Abstract
Yolo lead-zinc mining district is an important area in Gongola Sub-basin of the Upper Benue Trough with paucity of rocks outcrops but abundant termite mounds. The termite mounds and their adjoining surface soils were analyzed for Pb, Zn, Ti, Cu, Sb, As, U, Cr, Zr and Li in an attempt to test their effectiveness in defining favorable areas for lead-Zinc mineralization in the Upper Benue Trough. The result shows a general trend of higher elemental concentration in termite mounds relative to their adjoining surface soils. The ore elements Pb, Zn together with Ti have the highest average concentrations of 503, 2136.5, and 6285 ppb in termite mounds compared to 356, 1662 and 2250 ppb respectively in adjoining surface soils. Biological Absorption Coefficient, calculated to evaluate their degree of concentration, shows 141 values of Biological Absorption Coefficient within enrichment category with only 59 values in the depletion category. The relatively high concentration of the ore elements Pb, Zn and the associated trace elements in termite mounds and the elevated contents of BAC values in the enrichment category together suggest that Pb, Zn and Ti in termite mounds can be effectively used for lead-zinc exploration in the Upper Benue Trough. Key words: Lead-Zinc, termite mound, Gongola Sub-basin, Upper Benue Trough.
Highlights
The Upper Benue Trough, like other areas within the tropical and semi-arid regions, is generally covered with thick soil cover in most places
It is clear that the concentration of elements in termite mound samples is, in most cases, higher than their concentration in samples collected from adjoining surface soils
Enrichment or otherwise of elemental concentration in termite mounds and adjoining soils is best discussed within the framework of Biological Absorption Coefficient
Summary
The Upper Benue Trough, like other areas within the tropical and semi-arid regions, is generally covered with thick soil cover in most places. This thick soil cover conceals the rocks outcrops, thereby hampering mineral prospecting in the region. Termite mounds of different sizes and shapes are well distributed in the region forming the most conspicuous feature of the landscape. Most mounds have the shapes of inverted cone with rounded to sub-rounded base ranging in diameter from 0.8 m to over 3.1 m. Termites often build mounds with large quantities of earth materials sampled at different depths from subsurface geological formations (Burges and Raw, 1967)
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