TITLE:
Petrographic Characteristics and Metalogeny of Zatua Hills BIFs, Haut-Uele Province (DR Congo)
AUTHORS:
Levesque Makuku Mbo, Papy-Fidèle Kombie Andeibal, François Tshiabo Luwanda, Dominique Wetshondo Osomba, Valentin Kanda Nkula, Albert Ongendangenda Tienge
KEYWORDS:
BIFs, Zatua Hills, Petrographic, DRC, Iron Ore
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
Vol.11 No.12,
December
29,
2023
ABSTRACT: Zatua
Hills are located at Haut Uélé Province of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC),
between northern Bafwasende and southern Paulis (Isiro) Squarred Degrees.
Belonging to greenstone belt of Ngayu, that area is identified by the high
elevated zone which is remained the witness of stable zone, not affected by the
ancienst erosion process. Zatua Hills are in the superior Kibalian formation
dated to Neoarchaen, hosted in Upper Congo Granites Massifs of DRC covering a
large central zone of NE of DRC, and consisting to dolerite, phyllade, clay
rich sediment, poor Banded Iron Formations (BIFs), enriched BIFs, friable
hematite, hard hematite, mineralized and unmineralized brechias. Magnetite,
martite and hematite are associated to some secondary minerals such as
goethite, gibbsite, kaolinite, strengite, variscite and others clay minerals
present in BIFs. Petrographic analysis made from the samples collected in situ showed, as well as BIFs and iron ore associated, that
magnetite was much abundant oxide mineral which is oxided to martite before to
stabilize to hematite during the deposition time. Having about hundred meters
of thickness, the rich iron ore of this area content, in the majority less
deleterious elements which, are harmful in metallurgic process of iron. These
secondary minerals were precipitated at various degrees in the leached cavities of rocks between martite
and hematite aggregates to botryoidal texture and, are rich to Al, and are mainly consisting to
gibbsite and solid solution series of variscite-strengite (AlPO4·2H2O
and FePO4·2H2O). Low degree of metamorphism played when
magnetite was converted to martite, with the presence of variscite and anatase
like witnesses of this event in which, martite was crystalized to hematite.