Geology and Mineral Resources of the Barao De Cocais Area Minas Gerais, Brazil
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Geology and Mineral Resources of the Barao de Cocais Area Minas Gerais, Brazil GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 341-H Prepared in cooperation with the Departamento Nacional da Producao Mineral of Brazil under the auspices of the Agency for International Development of the United States Department of State Geology and Mineral Resources of the Barao de Cocais Area Minas Gerais, Brazil By GEORGE C. SIMMONS GEOLOGY AND MINERAL RESOURCES OF PARTS OF MINAS GERAIS, BRAZIL GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 341-H Prepared in cooperation with the Departamento Nacional da Producao Mineral of Brazil under the auspices of the Agency for International Development of the United States Department of State A study of Precambrian rocks and associated mineral deposits in the Brazilian shield UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1968 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR STEWART L. UDALL, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY William T. Pecora, Director For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C. 20402 CONTENTS Page Page Abstract.._ ________________________________________ HI Structure Continued Introduction____ _ ________________________________ 2 Cambotas homocline. __________ H28 General background__-_-_-_____-________-____ 2 Postulated thrust fault- ________ 28 Coordinate system._____________________________ 2 Gandarela syncline.. ___________ 29 Geography__ _ ________________________________ 3 Fundao fault-_____------_----- 29 Previous investigations._________________________ 6 Nova Lima belt of isoclinal f olds.. 30 Present investigation.___________________________ 6 Santa Barbara gneiss dome. ____ 30 Acknowledgments___ _ _________________________ 6 Metamorphism. ___________________ 30 Stratigraphy.______________________________________ 7 Regional metamorphism________ 30 Rio das Velhas Series._________________________ 7 Pelitic rocks _ ____________ 30 Nova Lima Group._________________________ 7 Quartzites. ____-_----____- 30 Schist and phyllite._____________________ Itabirite and iron-formation. 31 Iron-formation. ________________________ Mafic rocks_______--______ 31 Quartz-rich rocks.______________________ Contact metamorphism __ _ ____ 31 Correlation of rocks assigned to the Nova Quartzite. _______________- 31 Lima Group_______________________ Iron-formation. ___________ 31 Tamandud Group________________________ Andalusite schist- _________ 32 Cambotas Quartzite__ ___________________ Mineral deposits-______--__---_____ 32 Unnamed formation___________________ 11 32 Discussion. ____________________________ 13 Santa Quite"ria ____ _____ _ _ ______ __ 32 Minas Series.__________________________________ 14 Sao Bento. _______-______-_____---__--__-__ 33 Cara§a Group._____________________________ 14 TaquarfL ___ _________________________ __ 35 Moeda Formation____________________ 15 Sao Jorge mine. ______________-___-___-----_ 36 Batatal Formation._____________________ 15 Brucutii _ ______________ ____ _ _ ________ 36 Itabira Group._____________________________ 15 Iron_______________.___ _________-__._-___-__-_- 36 Cau6 Itabirite ________________________ 15 Deposits and ores. __________________________ 36 Gandarela Formation_________________ 17 Detrital deposits and ores__ ______________ 37 Piracicaba Group.._________________________ 18 Residual deposits and ores and potential Cercadinho Formation_________________ 18 ores _ _______________________________ 37 Cenozoic deposits.__________________________________ 20 Reserves _ ________________________________ 38 Canga_ ______________________________________ 20 Cabega de Ferro mine_ ______________________ 38 Igneous rocks____________________________________ 22 Cocais rolado _ ____________________________ 39 Granitic rocks._________________________________ 22 Manganese _ __________________________________ 40 Gneiss of Cocais---__-_-_--__-----_-__------ 23 Morro Dona Ana mine. _____________________ 40 Gneiss of Santa Barbara___________________ 24 Brucutii 54 mine__ __________________________ 40 Petf phase of the Borrachudos Granite._______ 24 Morro Grande_ ___________________-----_-_ 41 Mafic rocks.___________________________________ 25 Prospects __________________________________ 42 Chlorite-talc-antigorite schist_______________ 25 Diamonds- ____________________________________ 42 Chlorite schist____________________________ 26 Quartz crystal.. _ _____________________-_---_---- 42 Gabbro__ _ _______________________________ 26 Gneiss.. -____________________-_-_-_-_-_.------- 42 Ages of mafic intrusions.____________________ 27 Clay_ _____--________-_______-___-_----.------- 42 Structure._________________________________________ 27 References- ________________________________________ 42 Cocais gneiss dome__-_________-__________-_--- 27 Index. ____________________________________________ 45 III IV CONTENTS ILLUSTRATIONS [Plates are in pocket] Page PLATE 1. Geologic map and sections of the Santa Barbara quadrangle. 2. Geologic map and sections of the south half of the Cocais quadrangle. 3. Map showing locations of gold workings in the Sao Bento-Santa Quiteria area. FIGURE 1. Index map showing location of the Barao de Cocais area in relation to the remainder of the Quadrilatero Ferrifero________________________________________________-__-_______-__---_----_----------- H3 2. Photographs showing production of charcoal for smelter at Barao de Cocais-_-___---__-_______________ 4 3. Diagram showing physiographic divisions and general rock distribution in the Barao de Cocais area_____ 5 4-11. Photographs showing: 4. Cambotas Quartzite_______________________________-____----_____-_------_--___--------_-- 10 5. Cross-stratified Cambotas Quartzite in the Serra do Tamandua________________________________ 11 6. Ripple marks in Cambotas Quartzite in the Serra das Cambotas_______________________________ 11 7. Magnetite crystals in hematite from iron-formation in the upper formation of the Tamandua Group. 13 8. Itabirite in the Cau6 Itabirite________________________________________-__-_-_------------- 16 9. Small overturned folds in itabirite________________-_---------_--_-------_--__-------_------- 16 10. Canga containing a small pebble of quartzite.______-_________-______-__-_-_--___---------_-- 20 11. Occurrences of canga__________________________________--___________--______--_-_-------_- 21 12. Sketch map of the Cabega de Ferro mine.____________________-_--_--______--___-____-_-------_--_-- 39 13. Photograph of hematite ore at the Cabega de Ferro mine.____________________________________________ 39 14. Sketch map and section of the Brucutu 54 manganese mine___________________________________________ 41 TABLES Page TABLE 1. Precambrian stratigraphic column for the Barao de Cocais area-_____---________-____-_---------_----__ H7 2. Partial analyses of itabirite_---_--___________________________--_______________-____--___-------__- 16 3. Modal analyses of granitic rocks in the Barao de Cocais area-____-___-_-______________---_---_-------- 23 4. Trace-element analyses of gneisses of Cocais and Santa Barbara compared with analyses of gneissic rocks of Group II and Group III._____________________________________________________ 24 5. Chemical analysis of gneiss of Santa Barbara compared with average chemical analyses of gneissic granitic rocks of Group II and Group III______________________________________________________________ 25 6. Normative minerals in gneiss of Santa Barbara and Peti phase of Borrachudos Granite___________________ 25 7. Chemical analyses comparing the Peti phase of the Borrachudos Granite and the Borrachudos Granite.____ 26 8. Trace-element analyses comparing the Peti phase of the Borrachudos Granite and the Borrachudos Granite.. 26 9. Potential iron resources of the Barao de Cocais area________________________________________________ 38 10. Analyses of samples from the Brucutii 54 manganese mine-______________________________--_-------___ 41 GEOLOGY AND MINERAL RESOURCES OF PARTS OF MINAS GERAIS, BRAZIL GEOLOGY AND MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE BARAO DE COCAIS AREA MINAS GERAIS, BRAZIL By GEORGE C. SIMMONS ABSTRACT source of practically all of the iron deposits in the Quadrilatero The Barao de Cocais area is in the northeast part of the Ferrifero. The intergradational zone between the Caue" Itabirite Quadrilatero Ferrifero, the famous iron region which covers and the Gandarela Formation is 10 meters thick. The Gandarela nearly 7,000 square kilometers in southeastern Minas Gerais, Formation contains ferruginous and dolomitic phyllite and ita Brazil. A folded Precambrian iron-formation, the Caue" Itabirite, birite. The Cercadinho Formation disconformably overlies the contains high-grade hematite deposits and is the source of other Gandarela Formation. The Cercadinho Formation contains iron ores throughout this region. The Barao de Cocais area ferruginous phyllite and quartzite, conglomerate, and dolomitic covers 270 square kilometers and includes part of a syncline phyllite. involving the Caue Itabirite. The area contains a large tonnage Canga, a Cenozoic rock of some economic interest, is the only of potential iron resources and small reserves of high-grade post-Precambrian rock in the region, except possibly some iron ores and low-grade iron, manganese, and gold ores. gabbroic intrusive rocks. It is an indurated colluvial deposit of Two Precambrian rock series having an aggregate thickness of itabiritic cemented by limonite. 3,600 meters crop out in the Barao de Cocais area. The lower, Three granitic formations occur in the area: