Age, origin and climatic signal of English Mesozoic clays based on K/Ar signatures

Clay Minerals ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 36 (4) ◽  
pp. 515-539 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. V. Jeans ◽  
J. G. Mitchell ◽  
M. J. Fisher ◽  
D. S. Wray ◽  
I. R. Hall

AbstractThe K/Ar characteristics of 53 clay assemblages (Triassic–Cretaceous), representing the detrital, volcanogenic and arid-facies clay mineral associations, are interpreted in relation to their mineralogy, chronostratic age and geological origins. The K-bearing mineral components of the 1–2 μm, 0.2–1 μm and <0.2 μm fractions of each clay assemblage together display one of two characteristic patterns of K2O and 40Ar values (the K/Ar signature of the assemblage) on a 40Ar/K2O correlation diagram. Interpretation of the K/Ar signatures indicates that: (1) all of these clay assemblages are apparently unaffected by burial diagenetic illitization; (2) the Jurassic and Cretaceous detrital clay assemblages are derived from the reworking of weathered Caledonian metasediments (420 500 Ma) and weathered kaolin-bearing sediments of Upper Devonian/ Carboniferous age; and (3) the role played by palaeoclimate in developing the pattern of clay minerals in the Mesozoic sediments of England is much less significant than previously believed.

Clay Minerals ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 699-707 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Mirabella ◽  
M. Egli ◽  
S. Carnicelli ◽  
G. Sartori

AbstractThe formation of clay minerals was investigated in Spodosols developed in the subalpine belt, with similar exposure, climate and age, but deriving from different parent materials. All the soils were classified as Haplic Podzols and showed the characteristic eluviation and illuviation features of Fe, Al and organic carbon. However, varying parent material lithology led to different clay mineral assemblages in the soil. Smectite could be found in the E horizons of soils developed from granodiorite and tonalite materials. Its formation was strongly dependent on the presence of chlorite in the parent material. If nearly no other 2:1 mineral components, such as chlorite, are present in the lower soil horizons, then a residual micaceous mineral becomes the dominant clay mineral. The latter derives from a mica-vermiculite interstratified mineral.


1960 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Pawluk

Recent exploratory surveys in the northern sections of Alberta revealed many soils morphologically similar to podzols. A laboratory study was carried out to obtain a better understanding of the genesis and morphology of these soils.Chemical analyses showed the percentage base saturation and pH to be higher than for typical podzols.Physical analyses showed slight increases in clay content in the B horizons and decreases in the A horizons when compared to the parent material.From mineralogical studies of the profiles, the following weathering sequences were established: feldspars>quartz; chlorite>biotite>muscovite; [Formula: see text]. X-ray diffraction data showed illite, montmorillonite-illite mixed layering, montmorillonite, and kaolinite as being the principal clay minerals present in the A and C horizons. The clay mineral components of the B horizons were primarily chlorite-like with lesser amounts of kaolinite. Analyses indicated that the chlorite-like mineral lacked properties attributed to well crystallized chlorites and provided strong evidence in favour of authigenic origin.Data obtained in this study showed the genesis of these soils to be somewhat different from that reported for podzols elsewhere although the process of formation evidently was primarily chemical.


Crystals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 618
Author(s):  
Layla Shafei ◽  
Puja Adhikari ◽  
Wai-Yim Ching

Clay mineral materials have attracted attention due to their many properties and applications. The applications of clay minerals are closely linked to their structure and composition. In this paper, we studied the electronic structure properties of kaolinite, muscovite, and montmorillonite crystals, which are classified as clay minerals, by using DFT-based ab initio packages VASP and the OLCAO. The aim of this work is to have a deep understanding of clay mineral materials, including electronic structure, bond strength, mechanical properties, and optical properties. It is worth mentioning that understanding these properties may help continually result in new and innovative clay products in several applications, such as in pharmaceutical applications using kaolinite for their potential in cancer treatment, muscovite used as insulators in electrical appliances, and engineering applications that use montmorillonite as a sealant. In addition, our results show that the role played by hydrogen bonds in O-H bonds has an impact on the hydration in these crystals. Based on calculated total bond order density, it is concluded that kaolinite is slightly more cohesive than montmorillonite, which is consistent with the calculated mechanical properties.


Clay Minerals ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. V. Jeans ◽  
D. S. Wray ◽  
R. J. Merriman ◽  
M. J. Fisher

AbstractThe nature and origin of authigenic clay minerals and silicate cements in the Jurassic and Cretaceous sediments of England and the North Sea are discussed in relation to penecontemporaneous volcanism in and around the North Sea Basin. Evidence, including new REE data, suggests that the authigenic clay minerals represent the argillization of volcanic ash under varying diagenetic conditions, and that volcanic ash is a likely source for at least the early silicate cements in many sandstones. The nature and origin of smectite-rich, glauconite-rich, berthierine-rich and kaolin-rich volcanogenic clay mineral deposits are discussed. Two patterns of volcanogenic clay minerals facies are described. Pattern A is related to ash argillization in the non-marine and marine environments. Pattern B is developed by the argillization of ash concentrated in the sand and silt facies belts in the seas bordering ash-covered islands and massifs. It is associated with regression/ transgression cycles which may be related to thermal doming and associated volcanism, including the submarine release of hydrothermal fluids rich in Fe. The apparent paucity of volcanogenic clay deposits in the Jurasssic and Early Cretaceous sediments of the North Sea is discussed.


2018 ◽  
Vol 788 ◽  
pp. 83-88
Author(s):  
Oskars Leščinskis ◽  
Ruta Švinka ◽  
Visvaldis Švinka

Clays are materials consisting of clay minerals and non-clay minerals. Clay mineral fraction is considered to be a nanofraction. Clay minerals can be used for water purification and treatment. Description and characterization of 3 different Latvian clay nanosized minerals from 3 different geological periods (clay Liepa from Devonian period, clay Vadakste from Triassic period and clay Apriki from Quaternary period) as well as their adsorption capacity concerning organic compounds such as methyl orange and rhodamine B are summarized. Nanosized clay mineral particles were obtained using sedimentation method. Particle size distribution, zeta potential and FTIR spectra is given. The adsorption tests of above mentioned organic compounds were carried out in water solutions at 3 different pH values. The adsorption values were determined by means of UV-spectrophotometric technique. Zeta potential values for clay minerals Apriki, Liepa and Vadakste are -40.9 mV, -49.6 mV and -43.0 mV, respectively. FTIR spectra show similar tendencies for all 3 clay minerals. The best adsorption capacity concerning methyl orange and rhodamine B were in solutions with a pH value of 2, whereas at neutral and alkaline pH values adsorption in 24 hours was not observed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
E.E.I. Irabor ◽  
A. K. Okunkpolor

The physico-chemical and mineralogical properties of a clay mineral deposit in Geheku, Kogi State, Nigeria were assessed. The results of the study revealed that the deposit consisted of phyllosilicate minerals- Illite, montmorillonite, kaolinite, halloysite, almandine; other minerals present were quartz and ramsdellite. The clay minerals exhibited good swelling property, medium plasticity, good thermal shock resistance and apparent porosity; it had refractoriness below 1200 oC. The properties of the clay reflected the combined properties of the constituent clay and non-clay minerals which recommends it for a variety of applications which requires the blend of property though the working temperature must be below 1200 oC. The clay mineral deposit colours were influenced by the minerals almadine and ramsdellite.


Clay Minerals ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Thiry ◽  
T. Jacquin

AbstractThe distribution of clay minerals from the N and S Atlantic Cretaceous deep-sea sediments is related to rifting, sea-floor spreading, sea-level variations and paleoceanography. Four main clay mineral suites were identified: two are inherited and indicative of ocean geodynamics, whereas the others result from transformation and authigenesis and are diagnostic of Cretaceous oceanic depositional environments. Illite and chlorite, together with interstratified illite-smectite and smectite occur above the sea-floor basalts and illustrate the contribution of volcanoclastic materials of basaltic origin to the sediments. Kaolinite, with variable amounts of illite, chlorite, smectite and interstratified minerals, indicates detrital inputs from continents near the platform margins. Kaolinite decreases upward in the series due to open marine environments and basin deepening. It may increase in volume during specific time intervals corresponding to periods of falling sea-level during which overall facies regression and erosion of the surrounding platforms occurred. Smectite is the most abundant clay mineral in the Cretaceous deep-sea sediments. Smectite-rich deposits correlate with periods of relatively low sedimentation rates. As paleoweathering profiles and basal deposits at the bottom of Cretaceous transgressive formations are mostly kaolinitic, smectite cannot have been inherited from the continents. Smectite is therefore believed to have formed in the ocean by transformation and recrystallization of detrital materials during early diagenesis. Because of the slow rate of silicate reactions, transformation of clay minerals requires a long residence time of the particles at the water/sediment interface; this explains the relationships between the observed increases in smectite with long-term sea-level rises that tend to starve the basinal settings of sedimentation. Palygorskite, along with dolomite, is relatively common in the N and S Atlantic Cretaceous sediments. It is not detrital because correlative shelf deposits are devoid of palygorskite. Palygorskite is diagnostic of Mg-rich environments and is indicative of the warm and hypersaline bottom waters of the Cretaceous Atlantic ocean.


Author(s):  
Pham Thanh Huyen

Clay minerals can be used as raw materials for the production of various industrial products. However, most bentonite and kaolinite deposits contain a significant quantity of non-clay mineral impurities. These impurities often affect the quality of clay minerals for adsorption and catalytic application. Therefore, in order to be used as adsorbents and catalysts, those clay minerals need some beneficiation, activation processing to improve their properties or conversion to a porous materials. In this chapter, an overview of the current state, the properties, the beneficiation, activation as well as the conversion of bentonite, kaolinite… to porous materials such as pillared clays, zeolites and their intended applications were presented. In addition, in this review, the challenges and difficulty in the conversion of bentonite and kaolinite to porous materials were also discussed.


1987 ◽  
Vol 124 (3) ◽  
pp. 261-271 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian E. Andrews

AbstractClay minerals from Middle Jurassic lagoonal mudrocks, siltstones and silty fine-grained sandstones of the upper Great Estuarine Group (Bathonian) are divided into four assemblages. Assemblage 1, the most common assemblage, is rich in mixed-layer illite–smectite with attendant illite and kaolinite. Assemblage 2 is dominated by smectitic clay. These assemblages are indicative of primary Jurassic deposition. Illite and kaolinite were probably derived from the weathering of older rocks and soils in the basin hinterland and were deposited in the lagoons as river-borne detritus. The majority of smectite and mixed-layer illite–smectite is interpreted as the argillization product of Jurassic volcanic dust, also deposited in the lagoons by rivers. Near major Tertiary igneous intrusions these depositional clay mineral assemblages have been altered. Assemblage 3 contains smectite-poor mixed-layer illite–smectite, whilst Assemblage 4 contains no smectitic clay at all. Destruction of smectite interlayers occurred at relatively shallow burial depths (< 2500 m) due to enhanced geothermal gradients and local convective hot-water circulation cells associated with the major Tertiary igneous intrusions.


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