New occurrence of potential phosphate resource in northeast Jordan

Abstract

An exploration program aided by field investigation, exploration drilling, detailed sampling, lithological and petrological studies, geochemical investigation, and resource calculation leads to the discovery of a potential phosphate resource in northeast Jordan close to the international border with Saudi Arabia and Iraq. The studied phosphate is of the Middle Eocene age that belongs to the Wadi Shallala Formation. It is equivalent to the phosphate deposits recorded in the lower part of the Umm Wual Formation in the Turayf region of Saudi Arabia and the Eocene Ratga Formation in the Ethna phosphate deposit west of Iraq. The phosphorites in the region are broadly similar in mineralogical composition and geochemical affinities. X-ray diffraction indicates the presence of francolite with variable amounts of calcite and quartz. Most samples consist of phosphate clasts embedded in carbonate and silica matrix and cement. P2O5 content is up to 32.3 % with an average equal to 18.6 %. The impurity is caused by the presence of variable amounts of SiO2 and CaO. The F% and F/P2O5 ratio in studied phosphates is lower compared with that in phosphates from Jordan and Saudi Arabia. The geological and geochemical results were integrated for resource estimation. Three high-grade phosphate layers with ≥23 % P2O5 were considered in the calculations. The phosphate resource is classified as an inferred resource. The total volume of the resource is about 649 million tons. The average P2O5 content is 24.57, and the stripping ratio is 1:5.8.