Abstract
Studies are undertaken to characterize the uranium and thorium minerals of south-east Madagascar. Seven selected uranothorianite bearing pyroxenites samples from old abandoned uranium quarries in Tranomaro, south Amboasary, Madagascar (46°28'00E, 24°36'00S) have been collected. To determine the mineral micro-structure, they were investigated for qualitative identification of crystalline compounds by using X-ray powder diffraction analytical method (XRD). Results showed that the uranium and thorium compounds, as minor elements, were present in various crystalline structures. Thorium, as thorianite, is present in a simple ThO2 cubic crystalline system, whereas the uranium component of the Tranomaro uranothorianite samples is oxide-based and is a mixture of complex oxidation states and crys-talline systems. Generally called uraninite, its oxide compounds are present in more than eight phases.
Highlights
Uranium-thorium compounds are present in multiple crystalline phases and systems
Due to the presence of radioactive minerals, populations living in the Tranomaro area, south-east Madagascar may be exposed to increased environmental radiation
The study of seven mineral samples collected from the site, using X-ray diffraction, confirms the existence of uranium-thorium bearing minerals in the Tranomaro deposit, and gives an insight on the crystalline structure and combination of the uranium-thorium minerals
Summary
B. Rasamoel, discovered euxenite-bearing tertiary lake sediments near Vinaninkarena. French interest in the source of radium led to intensive search for primary uranium minerals in the adjacent upland plateau [1]. The central island is one of the regions of interest of a Manhattan District Project. In 1943-1944, the Kitsamby district, located in the region, was explored for potential uranium ore deposit by the project specialists [2]. Moreau [3] has observed uranium-thorium mineralization in Tranomaro, southeast of Madagascar, where major extracting activities were undertaken by the French Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique (CEA) during the fifties and sixties, to support their effort to develop nuclear project
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