Volcanogenic Massive Sulphide

VMS deposits are defined as a massive accumulation of pyritic sulfides formed during discharge of hydrothermal fluids on the seafloor ("black smokers"). When economic, they tend to exhibit high grades of base metals. The metal distribution is zoned with a decrease in Cu/(Zn + Pb) upward and outward from the base of the lens-shaped massive sulfide deposit. Many deposits display a chloritized remnant feeder pipe. VMS deposits are important sources of copper, zinc, lead, gold and silver, with cobalt, tin, barium, sulfur, selenium, manganese, cadmium, indium, bismuth, tellurium, gallium and germanium as co- or by-products.

The video on VMS and SedEx has been provided by Andrew Jackson of Sprott Global Resource Investments Ltd.

Download (VMS-deposits.pdf)

• Volcanogenic Massive Sulfide Occurrence Model
  (2010) Shanks, W.C.P. III, and Thurston, R., eds., Chapter C of Mineral Deposit Models for Resource Assessment, U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2010−5070-C, 345 p.
• A New Occurrence Model for National Assessment of Undiscovered Volcanogenic Massive Sulfide Deposits
  (2009) Shanks, W.C.P., III, Dusel-Bacon, C., Koski, R., Morgan, L.A., Mosier, D., Piatak, N.M., Ridley, I., Seal, R.R., II, Schulz, K.J., Slack, J.F., Thurston, R., U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2009–1235, 27 p.
• Volcanogenic Massive Sulfide Deposits of the World - Database and Grade and Tonnage Models
  (2009) Mosier, D.L., Berger, V.I., and Singer, D.A., 2009, U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2009-1034.
• Volcanogenic Massive Sulfide Deposits of British Columbia
  (1991) Hoy, T., in Ore Deposits, Tectonics and Metallogeny in the Canadian Cordillera, Paper 1991 - 4 by W.J. McMillan, T. Höy, D.G. MacIntyre, J.L. Nelson, G.T. Nixon, J.L. Hammack, A. Panteleyev, G.E. Ray and I.C.L. Webster, Geological Survey of British Columbia, Canada.
• Volcanogenic Massive Sulphide Deposits
  (2007) Galley, A.G., Hanington, M.D., and Jonasson, I.R. in Goodfellow, W.D., ed., Mineral Deposits of Canada: A Synthesis of Major Deposit-Types, District Metallogeny, the Evolution of Geological Provinces, and Exploration Methods: Geological Association of Canada, Mineral Deposits Division, Special Publication No. 5, p.141-161.