Experimental Abrasion Study of the Evolution of Gold Morphological Criteria in Different Sediments as a Function of Time

Abstract

The use of gold as a tracer element for understanding the mode of emplacement of these formations requires a good knowledge of its dynamics. To this end, we have carried out experimental studies to investigate the evolution of contour states (regular, irregular), surface states (blunt, rough), shape (elongation) and dimension (size). The study of these criteria is carried out on SEM photos of particles, taken before and after the experiment, using Aphelion image processing software. Five experiments were carried out to study the influence of sediment granulometry and water dilution on particle morphological changes. The results of these experiments show that coarse sediments (>1 mm) are largely responsible for morphological changes in gold. They cause fragmentation and/or folding of the particle edges, depending on the magnitude of the impact forces. Strong impacts due to high water dilution cause staking on the particle surface. Fine sediments (<1 mm) slow down particle evolution as they cushion impacts and particles tend to flatten rather than fragment.