the northern Cordillera are associ- Cu-Mo deposits. Mid-Cretaceous calc-alkaline intrusions of
ated with reduced, ilmenite-series granitic rocks in a conti- the Mayo plutonic suite in the North American terrane have
nental arc setting and have an affiliation toward porphyry W- potential for porphyry Au deposits (Hart et al., 2004). Areas
Mo rather than porphyry Cu systems (McMillan et al., 1995; with potential for porphyry Mo deposits include the Alice
Hart et al., 2004); the Au in these deposits is likely of crustal Arm district, Smithers area and the Tahtsa Ranges, where
origin and may have been concentrated by magmatic frac- deposits that are transitional between Climax- and Endako-
tionation under reducing conditions (Thompson et al., 1999). type deposits, such as Kitsault and Glacier Gulch, are asso-
In porphyry Sn and W deposits, metal ratios are affected by ciated with Late Cretaceous to Eocene intrusions. These
the relative concentrations of Cl and F in the ore-bearing areas may also have potential for low-grade, Endako-type
magmatic-hydrothermal fluids, which are in turn controlled deposits associated with Oligocene intrusions, comparable to
by fractional crystallization and the resulting chemistry of the Quartz Hill deposit in nearby Alaska (Wolfe, 1995), or
the residual melts from which the fluids have exsolved with Late Jurassic intrusions as at Endako. Porphyry Mo and
(Audétat et al., 2000). W-Mo deposits in northern British Columbia and southern
Yukon Territory are associated with intrusions that range
Relationship between Porphyry Deposits and Other Types from mid-Cretaceous to Eocene in age (Sinclair, 1995c).
of Intrusion-Related Hydrothermal Deposits, such as In the Canadian Appalachians, subduction-related mid-
Epithermal Deposits Devonian intrusions in New Brunswick and Quebec (Gaspé)
It is increasingly clear that high-sulphidation epithermal have potential for porphyry Cu and Cu-Mo deposits. Mid to
deposits may be part of porphyry systems (e.g. Hedenquist et Late Devonian granitic plutons that appear to have been
al., 1998; Heinrich et al., 2004). Intermediate-sulphidation emplaced in an extensional environment along the Gander-
deposits may be related to porphyry deposits, but do not Avalon boundary in southern New Brunswick have potential
show such close connections as high-sulphidation deposits, for associated porphyry deposits of W, Mo, and/or Sn, such
and many low-sulphidation precious metal deposits do not as at Sisson Brook and Mount Pleasant (Sinclair, 2005).
appear to be linked to porphyry deposits (Sillitoe and Although exploration for porphyry deposits in
Hedenquist, 2003). Precambrian terranes has been limited, large, low-grade,
porphyry-type deposits of Cu, Au, and Mo associated with
Critical Factors for the Formation of Giant Porphyry
Archean and Proterozoic intrusions have been recognized
Deposits
and the potential for porphyry deposits in Precambrian ter-
Giant-sized porphyry Cu deposits do not appear to have ranes is likely underexplored. Numerous porphyry-type
significantly different anatomical characteristics compared deposits occur in the Abitibi and Opatica greenstone belts,
to smaller deposits; the primary controls on deposit size are including one that is currently in production (Troilus). These
instead likely related to large-scale lithotectonic conditions, and other areas where felsic to intermediate, subvolcanic
the favourable criteria for which are not yet well defined plutons have intruded shallow marine or subaerial volcanic
(Clark, 1993). Some evidence suggests that magmas associ- and sedimentary rocks should be the most favourable areas
ated with the generation of giant porphyry Cu deposits were for exploration.
highly enriched in Cu, in which case only small amounts of
magma would have been required to produce large deposits Acknowledgements
(e.g. Core et al., 2006). In other cases, intrusions that are not The author has benefited greatly from discussions with
unusually enriched in Cu may have generated porphyry many colleagues over many years and from numerous
deposits by the efficient collection of Cu from large volumes informative visits to porphyry deposits. Much of the data
of magma (Skewes and Stern, 1995; Cloos, 2002). In the lat- used in this paper was taken from the porphyry and related
ter case, to produce a giant deposit would require significant deposits database compiled by Rod Kirkham and Kathryn
longevity of the ore-forming process and of the favourable Dunne for the GSC's World Minerals Geoscience Database
lithotectonic conditions necessary to sustain it. Project. Diagrams were prepared with the assistance of Beth
Hillary, Ingrid Kjarsgaard, and Kim Nguyen. Lesley
Areas of High Potential in Canada
Chorlton provided the generalized world geology database
Many parts of the Canadian Cordillera are favourable for from the World Minerals Geoscience Database Project. Rod
various types of porphyry deposits. Areas with some of the Kirkham and Bob Linnen reviewed the manuscript and pro-
highest potential for porphyry Cu-Au deposits are those vided many constructive suggestions.
underlain by Late Triassic to Early Jurassic alkaline volcanic
and intrusive rocks, which occur mainly in the Quesnel and References
Stikine terranes. Some of the more favourable areas include Anderson, J.A., 1982, Characteristics of leached capping and appraisal, in
the Afton and Cariboo districts, the Mt. Milligan area and the Titley, S.R., ed., Advances in Geology of the Porphyry Copper
Galore Creek area. In the Toodoggone region, calc-alkaline Deposits; Southwestern North America: University of Arizona Press,
intrusions of Late Triassic to Early Jurassic age are associ- Tucson, Arizona, p. 275-296.
Archambault, A., Guha, J., Tremblay, A., and Kanwar, R., 1984,
ated with the Kemess North and South porphyry Cu-Au Implications of the geomechanical interpretation of the Copper Rand
deposits and the potential for additional deposits is high. deposit on the Doré Lake shear belt, in Guha, J., and Chown, E.H., eds.,

238
 Porphyry Deposits

Chibougamau - Stratigraphy and Mineralization: Canadian Institute of J.F.H., Goldfarb, R.J., and Richards, J.R., eds., Economic Geology
Mining and Metallurgy, Special Volume 34, p. 300-318. 100th Anniversary Volume: Society of Economic Geologists, Littleton,
Atkinson, W.W., and Hunter, W., 2002, Comb quartz layers in the porphyry Colorado, p. 25-37.
copper deposit at Yerington, Nevada: Geological Society of America, Carson, D.J.T., and Jambor, J.L., 1974, Mineralogy, zonal relationships and
2002, Abstracts with Programs, p. 15. economic significance of hydrothermal alteration at porphyry copper
Audétat, A., Günther, D., and Heinrich, C.A., 2000, Magmatic-hydrother- deposits, Babine Lake area, British Columbia: Canadian Institute of
mal evolution in a fractionating granite: A microchemical study of the Mining and Metallurgy Bulletin, v. 76, p. 24.
Sn-W-F-mineralized Mole Granite (Australia): Geochimica et ——— 1979, The occurrence and significance of phyllic overprinting at
Cosmochimica Acta, v. 64, p. 3373-3393. porphyry copper-molybdenum deposits (abstract): Canadian Institute
Ayres, L.D., Averill, S.A., and Wolfe, W.J., 1982, An Archean molybdenite of Mining and Metallurgy, v. 72, p. 78.
occurrence of possible porphyry type at Setting Net Lake, northwestern Carten, R.B., 1986, Sodium-calcium metasomatism: chemical, temporal,
Ontario, Canada: Economic Geology, v. 77, p. 1105-1119. and spatial relationships at the Yerington, Nevada, porphyry copper
Baker, R.C., and Guilbert, J.M., 1987, Regional structural control of por- deposit: Economic Geology, v. 81, p. 1495-1519.
phyry copper deposits in northern Chile: Geological Society of Carten, R.B., Geraghty, E.P., and Walker, B.M., 1988a, Cyclic development
America, 1987, Abstracts with Programs, p. 578. of igneous features and their relationship to high-temperature
Barr, D.A., Fox, P.E., Northcote, K.E., and Preto, V.A., 1976, The alkaline hydrothermal features in the Henderson porphyry molybdenum
suite porphyry deposits: a summary, in Sutherland Brown, A., ed., deposit, Colorado: Economic Geology, v. 83, p. 266-296.
Porphyry Deposits of the Canadian Cordillera: Canadian Institute of Carten, R.B., Walker, B.M., Geraghty, E.P., and Gunow, A.J., 1988b,
Mining and Metallurgy, Special Volume 15, p. 359-367. Comparison of field-based studies of the Henderson porphyry molyb-
Barra, F., Ruiz, J., Ryan, M., and Titley, S.R., 2002, A Re-Os study of sul- denum deposit, Colorado with experimental and theoretical models of
fide minerals from the Bagdad porphyry Cu-Mo deposit, northern porphyry systems, in Taylor, R.P., and Strong, D.F., eds., Recent
Arizona, USA: Mineralium Deposita, v. 38, p. 585-596. Advances in the Geology of Granite-Related Mineral Deposits: The
Berger, B.R., King, T.V.V., Morath, L.C., and Phillips, J.D., 2003, Utility of Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Special Volume 39,
high-altitude infrared spectral data in mineral exploration: application p. 351-366.
to northern Patagonia Mountains, Arizona: Economic Geology, v. 98, Carten, R.B., White, W.H., and Stein, H.J., 1993, High-grade, granite-
p. 1003-1018. related molybdenum systems: classification and origin, in Kirkham,
Blanchard, R., 1968, Interpretation of Leached Outcrops: Nevada Bureau of R.V., Sinclair, W.D., Thorpe, R.I., and Duke, J.M., eds., Mineral
Mines, Bulletin 166, 196 p. Deposit Modeling: Geological Association of Canada, Special Paper
40, p. 521-554.
Bookstrom, A.A., 1981, Tectonic setting and generation of Rocky Mountain
porphyry molybdenum deposits, in Dickinson, W.D., and Payne, W.D., Carter, N.C., Dirom, G.E., and Ogryzlo, P.L., 1995, Porphyry copper-gold
eds., Relations of Tectonics to Ore Deposits in the Southern Cordillera: deposits, Babine Lake area, west-central British Columbia, in
Arizona Geological Society Digest, v. 14, p. 251-226. Schroeter, T.G., ed., Porphyry Deposits of the Northwestern Cordillera
of North America: Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and
Bookstrom, A.A., Carten, R.B., Shannon, J.R., and Smith, R.P., 1988,
Petroleum, Special Publication 46, p. 247-255.
Origins of bimodal leucogranite-lamprophyre suites, Climax and Red
Mountain porphyry molybdenum systems, Colorado: Petrologic and Chaffee, M.A., 1982, Geochemical prospecting techniques for porphyry
strontium isotope evidence: Colorado School of Mines Quarterly, v. 83, deposits, in Titley, S.R., ed., Advances in Geology of the Porphyry
p. 1-22. Copper Deposits; Southwestern North America: University of Arizona
Press, Tucson, Arizona, p. 297-307.
Bradbrook, C., 2006, Advancing the New Afton copper-gold project - world
class grades next to the Trans-Canada Highway: Roundup06, Chorlton, L.B., 2004, Generalized geology of the world: age and rock type
Association for Mineral Exploration BC, 2006, Abstract Volume, p. 38- domains, Geological Survey of Canada; http://gdr.nrcan.gc.ca/min-
39. res/data_e.php.
Brant, A.A., 1966, Geophysics in the exploration for Arizona porphyry Christiansen, E.H., Burt, D.M., Sheridan, M.F., and Wilson, R.T., 1983, The
deposits, in Titley, S.R., and Hicks, C.L., eds., Geology of the Porphyry petrogenesis of topaz rhyolites from the western United States:
Copper Deposits, Southwestern North America: University of Arizona Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, v. 83, p. 16-30.
Press, Tucson, Arizona, p. 87-110. Clark, A.H., 1993, Are outsize porphyry copper deposits either anatomically
Brimhall, G.H., Jr., 1980, Deep hypogene oxidation of porphyry copper or environmentally distinctive? in Whiting, B.H., Hodgson, C.J., and
potassium-silicate proto-ore at Butte, Montana: a theoretical evaluation Mason, R., eds., Giant Deposits: Society of Economic Geologists,
of the copper remobilization hypothesis: Economic Geology, v. 75, Special Publication 2, p. 213-284.
p. 384-409. Cline, J.S., and Bodnar, R.J., 1991, Can economic porphyry copper miner-
Brimhall, G.H., Jr., and Ghiorso, M.S., 1983, Origin and ore-forming con- alization be generated by a typical calc-alkaline melt?: Journal of
sequences of the advanced argillic alteration process in hypogene envi- Geophysical Research, v. 96, p. 8113-8126.
ronments by magmatic gas contamination of meteoric fluids: Economic Cline, J.S., and Vanko, D.A., 1995, Magmatically generated saline brines
Geology, v. 78, p. 73-90. related to molybdenum at Questa, New Mexico, USA, in Thompson,
Brooks, C.K., Tegner, C., Stein, H., and Thomassen, B., 2004, Re-Os and J.F.H., ed., Magmas, Fluids and Ore Deposits: Mineralogical
40Ar/39Ar ages of porphyry molybdenum deposits in the East Greenland Association of Canada, Short Course Volume 23, p. 153-174.
volcanic-rifted margin: Economic Geology, v. 99, p. 1215-1222. Cloos, M., 2002, Bubbling magma chambers, cupolas and porphyry copper
Burnham, C.W., 1967, Hydrothermal fluids at the magmatic stage, in deposits, in Ernst, G., ed., Frontiers in Geochemistry; Organic,
Barnes, H.L., ed., Geochemistry of Hydrothermal Ore Deposits: Holt, Solution, and Ore Deposit Geochemistry, International Book Series,
Rinehart and Winston Inc., New York, p. 34-76. v. 6, p. 191-217.
——— 1979, Magma and hydrothermal fluids, in Barnes, H.L., ed., Cooke, D.R., Wilson, A.J., and Davies, A.G.S., 2004, Characteristics and
Geochemistry of Hydrothermal Ore Deposits, 2nd edition: Wiley genesis of porphyry copper-gold deposits: 24 ct Au Workshop, 2004,
Interscience, New York, p. 71-136. CODES Special Publication 5, p. 17-34.
Camus, F., 2002, The Andean porphyry systems, in Cooke, D.R., and Core, D.P., Kesler, S.E., and Essene, E.J., 2006, Unusually Cu-rich magmas
Pongratz, J., eds., Giant Ore Deposits: Characteristics, Genesis and associated with giant porphyry copper deposits: Evidence from
Exploration: CODES Special Publication, v. 4, p. 5-21. Bingham, Utah: Geology, v. 34, p. 41-44.
Candela, P.A., 1989, Calculation of magmatic fluid contributions to por- Corry, C.E., Emer, D.F., and Zonge, K.L., 1988, Controlled source audio-
phyry-type ore systems: Predicting fluid inclusion chemistries: frequency magnetotelluric surveys of porphyry sulfide deposits and
Geochemical Journal, v. 23, p. 295-305. prospects in the cordillera of the United States: North American
Conference on Tectonic Control of Ore Deposits and the Vertical and
Candela, P.A., and Holland, H.D., 1986, A mass transfer model for copper
Horizontal Extent of Ore Systems, University of Missouri, Rolla, 1988,
and molybdenum in magmatic hydrothermal systems: the origin of por-
Proceedings Volume, p. 204-213.
phyry-type ore deposits: Economic Geology, v. 81, p. 1-19.
Cudahy, T.J., Wilson, J., Hewson, R., Linton, P., Harris, P., Sears, M.,
Candela, P.A., and Piccoli, P., 2005, Magmatic processes in the develop-
Okada, K., and Hackwell, J.A., 2001, Mapping porphyry-skarn alter-
ment of porphyry-type ore systems, in Hedenquist, J.W., Thompson,

239
 W.D. Sinclair

ation at Yerington, Nevada, using hyperspectral VNIR-SWIR-TIR Hemley, J.J., and Hunt, J.P., 1992, Hydrothermal ore-forming processes in
imaging data: Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium, 2001, the light of studies in rock-buffered systems: II. Some general geologic
p. 631-633. applications: Economic Geology, v. 87, p. 23-43.
de Laeter, J.R., and Martyn, J.E., 1986, Age of molybdenum-copper miner- Holliday, J.R., Wilson, A.J., Blevin, P.L., Tedder, I.J., Dunham, P.D., and
alization at Coppin Gap, Western Australia: Australian Journal of Earth Pitzner, M., 2002, Porphyry gold-copper mineralisation in the Cadia
Sciences, v. 33, p. 65-71. district, eastern Lachlan Fold Belt, New South Wales, and its relation-
Dietrich, A., Lehmann, B., and Wallianos, A., 2000, Bulk rock and melt ship to shoshonitic magmatism: Mineralium Deposita, v. 37, p. 100-
inclusion geochemistry of Bolivian tin porphyry systems: Economic 116.
Geology, v. 95, p. 313-326. Hou, Z., Ma, H., Khin, Z., Zhang, Y., Wang, M., Wang, Z., and Pan, G.,
Dilles, J.H., and Einaudi, M.T., 1992, Wall-rock alteration and hydrothermal 2003, The Himalayan Yulong porphyry copper belt; product of large-
flow paths about the Ann-Mason porphyry copper deposit, Nevada - A scale strike-slip faulting in eastern Tibet: Economic Geology, v. 98,
6-km vertical reconstruction: Economic Geology, v. 87, p. 1963-2001. p. 125-145.
Dunn, C.E., 2000, Pine bark biogeochemical signatures of the Endako Hunt, J.P., 1991, Porphyry copper deposits; in Hutchinson, R.W., and
molybdenum camp and surrounding areas, central British Columbia; Grauch, R.I., eds., Historical Perspectives of Genetic Concepts and
implications for mineral exploration and environmental baselines: Case Histories of Famous Discoveries: Economic Geology Monograph
Geological Society of America, 2000, Abstracts with Programs, p. 11-12. 8, p. 192-206.
Dunn, C.E., Balma, G.R., and Sibbick, S.J., 1996, Biogeochemical survey Ishihara, S., 1981, The granitoid series and mineralization, in Skinner, B.J.,
using Lodgepole Pine bark: Mount Milligan, central British Columbia ed., Economic Geology Seventy-fifth Anniversary Volume, 1905-1980:
(parts of NTS 93N/1 and 93O/4): Geological Survey of Canada, Open Economic Geology Publishing Co., p. 458-484.
File 3290, p. 113. James, A.H., 1971, Hypothetical diagrams of several porphyry copper
Eaton, P.C., and Setterfield, T.N., 1993, The relationship between epither- deposits: Economic Geology, v. 66, p. 43-47.
mal and porphyry hydrothermal systems within the Tavua Caldera, Fiji: Jones, B.K., 1992, Application of metal zoning to gold exploration in por-
Economic Geology, v. 88, p. 1053-1083. phyry copper systems: Journal of Geochemical Exploration, v. 43,
Einaudi, M.T., 1982, Description of skarns associated with porphyry copper p. 127-155.
plutons, in Titley, S.R., ed., Advances in Geology of the Porphyry Keith, J.D., Christiansen, E.H., and Carten, R.B., 1993, The genesis of giant
Copper Deposits: University of Arizona Press, Tuscon, p. 139-183. porphyry molybdenum deposits, in Whiting, B.H., Hodgson, C.J., and
Fraser, R.J., 1993, The Lac Troilus gold-copper deposit, northwestern Mason, R., eds., Giant Ore Deposits: The Society of Economic
Quebec: a possible Archean porphyry system: Economic Geology, Geologists, Special Publication Number 2, p. 285-317.
v. 88, p. 1685-1699. Keith, J.D., Whitney, J.A., Hattori, K., Ballantyne, G.H., Christiansen, E.H.,
Goodman, S., Williams-Jones, A.E., and Carles, P., 2005, Structural controls Barr, D.L., Cannan, T.M., and Hook, C.J., 1997, The role of magmatic
on the Archean Troilus gold-copper deposit, Quebec, Canada: sulphides and mafic alkaline magmas in the Bingham and Tintic min-
Economic Geology, v. 100, p. 577-582. ing districts, Utah: Journal of Petrology, v. 38, p. 1679-1690.
Grant, J.N., Halls, C., Sheppard, S.M.F., and Avila, W., 1980, Evolution of Kelley, D.L., Hall, G.E.M., Closs, G.L., Hamilton, I.C., and McEwen, R.M.,
the porphyry tin deposits of Bolivia: Mining Geology Special Issue, 2003, The use of partial extraction geochemistry of copper exploration
v. 8, p. 151-173. in northern Chile: Geochemistry - Exploration, Environment, Analysis,
Guan, X., Shou, Y., Xiao, J., Lian, S., and Li, J., 1988, A new type of tin v. 3, p. 85-104.
deposit - the Yinyan porphyry tin deposit in China, in Hutchison, C.S., Keqin, X., and Jinchu, Z., 1988, Time-space distribution of tin/tungsten
ed., Geology of Tin Deposits in Asia and the Pacific: Springer Verlag, deposits in South China and controlling factors of mineralization, in
Berlin, New York, p. 487-494. Hutshison, C.S., ed., Geology of Tin Deposits in Asia and the Pacific:
Gustafson, L.B., and Hunt, J.P., 1975, The porphyry copper deposit at El Springer-Verlag, New York, p. 265-277.
Salvador, Chile: Economic Geology, v. 70, p. 857-912. Kesler, S.E., Jones, L.M., and Walker, R.L., 1975, Intrusive rocks associated
Halter, W.E., Pettke, T., and Heinrich, C.A., 2002, The origin of Cu/Au with porphyry copper mineralization in island arc areas: Economic
ratios in porphyry-type deposits: Science, v. 296, p. 1844-1846. Geology, v. 70, p. 515-526.
Harris, A.C., Kamenetsky, V.S., White, N.C., van Achterbergh, E., and Kesler, S.E., Chryssoulis, S.L., and Simon, G., 2002, Gold in porphyry cop-
Ryan, C.G., 2003, Melt inclusions in veins: Linking magmas and por- per deposits: its abundance and fate: Ore Geology Reviews, v. 21,
phyry Cu deposits: Science, v. 302, p. 2109-2111. p. 103-124.
Hart, C.J.R., Goldfarb, R.J., Lewis, L.L., and Mair, J.L., 2004, The northern Kirkham, R.V., 1971, Intermineral intrusions and their bearing on the origin
Cordilleran mid-Cretaceous Plutonic Province: ilmenite/magnetite- of porphyry copper and molybdenum deposits: Economic Geology,
series granitoids and intrusion-related mineralization: Resource v. 66, p. 1244-1250.
Geology, v. 54, p. 253-280. ——— 1972, Porphyry deposits, in Blackadar, R.G., ed., Report of
Hattori, K., and Keith, J.D., 2001, Contribution of mafic melt to porphyry Activities Part B, November 1971 to March 1972: Geological Survey
copper mineralization: evidence from Mount Pinatubo, Philippines, and of Canada, Paper 72-1b, p. 62-64.
Bingham Canyon, Utah, USA: Mineralium Deposita, v. 36, p. 799-806. ——— 1973, Tectonism, volcanism and copper deposits, in Volcanism and
Hedenquist, J.W., and Lowenstern, J.B., 1994, The role of magmas in the Volcanic Rocks: Geological Survey of Canada, Open File 164, p. 129-151.
formation of hydrothermal ore deposits: Nature, v. 370, p. 519-527. ——— 1998, Tectonic and structural features of arc deposits, in Lefebure,
Hedenquist, J.W., Arribas, A., Jr., and Reynolds, T.J., 1998, Evolution of an D.V., co-ordinator, ed., Metallogeny of Volcanic Arcs: British
intrusion-centered hydrothermal system; Far Southeast-Lepanto por- Columbia Geological Survey, Short Course Notes, Open File 1998-8,
phyry and epithermal Cu-Au deposits, Philippines: Economic Geology, Section B, p. 44.
v. 93, p. 373-404. Kirkham, R.V., and Dunne, K.P.E., 2000, World distribution of porphyry,
Heidrick, T.L., and Titley, S.R., 1982, Fracture and dike patterns in porphyry-associated skarn, and bulk-tonnage epithermal deposits and
Laramide plutons and their structural and tectonic implication: occurrences: Geological Survey of Canada, Open File 3792a, 26 p.
American Southwest, in Titley, S.R., ed., Advances in Geology of the Kirkham, R.V., and Sinclair, W.D., 1988, Comb quartz layers in felsic intru-
Porphyry Copper Deposits, Southwestern North America: University of sions and their relationship to the origin of porphyry deposits, in Taylor,
Arizona Press, Tucson, Arizona, p. 73-91. R.P., and Strong, D.F., eds., Recent Advances in the Geology of
Heinrich, C.A., 1990, The chemistry of hydrothermal tin (-tungsten) ore Granite-Related Mineral Deposits: The Canadian Institute of Mining
deposition: Economic Geology, v. 85, p. 457-481. and Metallurgy, Special Volume 39, p. 50-71.
Heinrich, C.A., Ryan, C.G., Mernach, T.P., and Eadington, P.J., 1992, ——— 1995, Porphyry copper, gold, molybdenum, tungsten, tin, silver, in
Segregation of ore metals between magmatic brine and vapor: A fluid Eckstrand, O.R., Sinclair, W.D., and Thorpe, R.I., eds., Geology of
inclusion study using PIXE microanalysis: Economic Geology, v. 87, Canadian Mineral Deposit Types: Geological Survey of Canada,
p. 1566-1583. Geology of Canada, no. 8, p. 421-446.
Heinrich, C.A., Dreisner, T., Stefánsson, A., and Seward, T.M., 2004, Kirwin, D.J., 2005, Unidirectional solidification textures associated with
Magmatic vapor contraction and the transport of gold form the porphyry intrusion-related Mongolian mineral deposits, in Seltmann, R., Gerel,
environment to epithermal ore deposits: Geology, v. 32, p. 761-764. O., and Kirwin, D.J., eds., Geodynamics and Metallogeny of Mongolia

240
 Porphyry Deposits

with a Special Emphasis on Copper and Gold Deposits: International Deposits of the Northwestern Cordillera of North America: Canadian
Association on the Genesis of Ore Deposits, Guidebook Series 11, Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Special Volume 46, p. 40-57.
CERCAMS/NHM London, p. 63-84. Minnitt, R.C.A., 1986, Porphyry copper mineralization, Haib River,
Kooiman, G.J.A., McLeod, M.J., and Sinclair, W.D., 1986, Porphyry tung- Southwest Africa, Namibia, in Anhaeusser, C.R., and Maske, S., eds.,
sten-molybdenum orebodies, polymetallic veins and replacement bod- Mineral Deposits of Southern Africa: The Geological Society of South
ies, and tin-bearing greisen zones in the Fire Tower Zone, Mount Africa, v. II, p. 1567-1585.
Pleasant, New Brunswick: Economic Geology, v. 81, p. 1356-1373. Mitchell, A.H., and Garson, M.S., 1972, Relationship of porphyry copper
Lang, J.R., and Titley, S.R., 1998, Isotopic and geochemical characteristics and circum-Pacific tin deposits to palaeo-Benioff zones: Transactions
of Laramide magmatic systems in Arizona and implications for the gen- of the Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, v. 81, p. B10-25.
esis of porphyry copper deposits: Economic Geology, v. 93, p. 138-170. Moyle, A.J., Doyle, B.J., Hoogvliet, H., and Ware, A.R., 1990, Ladolam
Lehmann, B., 1982, Metallogeny of tin: magmatic differentiation versus gold deposit, Lihir Island, in Hughes, F.E., ed., Geology of the Mineral
geochemical heritage: Economic Geology, v. 77, p. 50-59. Deposits of Australia and Papua New Guinea: The Australasian
——— 1990, Metallogeny of Tin: Lecture Notes in Earth Sciences: Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Melbourne, p. 1793-1805.
Springer Verlag, Berlin, 211 p. Mutschler, F.E., and Mooney, T.C., 1993, Precious-metal deposits related to
Levson, V.M., 2001, Quaternary geology of the Babine porphyry copper alkaline igneous rocks- provisional classification, grade-tonnage data
district: Implications for geochemical exploration: Canadian Journal of and exploration frontiers, in Kirkham, R.V., Sinclair, W.D., Thorpe,
Earth Sciences, v. 38, p. 733-749. R.I., and Duke, J.M., eds., Mineral Deposit Modeling: Geological
Linnen, R.L., and Williams-Jones, A.E., 1987, Tectonic control of quartz Association of Canada, Special Paper 4, p. 479-520.
vein orientations at the Trout Lake stockwork molybdenum deposit, Mutschler, F.E., Wright, E.G. Ludington, S., and Abbott, J.T., 1981, Granite
southeastern British Columbia: Implications for metallogeny in the molybdenite systems: Economic Geology, v. 76, p. 874-897.
Kootenay Arc: Economic Geology, v. 82, p. 1283-1293. Noll, P.D., Jr., Newsom, H.E., Leeman, W.P., and Ryan, J.G., 1996, The role
Linnen, R.L., Williams-Jones, A.E., Leitch, C.H.B., and Macauley, T.N., of hydrothermal fluids in the production of subduction zone magmas:
1995, Molybdenum mineralization in a fluorine-poor system: The Trout Evidence from siderophile and chalcophile trace elements and boron:
Lake stockwork deposit, southeastern British Columbia, in Schroeter, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, v. 60, p. 587-611.
T.G., ed., Porphyry Deposits of the Northwestern Cordillera of North Norman, D.I., and Sawkins, F.J., 1985, The Tribag breccia pipes:
America: Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum, Precambrian Cu-Mo deposits, Batchawana Bay, Ontario: Economic
Special Publication 46, p. 771-780. Geology, v. 80, p. 1593-1621.
Lipman, P.W., 1984, The roots of ash flow calderas in western North Ossandón, C.G., Fréraut, C.R., Gustafson, L.B., Lindsay, D.D., and Zentilli,
America: windows into the tops of granitic batholiths: Journal of M., 2001, Geology of the Chuquicamata mine: a progress report:
Geophysical Research, v. 89, p. 8801-8841. Economic Geology, v. 96, p. 249-270.
——— 1988, Evolution of silicic magma in the upper crust: the mid- Pearson, M.F., Clark, K.F., and Porter, E.W., 1988, Mineralogy, fluid char-
Tertiary Latir volcanic field and its cogenetic granitic batholith, north- acteristics, and silver distribution at Real de Angeles, Zacatecas,
ern New Mexico, U.S.A.: Transactions of the Royal Society of Mexico: Economic Geology, v. 83, p. 1737-1759.
Edinburgh; Earth Sciences, v. 79, p. 265-288. Perelló, J.A., Fleming, J.A., O’Kane, K.P., Burt, P.D., Clarke, G.A., Himes,
Lipman, P.W., and Sawyer, D.A., 1985, Mesozoic ash-flow caldera frag- M.D., and Reeves, A.T., 1995, Porphyry copper-gold-molybdenum
ments in southeastern Arizona and their relation to porphyry copper deposits in the Island Copper Cluster, northern Vancouver Island,
deposits: Geology, v. 13, p. 652-656. British Columbia, in Schroeter, T.G., ed., Porphyry Deposits of the
Lowell, J.D., and Guilbert, J.M., 1970, Lateral and vertical alteration-min- Northwestern Cordillera of North America: The Canadian Institute of
eralization zoning in porphyry ore deposits: Economic Geology, v. 65, Mining and Metallurgy, Special Volume 46, p. 214-238.
p. 373-408. Perelló, J., Cox, D., Garamjav, D., Sandorj, S., Schissel, D., Munkhbat, T.-U.,
Lowenstern, J.B., and Sinclair, W.D., 1996, Exsolved magmatic fluid and its and Oyun, G., 2001, Oyu Tolgoi, Mongolia: Siluro-Devonian porphyry
role in the formation of comb-layered quartz at the Cretaceous Logtung Cu-Au-(Mo) and high-sulfidation Cu mineralization with a Cretaceous
W-Mo deposit, Yukon Territory, Canada: Transactions of the Royal chalcocite blanket: Economic Geology, v. 96, p. 1407-1428.
Society of Edinburgh; Earth Sciences, v. 87, p. 291-303. Phillips, W.J., 1973, Mechanical effects of retrograde boiling and its proba-
MacDonald, G.D., and Arnold, L.C., 1994, Geological and geochemical ble importance in the formation of some porphyry ore deposits:
zoning of the Grasberg Igneous Complex, Irian Jaya, Indonesia: Journal Institute of Mining and Metallurgy Transactions, v. B82, p. 90-98.
of Geochemical Exploration, v. 50, p. 143-178. Pilote, P., Robert, F., Sinclair, W.D., Kirkham, R.V., and Daigneault, R.,
Manning, D.A.C., and Pichavant, M., 1988, Volatiles and their bearing on 1995, Porphyry-type mineralization in the Doré Lake Complex: Clark
the behaviour of metals in granitic systems, in Taylor, R.P., and Strong, Lake and Merrill Island areas, in Pilote, P., ed., Metallogenic Evolution
D.F., eds., Recent Advances in the Geology of Granite-Related Mineral and Geology of the Chibougamau Area - From Porphyry Cu-Au-Mo to
Deposits: The Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Special Mesothermal Lode Gold Deposits: Geological Survey of Canada,
Volume 39, p. 13-24. Precambrian ‘95 Field Trip Guidebook, Open File 3143, p. 65-86.
Mason, R., and Melnyk, N., 1986, The anatomy of an Archean gold system; Preto, V.A., 1972, Geology of Copper Mountain: British Columbia
the McIntyre-Hollinger Complex at Timmins, Ontario, Canada, in Department of Mines and Petroleum Resources, Bulletin 59, p. 87.
Macdonald, A.J., Downes, M., Pirie, J., and Chater, A.M., eds., Gold Redmond, P.B., Einaudi, M.T., Inan, E.E., Landtwing, M.R., and Heinrich,
‘86; An International Symposium on the Geology of Gold Deposits, C.A., 2004, Copper deposition by fluid cooling in intrusion-centered
Toronto, 1986, p. 40-55. systems: New insights from the Bingham porphyry ore deposit, Utah:
Maughan, D.T., Keith, J.D., Christiansen, E.H., Pulsipher, T., Hattori, K., Geology, v. 32, p. 217-220.
and Evans, N.J., 2002, Contributions from mafic alkaline magmas to Rehrig, W.A., and Heidrick, T.L., 1972, Regional fracturing in Laramide
the Bingham porphyry Cu-Au-Mo deposit, Utah, USA: Mineralium stocks of Arizona and its relationship to porphyry copper mineraliza-
Deposita, v. 37, p. 14-37. tion: Economic Geology, v. 67, p. 198-213.
McInnes, B.I.A., McBride, J.S., Evans, N.J., D.D., L., and Andrew, A.S., Richards, J.P., 1990, Petrology and geochemistry of alkalic intrusives at the
1999, Ore metal recycling in subduction zones: Science, v. 286, p. 512- Porgera gold deposit, Papua New Guinea: Journal of Geochemical
516. Exploration, v. 35, p. 141-200.
McIntyre, D.G., and Villeneuve, M.E., 2001, Geochronology of mid- ——— 2003, Tectono-magmatic precursors for porphyry Cu-(Mo-Au)
Cretaceous to Eocene magmatism, Babine porphyry copper district, deposit formation: Economic Geology, v. 98, p. 1515-1534.
central British Columbia: Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, v. 38, Richards, J.P., and Kerrich, R., 1993, The Porgera Gold Mine, Papua New
p. 639-655. Guinea: magmatic hydrothermal to epithermal evolution of an alkalic-
McMillan, W.J., and Panteleyev, A., 1980, Ore deposit models - 1. Porphyry type precious metal deposit: Economic Geology, v. 88, p. 1017-1052.
copper deposits: Geoscience Canada, v. 7, p. 52-63. Richards, J.P., Boyce, A.J., and Pringle, M.S., 2001, Geologic evolution of
McMillan, W.J., Thompson, J.F.H., Hart, C.J.R., and Johnston, S.T., 1995, the Escondida area, northern Chile: A model for spatial and temporal
Regional geological and tectonic setting of porphyry deposits in British localization of porphyry Cu mineralization: Economic Geology, v. 96,
Columbia and Yukon Territory, in Schroeter, T.G., ed., Porphyry p. 271-305.

241
 W.D. Sinclair

Ross, K.V., Godwin, C.I., Bond, L., and Dawson, K.M., 1995, Geology, Deposits of the Western United States, Symposium Proceedings:
alteration and mineralization of the Ajax East and Ajax West deposits, Geological Society of Nevada, p. 233- 257.
southern Iron Mask Batholith, Kamloops, British Columbia, in ——— 1990, Gold-rich porphyry copper deposits of the circum-Pacific
Schroeter, T.G., ed., Porphyry Deposits of the Northwestern Cordillera region - An updated overview: The Australasian Institute of Mining and
of North America: The Canadian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Metallurgy Pacific Rim 90 Congress, 1990, p. 8.
Special Volume 46, p. 565-580. ——— 1992, Gold and copper metallogeny of the central Andes - past,
Roth, E., Groves, D.E., Anderson, G., Daley, L., and Staley, R., 1991, present, and future exploration objectives: Economic Geology, v. 87,
Primary mineralization at the Boddington mine, Western Australia: An p. 2205-2216.
Archean porphyry Cu-Au-Mo deposit, in Ladeira, E.A., ed., Brazil ——— 1993a, Epithermal models: genetic types, geometrical controls and
Gold ‘91: The Economic Geology, Geochemistry and Genesis of Gold shallow features, in Kirkham, R.V., Sinclair, W.D., Thorpe, R.I., and
Deposits: p. 481-488. Duke, J.M., eds., Mineral Deposit Modeling: Geological Association of
Rowins, S.M., 2000, Reduced porphyry copper-gold deposits: a new varia- Canada, Special Paper 40, p. 403-417.
tion on an old theme: Geology, v. 28, p. 491-494. ——— 1993b, Gold-rich porphyry copper deposits: geological model and
Rusk, B.G., Reed, M.H., Dilles, J.H., Klemm, L.M., and Heinrich, C.A., exploration implications, in Kirkham, R.V., Sinclair, W.D., Thorpe,
2004, Compositions of magmatic hydrothermal fluids determined LA- R.I., and Duke, J.M., eds., Mineral Deposit Modeling: Geological
ICP-MS of fluid inclusions from the porphyry copper-molybdenum Association of Canada, Special Paper 40, p. 465-478.
deposit at Butte, MT: Chemical Geology, v. 210, p. 173-199. Sillitoe, R.H., and Bonham, H.F., Jr., 1984, Volcanic landforms and ore
Schønwandt, H.K., 1988, Geology and tectonic setting of cratonic porphyry deposits: Economic Geology, v. 79, p. 1286-1298.
molybdenum deposits in the North Atlantic region, in Boissonnas, J., Sillitoe, R.H., and Hedenquist, J.W., 2003, Linkages between volcanotec-
and Omenetto, P., eds., Mineral Deposits within the European tonic settings, ore-fluid compositions, and epithermal precious metal
Community: Society for Geology Applied to Mineral Deposits, Special deposits, in Simmons, S.F., and Graham, I., eds., Volcanic, Geothermal,
Publication No. 6, Springer-Verlag, Berlin-Heidelberg, p. 210-239. and Ore-Forming Fluids; Rulers and Witnesses of Processes within the
Scott, K.M., 1981, Wall-rock alteration in disseminated tin deposits, south- Earth: Economic Geology, Special Publication 10, p. 315-343.
eastern Australia: Proceedings of the Australasian Institute of Mining Sillitoe, R.H., Halls, C., and Grant, J.N., 1975, Porphyry tin deposits in
and Metallurgy, v. 280, p. 17-28. Bolivia: Economic Geology, v. 70, p. 913-927.
Seedorf, E., Dilles, J.D., Proffett, J.M., Jr., Einaudi, M.T., Zurcher, L., Sinclair, W.D., 1995a, Porphyry Sn, in Lefebure, D.V., and Ray, G.E., eds.,
Stavast, W.J.A., Johnson, D.A., and Barton, M.D., 2005, Porphyry Selected British Columbia Mineral Deposit Profiles, Volume 1 -
deposits: characteristics and origin of hypogene features, in Metallics and Coal: British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and
Hedenquist, J.W., Thompson, J.F.H., Goldfarb, R.J., and Richards, J.R., Petroleum Resources, Open File 1995-20, p. 97-99.
eds., Economic Geology 100th Anniversary Volume: Society of
——— 1995b, Porphyry W, in Lefebure, D.V., and Ray, G.E., eds., Selected
Economic Geologists, Littleton, Colorado, p. 251-298.
British Columbia Mineral Deposit Profiles, Volume 1 - Metallics and
Selby, D., Nesbitt, D.E., Muehlenbachs, K., and Prohaska, W., 2000, Coal: British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum
Hydrothermal alteration and fluid chemistry of the Endako porphyry Resources, v. Open File 1995-20, p. 101-104.
molybdenum deposit, British Columbia: Economic Geology, v. 95,
——— 1995c, Molybdenum, tungsten and tin deposits and associated gran-
p. 183-202.
itoid intrusions in the northern Canadian Cordillera and adjacent parts
Setterfield, T.N., Eaton, P.C., W.J., R., and Sparks, R.S.J., 1991, The Tavua of Alaska, in Schroeter, T.G., ed., Porphyry deposits of the
Caldera, Fiji: a complex shoshonitic caldera formed by concurrent Northwestern Cordillera of North America: The Canadian Institute of
faulting and downsagging: Journal of the Geological Society, v. 148, Mining and Metallurgy, Special Volume 46, p. 58-76.
p. 115-127.
——— 2005, Tin, tungsten, molybdenum and indium in New Brunswick,
Shannon, J.R., Walker, B.M., Carten, R.B., and Geraghty, E.P., 1982, in Merlini, S.A.A., ed., Exploration and Mining New Brunswick: New
Unidirectional solidification textures and their significance in deter- Brunswick Department of Natural Resources, Abstracts, Information
mining relative ages of intrusions at the Henderson mine, Colorado: Circular 2005-1, p. 91.
Geology, v. 19, p. 293-297.
Sinclair, W.D., Kooiman, G.J.A., Martin, D.A., and Kjarsgaard, I.M., 2006,
Sheets, R.W., Nesbitt, B.E., and Muehlenbachs, K., 1996, Meteoric water Geology, geochemistry and mineralogy of indium resources at Mount
component in magmatic fluids from porphyry copper mineralization, Pleasant, New Brunswick, Canada: Ore Geology Reviews, v. 28,
Babine Lake area, British Columbia: Geology, v. 24, p. 1091-1094. p. 123-145.
Shinohara, H., Kazahaya, K., and Lowenstern, J.B., 1995, Volatile transport Skewes, M.A., and Stern, C.R., 1995, The genesis of giant late Miocene to
in a convecting magma column: Implications for porphyry Mo miner- Pliocene copper deposits of central Chile in the context of Andean mag-
alization: Geology, v. 23, p. 1091-1094. matic and tectonic evolution: International Geology Review, v. 37,
Shives, R.B.K., Charbonneau, B.W., and Ford, K.L., 2000, The detection of p. 893-909.
potassic alteration by gamma-ray spectrometry; recognition of alter- Skewes, M.A., Arévalo, A., Floody, R., Zuñiga, P.H., and Stern, C.R., 2002,
ation related to mineralization: Geophysics, v. 65, p. 2001-2011. The giant El Teniente breccia deposit: Hypogene copper distribution
Siems, P.L., 1989, Lithium silicate alteration of tin granites: an analog of and emplacement, in Goldfarb, R.J., and Nielsen, R.L., eds., Integrated
potassium silicate alteration in porphyry copper and molybdenite Methods for Discovery: Global Exploration in the Twenty-First
deposits: The Geological Society of America, 1989, Abstracts with Century: Society of Economic Geologists, Special Publication 9,
Programs, p. 143. p. 299-332.
Sikka, D.G., and Nehru, C.E., 1997, Review of Precambrian porphyry Snyder, L.D., and Russell, J.K., 1995, Petrogenetic relationships and assim-
Cu±Mo±Au deposits with special reference to Malanjkhand porphyry ilation processes in the alkalic Iron Mask batholith, south-central
copper deposit, Madhya Pradesh, India: Journal of the Geological British Columbia, in Schroeter, T.G., ed., Porphyry Deposits of the
Society of India, v. 49, p. 239-288. Northwestern Cordillera of North America: The Canadian Institute of
Sillitoe, R.H., 1973, The tops and bottoms of porphyry copper deposits: Mining and Metallurgy, Special Volume 46, p. 593-608.
Economic Geology, v. 68, p. 700-815. Soloman, M., 1990, Subduction, arc reversal, and the origin of porphyry
——— 1976, Andean mineralization: a model for the metallogeny of con- copper-gold deposits in island arcs: Geology, v. 18, p. 630-633.
vergent plate margins, in Strong, D.F., ed., Metallogeny and Plate Sparks, S.J.R., Sigurdsson, H., and Wilson, L., 1977, Magma mixing: a
Tectonics: Geological Association of Canada, Special Paper 14, p. 59- mechanism for triggering acid explosive eruptions: Nature, v. 267,
100. p. 315-318.
——— 1980, Types of porphyry molybdenum deposits: Mining Magazine, Streck, M.J., and Dilles, J.H., 1998, Sulfur content of oxidized arc magmas
v. 142, p. 550-551, 553. as recorded in apatite from a porphyry copper batholith: Geology, v. 26,
——— 1988a, Ores in volcanoes: Seventh Quadrennial IAGOD p. 523-526.
Symposium, Stuttgart, 1988, Proceedings, p. 1-10. Sutherland Brown, A., 1969, Mineralization in British Columbia and the
——— 1988b, Gold and silver deposits in porphyry systems, in Schafer, copper and molybdenum deposits: Canadian Institute of Mining and
R.W., Cooper, J.J., and Vikre, P.G., eds., Bulk Mineable Precious Metal Metallurgy, v. 72, p. 1-15.

242
 Porphyry Deposits

Tarkian, M., and Stribrny, B., 1999, Platinum-group elements in porphyry Whalen, J.B., Jenner, G.A., Currie, K.L., Barr, S.A., Longstaffe, F.J., and
copper deposits: a reconnaissance study: Mineralogy and Petrology, Hegner, E., 1994, Geochemical and isotopic characteristics of grani-
v. 65, p. 161-183. toids of the Avalon Zone, southern New Brunswick: possible evidence
Theodore, T.G., and Menzie, W.D., 1984, Fluorine-deficient porphyry for repeated delamination events: The Journal of Geology, v. 102,
molybdenum deposits in the western North American Cordillera: Sixth p. 269-282.
Quadrennial IAGOD Symposium, 1984, Proceedings, p. 463-470. Whalen, J.B., Fyffe, L.R., Longstaffe, F.J., and Jenner, G.A., 1996, The posi-
Thompson, J.F.H., Sillitoe, R.H., Baker, T., Lang, J.R., and Mortenson, J.K., tion and nature of the Gander-Avalon boundary, southern New
1999, Intrusion-related gold deposits associated with tungsten-tin Brunswick, based on geochemical and isotopic data from granitoid
provinces: Mineralium Deposita, v. 34, p. 323-334. rocks: Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, v. 33, p. 129-139.
Titley, S.R., and Beane, R.E., 1981, Porphyry copper deposits, in Skinner, Whalen, J.B., Anderson, R.G., Struik, L.C., and Villeneuve, M.E., 2001,
B.J., ed., Economic Geology Seventy-fifth Anniversary Volume, 1905- Geochemistry and Nd isotopes of the François Lake plutonic suite,
1980: Economic Geology Publishing Co., p. 214-269. Endako batholith: host and progenitor to the Endako molybdenum
Titley, S.R., Thompson, R.C., Haynes, F.M., Manske, S.L., Robison, L.C., camp, central British Columbia: Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences,
and White, J.L., 1986, Evolution of fractures and alteration in the v. 38, p. 603-618.
Sierrita-Esperanza hydrothermal system, Pima County, Arizona: Wheeler, J.O., Hoffman, P.F., Card, K.D., Davidson, A., Sanford, B.V.,
Economic Geology, v. 81, p. 343-370. Okulitch, A.V., and Roest, W.R., 1996, Geological map of Canada:
Ulrich, T., Günther, D., and Heinrich, C.A., 1999, Gold concentrations of Geological Survey of Canada, Map 1860A, scale: 1:5 000 000.
magmatic brines and the metal budget of porphyry copper deposits: White, W.H., Bookstrom, A.A., Kamilli, R.J., Ganster, M.W., Smith, R.P.,
Nature, v. 399, p. 676-679. Ranta, D.E., and Steininger, R.C., 1981, Character and origin of
Ulrich, T., Günther, D., and Heinrich, C.A., 2001, The evolution of a por- Climax-type molybdenum deposits, in Skinner, B.J., ed., Economic
phyry Cu-Au deposit, based on LA-ICP-MS analysis of fluid inclu- Geology Seventy-Fifth Anniversary Volume, 1905-1980: Economic
sions: Bajo de la Alumbrera, Argentina: Economic Geology, v. 96, Geology Publishing Co., p. 270-316.
p. 1743-1774. Whitney, J.A., 1975, Vapour generation in a quartz monzonite magma: a
Vila, T., and Sillitoe, R.H., 1991, Gold-rich porphyry systems in the synthetic model with application to porphyry copper deposits:
Maricunga gold-silver belt, northern Chile: Economic Geology, v. 86, Economic Geology, v. 70, p. 346-358.
p. 1238-1260. ——— 1984, Volatiles in magmatic systems; in Whitney, J.A., Henley,
Wallace, S.R., Muncaster, N.K., Jonson, D.C., Mackenzie, W.B., R.W., Truesdell, A.H., and Barton, P.B., eds., Fluid-Mineral Equilibria
Bookstrom, A.A., and Surface, V.A., 1968, Multiple intrusion and min- in Hydrothermal Systems: Society of Economic Geologists, Reviews in
eralization at Climax, Colorado, in Ridge, J.D., ed., Ore Deposits of Economic Geology, v. 1, p. 155-175.
the United States, 1933-1967 (Graton-Sales Volume): American Williams, I.S., and Collins, W.J., 1990, Granite-greenstone terranes in the
Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers, New Pilbara Block, Australia, as coeval volcano-plutonic complexes: evi-
York, p. 605-640. dence from U-Pb zircon dating of the Mount Edgar Batholith: Earth and
Wanhainen, C., Broman, C., and Martinsson, O., 2003, The Aitik Cu-Au-Ag Planetary Science Letters, v. 97, p. 41-53.
deposit in northern Sweden: A product of high salinity fluids: Wilson, A.J., Cooke, D.R., and Harper, B.L., 2003, The Ridgeway gold-cop-
Mineralium Deposita, v. 38, p. 715-726. per deposit: a high-grade alkalic porphyry deposit in the Lachlan Fold
Webster, J.D., 2004, The exsolution of magmatic hydrosaline chloride liq- Belt, New South Wales, Australia: Economic Geology, v. 98, p. 1637-
uids: Chemical Geology, v. 210, p. 33-48. 1666.
Weixing, H., and Dazhong, S., 1987, Mineralization and evolution of the Wolfe, W.J., 1995, Exploration and geology of the Quartz Hill molybdenum
Early Proterozoic copper deposits in the Zhongtiao Mountains: Acta deposit, southeast Alaska, in Schroeter, T.G., ed., Porphyry Deposits of
Geologica Sinica, v. 61, p. 152-165. the Northwestern Cordillera of North America: The Canadian Institute
of Mining and Metallurgy, Special Volume 46, p. 764-770.
Westra, G., and Keith, S.B., 1981, Classification and genesis of stockwork
molybdenum deposits: Economic Geology, v. 76, p. 844-873.

243

View publication stats