Geochemistry and Hydrothermal Alteration at Selected Utah Hot Springs. Final Report

Download or read book Geochemistry and Hydrothermal Alteration at Selected Utah Hot Springs. Final Report written by and published by . This book was released on 1976 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Application of Na-K-Ca geothermometry to warm springs in Utah indicates several areas with sufficiently high apparent temperatures to be of interest as geothermal exploration targets. A zone of warm springs in the Bonneville Basin show Na-K-Ca temperatures from 150°C to 233°C. Examination of Great Salt Lake, Bonneville sediment pore water, and Jordan Valley well-water chemistry indicates that mixing a small percent of these fluids with warm spring water can cause substantial errors in Na-K-Ca temperature estimates. Other saline deposits which may influence Na-K-Ca temperature estimates are the Paradox formation in southeastern Utah, the Muddy Creek formation in southwestern Utah, the Arapien shale in central Utah, the Preuss formation in northeastern Utah, and Playa salts in much of western Utah. The Roosevelt KGRA is the most attractive target identified by Na-K-Ca geothermometry. Hydrothermal alteration, heavy metal distribution, and water chemistry provide additional characterization of the Roosevelt system. Chemistry of a cool water seep (25°C) shows Na-K-Ca temperature of 241°C and SiO2 temperature of 125°C. A Phillips well flowing from below 1500' (457m) shows Na-K-Ca temperature of 262°C, SiO2 temperature of 262°C, and K of 1.5 times the surface spring value. The near surface alteration assemblage is best explained in terms of a decrease in pH of near surface fluids as sulfide oxidizes. Increasing potassium and pH with depth indicates that a K-feldspar stable zone may be intersected with deeper drilling. Geology and alteration were mapped in the Monroe KGRA. (JGB).