Use of fractal statistics in the analysis of Mo-Cu mineralisation at Mace Head, County Galway

The capacity of fractal statistics to describe the geometry of mineralized vein systems has been tested for a series of molybdenite- and chalcopyrite-bearing quartz veins at Mace Head, County Galway. Vein thicknesses are described best by a power-law distribution and vein spacings by a log-normal distribution. Vein lengths and thicknesses are also related to each other by a power-law distribution. This relationship may be a product of non-linear amplification of initially randomly spaced veins and causes outcrop-scale veins to be relatively more elongate than on a map. This self-affine fractal geometry is reflected in vein size distributions and can be used as a predictive tool. -from Authors