Ore Geology Reviews 72 (2016) 603611

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Ore Geology Reviews

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Boiling and depth calculations in active and fossil hydrothermal systems:

A comparative approach based on uid inclusion case studies from Mexico
Miguel A. Cruz-Prez a,b, Carles Canet b,, Sara I. Franco b, Antoni Camprub c,
Eduardo Gonzlez-Partida d, Abdorrahman Rajabi e
a

Facultad de Ingeniera, Universidad Nacional Autnoma de Mxico, Del. Coyoacn, 04510 Mxico, D.F., Mexico
Instituto de Geofsica, Universidad Nacional Autnoma de Mxico, Del. Coyoacn, 04510 Mxico, D.F., Mexico
Instituto de Geologa, Universidad Nacional Autnoma de Mxico, Del. Coyoacn, 04510 Mxico, D.F., Mexico
d
Centro de Geociencias, Universidad Nacional Autnoma de Mxico, Campus Juriquilla, 76230 Santiago de Quertaro, Mexico
e
Department of Geology, Faculty of Basic Sciences, University of Birjand, Birjand, Iran
b
c

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history:
Received 24 February 2015
Received in revised form 13 August 2015
Accepted 19 August 2015
Available online 28 August 2015
Keywords:
Epithermal deposits
Hydrothermal
Fluid inclusions
Microthermometry
Paleo-depth estimation
Geothermal exploration

a b s t r a c t
A boiling model that considers the increase of salinity due to the steam loss and uses a combined density of the
coexisting vapor and liquid phases was applied to uid inclusion data from Los Azufres geothermal zone and
from an Eocene epithermal vein of Taxco. These case studies are taken as examples of active and fossil hydrothermal systems, respectively. In Los Azufres high temperatures of homogenization (N 300 C) are commonly attained
at depths between 1500 and 2000 m whereas salinity values above 2.0 wt.% NaCl eq. occur within the upper
~500 m of the system, suggesting that the geothermal zone is largely affected by boiling. The depths calculated
with the boiling model are close to real depths, with accuracy greater than 99% for one case; however, considerably large error (30%) was obtained to the top of the geothermal system due to enhanced CO2 concentrations.
Contrastingly, the depths estimated by plotting microthermometric data on boiling point curves (of constant salinity and discarding the effect of vapor on hydrostatic pressure) were systematically shallower than real ones,
implying an underestimation of depth of up to ~50%. For the application case of the Taxco epithermal deposit,
microthermometric data describe a boiling evolution path in the temperaturesalinity space although some
values deviate from it, thus likely reecting local mixing with uids of contrasting salinity. According to our
model, boiling occurred from a paleo-depth of 360 m, which corresponds to a current (sampling) depth of
about 200 m; this level in the hydrothermal system coincides with the boundary between a lower base metal
zone and an upper silver-rich zone. These results suggest that the descriptive models for epithermal deposits
could be incorrectly calibrated in terms of depth; therefore, they could be revised and corrected by applying
the boiling model used in this paper.
2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
The upper zone (12 km) of active hydrothermal systems is affected
by the boiling of hot upwelling uids due to decompression, which results in rapid separation of steam from brines and in the partitioning
of volatiles (typically CO2 and H2S) into the vapor phase. This phase separation controls the key chemical parameters for mineral supersaturation and precipitation, such as pH and uid composition (cf. Roedder,
1984; Henley et al., 1984; Canet et al., 2011). In geothermal systems,
boiling determines, inter alia, vapor-to-liquid ratios and discharge enthalpies (Scott et al., 2014, and references therein), whereas for
epithermal deposits boiling is the most important mechanism of precipitation, with special regard to precious metals (e.g., Hedenquist and
Henley, 1985a; Cole and Drummond, 1986; Skinner, 1997; Camprub
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: ccanet@geosica.unam.mx (C. Canet).

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.oregeorev.2015.08.016
0169-1368/ 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

et al., 2001; Andr-Mayer et al., 2002; Simmons et al., 2005 and references therein). Furthermore, the precipitation of these metals has
been conrmed in geothermal wells undergoing intense boiling
(Brown, 1986; Simmons and Browne, 2000a).
In order to study the role of boiling in the epithermal environment,
however, the complex zoning that generally affects the deposits at all
scales as a result of successive mineralizing events and changes in the
state of suldation needs to be considered (e.g., Einaudi et al., 2003;
Dreier, 2005; Camprub and Albinson, 2007). Vertical ore zoning at the
deposit scale is a feature of many epithermal deposits (Andr-Mayer
et al., 2002 and references therein) and also has been described in geothermal systems (Simmons and Browne, 2000b). In many cases of
southwest North America (Mexico and western United States) two
zones are distinguishable, (a) a deeper zone enriched in base metals
(Pb, Zn, Cu) and (b) a shallower zone with precious metals (Ag, Au),
usually coinciding the boundary between the two zones with the boiling level (e.g., Buchanan, 1981). However, the vertical distribution of

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M.A. Cruz-Prez et al. / Ore Geology Reviews 72 (2016) 603611

metal associations can be more complex than assumed since Buchanan

(1981). In this regard, epithermal deposits in Mexico also exhibit
characteristically (I) earlier and deeper polymetallic intermediate
suldation stages, followed by (II) shallower AgAu low suldation
stages (Camprub and Albinson, 2007). Such a feature has been mistaken as a deep base metal and shallow precious metal zoning when researchers did not pay enough attention to the paragenetic sequence of
mineralization.
Another common feature of epithermal deposits are high-grade
ore zonesor bonanzasthat are constrained to discrete depth intervals
(e.g., Cole and Drummond, 1986; Sillitoe, 1993; Albinson and Rubio,
2001; Dreier, 2005), likely corresponding to boiling levels related
to major feeder channels (Cole and Drummond, 1986; Scott and
Watanabe, 1998; Camprub et al., 2001). Thus, mineralogical and uid
inclusion evidence for boiling can be taken as key exploration criteria
(cf. Simmons et al., 2005; Camprub, 2010; Canet et al., 2011). If uid
inclusions are used for this purpose, microthermometric data must
be carefully separated according to stages of mineralization (where
applicable), as feeder channels do not necessarily remain stationary
during the activity of the hydrothermal system (e.g., Camprub, 2010;
Rowland and Simmons, 2012). The occurrence of major feeder channels
is suggested by temperatures of homogenization (TH) dening dome
shaped isotherms, whereas mushroom shapes may suggest lateral outow (e.g., Albinson and Rubio, 2001).
Finding evidence for boiling points out not only possible high-grade
zones, but also can be used to constrain paleo-depths based on the principle that vapor pressure equals hydrostatic pressure during boiling
(Haas, 1971). In turn, the determination of the paleo-depth of the boiling level in fossil hydrothermal systems can be useful in terms of mineral exploration and for the model of ore deposit by the following: (a)
vertical zoning of the hydrothermal system can be referenced to the
present topography and, therefore, (b) the level of erosion of the deposit, relative to the paleo-surface (actually to the paleo-water table position at the time of hydrothermal activity; cf. Simmons et al., 2005),
can be estimated.
The boiling point curves of Haas (1971) were calculated for hydrostatic conditions for differentbut constantsalinities and are often
used in estimations of paleo-depth in epithermal deposits (e.g.,
Shamanian et al., 2004; Masterman et al., 2005; Orgn et al., 2005;
Fard et al., 2006; Richards et al., 2006; Rice et al., 2007; Harris et al.,
2009; Cooke et al., 2011; Fornadel et al., 2012; Lesage et al., 2013;
Kodra et al., 2014). However, the effect of steam bubbles lowering
the hydrostatic pressure is discarded and, therefore, the paleo-depths
calculated in this way may have been systematically underestimated.
Alternatively, Canet et al. (2011) proposed a method for paleo-depth
calculation that takes the increase of salinity due to steam loss during
boiling into consideration, and uses a combined density of the
coexisting vapor and liquid phases. This method was tested in the
Early Miocene Bolaos AgAuPbZn epithermal deposit, southwestern
Mexico. In this case, the calculated paleo-depth for the level in which
boiling started resulted very close to the sampling (present) depth,
about 440 m, whereas using the curves of Haas (1971) a paleo-depth
of ~ 225 m is obtained; the latter is an unreliable value because it is
even smaller than the sampling depth.
In this paper we present rstly the results of applying the boiling
model of Canet et al. (2011)henceforth referred to as the variable
salinity model (or method)to uid inclusion data of the Los Azufres
geothermal zone, central-western Mexico. This area is regarded as an
example of an active hydrothermal system in which key parameters
as temperature gradients and the conditions of depressurization boiling
are well constrained; depths of drill-core samples can be treated in this
case as real depths, since erosion can be neglected. In addition, we
applied the variable salinity model to an intermediate suldation
epithermal vein from the Taxco district, southern Mexico, which represents a fossil hydrothermal system that was active in the Eocene; in this
case, its well-established vertical ore zoning is used to evaluate our

results. Additionally, having assessed the performance of the paleodepth estimation based on the variable salinity model, a review of four
representative epithermal deposits of Mexico is presented, which calls
into question the depths of mineralization that so far have been assumed for this type of deposit.
2. Geological setting
2.1. Los Azufres geothermal eld
Los Azufres, in the state of Michoacn, is a geothermal eld hosted by
a silicic volcanic complex lying on the EW Cuitzeo Graben, at the central part of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt (TMVB) (Fig. 1A). It is, along
with Los Humeros in the state of Puebla, one of only two geothermal
sites in the TMBV under commercial exploitation. The total installed
generating capacity of Los Azufres is about 188 MWe, which makes of
it the second most important eld in Mexico, having started electricity
production in 1982 (Gutirrez-Negrn, 2007).
The volcanic complex of Los Azufres consists of four ignimbrite units
and many dome complexes that, according to Ferrari et al. (1991) and
Pradal and Robin (1994) are controlled by a poorly-dened, subcircular volcanic collapse feature; this caldera-like structure, of about
20 km in diameter and a Middle Pleistocene age, contains the geothermal system. The local pre-caldera basement consists of Oligocene to
Miocene andesitic lavas that crop out south of the Cuitzeo Graben
(Dobson and Mahood, 1985).
The Los Azufres caldera formed in response to two main periods of
volcanic activity (Pradal and Robin, 1994). During the oldest one
(~1.50.8 Ma), two magmatic cycles consisting in the extrusion of acidic
magmas followed by andesites and basalts took place. This episode produced large volumes of ignimbrites and rhyolitic domes and ows. The
later episode (~0.6 Ma to Late Pleistocene) is responsible for the resurgent doming affecting the southern part of the volcanic complex, having
produced rhyolites and dacites, and an up to 40 m-thick ignimbrite unit
that yielded a 14C age at ~26,000 (Pradal et al., 1988; Pradal and Robin,
1994).
Graben-related, EW striking, pervasive normal faulting is developed across the Los Azufres area, affecting most of the volcanic sequence, except for domes younger than 0.3 Ma (Ferrari et al., 1991). In
addition, NESW and NS striking normal fault arrays can be distinguished (Campos-Enriquez and Garduo-Monroy, 1995). The EW system controls a great deal of geothermal uid circulation, as it confers
secondary permeability to the andesitic units (Gonzlez-Partida et al.,
2000).
The hydrothermal system of Los Azufres attains up to 320 C in the
liquid-dominated geothermal reservoir, at a depth of ~3500 m (Birkle
et al., 2001; Pinti et al., 2013). The hydrothermal liquid phase is of the
NaCl type (e.g., Pandarinath et al., 2008), with Cl ranging between 0.26
and 0.34% (Kruger et al., 1985). CO2 represents up to 90% of the noncondensable gases, followed by N2, H2S and H2 (Santoyo et al., 1991),
and it increases to the top of the geothermal system due to volatile exsolution; however, this gas is not observed in uid inclusions
(Gonzlez-Partida et al., 2000). Geothermal wells in Los Azufres are
grouped into two distinct productive zones, northern and southern,
the latter being the more productive as it records higher temperatures
at shallower depths than the northern zone (Torres-Rodrguez et al.,
2005).
2.2. Taxco mining district
The AgZnPb(CuAu) Taxco mining district, in the state of Guerrero (Fig. 1B), is one of the oldest in the Americas, with an almost continuous mining activity from colonial times to the present. It contains
more than 50 epithermal veins, mostly of intermediate suldation,
with associated large replacement mantos, stockworks and breccias
(Camprub et al., 2006a). These deposits formed in the Late Eocene

M.A. Cruz-Prez et al. / Ore Geology Reviews 72 (2016) 603611

605

Fig. 1. Location of the study areas and schematic geologic maps. (A) Los Azufres geothermal eld, state of Michoacn, showing the distribution of selected production wells for modeling
(after Gonzlez-Partida et al., 2000); (B) Taxco mining district, Guerrero state, showing the tract of the El CobreBabilonia vein system (after Osterman, 1984; Camprub et al., 2006a). Key:
TMVB = Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt; SMS = Sierra Madre del Sur.

(Camprub and Albinson, 2007), linked to the latest stages of arc

magmatism of the Sierra Madre del Sur, which produced several
major silicic volcanic centers (e.g., Alaniz-lvarez et al., 2002;
Gonzlez-Torres et al., 2013).
Exposed in two outcrops nearby the town of Taxco, the local basement
consists of an assemblage of phyllites, metalavas and metaignimbrites
that are Early Cretaceous in age (Campa-Uranga et al., 2012). Such
meta-volcano-sedimentary unit, affected by low-grade metamorphism,
has been assigned to the Guerrero Composite Terrane (Campa-Uranga
et al., 2012), which is a subduction-related complex inuenced by
major translation and rifting during the Mesozoic along the western margin of Mexico (Campa and Coney, 1983; Centeno-Garca et al., 2008). A
Middle to Upper Cretaceous sedimentary sequence unconformably overlies the meta-volcano-sedimentary rocks, being the visible contact between both units mostly structural (Campa-Uranga et al., 2012). This
sedimentary sequence consists of AlbianCenomanian limestones and
dolostones followed by TuronianCampanian ysch deposits (AguileraFranco and Hernndez-Romano, 2004). It is in turn unconformably overlain by Late Eocene continental sedimentary and volcanic rocks. The
former are conglomerates deposited in pull-apart basins associated to
NW- and N-trending strike-slip faults, whereas the later are ignimbrites
and dacitic to andesitic lava ows and dikes (Alaniz-lvarez et al., 2002;
Morn-Zenteno et al., 2007; Martiny et al., 2013).
Epithermal veins in Taxco have a general NWSE strike and are up to
3 km long (Fig. 1B), with thicknesses averaging ~2 m (Camprub et al.,
2006a). Also characteristic of these structures is (a) vertical metal
zoning, in a typical sequence Cu PbZn Ag(Au) from deep to shallow mine levels (Osterman, 1984; Camprub et al., 2006a), and (b)
crustiform banding. El CobreBabilonia is a polymetallic vein that
meets the above characteristics and that was studied by Camprub

et al. (2006a). These authors found homogenization temperatures

(TH) and nal ice melting temperatures (TMi) ranging from 160 to
290 C and from 11.6 to 0.5 C, respectively (Table 2), and pointed
to boiling as the main mechanism for ore deposition based on the occurrence of liquid- and vapor-rich uid inclusions within the same uid inclusion assemblages, and of adularia.
3. Methods
3.1. Application of a boiling model
The variable salinity model for uid inclusions of Canet et al. (2011)
was applied to data in the literature from the Los Azufres geothermal
eld and an epithermal vein of the Taxco district, which were taken as
examples of active and fossil hydrothermal systems, respectively. This
model was constructed to investigate uid evolution during boiling
and enables the following: (a) to establish boiling paths in the THsalinity (TMi) space, based on mass and heat balance equations (cf. Henley
et al., 1984), such that uid inclusion data can be compared with them
to conrm or discard boiling, and (b) to calculate paleo-depths of the
boiling level, for which the effect of steam bubbles lowering the hydrostatic pressure is taken into account; for the later, the starting point are
the equations of Haas (1971, and referenced therein). However, while
for depth calculations Haas (1971) took constant values of salinity and
discarded the effect of steam bubbles, Canet et al. (2011) used a combined density of the coexisting vapor and liquid phases, for which the
volume of steam per mass unit was approximated by means of the
ideal gas law (at a given pressure and temperature).
The equations included in the variable salinity model consider a simple NaClH2O system, whose thermodynamic properties approach

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M.A. Cruz-Prez et al. / Ore Geology Reviews 72 (2016) 603611

Table 1
Summary of microthermometric data of primary uid inclusions (hosted in quartz) of the
Los Azufres geothermal eld, Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt.
From Gonzlez-Partida et al. (2000).
Well

Deptha

Az-27A

2000
1700
1600
1500
1100
800
400
4200
3300
3200
3100
2880
2400
1400
900
2450
2300
2127
1900
1700
1300
1000
800
1700
1275
1100
1000
900
800
600
500
400
2450
2100
1550
1250
550
400

58
20
16
24
15
44
10
35
23
14
19
6
17
46
49
23
28
26
25
11
22
11
10
11
8
14
32
10
31
9
5
9
8
42
11
80
5
10

Az-44

Az-9

Az-23

Fig. 2. Salinitytemperature diagram proposed by Canet et al. (2011), showing the feasible
boiling paths (arrows), modeled with the mass and enthalpy balance equations of Henley
et al. (1984). Microthermometric data from quartz (Gonzlez-Partida et al., 2000) for the
Los Azufres geothermal eld were plotted by their ice-melting TMi and homogenization
temperatures to conrm or discard boiling. Blue numbers indicate depth of sampling
below present surface and help to identify a boiling process, taking into account that the
uid is ascending vertically (i.e., simulated by the well itself). Red numbers indicate the
initial temperature (Ti) value. (For interpretation of the references to color in this gure
legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

Az-16

TH (C)

TM (C)

Min.

Aver.

Max.

Min.

Aver.

Max.

283
291
339
311
274
228
196
250
302
300
297
293
301
231
204
317
312
324
307
282
320
234
223
285
251
210
229
220
202
237
221
209
328
284
268
241
220
204

309
321
320
320
278
275
212
260
313
302
288
303
320
278
250
334
335
329
310
296
322
285
243
310
276
264
250
254
253
257
221
220
335
305
286
256
223
208

327
328
394
341
281
295
215
276
327
310
303
321
335
284
270
347
351
340
311
305
327
295
273
315
292
282
261
265
264
261
224
233
346
330
288
265
225
210

0.5
0.8
0.8
0.9
0.1
0.1
1.2
0.1
0.4
0.9
0.9
1.1
0.6
1.4
1.2
0.1
0.1
0.3
0.1
0.8
0.9
0.4
1.5
0.1
0.1
0.5
0.2
0.6
0.3
0.3
0.3
1.2
0.3
1
0.6
0.6
1.2
1.1

0.8
0.8
0.8
1.0
0.7
0.7
1.3
0.7
0.6
1.0
1.2
1.1
0.8
1.4
1.2
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.2
0.7
0.9
0.5
1.5
0.2
0.3
1.1
0.6
0.9
0.8
0.5
1.1
1.5
0.4
1.3
1
0.6
1.2
1.1

0.9
0.8
0.8
1.1
0.9
1.7
1.4
1.5
1.2
2.1
1.6
1.1
1.3
1.4
1.2
0.3
0.6
0.5
0.3
0.7
0.8
0.8
1.5
0.2
0.6
1.6
1.1
1.3
1.2
0.7
1.6
1.6
0.7
1.8
2.2
0.6
1.2
1.1

Salinity
(wt.% NaCl eq.)
1.4
1.4
1.4
1.7
1.2
1.2
2.2
1.2
1.0
1.7
2.0
1.9
1.4
2.4
2.0
0.3
0.5
0.7
0.3
1.2
1.4
0.8
2.4
0.3
0.5
1.9
1.0
1.5
1.4
0.8
1.9
2.5
0.7
2.2
1.7
1.0
2.0
1.9

Location: wells Az-9, Az-27A and Az-44, northern productive zone; wells Az-16 and Az-23,
southern productive zone.
Key: TH = temperature of homogenization, TM = temperature of ice melting (freezing
point depression), n = number of analyzed inclusions, Min. = minimum value; Aver. =
arithmetic mean; Max. = maximum value.
a
Approximate; in m below ground surface.

Fig. 3. Salinitytemperature diagram proposed by Canet et al. (2011), showing the feasible
boiling paths (arrows), modeled for the epithermal environment using the mass and enthalpy balance equations of Henley et al. (1984). Microthermometric data from quartz
(Camprub et al., 2006a) for the El CobreBabilonia epithermal vein system were plotted
by their ice-melting TMi and homogenization temperatures to conrm or discard boiling.
Blue numbers indicate the mine level (depth) of sampling below present surface and
help to identify a boiling process, taking into account that the uid is ascending vertically.
(For interpretation of the references to color in this gure legend, the reader is referred to
the web version of this article.)

those of natural solutions containing, besides Na, cations such as Ca

and K. Hence, apparent salinity values, obtained by uid inclusion
microthermometry and expressed in terms of weight percent NaCl
equivalent (wt.% NaCl eq.), can be directly used.
The rst step in applying the variable salinity model is to plot uid
inclusion data in a THsalinity diagram with depicted boiling paths
(Figs. 2 and 3). The plotted microthermometric data should be representative of a set of samples collected at different depths in a mineralized structure that presumably acted as a simple conduit through
which uids vertically rose to the surface. For this study we used the arithmetic mean per sample of TH and of salinity (Tables 1, 2 and 3). Thus,
a boiling interval is revealed between two or more samples of consecutive decreasing depth that follow a boiling path. The progressive increase in apparent salinity that is observed along with a decrease of TH
and depth reects the partitioning of non-volatile solutes into the liquid
phase during steam loss.
The second step of the modeling leads us to construct thermal
proles and, consequently, to perform paleo-depth calculations
(Figs. 4 and 5); the starting data for this model are the TH and salinity
values that correspond to the deepest sample of the boiling interval
(established in the previous step). Depth is obtained by numerical integration of the aforementioned equations with a program written in

M.A. Cruz-Prez et al. / Ore Geology Reviews 72 (2016) 603611

Table 2
Summary of microthermometric data of primary uid inclusions (hosted in quartz) of the
El CobreBabilonia AgPbZnCu epithermal vein, Taxco Mining District, Southern
Mexico.
From Camprub et al. (2006a).
Sample Deptha n

TH (C)

S-04
N1-04
N2-10
N3-01
N5-30
N7-10
N9-15

155
182
180
208
231
235
271

TM (ice) (C)

Min. Aver. Max. Min.

0
65
130
200
265
330
400

28
30
40
30
25
48
45

162
189
194
221
247
244
289

170
199
201
230
258
260
301

Aver.

Salinity
(wt.% NaCl eq.)

Max.

3.4
4.4
5.9
7.0
8.8
9.6
6.6
8.4
9.9
7.0
7.9
9.1
8.0 10.4 12.2
4.0
5.9
7.1
4.2
5.4
7.5

7.0
12.6
12.1
11.5
14.3
9.0
8.4

Key: TH = temperature of homogenization, TM (ice) = temperature of ice melting (freezing

point depression), n = number of analyzed inclusions, Min. = minimum value, Aver. =
arithmetic mean, Max. = maximum value.
a
Inferred (maximum) depth of sampling, in m below present surface.

FORTRAN code (available in Canet et al., 2011), from the construction of

the corresponding boiling-point curve. The resulting depth values are
rounded to tens of meters. Additionally, we constructed a table and a
depthTHsalinity plot, both available as supplementary les, that
allow a direct estimation of depth from the microthermometric data
of a sample representative of the beginning of boiling (i.e., the deepest
level of the hydrothermal system in which boiling occurred).
3.2. Fluid inclusion data
For a reliable application of the variable salinity model, uid inclusions must meet the following conditions: (a) be of primary origin (accordingly to the criteria of Roedder, 1984) or belong to uid inclusion
assemblages that are associated with the precipitation of ore minerals
(Goldstein, 2003), (b) be undersaturated with respect to halite, having
salinities below 23.3 wt.% NaCl eq. (i.e., the eutectic composition of the
NaClH2O system), and (c) record no clathrate formation during freezing experiments, thus indicating low CO2 contents (b 3.7 wt.% according
to Hedenquist and Henley, 1985b).
All the uid inclusions used in this study are hosted in quartz. Fluid
inclusion data for Los Azufres geothermal eld were taken from
Gonzlez-Partida et al. (2000), and correspond to cores recovered
from the production wells Az-9, Az-27A, Az-44 (northern productive
zone), Az-16 and Az-23 (southern productive zone) (Table 1). On the
other hand, the microthermometric data from the El CobreBabilonia
polymetallic vein of the Taxco district were taken from Camprub et al.
(2006a). One sample (S-04) is from the surface and the rest from different mining levels (increasing depth: N1, N2, N3, N4, N5, N6, N7 and N9;
Table 2).
The arithmetic mean per sample (i.e., at different depths) of TH, TMi
and salinity was used in all cases for description, modeling and subsequent interpretation.

607

4. Results
4.1. Los Azufres
A statistics summary of uid inclusion microthermometric data of
the Los Azufres geothermal eld is provided in Table 1.
In the case of well Az-27A (northern productive zone), TH ranges between 212 and 321 C, TMi between 1.3 and 0.7 C, and salinity between 1.2 and 2.2 wt.% NaCl eq. Temperatures above 300 C are found at
depths greater than 1500 m (below ground surface), with maximum
TH values at 16001700 m. On the other hand, the highest salinity
(2.2 wt.% NaCl eq.) corresponds to the shallowest sample (400 m); at
greater depths salinity is rather constant, between 1.2 and 1.4 wt.%
NaCl eq., except for a value of 1.7% NaCl eq. found at 1500 m. In the salinitytemperature plot, the distribution of data does not show neither a
regular trend of cooling with decreasing depthas the temperature at
2000 m is lower than at 1500 mor a general tendency of boiling
(Fig. 2). However, the increase of salinity at 1500 m suggests that uid
evolution from 1700 m (TH = 321 C; salinity = 1.4 wt.% NaCl eq.)
could be affected by boiling; in contrast, above 800 m, uid variations
cannot be explained in terms of boiling.
For well Az-44 (northern productive zone) microthermometric data
are available down to an ultimate depth of 4200 m. In this case, TH
ranges between 250 and 320 C, TMi between 1.4 and 0.6 C,
and salinity between 1.0 and 2.4 wt.% NaCl eq. Temperatures above
300 C are found at depths from 2400 to 4200 m, with the maximum
(320 C) at 2400 m. The highest value of salinity (2.4 wt.% NaCl eq.)
was found at 1400 m; at depths greater than 2100 m salinity remains
below 2.0% NaCl eq. The salinitytemperature plot shows a highly irregular distribution of data, away from a consistent trend of salinity and TH
variation with depth (Fig. 2), which reects abrupt changes and reversal
of the slope of the temperature gradient curve.
In well Az-9 (northern productive zone) TH ranges between 243
and 335 C, TMi between 1.5 and 0.2 C, and salinity between 0.3
and 2.4 wt.% NaCl eq. Temperatures higher than 300 C occur at
1900 m and increase gradually with depth up to a maximum of
~ 335 C (at 23002450 m). In addition, there is a TH peak (322 C) at
1300 m. The highest salinity value is found toward the top of the system,
at a depth of 800 m. As in the preceding case, the salinitytemperature
plot does not allow to point out a depth interval for which boiling controls uid evolution (Fig. 2).
Based on the distribution of microthermometric data in the salinity
temperature plot, Az-27A was selected among the three studied wells of
the northern productive zone to construct the thermal proles; subsequently, the depth for the level at which boiling begins was calculated
(Fig. 4). The starting data for obtaining the temperaturedepth proles
are TH = 321 C and salinity = 1.4 wt.% NaCl eq. Two curves were constructed, one considering a liquid column without suspended vapor
bubbles, and the other calculating the effect of steam bubbles on the hydrostatic pressure. The calculated depth is 1460 m considering a liquid

Table 3
Paleo-depth estimation of the boiling level for three epithermal deposits of Central Mexico, with the approximate sampling depths for comparison. In column (A) depths were inferred
using the boiling-point curves for brines of constant salinity constructed by Haas (1971). On the other hand, depths in columns (B) and (C) were calculated taking into consideration a
progressive increase of salinity due to the steam loss during boiling (Canet et al., 2011), but, in (B) a liquid column without suspended vapor bubbles is considered, whereas in (C) the
effect of vapor bubbles on uid density and therefore on the hydrostatic pressure were taken into account.
Epithermal deposit

San Martn (Quertaro)

Veta Madre (Guanajuato)
La Guitarra (Edo. Mxico)
Real de Catorce (San Luis Potos)
a
b

Agea
(Ma)

27.5
27.430.7
33.332.9
35.7?

Source: Camprub and Albinson (2007).

Average values.

Microthermometry
(uid inclusion data)
TH
(C)

Salinityb
(wt.% NaCl eq.)

210
276
200
275

1.5
12.4
4.0
2.6

Sampling depth
(m below present surface)

~200
~500
~125
~250300

Paleo-depth calculation
(boiling level depth, m)

References

(A)
Haas (1971)

(B)
(C)
Canet et al. (2011)

200
641
175
700

200
640
160
690

310
820
260
870

Albinson et al. (2001)

Orozco-Villaseor (2014)
Camprub et al. (2001)
Albinson et al. (2001)

608

M.A. Cruz-Prez et al. / Ore Geology Reviews 72 (2016) 603611

column, and 1690 m considering the effect of suspended bubbles, being

the last value very close to the sampling (well) depth (1700 m).
For the southern productive zone two wells were investigated: Az23 and Az-16 (Table 1). In the former TH ranges between 220 and
310 C, TMi between 1.5 and 0.2 C, and salinity between 0.3 and
2.5 wt.% NaCl eq. Microthermometric data are available to a depth of

only 1700 m, where the only TH value above 300 C is found; the maximum and minimum salinity values are reached at the shallowest
(400 m) and deepest (1700 m) sampling levels, respectively. The salinitytemperature plot shows a general cooling trend regular in relation
to depth, although there is a strong grouping (and inversion) of TH
values for the depth interval of 6001000 m. On the other hand, the interval of 17001275 m ts to a boiling path, suggesting that uid evolution from 1700 m upwards (TH = 310 C; salinity = 0.3 wt.% NaCl eq.)
could be affected by boiling (Fig. 2).
For well Az-16 (southern productive zone), TH ranges between 208
and 335 C, TMi between 1.2 and 0.4 C, and salinity between 0.7
and 2.2 wt.% NaCl eq. In this case, temperature varies with depth according to a constant geothermal gradient of ~6 C per 100 m of depth. In
contrast, salinity has an irregular variation with depth, so that maximum values (2.0 wt.% NaCl eq.) occur at 550 and 2100 m, and minimum values ( 1.0 wt.% NaCl eq.) at 1250 and 2450 m. Due to this
complex pattern of salinity variation, a trend of boiling can only be
pointed out with condence enough at the shallowest part of the system (from 550 m; TH = 223 C; salinity = 2.0 wt.% NaCl eq.).
Thermal proles and depth calculations in the southern productive
zone were done for both wells Az-23 and Az-16 (Fig. 4). In the case of
well Az-23, the starting data for the boiling model are TH = 310 C
and salinity = 0.3 wt.% NaCl eq. The calculated depth considering a liquid column is 1250 m, and considering the effect of suspended bubbles
is 1470 m. For the well Az-16 the data used are TH = 223 C and
salinity = 2.0 wt.% NaCl eq.; the calculated depths considering a column
of only liquid and of liquid with suspended bubbles are 260 and 390 m,
respectively (Fig. 4).

4.2. Taxco mining district

Fluid inclusion microthermometric data of the El CobreBabilonia
vein, Taxco mining district, is summarized in Table 2. TH varies with
depth from 162 C at the surface to 289 C in the deepest level
(~ 400 m below present surface), describing a linear geotherm of
~ 30 C per 100 m of depth. TMi uctuates between 10.4 and
4.4 C, which corresponds to a range of salinity between 7.0 and
14.3 wt.% NaCl eq. The variation of salinity with depth is not at all linear,
as it peaks twice (salinity 12.0 wt.% NaCl eq.), at level 5 (~265 m) and
between levels 1 and 2 (~ 65130 m). The minimum salinity value
(7.0 wt.% NaCl eq.) corresponds to the surface sample. Due to the complex pattern of salinity variation, which results in a high dispersion of
data in the salinitytemperature plot (Fig. 3), a trend of boiling can
only be pointed out with condence at the shallowest part of the system
(from sample N3-01; 200 m below present surface). On the other hand,
the salinity drop in the surface sample is consistent with a process of
mixing with cool and dilute (probably meteoric) uids.
The starting data for determining the boiling point curves and for the
paleo-depth calculations are TH = 221 C and salinity = 11.5 wt.% NaCl
eq. The depth thus calculated not considering and considering the effect
of suspended bubbles on hydrostatic pressure is, respectively, 230 and
360 m (Fig. 5).

Fig. 4. Boiling point curves corresponding to a rising hydrothermal uid whose temperature and salinity conditions evolve from values given in red. Both curves (1) and (2) were
constructed taking into consideration a progressive increase of salinity due to the steam
loss during boiling, but in curve (1) depth was calculated considering a liquid column,
without suspended vapor bubbles, whereas in curve (2) the effect of vapor bubbles on uid density and on hydrostatic pressure were considered. In contrast, the black curves represent the ones proposed by Haas (1971) with constant salinity (0 wt.% NaCl) and
discarding the effect of vapor bubbles. Bold dotted red lines represent the real depth of
sampling (under present surface) for each well, according to the initial values (Ti and salinity). (For interpretation of the references to color in this gure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

M.A. Cruz-Prez et al. / Ore Geology Reviews 72 (2016) 603611

5. Discussion
An overall analysis of uid inclusion data of Los Azufres allows two
generalizations to be made, although large differences between the
two productive zones and between contiguous wells can be observed:
(a) high temperatures (N 300 C) are commonly attained at depths between 1500 and 2000 m, and (b) salinity above 2.0 wt.% NaCl eq.
occur within the upper ~ 500 m of the system. Taken together, these
points suggest that the geothermal zone is largely affected by boiling,
which is in good agreement with previous studies (e.g., Iglesias et al.,
1985; Gonzlez-Partida et al., 2000). However, the variation patterns
of both parameters with depth are complex; sharp uctuations in salinity are not uncommon, nor are local temperature maxima at relatively
shallow levels (e.g., 322 C at 1300 m in well Az-9). These are signs of
the hydrological complexity of a geothermal system that may be associated with lateral outow. Under this scenario, selection of the starting
data for the variable salinity model should be made with special care;
it is therefore important to be cautious about interpreting the boiling
point curves.
In the case study of Los Azufres, thermal proles were constructed
for three wells and the depths thus obtained are evaluated by comparing them by the sampling depth, which in this case can be taken as
the actual depth (Fig. 2). In all cases, calculated depths are closer to actual depths if the model considers the effect of suspended bubbles, as already stated by Canet et al. (2011); therefore, depths modeled ignoring
this effect will not be discussed further.
For one of the three wells (Az-27A) there is a very good agreement
between the calculated and the actual depth1690 and 1700 m, respectively, with closeness greater than 99%. For well Az-23, calculated and
actual depths are 1470 and 1700 m, respectively, which implies a difference of ~14%, whereas for well Az-16 the underestimation of the model
depth (390 m) with respect to the actual depth (550 m) is much greater
(~30%). The large error obtained in the latter calculation might be due to

Fig. 5. Boiling point curves corresponding to a rising hydrothermal uid whose temperature and salinity conditions evolve from values given in red. Both curves (1) and (2) were
constructed taking into consideration a progressive increase of salinity due to the steam
loss during boiling, but in curve (1) depth was calculated considering a liquid column,
without suspended vapor bubbles, whereas in curve (2) the effect of vapor bubbles on
uid density and on the hydrostatic pressure were considered. In contrast, the black
curve represents the one proposed by Haas (1971) with constant salinity (10 wt.% NaCl)
and discarding the effect of vapor bubbles. Bold dotted red line represents the sampling
depth under present surface. (For interpretation of the references to color in this gure
legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)

609

the effect of CO2, whose concentration increases toward the top of the
geothermal system in Los Azufres (e.g., Santoyo et al., 1991). The occurrence of CO2 in hydrothermal uids increases the vapor pressure along
the liquidgas curve, thus lowering the boiling point temperature
(Hedenquist and Henley, 1985b); therefore, at a given salinity and
temperature the boiling point is reached at greater depths than in
the absence of this gas (e.g., Simmons, 1991). CO2 can also affect
microthermometry measurements, since the presence of this gas may
lead to signicant overestimation of apparent salinities (Hedenquist
and Henley, 1985b); this can contribute to some extent to the underestimation of depth (see Table S1 in supplementary les).
The values obtained using the boiling point curves of Haas (1971)
were systematically lower than real ones, implying an underestimation
of depth of ~ 15 to 50%. In all three cases examined at Los Azufres, the
error in depth calculations is higher with the curves of Haas (1971)
than using the variable salinity model; it is worth mentioning that
only by means of the latter the closest match between the calculated
and the actual depth was achieved (well Az-27A).
In the case of El CobreBabilonia epithermal vein, microthermometric
data describe a general linear trend of negative slope in the THsalinity
space, but there are two values (N5-30 and S-04) that deviate signicantly from this tendency (Fig. 3). This linear distribution of data is nearly consistent with a boiling path, and the values that deviate from it likely reect
local mixing with uids of contrasting salinity. Therefore, the salinity variation from the deepest samples (N9-15 and N7-10) to N5-30 cannot be
explained in terms of boiling, but it probably accounts for the episodic injection of magmatic (?) brines. The inuence of such uids has already
been noted in epithermal deposits in Mexico (e.g., Albinson et al., 2001;
Camprub et al., 2001, 2006b; Wilkinson et al., 2013). Also, the dramatic
drop of salinity indicated by the surface sample (S-04) reects a dilution
process due to the inuence of colder and low-salinity uids, probably
meteoric, at the top of the hydrothermal system (cf. Hedenquist, 1991;
Canet et al., 2011).
The paleo-depth of sample N3-01, which represents a level in the
epithermal vein in which boiling started, is ~ 225 m using the boiling
point curves of Haas (1971), whereas applying the variable salinity
model a value ~ 60% greater, of 360 m, is obtained. The depth of this
level (measured from the highest point of the current surface) is
about 200 m; so, given that the age of the epithermal deposit is Late Eocene (3639 Ma; Camprub and Albinson, 2007), the depth estimation
with Haas (1971) curves would imply only ~25 m of erosion for a period
of almost 40 Myr. This does not seem reasonable since the Taxco region
and the Sierra Madre del Sur have been deeply dissected by erosion,
being more plausible an erosion of ~160 m that arises from the paleodepth of 360 m obtained by the variable salinity model.
The El CobreBabilonia epithermal vein exhibits a vertical ore zoning
in which Ag grades are higher between a depth of 200 m (mine level of
sample N3-01) and the present surface (Osterman, 1984; Hynes, 1999;
Camprub et al., 2006a). The bottom of the Ag-rich zone coincides with
the depth at which the THsalinity boiling paths suggest that boiling
started (Fig. 3). Similarly, in the Apacheta epithermal deposit (Miocene), Peru, there is a vertical zoning inuenced by boiling, which
marks the boundary between the base metal- and precious metal-rich
zones in a brecciated, boiling level (Andr-Mayer et al., 2002). The
paleo-depth of this level was estimated of 580 m by Andr-Mayer
et al. (2002) considering the hydrostatic pressure exerted by a liquid
column, and the sampling depth (below present surface) is about
200 m. Given that this calculation was done without taking into account
the effect of suspended bubbles on hydrostatic pressure, the paleodepth could be actually signicantly greater, so considerably more
than 400 m of the deposit could have been eroded.
According to the foregoing discussions, many paleo-depths assessed
from uid inclusion data could have been underestimated, so the
descriptive models for epithermal deposits could be incorrectly calibrated in terms of depth. To assess the extent of this inaccuracy, we
reviewed paleo-depth estimations for four Mexican epithermal deposits

610

M.A. Cruz-Prez et al. / Ore Geology Reviews 72 (2016) 603611

that are representative of intermediate to low suldation-dominated

styles (Table 3). As expected, the paleo-depths calculated with the variable salinity model are systematically greater than those estimated
from the boiling point curves of Haas (1971), so that the difference
between both varies from ~ 25 to 50%. In the case of the San Martn
vein (Oligocene), the depth estimated using the curves of Haas
(1971), of ~200 m, is unreliable because it coincides with the sampling
depth which, if true, would imply no erosion in almost 30 Myr. Paleodepths calculated with the variable salinity model range from 260 m
in the La Guitarra deposit, to 870 m in Real de Catorce, so the position
of the boiling level varies greatly from one epithermal deposit to another. The depth of erosion based on these calculations is roughly consistent with the age of the deposits, being ~ 570 m for the Upper Eocene
Real de Catorce deposit, ~ 130330 m for the Lower Oligocene La
Guitarra and Veta Madre deposits, and ~110 m for the Upper Oligocene
San Martn deposit.
6. Conclusions
The variable salinity boiling model, which considers the increase in
salinity due to steam loss during boiling and the effect of vapor bubbles
on the hydrostatic pressure, can be used for determining the depth of
boiling from uid inclusion data, both in active and fossil hydrothermal
systems. The occurrence of CO2 in hydrothermal uids, however, may
signicantly decrease the accuracy of depth calculations.
In Los Azufres geothermal zone, the depths calculated in this way in
general are close to actual depths, with an accuracy greater than 99% for
one case; however, a considerably large error (30%) is obtained to the
top of the geothermal system due to enhanced CO2 concentrations.
The values estimated directly from boiling point curves at constant salinity, and discarding the effect of vapor bubbles, were systematically
lower than actual ones, which imply underestimations of depth at up
to ~ 50%; the error with such procedure was always higher than by
using the variable salinity method.
In the case of the Eocene El CobreBabilonia epithermal vein boiling
occurred from a paleo-depth of 360 m, which corresponds to a current
(sampling) depth of about 200 m; this corresponds to the boundary between the base metal- and the silver-rich zones. In addition, the episodic entrainment of magmatic brines and meteoric uids in the deeper
part of the mineralized structure and near the current surface, respectively, is suggested by uid inclusion data that deviate signicantly
from the general THsalinity boiling path.
As depth determinations for epithermal deposits are generally
underestimated, descriptive models for such deposits could be incorrectly calibrated in terms of depth. Paleo-depths have been traditionally
estimated by plotting microthermometric data on boiling point curves
of constant salinity and discarding the effect of vapor bubbles, but
such determinations should be revised and corrected. An effective way
to do so can be by applying the variable salinity model presented in
this paper.
Acknowledgments
Fluid inclusion microthermometry analyses were carried out in
Centro de Geociencias, UNAM. The rst author was supported with a
grant from the UNAM's Instituto de Geofsica scholarship program. A.
Camprub wishes to thank CONACYT for economical support through
grant 155662. We thank F. Pirajno, S. Simmons and two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on the manuscript.
Appendix A. Supplementary data
Supplementary data to this article can be found online at http://dx.
doi.org/10.1016/j.oregeorev.2015.08.016.

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