Ni grade distribution in laterite characterized from geostatistics, topography and the paleo-groundwater system in Sorowako, Indonesia

Ilyas, Asran; Kashiwaya, Koki; Koike, Katsuaki

doi:10.1016/j.gexplo.2016.03.002

Cited by 30 publications

(28 citation statements)

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“…The Soroako and Pomalaa mining areas, which are located in the central and southeastern parts of Sulawesi Island, respectively, are the two largest Ni laterite mining sites in Sulawesi Island and produce mainly Ni-rich saprolite ore. Despite their major economic importance, few investigations have been made into the geochemical characteristics of Indonesian Ni laterites (Golightly and Arancibia, 1979;Golightly, 1981;Sufriadin et al, 2011;Ilyas and Koike, 2012;Fu et al, 2014;Ilyas et al, 2016;Farrokhpay et al, 2019). There is also a lack of data on the distribution of critical metals (e.g., Maulana et al, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geochemical constraints on the mobilization of Ni and critical metals in laterite deposits, Sulawesi, Indonesia: A mass‐balance approach

et al. 2021

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Indonesia is one of the largest Ni ore producers in the world and is also expected to be an important potential source of some critical metals (e.g., Co, Sc, rare-earth elements, and platinum-group elements). However, few studies have examined Ni laterite deposits in this country. In this study, we investigate Ni enrichment and the potential accumulation of critical metals in four laterite profiles with varying degrees of serpentinization and weathering intensity in the Soroako and Pomalaa mining areas of Sulawesi, Indonesia. We integrate geochemical evaluation with a mass-balance approach and mineralogical analysis to better constrain the geochemical factors influencing the mobilization of Ni during lateritization. Nickel contents in the saprolite horizon of the profiles that are strongly weathered and developed over serpentinized peridotite are higher than those that are weakly weathered and developed over unserpentinized harzburgite. The bulk Ni contents of saprolite horizons are related to Ni contents of Ni-bearing Mg-phyllosilicates, which suggests that Ni remobilization is the main control on Ni enrichment in the profiles. Massbalance calculations reveal that the amounts of gained Fe and Ni in the profiles are positively correlated. This relationship indicates that the redistribution of Ni is likely controlled by the aging of Ni-bearing goethite (dissolution/ recrystallization) involving ligand-promoted dissolution by organic matter and/or reductive dissolution by microbial activity near the surface. Critical metals show enrichment in specific horizons. Enrichments in Co and rareearth elements are strongly influenced by the formation of Mn-oxyhydroxides in the oxide zone of the profiles. In contrast, Sc, Pt, and Pd show residual enrichment patterns, with grades influenced mainly by their initial contents in bedrock. The profiles show a positive correlation between Sc and Fe, as reported for other Ni laterite deposits. Among the critical metals, Sc, Pt, and Pd contents in the studied profiles are comparable with values reported from other Ni laterite deposits worldwide.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geochemical constraints on the mobilization of Ni and critical metals in laterite deposits, Sulawesi, Indonesia: A mass‐balance approach

et al. 2021

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“…It can be interpreted that the slope topography that appears at this time in a laterite nickel deposit will affect the distribution of the Ni grade. This is also based on Ilyas et al (2016) that revealed the topographic slope affects the distribution of nickel grade in these laterite nickel deposits. Therefore, it can be concluded that the topographic slope plays a very important role in the distribution of Ni grade in these laterite nickel deposits.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 88%

Introduction of a Geoinformatic Research on Resource and Reserve Estimations of Laterite Nickel Deposit at Hasanuddin University (Indonesia)

2021

GEOINFORMATICS

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is a large (enrollment range: 25, 000-29, 999 students) coeducational Indonesian higher education institution.Hasanuddin University provides courses and programs leading to officially recognized higher education degrees such as bachelor, master, and doctorate degrees, respectively, in several areas of study. International applicants are eligible to apply for enrollment.Hasanuddin University also provides several academic facilities and services to students including library, hospital, housing, sport facilities, financial and/or scholarships, study abroad, and exchange programs, as well as administrative services. Hasanuddin University has several specialized or programmatic accreditations including National Accreditation Board for Higher Education (BAN-PT), ABEST21, and ASEAN University Network-Quality Assurance (AUN-QA), and is also included in memberships of Association of Southeast Asian Institution of Higher Learning (ASAIHL). A map of the location of Hasanuddin University Campus and one scene of the campus are shown in Figures 1 and 2, respectively. Hasanuddin University has 15 faculties consisting of 11 exact faculties and 4 non-exact faculties. One of the exact faculties is Engineering Faculty which was founded on September 7, 1960. The Engineering Faculty of Hasanuddin University is one of the best engineering sciences in Indonesia and located in a new campus in Gowa Regency since June 23, 2018, SouthSulawesi Province, Indonesia. Figure 3 shows the new campus of Engineering Faculty in Gowa (see also Figure 1 for the map).The Engineering Faculty has 13 departments. One of the

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“…Given the coupling of weathering and uplift time, uplift can enhance the relief, lower the water table and ultimately lead to the weathering front moving downward to deeper [3,21]. In addition, this tectonic-induced topographic change is considered to be conductive for enhancing recharge, infiltration, and reaction of groundwater [25]. It is probably the main reason a thick saprolite is the dominant unit of the regolith in study area.…”

Section: Impact Of Tectonic Upliftmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…(4) Formation of Ni-rich secondary minerals at atmospheric pressure and temperature is ascribed to a series of supergene processes regulated by water-rock interaction with lateritization ongoing, including sorption, substitution, dissolution/precipitation, etc. [18,21,25]. (5) Mode of occurrence of the lateritic Ni deposits are controlled by a combination of geological, climatic, topographic, and hydrologic parameters [4,5,7], especially the importance of topographic-hydrologic controlling on its ore grade is highly concerned in recent studies [25][26][27].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[18,21,25]. (5) Mode of occurrence of the lateritic Ni deposits are controlled by a combination of geological, climatic, topographic, and hydrologic parameters [4,5,7], especially the importance of topographic-hydrologic controlling on its ore grade is highly concerned in recent studies [25][26][27]. (6) Some lateritic deposits may have been products of multiphase chemical weathering, and their preservation reflects balance between weathering and erosion [3,15,21].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Weathering of Ophiolite Remnant and Formation of Ni Laterite in a Strong Uplifted Tectonic Region (Yuanjiang, Southwest China)

Feng

Luo

et al. 2019

Minerals

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The Yuanjiang Ni deposit in southwestern margin of the Yunnan Plateau is the only economically important lateritic Ni deposit in China. It contains 21.2 Mt ore with an average grade of 1.05 wt % Ni and has been recognized as the second largest Ni producer in China following the Jinchuan super-large magmatic Ni–Cu deposit. This Ni deposit is hosted within the lateritic regolith derived from serpentinite within the regional Paleo-Tethyan Ophiolite remnants. Local landscape controls the distribution of the Ni mineralized regolith, and spatially it is characterized by developing on several stepped planation surfaces. Three types of lateritic Ni ores are identified based on Ni-hosting minerals, namely oxide ore, oxide-silicate mixed ore and silicate ore. In the dominant silicate ore, two phyllosilicate minerals (serpentine and talc) are the Ni-host minerals. Their Ni compositions, however, are remarkably different. Serpentine (0.34–1.2 wt % Ni) has a higher Ni concentration than talc (0.18–0.26 wt % Ni), indicating that the serpentine is more significantly enriched in Ni during weathering process compared to talc. This explains why talc veining reduces Ni grade. The geochemical index (S/SAF value = 0.33–0.81, UMIA values = 17–60) indicates that the serpentinite-derived regolith has experienced, at least, weak to moderate lateritization. Based on several lines of paleoclimate evidence, the history of lateritization at Yuanjiang area probably dates to the Oligocene-Miocene boundary and has extended to the present. With a hydrology-controlled lateritization process ongoing, continuous operation of Ni migration from the serpentinite-forming minerals to weathered minerals (goethite and serpentine) gave rise to the development of three types of Ni ore in the regolith. Notably, the formation and preservation of the Yuanjiang lateritic Ni deposit has been strongly impacted by regional multi-staged tectonic uplift during the development of Yunnan Plateau. This active tectonic setting has promoted weathering of serpentinite and supergene Ni enrichment, but is also responsible for its partial erosion.

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Ni grade distribution in laterite characterized from geostatistics, topography and the paleo-groundwater system in Sorowako, Indonesia

Cited by 30 publications

References 25 publications

Geochemical constraints on the mobilization of Ni and critical metals in laterite deposits, Sulawesi, Indonesia: A mass‐balance approach

Geochemical constraints on the mobilization of Ni and critical metals in laterite deposits, Sulawesi, Indonesia: A mass‐balance approach

Introduction of a Geoinformatic Research on Resource and Reserve Estimations of Laterite Nickel Deposit at Hasanuddin University (Indonesia)

Weathering of Ophiolite Remnant and Formation of Ni Laterite in a Strong Uplifted Tectonic Region (Yuanjiang, Southwest China)

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