Geology
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Item Water Quality Assessment around Kataeregi Artisanal Gold Mining Site, North-Central Nigeria(Nigerian Society of Mining Engineers (NSME), Book of Proceedings, 2014) Omanayin, Y. A.; Ogunbajo, M. I.; Amadi, A. N.; Abdulfatai, I. A.; Mamodu, A.Hydrochemical assessment was conducted on streams, mine ponds and hand-dug wells around Kataeregi gold mining site, along Minna- Bida road, North-central Nigeria. This was done in order to evaluate the suitability of water in the area for both domestic and irrigational purposes. Fifteen quality parameters: Temperature, pH, TDS, EC, SO4, NO3, HCO3, Cl, Ca, Mg, Na, K, Cu, Fe, As and Pb were analyzed. The abundance of the major ions was in order of Ca2+ > Na+ > Mg2+ > K+ > Fe2+ for cations and HCO3- > SO42- > Cl- > NO3- > PO43- for anions. The water was observed to be earth-alkaline fresh water, which is an indication of water from shallow aquifer system. The results of the field and laboratory revealed that the concentration of most of the parameters were below the maximum permissible limits for a safe drinking water recommended by World Health Organization (WHO) and Nigerian Standard for Drinking Water Quality (NSDWQ) except for iron, sulphate and lead whose concentrations at some locations were slightly higher than their respective acceptable limits. The high content of iron and sulphate could be attributed to the oxidative weathering of pyrite associated with the gold mineralization in the area while high lead content observed in the area was due to the weathering and subsequent dissolution of galena, discarded by the artisanal miners during the exploration for gold.Item Geochemical analysis of Jakura-Obajana Marble, Kogi State, North Central Nigeria: Implication for their Industrial Uses(Minna Journal of Geosciences (MJG), 2017) Mamodu, A.; Ako, T. A.; Unuevho, C. I.; Omanayin, Y. A.; Ile, O. T.Geochemical analysis of the Jakura-Obajana marble deposit in Kogi State, North Central Nigeria was investigated. The paper seeks to put into perspective the diverse uses of marble which hinges on its geochemical characterization. Besides the popular use of marble for cement production, the research tends to elucidate other uses of marble predicted on predefined specifications. This will trigger optimal benefit of the Jakura-Obajana marble deposit. To achieve this, fieldwork was carried out to map the rock units underlying the area. Representative marble samples were randomly collected for laboratory analysis using XRF at the Nigerian Geological Survey Agency, Kaduna. The result of the field work reveals that the Jakura-Obajana marble was found occurred with limestone, quartzite and schist. It was also found that marble are the most dominant rock types in the study area. The colour varies from white to grey and the grain sizes range from fine to medium. The geochemical result reveals that CaO and MgO have the average content of 32.37 wt% and 19.57 wt% respectively. The average content of the oxides is 99.43 wt% and the average loss of ignition (LOI) is 43.01 wt%. The average CaCO3 and MgCO3 content of the Jakura-Obajana marble are 58.33 wt% and 41.08 wt% respectively. The percentages indicate that CaCO3 higher than MgCO3. This implies that, the Jakura marble is calcitic in origin. The total carbonate content in the marble is 99.41 %. This makes it suitable for fertilizer production, cement production, and in the production of useful industrial chemical such as sodium carbonate, bicarbonate and hydroxide. It is concluded that the investigated marble deposits have other potential areas of application in addition to usage for cement production, except for animal feeds production and usage as fluxes in steel production.Item Environmental Impact of Artisanal Gold Mining on Soils in Saigbe and Environs, Part of Minna Sheet 164, North-Central Nigeria(Minna Journal of Geosciences (MJG), 2017) Omanayin, Y. A.; Abdurrahman, R.; Akande, W. G.; Mamodu, A.; Alkali, Y. B.; Alabi, A. A.The environmental geochemistry of soils from Saigbe and environs, Minna, North-central Nigeria was studied in an attempt to assess the impacts of artisanal gold mining activity in Saigbe and environ. Geological fieldwork carried out in the area revealed that the underlying lithologies include schist, granite and amphibolite. A geochemical soil survey was also carried out and a total number of twenty (20) soil samples were systematically collected from both mined and unmined sites within the study area, of which eight (8) representative samples were geochemically analyzed. Elemental concentrations (major and trace elements) in the soil samples were determined using X-Ray fluorescence (XRF) technique. The physical impacts observed during fieldwork in the area include loss of vegetation, land degradation, water pollution and abandoned pits. The average concentrations of the elements determined were compared with the published upper crustal abundance of the individual elements and subsequently their enrichment ratios were computed. Elements such as Ag, Au and Hg show high enrichment with 1.81 ppm, 0.03 ppm and 0.11 ppm concentrations respectively. The result from accumulation index (Igeo) also shows possible Hg contamination. This potentially toxic element can cause serious damage to the skin, nervous and digestive systems in man through direct or indirect consumption.