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Formation of the enigmatic Matoush uranium deposit in the Paleoprotozoic Otish Basin, Quebec, Canada

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Abstract

The Matoush uranium deposit is situated in the Paleoproterozoic Otish Basin, northern Quebec, Canada, and is hosted by the Indicator Formation sandstones. Its sheet-like ore bodies are closely associated with the steeply dipping Matoush Fracture, which hosts mafic dykes and minor quartz–feldspar–tourmaline pegmatites. Regional diagenesis, involving oxidizing basinal fluids (δ2H ∼−15‰, δ18O ∼8‰), produced mostly illite and possibly leached U from accessory phases in the Indicator Formation sandstones. The bimodal Matoush dyke intruded the Indicator Formation along the Matoush Fracture, and the related metasomatism produced Cr-rich dravite and muscovite in both the dyke and the proximal sandstones. Uraninite formed when U6+ in the basinal brine was reduced to U4+ in contact with the mafic dyke and by Fe2+ in Cr–dravite and Cr–muscovite, and precipitated together with eskolaite and hematite. Because of its unique characteristics, the Matoush deposit cannot be easily classified within the generally accepted classification of uranium deposits. Two of its main characteristics (unusual reduction mechanism, structural control) do not correspond to the sandstone-hosted group of deposits (unconformity type, tabular, roll front), in spite of uranium being derived from the Otish Group sandstones.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by NSERC Discovery grants and by Strateco Corp. Field support was provided by Strateco Corp. P. Jones (Carleton University) and B. Joy (Queen’s University) assisted with electron microprobe analyses, K. Klassen and A. Vuletich (Queen’s University) with stable isotope analyses, and D. Chipley (Queen’s University) with LA-ICP-MS analyses. The assistance of J. Burns with sample collection, preparation, and preliminary work is acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geological Sciences, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, K7L 3N6, Canada

    Paul Alexandre, Kurt Kyser, Daniel Layton-Matthews & Steve R. Beyer

  2. Department of Geology, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Oshkosh, WI, 54901, USA

    Eric E. Hiatt

  3. Strateco Resources Inc., 1225 Gay-Lussac Street, Boucherville, QC, J4B 7K1, Canada

    Jonathan Lafontaine

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  1. Paul Alexandre
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Correspondence to Paul Alexandre.

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Alexandre, P., Kyser, K., Layton-Matthews, D. et al. Formation of the enigmatic Matoush uranium deposit in the Paleoprotozoic Otish Basin, Quebec, Canada. Miner Deposita 50, 825–845 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00126-014-0569-5

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