Abstract
This work attempts to study the spectral characteristics of the hydrothermal alteration zones developed around the auriferous reefs in the spectral range of 350 nm to 2500 nm. The samples representing proximal alteration, distal alteration and unaltered host rock were collected from four reefs (Oakley’s reef, Strike reef, Zone I reef and Middle reefs) exposed in the Hutti Underground Mine, India. All the auriferous reefs are hosted in amphibolite, except the Middle reef, which occurs in acid volcanic rock. Spectral characterization of the continuum-removed average whole-rock reflectance spectra of the samples was carried out with ENVI software, followed by spectral deconvolution in Origin Pro software. The resulting absorption features were correlated with the mineralogy obtained from XRD and petrographic studies. It is noted that the abundance of chlorite, amphibole and calcite are key to differentiate the alteration zones developed around the reefs hosted in amphibolite. The diagnostic spectral features can identify chlorite and amphibolite at 2250 nm, 2340 nm, and 2310 and 2390 nm, respectively. A comparison of absorption band depth and XRD-derived semi-quantitative mineral abundances showed that band depths of 2250 nm and 2390 nm can be used to measure the abundance of chlorite and amphibole in the sample. The 2340 nm feature is influenced by chlorite ± biotite + calcite. The abundance of chlorite shows a decrease from the proximal zone towards the unaltered host rock, whereas the abundance of amphibole is low in the proximal alteration zone and increases towards the unaltered host rock. In the case of acid volcanic rocks, the sericite controls the spectral characteristics, with a diagnostic absorption feature at 2206 nm. The above spectral characteristics can be used as a guide for exploring gold mineralization.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adams, J. B. (1974). Visible and near-infrared diffuse reflectance spectra of pyroxenes as applied to remote sensing of solid objects in the solar system. Journal of Geophysical Research, 79(32), 4829–4836. https://doi.org/10.1029/JB079i032p04829
Badhe, K. V., & Pandalai, H. S. (2015). Investigations on the possible re-equilibration of aqueous fluid inclusions in Barite: A study of barite and calcite from the Hutti Gold Deposit, Karnataka, India. Acta Geologica Sinica—English Edition, 89(3), 715–725. https://doi.org/10.1111/1755-6724.12474
Badhe, K. V., & Pandalai, H. S. (2019). Alteration assemblages and P-T during the second phase of hydrothermal mineralization in the Hutti gold deposit, Raichur District, Karnataka. Journal of the Geological Society of India, 93(5), 546–554. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12594-019-1216-7
Bhattacharya, S., Kumar, H., Guha, A., Dagar, A. K., Pathak, S., Mondal, S., Vinod Kumar, K., Farrand, W., Chatterjee, S., Ravi, S., Sharma, A. K., & Rajawat, A. S. (2019). Potential of airborne hyperspectral data for geo-exploration over parts of different geological/metallogenic provinces in India based on AVIRIS-NG observations. Current Science, 116(7), 1143. https://doi.org/10.18520/cs/v116/i7/1143-1156
Bishop, J. L., Lane, M. D., Dyar, M. D., & Brown, A. J. (2008). Reflectance and emission spectroscopy study of four groups of phyllosilicates: Smectites, kaolinite-serpentines, chlorites and micas. Clay Minerals, 43(1), 35–54. https://doi.org/10.1180/claymin.2008.043.1.03
Bishop, J. L., Murad, E., & Dyar, M. D. (2002). The influence of octahedral and tetrahedral cation substitution on the structure of smectites and serpentines as observed through infrared spectroscopy. Clay Minerals, 37(4), 617–628. https://doi.org/10.1180/0009855023740064
Burns, R. G. (1985). Electronic spectra of minerals. In F. J. Berry & D. J. Vaughan (Eds.), Chemical bonding and spectroscopy in mineral chemistry (pp. 63–101). Netherlands: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-4838-9_3
Burns, R. G. (1970) Site preferences of transition metal ions in silicate crystal structures. Chemical Geology, 5(4), 275–283. https://doi.org/10.1016/0009-2541(70)90045-8
Burns, R. G. (1993). Mineralogical applications of crystal field theory (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511524899
Clark, R. N. Roush, T. L. (1984) Reflectance spectroscopy: Quantitative analysis techniques for remote sensing applications. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 89(B7) 6329–6340. https://doi.org/10.1029/JB089iB07p06329
Clark, R. N., Gallagher, A. J., & Swayze, G. A. (1990a). Material absorption band depth mapping of imaging spectrometer data using a complete band shape least-squares fit with library reference spectra. In Proceedings of the second airborne visible/infrared imaging spectrometer (AVIRIS) workshop (Vol. 90, pp. 176–186).
Clark, R. N. (1999). Spectroscopy of rocks and minerals and principles of spectroscopy. In A. N. Rencz (Ed.), Manual of remote sensing, Volume 3, Remote sensing for the earth sciences (pp. 3–58). Wiley; USGS Publications Warehouse. http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/70196852
Clark, R. N., King, T. V. V., Klejwa, M., Swayze, G. A., & Vergo, N. (1990b). High spectral resolution reflectance spectroscopy of minerals. Journal of Geophysical Research, 95(B8), 12653. https://doi.org/10.1029/JB095iB08p12653
De La Rosa, R., Khodadadzadeh, M., Tusa, L., Kirsch, M., Gisbert, G., Tornos, F., Tolosana-Delgado, R., & Gloaguen, R. (2021). Mineral quantification at deposit scale using drill-core hyperspectral data: A case study in the Iberian Pyrite Belt. Ore Geology Reviews, 139, 104514. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oregeorev.2021.104514
Farmer, V. C. (Ed.). (1974). The infrared spectra of minerals. Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland. https://doi.org/10.1180/mono-4
Faye, G. H. (1968). The optical absorption spectra of iron in six-coordinate sites in chlorite, biotite, phlogopite and vivianite; some aspects of pleochroism in the sheet silicates. The Canadian Mineralogist, 9(3), 403–425.
Goehner, R. P. (1981). X-ray diffraction quantitative analysis using intensity ratios and external standards. Advances in X-Ray Analysis, 25, 309–313. https://doi.org/10.1154/S0376030800009915
Goetz, A. F. H., Vane, G., Solomon, J. E., & Rock, B. N. (1985). Imaging spectrometry for earth remote sensing. Science, 228(4704), 1147–1153. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.228.4704.1147
Guha, A., Kumar, K. V., Rao, E. N. D., & Parveen, R. (2014). An image processing approach for converging ASTER-derived spectral maps for mapping Kolhan limestone, Jharkhand, India. Current Science, 106(1), 10.
Guha, A., & Vinod Kumar, K. (2014). Potential of thermal emissivity for mapping of greenstone rocks and associated granitoids of Hutti Maski Schist belt, Karnataka. ISPRS—International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, XL–8, 423–430. https://doi.org/10.5194/isprsarchives-XL-8-423-2014
Herrmann, W., Blake, M., Doyle, M., Huston, D., Kamprad, J., Merry, N., & Pontual, S. (2001). Short wavelength infrared (SWIR) spectral analysis of hydrothermal alteration zones associated with base metal sulfide deposits at rosebery and Western Tharsis, Tasmania, and highway-reward, Queensland. Economic Geology, 96(5), 939–955. https://doi.org/10.2113/gsecongeo.96.5.939
Hunt, G. R. (1970). Visible and near-infrared spectra of minerals and rocks: I silicate minerals.
Hunt, G. R. (1977). Spectral signatures of particulate minerals in the visible and near infrared. Geophysics, 42(3), 501–513. https://doi.org/10.1190/1.1440721
Hunt, G. R. (1979). Near-infrared (1.3–2.4) μm spectra of alteration minerals—Potential for use in remote sensing. Geophysics, 44(12), 1974–1986. https://doi.org/10.1190/1.1440951
King, T. V. V., & Clark, R. N. (1989). Spectral characteristics of chlorites and Mg-serpentines using high-resolution reflectance spectroscopy. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 94(B10), 13997–14008. https://doi.org/10.1029/JB094iB10p13997
Kolb, J., Rogers, A., & Meyer, F. M. (2005). Relative timing of deformation and two-stage gold mineralization at the Hutti Mine, Dharwar Craton, India. Mineralium Deposita, 40(2), 156–174. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00126-005-0475-y
Kruse, F. A., Bedell, R. L., Taranik, J. V., Peppin, W. A., Weatherbee, O., & Calvin, W. M. (2012). Mapping alteration minerals at prospect, outcrop and drill core scales using imaging spectrometry. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 33(6), 1780–1798. https://doi.org/10.1080/01431161.2011.600350
Kumar, C., Chatterjee, S., & Oommen, T. (2020). Mapping hydrothermal alteration minerals using high-resolution AVIRIS-NG hyperspectral data in the Hutti-Maski gold deposit area, India. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 41(2), 794–812. https://doi.org/10.1080/01431161.2019.1648906
Laukamp, C., Termin, K. A., Pejcic, B., Haest, M., & Cudahy, T. (2012). Vibrational spectroscopy of calcic amphiboles—Applications for exploration and mining. European Journal of Mineralogy, 24(5), 863–878. https://doi.org/10.1127/0935-1221/2012/0024-2218
Lypaczewski, P., Rivard, B., Lesage, G., Byrne, K., D’Angelo, M., & Lee, R. G. (2020). Characterization of mineralogy in the highland valley porphyry cu district using hyperspectral imaging, and potential applications. Minerals, 10(5), Article 5. https://doi.org/10.3390/min10050473
Manikyamba, C., Kerrich, R., Khanna, T. C., Satyanarayanan, M., & Krishna, A. K. (2009). Enriched and depleted arc basalts, with Mg-andesites and adakites: A potential paired arc–back-arc of the 2.6 Ga Hutti greenstone terrane, India. Geochimica Et Cosmochimica Acta, 73(6), 1711–1736. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2008.12.020
Mishra, B., & Pal, N. (2008). Metamorphism, fluid flux, and fluid evolution relative to gold mineralization in the Hutti-Maski Greenstone Belt, Eastern Dharwar Craton, India. Economic Geology, 103(4), 801–827. https://doi.org/10.2113/gsecongeo.103.4.801
Mustard, J. F. (1992). Chemical analysis of actinolite from reflectance spectra. American Mineralogist, 77(3–4), 345–358.
Neal, L. C., Wilkinson, J. J., Mason, P. J., & Chang, Z. (2018). Spectral characteristics of propylitic alteration minerals as a vectoring tool for porphyry copper deposits. Journal of Geochemical Exploration, 184, 179–198. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gexplo.2017.10.019
Pal, N., & Mishra, B. (2002). Alteration geochemistry and fluid inclusion characteristics of the greenstone-hosted gold deposit of Hutti, Eastern Dharwar Craton, India. Mineralium Deposita, 37(8), 722–736. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00126-002-0257-8
Pazand, K., & Pazand, K. (2020). Identification of hydrothermal alteration minerals for exploring porphyry copper deposit using ASTER data: A case study of Varzaghan area, NW Iran. Geology, Ecology, and Landscapes. https://doi.org/10.1080/24749508.2020.1813371
Post, J. L., & Noble, P. N. (1993). The near-infrared combination band frequencies of dioctahedral smectites, micas, and illites. Clays and Clay Minerals, 41(6), 639–644. https://doi.org/10.1346/CCMN.1993.0410601
Ramsey, M. S., & Christensen, P. R. (1998). Mineral abundance determination: Quantitative deconvolution of thermal emission spectra. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 103(B1), 577–596. https://doi.org/10.1029/97JB02784
Rogers, A. J., Kolb, J., Meyer, F. M., & Armstrong, R. A. (2007). Tectono-magmatic evolution of the Hutti-Maski Greenstone Belt, India: Constrained using geochemical and geochronological data. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 31(1), 55–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jseaes.2007.04.003
Rogers, A. J., Kolb, J., Meyer, F. M., & Vennemann, T. (2013). Two stages of gold mineralization at Hutti mine, India. Mineralium Deposita, 48(1), 99–114. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00126-012-0416-5
Sangurmath, P. (2021). World class Hutti gold deposit—An archean orogenic gold deposit in Hutti-Maski Greenstone Belt, Karnataka, India. In Geological and geo-environmental processes on earth (1st edn., pp. 75–89). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-4122-0_6
Sarma, D. S., Mcnaughton, N. J., Fletcher, I. R., Groves, D. I., Mohan, M. R., & Balaram, V. (2008). Timing of gold mineralization in the Hutti gold deposit, Dharwar Craton, South India. Economic Geology, 103(8), 1715–1727. https://doi.org/10.2113/gsecongeo.103.8.1715
Shandilya, A. K., Singh, V. K., Bhatt, S. C., & Dubey, C. S. (2021). Geological and geo-environmental processes on earth (1st ed.). Singapore: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-4122-0
Sherman, D. M. (1990). Crystal chemistry, electronic structures, and spectra of Fe sites in clay minerals, 26.
Sherman, D. M. (1985). The electronic structures of Fe3+ coordination sites in iron oxides: Applications to spectra, bonding, and magnetism. Physics and Chemistry of Minerals, 12(3), 161–175. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00308210
Sherman, D. M., & Waite, T. D. (1985). Electronic spectra of Fe3+ oxides and oxide hydroxides in the near IR to near UV. American Mineralogist, 70(11–12), 1262–1269.
Solankar, S., Ganesh, R., Anilkumar, B., et al. (2021). Current status of exploration and resources of Hutti Gold Mines, Hutti-Maski Schist Belt, Karnataka. In Conference GSI (pp. 75–81).
Srikantia, S. V. (1995). Geology of the Hutti-Maski greenstone belt. In L. C. Curtis & B. P. Radhakrishna (Eds.), Hutti gold mine—into the 21st century (pp. 8–27). Geological Society of India.
Sunshine, J. M. Pieters, C. M. Pratt, SF. (1990) Deconvolution of mineral absorption bands: An improved approach. Journal of Geophysical Research, 95(B5) 6955. https://doi.org/10.1029/JB095iB05p06955
Uehara, S., & Shirozu, H. (1985). Variations in chemical composition and structural properties of antigorites. Mineralogical Journal, 12(7), 299–318. https://doi.org/10.2465/minerj.12.299
van der Meer, F., & de Jong, S. M. (2006). Imaging spectrometry (1st ed.). Springer.
van der Meer, F., Kopačková, V., Koucká, L., van der Werff, H. M. A., van Ruitenbeek, F. J. A., & Bakker, W. H. (2018). Wavelength feature mapping as a proxy to mineral chemistry for investigating geologic systems: An example from the Rodalquilar epithermal system. International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation, 64, 237–248. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jag.2017.09.008
Wilkinson, J. J., Chang, Z., Cooke, D. R., Baker, M. J., Wilkinson, C. C., Inglis, S., Chen, H., & Bruce Gemmell, J. (2015). The chlorite proximitor: A new tool for detecting porphyry ore deposits. Journal of Geochemical Exploration, 152, 10–26. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gexplo.2015.01.005
Acknowledgements
Authors acknowledge the Department of Science and Technology, (DST), Govt. of India for the research grant to carry out the research work (BDID/01/23/2014-HSRS/03). Corresponding author acknowledge Prof. D. Ramakrishnan, Department of Earth Sciences, IIT Bombay, for extending facility for collection of reflectance spectra of the samples. Authors are indebted to Dr. Sangurmath (former Executive Director), and other geologists of HGML for extending their support in sample collection from the Hutti underground mine. The authors also express their sincere thanks to Prof. Pramod Singh, for his constructive suggestions during manuscript preparation.
Funding
This work was completed using the research grant receiveed from Department of Science and Technology, (DST), Govt. of India (BDID/01/23/2014-HSRS/03).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Supplementary Information
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
About this article
Cite this article
Bharathvaj, S.A., Kusuma, K.N., Chaudhuri, N. et al. Reflectance Spectroscopy of Hydrothermal Alteration Zones Developed Around Auriferous Reefs Hosted in Hutti-Maski Greenstone Belt, India: A Tool for Exploring Precious Metals. J Indian Soc Remote Sens 51, 149–163 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12524-022-01626-4
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12524-022-01626-4