Barite

This article talks about fluorite and barite mineralization in a sector of western Sicily near the Tyrrhenian Sea. These mineralization in a small area, the Poggio Balate hill, north-west of Monte San Calogero Termini Imerese (Sicily) take on the characteristics of a real, intensely mineralized deposit. It is a low-grade hydrothermal deposit involving well-cemented Mesozoic clastic limestone rocks. The discovery occurred during the search for a stratigraphic geology work in the early 1970s. The fluorite and barite mineral deposit of Poggio Balate is the only one existing in all of Sicily. Some geological aspects covered make this publication still relevant in light of the results of recent geophysical studies on geothermal resources within the carbonate reservoirs of western Sicily (Italy). The geochemical phenomenon that produced this surprising mineralization is related to a hydrothermal circulation that ascended along the fault system in rocks, predominantly Mesozoic carbonate rocks.

LOCATION
8N 8E Sec. 30 SBM 34.75082000000 -116.18115000000  (MRDS, 2011

The Hansen barite deposit is about 3.5 miles northwest, of Ludlow, in the southeast tip of the Cady Mountains (Hewett and others, 1936, p. 150).

GEOLOGY
There are four claims, covering approximately 80 acres. There are 8 parallel veins, occurring in basalt, with strike N. 45 ° W., and dip 45 ° E., and the vein filling consists of barite and hematite.. (Tucker, 1930, p. 54).

Here a vein from 3 to 14 feet in width (average about 6 feet) ; strike N. 45° W., dip 45° NE., occurs in a basaltic formation. Vein filling is barite and iron oxide. In places, it is banded with brecciated wall rock, recemented by the barite. This main vein apparently forms a junction with a vein which on the surface is in the hanging wall and dips 45° to the west. The ore shoot formed along this junction. The shoot is 150 feet long and varies from 3 to 14 feet in width and has been stoped for a depth of 60 feet along its entire length (Tucker, 1931, p. 371).

LOCATION

9S 19E Sec. 13 SBM 33.38566000030 -114.93499999900
9S 19E Sec. 25 SBM 33.36978000030 -114.92858000000

It is in the NE1/4, SE1/4, Sec. 24, T9S, R19E, and the SW1/4, Sec. 19, T9S, R20E, SBM, Palo Verde Mountains Quadrangle (15 minutes), Palo Verde Mountains, about 24 miles southwest of Blythe, and 8 miles S 15 degrees W of Wiley Well, and 3.6 miles S 63 degrees  W of Thumb Peak (Morton, 1977, p. 32). 

The MRDS location for the southern deposit is in the NE1/4 of Section 25, .9S, R.19E a few miles south of the Riverside – Imperial county line.

DEVELOPMENT

This deposit was developed by Hyduke-Robinson Development Company.

The mine was owned by Grover Kiherny, 416 Laurel Avenue, Glendora, California in 1963 (Morton, 1977, p. 32).
 

GEOLOGY

(Morton, 1977, p. 32).

The northern deposit in Section 13 is hosted by Tertiary red sediments, and the southern deposit in section 25 is hosted by Quaternary conglomerate (Morton,1977, Plate 1).

To the north of the non-marine sediments are Tertiary pyroclastic volcanic rocks

LOCATION
6N 12E Sec. 30 SBM 34.575020 -115.767540

Amboy Crater is in T.05-06N, R.10-1E, SBM. It is northwest of Bristol (Dry) Lake, northeast of the Lead Mountains (Northern Bullion Range), southeast of the Lava Hills, and southwest of the Bristol Mountains.

The Silver Creator Barite Mine are on the northeast side of Amboy Crater lava flows.

OWNERSHIP
Not recorded.
Bishop (1963) mapped the Amboy Crater Area as containing outcrops of:

Qal: Alluvium
Ql: Quaternary lake deposits
Qpvb: Pleistocene basalt
Quaternary and/or Pliocene cinder cones

Bishop (1963) mapped the area of the Amboy Crater Area as a cinder cone within Pleistocene pyroclastic basalt (Qpvb).

Bishop (1963) mapped the area of the Silver Creator Barite Mine as Quaternary alluvium (Qal).

Kupfer and Basset (1962) mapped the following units in the Amboy Crater Area:
Qa: Alluvium
Playa Deposit
Qca
Qx
Qxb
Qxc
Qxg
Qoa: Quaternary Older Alluvium
Qb2: Quaternary basalt flows and cones

Kupfer and Bassett, 1962, mapped the area of the Amboy Crater Mines as
Quaternary basalt flows and cones (Qb2).

Kupfer and Bassett (1962) mapped the area of the Silver Creator Barite Mine as Quaternary basalt flows and cones (Qb2).

Bedford and others (2010) and Phelps and others (2012) mapped the Amboy 100K Quadrangle. In the Amboy Crater Area they identified the following units:

Substrate Units: Qmv: Quaternary Mafic Volcanics

Hill Slope Deposits
Qha/Qmv

Alluvial Units
Qya

Wash Deposits
Qyw-Qaw: Young Wash-Active Wash deposits

Pediment Surfaces

Qpd-fpg: Deeply dissected pediment, felsic plutonic rocks converting to gruss
Qpi/pc: Incised pediment, partly consolidated

Eolian Deposits

Qye/Qmv: Young eolian sand/Quaternary mafic volcanics
Qae/Qmv: Active eolian sand deposit/Quaternary mafic volcanics

Qyp: Younger playa deposit

Bedford and others (2010) mapped the area of the Amboy Crater Area as Active eolian sand deposit/Quaternary mafic volcanics (Qae/Qmv) and Hillslope/Quaternary mafic volcanic rocks (Qha/Qmv).

Bedford and others (2010) mapped the Silver Creator Barite Mine as Quaternary younger alluvium (Qya).

Dibblee and Minch (2008f) mapped the area of the Amboy Crater Area as having the following exposures:

Qa: Alluvium
Qoa: Older Alluvium
Qb: Pleistocene basalt

Dibblee and Minch (2008f) mapped the area of the Amboy Crater Area as Quaternary basalt (Qb).

The Silver Creator Barite Mine were mapped by Dibblee and Minch’s (2008f) as Quaternary alluvium (Qa) and older alluvium (Qoa)..

Schafer and others (1959) mapped the following units in T.5N, R.11 and 12E, SBM:

Qal: Alluvium
Qabf: Recent basalt flows
Qabcc: Younger cinder cones

Bristol Dry Lake Units
Qblgs: Clay
Qblg: Gypsum and Clay
Qblc: Clay and Silt
Qblh: Clay and Halite

Schafer and others mapped the Silver Creator Barite Mine as Quaternary alluvium (Qal).

DEVELOPMENT
No reports of production. Listed in MRDS,(2011) as a barite occurrence.

The paper summarizes a novel technology for sealing of soil or rock formations by directed crystallisation processes. Supersaturated solutions are used as grout. They are prepared by mixing of solutions which are normally incompatible, for example CaCl2 and Na2SO4 solutions or Ba(OH)2 and diluted sulphuric acid. Spontaneous crystallisation is prevented by the addition of precipitation inhibitors. The obtained solutions are temporary stable. When they are used as grout, crystallisation takes place in the treated flow paths. Both sealing and fixation of contaminants can be achieved. It is possible to synthesise solutions containing up to 600 mg/l BaSO4 or 100 g/l CaSO4. The paper summarises the fundamentals of the technology and gives an overview about properties and applications of mineral forming solutions.

Gamma-ray measurements on samples from two unusually radioactive barite-rich chimneys on Axial Sea-mount, Juan de Fuca Ridge, gave equivalent concentrations of-0.190 Th and O.2Vo U. The gamma-ray emitting nuclides in both the Th- and U-decay series were found to be unsupported by their parents a2Th *6 238[J and are therefore orphans. Measurements on three chimney frag-ments showed that zzoTh was not in radioactive equilibrium with aRa, which allowed their apparent ages and initial %Fra/%Ra ratios to be determined. Based on the n\h/nePia ages of 3 and 6 years for tlro adjacent samples, a maximum growth rate of 6 cm per year was established. Calculated iiltial %R.a/uRa ratios indicare that the fluids which precipitated the barite took 20 years to acquire their radiochemical signatures from mid-ocean ridge basalts.