Mercury Vapor

Exploration Technique: Mercury Vapor

Details
Activities (23)
Areas (23)
Regions (0)
NEPA(0)

"{{{ExplorationCostPerMetric}}}" is not in the list of possible values (100 feet cut, 30 foot core, compound, day, element, foot, hour, mile, point, process, sample, sq. mile, station, Subject, well) for this property.

"{{{ExplorationTimePerMetric}}}" is not in the list of possible values (job, 10 mile, 10 stn, 100 mile, sq. mile, foot) for this property.

Exploration Technique Information
Exploration Group:	Lab Analysis Techniques
Exploration Sub Group:	Fluid Lab Analysis
Parent Exploration Technique:	Fluid Lab Analysis
Information Provided by Technique
Lithology:
Stratigraphic/Structural:	Anomalously high concentrations can indicate high permeability or conduit for fluid flow
Hydrological:	Field wide soil sampling can generate a geometrical approximation of fluid circulation
Thermal:	High concentration in soils can be indicative of active hydrothermal activity

Mercury Vapor:

Mercury is discharged as a highly volatile vapor during hydrothermal activity and high concentrations in soils can be used to approximate the geometry of fluid circulation in an active hydrothermal system.

Other definitions:Wikipedia Reegle

Introduction

"Mercury is a natural byproduct of mantle or deep-crustal derived fluids, high concentrations can be indicative of high crustal heat flow, exposed or outcropping ore deposits, areas of deep crustal faulting, and/or seismic activity (Schluter, 2000). Due to Mercury’s volatility it can be used to locate high temperature geothermal resources." cannot be used as a page name in this wiki.

Mercury is a natural byproduct of mantle or deep-crustal derived fluids, high concentrations can be indicative of high crustal heat flow, exposed or outcropping ore deposits, areas of deep crustal faulting, and/or seismic activity (Schluter, 2000). Due to Mercury’s volatility it can be used to locate high temperature geothermal resources.

Use in Geothermal Exploration

"High mercury content in vapors or soils is an indication of geothermal activity. Varekamp and Buseck (1983) describe a methodology of characterizing a geothermal resource based on mercury concentrations. Due to the imprint mercury vapors make on soils, the geometry of mercury anomalies can be used to construct a rough geometry of the circulation of hydrothermal fluids. The standards described by Varekamp and Buseck (1983) are “Peak values (up to several 100 ppm Hg) occur in fumaroles of vapor-dominated systems, around hot springs, and in zones overlying steeply dipping, hot-water aquifers. Aureole values (up to several 100 ppb Hg) are found in zones surrounding the peak areas and delineate areas with shallow geothermal convection. Background values vary between 7 and 40 ppb Hg (geometric mean).”" cannot be used as a page name in this wiki.

High mercury content in vapors or soils is an indication of geothermal activity. Varekamp and Buseck (1983) describe a methodology of characterizing a geothermal resource based on mercury concentrations. Due to the imprint mercury vapors make on soils, the geometry of mercury anomalies can be used to construct a rough geometry of the circulation of hydrothermal fluids. The standards described by Varekamp and Buseck (1983) are “Peak values (up to several 100 ppm Hg) occur in fumaroles of vapor-dominated systems, around hot springs, and in zones overlying steeply dipping, hot-water aquifers. Aureole values (up to several 100 ppb Hg) are found in zones surrounding the peak areas and delineate areas with shallow geothermal convection. Background values vary between 7 and 40 ppb Hg (geometric mean).”

Related Techniques

"Soil Sampling]] [[Gas Flux Sampling" cannot be used as a page name in this wiki.

Soil Sampling

Gas Flux Sampling

Potential Pitfalls

Typically mercury attaches to soils or clays and can be re-volatized into the atmosphere not long after it arrives, but occasionally it can be incorporated in to a mineral structure as either a primary (cinnabar) or as a trace constituent (pyrite, sphalerite, etc.). This can bind the mercury from volatizing into the atmosphere further complicating the interpretation between paleo and present geothermal systems (Varekamp and Buseck, 1983).

References

Schluter, 2000, http://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007%2Fs002540050005.pdf<br:/>Varekamp & Buseck, 1983, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0375650583900391

Page	Area	Activity End Date	Reference Material
Mercury Vapor (Kooten, 1987)	Unspecified		Geothermal Exploration Using Surface Mercury Geochemistry
Mercury Vapor At Akutan Fumaroles Area (Kolker, Et Al., 2010)	Akutan Fumaroles Area		Geothermal Exploration At Akutan, Alaska- Favorable Indications For A High-Enthalpy Hydrothermal Resource Near A Remote Market
Mercury Vapor At Breitenbush Hot Springs Area (Varekamp & Buseck, 1983)	Breitenbush Hot Springs Area		Hg Anomalies In Soils- A Geochemical Exploration Method For Geothermal Areas
Mercury Vapor At Desert Peak Area (Varekamp & Buseck, 1983)	Desert Peak Area		Hg Anomalies In Soils- A Geochemical Exploration Method For Geothermal Areas
Mercury Vapor At Haleakala Volcano Area (Thomas, 1986)	Haleakala Volcano Area		Geothermal Resources Assessment In Hawaii
Mercury Vapor At Hualalai Northwest Rift Area (Thomas, 1986)	Hualalai Northwest Rift Area		Geothermal Resources Assessment In Hawaii
Mercury Vapor At Kawaihae Area (Thomas, 1986)	Kawaihae Area		Geothermal Resources Assessment In Hawaii
Mercury Vapor At Kilauea East Rift Area (Thomas, 1986)	Kilauea East Rift Area		Geothermal Resources Assessment In Hawaii
Mercury Vapor At Lahaina-Kaanapali Area (Thomas, 1986)	Lahaina-Kaanapali Area		Geothermal Resources Assessment In Hawaii
Mercury Vapor At Lassen Volcanic National Park Area (Varekamp & Buseck, 1983)	Lassen Volcanic National Park Area		Hg Anomalies In Soils- A Geochemical Exploration Method For Geothermal Areas
Mercury Vapor At Long Valley Caldera Geothermal Area (Klusman & Landress, 1979)	Long Valley Caldera Geothermal Area	1979	Mercury In Soils Of The Long Valley, California, Geothermal System
Mercury Vapor At Lualualei Valley Area (Thomas, 1986)	Lualualei Valley Area		Geothermal Resources Assessment In Hawaii
Mercury Vapor At Mauna Loa Northeast Rift Area (Thomas, 1986)	Mauna Loa Northeast Rift Area		Geothermal Resources Assessment In Hawaii
Mercury Vapor At Mccoy Geothermal Area (DOE GTP)	Mccoy Geothermal Area		GTP ARRA Spreadsheet
Mercury Vapor At Medicine Lake Area (Kooten, 1987)	Medicine Lake Area		Geothermal Exploration Using Surface Mercury Geochemistry
Mercury Vapor At Mickey Hot Springs Area (Varekamp & Buseck, 1983)	Mickey Hot Springs Area		Hg Anomalies In Soils- A Geochemical Exploration Method For Geothermal Areas
Mercury Vapor At Mokapu Penninsula Area (Thomas, 1986)	Mokapu Penninsula Area		Geothermal Resources Assessment In Hawaii
Mercury Vapor At Olowalu-Ukumehame Canyon Area (Thomas, 1986)	Olowalu-Ukumehame Canyon Area		Geothermal Resources Assessment In Hawaii
Mercury Vapor At Salt Wells Area (Henkle, Et Al., 2005)	Salt Wells Area	2005	Mercury Geochemical, Groundwater Geochemical, And Radiometric Geophysical Signatures At Three Geothermal Prospects In Northern Nevada
Mercury Vapor At Silver Peak Area (Henkle, Et Al., 2005)	Silver Peak Area		Mercury Geochemical, Groundwater Geochemical, And Radiometric Geophysical Signatures At Three Geothermal Prospects In Northern Nevada
Mercury Vapor At Socorro Mountain Area (Kooten, 1987)	Socorro Mountain Area		Geothermal Exploration Using Surface Mercury Geochemistry
Mercury Vapor At Vale Hot Springs Area (Varekamp & Buseck, 1983)	Vale Hot Springs Area		Hg Anomalies In Soils- A Geochemical Exploration Method For Geothermal Areas
Mercury Vapor At Valley Of Ten Thousand Smokes Region Area (Kodosky, 1989)	Valley Of Ten Thousand Smokes Region Area		Surface Mercury Geochemistry As A Guide To Volcanic Vent Structure And Zones Of High Heat Flow In The Valley Of Ten Thousand Smokes, Katmai National Park, Alaska

{{}}