Classification and Disintegration Characteristics of the Carboniferous Rocks in Guangxi, China

To investigate the disintegration characteristics of the carbonaceous rocks in Guangxi Province, the typical carbonaceous rocks in the section exposed by the Hechi-Baise Expressway were investigated in this study. First, based on their mineral compositions and contents, the carbonaceous rocks were divided into four types: carbonate chert, carbonaceous argillaceous limestone, carbonaceous illite clay mudstone, and carbonaceous illite clay shale. Then, through indoor wet-dry cyclic disintegration test, the disintegration characteristics of the four types of rocks were studied. The test results showed the following: (1) the disintegration residues of the carbonate chert and the carbonaceous argillaceous limestone decrease linearly as the number of wetting-drying cycles increases. (2) The disintegration index of the carbonaceous illite clay mudstone and the carbonaceous illite clay shale decreases exponentially as the number of wetting-drying cycles increases. (3) As the number of wetting-drying cycles increases, the disintegration index curves of the carbonaceous illite clay mudstone and the carbonaceous illite clay shale samples gradually become stable until the disintegration of the samples is completed. (4) The disintegration of carbonaceous rocks is mainly affected by the clay content, followed by the structural form, but it cannot be ignored.

Innovative Technologies for the Production of Ceramic Building Materials from Waste of Natural (Exogenous) Processes

The main material for the modern construction business is cement/concrete, the production of which is associated with high energy and material costs and, most importantly, high CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. Based on this, the development of technologies for new energy-efficient building materials - substitutes for Portland cement is of great importance. One of the ways to solve this problem could be the wider use of ceramic building materials, the production of which requires less energy and is not associated with high CO2 emissions compared to the production of Portland cement. The subject of this article is the development of innovative technologies for the production of ceramic building materials in Georgia (ordinary building bricks and clinker bricks) by using unconventional raw material - clay shale aluvium which is a waste of natural (exogenous) processes. As the main component of the ceramic mass, we used clay shale aluvium from the Duruji river bed near the town of Kvareli, which made it possible to reduce the firing temperature and improve the quality of the finished product. X-ray phase, petrographic and electronic microscopic studies have shown that ceramic products, both building and clinker bricks, made with the use of Kvareli shale, under the same firing conditions, have been obtained with a denser structure ensuring higher physical and mechanical features as compared to clay Metekhi, which is currently used by the brick factory in Georgia. The use of shale accumulated in the region of Kvareli in various areas of the economy (including production of ceramic building materials) will make it possible to clear the adjacent territory from risky deposits of natural alluvium, which threatens to flood the city and provide companies engaged in production of ceramic building materials with low-cost and environmentally friendly raw materials.

Analisis CBR Tanah Clayshale Akibat Distabilisasi Semen

Clay shale merupakan batuan lunak yang memiliki potensi masalah pada kekuatan dan durabilitas bila tersingkap. Perbaikan tanah diperlukan bila digunakan sebagai lapis dasar jalan. Salah satu metodenya adalah stabilisasi menggunakan semen. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui perbandingan nilai CBR dan pengembangan clay shale sebelum dan sesudah penambahan semen. Semen yang ditambahkan sebesar 10% dari berat total tanah kering. Semen dicampur dengan metode dry mix dan spray mix. Pengujian CBR menggunakan 3 variasi pemadatan yaitu 10, 25, 56 kali pukulan. Hasil penelitian menujukkan bahwa penambahan semen 10% pada 56 pukulan akan meningkatkan nilai CBR 38,40% dan menurunkan pengembangan 0,60%. Nilai CBR dengan metode dry mix lebih tinggi dibandingkan dengan metode spray mix.Clay shale is a soft rock that has potential problems in strength and durability when exposed. Soil Improvement Required when used as the subgrade. One of the repair methods is stabilization using cement. This study aims to determine the value of CBR and clay shale swelling after the addition of cement. Cement added by 10% of dry soil weight. The cement is mixed by dry mix and spray mix methods. CBR testing uses three variations of compaction 10, 25, 56 blows. The results showed that adding 10% cement and 56 blows increased the CBR value by 38.40% and decreased the swelling by 0.60%. The CBR value with the dry mix method is higher than the spray mix method.

Shale types and sedimentary environments of the Upper Ordovician Wufeng Formation-Member 1 of the Lower Silurian Longmaxi Formation in western Hubei Province, China

By performing scanning electron microscopy, microscopic observations, whole-rock X-ray diffraction analysis, organic geochemistry analysis, and elemental analysis on drill core specimens and thin sections, in this study, we classified the shale types of the Wufeng Formation-Member 1 of the Longmaxi Formation in western Hubei, southern China, and explored the development characteristics and formation environments of the different shale types. The results show that (1) the shales of the Wufeng Formation-Member 1 of the Longmaxi Formation are composed of three types of shale: siliceous shale, mixed clay-siliceous shale, and clay shale. The siliceous shale is a type of shale unique to deep-water environments; clay shale is the main type of shale formed in shallow-water environments; and mixed clay-siliceous shale falls between the two. (2) The changes in shale type are characterized by multiple depositional cycles in the vertical direction with strong heterogeneity and an obvious tripartite character, and the siliceous shales gradually thicken as they laterally extend northwestward, with their last depositional cycle gradually ending at a later time. (3) The Late Ordovician-Early Silurian paleoenvironment can be divided into six evolutionary stages (A, B, C, D, E, and F) from early to late. In particular, the sea level was relatively lower in stages A and F when the bottom water was mainly oxygen rich with higher terrigenous inputs and a lower paleoproductivity, which led to the formation of clay shales poor in organic matter but rich in terrigenous quartz clasts. The sea level was higher in stages B, C, and D when the bottom water was anoxic with lower terrigenous inputs and a higher paleoproductivity, which led to the formation of siliceous shales rich in organic matter and biogenic silica. The total organic carbon (TOC) contents of siliceous shales decrease in the order of stage C > stage D > stage B, which is mainly attributed to the different degrees of water restriction in the three stages and the consequently different paleoproductivities. Stage E corresponds to the mixed clay-siliceous shales, the depositional environment of which is between those of the siliceous shales and the clay shales, thereby resulting in the mineral composition and TOC content of the mixed clay-siliceous shales being between those of the other two shale types.