Geology, alteration, mineralization and geochemistry of the North Narbaghi epithermal Ag-Cu deposit, northeast Saveh

The North Narbaghi deposit is located approximately 26 km northeast of the city of Saveh in the central part of Urumieh-Dokhtar magmatic arc of Iran. In this area, the Oligo-Miocene intrusive rocks cut the Eocene volcano-sedimentary rocks intruding into the surrounding rocks causing extensive alteration zones such as phyllic, argillic, propylitic and tourmalinization. The intrusive rocks include diorite, monzodiorite, megadiorite with calc-alkaline nature which formed as a result of subduction of the Neo-Tethyan oceanic crust beneath the Central Iranian block. The epithermal Ag-Cu mineralization at North Narbaghi, with vein-veinlet and breccia geometries is mainly hosted in andesite, lithic tuff, diorite and monzodiorite. At the North Narbaghi deposit, ore minerals can be divided into four groups: sulfides (chalcopyrite, pyrite, sphalerite, bornite), sulfosalts (tetrahedrite, tennantite), carbonates (azurite, malachite) and oxides (hematite, goethite). The alteration shows a relative concentration pattern at the North Narbaghi deposit; the argillic, sericitic and calcite alteration types are in close connection with the Ag-Cu mineralization and the propylitic and tourmalinization alteration types occur at the margin of mineralization. The main characteristics of mineralization such as geodynamic environment, host rocks, mineralogy, metal content, geometry, alteration and comparing these features with the characteristics of epithermal deposits, show that the North Narbaghi deposit can be classified as a typical intermediate-sulfidation (IS) epithermal mineralization.