Crude oil as carrier of gold: petrological and geochemical evidence from Lannigou gold deposit in southwestern Guizhou, China

Organic matter is related closely to mineralization of Lannigou gold deposit in southwestern Guizhou, China. Regionally, the distribution of organic carbon agrees well with that of faults within which gold deposits are hosted. Studies on organic petrology show that pyrobitumen, which is related most closely to mineralization, adheres to quartz vein or fills quartz veinlet. Proton-induced X-ray emission (PIXE) analysis shows an evident abundance of Au in pyrobitumen. Pyrobitumen paragenetically associates with pyrite and arsenopyrite which are the main carrier minerals of Au. The thermal simulation experiment indicates that about 99% of Au will be concentrated in oil phase in the coexisting system of oil and brine and rock. The role of crude oil in ore-forming process is: as carrier of Au, crude oil moves upwards, and undergoes thermal decomposition and thermochemical reduction when it encounters the oxidizing fluid within the Trassic turbidity; Au is thus released from crude oil, reduced and precipitated. Project supported by the Climbing Project (No. PA30) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 49673190).     

Study on the carbonate ocelli-bearing lamprophyre dykes in the Ailaoshan gold deposit zone, Yunnan Province

Three carbonate ocelli-bearing lamprophyre dykes have been found in the Laowangzhai and Beiya gold orefields in the northern sector of the Ailaoshan gold deposit zone, Yunnan Province. Ocelli in the lamprophyre dykes are carbonates composed mainly of dolomite and calcite. Their trace elements, REE and C isotopic compositions are characteristic of carbonatite and the main mineral assemblages, major elements, trace elements and REE in the matrix are similar to those in the carbonate ocelli-barren lamprophyre dykes in the orefields, which are calc-alkaline lamprophyres that derived from the fertile mantle. The results indicate that the carbonate ocelli-bearing lamprophyre dykes in this area were produced at the time when the Himalayan lamprophyre magma evolved to a relatively late stage of silicate-carbonate liquid immiscibility. In the process of magmatic evolution there took place magmatic degassing with CO₂ and H₂O as the dominant released gases.     

Experimental study of gold activation-transportation in the process of potash metasomatism-alteration——North China platform gold deposit taken as an example

Chemical reactions of plagioclase, biotite and their singleminerals, as well as a mineral mixture of (plagioclase +biotite+quartz), with KCl and (KCl+KHCO3) solutions were carried out at 150400℃ and 5080 MPa. Experiments show that alkaline fluid promotes plagioclase’s changing into potash feldspar, while acid fluid helps plagioclase, potash feldspar and biotite alteration form chlorite and sericite. After chemical reaction the acidity-alkalinity of solutions often changes reversely. It was observed that gold dissolved from the tube wall and recrystallized on the surfaces of biotite and pyrite. Therefore the transportation and enrichment of gold are related to the elementary effect of the fluid-mineral interfaces. Fe3+-Fe2+, as an oxidition-reduction agent, and volatile components Cl? and CO2 play important roles in the reaction process.     

Tectonic evolution of lower crustal rocks in an exposed magmatic arc section in the Hidaka metamorphic belt, Hokkaido, northern Japan

Abstract : The Hidaka metamorphic belt consists of an island-arc assembly of lower to upper crustal rocks formed during early to middle Paleogene time and exhumed during middle Paleogene to Miocene time. The tectonic evolution of the belt is divided into four stages, D₀rs, D₁, D₂rs, and D₃, based on their characteristic deformation, metamorphism, and igneous activity. The premetamorphic and igneous stage (D₀) involves tectonic thickening of an uppermost Cretaceous and earliest Tertiary accretionary complex, including oceanic materials in the lower part of the complex. D₁ is the stage of prograde metamorphism with increasing temperatures at a constant pressure during an early phase, and with a slight decrease of pressure at the peak metamorphic phase, accompanying flattening of metamorphic rocks and intrusions of mafic to intermediate igneous rocks. At the peak, incipient partial melting of pelitic and psammitic gneisses took place in the amphibolite–granulite facies transition zone, the melt and residuals cutting the foliations formed by flattening. In the deep crust, large amounts of S-type tonalite magma formed by crustal anatexis, intruded into the granulite facies gneiss zone and also into the upper levels of the metamorphic sequence during the subsequent stage. During D₁ stage, mafic and intermediate magmas supplied and transported heat to form the arc-type crust and at the same time, the magmatic underplating caused extensional doming of the crust, giving rise to flattening and vertical uplifting of the crustal rocks. D₂ stage is characterized by subhorizontal top-to-the-south displacement and thrusting of lower to upper crustal rocks, forming a basal detachment surface (décollement) and duplex structures associated with intrusions of S-type tonalite. Deformation structures and textures of high-temperature mylonites formed along the décollement, as well as the duplex structures, show that the D₂ stage movement occurred under a N-S trending compressional tectonic regime. The depth of intra-crustal décollement in the Hidaka belt was defined by the effect of multiplication of two factors, the fraction of partial melt which increases downward, and the fluid flux which decreases downward. The crustal décollement, however, might have extended to the crust-mantle boundary and/or to the lithosphere and asthenosphere boundary. The subhorizontal movement was transitional to a dextral-reverse-slip (dextral transpression) movement accompanied by low-temperature mylonitization with retrograde metamorphism, the stage defined as D₃. The crustal rocks from the basal décollement to the upper were tilted eastward on the N–S axis and exhumed during the D₃ stage. During D₂ and D₃ stages, the intrusion of crustal acidic magmas enhanced the crustal deformation and exhumation in the compressional and subsequent transpressional tectonic regime.     

Fluid mixing as the mechanism of formation of the Dajing Cu-Sn-Ag-Pb-Zn ore deposit,Inner Mongolia ——Fluid inclusion and stable isotope evidence

Since the 1990s, interest in the magmatic fluids and their relation to mineralization has been re-aroused[1—6]. Studies on stable isotopes of low-sulfidation deposits commonly show the predominance of meteoric water[7]. Paradoxically, the evidence for me…     

大功率激电在承德槽子沟金矿勘查中的应用

应用大功率激电法对深部隐伏矿体的探测是一种行之有效的方法。通过激电中梯对承德槽子沟金矿区进行激电面积性测量,圈定出与金矿伴生的金属硫化物及氧化物引起的激电异常分布区带,利用激电测深查明地下极化异常体的展布,而后结合已知地质、物性资料布置验证钻孔,并取得了较好的勘查效果。本文总结出利用大功率激电方法勘查隐伏金矿的行之有效工作模式,该找矿模式可广泛应用于同类隐伏金矿的勘探之中,必将有力提高物探方法寻找隐伏金矿的勘探水平。     

Sources of ore-forming fluids and metallic materials in the Jinwozi lode gold deposit, eastern Tianshan Mountains of China

This paper presents gas compositions and H-, O-isotope compositions of sulfide- and quartz-hosted fluid inclusions, and S-, Pb-isotope compositions of sulfide separates collected from the principal Stage 2 ores in Veins 3 and 210 of the Jinwozi lode gold deposit, eastern Tianshan Mountains of China. Fluid inclusions trapped in quartz and sphalerite are dominantly primary. H- and O-isotopic compositions of pyrite-hosted fluid inclusions indicate two major contributions to the ore-forming fluid that include the degassed magma and the meteoric-derived but rock 18O-buffered groundwater. However, H- and O-isotopic compositions of quartz-hosted fluid inclusions essentially suggest the presence of groundwater. Sulfide-hosted fluid inclusions show considerably higher abundances of gaseous species CO2, N2, H2S, etc. Than quartz-hosted ones. The linear trends among inclusion gaseous species reflect the mixing tendency between the gas-rich magmatic fluid and the groundwater. The relative enrichment of gaseous species in sulfide-hosted fluid inclusions, coupled with the banded ore structure indicating alternate precipitation of quartz with sulfide minerals, suggests that the magmatic fluid has been inputted to the ore-forming fluid in pulsation. Sulfur and lead isotope compositions of pyrite and galena separates indicate an essential magma derivation for sulfur but the multiple sources for metallic materials from the mantle to the bulk crust.     

Compositional characteristics and geodynamic significance of late Miocene volcanic rocks associated with the Chah Zard epithermal gold–silver deposit,southwest Yazd,Iran

Whole‐rock geochemical and Sr–Nd isotopic data are presented for late Miocene volcanic rocks associated with the Chah Zard epithermal Au–Ag deposit in the Urumieh‐Dokhtar Magmatic Arc (UDMA), Iran, to investigate the magma source, petrogenesis and the geodynamic evolution of the study area. The Chah Zard andesitic to rhyolitic volcanic rocks are characterized by significant Large Ion Lithophile Element (LILE) and Light Rare Earth Element (LREE) enrichment coupled with High Field Strength Element (HFSE) depletion. Our geochemical data indicate an adakitic‐like signature for the volcanic rocks (e.g. SiO₂ > 62 wt%, Al₂O₃ > 15 wt%, MgO < 1.5 wt%, Sr/Y > 70, La/Yb > 35, Yb < 1 ppm, and Y < 18 ppm, and no significant Eu anomalies), distinguishing them from the other volcanic rocks of the UDMA. The Chah Zard volcanic rocks have similar Sr and Nd isotopic compositions; the ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr(i) ratios range from 0.704 902 to 0.705 093 and the ε_Nd(i) values are from +2.33 to +2.70. However, the rhyolite porphyry represents the final stage of magmatism in the area and has a relatively high ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratio (0.705 811). Our data suggest that the andesitic magmas are from a heterogeneous source and likely to result from partial melting of a metasomatized mantle wedge associated with a mixture of subducted oceanic crust and sediment. These melts subsequently underwent fractional crystallization along with minor amounts of crustal assimilation. Our study is consistent with the model that the volcanic host rocks to epithermal gold mineralization in the UDMA are genetically related to late Miocene Neo‐Tethyan slab break‐off beneath Central Iran.     

Strontium isotope geochemistry of the Lemachang independent silver ore deposit, northeastern Yunnan, China

Sr isotope geochemical studies (the 87Sr/86Sr and ?18O-87Sr/86Sr systems) on the wall rocks and ores from the Lemachang independent Ag deposit in northeastern Yunnan provide strong evidence that the ore-forming fluids had flown through radiogenetically Sr-enriched rocks or strata prior to their entry into the locus of ore precipitation, and water-rock interaction is the main mechanism of Ag ore precipitation. The radiogenetically Sr-enriched source region may be the Proterozoic basement (the Kunyang and Hekou groups). Moreover, the theoretical modeling of the Sr isotopic system indicates that the ore-forming fluids contain as much as 3×10?6 Sr with isotopic composition of Sr being 0.750 and that of oxygen 7.0‰. The ore-forming temperatures were estimated at 150-250℃ for the carbonate rock-type ores and at 200-260℃ for the clastic rock-type.     

The ground layer of Ata pyroclastic flow deposit,southwestern Japan — evidence for the capture of lithic fragments

Lithic fragments in the ground layer of the Ata pyroclastic flow deposit, southwestern Japan, were supplied from two different sources. One is the eruptive vent and the other is the basement rock exposed underneath the path of flow. Lithic fragments captured at the eruptive vent gradually decrease in size with distance from the source. Local increases of ML or Md are proportional to increased amounts of captured lithic fragments. The pyroclastic flow eroded basement formations on slopes dipping away from the source, and deposited the lithics within the ground layer on slopes dipping towards the source. The ground layer was found only in the western half of the Ata pyroclastic flow deposit. The absence of the ground layer in the eastern half of the pyroclastic flow deposit is interpreted to result from a selective loss of lithics when the flow traversed a bay or a lake located just east from the vent.     

Characteristics of the genetic mineralogy of pyrite and its significance for prospecting in the Denggezhuang gold deposit,Jiaodong Peninsula,China

This paper reports the variation rules for the typomorphic parameters of the pyrite and the gold enrichment rules of the Denggezhuang quartz vein gold deposit at a large-depth scale,providing the mineral signs for deep prospecting prediction through detailed study of the characteristics of crystal' habits,chemical composition,the thermoelectricity of pyrites,and mineralogical mapping.This paper primarily discusses the correlation between the mineralization intensity and the space-time evolution of the mineralogical parameters,clarifies the physicochemical conditions during gold mineralization,and provides information useful for deep mineralization prediction.We demonstrate that the crystal habits of the pyrites are very complex,primarily occurring as {100},{210},and their combinate form.{210} and {100}+{210} have positive correlations with gold mineralization,and {100}+{210} therefore can be useful for locating rich ore segments.The composition of pyrites is characteristically poor in S and rich in As.Their typical trace elements are composed of Mo,As,Pb,Cu,Bi,Zn,Au,Co,Se,Sb,Ag,Ni,Cr,and Te.The average contents of trace elements in pyrites from various stages show that the crystallizing temperature gradually decreased from an early stage to the metallogenic episodes.The precipitation and accumulation of Au and Ag occur primarily in the quartz-pyrite stage(III) and the polymetal minerals stage(IV).The occurrence rate of P-type pyrites(P(%)) is 83.52%.There is a larger dispersion of the thermoelectrical coefficient of pyrite(α) in the Denggezhuang gold deposit than in other deposits in the Jiaodong Peninsula.The electrical conductivity assemblage of pyrites from I to V is characterized by P≥N→PN→PN→PN→P≥N,which is usually considered beneficial for mineralization.The relative contents of As+Sb+Se+Te and Co+Ni are closely correlated to P-type and N-type average values and their occurrence rates.According to the crystallizing temperature of pyrite,the mineralization intensity,and the denudation degree,the mineralization temperature of the Denggezhuang gold deposit is in the range of 150–322℃ and is of a medium-low temperature.The orebody has already become denuded to the top-middle of the orebody,and the size of the orebody is larger than 900 m.Based on the vertical zoning of the thermoelectrical coefficients of pyrites and P-type pyrite mapping,it is suggested that the segment between ?425 and ?800 m may have exploration potential to the northeast of line 94 of the No.I2-2 orebody.     

Laser probe 40Ar-39Ar ages of metasomatic K-feldspar from the Hougou gold deposit, northwestern Hebei Province, China

The Hougou gold deposit in northwestern Hebei is a typical K-metasomatism-related gold deposit hosted by K-altered rocks overprinting alkali intrusive rocks. In order to determine the age and pulse intervals of K-metasomatism in this gold deposit, some metasomatic K-feldspars from K-altered rocks are selected to measure their formation time by laser probe 40Ar-39Ar dating method. The new analyzing data show that these metasomatic K-feldspar formed during 202.6 Ma and 176.7 Ma, and the corresponding K-metasomatism and associated gold mineralization occurred in the early stage of Mesozoic era. The pulse intervals of K-metasomatism in the Hougou area are estimated to be about 4 Ma.     

Gold mineralization age of the Anjiayingzi gold deposit in Chifeng County,Inner Mongolia and implications for Mesozoic metallogenic explosion in North China

The Anjiayingzi gold deposit in Chifeng County, Inner Mongolia is located in the central part of the gold mineralization belt of the northern margin of the North China Craton (NCC), and is adjacent to the Paleozoic Inner Mongolia-Da Hinggan Mountains orogenic belt in the north. The Chifeng-Kaiyuan fault, which separates the NCC from this orogenic belt, is considered to be a regional ore-controlling structure. The Anjiayingzi gold deposit is a mediate-size quartz lode-gold deposit and is hosted by the Anjiayingzi quartz monzonite that was emplaced into the basement composed of early Precambrian gneisses. Rhyolitic and porphyritic dikes are generally associated with the gold mineralization. Zircon U-Pb analyses suggest that the Anjiayingzi granite was emplaced from 132 Ma to 138 Ma, while the rhyolitic dikes that occupy the same fracture system as the gold-bearing quartz veins and locally crosscut the gold lodes crystallized from 125 Ma to 127 Ma. These results constrain the mineralization age between 126     

Trace-element compositions of single fluid inclusions in the Kofu granite, Japan: Implications for compositions of granite-derived fluids

Fluid inclusions in quartz from miarolitic cavities, pegmatites, and quartz veins in Miocene biotite-granite plutons, Kofu, Japan, were analyzed by particle-induced X-ray emission to examine chemistries and behaviors of granite-derived fluids in island-arc granite. Most inclusions are aqueous two-phase inclusions, and halite-bearing polyphase inclusions are also observed in quartz veins in the upper part of the plutons. From element contents of fluid inclusions in the miarolitic cavities, the original fluid released from the granite plutons during solidification is inferred to have concentrations of Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Ge, Br, Rb, Pb, and Ba of several tens to hundreds of parts per million by weight (ppm) and a salinity of about 10 wt% NaCl equivalent. We estimated the formation conditions of the fluid to have been at about 1.3–1.9 kb and 530–600°C on the basis of the homogenization temperatures of the inclusions and the solidification conditions of the plutons. The polyphase inclusions probably originated from hypersaline fluid by boiling of part of the released fluid during its ascent in the plutons. The polyphase inclusions contain several hundreds to tens of thousands of ppm of Fe and Mn, and tens to several hundreds of ppm of Cu, Zn, Br, Rb, and Pb. The salinities are about 35 wt% NaCl equivalent. Compositional variations in two-phase inclusions from the miarolitic cavities and quartz veins are primarily explained by mineral precipitation with dilution by surface water exerting a secondary influence. Thus, chemistries and behaviors of the granite-derived fluids in the plutons can be explained by mineral precipitation, boiling, and dilution of the originally released fluid.     

Sulfur isotopic characteristics of late Cenozoic ore deposits at the arc junction of Hokkaido, Japan

Abstract Sulfide minerals of late Cenozoic vein-type deposits of southwest Hokkaido and Kuril Islands yielded δ³⁴_CDT S values of 2 to 8 permil, which are typical green-tuff values of magnetite-series igneous terrane. Sulfides of the Kitami district of northeast Hokkaido, on the other hand, are characterized by negative δ³⁴S_CDT values, ranging from 0 to - 7 permil. This unique value among ore deposits in the late Cenozoic back-arc terranes in the Japanese Islands is considered to have resulted from extraction of ³²S enriched sulfur from the basement rocks, because of well-developed N-S fracturing in the basement, which is characteristic of the axial belt and Kitami district of Hokkaido.     

Syngenetic, thin graphite-rich horizons in lower crustal rocks from the Serre San Bruno, Calabria (Italy), and implications for the nature of high-conducting deep crustal layers

In order to better understand the nature of deep crustal high electrical conductivity, we studied the electrical properties of a tilted section of a former lower continental crust exposed in the Calabrian arc of the Alpine-Apennine mountain system. Geoelectric field measurements and impedance measurements on rock samples showed that these high-grade metamorphic rocks are generally highly resistive as expected for crystalline, electrolytically conducting rocks of low porosity. This holds for graphite-free metabasites as well as for metapelites which generally contain accessory, up to 3% biogenic graphite in the form of isolated grains. Clearly as an exception, a group of thin stratiform black horizons with thicknesses of 1-15 cm within the metapelitic series was detected by means of self-potential (SP) measurements. Rock samples from these horizons exhibit high, quasi-metallic bulk conductivities of up to 50 S/m (0.02 Ωm) in agreeement with up to 20% syngenetic graphite, forming a network of interconnected streaks or crack fillings. The high amount of carbon most probably originates from organic matter of C_org-rich black shales. Relative enrichment of the low mobility graphitic matter compared to the carbon content of the assumed protoliths may have been due to pressure solution and partial melting during prograde metamorphism, without major contribution of a fluid phase, resulting in isolated graphite flakes. Although enriched, graphite in this form has little effect on electrical conductivity. For the Calabrian black horizons, microscopic analyses make conceivable that, in a further decisive step, isolated graphite grains were mechanically smeared to continuous pathways during uplift by shearing, producing hereby the observed graphitic network which is needed to generate high conductivity. As C_org-rich black shales are common members of sedimentary sequences throughout the earth’s history, good conductors of this type may be expected in the continental crust at any depth depending on tectonic and metamorphic history, with the exception of magmatic protoliths. Regarding the extremely high conductivity of the meta-black shale samples containing syngenetic sheared graphite, a total thickness of a few meters of such rocks is sufficient to explain magnetotelluric high conductivity anomalies in the deep crust.     

Basin and crustal velocity structure models for the simulation of strong ground motions in the Kinki area,Japan

We constructed a prototype of the basin and crustal structure model for the Kinki area, southwest of Japan, for the simulation of strong ground motions of hypothetical crustal and subduction earthquakes. We collected results of the deep seismic velocity profiles obtained by the reflection experiments and seismic imaging results, which were conducted in the Kinki area. The obtained profiles give underground velocity structures of the crust, from the surface to the subducting slab. We also gather the basin velocity structure information of the Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, and Ohmi basins. To examine the applicability of the constructed velocity structure model to the ground motion simulation, we simulated waveforms of an intermediate size event occurred near the source area of the hypothetical subduction earthquakes. Simulated ground motions using the basin and crustal velocity structure model are fairly well reproducing the observations at most of stations, and the constructed basin and crustal velocity structure model is applicable for the long-period ground motion simulations.     

Discovery of Cu-Ni-Zn-Sn-Fe intermetallic compounds and S-bearing alloys in the Zhaishang gold deposit, southern Gansu Province and its geological significance

Examination of ores by optical microscope and EPMA from the Zhaishang gold deposit, southern Gansu Province, has revealed an abundance of rare minerals. These include native metals, Cu-Ni-Zn-Sn-Fe polymetallic compounds and S-bearing alloys of Ni, Fe, Zn, Cu and Sn, occurring as native nickel, Zn-Cu alloy, Ni-Zn-Cu alloy, Sn-Zn-Ni-Cu alloy, Zn-Cu-Ni alloy, Zn-Fe-Cu-Sn-Ni alloy, Fe-Ni-S alloy, Sn-Fe-Ni-S alloy, Fe-Zn-Cu-Ni-S alloy, Zn-Ni-Cu-Fe-S alloy and others. Compared with the Zn-Cu alloy minerals discovered previously, these Zn-Cu minerals fall in the α or α β portion in Zn-Cu alloy phase diagram, and the α portion has higher Cu content. Cu-Ni-Zn-Sn-Fe intermetallic compounds and S-bearing alloy minerals have not been previously reported in the literature. These rare alloys formed in a strongly reducing environment with absent oxygen and low sulfur activities.     

Ore-forming mechanism for the Xiaoxinancha Au-rich Cu deposit in Yanbian,Jilin Province,China: Evidence from noble gas isotope geochemistry of fluid inclusions in minerals

The Xiaoxinancha Au-rich copper deposit is one of important Au-Cu deposits along the continental margin in Eastern China. The deposit consists of two sections: the Beishan mine (North), composed of altered rocks with veinlet-dissemination sulfides and melnicovite-dominated sulfide-quartz veins, and the Nanshan mine (South), composed of pyrrhotite-dominated sulfide-quartz veins and pure sulfide veins. The isotope compositions of noble gases extracted from fluid inclusions in ore minerals, i.e. ratios of 3He/4He, 20Ne/22Ne and40Ar/36Ar are in the ranges of 4.45―0.08 Ra, 10.2―8.8 and 306―430, respectively. Fluid inclusions in minerals from the Nanshan mine have higher 3He/4He and 20Ne/22Ne ratios whereas those from the Beishan mine have lower 3He/4He ratios. The analysis of origin, and evolution of the ore fluids and its relations with the ore-forming stages and the ages of mineralization suggests that the initial hydrothermal fluids probably come from the melts generated by partial melting of oceanic crust with the participation of fluids from the mantle (mantle-plume type)/aesthenosphere. This also corresponds to the continental margin settings during the subduction of Izanagi ocaneic plate towards the palaeo-Asian continent (123―102 Ma). The veinlet-dissemination ore bodies of the Beishan mine were formed through replacement and crystallization of the mixed fluids generated by mixing of the ascending high-temperature boiling fluid with young crustal fluid whereas the melnicovite-dominated sulfide-quartz veins were formed subsequently by filling of the high-temperature ore fluid in fissures. Pyrrhotite-dominated sulfide-quartz veins in the Nanshan mine were formed by filling-deposition-crystallization of the moderate-temperature ore fluids and the pure sulfide veins were formed later by filling-deposition-crystallization of ore substance-rich fluids after boiling of the moderate-temperature ore fluids. The metallogenic dynamic processes can be summarized as: (1) formation of fluidand ore substance-bearing Adakitic magma by degassing, dewatering and partial melting during subduction of the Izanagi plate; (2) separation and formation of ore fluids from the Adakitic magma; and (3) success-sive ascending of the ore fluids and final formation of the Au-rich Cu deposit of veinlet-dissemination and vein types by secondary boiling.     

Lead isotopic exploration intersecting mineralization zones for the depth forecast of concealed deposits--A case from Longbohe Cu deposit, Jinping, Yunnan Province, China

Pb isotopic geochemical exploration intersecting mineralization zones have been well developed in the light of the eigenvalues V1 and V2 of three-dimensional topological projection of Pb isotopic data. The newly developed theoretical model forecasting concealed deposits has been verified in the evaluation of Longbohe copper deposit in Jinping, Yunnan Province, which is consistent with the observed law of depth variation for Pb isotopes. The forecasting results show that the depth of buried major orebody should occur at about -50 to -400 m and deeper within the eastern and western mineralization belts of Longbohe copper deposit.