Green-blue Coloured Cu-Zn Hydrated Sulfate Minerals from Gukjeon Mine in Miryang

Green-blue coloured supergene minerals are covering host rocks along the gallery wall in the Gukjeon mine, a lead - zinc skarn deposit located in Miryang, Gyeongsangnam-do. These minerals have been described as azurite or malachite, but recent study recognized that the green minerals are devilline and blue minerals are Cu-Zn hydrated sulfates, but exact identification and detailed mineral characteristics are also not well known. In this study, we divide green-blue minerals into five groups (GJG) according to their external features and conducted XRD and SEM analyzes in order to identify mineral name and clarify the mineralogical characteristics. GJG-1, a bright bluish green group, consists of brochantite and quartz and GJG-2, a pale green colour with easily crumbly, of schulenbergite and a small amount of gypsum. Although pale blue GJG-3 and glassy lustrous bluish green GJG-4 have the same mineral assemblages with serpierite and gypsum in spite of different colour and luster, gypsum content may control the physical properties. GJG-5 with a gel phase mixture of pale blue and dark blue mineral is comprised of hydrowoodwardite, glaucocerinite, bechererite, serpierite and gypsum. The six green-blue minerals from the Gukjeon mine could be classified by Cu:Zn ratio, (Si + Al) content, Si:Al ratio, and Ca content. The physico-chemical environment of mineral formation is considered to be controlled by the geochemical factors in the surrounding fluid, and it looks forward that the accurate formation environment will be revealed through additional research. This paper gives greater mineralogical significance in the first report of several hydrated sulfate such as serpierite, glaucocerinite and bechererite in Korea. It has also rarely been reported the occurrence of several Cu-Zn hydrated sulfate in the same deposit in the world.