Bentonite from the Central Slovakia Volcanic Field – A Prospective Raw Material for Polish Industry

Katarzyna Górniak,Agnieszka Klimek,Adam Gaweł,Anna Tomczyk,Tadeusz Szydłak,Krzysztof Bahranowski,Jerzy Motyka

doi:10.1515/mipo-2017-0009

Katarzyna Górniak, Agnieszka Klimek + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1515/mipo-2017-0009

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Journal: Mineralogia	Publication Date: Dec 1, 2017
Citations: 3	License type: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Affiliation: AGH University of Krakow

Abstract

Abstract This paper summarizes information about recently worked bentonite deposits in Slovakia and presents the results of studies on bentonite from the Central Slovakia Volcanic Field (CSVF). The authors compared the mineralogy of commercial bentonites exploited in the Stara Kremnička (Jelšový potok), Kopernica, and Hliník nad Hronom deposits. X-ray diffraction (XRD), chemical analyses and microscopy showed that the main component is montmorillonite (37-88%), followed by opal C/CT (5-25%), clinoptilolite (up to 15%), feldspars (3-12%), quartz (up to 8%), biotite (2-5%), and kaolinite (up to 2%). The microscopic imaging provided information valuable for the technological assessment of bentonites, particularly the evaluation of mineralogy determined by XRD. The low variability of the mineral composition of commercial bentonites exploited in the western CSVF, together with the significant reserves and localization of deposits close to the Polish-Slovak state border prove that this raw material deserves more attention from Polish industry.

Highlights

Poland only has low quality bentonite resources, which represent the weathering products of some Lower Silesian basalts
Our observations demonstrate that smectite flakes are to a various extent cemented by opal C/CT and by microcrystals of K-feldspar, which may reduce the response of bentonite to water
Our studies reveal that bentonites exploited in the Central Slovakia Volcanic Field (CSVF) since ca. 1980 have stable mineral composition

Summary

Introduction

Poland only has low quality bentonite resources, which represent the weathering products of some Lower Silesian basalts. In contrast to Poland, Slovakia is rich in bentonite deposits (Table 1). Most of these occur in Central Slovakia, in the vicinity of Banská. The remaining localities are clustered in Eastern Slovakia, in the vicinity of Košice (Fig. 1). The number of assessed deposits and the production of bentonites in Slovakia have been systematically growing (Table 1). Bentonites from Slovakia appear to be an interesting raw material for Polish industry

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Discussion

Conclusion