Trace element chemistry of pyrite: A useful guide to the occurrence of sulfide base metal mineralization

Trace element contents for pyrite from a range of sulfide mineral occurrences in the Kangiara region, eastern Australia, illustrate two main groups of pyrite. The first group, with higher Ag, Cu, Pb and Mo contents, corresponds to samples from sulfide base metal deposits and the second group, with higher Mn, Ti and Ni contents, contains samples from skarn mineralization, volcanic rocks and quartz veins. The model proposed for the development of pyrite in the Kangiara region is that the first group was formed from base metal-bearing solutions, while the second group reflects diagenetic pyrite and metamorphic pyrite. Thus, the pyrite trace element chemistry may provide a means of distinguishing types of mineral occurrences, in particular, those containing significant base metal mineralization.