Stable isotopes and mineral resource investigations in the United States

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Abstract

The elements oxygen, hydrogen, sulfur, and carbon are important constituents of hydrothermal ore-forming systems and the weathering processes of mineral deposits in the surficial environment. They also play key roles in volcanic activity, ecosystem dynamics, climate change, and hydrologic and atmospheric processes. Therefore, study of the stable isotopes of these elements can provide powerful insights into these processes. This is especially true for ongoing U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) projects in the Eastern United States that are concerned with the origins of base (copper, lead, and zinc) and precious (gold and silver) metal deposits in the Carolina slate belt and northern Maine and with the environmental effects of weathering of mineral deposits (fig. 1).

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Publication type Report
Publication Subtype USGS Unnumbered Series
Title Stable isotopes and mineral resource investigations in the United States
Series title Information Handout
DOI 10.3133/70220369
Year Published 1999
Language English
Publisher U.S. Geological Survey
Description HTML Document
Country United States
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