Geotechnical and Mineralogical Evaluation of Clay Deposits in Efiwo-Itobe and its Environs, Anambra Basin, Nigeria
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Mineralogical and geotechnical studies of exposed clay deposits of the Mamu Formation at Efiwo-Itobe on Abejukolo-Ankpa road, Northern Anambra Basin, has been undertaken with the aim of investigating their suitability o ' o for engineering works. The study area lies within Longitudes 7 45 00" N to 7 46' 00" N and Latitudes 7 32' 00" E to 7 o o 33' 00" E part of sheet 249 Soko SW. The clay deposits are brown at the base and whitish at the top usually with lateritic overburden. Sedimentary structures include burrows and laminations. The liquid limit and plasticity index values of 22.50%, 21.20%, 21.25%, 21.50%, 20.95%, 21.00% and 10.13%, 6.85%, 5.55%, 4.95%, 3.72%, 3.10%, respectively, when compared to recommended standards show that the soils exhibit properties that make them suitable for their applications as liners in landfill construction, subgrade and subbase fill materials in road construction and as foundation material for building. The X-ray Diffraction studies of the clay deposits indicate that the samples contain kaolinite, quartz, muscovite, microcline and goethite in the upper layer and kaolinite, quartz, muscovite, microcline at the bottom layer. The relatively high content of quartz in the studied samples makes them impure for pharmaceutical, paint, plastics, and fertilizer. The depositional environment of the study area is interpreted to be a nearshore depositional system suggestive of continental provenance in humid climates and high leaching environment of deposition.
Publication Info:
Author: Alege, T.S. , Olasehinde, H.J. , Omada, J.I. , Obasaju, D. and Danga, E.O.
Volume: 57
Issue: March
Published By: Journal of Mining and Geology, 2024-03-01