Natural Resources Research, Vol. 31, No.

1, February 2022 ( 2021)

https://doi.org/10.1007/s11053-021-09978-3

Original Paper

Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation

of Cold-Water Trap in the Low-Sulfidation Epithermal
Sirawai Au–Ag Deposit, Mindanao, Philippines

Hiroshi Takahashi ,1,4 Shohei Albert Tomita,2 Katsuaki Koike,2 and Hiroo Yoshiyama3

Received 8 May 2021; accepted 3 November 2021

Published online: 27 January 2022

For low-sulfidation epithermal deposits, which are globally significant sources of Au and Ag,
we propose a new multi-stage ore-deposition mechanism initiated by cold groundwater. This
cold-water trap was verified in the Philippine Sirawai Au–Ag deposit through geological
modeling using the data of ore minerals, X-ray diffraction-based alteration minerals, and
fluid-inclusions, and the numerical simulation of fluid flow using TOUGH2. Gold grades and
Ag/Au ratios were especially focused on because they were characterized by various Au ore-
deposition mechanisms. Initially, neutral-pH hydrothermal fluids at  270 C ascended
through veins and encountered a shallow aquifer. The cooling of rising fluids by cold, shallow
groundwater resulted in early-stage mineralization (Au  1 g/t, Ag/Au ratio 4–89).
Hydrothermal alteration halos were also generated at this stage by fluid flow from the veins
into surrounding permeable zones (i.e., a shallow aquifer). The greatly decreased perme-
ability of these alteration halos formed mushroom-shaped low-permeability alteration halos
(LPAHs) around the veins. Middle-stage mineralization (Au  26 g/t, Ag/Au ratio £ 10)
occurred by the boiling of fluids when temperatures increased due to low permeability and
insulating properties of the LPAHs. As the permeability of the LPAHs decreased further,
hydrothermal brecciation occurred preferentially in horizontal brittle zones (i.e., the caps of
the LPAH in the shallow aquifer). Late-stage mineralization (Au  2 g/t, Ag/Au ratio  30)
then occurred by the boiling of fluids as the pressure decreased. Consequently, the cold-
water trap mechanism is an innovative approach that clarifies mineralization in low-sulfi-
dation epithermal Au deposits.
KEY WORDS: Cooling of hydrothermal fluid, Boiling of hydrothermal fluid, Low-permeability
alteration halo, Hydrothermal brecciation, Ag/Au ratio, TOUGH2.

INTRODUCTION

Because low-sulfidation epithermal Au deposits

1
Development Department, ITOCHU Mineral Resources have been discovered globally at accessibly shallow
Development Corp, 5-1, Kita-Aoyama 2-chome, Minato-ku, depths, they are one of the most important sources
Tokyo, Japan. of Au and Ag. The ore-deposition mechanism of this
2
Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Katsura deposit type was first modeled using materials and
C1-2-215, Kyoto 615-8540, Japan.
3
Geothermal Department, West Japan Engineering Consultants,
data of active geothermal systems (Henley and Ellis
Inc, 1-1, Watanabe-dori 1-chome, Chuo-ku, Fukuoka, Japan. 1983; Hedenquist & Henley, 1985b), and the model
4
To whom correspondence should be addressed; e-mail: has been improved and systematized during the last
tkhs@wine.ocn.ne.jp

67
1520-7439/22/0200-0067/0  2021 International Association for Mathematical Geosciences
68 H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama
two decades (Cooke & Simmons, 2000; Hedenquist
et al., 2000; John et al., 2018; Sillitoe & Hedenquist,
2003; Simmons et al., 2005). Hydrothermal fluid
boiling is considered the most important precipita-
tion process based on detailed studies of gold and
precious metal solubility (Sanchez-Alfaro et al.,
2016; Simmons & Browne, 2000) and detailed tex-
ture studies (e.g., Moncada et al., 2012). This process
was explored by Sibson (1987), Moncada et al.
(2012) and Rowland and Simmons (2012); however,
the geological process is not well understood. An
alternate theory about the cause of metal precipi-
tation involved the cooling of hydrothermal fluids
when mixed with shallow groundwater (Vikre,
1989). From the study of wall-rock alteration in the
Hosokura Ag–Pb–Zn deposit (northeastern Japan),
researchers concluded that the cooling of ascending
hydrothermal fluids by mixing with cold groundwa-
ter and the boiling of fluids by the formation of a
low-permeability alteration halo (LPAH) were both
essential for ore deposition (Takahashi, 1988, 1995).
We called this combined process a cold-water trap,
the central concept of which is a multi-stage ore-
deposition mechanism induced by the mixing of
hydrothermal fluids and cold groundwater. The
suitability of the cold-water trap was demonstrated
by a case study of the Hosokura deposit (Takahashi
et al., 2021) based on a geological model of the main
vein (Fuji) and numerical simulations of fluid flow,
using TOUGH2 software (Pruess et al., 1999).
However, the relationship between ore-deposition
mechanisms involving the cold-water trap and ore-
grade features has yet to be examined in detail ow-
ing to insufficient ore-grade data. The cold-water
trap should be tested for generation of Au deposits
especially given their high commercial value.
This study aimed to clarify a multi-stage ore-
deposition mechanism for a cold-water trap in the
low-sulfidation epithermal Sirawai Au–Ag deposit
using geological modeling and TOUGH2 simula-
tion, and ultimately sought to recommend potential
candidate activities for future exploration efforts.
This deposit was recently discovered near Sirawai
Town (Zamboanga Peninsula in Min-
danao),  800 km south of Manila in the Philippines
(Fig. 1). The ore-grade data available from drilling
explorations were sufficient for a case study on the
applicability of the cold-water trap. Here, we first
observed and analyzed the exploration drill cores to
collect the data required for geological modeling.
Next, based on the collected data, we conducted
geological modeling and numerical simulations. As a
result of geological modeling and numerical simu-
lations, a cold-water trap process, comprising a
multi-stage ore-deposition mechanism was repro-
duced. Thus, we were able to determine the new
drilling targets for the next exploration.
METHODS AND MATERIALS
Study Flow
This study comprised the following five steps
(Fig. 2): (1) data collection; (2) geological modeling;
(3) numerical modeling; (4) numerical simulation;
and (5) verification. Data collection included geo-
logical observations, various analyses, and a data
search. For the geological modeling, first, the min-
eralization stages were classified. Then, based on
collected data, a geological (conceptual) model of
each mineralization stage was created. Next, a sim-
ulation block containing Au–Ag veins was set and
divided into smaller cells. Simulation parameters
were determined according to the geological models
and applied to each cell to create a numerical model
for each mineralization stage. The initial and
boundary conditions for the simulation were also
set. For this study, we selected TOUGH2 Simulator
Ver. 2.1 software for numerical simulation since it is
preferred and extensively utilized for the evaluation
of geothermal systems given its established capabil-
ity of accurately simulating multi-phase and multi-
component (H2O–CO2–NaCl) fluid flow. It provided
temperature, pressure, and boiling data from the
analysis of three-dimensional flows of gas and liquid
phases and heat based on DarcyÕs law and mass–
energy conservation. A multi-stage numerical sim-
ulation was performed using the geologic observa-
tion-based numerical models constructed for each
mineralization stage. Based on the results of the
geological modeling and numerical simulations, the
cold-water-trap multi-stage ore-deposition mecha-
nism was reproduced and checked that the pressure–
temperature conditions were physically feasible. The
physical and geochemical characteristics of the
drilled mineralization cells were then identified, and
the undrilled cells with mineralization characteristics
were then defined as unidentified mineralization
zones.
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap 69

Figure 1. Simplified tectonic divisions of the Philippine archipelago with modifications from that
presented by Yumul et al., (2004, 2009). Abbreviations: Sw = Sirawai Au–Ag deposit,
Mi = Mindanao, Za = Zamboanga Peninsula, Ma = Manila, Lu = Luzon, Ba = Baguio Au
district (e.g., Acupan Au–Ag deposit), Pa = Palawan, SCDL = Sindangan–Cotabato–Daguma
Lineament, Ca = Canatuan Au–Ag–Cu–Zn deposit, and Sb = Sibutad Au deposit.

Geological Setting of the Sirawai Au–Ag Deposit
The Philippine archipelago borders the Early
Miocene to Pliocene subduction zones on the east
and west sides where four plates (the South China
Sea, Sulu Sea, Celebes Sea, and Philippine Sea
Plates) subduct through the trenches. This archipe-
lago is a composite terrane of two micro-blocks: the
eastern Philippine Mobile Belt and western Palawan
micro-continental block (Yumul et al., 2004; Fig. 1).
However, the oblique convergence between the
Philippine Sea Plate and the Philippine archipelago
on the east side formed the Philippine Fault Zone,
which is a major left-lateral structure (Aurelio,
70
Figure 2. Flow diagram of geological modeling and numerical simulation of multi-stage ore-deposition mechanism for the Sirawai Au–
Ag deposit.
2000). Mindanao, a large island in the southern
Philippine archipelago, is divided into two terranes
by the NW–SE Sindangan–Cotabato–Daguma
Lineament (SCDL; Pubellier et al., 1991; Fig. 1).
The Sirawai Au–Ag deposit is in the southwestern
part of the Zamboanga Peninsula, which is a part of
the Palawan micro-continental block (Yumul et al.,
2009). Surrounding the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit, the
pre-Cenozoic basement rocks are overlain by thick
Miocene clastic and carbonate rocks of formations
that are capped by Pliocene volcanic rocks (Yumul
et al., 2004). The Philippines is one of the most Au-
rich countries in the Southwest Pacific, with many
epithermal Au and porphyry Cu–Au deposits
throughout the archipelago (Mitchell & Leach,
1991). Most Au districts are distributed along the
Philippine Fault Zone, as represented by the Baguio
district in Luzon, including many epithermal Au
deposits (e.g., Acupan Au–Ag deposit; Cooke et al.,
2011; Fig. 1). In contrast, as a result of the subduc-
tion of the leading oceanic edge of the Palawan
micro-continental block, several Au deposit types
are distributed throughout the Zamboanga Penin-
sula. These deposit types are composed of vol-
canogenic massive sulfides (e.g., Canatuan Au–Ag–
Cu–Zn deposit; Sherlock & Barrett, 2004), porphyry
Cu–Au, and epithermal Au deposits (e.g., Sirawai
Au–Ag deposit; Sibutad Au deposit, Jimenez et al.,
2002).
In the mid-2000s, hydrothermal alteration zones
were found during the construction of logging roads
in the forest, and Cu exploration began. However,
the initial exploration was unsuccessful and a new
program of Au exploration was proposed. The Sir-
awai Au–Ag deposit was discovered after this sys-
tematic and low-cost exploration effort. The
proposed exploration program comprised the fol-
lowing three phases: (1) a promising mineralization
H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama
area (drilling area) selection via geological mapping
and geochemical and induced polarization (IP) sur-
veys; (2) Au mineralization verification using test
pits and shallow drill holes in the drilling area; and
(3) a search for deeper bonanzas using deep drill
holes. Currently, the first and second phases have
been completed.
We mapped the geology of the Sirawai deposit
area that contains several hydrothermal alteration
zones (Fig. 3) by referring to the stratigraphy in the
vicinity of Zamboanga City,  70 km south of the
area of interest (Yumul et al., 2004). The main
lithological units in the mapped area are Late Cre-
taceous basement rocks comprising muscovite–
quartz schist and phyllite, Early Miocene Anungan
Formation (sandstone, siltstone, and limestone),
Late Miocene Curuan Formation (andesitic to ba-
saltic lava and pyroclastic rocks with coarse-grained
and lapilli tuff) and Vitali Diorite (quartz diorite and
porphyritic andesite), and Pliocene Mount Maria
volcanics (dacitic to andesitic tuff breccia and lava).
The main fault system in the southwestern Zam-
boanga Peninsula trends NE–SW, paralleling the
Sulu Trench (Yumul et al., 2004), and a NE–SW
fault that cuts the Curuan Formation and Mount
Maria volcanics in the western part of the mapped
area is the dominant structure in the Sirawai deposit
area.
The central part of the mapped area contains
many NW–SE-striking and steeply westward-dip-
ping sulfide–quartz veins, and many hydrothermal
alteration zones are seen in surface outcrops. A
drilling area on a  50-m high hill (280–330 m a.s.l.)
was determined according to the results of geologi-
cal mapping and soil-geochemical and IP surveys
(Figs. 3, 4). The surface of the hill was strongly
weathered with no outcropping rocks or quartz
veins. In the Au exploration, 19 test pits,  1 m2 in
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap
Figure 3. Simplified geological map of the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit and its surrounding area, showing stratigraphy of volcanic and
sedimentary rocks, hydrothermal alteration zones, Au–Ag veins, and drilling area.
size, were dug manually to depths of 7–10 m, giving
a total combined length of 173 m. Fifty holes (total
combined length, 2183 m) were also diamond-dril-
led: 40 vertical holes 20–50 m in depth (total length,
1483 m) and 10 were inclined holes of length 70 m
(total length, 700 m, at a 60 inclination). We map-
ped seven subparallel Au–Ag veins of 200–500 m
length and 1.0–5.1 m width (averaging 2.5 m),
striking 20–30 NW and dipping 60–70 SW, via 45
intersections with the test pits and drill holes
(Fig. 4).
Data Collection and Geological Modeling
Geothermal systems are reservoirs of circulat-
ing hydrothermal fluids that exist at comparatively
shallow depths (Stimac et al., 2015). Low-sulfidation
epithermal deposits, such as the Sirawai Au–Ag
deposit, formed by hydrothermal activities, repre-
sent the late-stages of geothermal activity; therefore,
our geological modeling represents the reconstruc-
71
tion of a fossil geothermal system. A heat source,
fluid, and a flow channel (permeable zone) are
essential for the establishment of a geothermal sys-
tem. In this study, we collected data from observa-
tions of drill cores and test pits, ore analyses, and
studies of hydrothermal alteration and fluid inclu-
sions to understand the geothermal system and Au
mineralization process.
Observations of drill cores and test pits included
the following three listed separate objectives. (1) To
investigate the characteristics of the Au mineral-
ization (e.g., mineralization stage classification, ore
texture, and mineralization area), we observed
intersections with the Au–Ag veins in the drill cores
and test pits. (2) To examine the progress of vein
filling at each mineralization stage, we calculated the
filling ratio (FR, in %) from the ore width of each
stage at all intersections; FR was defined as the ratio
of the total ore width of each stage to the total vein
width at the 45 intersections. (3) To understand
furthers the permeability of host rocks, we deter-
72 H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama

Figure 4. Map of the seven subparallel Au–Ag veins projected on 300 m a.s.l. in the drilling area of
the Sirawai deposit, and locations of test pits and drill holes.

mined the fracture and void densities within the drill
cores.
Our objectives for ore analysis included the
facets discussed below. To investigate the charac-
teristics of the Au mineralization (e.g., ore miner-
alogy and Au grade), we analyzed ore samples
collected from intersections with the Au–Ag veins.
Ten ore samples were observed under reflected light
microscope and analyzed by powder X-ray diffrac-
tion (XRD; Shimadzu XRD-6000). The samples
were scanned from 2 to 65 (2h) with the following
parameters: Cu-Ka radiation; Ni filter; scan rate =
2/min; voltage = 30 kV; current = 20 mA; and
slits = 1–0.3 mm–1. Detailed identification of clay
minerals was performed via ethylene glycol and
hydrochloric acidic treatments. Four polished sec-
tions were examined by energy dispersive X-ray
spectrometry (EDS; JEOL, JSM-6510LV) to quan-
titatively identify metallic minerals. For EDS, the
accelerating voltage was 15 kV, and the beam cur-
rent was 0.8 lA. Identification of tellurium minerals
was performed using back-scattered electron (BSE)
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap
images. In this Au exploration, 173 and 2183 sam-
ples were collected at an interval of 1 m, for chem-
ical analysis of Au, Ag, Cu, Pb, and Zn to determine
ore grades in 19 test pits and 50 drill holes. The Au
and Ag contents of these samples were analyzed by
fire assay and the Cu, Pb, and Zn contents were
analyzed by atomic absorption spectrometry at the
Sirawai exploration laboratory.
The objectives of hydrothermal alteration data
included in this study were addressed below. To
understand the properties (e.g., pH, temperature,
and flow area) of the hydrothermal fluids that al-
tered the host rocks, we observed and analyzed the
drill cores near the Au–Ag veins. The main minerals
in the hydrothermally altered rocks were identified
by XRD analyses of 33 samples and microscopic
observations of thin sections of 10 samples. The
method of XRD analysis for altered core samples
was the same methodology used for ore samples.
The fluid-inclusion study data were limited;
however, they were sufficient to provide parameters
for geological modeling. To investigate the proper-
ties (e.g., temperature, salinity, and state) of the
hydrothermal fluids that generated ores, we ob-
served and analyzed fluid inclusions in the ore
samples. The four ore samples were collected from
the intersections with Au–Ag veins to measure
homogenization and ice-melting temperatures. The
samples were crushed into 0.5–1-mm sized particles
and automorphic or semi-automorphic quartz was
extracted from them using a stereomicroscope and
subsequently set on a heating/cooling stage. The
measurement targets were secondary inclusions in
quartz. A Linkam heating/cooling device was used
to measure the homogenization and ice-melting
temperatures. A synthetic fluid-inclusion sample
(homogenization temperature of 374.1 C; ice-melt-
ing temperature of  56.6 C and 0.0 C) manufac-
tured by SYN FLINC was used for temperature
correction. The heating rate in the cooling experi-
ment was set to  0.1 C/min, and the thermal
equilibrium in the heating/cooling stage was main-
tained. The temperature measurement error was
within ± 0.2 C from  190 C to  25 C and
within ± 0.05 C from  25 C to 600 C. The
method by Bodnar (1993) was used to convert the
ice-melting temperature to the salinity equivalent of
NaCl. Additionally, the occurrence or non-occur-
rence of boiling was checked using the following
characteristics of the fluid-inclusion assemblage
(FIA), which were obtained from three epithermal
Au deposits (i.e., the Nansatsu in Japan (Take-
73
nouchi, 1983), the Guanajuato in Mexico (Moncada
et al., 2012), and the Koryu in Japan (Shimizu,
2014)):
 Non-boiling by liquid-rich inclusions with
consistent liquid to vapor ratios in FIA;
 Boiling by co-existing liquid- and vapor-rich
inclusions in FIA; and
 Flashing by all vapor-rich inclusions in FIA.
In geological modeling, two-dimensional geo-
logical models in the classified mineralization stages
were created based on collected data. These models
used cross-sections showing rock permeability, fluid
temperature, fluid flow, and Au mineralization at
right angles to the main Au–Ag vein to clarify the
respective ore-deposition mechanisms.
Numerical Modeling and Numerical Simulation
We first selected a simulation block including
Au–Ag veins and divided it into multiple cells. For
the numerical modeling, rock types with several
physical properties (input as simulation parameters)
were determined by established geological models
and collected data, and were ultimately emplaced
into all cell fields of the numerical model input
platform for each individual mineralization stage.
The simulation parameters used in TOUGH2 were
as follows: density, porosity, permeability, thermal
conductivity, and specific heat. In Japan, several
exploratory wells have been drilled in many
geothermal areas, and the rock physical properties
of their drill cores have been measured (e.g., Itoi
et al., 2010; Kato et al., 2006; NEDO, 1993). Finally,
the permeabilities and groundwater table were ad-
justed by matching the simulated temperature and
pressure with the homogenization temperature and
corresponding pressure, respectively. Initial condi-
tions (i.e., temperature, pressure, and heat source)
and boundary conditions for the numerical simula-
tions were established. Besides, we used an addi-
tional stage to those in the Hosokura study
(Takahashi et al., 2021), and set the simulations to
four stages for greater precision and to reproduce
occurrences of hydrothermal brecciation and fluid
boiling. We adopted the simulation method pro-
posed by Ingebritsen et al. (2010) to adjust the
simulation parameters (e.g., rock physical proper-
ties) per stage.
74 H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama

Evaluation of Fluid-Rock Interaction (argillaceous and sulfide-rich); and type C (brec-

To compare the fluid flow simulation result with
the features of hydrothermal convection suggested
from the hydrothermal alteration halos, we used the
water–rock ratio (W/R) to estimate the degree of
fluid-rock interaction. The W/R in 3D space is ex-
pressed as (Schardt & Large, 2009):
W=Rn ¼ W=Rðn1Þ

the vein inside type A at 18 intersections. However,
jvx j  Ax þ vy  Ay þ jvz j  Az  /  dt
þ
dx  dy  dz
where the subscript n is the time step, subscripts x, y,
and z represent the components in the x-, y-, and z-
directions, |v| is the absolute value of fluid velocity, d
is the control volume size, A is the control volume
area in the perpendicular cross-section to each axis,
/ is porosity, and dt is the time difference between
successive time steps.
RESULTS
Geological Modeling
Mineralization
Upon review of test pits and drill holes, the ores
that penetrated at the intersections were roughly
classified into three types: type A (siliceous); type B
ciated and siliceous). The occurrences of ores at the
45 intersections were composed of four assemblages
of ore types (Fig. 5). Type A was found as a band in
the vein in direct contact with the host rock at all 45
intersections. The mineral assemblage of type A was
quartz, illite–pyrite, chlorite–galena–sphalerite–
chalcopyrite, and Pb-telluride–Ag-telluride–elec-
trum. Type B was formed as a band in the center of
the boundary between types A and B was not clear.
The mineral assemblage of type B was quartz, illite–
pyrite, chlorite–rhodochrosite–fluorite–calcite–gale-
na–sphalerite–chalcopyrite, and Pb-telluride–Ag-
telluride –electrum. Type C comprised hydrother-
mal breccias with diameters of  2–5 cm and they
cut types A and B at 14 intersections. The mineral
assemblage of type C was quartz, pyrite–galena–
sphalerite, chalcopyrite–bornite–calcite, and Ag-
telluride–Pb-telluride–electrum. Goethite, chal-
cocite, and covellite found in the veins were derived
from pyrite and chalcopyrite as secondary minerals
through the supergene process that was caused by
weathering.
The characteristics of the ore minerals observed
under reflection light microscope were summarized
as follows. Pyrite was recognized in all three ore
types. The one in type A was very fine-grained
(0.03 mm) and it accompanied quartz. Pyrite in type
B was 0.1 mm in size and it was found between
quartz grains. In contrast, the size of pyrite in type C

Figure 5. Schematic diagram (not drawn to scale) of four assemblages of ore types at intersections with
Au–Ag veins in the Sirawai deposit. Double lines denote drill holes. See Figure 4 for locations of
intersections. NIV = number of intersections with Au–Ag vein in drill hole.
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap 75

Figure 6. Photomicrographs and back-scattered electron (BSE) images of ore samples collected from the Sirawai Au–Ag
deposit. (a) Photomicrograph of type C at intersection V4-4. (b) BSE of type A from intersection V5-2. (c) BSE of type B at
intersection V5-5. (d) BSE of type C at intersection V4-4. See Figure 4 for locations of vein intersections. Abbreviations:
Py = pyrite, Gl = galena, Sp = sphalerite, Cp = chalcopyrite, PT = Pb–telluride, AT = Ag–telluride, and El = electrum.

ranged from 0.1 to 0.5 mm. Galena was also found in
all three types: galena in type A was very fine-
grained ( £ 0.05 mm) whereas galena in types B
and C ranged in size from 0.5 to 1.4 mm. Galena was
accompanied by sphalerite, which was fine-grained
(< 0.3 mm) in A type and coarser (‡ 0.3 mm) in
types B and C. Further, chalcopyrite was recognized
in all three types. Chalcopyrite in type A was very
fine-grained (0.03 mm) and it accompanied quartz;
that in type B was 0.1 mm in size and it was found in
contact with pyrite, whereas chalcopyrite in type C
was much coarser in size (0.7 mm). Bornite occurred
only in type B and it accompanied chalcopyrite.
Electrum was extremely fine-grained (0.01–
0.03 mm) and it was primarily found in sulfide
minerals (e.g., pyrite) with irregular polygonal or
granular shapes (Fig. 6a). Ag-telluride and Pb-tel-
luride were qualitatively identified in all types via
EDS; these minerals accompanied mainly galena
and sphalerite, and their sizes ranged from 0.01 to
0.1 mm (Figs. 6b, c, d). The margin of chalcopyrite
was transformed into secondary chalcocite and
covellite, and goethite replaced pyrite.
The characteristics of gangue minerals under
the microscope are summarized as follows. Quartz,
one of the major minerals, was found in all types,
and with different characteristics in each type. In this
study, the quartz grain size was classified as coarse
(grain size ‡ 1 mm), medium (1 mm > grain size ‡
0.5 mm), and fine (grain size < 0.5 mm). The tex-
tures of gangue quartz were classified according to
Moncada et al. (2012). Quartz in type A was white
and massive with medium grain (0.8 mm). Quartz in
type B was classified into fine-grained (0.1 mm)
transparent quartz with sulfides showing a colloform
texture, i.e., ginguro (silver black) ore, and trans-
parent medium-grained (0.8 mm) quartz with a
plumose (little comb) texture formed along the
76 H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama
 Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap 77

b Figure 7. Distributions of intersections with seven Au–Ag veins Cu ratio increased toward shallower depths, thereby
in test pits and drill holes projected on vein V5 of the Sirawai forming vertical zoning (Fig. 7c): Cu zone (Pb/
deposit. (a) Early-stage ores (45 intersections), (b) Ag/Au ratios
Cu < 0.8), transition zone (0.8 £ Pb/Cu < 1.2), and
of early-stage ores, (c) Pb/Cu ratios of early-stage ores, (d)
middle-stage ores (18 intersections), and (e) late-stage ores (14 Pb zone (1.2 £ Pb/Cu). In contrast, features of the
intersections). Horizontal coordinates of these figures show middle- and late-stage mineralization appeared at 18
distance from baseline of vein center. See Figure 4 for locations and 14 intersections, respectively, which were both
of intersections and baseline of vein center. distributed mainly in middle veins within  200-m
width (100 m on the north and south sides, Figs. 7d
and e, respectively).
edges of the ginguro ores. Quartz in type C grew to
medium or coarse grain size (0.7–1.5 mm) and was
transparent or white with comb and dogtooth tex-
Rock Permeability
tures. Illite was recognized in types A and B, and
generally it occurred as flakes between quartz grains.
According to the drill cores, several-meter-wide
Chlorite, which was found in all types of ores, was
fault/fracture zones containing many veinlets were
dark green or bluish green and it often accompanied
formed at both sides of the Au–Ag veins. The open-
chalcopyrite, pyrite, and quartz. Two carbonate
fracture density and porosity of the different litho-
minerals were found: brown rhodochrosite occurred
logic units were ordered from maximum to mini-
in type B and it formed ginguro band with quartz,
mum as follows: vein > Pliocene tuff
chlorite, and sulfide minerals; and white, bladed
breccia > fault/fracture zone > Pliocene coarse-
calcite was recognized in type C, where it filled the
grained tuff > Pliocene lava and Late Miocene
cavity together with quartz. In addition, transparent
pyroclastic rocks > Late Miocene lava and intrusive
fluorite occurred between quartz grains in type B.
rocks. The ore vein, as an open fracture, controlled
Based on the generation order of the ores (in cross
the permeability of the host rocks, and the progress
relationship), gangue-quartz textures, and mineral
of its filling can be deduced macroscopically. The
paragenetic features, the Au–Ag–Cu–Pb–Zn min-
FRs of the seven Au–Ag veins for each of the three
eralization was considered to be appropriately di-
mineralization stages were calculated as 73% for the
vided into three stages (early, middle, and late). The
early-stage, 14% for the middle-stage, and 13% for
mineralization stages were determined; the early-
the late-stage (Table 1). However, the early-stage
stage was noted as type A, the middle-stage as type
ore contained roughly 30% of host-rock fragments.
B, and the late-stage as type C.
In the study of hydrothermal alteration, the
The maximum grades of Au and Ag in the
identified alteration minerals were quartz, adularia,
analyzed interval of 1 m were 183.3 and 5552.3 g/t,
illite, mixed-layer minerals (i.e., illite/smectite),
respectively. Based on the ore grade of the 45
chlorite, smectite, kaolinite, halloysite, siderite,
intersections of the seven veins, the mean grades of
pyrite, hematite, and goethite. The hydrothermal
Au, Ag, Cu, Pb, and Zn were 1.9 g/t, 82.9 g/t,
alteration halos around the Au–Ag veins were di-
3166 ppm, 436 ppm, and 4380 ppm, respectively.
vided into four zones based on the alteration min-
The mean Au grades of the veins decreased in the
eral assemblages: illite, smectite, kaolinite, and
following order: V5 (16.9 g/t) > V4 (4.1 g/t) > V6
halloysite zones (Fig. 8a). According to White and
(2.9 g/t) > V1 (2.6 g/t) > V7 (1.6 g/t) > V2 (1.5 g/
Hedenquist (1995), illite and smectite zones indicate
t) > V3 (1.2 g/t). The Au grade was highest in the
neutral-pH alteration whereas the kaolinite zone
middle-mineralization stage (2.0–183.3 g/t), second-
reflects acidic alteration. The illite zone, which has
highest in the late-stage (0.8–6.4 g/t), and lowest in
been subjected to silicification, comprised quartz–
the early-stage (0.5–3.4 g/t) (see Appendix). Fea-
illite–adularia–pyrite ± chlorite ± epidote ± illite/
tures of early-stage mineralization appeared at all 45
smectite, and the smectite zone consisted of quartz–
intersections and the horizontal distribution of the
smectite ± illite/smectite ± chlo-
early-stage ores was wider than 400 m (Fig. 7a). The
rite ± siderite ± pyrite. Rock permeability is re-
Ag/Au and Pb/Cu ratios had large fluctuations in the
lated strongly to the degree of fracture and the
early-stage, while their range in the middle and late-
extent of the development of hydrothermal alter-
stages was small (see Appendix). The Ag/Au ratio of
ation halos (Hedenquist et al., 2000; Simmons et al.,
early-stage ore was characterized by its increase to-
2005). The illite and silicification zones were ob-
ward shallower depths (Fig. 7b). Similarly, the Pb/
served in contact with the veins below 280 m a.s.l.
78
Table 1. Filling ratio (FR) of seven Au–Ag veins in the early-, middle-, and late-mineralization stages in the Sirawai deposit. See Appendix
1 for the ore width in each stage at the intersections with Au–Ag veins
Ore type Total ore width in mineralization
stage at 45 intersections with Au–Ag veins
Early-stage ore; a 86.7
Middle-stage ore; b 16.7
Late-stage ore; c 15.0
All ore; d 118.4
Figure 8. Classification of hydrothermal alteration halos
around Au–Ag veins in the Sirawai deposit. (a)
Hydrothermal alteration zones around intersections with
Au–Ag veins V4, V5, V6, and V7. See Figure 4 for locations
of veins. (b) Schematic cross-section showing distributions of
classified hydrothermal alteration zones around Au–Ag
veins.
and were distributed narrowly in the fault/fracture
zone in the Late Miocene lava. Outside the illite
zone, the smectite zone was observed in the fault/
fracture zone below 280 m a.s.l. whereas it was dis-
tributed widely in contact with the veins above that
level and chiefly in the Pliocene tuff breccia. The
H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama
FR (%) of mineralization stage
a/d 73
b/d 14
c/d 13
100
kaolinite zones were found locally on the hanging
wall of the vein, where the middle-stage mineral-
ization was confirmed. The halloysite zone was
probably a product of tropical weathering because of
its formation within the laterite zone near the
ground surface (Fig. 8b).
Fluid Temperature
In the fluid-inclusion study, the 12 early-stage
quartz data were obtained from sample F-1 at the
intersection with vein V5 (V5-2 at 292 m a.s.l.;
Fig. 4) and from the ore with grades Au 0.7 g/t and
Ag 7.5 g/t (Appendix (early-stage ore)). The mea-
sured homogenization temperatures ranged within
149–196 C with mean of 178 C (n = 12; Fig. 9a),
and ice-melting temperatures were within  0.5 to
1.9 C (salinity 0.9–3.2 wt%; Fig. 9d). This sample
was judged as non-boiling because of the liquid-rich
FIA with an almost-constant gas ratio. When fluid
inclusions are formed by trapping non-boiling fluids,
the pressure correction for the homogenization
temperature must be specified by the true temper-
ature of entrapment for fluid inclusion (Potter, 1977;
Roedder & Bodnar, 1980). The pressure correction
was calculated as 1.5 C using programs BULK and
ISOC (Bakker, 2003). Thus, the trapping tempera-
ture of  180 C was revealed from this pressure
correction for the homogenization temperature.
The middle-stage mineralization produced fine-
or medium-grained quartz (e.g., sample F-2) in the
vein V5 (intersection V5-2 at 290 m a.s.l.; Fig. 4) in
the ore with grades Au 14.7 g/t and Ag 379.5 g/t
(Appendix (middle-stage ore)). Results of the fluid-
inclusion analyses indicate that temperature ranges
of homogenization and ice melting were 187–243 C
with mean of 223 C (n = 16; Fig. 9b) and  0.6
to  2.9 C (salinity 1.1–4.8 wt%; Fig. 9d), respec-
tively. This sample supported the occurrence of
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap 79

Figure 9. Histograms of homogenization temperature data obtained from fluid-inclusions in gangue-quartz

in the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit: (a) early-stage ore, (b) middle-stage ore, and (c) late-stage ore. (d)
Homogenization versus ice-melting temperatures or salinities. Samples were collected from intersections
V4-4 and V5-2; see Figure 4 for their locations.

boiling because of the co-existing liquid- and vapor-
rich FIA. Despite the same stage, the fine-grained
quartz in the sample F-3 at the vein V5 (intersection
V5-5 at 296 m a.s.l.; Fig. 4) and in the rich ore with
grades Au 54.9 g/t and Ag 2370.4 g/t (Appendix
(middle-stage ore)) had an all-vapor-rich single
phase and quite small fluid inclusions. Because of
this, the homogenization temperature could not be
measured, but flashing probably occurred.
The temperature ranges of homogenization and
ice melting were 155–233 C with mean of 201 C
(n = 16; Fig. 9c) and  0.7 to  1.8 C (salinity 1.2–
3.1 wt%; Fig. 9d), respectively, based on late-stage
quartz in sample F-4 from the vein V4 (intersection
V4-4 at 327 m a.s.l.; Fig. 4) and within the ore with
grades Au 3.5 g/t and Ag 85.3 g/t (Appendix (late-
stage ore)). Boiling apparently occurred in this
sample because F-4 revealed the same FIA charac-
teristics as those of sample F-2.
The appearance/disappearance (stable) tem-
peratures of alteration minerals such as epidote, il-
lite, and smectite are well-known from geothermal
well-log data (e.g., Henley and Ellis 1983; Reyes,
1990; White & Hedenquist, 1995). These well-known
temperatures were used to define the temperature
distribution for the formation of alteration zone.
From the stable temperature data of these alteration
minerals, formation temperature ranges for the
alteration zones in the Sirawai deposit were esti-
mated as follows: illite zone with epidote > 230 C,
illite zone 190–230 C, and smectite zone 100–
190 C. Because the hydrothermal alteration min-
erals at the vein contacts were almost the same as
the nearby gangue minerals in the ores, the forma-
80 H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama

Figure 10. Geological models in the three mineralization stages, comprising Au mineralization, rock permeability, hydrothermal
alteration, fluid temperature, and fluid flow in the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit. (a) Early-stage mineralization. (b) Middle-stage
mineralization. (c) Late-stage mineralization. Seven Au–Ag veins are grouped into three categories: west, V1–V3; central, V4–V6; and
east, V7. Distance between adjacent veins is  50 m; see Figure 4 for their locations.

tion temperatures of these alteration zones were
considered to be the same as fluid temperatures in
the vein in the early-stage.
Geological Model
To simplify the geological model, the steeply
dipping veins were approximated to be vertical and
three veins were incorporated into the numerical
model as the central, west, and east veins by
grouping the veins into V4–V6 (the richest miner-
alized veins), veins V1–V3, and vein V7, respectively
(Fig. 4).
Early-Stage Geological Model
Based on the densities of fractures and voids in
the drill cores and on the sizes of the hydrothermal
alteration zones, three classes (low-permeability,
semi-permeable, and permeable zones) were set for
rock permeability in the early-stage (Fig. 10a). The
low-permeability zones were assigned to the Late
Miocene lava, semi-permeable zones to the fault/
fracture zones, and permeable zones to the veins and
the Pliocene tuff breccia forming the shallow aqui-
fer. Neutral-pH hydrothermal fluids > 230 C as-
cended in the veins and flowed from the veins to the
fault/fracture zones and shallow aquifer, forming
hydrothermal alteration halos around the veins. In
the host rocks in contact with the veins in the shal-
low aquifer, the formation temperatures of the
alteration zones were set to > 190 C in the illite
zone below 280 m a.s.l. and < 190 C in the overly-
ing smectite zone. The distribution of the formation
temperatures suggested that the fluid temperatures
in the veins decreased with shallower depths, which
also appeared in the trends of the Ag/Au and Pb/Cu
ratios in the early-stage ores (Fig. 7b, c). Therefore,
cold groundwater in the shallow aquifer cooled the
ascending hydrothermal fluids. The trapping tem-
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap
perature indicated  180 C fluid temperature and
non-occurrence of boiling at 292 m a.s.l. in the
central vein surrounded by the shallow aquifer
(Fig. 10a). Consequently, the Au–Ag–Cu–Pb–Zn
mineralization occurred by cooling of the fluid,
generating low-grade ores of Au (averaging  1 g/
t).
Middle-Stage Geological Model
Based on the FRs of the Au–Ag veins (Table 1),
three-quarters of the vein was filled in the early-
stage and the remaining spaces were occupied by
ores of middle- and late-stages. Neutral-pH
hydrothermal alteration halos, including quartz, il-
lite, and smectite zones, and acidic kaolinite zones
were observed in the drill cores around the Au–Ag
veins. Because the alteration minerals in the host
rocks near the veins were similar to the nearby
early-stage gangue minerals, most of the fractures
and voids in the host rocks were thought to have
been filled by hydrothermal alteration minerals
during the same stage. Accordingly, the early-stage
was the most probable formation time of the LPAH.
After that, its permeability continued to decrease.
Therefore, in the middle-stage, hydrothermal alter-
ation formed a mushroom-shaped LPAH in the
fault/fracture zones around the vein and the shallow
aquifer (Fig. 10b). These LPAHs blocked the cold
groundwater flow into the vein. The fluid tempera-
ture at 290 m a.s.l. in the central vein increased to
223 C in a step of 45 C from the early-stage
according to the homogenization temperatures. The
boiling of fluids as the fluid temperature rose initi-
ated the middle-stage Au–Ag–Cu–Pb–Zn mineral-
ization, yielding high-grade Au (averaging  26 g/t)
ores within the early-stage ores in the veins sur-
rounded by LPAHs. Because the kaolinite zones
overlap with the LPAH caps only near the middle-
stage ores generated by boiling, gases such as CO2
and H2S separated from the fluid by boiling were
probably released (Fig. 10b).
Late-Stage Geological Model
Because brecciation was observed only in the
late-stage mineralization without shear fracturing,
some portions of the early- and middle-stage ores
were brecciated by high-pressure hydrothermal flu-
ids and entrapped into the late-stage ores. The
81
hydrothermal brecciated zone at 288–330 m a.s.l.
was within the LPAH cap. The permeability of the
LPAH must have decreased from the early- to late-
stages with vein filling. This is shown by the cumu-
lative FR of the Au–Ag veins (Table 1), which in-
creased the fluid pressure over time, ultimately
causing hydrothermal brecciation. Airtightness and
fluid pressure in the veins increased from the mid-
dle- to late-stages due to the further decrease in
permeability of the LPAH (Fig. 10c), which induced
hydrothermal brecciations in the brittle parts in the
LPAH caps, resulting in boiling and Au–Ag–Cu–
Pb–Zn mineralization. The mineralization generated
medium-grade ores of Au (averaging  2 g/t) cut-
ting the Au ores formed in the early- and middle-
stages. The fluid temperature was set to  201 C at
327 m a.s.l., reflecting the homogenization temper-
ature in the central vein (Fig. 10c).
Numerical Modeling
Settings for Simulation Block and Block Division
The block to be simulated was defined as a
rectangular parallelepiped including the Au–Ag
veins. Following Tomita et al. (2020), we placed 10-
km wide buffer blocks around the block to decrease
the boundary effect and create a full convection
system, and we discretized with a 2000-m side length
(Fig. 11a). The block size was 389 m 9 600 m 9
750 m (width 9 length 9 depth; Fig. 11b). The
depth to the top of the mineralization was set to
300 m, referring to the deposit formation depth of
low-sulfidation epithermal type (Hedenquist et al.,
2000). We divided the simulation block into eight
vertically stacked layers with thicknesses of 50–
100 m for the mineralized layers and 50–200-m
thickness for the other layers. Horizontally, the
block was divided into 15 columns in the ENE–
WSW direction, symmetrically perpendicular to the
vein strike. The 3-m wide cells representing the vein
and the 10-m wide fault/fracture zone were placed in
the middle of the block and surrounded by 30–100-m
wide outer cells. Vein lengths were made  500 m
along the NNW–SSE strike, whereas the active
mineralization zone was limited to a 200-m range in
the middle parts of the block (Figs. 7c, d). Accord-
ingly, the block was divided into three 200-m long
NNW–SSE-oriented rows and coded as rows A, B,
and C from north to south (Fig. 11b). The cells were
82 H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama

Figure 11. Three-dimensional study block in the numerical simulation of the Sirawai Au–Ag
deposit. (a) Perspective view of the simulation block (thick black lines) and its surrounding 10-km
wide buffer block, showing the boundary conditions. (b) Division of simulation block into cells with
their row, layer, and column numbers. The veins and the hydrothermal fluid sources are indicated
by the gray and black cells, and the base of the black vein cells, respectively. The groundwater
table is fixed at a 180 m depth. Left-edge labels ‘‘280 m’’ and ‘‘330 m’’ denote present altitudes
a.s.l., and dashed line indicates highest elevation in drilling area.
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap
numbered 1–120 from top to bottom for each row
(such as B10, the tenth cell down in row B).
Early-Stage Numerical Model
For the early-stage numerical modeling, the
simulation block cells were classified into four rock
types (i.e., Vein I, and permeable, semi-permeable,
and low-permeability zones) based on the geological
model (Fig. 12a). The physical properties of the rock
types were defined by referring to data collected that
were similar to the lithological features in the Sir-
awai deposit area (Fig. 12e). Veins I, II, and III
denote those formed at each stage, and their
porosities were set by the FRs of the Au–Ag veins
(Table 1). Finally, the permeabilities were adjusted
by matching the simulated temperature with the
homogenization temperature.
Middle-Stage Numerical Model
For the middle-stage numerical modeling, the
rock types were changed from Vein I in the early-
stage to Vein II, and from some of the permeable
and semi-permeable zones to LPAH I according to
the geological model. The rock physical properties
for the middle-stage numerical model were de-
creased according to the progress of the hydrother-
mal alteration around the veins (Figs. 12b, e). For
example, in some geothermal areas, the thermal
conductivity of altered rock was reduced by 25–50%
compared to unaltered lithology (NEDO, 1993).
Based on these data, the thermal conductivity of
LPAH I was reduced by 33% from that of the
original unaltered rock. Finally, the permeabilities
of Vein II and LPAH I were adjusted by matching
the simulated temperatures with the homogeniza-
tion temperatures.
Late-Stage Numerical Model
In numerical modeling, to properly reproduce
the mineralization caused by hydrothermal breccia-
tion, the late-stage was divided into two models of
sub-stages, a late-pressurization stage before the
brecciation and a late-decompression stage after it.
Further progress of the hydrothermal alteration was
incorporated into the modeling of the late-pressur-
ization stage. The rock types were changed from the
83
middle-stage by changing Vein II to Vein III and
changing LPAH I in contact with the veins to LPAH
II (Figs. 12c and e). To model the late-decompres-
sion stage, the permeabilities of the upper parts of
the veins and their surroundings were changed to
reproduce hydrothermal brecciation caused by the
pressure increase in and around the veins: LPAH I
and II were changed to permeable types, and Vein
III was changed to Vein II in the fourth layer in row
B (Figs. 12d, e).
Initial and Boundary Conditions
The initial conditions for the early-stage simu-
lation were 20 C and 0.1013 MPa (1 atm) at the top
boundary with a 35 C km–1 temperature gradient
and a hydrostatic-pressure gradient below the
groundwater table at 180-m depth. The calculation
of the middle-stage started from the previous early-
stage simulation results of temperature and pressure.
This approach was likewise adopted as well for the
subsequent late-stage simulation. The initial and
boundary conditions common to the four stages are
discussed as follows.
The groundwater table for the all stages was
estimated using the boiling curve for H2O–NaCl
system (Haas, 1971), which is regarded as the best
estimation method considering the nature of shallow
formation depths for epithermal deposits (e.g., Ca-
net et al., 2011; Moncada et al., 2012; Ni et al., 2018).
Assuming hydrostatic condition and pure water, we
plotted the late-stage homogenization temperature
on the boiling curve for pure water. The middle-
stage homogenization temperature was not used
because the middle-stage simulation showed that the
pressures were higher than hydrostatic pressure.
Resultantly, the groundwater table depth was
determined to be 150 m. In addition, the ground-
water table was calibrated in order to match the
simulated pressure with the pressure corresponding
to the homogenization temperature (boiling tem-
perature), and hence ultimately determined to be
180 m for the simulationÕs setting. The bottom
boundary condition was impermeable with a con-
stant basal heat flux of 0.1 W m–2 for all bottom
cells. Based on the fluid temperatures and the min-
eralization distributions (Fig. 7), the source tem-
perature and the mass flux of hydrothermal fluid at
the bottom were set at 270 C, higher than the for-
mation temperature of the illite zone with epidote,
and 0.3 kg s–1 for row B and 0.21 kg s–1 at the vein
84 H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama

Figure 12. Numerical models of row B cells in the four simulation stages of the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit: (a)
early-stage, (b) middle-stage, (c) late-pressurization stage, and (d) late-decompression stage. Except for the
late-decompression stage, the same models of row B cells are given to cells in rows A and C, and the models
of row A and C cells in the late-decompression stage are the same as those of the late-pressurization stage.
(e) Details of rock classification and their rock physical properties used for simulation for each stage.
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap
cells for rows A and C, respectively. The recharge
flow rate was set to 0.2 m yr–1, which was of the
same order of estimated recharge as 0.5 m yr–1 in
Sirawai Town, by applying the precipitation record
of this town, 2247 mm yr–1 (Meteoblue, 2020) and
the mean recharge rate of rainfall to groundwater,
22%, as reported by Mohan et al. (2018). The rock
types of the buffer blocks were set to be the same as
those on the four sides of the simulation cells. Other
boundary conditions that were used were constant
temperature and pressure at the top and side
boundaries.
Water Condition
TOUGH2 software offers several equations of
state (EOS) to illustrate the thermophysical prop-
erties of fluid mixtures as functions of the primary
thermodynamic variables (Pruess et al., 1999).
Salinity and non-condensable gas (mainly CO2) can
affect fluid properties such as phase relations, den-
sities, and miscibilities (Ingebritsen et al., 2010). The
salinity in the Sirawai deposit was  2 wt% from
fluid inclusion data of the early-stage ore. The CO2
concentration was estimated to be < 2 mol% by the
method of Hedenquist and Henley (1985a).
According to Haas (1971), the difference in boiling
depths at 220 C (similar to the homogenization
temperature of the middle-stage) between pure
water and 2 wt% NaCl brine (corresponding with
the average salinity of the early-stage) was just
7.5 m. As for the dissolved CO2 effect, the differ-
ence in boiling depths at 220 C between pure water
and 2 mol% CO2 (corresponding with  1.1 molal)
was  36 m, according to Wilkinson (2001). These
results suggest that the salinity and CO2 concentra-
tion in the Sirawai deposit negligibly affected the
simulation results. Therefore, we adopted EOS
prepared for the liquid, vapor, and two-phase states
of pure water to simplify the problem and obtain
fundamental results.
Numerical Simulation
Fluid flows in the early-, middle-, late-pressur-
ization, late-decompression stages were simulated
by setting the time to reach a steady-state condition
as a few tens of thousands of years, as suggested by
Takahashi et al. (2021) and based on the time re-
85
quired to form geothermal alteration zones (e.g.,
Yoshiyama, 2005).
Early-Stage Simulation
The early-stage simulation results were ob-
tained by reaching steady state with an elapsed time
of 10,000 years. As a result of calibration, the sim-
ulated temperature at the B53 vein cell in the fourth
layer was 179 C, which was in good agreement with
the trapping temperature of  180 C. The simu-
lated temperatures of the fluids in the deepest part
(hydrothermal fluid sources) and the shallow part
(fourth layer) of the central vein were 270 C and
179 C, respectively. Hydrothermal fluids were
characterized by dominant up-flows in the vein cells,
lateral flows into permeable cells in the fourth layer,
and downward flows of cold groundwater from the
surface (Fig. 13a). In the NNW–SSE cross-section of
the central vein in column 8, up-flows were con-
centrated in row B, whereas cold groundwater flo-
wed downward toward rows A and C from the
surrounding and shallower cells and lowered their
temperatures (Fig. 13b). Consequently, the temper-
ature in row B was 24 C higher than those of rows
A and C (i.e., B53–A53 or B53–C53) in the fourth
layer in the central vein (Table 2). In the second and
third layers in the central vein, the pressures were
0.4–0.8 MPa higher than the hydrostatic pressure
because of the mixing of downward groundwater
flow and upward hydrothermal fluid flow, but the
pressures remained near-hydrostatic elsewhere
(Fig. 13c). Thus, boiling did not occur across the
simulation block (Fig. 13d). We calculated a W/R
that was an approximation index of alteration
intensity from the early-stage simulation result
(Fig. 14). The W/Rs at 5, 25, and 90 m from the west
or east vein in the fourth layer were 0.2, 0.05, and
0.008, respectively. The consistently higher value of
W/R near the vein quantitatively indicated that
hydrothermal fluid flowed from the vein to the host
rock and strong alterations occurred near the vein.
The geological modeling demonstrated that the
cause of the early-stage mineralization was cooling
of the fluids, which was supported by the simulation
result showing the 91 C temperature drop of the
hydrothermal fluids ascending to the shallow aqui-
fer. Also, in agreement with the results of fluid-in-
clusion analysis, non-boiling of the fluids occurred
according to the simulation.
86 H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama

Figure 13. Early-stage simulation results of the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit. Temperature distributions and fluid
flow patterns in (a) row B and (b) the central vein, column 8. (c) Pressure and (d) vapor saturation
distributions in row B. The horizontal dashed lines indicate the highest elevation of the drilling area. The
cross-sections in (a), (c), and (d) are perpendicular to the vein strike in (b), which are also shown in
Figures 15, 16 and 17.

Middle-stage Simulation the early-stage owing to the LPAH I cells induced

After the calibration, we obtained the simulated
temperature in the middle-stage at the B53 vein cell
as 220 C (Table 2), which was compatible with the
homogenization temperature of  223 C. A feature
of this stage was the setting of LPAH I cells around
the vein cells, which concentrated up-flows of
hydrothermal fluids in the vein cells (Fig. 15a). The
fluid temperature of B53 increased by 41 C from
efficient up-flows, and horizontal NNW–SSE flows
occurred from the vein cells toward both surround-
ing cells (Fig. 15b). The pressures of the central vein
cells were the same as in the early-stage in the sec-
ond layer but increased in the layers deeper than the
second layer, and exceeded the hydrostatic pressure
by 0.3–0.9 MPa (Table 2; Fig. 15c). Thus, the con-
dition of the occurrence of boiling was satisfied with
the large temperature increase at the fourth through
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap 87

Table 2. Detailed results of the numerical simulations of the temperature, pressure, and vapor saturation in the central vein in four
simulation stages. The numbers in parentheses represent changes from the previous stage

Content Layer number Cell number Early stage Middle stage Late- pressurization Late- decompression
stage stage

Temperature (C) 2nd B23 63 117 (+ 54) 120 (+ 3) 115 (6)

3rd B38 103 177 (+ 74) 168 (9) 161 (7)
4th B53 179 220 (+ 41) 206 (14) 199 (7)
5th B68 180 229 (+ 49) 228 (1) 220 (8)
6th B83 184 237 (+ 53) 241 (+ 4) 233 (8)
7th B98 184 248 (+ 64) 251 (+ 3) 243 (8)
Pressure (MPa) 2nd B23 1.2 1.2 (0) 1.3 (+ 0.1) 1.3 (0)
3rd B38 1.4 1.9 (+ 0.5) 4.8 (+ 2.9) 1.8 (3.0)
4th B53 1.6 2.3 (+ 0.7) 5.3 (+ 3.0) 1.6 (3.7)
5th B68 2.0 2.8 (+ 0.8) 5.8 (+ 3.0) 2.5 (3.3)
6th B83 2.5 3.2 (+ 0.7) 6.3 (+ 3.1) 3.3 (3.0)
7th B98 3.1 3.8 (+ 0.7) 7.1 (+ 3.3) 4.4 (2.7)
Vapor saturation (%) 2nd B23 0 0 0 0
3rd B38 0 0 0 0
4th B53 0 11 0 41
5th B68 0 12 0 20
6th B83 0 11 0 13
7th B98 0 11 0 0
Temperature (C) 2nd A23, C23 59 108 (+ 49) 115 (+ 7) 103 (12)
3rd A38, C38 95 156 (+ 61) 161 (+ 5) 147 (14)
4th A53, C53 155 211 (+ 56) 199 (12) 191 (8)
5th A68, C68 156 228 (+ 72) 220 (8) 217 (3)
6th A83, C83 156 237 (+ 81) 233 (4) 231 (2)
7th A98, C98 156 244 (+ 88) 243 (1) 242 (1)

seventh layers of the central vein cells (i.e., B53,
B68, B83, and B98 cells) and at the fifth and sixth
layers of the west and side vein cells and their sur-
rounding cells (i.e., B64, B65, B71, B72, B79, B80,
B86, and B87 cells) with vapor saturation of 10–12%
(Table 2; Fig. 15d). As with the early-stage simula-
tion, the W/R was calculated for the middle-stage
simulation. The W/Rs at 5, 25, and 90 m from the
west or east vein in the fourth layer in the middle-
stage were 0.02, 0.006, and 0.002, respectively.
Compared to the early-stage, these values decreased
by about an order of magnitude, which reflected the
formation of LPHA (i.e., a strong alteration) zone
near the vein. In the geological modeling, a fluid
temperature increase was regarded as a cause of
fluid boiling in the vein by preventing the intrusion
of cold groundwater due to the low permeability of
the surrounding LPAH. In the middle-stage
numerical simulation, the decrease in thermal con-
ductivity of the LPAH was interpreted as a cause of
boiling with the low permeability of the LPAH.
Therefore, an insulating property of the LPAH be-
came essential for boiling in the middle-stage.
Late-stage Simulation
A significant feature of the late-pressurization
stage that differs from the previous two stages was
the large decrease in the amount of up-flows in the
central vein, whereas up-flows in the west and east
vein cells showed large increases (Fig. 16a). This
feature was caused by the low permeability of the
LPAH II. This inhibited efficient up-flows and con-
sequently induced horizontal NNW–SSE flows to-
ward both surrounding cells (Fig. 16b) and lowered
the temperatures in the central vein in the third and
fourth layers by 9–14 C from the middle-stage
while maintaining the temperatures elsewhere (Ta-
ble 2). The pressures in the vein cells in the layers
deeper than the second layer increased from the
middle-stage and exceeded hydrostatic pressures
by  4 MPa (Table 2; Fig. 16c). The W/Rs at 5, 25,
and 90 m from the west or east vein in the fourth
layer in the late-stage were 0.006, 0.002, and 8 9 10–
4
, respectively. Compared to the middle-stage, these
values were about one-third to one-half, which
indicated the progress of hydrothermal alteration
88
Figure 14. Calculated water–rock ratios at the end of the
early stage, 10,000 years after the start of simulation. The
horizontal dashed line indicates the highest elevation of the
drilling area.
and increase of fluid pressure from the middle-stage.
These fluid pressures did not reach the occurrence
condition for boiling over the simulation block
(Fig. 16d). Hydrothermal brecciation occurred in
the LPAH caps, as in the geological modeling, which
was supported by the simulation result showing the
large pressure increase in the vein cells in the LPAH
II cells in the fourth layer.
After the calibration, we obtained the simulated
temperature in the late-decompression stage at the
B53 vein cell as 201 C (Table 2), which was also in
good agreement with the homogenization tempera-
ture of  201 C. A noted feature of this stage was
lateral flow of ascending fluids along the veins in the
fourth layer due to the increase of permeability of
the fourth layer caused by the hydrothermal brec-
ciation (Fig. 17a). Similar to the late-pressurization
stage, LPAH II cells caused up-flows in the vein cells
and lateral flow to surrounding cells in the NNW–
SSE direction (Fig. 17b). In addition, from the pre-
vious stage, the temperatures in the central vein
lowered by 5–8 C (Table 2) and pressures de-
creased by 2.4–3.7 MPa (Fig. 17c). Owing to these
changes, boiling occurred in the four-layer vein cells
and their surrounding cells with vapor saturations of
11–41% (Fig. 17d). The geological modeling indi-
H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama
cated that the cause of mineralization in the late-
decompression stage was boiling of the fluids, and it
was confirmed in this simulation that the fluids
boiled.
DISCUSSION
The results of our geological modeling and
numerical simulations indicate that the Sirawai Au–
Ag deposit was formed by three different mecha-
nisms: early-stage cooling, middle-stage boiling, and
late-stage boiling. Although the Hosokura and Sir-
awai deposits differ according to ore type (Ag–Pb–
Zn vs. Au–Ag), mineralization time (Late Miocene
vs. Pliocene–Pleistocene), and related volcanism
(dacitic vs. andesitic), the multi-stage ore-deposition
mechanism of the Sirawai deposit is similar to the
cold-water trap process defined by Takahashi et al.
(2021) for the Hosokura deposit. A shallow aquifer,
silicification zone, and mushroom-shaped LPAH –
indicators of the cold-water trap in the Hosokura
deposit – were also confirmed in the Sirawai deposit.
The role of this trap is discussed in detail below. A
pressure–temperature relationship diagram based on
the result of the numerical simulations (Fig. 18) is
shown for understanding the cause of ore deposition
in the three mineralization stages. The differences in
the ore-deposition mechanisms were reflected in the
Au grades and Ag/Au ratios in the ores and in the
gangue-quartz textures (Table 3).
Early-stage Cooling
In the early-stage simulation, the pressure of
the ascending fluid decreased and its temperature
also dropped (Fig. 18a). This condition did not cause
boiling of the fluids without reaching the boiling
curve. The simulated temperatures of the ascending
hydrothermal fluids in the deepest part and in the
shallow part of the central vein were 270 C and
103 C, respectively. In particular, the temperature
of the fluid as it flowed from the fifth layer to the
third layer across the fourth layer (shallow aquifer)
dropped from 180 C to 103 C (Table 2). The
mixing of cold groundwater with hydrothermal fluids
in the fourth layer is suggested by the recharge of
cold groundwater from the third layer and
hydrothermal fluids ascending from the deeper part
of the system to the fourth layer (Fig. 13a). A drop
in fluid temperature in the shallower depths of the
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap 89

Figure 15. Middle-stage simulation results of the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit. Temperature distributions and
fluid flow patterns in (a) row B and (b) the central vein, column 8. (c) Pressure and (d) vapor saturation
distributions in row B. The horizontal dashed lines indicate the highest elevation of the drilling area.

shallow aquifer is supported by the Cu–Pb zoning the Ag/Au ratio increased toward the shallower
(deep; Cu zone, shallow; Pb zone) in the early-stage part. The main Ag-bearing mineral was Ag-tel-
ores (Fig. 7c) associated with cooling fluids (e.g., luride, which was interpreted as a product of fluid
Swinkels et al., 2019). Thus, the cold groundwater in temperature decrease by comparison with a
the shallow aquifer triggered the cooling-type min- numerical simulation of stable minerals in the Acu-
eralization. The low-grade matched that of the pan Au–Ag deposit, Baguio Au district, the Philip-
Chitose Au–Ag deposit (in Japan), in which the pines (Fig. 1; Cooke et al., 1996).
early-stage ore was formed also by cooling of fluids
(Takatori & Nouno, 1985). In the Sirawai Au–Ag
deposit, changes of the Au grades were minimal
regardless of temperature, whereas the Ag grades
increased with decreasing temperature. Accordingly,
90 H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama

Figure 16. Late-pressurization stage simulation results of the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit. Temperature
distributions and fluid flow patterns in (a) row B and (b) the central vein, column 8. (c) Pressure and (d)
vapor saturation distributions in row B. The horizontal dashed lines indicate the highest elevation of the
drilling area.

Middle-stage Temperature-Increase Boiling
Boiling occurred owing to the increasing tem-
perature and constant pressure in the middle-stage
simulation (a temperature-increase type; Fig. 18b).
LPAHs have likely formed cap rocks in shallow
aquifers, as found in many geothermal areas in the
Philippines (Reyes, 1990) and in Japan (Takahashi,
1996). The hydrothermal alteration minerals filling
the fractures and voids in the LPAH are commonly
clay minerals, such as illite, smectite, and kaolinite,
quartz, and calcite (Reyes, 1990; Takahashi, 1996).
In the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit, the LPAH composed
of chiefly quartz, illite, and smectite was formed and
the fluid boiled. The decrease of W/Rs near the vein
from the early to middle-stages calculated from the
simulation results suggests the formation of LPHA
near the vein. In the simulation, although the
hydrothermal fluid source conditions (e.g., source
temperature and mass flux) were the same as those
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap 91

Figure 17. Late-decompression stage simulation results of the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit. Temperature
distributions and fluid flow patterns in (a) row B and (b) the central vein, column 8. (c) Pressure and (d)
vapor saturation distributions in row B. The horizontal dashed lines indicate the highest elevation of the
drilling area.

in the early-stage, the fluid temperatures in the
central vein (e.g., B53 cell) increased by 41 C from
the early- to middle-stages (Table 2), and the boiling
of hydrothermal fluids in the veins was confirmed
(Fig. 15d). From the results of the simulation, the
cause of the rise in fluid temperature and the fluid
boiling was lowering of permeability and thermal
conductivity of the LPAH, which created low per-
meability and insulating properties.
Common to the Sirawai and the Hosokura de-
posits, the middle-stage mineralization was triggered
by the formation of a mushroom-shaped LPAH.
Based on the simulated temperatures, the LPAH-
induced temperature increases from early to middle-
stages were 22 C in the Hosokura deposit (Taka-
hashi et al., 2021) versus 41 C in the Sirawai de-
posit. In the fluid-inclusion analysis of two Sirawai
deposit samples, boiling and flashing were con-
firmed, and the ice-melting temperatures of the
92
observable boiling samples notably decreased
(Fig. 9d). We deduced that this decrease was caused
by the increase of CO2 in the inclusions from the
boiling fluids. This deduction is based on results of
gas-component analysis of fluid inclusions in the
Apacheta Au–Ag deposit in Peru (André-Mayer
et al., 2002). The larger decreases in the ice-melting
temperatures of the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit were
probably attributable to violent boiling in this de-
posit. The most economically viable ores were gen-
erated in the middle-stage by the temperature-
increase boiling. The Ag/Au ratios in the ores with
the fine-grained and medium-grained quartz were
30 and £ 10, respectively. A thermodynamic
model study revealed that the Ag/Au ratio remained
relatively constant during the boiling process but
increased near the top of the boiling interval (Cole
& Drummond, 1986). Therefore, high Ag/Au ratios
apparently reflect the upper part of the boiling
interval, which is also evidenced by the flashing
feature of the fluid inclusions in the high Ag/Au
ratio samples. As mentioned above, high-grade Au
mineralization was induced by vigorous boiling with
flashing.
Late-stage Pressure-decrease Boiling
In the late-pressurization stage simulation,
where the hydrothermal fluid source conditions (e.g.,
source temperature and mass flux) were the same as
those in the early- and middle-stage simulations, in
the central vein (e.g., B53 cell), the fluid tempera-
ture decreased by 8 C and the pressure increased by
3 Ma from the middle- to the late-pressurization
stages owing to the decreased permeability of the
vein and the LPAH (Table 2). Therefore, the fluid
did not boil during this stage (Fig. 16d). In the late-
decompression stage simulation, boiling occurred
due to a drop in pressure with constant temperature
(a pressure-decrease type; Fig. 18c). In the simula-
tions, boiling was observed in the shallow parts
(Fig. 17d). It represented boiling caused by
hydrothermal brecciation that commonly occurs
beneath a local, low-permeability barrier (John &
Mauk, 2018). The occurrence of hydrothermal
brecciation was limited to within the LPAH caps
that were composed of fragile tuff breccia with
strong argillization and were, mechanically, the most
brittle in the host rocks around the veins. The de-
crease of fluid pressure in the central vein (e.g., B53
cell) from the late-pressurization to late-decom-
H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama
Figure 18. Schematic relationships between fluid
temperature, fluid pressure, and the boiling curve
under different fluid conditions for the three
mineralization stages of the Sirawai Au–Ag
deposit based on the results of the numerical
simulations. (a) Early-stage cooling (non-
boiling). (b) Middle-stage temperature-increase
boiling. (c) Late-stage pressure-decrease boiling.
pression stages was calculated by the simulation as
3.7 MPa (Table 2). The occurrence of hydrothermal
brecciation changed all the fluid pressures to the
hydrostatic condition, the same as in the early-stage.
In contrast, the increase in calculated temperature
from the previous stage was small. Accordingly, we
interpreted decompression by hydrothermal brec-
ciation as reflecting the change from a local high-
pressure condition in the LPAH to a hydrostatic
condition. The simulation showed evidence of the
occurrence of boiling in the host rock outside the
vein in the fourth layer, and this boiling was con-
firmed by fluid-inclusion analysis. In the Sibutad Au
deposit (Fig. 1), which consists of quartz veins in
hydrothermal brecciation zones, the Au grades were
found to be  1.8 g/t (Jimenez et al., 2002), similar
to the late-stage ore of the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit.
The Ag/Au ratios in the late-stage ores were  30,
whereas early-stage ores cover a wide range of Ag/
Au ratios. Therefore, comparison with other de-
posits demonstrates that mineralization associated
with pressure decrease obtains a higher grade than
can be achieved by a cooling mechanism. The two
mechanisms can be distinguished by the stability of
their Ag/Au ratios.
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap 93

Table 3. Relationships between the ore-deposition mechanisms of the three stages and the mineralization features, Au grades, Ag/Au
ratios, and gangue-quartz textures in the Sirawai Au–Ag deposit

Mineralization stage Early stage Middle stage Late stage

Ore-deposition mechanism Cooling Temperature-increase boiling Pressure-decrease boiling

Trigger of mineralization Shallow aquifer Mushroom-shaped LPAH Hydrothermal brecciation
Au grade Low:  1 g/t High:  26 g/t Medium:  2 g/t
Ag/Au ratio 4–89 Majority: £ 10, Minority;  30  30
Quartz size Medium (0.8 mm) Medium (0.8 mm), Fine (0.1 mm) Medium to coarse (0.7–1.5 mm)
Quartz texture Massive Plumose (little comb), Colloform (ginguro) Comb and dogtooth

Prediction of Undrilled Mineralization Zone
This study identified undrilled zones with
physical and chemical changes (cooling and boiling
of fluid) that reflected the drilled mineralization
zones. We were able to find three-dimensionally the
mineralization zones at the multiple mineralization
stages. The early-stage ores were low Au grades but
were widely distributed at all 45 intersections, and
important as an Au resource. These ores with sili-
cification zones showed higher grades than average
(e.g., intersection V6-5: Au 1.1 g/t). In the simula-
tion of the Hosokura deposit observed from shallow
to deep parts, the silicification zone was distributed
in the small temperature gradient area. Similarly, in
the simulation of the central vein, the small tem-
perature gradient extended in the section of 250 m
from the fourth to seventh layers. From these facts,
the formation of early-stage ore with a silicification
zone was also predicted in the sixth and seventh
layers that have not been drilled.
As mentioned above, the most economical
middle-stage ores were generated by boiling. In the
simulation of the central vein, the boiling zone was
extended to the seventh layer deeper than the fourth
layer where the boiling was observed by the fluid-
inclusion analysis. Therefore, the middle-stage ores
may be formed up to the seventh layer. The late-
stage ores were also formed by boiling. In the sim-
ulation, the boiling was observed in the host rocks
outside the veins in the fourth layer which was
confirmed to the boiling by fluid- inclusion analysis.
In the test pit and drilling, many intersections with
unclear continuity of the seven Au–Ag veins were
found in the fourth layer, but some of these may be
the late-stage ores extending from the seven veins.
The simulation results can specify the zones with
similar physical conditions, e.g., vapor saturation, to
the mineralization zones even in the deep parts be-
low the drilled areas, which guides us to select next
drilling targets. Therefore, the combination of geo-
logical modeling and numerical simulations is an
effective method for Au exploration.
CONCLUSIONS
To identify the most plausible generation
mechanism for common low-sulfidation epithermal
Au deposits, we proposed a cold-water trap for
studying the Sirawai deposit. By geological modeling
and numerical simulations using TOUGH2, the
cold-water trap was verified as the multi-stage Au
ore-deposition mechanism in this deposit. The main
findings of this study are as follows.
 Many shallow drill holes and test pits inter-
sected seven Au–Ag veins in the drilling area.
Miocene and Pleistocene volcanic rocks host
the deposit, and a shallow aquifer made up
the bottom part of the Pleistocene pyroclastic
rocks. At both sides of each vein, several
meter-wide fault/fracture zones containing
many veinlets were formed.
 The main ore minerals identified were pyrite,
chalcopyrite, galena, sphalerite with acces-
sory Pb–telluride, Ag–telluride, and elec-
trum; gangue minerals were quartz with
accessory rhodochrosite, fluorite, and calcite;
and hydrothermal alteration minerals were
quartz, adularia, illite, illite/smectite, chlorite,
smectite, and kaolinite. Through the genera-
tion order of the ores, gangue-quartz tex-
tures, and mineral paragenetic features, the
Au–Ag–Cu–Pb–Zn mineralization was di-
vided into three stages (early, middle, and
late).
94 H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama
 The hydrothermal alteration halos around
the Au–Ag veins were divided into three
zones: (1) illite and silicification zones in
contact with the veins at the deep parts; (2)
smectite zone in the shallow aquifer; and (3)
local kaolinite zones at the hanging wall of
the veins including the middle-stage ores.
 The fluid-inclusion analysis of four ore sam-
ples revealed that the mean homogenization
temperatures with or without boiling of the
fluids in the early-, middle-, and late-stages
were 178 C with non-boiling, 223 C and
unmeasurable with boiling and flashing, and
201 C with boiling, respectively.
 The causes of Au–Ag–Cu–Pb–Zn mineral-
ization in the three stages (early, middle, and
late) were cooling and boiling of hydrother-
mal fluids, respectively. These different
mechanisms originated from the pressure and
temperature conditions of the fluids and no-
tably were reflected in the different Au
grades and Ag/Au ratios in the ores and
gangue-quartz textures.
 The existence of a permeable, shallow aquifer
filled with cold groundwater was essential in
initiating the multi-stage ore-deposition
mechanism. The mixing of neutral-pH
hydrothermal fluids (at  270 C ascending
via permeable veins) with cold groundwater
caused low-grade mineralization of Au
( 1 g/t). The Ag/Au ratios increased from 4
to 89 toward the shallower parts of the system
as fluid temperature decreased. The gangue
quartz was medium grained and massive. The
fluids flowed from the veins to the surround-
ing semi-permeable (fault/fracture zones) and
permeable zones, and formed mushroom-
shaped alteration halos, which were com-
posed of narrow illite and silicification zones
in the deep, ‘‘stalk’’ part and a wide smectite
zone in the shallow aquifer, ‘‘cap’’ part.
 The critical factor of the occurrence of mid-
dle-stage mineralization was the formation of
mushroom-shaped LPAHs around the veins
by the decrease in permeability of halos with
the progress of hydrothermal alteration. Due
to the low permeability and insulating prop-
erties of the LPAHs, the temperature in-
creased in veins surrounded by LPAHs. As a
result, boiling with flashing generated the
most economically viable mineralization:
high Au grade,  26 g/t, and typical Ag/Au
ratios of 10 or lower. The gangue quartz
comprised fine-grained quartz with colloform
texture and medium-grained one with plu-
mose texture.
 Further decrease in permeability of the
LPAH increased airtightness and fluid pres-
sure in the veins and then caused hydrother-
mal brecciation in the horizontal weak zones
such as the LPAH caps. Late-stage mineral-
ization of medium Au grade ( 2 g/t) with an
almost constant Ag/Au ratio ( 30) was
caused by decompression boiling associated
with the brecciation. The gangue quartz was
characterized by medium- to coarse-grained
quartz with a dogtooth texture.
Therefore, the cold-water trap is a new inno-
vative concept for mineralization in low-sulfidation
Au epithermal deposits. Finding the evidence of the
cold-water trap (typically, a shallow aquifer, silicifi-
cation zone, and mushroom-shaped LPAH) should
be effective for Au exploration. Gold grades and
Ag/Au ratios in ores are critical microscale evidence
for judging the mineralization stage. Furthermore, a
combination of geological modeling and numerical
simulations can be used to predict undrilled miner-
alization zones, thereby reducing exploration time
and cost.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We would like to appreciate leader Mr. Brian
Esber and the Sirawai exploration team. To ensure
low-cost exploration, the Sirawai exploration labo-
ratory performed accurately the chemical analyses
of the drill cores. Our sincere gratitude is extended
to mineralogist Yasuhiro Takai and Sachiko Toki,
Enecom Co., Ltd., for their assistance in observing
the boiling phenomena in fluid inclusions under the
microscope, and the Dr. Jonathan Naden and two
anonymous reviewers for essential and constructive
comments and suggestions that improved clarity of
this manuscript largely.
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap 95

APPENDIX

Grades of Au, Ag, Cu, Pb, Zn, and Ag/Au and

Pb/Cu ratios in the three mineralization stages at the
45 intersections with Au–Ag veins, obtained from
the test pits and drill holes in the Sirawai deposit.
Early-Stage Ore

No Number of Elevation Width Au Ag Ag/Au Cu Pb Zn Pb/

intersection (m a.s.l.) of ore (ppb) (ppb) ratio (ppm) (ppm) (ppm) Cu
with vein (m) ratio

1 V1 1 301 1.5 0.6 22.4 38 527 386 386 0.9

2 2 313 2.5 0.5 24.6 45 885 531 531 1.9
3 3 309 1.5 0.6 27.2 45 607 652 652 1.5
4 V2 1 293 2.0 0.5 15.5 30 1499 564 564 1.6
5 2 298 3.5 0.9 44.8 47 4715 669 669 1.2
6 3 320 1.5 0.6 39.0 66 1196 2829 2829 3.5
7 4 300 1.5 0.7 23.4 33 8320 3162 3162 0.2
8 5 308 2.6 0.9 37.7 43 3795 14,501 14,501 1.7
9 6 308 3.0 0.8 53.0 63 4715 5108 5108 1.3
10 7 308 1.5 0.6 45.0 78 1939 631 631 6.5
11 V3 1 291 1.7 0.6 22.5 39 2654 2498 2498 1.0
12 2 323 3.5 0.7 40.6 62 1010 778 778 1.7
13 3 323 3.0 0.8 49.8 60 517 2022 2022 4.7
14 4 314 3.4 1.4 99.0 72 3148 1785 1785 1.5
15 5 301 2.0 1.6 62.0 40 2683 8445 8445 1.9
16 6 284 1.5 1.1 20.4 19 708 403 403 0.7
17 V4 1 284 1.0 0.8 28.6 36 1911 1034 1034 1.0
18 2 292 1.5 1.0 33.3 33 2766 1323 1323 0.8
19 3 284 1.8 1.4 49.4 36 3131 7605 7605 0.8
20 4 323 2.5 1.1 76.0 69 1481 1329 1329 1.4
21 5 305 0.5 0.6 28.0 45 2284 648 648 1.1
22 6 318 1.5 0.5 32.8 62 1882 1259 1259 1.5
23 V5 1 278 1.7 0.9 16.0 18 2641 1829 1829 0.6
24 2 292 1.7 0.7 7.5 11 4267 4019 4019 0.7
25 3 325 2.5 0.6 52.6 89 2980 2800 2800 1.7
26 4 310 2.5 1.1 46.9 44 3324 13,567 13,567 7.0
27 5 298 1.0 1.0 28.5 29 442 592 592 0.7
28 6 295 1.7 0.8 16.0 19 2100 1965 1965 0.8
29 7 296 3.4 1.4 30.3 21 9735 1900 4961 0.2
30 V5 8 301 1.0 0.6 13.2 21 7306 3887 5201 0.5
31 9 285 1.0 0.8 11.6 14 1888 1018 2369 0.5
32 10 295 1.7 1.4 44.5 31 5612 7129 5321 1.3
33 11 302 1.0 0.5 27.0 50 543 876 654 1.6
34 V6 1 325 1.0 0.8 59.0 72 972 1463 1216 1.5
35 2 326 3.0 0.7 47.1 71 2248 3329 1180 1.5
36 3 318 1.5 0.7 45.5 64 1293 6773 5069 5.2
37 4 313 3.0 1.8 134.8 76 872 5985 1103 6.9
38 5 271 1.0 1.1 5.0 4 374 416 524 1.1
39 6 298 1.0 0.6 35.1 57 650 790 754 1.2
40 7 295 1.0 0.6 21.9 37 1006 1148 594 1.1
41 V7 1 322 1.0 0.5 30.7 63 1845 2830 2313 1.5
42 2 323 3.0 0.7 48.3 73 480 5408 1684 11.3
43 3 309 1.0 0.4 16.2 46 16,935 1221 2294 0.1
44 4 303 4.0 1.0 35.3 34 277 564 241 2.0
45 5 285 2.0 1.1 18.7 17 2191 1109 1227 0.5
96 H. Takahashi, S. A. Tomita, K. Koike, and H. Yoshiyama

Middle-Stage Ore

No Number of Elevation Width of Au Ag Ag/Au Cu Pb Zn Pb/Cu

intersection (m a.s.l.) ore (m) (ppb) (ppb) ratio (ppm) (ppm) (ppm) ratio
with vein

1 V1 1 299 1.5 23.9 89.2 4 1261 1218 1320 1.0

2 3 311 1.5 2.8 16.7 6 625 770 799 1.2
3 V2 6 309 0.5 21.4 222.9 10 3797 7170 6211 1.9
4 V3 3 325 1.5 3.2 20.9 7 1853 3845 2500 2.1
5 4 315 0.5 3.2 24.7 8 2880 2545 936 0.9
6 V4 1 292 0.5 20.2 411.1 20 10,120 40,940 61,220 4.0
7 4 326 1.0 36.5 98.7 3 2601 7580 6198 2.9
8 5 304 0.5 5.0 15.0 3 1525 1993 1220 1.3
9 V5 1 277 0.9 22.2 123.0 6 3048 3591 1434 1.2
10 2 290 1.7 14.7 379.2 26 6501 31,905 69,775 4.9
11 3 328 0.5 2.0 13.0 6 2446 2283 1102 0.9
12 5 296 1.5 54.9 2370.4 43 1811 15,348 3406 8.5
13 8 300 0.5 1.8 53.1 29 3507 8088 7535 2.3
14 9 286 0.5 5.4 100.6 19 6867 31,760 34,955 4.6
15 10 296 0.9 183.3 169.0 1 6374 5811 2533 0.9
16 V6 3 315 0.5 2.3 22.0 9 1232 3207 3178 2.6
17 5 273 1.0 25.4 26.5 1 2490 1066 1156 0.4
18 V7 4 305 2.0 6.3 33.0 5 974 1331 807 1.4

Late-Stage Ore

No Number of Elevation Width Au Ag Ag/Au Cu Pb Zn Pb/Cu

intersection (m a.s.l.) of ore (ppb) (ppb) ratio (ppm) (ppm) (ppm) ratio
with vein (m)

1 V2 5 307 0.9 1.3 43.0 33 5582 11,500 8460 2.1

2 V4 1 286 1.5 1.8 59.5 34 5146 7785 9691 1.5
3 2 293 0.5 1.8 44.2 24 5559 16,200 3098 2.9
4 3 285 1.7 3.3 103.0 31 8397 4489 13,580 0.5
5 4 327 0.5 3.5 85.3 24 1685 2633 1132 1.6
6 V5 1 276 0.9 0.7 13.7 20 5483 1342 1880 0.2
7 2 286 0.9 0.8 23.6 30 1095 1896 14,875 1.7
8 6 292 0.9 6.4 180.0 28 15,420 20,650 22,655 1.3
9 7 293 1.7 3.0 62.8 21 7698 2620 2111 0.3
10 8 295 0.5 1.3 23.1 18 2322 2728 6040 1.2
11 V6 2 323 1.5 0.9 20.3 23 3272 5759 2535 1.8
12 V7 1 320 0.5 3.2 60.3 19 11,870 3403 3476 0.3
13 2 320 2.0 1.8 58.6 32 1885 3494 12,679 1.9
14 5 283 1.0 1.9 53.9 28 3218 1311 816 0.4
Geological Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Cold-Water Trap
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