Abstract
The use of DC electrical method in baryte mineral exploration has been investigated in Buruku northeast of Markurdi, Nigeria. The objective of the study was to investigate the suitability and potential of electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) combined with vertical electrical sounding (VES) surveys in baryte mineral exploration over known deposits. Results show that the interpreted layer resistivities correlate with the 2-D observations. The study delineated averagely 28 m deep symmetrically mound-shaped resistive anomalies (1500 to 5500 Ωm) encased within low resistive sandstone formation along prospective traverses. These responses are characteristics of probable vein structures associated with baryte mineralization. Two dominant E-W and NW-SE resistivity anomaly trends were delineated. The E-W trends were more prominent and persistent than the NW-SE. They are 25 to 50 m wide and stretches to over 300 m in length. The association of mineralized veins with these trends suggests that the veins must be of early Cretaceous age. These mineralized veins correlate with locations of known baryte deposits in the prospect area which hitherto, have been exploited by artisan miners. This is an obvious indication of the utility and resolution of dc electrical method in baryte mineral exploration in the area. Key words: Electrical resistivity tomography (ERT), Vertical electrical sounding (VES), resistivity, Baryte, vein and mineralization.
Highlights
Exploration and exploitation of solid minerals in Nigeria has remained comatose in the past decade, especially with the discovery of hydrocarbons in the Niger delta region
The striking association of mineralized veins with the E-W and NW-SE fault trend suggests that the veins must be of early Cretaceous age (Tate, 1959; Farrington, 1952; Offodile, 1976). This implies that baryte may have been emplaced by space filling rather than by replacement along E-W steeply dipping to vertical veins cut by minor SE mineralized veins
The authors reported baryte veins having thicknesses ranging from 17.1 to 60.7 m, with an average thickness of 38 m, predominantly NW-SW and NE-SW trends and subsurface baryte target depth of 37.4 m in the study areas. These observations compare fairly well and validates the results of the present study in the area. These mineralized veins correlates with locations of abandoned and working mine pits exploited by artisan miners through surface mining
Summary
Exploration and exploitation of solid minerals in Nigeria has remained comatose in the past decade, especially with the discovery of hydrocarbons in the Niger delta region. Most solid mineral occurrences in Nigeria are located in the Benue trough (Tate, 1959; Offodile, 1976). The trough is the failed arm of the triple junction formed as the African plate separated from the South American plate in the Pre-Cretaceous. It is a 1000 km NE-SW trending intra-continental Cretaceous basin resting unconformably on the basement complex. This is partitioned into the lower, middle and upper troughs with deposits of lead-
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