Geodynamic, metallographic and geochemical characteristics of the Jbel Klakh copper deposit, Eastern High Atlas, Morocco

Jaouad Сhoukrad¹, Souhail Mounir¹, Mohammed Charroud¹, Hicham Si Mhamdi², Naoufal Saoud¹, Nacir El Moutaouakkil³, Abdelkhiar Ait Ali¹

¹Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, Fez, Morocco

²Moulay Ismail University, Meknes, Errachidia, Morocco

³University Mohamed V Rabat, Rabat, Morocco

Min. miner. depos. 2024, 18(4):18-25

https://doi.org/10.33271/mining18.04.018

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      ABSTRACT

      Purpose. This paper aims to make a metallographic and geochemical geological study of the Jbel Klakh copper deposit located in the northern part of the Eastern High Atlas of Morocco, and make a detailed inventory of the mining indices of this area and emphasizing their modes of formation, linking them to the different geological phenomena and specifying the kinematics of their placement.

      Methods. To achieve our objectives, we have conducted a series of geological reconnaissance surveys in the Jbel Klakh area, and we have identified the former mining areas with strong copper mineralization. We have carried out a geological mapping of the main structures hosting the mineralization, with a detailed representation of the mineralization families. We carried out structural measurements and surveys to determine the tectonic regimes that led to the formation and development of the mineralization, to identify the relationship between fracturing and mineralization, and collected several samples that were subject of geochemical studies by ICP-MS, petrographic analyses, scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

      Findings. The research proposes a new approach to mineral exploration based on fieldwork and laboratory work that aims to study the formation of copper mineralization in the Meso-Cenozoic cover, and to show the role of the geological texture and structural control in the migration and formation of this mineralization, and finally to give a new idea for the discovery of new deposits of supergene copper that can highlight the economic importance of this type of deposits.

      Originality. The most economically exploitable copper deposits in Morocco are of the Basement porphyry type, there is no economically exploitable Jbel Klakh type deposit, recognized in Morocco, our paper therefore aims to highlight the deposits of the supergene sedimentary type, by giving a geological, structural, geochemical and geodynamic explanation of their occurrence.

      Practical implications. This research therefore highlights the copper deposits of the supergene type and explains the link between the mineralization and the different geological, structural and geodynamic phenomena that contribute to the formation of this mineralization, and through this work opens the door for a future discovery of a large copper deposit of the same type around the world.

      Keywords: Jbel Klakh, copper mineralization, supergene copper, geochemical analysis, scanning electron microscopy

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