Opaque Mineral Content of Dutluca Volcanics (Burhani̇ye - Balikesi̇r): The Effect of Hydrothermal Alteration on These Minerals

Abstract

Dutluca volcanics, which are known as Hallaçlar Formation in regional scale in the study area (Kurshensky, 1976), are composed of hydrothermally altered andesite and basaltic andesite. In these rocks, sulfidic minerals such as pyrite, enargite and chalcosine, and oxide and hydroxide minerals such as magnetite, hematite and goethite were detected as opaque minerals. The presence of enargite in opaque mineral paragenesis, and the changes observed in structures and textures of opaque and silicate minerals indicate that examined volcanics have been altered by highly sulfidic hydrothermal solutions. During the hydrothermal alteration process, which indicates at least in two phases, a diffuse pyritization rich in H 2 S in reducing conditions and enargite mineral, which is known as pathfinder minerals in such processes, formed in the first phase. Later on; the extensive martitization developed in oxidizing conditions.