FACIES PROBLEMS OF BOEHMITIC AND DIASPORITIC BAUXITES

I D A VALETON

Geologisches Staatsinstitut, Hamburg (Germany)

The bauxites in southern France are derived from fine clastic sediments. They are
deposited in layers on an ancient karst relief, on the southern slope of the “Massif
Central”, the “Isthme durancien”, and the “Massif des Maures”. Petrographically
they may be divided into three different facies: ( I ) Bauxite with gibbsite. (2) Bauxite
with boehmite. (3) Bauxite with diaspore. (VALETON and KLINT,1962.)
The experimental representation of the system Al,O,-H,O (Fig.1) by ERVINand
OSBORN(1951) gave the incorrect idea that natural diaspore can only be built under
high temperature and pressure conditions, and thus that it is always metamorphic.

TEMPERATURE O C

Fig.1. Equilibriumdiagram for the system Al,Os-HzO. Heavy lines delineate regions of stability of the
crystalline phases. Light line is the vaporisation curve for water; and, in view of the low solubility of
alumina in water, this curve approximates the vaporisation curve for solutions in this system. (After
ERVIN and OSBORN, 1951.)
 124 I. VALETON

m Sno.

O’” 0 10 20 39 40 0 to 20 30 40 50 60 70 0 10 20 M 40 Weight,%
KAOLlNlTE BOEHMITE -+ ANATASE HEMATITE + GOETHITE

Fig.2. Quantitative mineral distribution of section 3, Mazaugues (Var).

Here the boehmitic and the diasporitic facies may be compared:

A. The boehmitic facies -in Mazaugues (Var) - consists of three zones in a vertical
succession:
111. Bright bauxite, with few pisolites.
11. Red bauxite, with many pisolites and “fluidal” textures.
I. Bright bauxite, with few pisolites.
The following minerals appear: Kaolinite in the zones I and I11 in the matrix,
boehmite and a little gibbsite in all zones in the matrix as well as in the pisolites. The
content of anatase rises with that of boehmite. Hematite and sometimes goethite are
found in zone 11in the matrix and in the pisolites (Fig.2).
The chemical investigation shows that the A1,03 content increases only a little
towards the top. SiO, has a maximum in zones I and 111 corresponding to the content
of kaolinite. The content of Fe,03 increases in zone I1 from bottom to top and vanishes
almost completely in zone III. TiOz and ZrO, contents behave like Al,03. NiO, how-
ever, is proportional to SiO, and is included in the kaolinite. The content of trace
elements in the minerals of iron changes abruptly between zones I1 and 111. In that
section there is no FeO (Fig. 3).
BOEHMITIC AND DIASPORITIC BAUXITES 125
 d

n
-
lI

-
' i O- I
- 1
0 . 10 20 30 40 1 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 0 10 20 Weight,%
KAOLlNlTE BOEHMITE f DIASPORE GOETHITE t
HE MAT I T E
Fig.4. Quantitative mineral distribution of section 9, Pkreille (Arikge),
BOEHMITIC AND DIASPORITIC BAUXITES 127
1
I
I
I
I
I
I
128 I. VALETON

B. One section of the diasporiticfacies follows:

Section 9, Ptreille (Aritge).
There are also three zones in a vertical succession:
(I) Bauxite clay, with few pisolites.
(2) Pisolitic bauxite, bright, with “fluidal” textures.
(3) Gray clay (on the top).
The mineralogical composition (Fig.4) differs from that of the bauxite of the Var.
Kaolinite is more plentiful, goethite and hematite more scarce and compounds of
Fe2+, such as siderite, traces of pyrite and iron silicates, are present. Among the
minerals of A1,0,, boehmite disappears and is replaced by diaspore. All the minerals
may be present in the matrix as well as in the pisolites.
The chemical composition (Fig.5) here also shows regular variation corresponding
to the level within the section. It differs from that of the bauxite with boehmite by a
feeble content of Fe,O, and by the presence of FeO, C02, S and C. The content of
TiO, rises with that of A1203.
NICHOLLS (1963) studied the relation between iron compounds, pH and redox poten-
tial and has given the diagram of Fig.6.

0.2

0.1

0.0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

I
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 0 9 1011 12 13 i
PH

Fig.6. Eh-pH stability fields for hematite (Fe,O,), magnetite (Fe,O,), siderite (FeCO,) and pyrite
(FeS,) at 20°C and 1 atmosphere under the following conditions: (Z dissolved sulphur ionic species) =
1 0 9 moles/l. (X dissolved carbonate ionic species) = 10-l molesll. The dotted lines mark the field
boundaries of FeCO,, Fe(OH), and Fe(OH), under the following conditions: (Z dissolved sulphur
ionic species) = 1o-S moles/l. (Z dissolved carbonate ionic species) = lWmoles/l. (After NICHOLLS,
1963.)
 BOEHMITIC AND DIASPORITIC BAUXITES 129

If the iron compounds of our bauxite are placed in this scheme, than the diaspore
bauxite appears as the result of natural diagenesis without metamorphism and with a
lower redox potential than that of the bauxite with boehmite. On the other hand,
BARDOSSY(1958) has shown that bauxite with gibbsite is formed at a higher redox
potential than boehmite.

SUMMARY

According to the predominant aluminium minerals, the bauxite deposits in southern

France can be subdivided into two facies ranges. By means of the iron minerals it
was possible to determine the oxidation potential during diagenesis and to establish
that this increased in the order: diaspore-boehmite-gibbsite.

REFERENCES

BARDOSSY, G . J., 1958. The geochemistry of Hungarian bauxites. 11. Acta Geol. Acad. Sci. Hung.,
5 : 103-155. .
ERVIN,G . and OSBORN, E. F., 1951. The system AI,O,-H,O. J . Geol., 59 : 381-394.
NICHOLLS, G. D., 1963. Environmental studies in sedimentary geochemistry. Sci. Progr. (London),
51 (201) : 12-31.
VALETON, I. and KLINT,W., 1962. Petrographie der Bauxite von Mazaugues, Siidfrankreich. Geol.
Rundschau, 52 :475492.
VALETON, I., 1963. Petrographie und Geochemie siidfranziisischer Bauxitlagerstatten. Beitr. Mineral.
Petrog. - Festband Prof. Correns, in press.