BARITE 



81 



The appeal of this hypothesis is greatly reduced by 

 (1) the absence of igneous rocks in the vicinity of 

 many deposits, especially in western Arkansas, ex- 

 cept for the Magnet Cove deposit; (2) the absence 

 of anomalously large concentrations of such ele- 

 ments as copper, lead, zinc, silver, molybdenum, and 

 mercury expected in and around hydrothermal ore 

 deposits ; and (3) the absence of abundant carbonate 

 rock available for replacement in the formations 

 that contain rich beds of barite. 



The black bedded barite deposits probably are of 

 sedimentary origin, formed virtually at the same 

 time as the enclosing rocks by organic and inorganic 

 chemical processes of concentration and deposition. 

 A sedimentary origin for the deposit at Magnet 

 Cove, Ark., vs^as postulated by Zimmermann and 

 Amstutz (1964) from structural and textural evi- 

 dence. Zimmermann (1969) later found similar fea- 

 tures in the deposits of the Shoshone Range, Nev. 

 Shavi^e, Poole, and Brobst (1969) proposed a sedi- 

 mentary origin for the deposits in the Toquima 

 Range, Nev., because of textural, structural, and 

 chemical features, including the effects of contact 

 metamorphism on the barite beds (coarsening of 

 the grain size by recrystallization and bleaching of 

 the dark color) from the emplacement of an igneous 

 rock. 



The source of the barium in these deposits has 

 not been established, although some hypotheses have 

 been proposed. Sources in submarine volcanic ema- 

 nations and springs were suggested for the barite 

 and sulfide beds at Meggen, Germany (Ehrenberg 

 and others, 1954). Hydrothermal solutions are con- 

 sidered by Dunham and Hanor (1967) to be the 

 ultimate source of all barite deposits. A barium 

 source in sea water, with extraction related to bio- 

 logical activity, was discussed by Shawe, Poole, and 

 Brobst (1969). 



The recycling of barium from preexisting rocks 

 should not be overlooked as a source of barium for 

 these bedded deposits. Connate brines seem to be 

 good concentrators and transporters of barium, as 

 already observed in the discussion of residual depos- 

 its. Barium-rich chloride waters reaching sulfate- 

 rich marine or brackish water could mix locally to 

 yield deposits of barite. If this mechanism functions 

 in nature, the possibility of finding barite deposits at 

 the sites of ancient or modern lakes and swamps con- 

 taining sufficient sulfate, especially in coastal areas, 

 must be considered seriously. 



White to clear barite occurs as a cement in some 

 sandstones and conglomerates, such as the Pike 

 Gravel, the basal formation of the Trinity Group of 

 Cretaceous age in Howard and Sevier Counties, Ark. 



(Scull, 1958). The Pike Gravel marks the Cretaceous 

 strandline and unconformably overlies folded rocks 

 of Paleozoic age. About 20 miles to the north, the 

 Paleozoic rocks contain deposits of black bedded 

 barite, which perhaps are the source of the barium 

 for the barite cement in the Pike Gravel. 



RESOURCES 



IDENTIFIED AND HYPOTHETICAL RESOURCES 



The identified and hypothetical resources of barite 

 in the United States are listed by State and type of 

 deposit in table 13. The identified resources include 



Table 13. — Identified and hypothetical barite resources of the 

 United States, in thousands of short tons 



[+, indicates present in small, but otherwise unknown, amounts] 



Identified resources ^ Hypothetical resources ^ 



Bedded Residual Vein Bedded Residual Vein 



Alaska B.OOO 10,000 



Washington 500 100 1,000 500 



Idaho 500 100 1,000 600 



Montana 500 1,000 



California 1,000 5,000 6,000 25,000 



Nevada 35,000 1,000 50,000 1,000 



Arizona 1,000 1,000 



New Mexico 100 100 



Utah 100 100 



Colorado 500 1,000 



Oklahoma 25 50 



Texas 100 100 



Wisconsin 5,000 1,000 



Missouri 15,000 500 5,000 2,000 



Arkansas 10,000 5,000 



Illinois 6,000 6,000 



Kentucky + 6,500 + 6,000 



Tennessee 3,000 1,000 6,500 15,000 



Alabama 26 600 



Georgia 2,000 6,000 



South Carolina 1.000 2,000 



North Carolina 200 1,000 



Virginia 25 600 



Maryland + 5 5 5 



Pennsylvania + 5 6 



Connecticut 500 



Sub total 



(rounded) . 47,000 20,000 31,700 62,000 17,500 72,800 



Total, all types 



(rounded) _ 99,000 152,000 



^Identified resources: Specific, identified mineral deposits that may or 

 may not be evaluated as to extent and grade, and whose contained min- 

 erals may or may not be profitably recoverable with existing technology 

 and economic conditions. 



- Hypothetical resources: Undiscovered mineral deposits, whether of 

 recoverable or subeconomic grade, that are geologically predictable as 

 existing in known districts. 



currently minable ore (reserves) and lower grade 

 material of subeconomic value (conditional re- 

 sources). 



Deposits of bedded barite in the identified re- 

 sources include those within 500 feet of the surface 

 whose ore contains at least 40 percent barite. Ores 

 containing 40 to about 92 percent must be benefici- 

 ated to yield a product for drilling mud. Flotation 

 techniques for concentrating these ores are in com- 

 mon use. Selective mining in many of the deposits 

 yields substantial tonnages of barite that requires 

 only grinding for use as drilling mud. 



Estimates of the identified resources of barite in 

 residual deposits include materials to a depth of 



