Page 139 - Geochemical Remote Sensing of The Sub-Surface

116 S.M. Hamilton

general there has been insufficient research into the issue of mass transfer between
bedrock and ground surface by electrochemical processes. Therefore, despite the
paramount importance of this issue to exploration geochemistry, it is not considered
further here. Rather, attention is given to the theoretical development of surface
geochemical anomalies above a reduced feature in bedrock without addressing the issue
of where the ions that form the anomaly actually come from.
The four types of redox cells described in this chapter should have similar surface
geochemical phenomena associated with them because they share similar ionic flow
patterns in the uppermost portion of the cells. They are all based on a reduced feature as
a source of negative charge and the oxygenated surface as the ultimate source of positive
charge, and they all must involve transfer of ionic current between the two sources. The

Fig. 3-12. The development of anomalies that are (A) directly related to electrochemical processes
and (B) related to secondary processes occurring as a result of mobility and oxidation of ferrous
iron.