Evaluation of A Clay Mineral Deposit in Abeokuta, South-West Nigeria

Abstract

Clay, in regard to its origin is unique. The kaolin of the mine of Ajebo has a hydrothermal geological formation. It presents itself a fragile and crumbly material, of whitish colour. Therefore, the objective of this paper was to evaluate the clay mineral of Ajebo deposit, its microstructure using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and thermal analysis (DSC/TG). The results showed that Ajebo clay belongs to the kaolin group (Kaolinite, nacrite, dickite, and halloysite). Elementary analysis showed the mineral to be composed mainly of aluminium, oxygen and silicon, with a low content of iron. The dehydrated state of the mineral was confirmed by XRD analysis; the basal spacing reflections indicate a sharp peak at 7Å of d001 and the absence of a peak at 10Å, which is indicative of hydrated kaolin. The SEM/SE studies indicated that Ajebo clay mineral particles are smaller than 10μm, forming agglomerates.