ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY COLLAGE OF NATURAL AND COMPUTATIONAL SCIENCE SCHOOL OF EARTH SCIENCES Quality and Quantity Assessments of Marble Deposit in Benishangual Gumuz, Regional State, around Daleti area. By: Hafis Mohammednur Advisor: Dr. Worash Getaneh Co-Advisor: Dr.Tesfaye Asresahagne A thesis submitted to the school of Graduate studies of Addis Ababa University, in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science in Resource Geology (Mineral Deposits). June, 2019 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY NATURAL AND COMPUTATIONAL SCIENCES SCHOOL OF EARTH SCIENCES Quality and Quantity Assessments of Marble Deposit in Benishangual- Gumuz, Regional State, around Daleti area. By: Hafis Mohammednur A thesis submitted to the school of Graduate studies of Addis Ababa University, in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Science in Resource Geology (Mineral Deposits). June, 2019 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES SCHOOL OF EARTH SCIENCES Quality and Quantity Assessments of marble deposit in Benishangual Gumuz, regional state around Daleti area. BY Hafis Mohammednur Approved by the Examining Committee Dr. Balemwal Atnafu _________________ ___________________ Head, School of Earth Sciences Signature Date Dr. Worash Getaneh _________________ ___________________ Advisor Signature Date Dr. Tesfaye Asreahagne _________________ __________________ Co-Advisor Signature Date Pro. Asfawassen Asrat ________________ __________________ Examiner Signature Date Dr. Mulugeta Allen ________________ __________________ Examiner Signature Date Statement of originality With this statement, I hereby confirm that this MSc thesis work is my own original work under the supervision of Dr. Worash Getaneh and Dr. Tesfaye Asresahagne, Addis Ababa University, School of Earth Sciences, in the year 2019. I also declare that this work has not been submitted in any university or other institution. Data used from the published and unpublished work of others has been appropriately acknowledged. Hafis Mohammednur Signature: ______________________Date: __________________ To the best of our knowledge, we recognized that the above statement made by the MSc candidate is correct. Dr. Worash Getaneh (Advisor) Signature: ________________ Date: ________________ Dr. Tesfaye Asresahagne (Co-advisor) Signature: ____________Date:_______________ Acknowledgement First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my advisors Dr. Worash Getaneh and Dr. Tesfaye Asresahagne for their close guidance, suggestion, comment and support. I take this opportunity to thank Assosa University for providing me vehicle with driver for collection of sample during the course of field work .The XRD laboratory analysis is performed in Ethiopia, University of Mekelle. For this, I would like to express my uttermost gratitude to Mr. Michaele Alem and Mr. Teklaye gidey for their collaboration and support. I would also want to thank Mrs.Aregahagn Kefelegn, for the physical tests and Mrs. Selamawit Tadesse and Getachew Esthete for cut and polish also, my sincere thanks to Mr.Girma Asemu and, Mr. Asmenew Besufikad for their generous support during sample preparation and thin section laboratory analysis. I am especially indebted to Mr. Getachew Gebre/sadke, Mr. Mohammed Atyeb, Mr. Fisha Selassie and for their presence, encouragement and tireless support during field work. I acknowledge with grateful thanks the contributions of Mrs. Mohammed Ahmed and Mrs. Shawye Abebe, for their critical support during my studies. I am grateful to Mr.Asmerom, Mokonen for their comment and technical support. For their presence and encouragement, I would like to thank my lovely friends said Mohammed, and Abebi Berhanu, for his prayer and encouragement. My special thanks go to my dad Mohammednur Baker and my mom Fatena Habebla for their prayer, patience, encouragement, presence and support during my studies. Finally, I would like to thank the government officials in Benshanguel-Gumuz regional state mining Bureau and the local peoples for their collaboration during field work. i Table of contents Acknowledgement ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------i Table of contents ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ii List of Figures --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------iv List of tables ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------vii List of acronyms------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ix Abstract----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------x CHAPTER ONE-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1 1. Introduction --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1 1.1. Background ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1 1.2. Geographic setting of the study area --------------------------------------------------------------2 1.2.1. Location and accessibility -----------------------------------------------------------------------2 1.2.2. Physiography and drainage ----------------------------------------------------------------------3 1.2.3. Climatic condition and vegetation --------------------------------------------------------------3 1.2.4. Population and settlement------------------------------------------------------------------------4 1.3. Problem statement-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------5 1.4. Objectives --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------5 1.4.1. General objective----------------------------------------------------------------------------------5 1.4.2. Specific objectives --------------------------------------------------------------------------------5 1.5. Methodology------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------6 1.5.1. Field work and geological mapping ------------------------------------------------------------7 1.5.2. Analytical methods and data analysis ----------------------------------------------------------7 1.6. Significance of the research ------------------------------------------------------------------------8 1.7. Thesis overview -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------9 CHAPTER TWO --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------10 2. Literature review -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------10 2.1. Marble -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------10 2.1.1. Mechanisms of marble formation -------------------------------------------------------------12 2.1.2. Genesis of marble deposits ---------------------------------------------------------------------15 2.2. Exploration, mining and processing of marble ------------------------------------------------17 2.3. Quality and major markets------------------------------------------------------------------------19 2.4. Previous works on marble deposits of Ethiopia -----------------------------------------------20 ii CHAPTER THREE -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------23 3.1. Introduction: The Pan African Orogeny --------------------------------------------------------23 3.2. The Mozambique Belt-----------------------------------------------------------------------------25 3.3. The Arabian-Nubian Shield (ANS) -------------------------------------------------------------26 3.3.1. Origin and Tectonism----------------------------------------------------------------------------26 3.3.2. Litho-stratigraphy--------------------------------------------------------------------------------27 3.4. Geology and Geotectonic Evolution of the Western Ethiopian Shield (WES) -----------28 3.4.1. Litho-stratigraphy--------------------------------------------------------------------------------28 3.4.1.1. Didessa Domain--------------------------------------------------------------------------------29 3.4.1.2. Kemashi Domain-------------------------------------------------------------------------------30 3.4.1.3. Dengi Domain----------------------------------------------------------------------------------30 3.4.1.4. Sirkole domain---------------------------------------------------------------------------------30 3.4.1.5. Daka domain------------------------------------------------------------------------------------31 3.4.2. Origin and tectonic setting----------------------------------------------------------------------31 3.4.3. Metamorphism and deformation---------------------------------------------------------------32 3.4.4. Economic minerals and rocks resources------------------------------------------------------35 CHAPTER FOUR -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------36 4. The geology of the study area-----------------------------------------------------------------------36 4.1. Regional Geology----------------------------------------------------------------------------------36 4.2. Local Geology--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------37 4.3. Lithology and Petrography analysis-------------------------------------------------------------37