Apport de la modélisation 3D et de la restauration structurale dans la compréhension des gisements de matières premières minérales

The objective of this Ph.D. thesis is to apply 3D and 4D modeling methods to reconstruct the architecture and deformations over time of geological entities in a defined region. Structural restoration modeling is used here to estimate geological, physical and structural attributes for understanding the origin of ore-deposits, and for identifying potential mineralized areas. We focused this thesis on 3D and 4D modeling on real case studies with different geological contexts (e.g. uplifting, fault activity and shortening), demonstrating the advantages and drawbacks on their use for similar situations. This thesis is organized into three parts: (i) the application of structural modeling in the mining district of the Copper Belt of Legnica-Glogów (south-west Poland). A surface-restoration approach was applied to estimate favorable conditions for hydraulic fracturing during an inversion, occurred in the northern part of Europe at Late Cretaceous--Early Paleocene. In our hypothesis, hydraulic fracturing developed at that time played an important role in the distribution of copper content observed in present days in the mining district. (ii) The curvature calculated on triangulated surfaces that represent the stratigraphic horizons in the Fore-Sudetic region (Poland), are used to highlight the fault systems in the basement as well as their activity. High curvature values reveal the fault activity which is associated with the copper mineralization process in the region. (iii) Mechanical restoration of the Mount Pleasant, Western Australia, simulates an Archean shortening event which occurred in the area linked to the gold mineralization process. The mechanical restoration was used to estimate the strain field in the region at the time of shortening. This deformation field was used to estimate the damage parameters of the rock mass. They show new potential gold areas located in off-fault gold systems. In conclusion, it is shown that 3D modeling and structural restoration could be used to identify potential favorable zones for the presence of mineralization, and seem promising as a tool for the exploration of ore-deposits and mineral resourcesL'objectif de cette thèse est d'expliquer les avantages qu'offrent la reconstruction de l'architecture des unités géologiques, leurs déformations ainsi que leurs variations au cours du temps à l'exploration de ressources minérales, tout en appliquant des méthodes et outils de modélisation 3D et 4D. La modélisation et la restauration structurale sont utilisées ici pour estimer des attributs géologiques qui peuvent aider à la compréhension de la formation des gisements, et à l'identification des zones favorables aux minéralisations. Cette thèse est axée sur l'application de la modélisation 3D et 4D à des cas réels pour trouver le lien entre une minéralisation et des processus géologiques tel que l'exhumation des terrains, l'activité des failles et la fracturation résultant d'un évènement de déformation. Ce mémoire est organisé en trois parties : (i) la modélisation structurale ainsi que la restauration surfacique ont été appliquées au district minier de la Ceinture de Cuivre de Legnica-Glogów (sud-ouest de la Pologne), pour estimer les conditions favorables à la fracturation hydraulique. Cette fracturation est intervenue dans le nord de l'Europe lors d'une phase d'inversion à la fin du Crétacé et au début du Paléocène. Dans notre hypothèse de départ, la fracturation hydraulique développée au cours de cette période a joué un rôle important dans la distribution en cuivre observée aujourd'hui dans le district minier ; (ii) la courbure des surfaces triangulées, représentant les horizons de la région des Sudètes polonaises, permet de mettre en évidence les systèmes de failles dans le socle. En particulier, des méthodes de restauration surfaciques ont été utilisées pour évaluer l'activité de des failles au cours du temps, en se basant sur la courbure des surfaces obtenues à chaque étape de la restauration. Les zones de fortes activités sont ici associées aux processus de minéralisation cuprifère de la région ; (iii) la restauration mécanique de la région de Mount Pleasant (Australie occidentale), a permis de simuler un évènement de raccourcissement apparu dans l'Archéen et qui est lié à un processus de minéralisation aurifère. La restauration mécanique est appliquée pour estimer le champ des déformations de la région au moment du raccourcissement. Avec ce champ de déformation, il est possible de calculer les paramètres d'endommagement de la masse rocheuse qui semblent liés aux zones aurifères situées hors des systèmes principaux de failles. Cette thèse a ainsi permis de mettre en évidence l'aspect prometteur de la modélisation et de la restauration structurale pour identifier des zones potentiellement minéralisées, mettant en valeur leur utilisation pour l'exploration des gisements et des ressources minérale

Ore-deposits modeling and improving their understanding with structural restoration

L'objectif de cette thèse est d'expliquer les avantages qu'offrent la reconstruction de l'architecture des unités géologiques, leurs déformations ainsi que leurs variations au cours du temps à l'exploration de ressources minérales, tout en appliquant des méthodes et outils de modélisation 3D et 4D. La modélisation et la restauration structurale sont utilisées ici pour estimer des attributs géologiques qui peuvent aider à la compréhension de la formation des gisements, et à l'identification des zones favorables aux minéralisations. Cette thèse est axée sur l'application de la modélisation 3D et 4D à des cas réels pour trouver le lien entre une minéralisation et des processus géologiques tel que l'exhumation des terrains, l'activité des failles et la fracturation résultant d'un évènement de déformation. Ce mémoire est organisé en trois parties : (i) la modélisation structurale ainsi que la restauration surfacique ont été appliquées au district minier de la Ceinture de Cuivre de Legnica-Glogów (sud-ouest de la Pologne), pour estimer les conditions favorables à la fracturation hydraulique. Cette fracturation est intervenue dans le nord de l'Europe lors d'une phase d'inversion à la fin du Crétacé et au début du Paléocène. Dans notre hypothèse de départ, la fracturation hydraulique développée au cours de cette période a joué un rôle important dans la distribution en cuivre observée aujourd'hui dans le district minier ; (ii) la courbure des surfaces triangulées, représentant les horizons de la région des Sudètes polonaises, permet de mettre en évidence les systèmes de failles dans le socle. En particulier, des méthodes de restauration surfaciques ont été utilisées pour évaluer l'activité de des failles au cours du temps, en se basant sur la courbure des surfaces obtenues à chaque étape de la restauration. Les zones de fortes activités sont ici associées aux processus de minéralisation cuprifère de la région ; (iii) la restauration mécanique de la région de Mount Pleasant (Australie occidentale), a permis de simuler un évènement de raccourcissement apparu dans l'Archéen et qui est lié à un processus de minéralisation aurifère. La restauration mécanique est appliquée pour estimer le champ des déformations de la région au moment du raccourcissement. Avec ce champ de déformation, il est possible de calculer les paramètres d'endommagement de la masse rocheuse qui semblent liés aux zones aurifères situées hors des systèmes principaux de failles. Cette thèse a ainsi permis de mettre en évidence l'aspect prometteur de la modélisation et de la restauration structurale pour identifier des zones potentiellement minéralisées, mettant en valeur leur utilisation pour l'exploration des gisements et des ressources minéralesThe objective of this Ph.D. thesis is to apply 3D and 4D modeling methods to reconstruct the architecture and deformations over time of geological entities in a defined region. Structural restoration modeling is used here to estimate geological, physical and structural attributes for understanding the origin of ore-deposits, and for identifying potential mineralized areas. We focused this thesis on 3D and 4D modeling on real case studies with different geological contexts (e.g. uplifting, fault activity and shortening), demonstrating the advantages and drawbacks on their use for similar situations. This thesis is organized into three parts: (i) the application of structural modeling in the mining district of the Copper Belt of Legnica-Glogów (south-west Poland). A surface-restoration approach was applied to estimate favorable conditions for hydraulic fracturing during an inversion, occurred in the northern part of Europe at Late Cretaceous--Early Paleocene. In our hypothesis, hydraulic fracturing developed at that time played an important role in the distribution of copper content observed in present days in the mining district. (ii) The curvature calculated on triangulated surfaces that represent the stratigraphic horizons in the Fore-Sudetic region (Poland), are used to highlight the fault systems in the basement as well as their activity. High curvature values reveal the fault activity which is associated with the copper mineralization process in the region. (iii) Mechanical restoration of the Mount Pleasant, Western Australia, simulates an Archean shortening event which occurred in the area linked to the gold mineralization process. The mechanical restoration was used to estimate the strain field in the region at the time of shortening. This deformation field was used to estimate the damage parameters of the rock mass. They show new potential gold areas located in off-fault gold systems. In conclusion, it is shown that 3D modeling and structural restoration could be used to identify potential favorable zones for the presence of mineralization, and seem promising as a tool for the exploration of ore-deposits and mineral resource

Estimation of gold potentials using 3D restoration modeling, Mount Pleasant Area, Western Australia

International audienceA broad variety of gold-deposits are related to fault systems developed during a deformation event. Such discontinuities control the metals transport and allow the relatively high permeability necessary for the metals accumulation during the ore-deposits formation. However, some gold deposits formed during the same deformation event occur at locations far from the main faults. In those cases, the fracture systems are related with the rock heterogeneity that partially controls the damage development on the rock mass. A geo-mechanical 3D restoration modeling approach was used to simulate the strain developed during a stretching episode occurred in the Mount Pleasant region, Western Australia. Firstly a 3D solid-model was created from geological maps and interpreted structural cross-sections available on the studied region. The backward model was obtained flattening a stretching-representative reference surface selected from the lithology sequence. The deformation modeling was carried out on a 3D model built on Gocad/Skua and restored using a full geo-mechanical modeling based on a finite element method used to compute the volume restoration in a 600 m tetrahedral-mesh-resolution solid. The 3D structural restoration of the region was performed flattening surfaces using a flexural slip deformation style. Results show how the rock heterogeneity allows damages in locations far from the fault systems. The distant off-fault damage areas are located preferentially in lithological contacts and also follow the deformation trend of the region. Using a logistic regression method, it is shown that off-fault zones with high gold occurrences correlate spatially on locations with locally-high-gradient first deformational parameter, obtained from the restoration strain field. This contribution may provide some explanation for the presence of gold accumulations away from main fault systems, and the method could be used for inferring favorable areas in exploration surveys

Gold Potential Maps using 3D Restoration, Mount Pleasant Area, Western Australia

International audienceA broad variety of gold-deposits are related to fault systems developed during a deformation event. Such discontinuities control the metals transport and allow the relatively high permeability necessary for the metals accumulation during the ore-deposits formation. However, some gold deposits formed during the same deformation event occur at locations far from the main faults. In those cases, the fracture systems are related with the rock heterogeneity that partially controls the damage development on the rock mass. A geo-mechanical 3D restoration modeling approach was used to simulate the strain developed during a stretching episode occurred in the Mount Pleasant region, Western Australia. Firstly a 3D solid-model was created from geological maps and interpreted structural cross-sections available on the studied region. The backward model was obtained flattening a stretching-representative reference surface selected from the lithology sequence. The deformation modeling was carried out on a 3D model built on Gocad/Skua and restored using a full geo-mechanical modeling based on a finite element method used to compute the volume restoration in a 600 m tetrahedral-mesh-resolution solid. The 3D structural restoration of the region was performed flattening surfaces using a flexural slip deformation style. Results show how the rock heterogeneity allows damages in locations far from the fault systems. The distant off-fault damage areas are located preferentially in lithological contacts and also follow the deformation trend of the region. Using a logistic regression method, it is shown that off-fault zones with high gold occurrences correlate spatially on locations with locally-high-gradient first deformational parameter, obtained from the restoration strain field. This contribution may provide some explanation for the presence of gold accumulations away from main fault systems, and the method could be used for inferring favorable areas in exploration surveys

Gold Potentials Estimation using 3D Restoration Modeling – Mount Pleasant Area, Western Australia

International audienceGold deposits are used to be related to fault systems that control metals’ transport and accumulation through relatively high permeable discontinuous structures. However, some coeval gold deposits occur at locations far from the main faults. In those cases, fractures appear due to the rock mass heterogeneity. This work may explain the presence of such gold accumulations in Mount Pleasant region, Western Australia, by applying restoration tools to estimate strains during the stretching tectonic phase. Firstly, a 3D Gocad/Skua solid-model was built by using available geological maps and cross-sections. The backward model was obtained by flattening a stretching-representative reference surface selected from the litho-time scale sequence. The present 3D model was restored regionally assuming a flexural slip deformation style and using a full geomechanical finite-element-based approach. Rock heterogeneities drive damages in locations far from the fault systems. The off-fault damage areas which follow the regional deformation trend are located preferentially in lithological contacts. Based on a logistic regression method, it is shown that high gold occurrences off-fault zones coincide spatially with locally-high-gradients of the first deformational parameter calculated on the restored strain tensor. This methodology could be used for inferring favorable areas in green exploration fields

Estimation of gold potentials using 3D restoration modeling, Mount Pleasant Area, Western Australia

International audienceA broad variety of gold-deposits are related to fault systems developed during a deformation event. Such discontinuities control the metals transport and allow the relatively high permeability necessary for the metals accumulation during the ore-deposits formation. However, some gold deposits formed during the same deformation event occur at locations far from the main faults. In those cases, the fracture systems are related with the rock heterogeneity that partially controls the damage development on the rock mass. A geo-mechanical 3D restoration modeling approach was used to simulate the strain developed during a stretching episode occurred in the Mount Pleasant region, Western Australia. Firstly a 3D solid-model was created from geological maps and interpreted structural cross-sections available on the studied region. The backward model was obtained flattening a stretching-representative reference surface selected from the lithology sequence. The deformation modeling was carried out on a 3D model built on Gocad/Skua and restored using a full geo-mechanical modeling based on a finite element method used to compute the volume restoration in a 600 m tetrahedral-mesh-resolution solid. The 3D structural restoration of the region was performed flattening surfaces using a flexural slip deformation style. Results show how the rock heterogeneity allows damages in locations far from the fault systems. The distant off-fault damage areas are located preferentially in lithological contacts and also follow the deformation trend of the region. Using a logistic regression method, it is shown that off-fault zones with high gold occurrences correlate spatially on locations with locally-high-gradient first deformational parameter, obtained from the restoration strain field. This contribution may provide some explanation for the presence of gold accumulations away from main fault systems, and the method could be used for inferring favorable areas in exploration surveys

Estimation of gold potentials using 3D restoration modeling, Mount Pleasant Area, Western Australia

International audienceA broad variety of gold-deposits are related to fault systems developed during a deformation event. Such discontinuities control the metals transport and allow the relatively high permeability necessary for the metals accumulation during the ore-deposits formation. However, some gold deposits formed during the same deformation event occur at locations far from the main faults. In those cases, the fracture systems are related with the rock heterogeneity that partially controls the damage development on the rock mass. A geo-mechanical 3D restoration modeling approach was used to simulate the strain developed during a stretching episode occurred in the Mount Pleasant region, Western Australia. Firstly a 3D solid-model was created from geological maps and interpreted structural cross-sections available on the studied region. The backward model was obtained flattening a stretching-representative reference surface selected from the lithology sequence. The deformation modeling was carried out on a 3D model built on Gocad/Skua and restored using a full geo-mechanical modeling based on a finite element method used to compute the volume restoration in a 600 m tetrahedral-mesh-resolution solid. The 3D structural restoration of the region was performed flattening surfaces using a flexural slip deformation style. Results show how the rock heterogeneity allows damages in locations far from the fault systems. The distant off-fault damage areas are located preferentially in lithological contacts and also follow the deformation trend of the region. Using a logistic regression method, it is shown that off-fault zones with high gold occurrences correlate spatially on locations with locally-high-gradient first deformational parameter, obtained from the restoration strain field. This contribution may provide some explanation for the presence of gold accumulations away from main fault systems, and the method could be used for inferring favorable areas in exploration surveys