Petrogenesis of magmatic-hydrothermal graphite deposits: A case study of the Albany graphite deposit, northwestern Ontario

岩浆热液石墨矿床的岩石成因：安大略省西北部奥尔巴尼石墨矿床的案例研究

• 批准号: 458909-2013
• 负责人: Conly, Andrew
• 金额: $ 3.94万
• 依托单位: Lakehead University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Collaborative Research and Development Grants
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2014-01-01 至 2015-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=555421
• 关键词: Petrogenesis; magmatic; hydrothermal; graphite; deposits

Vein-type graphite deposits hosted in igneous rocks are globally rare; however, these deposits have the potential to produce high-purity graphite required to compete with the $8 billion per year synthetic graphite market. Ultra high-purity graphite (>99.95% C) is required to support Canada's emerging green technology sector, as this type of graphite is required for the manufacturing of Li-ion batteries, fuel cells, graphene-based applications, pebble-bed nuclear reactors. Canada is on the verge of potentially developing the world's first igneous-hosted vein graphite deposit, the Albany deposit, near Hearst, ON. Zenyatta Ventures Ltd, who is the industrial sponsor of the proposed research, discovered Albany in 2010. As mining and processing costs for vein graphite would come at much lower production and environmental costs than synthetic graphite (produced by expensive and energy demanding refinement of petroleum coke), the principal benefit to Canada is the establishment of its own supply of ultra-high purity graphite for its emerging green technology sector. Although the potential economic benefits are significant, the geological understanding of igneous-hosted is limited owing to very few known global discoveries and the resulting paucity of data on igneous-hosted vein deposits. Consequently, a research partnership between Zenyatta Ventures and Lakehead University has been established to study the origin of the Albany deposit. This research will involve the integration of field and laboratory techniques, including core logging, microscopic studies, whole-rock geochemistry, spectroscopic investigations, radiogenic isotope geochemistry, geochronology and stable isotope geochemistry. In addition to the potential long-term economic benefits, Canada will benefit in the short-term through student training and research, which will lead to the development of more robust mineral deposit models, which can be applied by exploration industries in Canada and by Canadian companies working abroad to aid in future discoveries.

火成岩中的脉状石墨矿床在全球范围内都很罕见；然而，这些矿床有潜力生产高纯度石墨，以与每年 80 亿美元的合成石墨市场竞争。 需要超高纯石墨（>99.95% C）来支持加拿大新兴的绿色技术领域，因为制造锂离子电池、燃料电池、石墨烯应用、球床核反应堆都需要这种类型的石墨。加拿大即将开发世界上第一个火成岩脉石墨矿床，即位于安大略省赫斯特附近的奥尔巴尼矿床。 Zenyatta Ventures Ltd 是这项拟议研究的工业赞助商，于 2010 年发现了奥尔巴尼。由于脉状石墨的开采和加工成本比合成石墨（通过昂贵且耗能的石油焦精炼生产）的生产和环境成本要低得多），加拿大的主要好处是为其新兴的绿色技术部门建立自己的超高纯度石墨供应。 尽管潜在的经济效益是巨大的，但由于全球已知的发现很少，而且火岩矿脉矿床的数据也很少，因此对火岩矿脉矿床的地质认识有限。 因此，Zenyatta Ventures 和湖首大学之间建立了研究合作伙伴关系，以研究奥尔巴尼矿床的起源。 这项研究将涉及现场和实验室技术的整合，包括岩心测井、显微研究、全岩地球化学、光谱研究、放射性同位素地球化学、地质年代学和稳定同位素地球化学。 除了潜在的长期经济效益外，加拿大还将通过学生培训和研究在短期内受益，这将导致开发出更强大的矿床模型，可供加拿大勘探行业和加拿大人应用。在国外工作以帮助未来发现的公司。