Texas has a long history of mining metallic ore resources throughout the state. Copper, lead, zinc, and silver have been explored for and mined in the Trans-Pecos region of west Texas for centuries, with production waning to almost non-existent today. There are still prospects and deposits, that could be economical in as more favorable market, and with emerging technologies that include critical ore minerals.
Metallic ore research projects include:
- Shafter silver deposit
- Red Hills copper-molybdenum prospect
- Cave Peak molybdenum prospect
- Zimpleman Pass Skarn prospect (Ag, Pb, Zn, Cu, Mo)
- Quitman Mountains Bonanza and Alice Ray gold mines
- Central Texas carbonate-hosted Pb deposits
- Gulf Coast salt dome cap rock hosted Zn-Pb-Ag deposits
Research related to metallic ore mineral resources include:
- Mineralization and genesis of ore deposits
- Mineralogy, petrology, whole-rock chemistry, tectonics, structural geology, isotope geochemistry, geochronology, fluid and thermal history, mineralization, alteration and ore genesis
- Exploration and interpretation with geospatial datasets
- Estimation and reserve calculations of known and unknown resource potential
- Economic potential and supply chain mapping
- Supply and demand balances
- Application and integration with global outlooks
- Geographic (country, region, state, etc) resource and risk assessments and extractive issues
- Environmental risk and regulatory compliance issues (chemical mitigation, water issues, subsurface monitoring, etc.)
Porphyry phases at the Red Hills porphyry Mo-Cu prospect (Frelinger, 2015).
References
Becker, G. R., Kyle, J. R., 2011, Geographic distribution of metal and industrial mineral occurrences in Trans-Pecos Texas and border regions: A Google Earth® database and compilation: The University of Texas at Austin, Bureau of Economic Geology.
Frelinger, S. N., 2015, Chronology of Laramide magmatism and stockwork fracture filling at the Red Hills porphyry Mo-Cu deposit, Presidio County, Texas: Master's thesis, The University of Texas at Austin.
Frelinger, S. N., Ledvina, M. D., Kyle, J. R., and Zhao, D., 2015, Scanning electron microscopy cathodoluminescence of quartz: principles, techniques and applications in ore geology: Ore Geology Reviews, v. 65, p. 840–852. doi: org/10.1016/j.oregeorev.2014.10.008.
Gilmer, A. K., Kyle, J.R., Connelly, J. N., Mathur, R. D., and Henry, C. D., 2003, Extension of Laramide magmatism in southwestern North America into Trans-Pecos Texas: Geology, v. 31, p. 447–450.
Kyle, J. R., ed., 1995, Mineral resources of the Gulf Coast salt dome province: Society of Economic Geologists, Guidebook Series, v. 24, 126 p.
Kyle, J. R., Ahn, H., and Gilg, H. A., 2018, Nature and origin of the nonsulfide Zn deposits in the Sierra Mojada district, Coahuila, Mexico: Constraints from regional geology, petrography, and isotope analyses: Mineralium Deposita, v. 53, p. 1095–1116. doi.org/10.1007/s00126-018-0797-1.
Kyle, J. R., and Elliott, B. A., 2020, Texas mineral resources within or affected by Proterozoic basement architecture, in Callahan, O. A, and Eichhubl, P., eds., The geologic basement of Texas: A volume in honor of Peter Flawn: Report of Investigations, The University of Texas at Austin, Bureau of Economic Geology.
Kyle, J. R., and Saunders, J. A., 1996, Metallic deposits in the Gulf Coast Basin of southern North America: Diverse mineralization styles in a young sedimentary basin, in Sangster, D. F., ed., Proceedings, Society of Economic Geologists International Conference on Carbonate-hosted Lead-Zinc Deposits, p. 218–229.
Posey, H. H., Kyle, J. R., and Agee, W. N., 1994, Relations between diapiric salt structures and metal concentrations, Gulf Coast sedimentary basin, southern North America, in Fontboté, L., and Boni, M., eds., Sediment-hosted Zn-Pb Ores: Springer, p. 139–164.
Ugurhan, M., 2018, Geology, geochemistry, and geochronology of the Cave Peak porphyry Mo deposit, Trans-Pecos, Texas: Master's thesis, The University of Texas at Austin.
Williams, N. D., 2017, A predictive exploration model for MVT Pb-Zn mineralization in central Texas: Insights from the Southeast Missouri Lead District: Master's thesis, The University of Texas at Austin.
Williams, N. D., Elliott, B. A., and Kyle, J. R., 2020, A predictive geospatial exploration model for Mississippi Valley type Pb-Zn mineralization in the Southeast Missouri Lead District: Natural Resources Research, v. 29, p. 285–310. doi:10.1007/s11053-020-09618-2.
