Research project: Pb-Zn mineralisation within the Limerick Basin (SW Ireland): A role for volcanism?
Exploration of the Limerick Basin, a part of the Irish Orefield by Teck between 2007 and 2011, has intersected several Carboniferous basaltic diatremes which erupted through the limestone stratigraphy. Diatremes are irregular cone shaped bodies that can intrude up to 2.5 km into the country rock. Most of the ore is concentrated in Black Matrix Breccias (BMB) which appear to have a close spatial and temporal association with but has previously thought to be unrelated to the volcanism. These diatremes are part of a larger regional tectonic and volcanic northeast to southwest trend.