Breccias in epithermal and porphyry deposits:

The birth and death of magmatichydrothermal systems

David R. Cooke &

Andrew G.S. Davies#
CODES, University
of Tasmania
Sericite-chlorite altered polymict
rock flour matrix breccia, Acupan
Gold Mine, Philippines

#
Current Address:
TeckCominco,Vancouver

Talk Outline

Breccias - Descriptive
Methodology
Genetic Classes
Overview of Breccia
Types in MagmaticHydrothermal Systems
Case Study: Kelian
Implications for Ore
Formation and
Exploration

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Brecciation
Rocks break when they fall, cool,
grind, explode, corrode, etc.
This means that breccias can form
in many geological environments:
Sedimentary
Volcanic
Tectonic
Magmatic
Hydrothermal
Igneous-cemented breccia: trachyandesite clasts set
in a quartz monzonite porphyry cement, cut by
quartz-bornite veins with orthoclase alteration halos,
E31 prospect, North Parkes, NSW

Breccia Description and

Interpretation
Breccias should be described in terms
of:

composition (matrix, cement, clasts)

texture (clast-supported, jigsaw fit, etc)

morphology (pipe, vein, bed, etc.)

contact relationships

Genetic nomenclature should only be

applied with caution after a breccia has
been fully described
Push-up, fall-down, or break-apart breccia?

Breccia Description
Ideal combination:
5

+4

+3

+2

+1

Alteration

Internal
organisation

Components
A+B+C

Grainsize

Geometry

Minimum Combination: 4 + 3 + 2

1) Geometry
pipe, cone, dyke, vein, bed,
irregular, tabular...
Contact relationships: sharp,
gradational, faulted, irregular,
planar, concordant, discordant

Bat Cave breccia pipe, Northern

Arizona. (Wenrich, 1985)

Descriptive Names for Breccias

5

+4

+3

+2

+1

Alteration

Internal
organisation

Components
A+B+C

Grainsize

Geometry

2) Grainsize
microbreccia (< 2mm) or breccia (> 2mm)...

3) Components
A: clasts
monomict or polymict
Composition: lithic, vein, breccia, juvenile
magmatic, accretionary lapilli, mineralised, altered
Morphology: angular, subangular, subround, round,
faceted, tabular, equant

Descriptive Names for Breccias

5

+4

+3

+2

+1

Alteration

Internal
organisation

Components
A+B+C

Grainsize

Geometry

3) Components (cont.)
B: matrix
rock flour, crystal fragments, lithic
fragments,
vein fragments
texture: banded, laminated, massive
grainsize - mud, silt, sand, gravel, pebble,
cobble
C: cement
texture: cockade, massive, drusy, etc.
Ore & gangue mineralogy, & grainsize
D: open space (vugs)

Descriptive Names for Breccias

5

+4

+3

+2

+1

Alteration

Internal
organisation

Components
A+B+C

Grainsize

Geometry

4) Internal Organisation
Clast abundance, clast, matrix or cementsupported
Clast distribution: jigsaw-fit, rotated, chaotic
Massive (non-graded) or graded
Stratified or unstratified

5) Alteration
Clasts, matrix or cement
Alteration paragenesis
Sericite-altered polymictic rock flour matrix breccia,
Braden Pipe, El Teniente

Breccia Facies Associations

Chlorite-altered, jigsaw-fit, in-situ, pyroxene-phyric andesite
clast-supported monomictic chlorite-cemented breccia
Chlorite-altered, pyroxene-phyric andesite
clast-rich, polymictic, clast-supported, massive,
jigsaw-fit to rotated rock flour matrix breccia
Chlorite-sericite altered, matrixsupported, chaotic, polymict
pyroxene-phyric andesite and
mudstone-clast-rich rock flour matrix
breccia

Chlorite-hematite-carbonate-pyrite-altered,
polymict pyroxene-phyric andesite and
diorite-clast massive to stratified rock flour
breccia and microbreccia

Hematite-carbonatepyrite-chlorite-sericite
cemented, polymict
pyroxene-phyric andesite
and diorite-clast breccia

Diorite breccia complex

increased
permeability
cemented
facies

facies with
sub-vertical
fabrics

Variations
in clast
types &
matrix
abundance

Diorite
host rock
Fractured
diorite

brecciated
diorite

rock flour
zone,
increases
inwards

Volcanic Breccias

Breccia Genesis

Magma intrusion into

magmatichydrothermal system

More than one

process can be
involved in breccia
formation
Hydrothermal
Breccias

Magmatic-hydrothermal
breccias
Stockwork veins

This overlap means

that genetic
Phreatic breccias
terminology is
generally applied
inconsistently

Tectonic Breccias

Magmatic
Breccias
Igneous
cement
breccias

Structural control on
breccia location

Fault breccias

Breccias in Magmatic-Hydrothermal Systems

1 - Magmatic-hydrothermal
breccias
Permeability enhancement
through the formation of a
subsurface breccia body
allows for focussed fluid flow

Volatile-saturated intrusion
undergoes catastrophic brittle
failure due to hydrostatic pressure
exceeding lithostatic load and the
tensile strength of the wallrocks

Can precipitate abundant,

well-mineralised cement which
contains hypersaline &
vapour-rich fluid inclusions
Rock flour matrix and clasts
may be altered to high
temperature mineral
assemblages (e.g. biotite)

Containment and
focussing of volatiles
birth of a magmatichydrothermal ore deposit

Magmatic-Hydrothermal Breccias
Chalcopyrite-cemented
monzonite breccia, Mt
Polley, British Columbia

Biotite-altered rock flour

matrix breccia, Gaby, Chile

Rio Blanco

71o W

70o W
0

50

Los
Pelambres km

100
32o S

Pacific
Ocean

Largest known
breccia-hosted
copper-molybdenum
porphyry system
Located 70 km NE of
Santiago, Chile

Los
Andes

Rio Blanco Los Bronces

33o S

Santiago

34o S

El Teniente

Rio Blanco - Los Bronces

South

Sur Sur

La Union

Rio Blanco

Los Bronces

Biotite Breccia
Ore at Rio Blanco is hosted in
biotite-cemented and biotitealtered rock flour matrix
breccias (magmatic breccia)

Biotite breccia, Rio Blanco

Tourmaline Breccia
Ore at Sur-Sur, La Union and
Los Bronces is hosted in
tourmaline-cemented
breccias

Tourm. Bx
Los Bronces

Tm-cp-py-qz-anh
cement: Sur-Sur breccia

Tourm. bx
Sur-Sur

Sur-Sur XC50

Tourmaline
breccia

Diorite
wallrock

Late- Tourmaline
stage
breccia
rock
flour
breccia

Biotite
breccia
Tm bx cut by RF bx, Rio Blanco

Rock Flour
breccia

Breccia-Enhanced Permeability
~2 km paleodepth

Farellones Fm
Drawdown of
meteoric water?

Buoyant
magmatic gas
streams up
through bx
column

Upwelling magmatichydrothermal brines

precipitate ore

San Francisco
Batholith

~5 km paleodepth

Breccias in Magmatic-Hydrothermal Systems

2 - Phreatomagmatic
breccias

Maar-diatreme
breccia complex

Surficial and subsurface

breccia deposits
Bedded and massive breccia
facies
Venting of volatiles to the
surface
death of a porphyry deposit
shortcut to the epithermal
environment

Late intrusion
into active
hydrothermal
system

2 - 5 km
paleodepth

Rock flour & milled clasts

abundant

Diatremes
Diatremes are downward-tapering, cone-shaped breccia
bodies (paleovolcanic vents)
phreatomagmatic and phreatic explosions
filled by volcaniclastic debris and collapsed wall rocks
subsurface conduits beneath maars

100 m

U.S. Geological Survey / photo by R Russell,

1977

U.S. Geological Survey / photo by D.

Dewhurst, 1990

Maars
Maars are 100 m to greater than 3000 m diameter,
monogenetic volcanic craters
surrounded by low aspect ratio tuff rings
wet pyroclastic base surge, fallout and re-sedimented volcaniclastic
deposits

25 m

U.S. Geological Survey / photo by C. Nye, 1994

U.S. Geological Survey / photo by D. Dewhurst, 1990

Diatremes - Volcanological Model

wet pyroclastic eruptions

Modified after Lorenz, 1973

0m
Water Table
depressed

Increasing
eruption
depth
>
2500m

No direct link to mineralisation - this model fails to account for

common association of diatremes and magmatic-hydrothermal
ore deposits

El Teniente Braden Breccia

Mine Level #6 (2165m asl)

500 m
< 0.5% Cu

Worlds largest PCD: 12.4 Gt

resource @ 0.63% Cu, 0.02% Mo
Part of the deposit has been
destroyed by the late stage Braden
Breccia Pipe (diatreme complex)

> 0.5% Cu

< 0.5% Cu

> 0.5% Cu

Bedded rock flour matrix polymict breccia

facies, Braden Breccia Pipe, El Teniente

Teniente Host Sequence

Marginal Breccia (4.7 Ma)

Sewell Diorite (8.9-7 Ma)

Braden Breccia (4.7 Ma)

Grey porphyry (5.7 Ma)

Late dacite dykes (4.7 Ma)

Dacite pipes (5.5 Ma)

Hble-phyric dykes (3.8 Ma)

Dacite dyke (5.3 Ma)

Breccias in Magmatic-Hydrothermal Systems

3 Phreatic, hydraulic
& fault breccias
Fault breccias: grinding and
abrasion may produce gouge,
cataclasite, etc
Phreatic breccias: in-situ
subsurface brecciation (jigsaw fit to rotated textures)
Hydraulic breccias - only
minor clast transport and
abrasion (angular clasts
common)
Abundant hydrothermal
cement

Phreatic steam
explosions caused by
decompression of
hydrothermal fluid
No direct magmatic
involvement
epithermal gold
deposition

Fault Breccias

2 cm
Fault breccia with clasts of quartz-chalcopyrite
veins in a rock flour matrix, and with
chalcopyrite smeared along the breccia
margin, Ridgeway Au-Cu porphyry, NSW

Phreatic Breccias

Porkchop Geyser, posteruption, 1992, Yellowstone

Phreatic Breccias
Gases accumulate
beneath a silica seal
during upflow of boiling
waters

Gas cap in self-sealed geothermal system

(Hedenquist & Henley, 1985)

P increase can rupture the

hydrothermal seal, triggering a
steam explosion & phreatic
brecciation

Au-mineralised vein breccia, Acupan

Phreatic Breccias
Depressurisation can affect a significant vertical column of rock (hundreds of
metres) and can trigger ore deposition as H2S partitions to the vapour phase

Instantaneous P decrease changes the depth of first boiling

(Hedenquist & Henley, 1985)

Phreatic Breccias - Triggers

Seismic rupture
Overpressuring and failure of
hydrothermal seal
Instantaneous unloading
(landslip, draining of lake, etc.)
Temperature increase (magma water interaction)

Hydrothermal eruption crater, Pocket Basin, Yellowstone.

Fragments of lake sediments were deposited in a low
aspect ratio ejecta apron after draining of glaciallydammed lake 20-25,000 years ago

Hydrothermal explosion
triggered by draining of
glacial lake (Muffler et
al, 1971)

Phreatomagmatic vs. Phreatic Explosions

Phreatic explosion
no direct magma - water contact at explosion site
flashing of water to steam
no juvenile magmatic component

Phreatomagmatic explosion
magma - water interaction at
the explosion site
explosion driven by flashing of
water to steam
magmatic gas contribution is
minor
juvenile magmatic component
Eruption of Waimungu Geyser, New Zealand, 1904 (Sillitoe, 1985)

The Kelian Breccia Complex:

host to a giant epithermal Au-Ag deposit,
East Kalimantan, Indonesia

Singapore

KELIAN

Jakarta

A PhD study by Andrew Davies

Centre For Ore Deposit Research (CODES)
University of Tasmania, Australia
1 cm

Native gold disseminated in sphalerite, pyrite and carbonate

Regional geology
Located in uplifted
block of Cretaceous
volcaniclastic rocks
Surrounded by
terrestrial and shallow
marine sedimentary
rocks of the Tertiary
Kutai Basin

Masupia
Ria

Indo Muyup
Muro

Mirah

Busang

Kelian

Largest epithermal Au
deposit in a NEtrending belt of
Miocene low sulfidation
epithermal gold
deposits

Kelian Au deposit
Alluvial Au discovered by indigenous
Dayaks in 1950s
Bedrock Au discovered by Rio Tinto
in 1975
Main exploration 1986 to 1989
outlined 75 Mt @ 1.8 g/t Au
Mining commenced in 1991
Total resource: 92 Mt @ 2.61 g/t Au
Total contained Au ~240 Tonnes
(~8 Moz)
Carbonate, base-metal-rich, low
sulfidation epithermal Au-Ag deposit

Kelian geology
U. Cretaceous felsic
volcaniclastic basement
faulted against Tertiary
sediments
Andesite and rhyolite
intrusions ~ 22 19 Ma
Emplacement controlled by
NE- and NW-striking faults
Phreatomagmatic and
phreatic breccia formation
Mineralisation and alteration
Pliocene unconformity
Pit outline

Plio-Pleistocene mafic
volcanism

Kelian Volcanics
Upper Cretaceous volcanic siltstone, sandstone & breccia

volcaniclastic
sst/slt

diatreme
breccia
andesitic
intrusion

60 m

Pumice and crystal-rich subaqueous mass

flow deposits (possible subaerial source)

1 cm

Mahakam Group Sedimentary Rocks

Pleistocene unconformity
Scoria breccia,
basalt lava flows

30 m

Mudstone and sandstone

QFP intrusion

Eocene to Oligocene carbonaceous

mudstone and sandstone
Terrestrial and shallow submarine
depositional environment

Kelian Breccia Complex Formation

Structural Preparation:
Transpressional fault system
Structurally bounded blocks
of carbonaceous mudstone
juxtaposed against
volcaniclastic rocks

Carbonaceous
sediments

500

1000

Miocene surface developed

1500

Volcaniclastic
rocks
2000
m

Andesitic intrusions
Late Miocene plagioclase-hornblende-phyric porphryies

volcaniclastic
sst/slt

diatreme
breccia
Andesitic
intrusion

60 m

1 cm

Pre-Diatreme Igneous Stage

Intrusion of andesitic stocks
Initiation of early
hydrothermal system

Phreatic
Eruptions?

Descending
meteoric
water
0

Qtz - Ser - Pyr / Chl - Cal - Epi

alteration

500

1000

? Early phreatic breccias

facilitated ingress of meteoric
water

1500

Early hydrothermal system

2000
m

Early Diatreme Stage

Quartz-phyric rhyolitic
intrusions - structural control
Phreatomagmatic and
phreatic eruptions
Subsurface: phreatomagmatic &

500

phreatic breccias

1000

Surface: Wet pyroclastic base-

surge deposits

1500

2000
m

Surface phreatomagmatic breccias

Phreatomagmatic base surge deposits
dune bed forms

volcaniclastic
sst/slt

Phreatomagmatic
fallout
accretionary lapilli

diatreme
breccia
20 m

Phreatomagmatic eruptions produced base surge

deposits and co-surge fallout
Early hydrothermal system was disrupted
catastrophically
Triggered hybrid and large-scale phreatic brecciation

1 cm

Subsurface phreatomagmatic breccias

Phreatomagmatic breccia
juvenile QP clasts
diatreme
breccia

Phreatomagmatic breccia

volcaniclastic
sst/slt
andesitic
intrusion

60 m

Subsurface and eruptive facies of a

maar-diatreme complex
Juvenile magmatic clasts are
preserved
Polyphase breccias

0.5 cm

1 cm

Main Diatreme Stage

Diatreme deepened and
widened by:
Continued explosive

fragmentation

Brecciation, collapse and

Downward
transport in
pipes

Block
subsidence
0

subsidence of diatreme walls

500

Mega-block formation and

disaggregation

Multiple crosscutting breccia

pipes

1000

1500

2000
m

Block subsidence
breccias

Late Diatreme - Early Hydrothermal Stage

Late stage rhyolite dome
emplacement

Early stage hydrothermal

brecciation overlaps
phreatomagmatic brecciation

Early auriferous hydrothermal

breccias
Overlapping diatreme and
hydrothermal breccias

500

Auriferous
hydrothermal
system

1000

1500

2000
m

Rhyolitic intrusions
brecciated
mudstone
QFP intrusion

brecciated
mudstone

QFP intrusion

Volcaniclastic
sst / slt
150 m

Late Miocene rhyolitic intrusions

emplaced into active hydrothermal
system
Quartz feldspar porphyries

QFP intrusion

10 m

Main Hydrothermal Stage

Main stage hydrothermal system
carbonate - adularia - sericite

alteration

Widespread hydrothermal
brecciation

500

Gold - silver mineralisation

veins, hydrothermal breccias

1000

& disseminations

Hydrothermal
Brecciation

1500

2000
m

Vein & Breccia-Hosted Mineralisation

Hydrothermal breccia bodies at Kelian have vein halos
that contain infill minerals identical to the breccia
cement
Base-metal-enriched, Au-Ag (1:1) system
Vertically extensive (> 700 m preserved)
Five main mineralisation stages
Main gold deposition occurred during stages 2 4
1 cm

Quartz is only a minor infill component

Generalised
paragenesis

STAGE
1A/B
Pyrite

Ore mineralogy
Gangue mineralogy

Sericite quartz

STAGE
2A/B

STAGE
3A/B

STAGE
3C/D

Base-metal-sulfides-pyrite
Quartz - adularia

Kutnahorite
dolomite calcite

STAGE
4
Sulfosalts
Rhodochrosite
- quartz

STAGE
5
Supergene oxides
Kaolinite

Hydrothermal breccias
Stage 1 and 2
Pyrite cement

2 cm

Stage 3A
Base-metal sulfide cement

2 cm

2 cm

Stage 3C
Carbonate cement

Stage 4
Sulfosalt
rhodochrosite cement

1 cm

2 cm

Early phreatic breccias:

Main stage to late-stage hydraulic breccias:

(Explosive brecciation, transport

and milling, abundant matrix)

(Non-explosive in-situ brecciation, minor

transport and milling, abundant cement)

Veins

1 cm
Stage 1A:
Sericite - pyrite

Stage 2B:
Adularia-quartz

1 cm
Stage 2A:
Pyrite - quartz

2 cm
1 cm
Stage 3C
Carbonate infill

Stages 1 and 2
Pyrite cement

Stage 3A
Base-metal sulfide infill

Stage 4
Sulfosalt
rhodochrosite infill

Post - Hydrothermal Stage

Erosion to Plio-Pleistocene
surface: ~1000 m removed
Burial by mafic volcanic rocks
Maar and associated facies
only preserved in subsided
blocks

500

1000

1500

Location of
economic
resource

2000
m

Magma Emplacement into Active

Hydrothermal Systems
Magma intrusion triggers hybrid
phreatomagmatic and phreatic
explosions
200 C
300 C
Champagne pool, Waiotapu
geothermal area, NZ

Abundant hot fluids in active

hydrothermal system, at or
near boiling point

Catastrophic disruption of and

irreversible changes to chemical
and physical conditions in the
existing hydrothermal system

Diatremes and Giant Epithermal Deposits

Cripple Creek

Epithermal deposits
associated with
diatremes

Yanacocha
Baguio
Pueblo Viejo

Epithermal deposits
without diatremes

Porgera
Ladolam
Round Mountain
El Indio
Comstock Lode
Mc Donald
Hishikari
Puchuca-Real
Waihi
Kelian
Au (t) 0

200

400

600

800

Modified after Sillitoe, 1997

Brecciation: Implications for Ore Formation

1: Fluid flow in breccia and wall rock

Armoured
Lapilli

Yanacocha
Mineralisation
both pre- and
post-diatreme

Brecciation: Implications for Ore Formation

2: Fluid flow focussed within breccia

Cripple Creek

Brecciation: Implications for Ore Formation

3: Fluid flow focussed within wallrocks
Post Diatreme Large scale hydrothermal
explosions and brecciation

Majority of mineralisation in
wall rocks
Diatreme breccias act as
aquitards
Hydrothermal brecciation and
fluid flow focussed into wall
rocks
Phreatomagmatic explosions
enhanced hydrothermal
system and triggered gold
deposition processes

Structurally
controlled
mineralisation at
margins of breccia

Breccia
pipe
inhibits
fluid
flow

Kelian

Possible effects on fluid flow

4: Venting of volatiles and death of a mineralising
system
Late Stage Diatreme Formation

El Teniente

Porphyry systems - Birth and Death

1. Birth: Magma intrusion and early
magmatic-hydrothermal
brecciation

2. Death: Magma intrusion into wellestablished hydrothermal system

Hydrothermal
system
advance
Hydrothermal
brecciation

Catastrophic
volatile loss /
pressure reduction

Hydrothermal
system
collapse

Early intrusion insufficient fluids

for explosion
Intrusion into
hydrothermal
system

Epithermal systems
3. Rebirth: Flow path created to connect
the porphyry and epithermal environments
Large scale hydrothermal
explosions and
brecciation

Phreatomagmatic
explosions through active
system trigger syn and
post diatreme hybrid
phreatic explosions

Mineralisation in
wallrocks

Breccia pipe inhibits fluid flow hydrothermal system enhanced

in wallrocks

Structurally controlled
mineralisation at
margins of diatreme

Conclusions
Careful documentation of breccia facies and
their interrelationships is essential prior to
attempting genetic interpretations
Brecciation can occur in response to a
combination of phenomena, making genetic
pigeonholing difficult
Fluid flow will be affected profoundly by a
major brecciation event
Changes to the fluid flow regime will be
dependent on the nature of the breccia and
the wallrocks

Thayer Lindsley - Biography

Thayer Lindsley, described as the greatest mine finder of all time, was
born in Yokohama, Japan
He took a civil engineering degree at Harvard, and moved to Canada in
1924 with a $30,000 stake from an iron mine in Oregon.
In 1928, Lindsley and a group of associates founded Ventures Ltd., as a
holding company for various properties. Falconbridge Nickel Mines
Limited was incorporated as a Ventures subsidiary in the same year.
Thayer Lindsley also founded Frobisher, and either found or was involved
in the development of Sherritt Gordon, Giant Yellowknife, Canadian
Malartic, United Keno Hill, Lake Dufault and Opemiska Copper,
Connemara in Southern Rhodesia and Whim Creek in Australia.
"To be a successful mine finder, one must have determination, knowledge,
tenacity, a rugged constitution to withstand the rigors of outdoor life, and
enjoy overcoming obstacles of every description. Also, a little dash of
imagination and enthusiasm is helpful."

Data Source: http://www.halloffame.mining.ca/halloffame/english/bios/lindsley.html