Biogeochemical parameters and their significance for mineral exploration.
Abstract
Reviews the five main biogeochemical parameters as described in the Russian literature, and assesses their use in the light of experience in biogeochemical prospecting work, carried out in Australia and New Zealand, over a 7-year period. It is emphasized that the variance of a given parameter is of much greater significance than its absolute value, particularly in the case of the biological absorption coefficient (BAC), which is the ratio of the concentration of an element in plant ash to its concentration in the substrate. This is the most important of the parameters for survey work, and some data are tabulated for BAC values for Cu and Ni in three New Zealand trees, viz. Nothofagus fusca, Quintinia acutifolia and Weinmannia racemosa. [Cf. FA 32, 3701; 34, 6741; 35, 630].,