Abstract:
Muhammad Khel area lies in North Waziristan district of Kyber Pakhtunkhwa
province of Pakistan and falls in the Survey of Pakistan Top sheet No. 38 H/13. The
Muhammad Khel and the surrounding areas comprise mainly ophiolites, known as the
Waziristan ophiolite complex. A complete ophiolite sequence is exposed in the area.
The area contains chromite, iron, manganese and copper deposits. Pillow and the
brecciated basalts of the complex contain chalcopyrite, bornite, malachite and pyrite
which occur mainly along fractures, veins and stockwork deposits. The presence of
gossans in the area indicates that these deposits are formed due supergene enrichment
activity. In thin section study, intensive chloritization and at places silicification are
noticed along fractures and veins due to hydrothermal activity. The groundmass also
shows chloritization after alteration of pyroxenes and plagioclase in basalts. The XRD
analysis confirm copper sulphides ores as chalcopyrite and pyrite and goethite,
jarosite and hematite in gossans ore samples. The presence of copper sulphide in
brecciated and fractured oceanic crust basalt indicates that Muhammad Khel sulphide
deposits formed due to deep circulation of oxygenated sea water along fractures
passing through submarine pillow lavas, therefore, termed hereby as the volcanogenic
massive sulphide deposits (VMS). These deposits are formed during ocean floor
spreading activity. The VMS deposits of the investigated area can be correlated with
Cyprus type sulphide deposits of the Troodos ophiolite complex, which shows
similarity in lithology, tectonic setting and mode of mineralization of the sulphide
ores and related minerals.
