Determination of Cu porphyry hydrothermal alterations using multivariate analysis methods on lithogeochemical data in Hararan area, Kerman province

In geological sciences, especially geochemistry, multivariate statistical methods have many applications. So that, they were employed as a new application for recognition main alterations in Cu-Mo porphyry system such as argillic, potassic, and propylitic alterations. For determination of alteration areas, results of 607 lithogeochemical samples were utilized in Hararan area, which appears to possess the potentiality for porphyry mineralization and locates in Baft sheet (1:100,000 series) in the southeast of Iran. 607 rock samples were analyzed by ICP-MS in Amdel laboratory for 45 elements. However, it used just the results of Ca, Na, Al, Fe, S, K, Rb, Mg elements for this paper. Results of hierarchical cluster and k- means Cluster methods showed two different clusters: K, Rb, S elements and Mg, Ca, Na, Al, Fe elements have been in cluster 1 and cluster 2, respectively. Cluster1 and cluster2 introduced as potassic and argillic alterations and propylitic alteration, respectively. The results of factor analysis not only confirmed the above results but also the first factor map depicted small areas of argillic and potassic alterations in the southern parts of the region, so that these areas did not identify by k-means cluster method.