Manganese deposits in a Carboniferous paleokarst profile, Um Bogma region, west-central Sinai, Egypt

Abstract

The Carboniferous carbonates of the Um Bogma Formation of the west-central Sinai include two rock successions. The lower succesion consists of karstic carbonates, intrakarstic products, weathering varieties, manganese deposits, and soil cover. The lower karstic rocks and the associated soil cover are preserved under a rhythmic alternation of dolostone and shale forming the upper rock succession of the Um Bogma Formation. The all over congruent relations between the manganese deposits and the fossilized karst profile, karst products, and the associated pedogenesis demonstrate the role of weathering in the accumulation of these deposits during Carboniferous karstification. It is clear that the manganese oxides were deposited during the mature stage of Carboniferous karstification, i.e., during the soil formation, preceeding initial diagenetic change of the karstic rocks and final deposition of the related late-diagenetic caliche cement. The geochemical behavior of Mn during the karstification and the microbiological processes involved in pedogenesis played an essential role in the concentration of the manganese ore in the subsoil horizon of the paleokarst profile. The Um Bogma Formation has been subjected to another episode of karstification during the Quaternary and resulted in lowering of the landforms of the Carboniferous carbonates and destruction of the Carboniferous karst and the associated manganese deposits in some localities.