Mineralogy applied to the evaluation and processing of platinum ores of the Main Sulfide Zone, Great Dyke, Zimbabwe

摘要

The PGE-bearing Main Sulfide Zone (MSZ) of the Great Dyke was sampled underground (pristine, sulfide MSZ) and in open pits on surface (oxidized MSZ). Geochemical and mineralogical studies were carried out in order to identify the changes that take place during the weathering of the ores. New findings on the distribution and redistribution of platinum-group elements (PGE) and minerals (PGM) in the primary ores and in the supergene environment are reported, and their genetic and metallurgical implications are discussed.