A Vanadium I
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- -. - - Part 15. .DETAILED CHEMICAL AND MINERALOGICAL RELATIONS IN TWO ...... .- :.' ........ ,. FIGWE48. Sketch of the upper of the Mineral Joe I mine-,; __________'_____________ i--,l_____.i 167 stope~ No. - .- 1___________ ... :., 49. Sketch of the Mineral Joe No. 1 mine wall - ______________________________ 2: .'. 107 _________________ ___________ 'i_I. - SO. Graph showing distribution of several elements across the Minerd 1 mine channel sample:------:---- 172 Joe Xo. ~. ~ .. ...... ...... - + . _.: .. 61. Distribution of uranium, vanadium, and organic carbon ___ _-- -- --- __--____---...........------I---------.--- __--.~ ... .L-!73 L. - .- , _______--___------- -62; -Plot-- of-log- U agam$-log equivalent U; ---- -- 5 .%miquantitative apectrographia .-Sketch of the ,workings....... of the Pirgin,No;3 mine.:,; ...--i. ^c .%ineralo$a. &position of Bpeaime&'of ......the ..,... =..-... Nc.3 mine channel sample,:.- . .. .... Virgin ....5&-&qiqunntitative epectrographic-.andy&s- ;;,,;,,,-;;,-,-;;-;,~-rr'_-~_~~~-~~~.~-.~--~~=---~~~~--~.~--182.. ...................... :. ....... .. :: i.7::. .. Phllosopby. 165 / 166 - GCOCHEMISTRT IND MISERALOGT. COLORLDO PLATE-IU LR.LSIL-11 ORES that iron is present as both Pe(I1) and Fe(III), the latter ABSTRACT believed to hare been present in the primary clays of the un- Channel snmDies from t,\.o mines on the Colorado plateau mineralized rock; and that some of the uranium is present as have heen studied in detail both mineralogicalig and chemically. U(1-I) in addition to the U(IV) in the cottinitc. All evidence -4 channel from the Mineral joeso. 1 mine, JI~~~~~~~points to weak oxidation of an ore once iiaviug a somewhat County, Colo., extends from unmineralized rock on one side, lower state- through a of mineralization, into onlp The channel samples from both the JIineral Joe 30..1 mine and the Virgin No. mine are believed to have been essentially . .. mineralized rock. The unmineraiized rock is a fairly clean 3 - . quartz sand cemented with g)Tsum, and contains only minor -identical in minera10m prior to oxidation by Weathering: .. amounts of clay minerah. One boundary betmeen unmlneral- vanadium Was Present a V(II1) in montroseite and V(IV) in ked and mineraiixed rock is quite sharp and is nearly at right * the vanadium clays ; uranium mas present largely as n(lv)in angles to .the bedding. Vanadium minerals, chiefly mh& cofflnite and/or uraninite. The Mineral Joe No. 1 mine channel ’ .. ;. ’.- -..- . .. layer dca-montmorulonite and chlodte-montmofllodte, is now OXidhed. ;.. are abundant throughout the minerallzed zone. Escept In the .- :: Vanadium clays are unquestionably formed abundantly dnr- ,’-< dark “eye” of the channel sample, the vanadium clay minerals tng the primary mineralization. and they persist with a mini- ’. : :. are accompanied by hewettite, carnotite, Uuyamunite, and prob-:; _mum Of alteration during much of the weathering. They sug- ..:.:. .. ably unidentified vanadates. In the dark “eye,” pnrnmontrose :-gest-.that the vanadium is carried as F( IV) in tlie oreforming lte, pyrite, and marcasite are abundnnt, and are bordered- --fluids; it seems likely too ‘that the uranium Is carried as a on each side by a zone containing abundant con-usite. No recog- u(1’1) ion. - ..nizable uranium minerals mere seen in the paramontroseite zone . .. ... I. .. .. .... ,. although uranium is abundant there. CoaIy materia1 la recog- ; ‘;:?: .. 1 - - -. INTRODUmON .. -: . I. - I: . nimble throughout .all of the channel, but is most abundant In ,:- ;i. -:. .::..;.-.~ .---I-_. - -’*-. --..y-- - .. P.:. .. _i. and near the dark “eye.” .Detailed chemical studies ahom a gen- .;- i Uiltil the last fer-ye& uranium-vmadium-Ores . :. ernl increase in Fe, Al, U, and V, and a decrense in SO4= toward , .in the developed usan&.tonetypen,deposi~ of the cola- the ‘‘eye” .of the channel. --Reducingcapacitystudies indicate -.. mdo Plateau contained chiefly carnotite (or tyuyamun- . :.that V(IV) and Fe(II) are present in theFclay minerals :-.-. throughout the channel. but only in and near the “eye” are other : ite) and vanadium clays together a host Of minor .. v(Iv) minernis present (parmontroseite and corvusite). The -uranium and vanadium minerals. Escept in the clays, .. - ... uranium is everywhere serivalent, although its state of combina- the uranium and vanadium were usually present in .. tion Is conjectural where it is associated with paramontroseite; their highe& oidation stateu(m) and V( V). For ..Where ‘the ore boundary is sharp, the -boundary of introduced lGk of reason to tliink’otherivise, these rere commonly trace elements la equally sharp. Textural and chemical rela- - .- _. .. ’ . -.tions leave no doubt that the “eye” is a partially oxidized I- COnsidered ‘$rhaq”’ .ores and ideas of their Fnesis . remnant of a former lower-valence ore, and the remainder of -. were bssed on this concept. Recently, many so-~dkd .. the chanuel is a much more fully oridlzed remnant. -.-“black ore” deposits, both large and small, hare been .. .-. A channel snmple from the Virgin KO. 3 mine, AIontrose . discovered and developed; tilese share many cornon . - County, Colorado, extends from weakly mineralized sandstone -; geologic characteristics with the carnotite-bearing ores -. .. i-on-bdhsides -through a~~iiilfi6rnlized.- - . - . .. -tnt_r_al-zone. .-~e.weaklg.minernlized is a poorly sorted.sdndstone.~i~~nddiffer primarily iithe oxidation state of the con- .-.I:.-.. common detritnl ciny iirtin@Fcuijfite-iini mka ‘laper -mtca:---bined uranium, iron, and vanadium. Insome deposits, . montmorillonite are abundant interstitial to the quartz grains. .: the carnotite Ores Eade at depth kt0 the %la& ores,” No distinct vanadium or uranium minerals are recognizable. and in othels fie two occur rn tile cq,lack although the clny minerals are vanadium-bearing. Euhedral ores” is common as uraninite and’cofhite, and ..--pyxite mins and .ee!eninn~nlen~-areqresentbuJ-rare. The .- U(IV) -ronq~y minernitzed-mk b-sepamted-from -the weakly min- .‘t’.(rf:+d-VWq .___:are ‘common in hydmted_.osides___.__-. -. .-. -. -. - ud hydrosides as weU.G clays . .. .: ernlized rock by a .narrow transition zone which only approxi-. .L.-. :. -_ :--_..- ,*-. - --. >. ..- mates the bedding planes. It contnine abundant vanadfum- &-‘deposib ‘contalGg lo ience meiaIs are - bearing..clny-mlnerals (predomlnantl;r .chlorite). .bterstittalto. b’ -- the-qunrtz”graiiis,-and apparently replncing them. --Panmont- thought be’ &~~~~Lp~~~fl-orefro& which the. ..- mseite is mmmOn and is intergown with the chr minemh. carnotite depoGts kere derived by oxidationduring Pyrite and marcasite are present, chiefly in or nenr the abun- weathering (Garrels, 19%). Since some single deposits dnnt blebs and fragments 02 carbonaceons mnterinL Selentnn commonly contain figh-valence oms flint grade bto galena le rnrely present, nnd generally in or near carbonaceous :. low-vrrlenceores, we felt it be fruitful to dudy .- material. Cofenite la the only uranium mineral identfaed ; it is .. detail the nature of the changes the mineralogy, extremely flnegrnlned nnd was identifled only In X-rn,V-dif: -.in in 4ractlon patterns of heavy separates. Dlstflbution of trace element distribution, valence state, and dationOf host elements Is not clear; some are consistently high in the strongly ::rock to mineralization in a channel samplecrossing from . - mineralized rock, and some are consistent4 low. .The trace 1.: one type’ of ore to the other. Bfomover, since much les~ -.:-element compasltlon of the unminernllzed rock la not hewn.- is knoffn about the lo&-valence or= and &eir.mlation Chemlcol etudles show a very abrupt rise In the .total U, V, . the and Fe from the weakly mineralized to strongly .minerallzed host r&k, we‘felt it desirab1e;to study th&k .;::rock. Reducing capacity atudles indicate ‘that.,.most of the nme’way,but le= intewively.i:It wm hoped that these. vnnndium is present as V(IV). but some la present 88 V(V) ;= udies might lead to ‘a.more specific knowledge of the 3 .. - DET-IILED CHEUICAL ASD ~IISElMLOGICALRELATIOSS IS TWO \.;\NhDIU~I-UR.~~IUJIORES 167 nature of the alteration of the ores, at least for the deposits studied. Results of the study of two cliannel samples are reported below. We are indebted to John C. Hathaway, Jr., and Jlargaret D. Foster, for discussions on the character of the vanadium-bearing clay minerals. Horard T. Evans, Jr., and A. E. Flint assisted Garrels in select- ing and collecting the channel sample from the Mineral Joe No. 1 mine. John C. Chandler assisted with the chemical laboratory mork. Lillie B. Jenkins was of great help in selecting a consistent and reliable method for the determination of reducing capacity. ... _.... _- ..'..a.. _F.- :2,..:. c:.;:I .':f .:-j:j :: ... I: '.., .... '.? .. ..... MINERAL JOE NO. 1 MINE CHANNEL SAMPLE ... .- . _......... ........... .......... - .... .. --SAMPLING :- .. After a reconiiaissaiice of n number 'of mines an ore occurrence at the Mineral Joe No. 1 mine, Jo Dandy group, Montrose County, Colo., mas selected for de- tailed work. -;"lie location of the sampling site is shown in figure 48, and a sketch of ,$he ore .occurrence, to- gether with the sampling pattern, in figure 40. The site was chosen because it appeared possible to collect a continuous channel snmple- from unmineralized snnd- 16s GEOCHEMISTRY ASD JIISERALOGT, COLORADO PLATE.iG GRAXICY ORES representing differences in oxidation state. It was not At the sampling site in the Mineral Joe No. 1 mine a possible to get a continuous set of samples