A geochemical study of rock alteration by hot springs in the Paint Pot Hill area, Yellowstone Park

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Scientific paper

The rhyolitic country rocks in two thermal areas in Yellowstone Park have been extensively altered by hot-spring waters of widely different compositions. There are two major types of springs: 1. (1) The acid sulfate springs and mud-pots; and 2. (2) the alkaline Na-Cl-HCO 3 springs and geysers. Overflow from these springs controls the composition of the main drainage ways. The alteration process at the acid springs is easily accessible for direct observation. Nearsurface oxidation of effluent sulfur gases in these springs produces sulfuric acid which then attacks the rocks resulting in an assemblage of kaolinite, alunite and silica minerals. A typical acid water could result from a reaction between Na, K-feldspar in the rock and H 2 SO 4 of strength well within the range of values expected from oxidation of solutions saturated with H 2 S gas at the spring temperature. The compositions of all the acid springs plot in the thermodynamic stability field of alunite in the corresponding temperature range. The alkaline springs are lined with thick deposits of silica obscuring any alteration of the wall rocks. Their analyses plot in the field of stability of an idealised Na-montmorillonite phase between 25 and 95°C. It is possible, however, that some of the reactions controlling their composition take place at higher temperatures underground.

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