• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.37 no.6 s.169
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• pp.603-612
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• 2004

Pyrochlore is known as one of the most promising materials for the immobilization of radionuclide in high level waste. This study included the synthesis, phase relation and characteristics of $pyrochlore(CaCeZr_xTi_{2-x}O_{7,\;x=0.2\~2.0)$ in the system of Ca-Ce-Zr-Ti-O. Using the CPS(Cold pressing and sintering) method, the mixtures of $CaCO3_,\;CeO_2,\;ZrO_2\;and\;TiO_2$ oxides were pressed, and sintered at $1100\~1600^{\circ}C$ for 20 hours. The optimal synthetic conditions at various compositions were differed from 1300 to $1600^{\circ}C$ Even in the optimal temperatures, pyrochlore or fluorite coexisted with minor amount of perovskite, $CeO_2\;or\;Ce_{0.75}Zr_{0.25}O_2$. It was confirmed that pyrochlore and fluorite structures were stable at $x\leq0.6\;and\;x\geq1.0$, respectively. Especially, the compositions of pyrochlore or fluorite showed non-stoichiometric compositions in that contents of Ca and Ti were more deficient and those of Zr and Ce were more excess than batch compositions with the increase of x value. These characteristics stemmed from the behavior of elements occupied at eight- and six-coordinated site, and then caused the coexistence of perovskite, $CeO_2\;or\;Ce_{0.75}Zr_{0.25}O_2$ along with pyrochlore or fluorite.

• The Journal of the Petrological Society of Korea
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.156-170
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• 1994

The talc ore deposits can be divided into chloritic and dolomitic ores according to mineral assemblages. The former is mainly composed of chlorite and talc accompanied with dolomite, muscovite and opaque mineral, and the latter of dolomite and talc with serpentine, calcite and magnesite in places. Talc was originated from chlorite and serpentine. Carbonate minerals were formed either directly from the introduced hydrothermal solution or secondarily as a by-product of steatitization of chlorite and serpentine. The process of talc formation may be governed by the chemical composition of the host rocks and the amount and/or chemical composition of the hydrothermal solution which may be different in places. However, the representative reactions producing talc from chlorite and serpentine are as follows : (1) chlorite+$Mg^{++}+Si^{4+}+H_2O$=talc, (2) chlorite+$Mg^{++}+Si^{4+}+Ca^{++}+CO_2+O_2+H_2O$=talc+ dolomite+ magnesite, and (3) serpentine +$Mg^{++}+Fe^{++}+Si^{4+}+Ca^{++}+CO_2+H_2O$=talc+dolomite. The reactions indicate that the carbonate minerals can be formed when the hydrothermal solution have high $fO_2$ and $fCO_2$. The steatitization might be proceeded by the hydrothermally metasomatic reaction between chlorite schist or chlorite gneiss intercalated in the granitic gneiss and hydrothermal solution accompanied to the wet granitization.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.19-34
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• 1987

The Nokdong As-Zn deposit, located 28 km south of Kyeongju City, Southern Korea, has been investigated by a deep drilling programme. The mineralized zone is roughly 290m long and 180m wide at surface and is hosted in a pipe diatreme infilled with poor to well bedded felsic volcaniclastics. The diatreme was formed by explosive volcanic activity, of probably early Tertiary age, subsequent hydrothermal alteration and mineralization took place concurrently within stratigraphic layers in diatreme. Coarse volcaniclastics in the center part of the diatreme, together with complex systems of fracturing, acted as pathways for late hydrothermal fluids which caused alteration of volcanic material to sericite, chlorite and carbonate and precipitated ore minerals, quartz and calcite in the voids. Porosity and permeability were key factors in determining which portions of the layered diatreme were mineralized. The lower part of certain layers retained a relatively high porosity and were extensively mineralized. Metallic mineralization, consisting mostly of pyirte, sphalerite and arsenopyrite, is found as disseminations, tuff-breccia filling and veins.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.197-207
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• 1997

Rocks in the Cheongsong mine area consist of Precambrian gneiss, Cretaceous sedimentry rocks and late Cretaceous quartz porphyry. The Cheongsong deposit is composed of many hydrothermal quartz veins of strikes $N30^{\circ}{\sim}60^{\circ}W$, dips $60{\sim}85^{\circ}E$ which fill WNW fault system. Pyrite and hematite occur within transparent quartz near margins of early stage II, and milky quartz of middle stage II coexists with sphalerite, chalcopyrite and galena coexisting with Cu-Pb-Bi minerals in center part of stage II quartz veins. Stage III calcite vein filled cracks or fractures of earlier quartz veins contains native copper and chalcopyrite. Supergene minerals are chalcocite, covellite, malanchite and chrysocolla. Alteration minerals are sericite, chlorite, argillite, epitode and pyrite. Ranges of salinities and homogenization temperatures for fluid inclusions in the individual periods of stage II are: 3.7 to 7.8 wt.% eq. NaCl and 200 to $380^{\circ}C$ in transparent quartz of early stage II; 0.7 to 6.4 wt.% eq. NaCl and 200 to $320^{\circ}C$ in milky quartz of middle stage II; 0.0 to 0.9 wt.% eq. NaCl and 250 to $320^{\circ}C$ in calcite of late stage II. Those of stage III calcite range about 0 wt.% eq. NaCl, and from 140 to $260^{\circ}C$, respectively. The relationship between salinities and temperatures shows decrease tendency with paragenetic time from stage II to III. The ${\delta}^{18}O_{H_2O}$ value is 0.5‰ in stage I, range from 0.5 to -0.4‰ in stage II, and from -3.2 to -3.7‰ in stage III. Calcite in the stage II and stage III has ${\delta}^{13}C$ values of -5.0‰ and -4.5 to -4.9‰, respectively. There is a decrease in sulfur fugacity values with paragenetic time of stage II, from $10^{-6.3}$ atm for early mineralization, to $10^{-6.5}$ atm for middle stage, to $10^{-8.0}$ atm for late mineralization of stage II. The results of stable isotope and fluid inclusion indicate that ore fluids reacted with meteoric water and wall rock in the Cheongsong hydrothermal system.

• Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.397-413
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• 2008

In Gaya area, the Boseong kaolin deposits exhibit locally unusual occurrences such as downward enrichment of kaoin minerals, characteristic hydrothermal alterations (illite and stilbite), and phase relations among kaolin minerals in addition to the extensive weathering of anorthositic country rocks. This indicates that the kaolin deposits seem to be genetically formed as a mixed hydrothermal and residual model. The kaolin ores can be divided into five types on the basis of differences in occurrence, mineral composition and characters. These consist of two types of high-grade ores ranging above 80% in grade and low-grade ores as low as less than 80% including feldspar residuals or the peculiar impurity phase of illite-vermiculite-stilbite. Halloysite and kaolinite are mostly coexisted in the Boseong kaolin, and these kaolin minerals exhibit diverse appearances in crystallinity and morphology. Such a diversity in mineral phase and crystallinity seems to be originated from the complexity in genesis. In addition to these diverse characters of the kaolin, its applied-mineralogical characteristics such as chemical composition, thermal properties, whiteness, viscosity, and etc. made it disadvantageous in terms of ore quality.

• Geophysics and Geophysical Exploration
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.247-252
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• 2014

Gagok Mine, which is skarn deposits, includes sulfide minerals such as sphalerite, galena, chalcopyrite, and pyrrhotite. To explore these minerals, spectral induced polarization (SIP) is relatively effective compared to other geophysical exploration methods because there is a strong IP effect caused by electrode polarization. In the SIP, the chargeability related to sulfide mineral contents and the time constant related to the grain size of the minerals are obtained. For this reason, we aim to compare difference in the mineralized characteristics between two orebodies in the Gagok Mine by using the chargeability and the time constant. For this study, we sampled ores from the south of Wolgok orebody and the north of Sungok orebody. In order to recognize the mineralization characteristics, the metal content of the samples was measured by a potable XRF and the SIP data of the samples were acquired by using a laboratory SIP measurement system. As a result, the metals in the samples such as Pb, Zn, Cu, and Fe were detected by the portable XRF measurement. In particular, the Fe and Zn contents were far higher than the other metals. The Fe and the Zn were caused by the sphalerite and the pyrrhotite through microscopy. The Wolgok orebody had higher sulfide mineral contents than the Sungok orebody and the result corresponded with the chargeability result. However, we considered that the Sungok orebody had a larger sulfide mineral grain size than the Wolgok orebody because the time constant of the Sungok orebody was larger.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.51 no.6
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• pp.493-507
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• 2018

The Wooseok deposit in Jecheon belongs to the Hwanggangri Mineralized Distict of the northeastern Ogcheon Metamorphic Belt. Its geology consists mostly of limestone of the Choseon Supergroup and the Cretaceous Muamsa granite intruded at the eastern area of the deposit. The deposit shows vertical occurrence of skarn and hydrothermal vein ores with W-Mo-Fe and Cu-Pb-Zn mineralization and skarn is developed only at lower levels of the deposit. Skarn minerals are replaced or cut by ore minerals in paragenetic sequence of magnetite-hematite, molybdenite-scheelite-wollframite, and higher abundances of pyrrhotite-chalcopyrite-pyrite-sphalerite-galena. Garnet has chemical compositions of $Ad_{65.9-97.8}Gr_{0.3-32.0}Pyr_{0.9-3.0}$, corresponding to andradite series, and pyroxene compositions are $Hd_{4.5-49.7}Di_{42.3-93.9}Jo_{0.5-7.9}$, prevailing in diopside compositions, both of which suggest oxidized conditions of skarnization. On the FeS-MnS-CdS ternary diagram, FeS contents of sphalerite in vein ores decrease with increasing MnS contents from bottom to top levels, possibly relating to W mineralization in deep and Pb-Zn mineralization in shallow level. Sulfur isotope values of sulfide minerals range from 5.1 to 6.8‰, reflecting magmatic sulfur affected by host rocks. W-Mo skarn and Pb-Zn vein mineralization in the Wooseok deposit were established by spatio-temporal variation of decreasing temperature and oxygen fugacity with increasing sulfur fugacity from bottom to top levels.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.399-406
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• 2022

In line with the megatrend of 2050 carbon neutrality, the amount of critical minerals used in clean-energy technology is expected to increase fourfold and sixfold, respectively, according to the Paris Agreement-based scenario as well as the 2050 carbon-neutrality scenario. And, in the case of Korea, in terms of the battery supply chain used for secondary batteries, the midstream that manufactures battery materials and battery cell packs shows strength, but the upstream that provides and processes raw materials is experiencing difficulties. The Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources has established a strategy to secure lithium, nickel, and cobalt and is conducting surveys to respond to the upstream risk of these types of battery raw materials. In the case of lithium, exploration has been carried out in Uljin, Gyeongsangbuk-do since 2020, and by the end of 2021, the survey area was selected for precision exploration by synthesizing all exploration data and building a 3D model. Potential resources will be assessed in 2022. In the case of nickel, the prospective site will be selected by the end of 2022 through a preliminary survey targeting 10 nickel sulfide deposits that have been prospected in the past. In the case of cobalt, Boguk cobalt is known only in South Korea, but there is only a record that cobalt was produced as a minor constituent of hydrothermal deposit. According to the literature, a cobalt ore body was found in the contact area between serpentinite and granite, and a protocol for cobalt exploration in Korea will be established.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.147-160
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• 1994

Copper-bearing hydrothermal vein mineralization of the Samsan area was deposited in two stages (I and II) of quartz-calcite-sulfide veins which fill fissures in Cretaceous volcanic and sedimentary rocks of the Gyeongsang basin. The major ore minerals, chalcopyrite and sphalerite, together with pyrite, galena, hematite, and minor sulfosalts, occur with epidote and chlorite as gangue minerals in stage I quartz veins. Chlorite geothermometry, fluid inclusion and stable isotope data indicate that copper ore was deposited mainly at temperatures between $330^{\circ}C$ and $280^{\circ}C$ from fluids with salinities between 12 and 3 equiv. wt % NaCl. Evidence of fluid boiling indicates a range of pressures from ${\leq}100$ to 200 bars bars. Within ore stage I there was an apparent decrease in ${\delta}^{34}S$ values of $H_{2}S$ with paragenetic time, from 8.0 to 2.3 per mil. This pattern was likely achieved through progressive increases in activity of oxygen accompanying boiling and mixing. In the early part of the first stage, the high temperature, high salinity fluids gave way to progressively cooler and more dilute fluids of the late parts in the first stage and of the second stage. There is a systematic decrease in calculated ${\delta}^{18}O_{water}$ values with decreasing temperature in the Samsan hydrothermal system, from values of -86 per mil for early portion of stage I through -5.9 per mil for late portion of stage I to -6.3 per mil for stage II. The ${\delta}D$ values of fluid inclusion waters also decrease with paragenetic time from -76 per mil to -86 per mil. These trends combined with mineral paragenesis and fluid inclusion data are interpreted to indicate progressive cooler, more oxidizing meteoric water inundation of an early exchanged meteoric hydrothermal system.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.505-517
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• 1997

Lead and zinc mineralization of the Kwangsin mine was formed in quartz and carbonate veins that filled fault-related fractures in the limestone-rich Samtaesan Formation of the Chosun Supergroup and the phyllite-rich Suchangni Formation of unknown age. A K-Ar date of alteration sericite indicates that the Pb-Zn mineralization took place during Late Cretaceous (83.5 Ma), genetically in relation to the cooling of the nearby Muamsa Granite (83~87 Ma). Mineral paragenesis can be divided into three stages (I, II, III): (I) the deposition of barren massive white quartz, (II) the main Pb-Zn mineralization with deposition of white crystalline quartz and/or carbonates (rhodochrosite and dolomite), and (III) the deposition of post-ore barren calcite. Mineralogic and fluid inclusion data indicate that lead-zinc minerals in middle stage II (IIb) were deposited at temperatures between $182^{\circ}$ and $276^{\circ}C$ from fluids with salinities of 2.7 to 5.4 wt. % equiv. NaCl and with log $fs_2$ values of -15.5 to -11.8 atm. The relationship between homogenization temperature and salinity data indicates that lead-zinc deposition was a result of fluid boiling and later meteoric water mixing. Ore mineralization occurred at depths of about 600 to 700 m. Sulfur isotope compositions of sulfide minerals (${\delta}^{34}S_{CDT}=9.0{\sim}14.5$ ‰) indicate a relatively high ${\delta}^{34}S_{{\Sigma}S}$ value of ore fluids (up to 14 ‰), likely indicating an igneous source of sulfur largely mixed with an isotopically heavier sulfur source (possibly sulfates in surrounding sedimentary rocks). There is a remarkable decrease of calculated ${\delta}^{18}O$ value of water in hydrothermal fluids with increasing paragenetic time: stage I, 14.6~10.1 ‰; stage IIa, 5.8~2.2 ‰; stage IIb, 0.8~2.0 ‰; stage IIc, -6.1~-6.8 ‰, This indicates a progressive increase of meteoric water influx in the hydrothermal system at Kwangsin. Measured and calculated hydrogen and oxygen isotope values indicate that the Kwangsin hydrothermal fluids was formed from a circulating (due to intrusion of the Muamsa Granite) meteoric waters which evolved through interaction mainly with the Samtaesan Formation (${\delta}^{18}O=20.1$ to 24.9 ‰) under low water/rock ratios.