Dholkata bauxite deposit on metavolcanics, Keonjhar district, Orissa, India

Abstract

The Dholkata bauxite deposit of Keonjhar district, Orissa, has developed on the metavolcanics of tholeiitic basalt composition. The weathered profile reveals five distinct altered zones, such as topsoil, laterite, bauxite, lithomarge and altered metavolcanics. The mineralogy of different zones studied in a representative pit shows the association of major mineral constituents like gibbsite, goethite, hematite, kaolinite, limonite and quartz. Gibbsite is the most dominant one followed by goethite and hematite in the bauxite zone. The geochemical study of all weathering zones indicates the geochemical affinity of the elements Ni, Th and U for laterites and Cr, Zr and Hf for bauxites to occur in high quantities. Trend surface maps predict the bauxite zones in the different levels of the deposit. If the zones having Al2O3 35-40% are blended with high grade ores, the deposit may prove to be a potential one.