Mineragenic zoning of ceramic clays of the Voronezh Anteclise

Abstract

Introduction: In the territory of the Central Black Earth Economic Region, ceramic clays are valuable and at the same time scarce raw materials. They are confined to the deposits of the Mamon stratum of the upper Devonian, the Aptian tier of the lower Cretaceous, and the suites of the Kiev Eocene, the Berek Oligocene, the Shapkinskaya Miocene, and the Usman Pliocene. Clays of different age deposits differ in terms of formation, material composition and quality. Therefore, the question of the mineragenic zoning of ceramic clays is relevant. Methodology: The solution to the problems of mineragenic zoning required the use of a variety of methods. Field studies, desk constructions of facial maps and sections, and laboratory and technological tests were carried out. Based on a comprehensive analysis of the data obtained, taxa for the regional mineragenic zoning in the ranks were identified: mineragenic (ore) zones, regions, and nodes. During the performed work, core samples of more than 50 wells were documented and tested, rocks from over 90 observation points (outcrops and quarries) were described and tested within the Voronezh, Kursk, Lipetsk, and Oryol regions. Samples were prepared and the mineral and chemical compositions of about 200 clay samples were studied using precision methods (diffractometric and electron microscopic methods). Results and discussion: Ceramic clays of the Mamon stratum were formed in proluvial-deluvial and lake-bog facies. From these, the Mamon mineragenic zone, including the Pavlovsk-Kalachsky region and the promising Vorobyovskaya area in the district has been identified. Ceramic clay is confined to the Aptian lacustrine-marshy and lacustrine-marine environments. Valuable refractory varieties were formed on land as a result of "flowing" diagenesis, high-melt varieties were formed during sedimentation. Differences in the formation conditions resulted in differences in the material composition and quality of clay raw materials. This allowed the identification of the Voronezh and Kursk-Yelets mineragenic regions. They are part of the Maloarkhangelsk-Voronezh mineragenic zone. The Voronezh mineragenic region corresponds to the distribution of continental facies. The Kursk-Yelets mineragenic region corresponds to the distribution of lagoon-marine facies. For the ceramic clays of the Cenozoic, mineragenic zoning was not carried out, since this raw material is of poor quality, the deposits are dispersed over the territory, and areas of facie development are insignificant. Conclusions: For the first time, mineragenic taxa for different-aged ceramic clays were identified by the close-analogy method, and inferred resources were calculated. In total they amounted to 51.1 million tons in the P3 category.