The Los Pijiguaos bauxite deposit (Venezuela): A compilation of field data and implications for the bauxitization process |
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| Institution: | Department of Geology and Geophysics, Yale University, PO Box 208109, New Haven, CT 06520-8109, USA |
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| Abstract: | Chemical, mineralogical, and petrographic data from the Los Pijiguaos bauxite deposit, together with the water chemistry of the streams draining the area, were used to study the problem of lateritic bauxite formation at this location. The Los Pijiguaos bauxite, located at the northwestern edge of the Guayana Shield in Venezuela, is a lateritic bauxite developed on a Precambrian Rapakivi Granite Batholith, the Parguaza Granite. This deposit is situated on a planation surface at elevations between 600 and 700 m; it is believed to have originated during an erosional event that took place during Late Cretaceous-early Tertiary times.The weathering profile is composed of an upper bauxite zone, followed by a saprolite, and merging gradually to the fresh granite. The upper bauxitic zone contains gibbsite, quartz, hematite, and goethite. The saprolite contains kaolinite, quartz, and goethite and is characterized by a relict granitic texture that indicates little bulk volume change associated with the weathering process. The upper bauxitic zone has lost any textural resemblance with the parent granite, consistent with extensive volume loss.Bauxite and saprolite are separated by a transition zone where gibbsite and kaolinite coexist. Textures indicating the replacement of kaolinite by gibbsite point to the dynamic nature of the weathering profile, characterized by advancing reaction fronts.The chemical composition of the deposit defines trends that can be traced back to the composition of the parent granite and shows enrichment of Al2O3, Fe2O3, and TiO2, and depletion of SiO2, relative to the parent granite. The uppermost part of the profile is characterized by a further enrichment of Fe2O3 with respect to the other components of the bauxite. Important volume and mass losses in the bauxite have also been calculated, based on chemical composition and density measurements. The calculated losses are consistent with the textural observations in the bauxite.The chemical composition of the waters of streams draining the area shows strong seasonal patterns, consistent with the seasonal nature of the local climate (one dry and one rainy season per year, both about six months long). The balance between dissolved and suspended loads in these streams indicates that the magnitudes of chemical and physical denudation are similar, leading to approximately constant thicknesses of the weathering profiles. These observations are consistent with model calculations based on current climatic conditions and suggest that the bauxitization process is still active. |
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