The search for small intrusions of the Stepnyak gold-bearing type within the Akmola region of Kazakhstan: A multi-geophysical technique and unmanned aerial vehicle approach

Abstract

Current data reveals about a hundred gold-bearing geological bodies have been identified in the Akmola region of Kazakhstan. Such ore-bodies are characterized by various quartz veins that occur often as stockworks, and new genetic types. The region looks promising in terms of the formation of gold-bearing rocks in deep horizons, since favorable factors of ore-forming geological structures have been identified. This assertion is supported by the known gold occurrences, and historic data from detailed exploration work, which prove the prospects for identifying economically viable gold deposits for development. Irrespective of the promising gold-rich terrain, the existence of complex geological structures, presence of extensive colluvium or loose sediments cover, coupled with poor geological to geophysical information, impedes exploration successes. This paper shows that considering the aforementioned challenges, a composite geophysical methods of aeromagnetic, and electrical techniques through unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), marked by induced polarization in the modification of the median gradient can be effective. The results made it possible to solve the problems of detailing the geological and tectonic structure of the area, the spatial positions, and identification of deeply buried ore bodies. The adopted combined-approach projects subtle geological structure of the site, identifies promising geological bodies of interest for steppe-type gold mineralization, and demonstrated the applicability of geophysical methods in the search for gold-bearing zones.