Multiscale dynamics of ore body formation. Future discoveries of giant ore-bodies will undoubtedly be under surface cover. Modelling of new data from South Australia and Western Australia will define targeting criteria for new major ore-bodies, thus exploiting Australia's deep earth resource potential. New understanding of controls on mineralisation decrease exploration risk. Ore-bodies, such as Olympic Dam, have made major contributions to Australia's economy over past decades and promise to ad ....Multiscale dynamics of ore body formation. Future discoveries of giant ore-bodies will undoubtedly be under surface cover. Modelling of new data from South Australia and Western Australia will define targeting criteria for new major ore-bodies, thus exploiting Australia's deep earth resource potential. New understanding of controls on mineralisation decrease exploration risk. Ore-bodies, such as Olympic Dam, have made major contributions to Australia's economy over past decades and promise to add increased value over future decades. This project enhances the probability that at least one other ore-body of this type will be discovered. Such discoveries contribute directly to the wealth of Australia through export earnings and accelerate the development of regional infrastructure and new technological development.Read moreRead less
Tectonic evolution and lode gold mineralisation in the Southern Cross district, Yilgarn Craton (Western Australia): a study of the meso- to Neoarchaean missing link. In the December quarter 2008, Gold export earnings increased by 2 per cent to $3.9 billion. Over the past 20 years and despite an increase in exploration expenditure to around $50 million per year, the discovery rates have been declining. Although the easy targets have been found, there remains considerable potential for future ma ....Tectonic evolution and lode gold mineralisation in the Southern Cross district, Yilgarn Craton (Western Australia): a study of the meso- to Neoarchaean missing link. In the December quarter 2008, Gold export earnings increased by 2 per cent to $3.9 billion. Over the past 20 years and despite an increase in exploration expenditure to around $50 million per year, the discovery rates have been declining. Although the easy targets have been found, there remains considerable potential for future major discoveries. This project addresses the pressing need for new data and improved exploration techniques to enable industry to target new discoveries. As the Southern Cross district is located in remote communities such discoveries also have major benefits for regional Australia.Read moreRead less
Four dimensional lithospheric evolution and controls on mineral system distribution in Neoarchean to Paleoproterozoic terranes. This project will resolve important questions about the links between the evolution and preservation of continents and important mineral deposits in Australia and West Africa between 2.7 and 1.8 billion years ago. The results will improve the understanding of a key period of Earth history and make a major contribution to mineral exploration.
Structural and hydrothermal fluid control of high-grade (>65 wt% Fe) hematite ores in BIF-hosted iron deposits in the Hamersley Basin. The project aims to understand the geological controls on high-grade(>65wt%Fe)iron ore deposits of the Hamersley Province. In particular, the role of hydrothermal fluids in the transformation of banded iron formation (BIF) to high-grade iron ore. Three deposits (Mt Tom Price, Paraburdoo and Channar) provide an ideal study of the relationship between the struct ....Structural and hydrothermal fluid control of high-grade (>65 wt% Fe) hematite ores in BIF-hosted iron deposits in the Hamersley Basin. The project aims to understand the geological controls on high-grade(>65wt%Fe)iron ore deposits of the Hamersley Province. In particular, the role of hydrothermal fluids in the transformation of banded iron formation (BIF) to high-grade iron ore. Three deposits (Mt Tom Price, Paraburdoo and Channar) provide an ideal study of the relationship between the structural evolution, timing, and characteristics of hydrothermal and supergene processes. In particular, the the study aims to investigate the structural control and fluid chemistry of the hydrothermal system. The outcomes of this study will include a better understanding about the timing and fluid characteristcs of hydrothermal/supergene events and their significance to the formation and geometry of high-grade iron ore deposits in the Hamersley Province.Read moreRead less
Where to find giant porphyry and epithermal gold and copper deposits. This project will determine when and where giant gold or copper deposits should form, consolidating links with Indonesia, and using South East Asia as a vast natural laboratory in which to examine the effect of large-scale tectonic processes. The project will produce a four-dimensional virtual exploration toolkit to show how to apply the methods.
Integrating Stress and Strain Data from the North West Shelf, Australia: Implications for Hydrocarbon Seal Integrity. Many exploration wells in the Australian North West Shelf encounter residual columns from which hydrocarbons have leaked due to fault reactivation. Recently there has been a significant increase in our knowledge of contemporary stress (from data such as borehole breakouts)
and strain (from fault reactivation styles) on the North West Shelf.
This project will integrate informati ....Integrating Stress and Strain Data from the North West Shelf, Australia: Implications for Hydrocarbon Seal Integrity. Many exploration wells in the Australian North West Shelf encounter residual columns from which hydrocarbons have leaked due to fault reactivation. Recently there has been a significant increase in our knowledge of contemporary stress (from data such as borehole breakouts)
and strain (from fault reactivation styles) on the North West Shelf.
This project will integrate information on stress and strain in order to investigate whether the current state-of-stress is consistent with
observed reactivation styles, and thus develop predictive models for
fault reactivation and hydrocarbon leakage based on the distribution of
stress and strain.Read moreRead less
Advancing Mineral Exploration Models for Orogenic Gold Deposits. This interdisciplinary project links geochemistry with crustal-scale fluid migration, aiming to improve mineral exploration success for orogenic gold deposits. In doing so, it intends to provide a more holistic view of gold deposit genesis. This project plans to focus on the Victorian goldfields, which have world-class historic gold production, an existing seismic transect, and a geologic setting that will address key problems in g ....Advancing Mineral Exploration Models for Orogenic Gold Deposits. This interdisciplinary project links geochemistry with crustal-scale fluid migration, aiming to improve mineral exploration success for orogenic gold deposits. In doing so, it intends to provide a more holistic view of gold deposit genesis. This project plans to focus on the Victorian goldfields, which have world-class historic gold production, an existing seismic transect, and a geologic setting that will address key problems in gold deposit genesis. A series of modelling techniques will be used to marry structural and geochemical aspects of gold deposit formation at a scale that has not been previously attempted.Read moreRead less
Constraining conditions and timing of orogeny and reworking in the west Musgrave Province. The remote Musgrave Province is one of Australia's prime areas of mineral exploration interest, with about 30 companies holding more than 120 leases over the region. A major factor determining the economic prospectivity of a terrane is the availability of high quality geoscientific data. This project will produce pre-competitive structural, petrological, isotopic, geochemical and geophysical datasets for t ....Constraining conditions and timing of orogeny and reworking in the west Musgrave Province. The remote Musgrave Province is one of Australia's prime areas of mineral exploration interest, with about 30 companies holding more than 120 leases over the region. A major factor determining the economic prospectivity of a terrane is the availability of high quality geoscientific data. This project will produce pre-competitive structural, petrological, isotopic, geochemical and geophysical datasets for the west Musgrave Province that will rival or surpass that available for other regions of Australian crust. This project directly aligns with the National Research Priority goal, developing deep Earth resources, and will reduce the risk to mineral explorers and facilitate economic development within the Ngaanyatjarra Native Title Lands of Western Australia.Read moreRead less
The neo- and seismo-tectonics of northwestern Australia. Australia's two largest earthquakes occurred in NW Australia (magnitudes 7 and 7.9 in 1941 and 1906). Onshore and offshore geologic evidence indicates other such events in recent geological history. Our present seismic database records no such events. We propose to document the nature, frequency, intensity, distribution and possible causes of seismicity in NW Australia, through deployment of seismograph arrays. We will test the effects ....The neo- and seismo-tectonics of northwestern Australia. Australia's two largest earthquakes occurred in NW Australia (magnitudes 7 and 7.9 in 1941 and 1906). Onshore and offshore geologic evidence indicates other such events in recent geological history. Our present seismic database records no such events. We propose to document the nature, frequency, intensity, distribution and possible causes of seismicity in NW Australia, through deployment of seismograph arrays. We will test the effects of basement reactivation, determine the crustal structure beneath the cratonic mass, examine onshore and offshore faults, determine local and regional stress orientations and investigate implications for petroleum production in the region, and whether natural resource extraction causes local seismicity.Read moreRead less
Geological controls on high-grade oreshoots in the Wallaby gold deposit, Western Australia: Understanding the role of magmatic fluids in an Orogenic Au system. This project aims to understand the geological controls on high-grade (>2 g/t Au) oreshoots at the world-class Wallaby gold deposit (>7 Moz Au). In particular, the role of magmatic fluids in the transport and deposition of gold will be investigated. The Wallaby gold deposit is an ideal natural laboratory to investigate the complex relatio ....Geological controls on high-grade oreshoots in the Wallaby gold deposit, Western Australia: Understanding the role of magmatic fluids in an Orogenic Au system. This project aims to understand the geological controls on high-grade (>2 g/t Au) oreshoots at the world-class Wallaby gold deposit (>7 Moz Au). In particular, the role of magmatic fluids in the transport and deposition of gold will be investigated. The Wallaby gold deposit is an ideal natural laboratory to investigate the complex relationship between the geometry and timing of faults, influx of multiple hydrothermal fluid events and the deposition of gold. In particular, the study will investigate the relative importance of intrusion-related, and fault zone-related events in the formation of high-grade ore shoots. The outcomes of this study will include a clear understanding about the timing and relative contribution of magmatic and fault zone related events and their significance to the formation and geometry of high-grade oreshoots.Read moreRead less