History of the Copper Mountain (Morenci) Mining District, Greenlee County, Arizona
Issue Date
2016-11-22Keywords
Arizona Geological Survey Contributed ReportsHistoric
Basin and Range Province
Greenlee County
Clifton-Morenci Area
Morenci
Freeport-McMoRan
Phelps-Dodge
historic mining
porphyry coppercopperminingCopper MountainTransition ZoneDetroit Copper Mining Co.
Metadata
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Briggs, D.F., 2016, History of the Copper Mountain (Morenci) Mining District, Greenlee County, Arizona. Arizona Geological Survey Contributed Report CR-16-C, 77 p, 2 appendices.Description
The Copper Mountain (Morenci) mining district is located approximately 115 miles northeast of Tucson, Arizona (Figure 1). It lies along the southern boundary of the Transitional physiographic province, a rugged mountainous region that separates the Colorado Plateau from the Basin and Range province. The discovery of copper at Morenci during the turbulent years of the American Civil War brought new opportunities for many, but foreshadowed the end of a way of life for Native Americans, who had lived in the region for millennia. A diverse cast of characters has played a role in Morenci's history, including veterans who ventured west after the war, as well as immigrants eager to make a new life in America.Additional Links
http://repository.azgs.az.gov/uri_gin/azgs/dlio/1695Language
enSeries/Report no.
CR-16-CRights
Arizona Geological Survey. All rights reserved.Collection Information
Documents in the AZGS Document Repository collection are made available by the Arizona Geological Survey (AZGS) and the University Libraries at the University of Arizona. For more information about items in this collection, please contact azgs-info@email.arizona.edu.North Bounding Coordinate
33.1586South Bounding Coordinate
32.9998West Bounding Coordinate
-109.419East Bounding Coordinate
-109.271Collections
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THE EVALUATION OF SUPERGENE COPPER DEPOSITS FOR IN SITU LEACHING.Copper from dump, heap, and in situ leaching accounts for about 15% of United States copper production. In situ leaching is the least understood and most difficult to evaluate of these leaching methods. Several types of supergene copper deposits are derived from porphyry copper systems depending on the geologic and climatic factors involved in the formation of a deposit. The geologic and climatic factors involved in the formation of a deposit. The geologic evaluation of a deposit should provide most of the basic information required to access a deposit for in situ leaching. Metallurgical testing can determine the leachability and acid consumption of the ore as well as the need for an oxidizing agent through the use of agitation and column leaching tests. The location of the deposit with respect to the water table determines the type of ground preparation required. Hydraulic fracturing can be used for deposits below the water table and blasting or caving can be used for deposits above the water table. Fluid flow through the deposit depends on the method of application, the permeability of the deposit, and the method of egress from the deposit. The leaching of a copper "oxide" deposit depends on the strength and volume of sulfuric acid which reaches the ore. The leaching of a copper sulfide deposit depends on an oxidant as well as sulfuric acid reaching the ore.
