Department of Natural Resources and Mines
Geological Survey of Queensland
Tungsten opportunities in Queensland
September 2014
What is tungsten (also known as wolfram)?
Where and how is tungsten found in Queensland?
• Tungsten is a metallic element with the chemical symbol W, and
has the atomic number of 74.
Tungsten occurs naturally in two minerals, wolframite ([Fe,Mn]
WO4), and scheelite (CaWO4). Both minerals occur in granite
pegmatites in contact metamorphic aureoles, and in high
temperature hydrothermal veins associated with granitic rocks.
• The element is also known as wolfram (one of its principal ores
is called wolframite).
• Tungsten has the highest melting point of all elements
(3422°C).
• Its density is similar to that of gold (it is sometimes used in
imitation gold bars), and is much higher than that of lead.
Why tungsten is considered ‘critical’
Most of the global output of tungsten comes from China which
is also the world’s leading tungsten consumer. In 2011, 85% of
global production or about 61,800 tonnes (t) came from China.
Much of the remainder comes from Russia and Canada. Such
limited supply means that tungsten is considered to have a high
risk of supply disruption.
Tungsten is an important component of many industrial and
military applications, where its hardness and high melting point
make it highly sought after.
How do we use tungsten?
Currently tungsten is used in:
• Hard materials. About half of all tungsten is used to make
tungsten carbide (WC), which has a melting point of 2770°C
and a hardness close to that of diamond. Because of this
extreme hardness, WC is used in wear-resistant abrasives,
cutters, knives, drills, circular saws, milling and turning tools.
• Superalloys. Because of its high melting point and hardness,
tungsten is used in superalloys for turbine engine parts, tool
steels and wear-resistant alloy parts and coatings.
• Electric light filaments. Because of its high melting point,
tungsten is used in light bulb filaments and electrodes.
• Jewellery. Tungsten has recently been used in jewellery,
particularly rings, where its hardness and scratch resistance
make it popular.
• Military applications. Tungsten is used as a capping on armour
piercing and penetrating projectiles.
• Glass seals. Because its thermal expansion is about the same
as borosilicate glass, tungsten is useful for glass to metal seals.
• Welding electrodes. TIG (tungsten inert gas) welding uses a
non-consumable tungsten electrode to produce the weld.
• Chemical processes. Tungsten has a wide variety of chemical
uses, in particular as industrial catalysts.
Great state. Great opportunity.
Tungsten mineralisation is widespread in eastern Queensland,
generally in association with tin-bearing granites, Cu-Mo
porphyries and their associated skarn deposits. Significant
mineralisation has been found in the Stanthorpe, Kangaroo Hills,
Herberton – Mount Garnet and Cooktown areas.
The Kennedy Igneous Association in North Queensland is an
attractive area for tungsten exploration because of the presence
of abundant granites, some of which are associated with
operating mines and defined resources of tungsten. All of the
main tungsten deposits in Queensland occur where granites
of the Kennedy Igneous Association intrude the Hodgkinson
Province.
There are two operating mines, one granted mining lease, and
two prospects for tungsten in Queensland.
Mount Carbine
The Mount Carbine mine is an operating open-pit mine, about
75 km northwest of Cairns in north Queensland. The deposit is
in thermally metamorphosed Devonian Hodgkinson Formation
adjacent to the S-type Mount Carbine Granite.
The deposit is mined by Carbine Tungsten Limited (formerly
Icon Resources). It contains both scheelite and wolframite in
different zones within the deposit. Resources at the mine include
an indicated mineral resource of 18,100,000 t of ore at 0.14%
tungstic oxide (for 25,340 t of tungstic oxide), and an inferred
mineral resource of 29,300,000 t of ore at 0.12% tungstic
oxide. A further indicated resource of 12,000,000 t at 0.07%
wolframite (for 8400 t of wolframite) occurs in the stockpile
from earlier mining. Given the total annual global production of
approximately 70,000 t, this is an important global resource.
Wolfram Camp
The Wolfram Camp deposit is 80 km west of Cairns and was
discovered in 1888. It comprises predominantly glassy to white
quartz with shoots containing coarse-grained wolframite,
molybdenite and bismuthinite. Mineralisation occurs in greisen
within the roof zone of a highly fractionated granodiorite of the
Carboniferous James Creek Granite, near its intrusive contact
with sedimentary rocks of the Devonian Hodgkinson Formation
and volcanic rocks of the Carboniferous Featherbed Volcanic
Group.
The latest published figures show that Wolfram Camp has a
JORC compliant indicated mineral resource of 780,000 t of ore at
0.56% tungstic oxide for 4368 t of tungstic oxide.
Watershed Scheelite project
Further reading
The Watershed Scheelite deposit occurs as stratabound
replacement lenses in calc-silicate rocks of the Devonian
Hodgkinson Formation, and in dyke-like bodies of albitised
granite associated with Carboniferous granite intrusions.
Mineralisation is exclusively scheelite over a strike length of 3
km. The deposit is approximately 150 km northwest of Cairns
and mineralisation is exposed on a north-trending ridge.
http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/tungsten/
index.html#mcs
This project, which is owned by Vital Metals in partnership with
the Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC),
has now received government approvals to proceed to mining.
Containing 49.2 million tonnes of ore at 0.14% WO3, for 70,400 t
of tungstic oxide, the deposit ranks in the top ten of unexploited,
non-Chinese tungsten deposits worldwide.
Further information
GSQ hotline
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: +61 7 3006 4666
Geological Survey of Queensland
Level 12, 61 Mary St Brisbane Qld 4000
www.dnrm.qld.gov.au
140°
145°
150°
Queensland Tungsten
10°
Tungsten occurrence
Small
Medium
Large
"
Town
Railway
"
Weipa
Road
Permian-Triassic Granitoids
GRANITE CREEK
Kennedy Igneous Association
Mesozoic basins
Permian Triassic basins
Devonian-Carboniferous basins
15°
New England Orogen
"
Cooktown
Mossman Orogen
Thomson Orogen
MOUNT CARBINE
WATERSHED
MOUNT PERSEVERANCE
Georgina Basin
Cairns
"
"
TYRCONNEL
WOLFRAM CAMP
MUNGANA
PEACEMAKER
GREAT NORTHERN GULLY
NEVILLE
Karumba
GALALA RANGE
SNISKA
BURLINGTON ONE
North Australian Craton
ZIG ZAG
PERRY CREEK
BELLE VUE
"
Townsville
20°
MCLENNON'S CLAIM
Mount Isa
"
"
0
Cloncurry
"
"
N o r th er n Te r r i t o r y
50 100
200
Hughenden
Kilometres
Mackay
MOUNT COBALT
"
Winton
"
"
Clermont
"
Marlborough
"
Longreach
"
Emerald
Rockhampton
"
Gladstone
WHITEWASH
"
Bundaberg
So u t h A u s tr a l i a
GSQ\14B\MG\CE\CrititcalElementWeb.mxd
"
"
"
Charleville
"
Roma
"
25°
Maryborough
Gympie
Chinchilla
"
Dalby
ANDURAMBA PROSPECT
Toowoomba " Brisbane
"
"
Ipswich
STAINES WOLFRAM MINE
SUNDOWN TIN MINE
Produced by Spatial and Graphic Services, Geological Survey of Queensland
© The State of Queensland (Department of Natural Resources and Mines) 2014
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au/deed.en
N e w S o u th Wa l e s
14B\Factsheets\critical_elements
Produced by Publication Graphics SGS, Geological Survey of Queensland September 2014.
© State of Queensland (Department of Natural Resources and Mines) 2014.
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au/deed.en