Correlation between Cu mineralization and major faults using multifractal modelling in the Tarom area (NW Iran)

The Tarom 1: 100,000 sheet is located within the Cenozoic Tarom-Hashtjin volcano-plutonic belt, NW Iran. Reconstruction of the tectonic and structural setting of the hydrothermal deposits is fundamental to predictive models of different ore deposits. Since fractal/multifractal modelling is an effective instrument for separation of geological and mineralized zones from background, therefore Concentration-Distance to Major Fault (C-DMF) fractal model and distribution of Cu anomalies were used to classify Cu mineralizations according to their distance to major faults. Application of the C-DMF model for the classification of Cu mineralization in the Tarom 1: 100,000 sheet reveals that the main copper mineralizations have a strong correlation with their distance to major faults in the area. The distances of known copper mineralizations having Cu values higher than 2.2 % to major faults are less than 10 km showing a positive correlation between Cu mineralization and tectonic events. Moreover, extreme and high Cu anomalies based on stream sediments and lithogeochemical data were identified by the Number-Size (N-S) fractal model. These anomalies have distances to major faults less than 10 km and validate the results derived via the C-DMF fractal model. The C-DMF fractal modelling can be utilized for the reconnaissance and prospecting of magmatic and hydrothermal deposits.