Mineralization and Hydrocarbon Emplacement in the Cambrian-Ordovician Mascot Dolomite of the Knox Group in South-Central Kentucky

The Mascot Dolomite, the upper unit of the Cambrian-Ordovician Knox Group, is a major host for Mississippi Valley-type ore deposits and petroleum in south-central Kentucky. The Mascot was deposited on a broad, shallow platform that exhibited unusually uniform conditions of deposition, ranging from supratidal to shallow subtidal environments. The formation has a complex diagenetic history, including several stages of dolomitization, silicification, solution, and brecciation. Diagenesis and, to some extent, deposition were influenced by Early Ordovician tectonic activity. Tectonic activity influenced development of a regional unconformity during Middle Ordovician time. Evidence of this tectonic activity includes up to 300 feet of erosional relief on the Mascot surface and thinning in the interval between the internal marker beds across the Cincinnati and Waverly Arches. The development of an erosional unconformity at the top of the Knox Group and its resulting paleoaquifer and karst system created diagenetic changes, migration avenues, and solution-collapse breccias that controlled subsequent fluid migration and accumulations of base metals and hydrocarbons. The location of breccia-hosted ores was influenced by major and minor structural features and paleotopography. Breccia development is related to the presence and subsequent dissolution of limestone (now represented by dolomite) and a dolomite-limestone transition zone. Base-metal mineralization (dominantly sphalerite) is associated with late-stage brecciation and stromatolitic units, which commonly are silicified. Several oil pools produce from Knox paleotopographic highs, and production seems to be related to the presence of fractures and diagenetically enhanced porosity. A distinct positive relationship exists between ore and petroleum accumulation. Locations of ore deposits are related to circular features that can be recognized on remotely sensed Landsat imagery, and areas of petroleum accumulation appear to be related to paleolinear trends

Mineralogy and Chemistry of Rare Earth Elements in Alkaline Ultramafic Rocks and Fluorite in the Western Kentucky Fluorspar District

Rare earth elements, or REE, are used in modern society in televisions, computers, cellphones, military equipment, and smart weapons systems. These metals are also used by the medical industry in magnetic resonance imaging and in medical products. The igneous rocks in the Western Kentucky Fluorspar District of the New Madrid Rift System are considered alkaline ultramafic rocks that are slightly enriched in REE. These rocks are rare and only occur in several hundred locations in the world. They have a complex history of emplacement, fractionation, metasomatism, and alteration, and are overprinted with Mississippi Valley-type mineralization. They are classified as lamprophyres and peridotites, and the rare mineralogy of the district suggests that there may be other facies of these rocks, such as carbonatite, kimberlite, and lamproite. The rare minerals wüstite and moissanite also suggest a deep lithospheric and asthenospheric mantle contribution to these igneous rocks and raise the level of interest in the igneous complex, which occurs in a Midcontinent rift system. The petrogenesis of these rocks allows them to fractionate and concentrate REE by natural means, and although this study’s limited dataset did not reveal any economic deposits, there could still be economic quantities in western Kentucky. If higher concentrations of REE are found in the igneous dikes in the area, the economics and mining of the dikes might be feasible. Millions of tons of fluorite and thousands of tons of sphalerite, galena, and barite have been mined in the district, and small amounts of REE have been detected in the fluorite. Other elements of interest are titanium, niobium, iridium, cobalt, molybdenum, zirconium, and lithium, which suggest other elemental phases of mineralization. Many of these rare minerals and elements have never been described in the Western Kentucky Fluorspar District, and future research is warranted to further classify them

Foundation Problems and Pyrite Oxidation in the Chattanooga Shale, Estill County, Kentucky

Pyrite oxidation in the Chattanooga Shale has caused serious foundation problems in numerous buildings and structures in Estill County, Ky. Pyrite oxidizes and various secondary sulfates form when excavated shale or shale fill are used in foundations. These secondary sulfates are water- and humidity-sensitive and can form when only minor amounts of water are present in foundation materials. These sulfates form by crystal growth and expand by volume change, which causes subsequent soil expansion and heaving of any foundation materials when the materials are confined. Several structures have undergone expensive remediation to repair damaged sidewalks, floors, walls, and foundations. Zones of high concentrations of pyrite occur in the Chattanooga Shale across the state, and these mineral zones may be responsible for the high pyrite content in Estill County

High-Carbonate, Low-Silica, High-Calcium Stone in the High Bridge Group (Upper Ordovician), Mason County, North-Central Kentucky

The High Bridge Group (Middle Ordovician) of northeastern Kentucky is a major source of limestone and dolomite for construction, agricultural, and industrial stone. These industries require carbonate rocks of high chemical purity. Chemical analyses of foot-by-foot samples from a Mason County core show that three zones of high-calcium and several thick zones of high-carbonate and low-silica stone are present in the High Bridge at a mineable depth. Mason County is located in northeastern Kentucky, on the Ohio River, and offers river access to transportation to the metropolitan Covington-Cincinnati market and the northern portion of the Eastern Kentucky Coal Field for mine-related markets

Mines and Minerals of the Western Kentucky Fluorspar District

This map shows all the known and identified mines, mineral prospects, and igneous intrusions (dikes or sills) in the Western Kentucky Fluorspar District, compiled from thousands of maps and files, creating an up-to-date, comprehensive catalog for the district. The district has been extensively mined for more than 120 years and was once the largest producer of fluorspar (fluorite) in the United States. Millions of tons of vein ore minerals (fluorite, zinc, lead, and barite) has been produced from these mines, and substantial reserves still remain. New mining and exploration activity has renewed interest in the district, and the industry will benefit from the use of this new map. Historic iron ore mines are also included because of their immediate proximity to this mapped area

Mineral and Fuel Resources Map of Kentucky

The production of minerals and fuels in Kentucky is a multibillion dollar industry. Historically, coal, oil, natural gas, limestone, sand and gravel, clay, fluorite, barite, lead, iron, phosphate, zinc, and brines have been produced in the state. These resources have greatly influenced the development of Kentucky by providing raw materials for the early settlers who settled the state and for current industrial and economic development. Electrical power for homes, businesses, and factories; materials for constructing houses, buildings, automobiles, and roads; and products we consume in everyday life come from the earth\u27s mineral and fuel resources. The ability to locate and efficiently use raw materials is important in virtually all economic activity in the state. The purpose of this 1:1,000,000-scale map is to show the general locations of the principal mineral and fuel resources in Kentucky

Mineral and Fuel Resources Map of Kentucky

The production of minerals and fuels in Kentucky is a multibillion dollar industry. Historically, coal, oil, natural gas, limestone, sand and gravel, clay, fluorite, barite, lead, iron, phosphate, zinc, and brines have been produced in the State. These resources have greatly influenced the development of Kentucky by providing raw materials for the early settlers who settled the State and for current industrial and economic development. Electrical power for homes, businesses, and factories; materials for constructing houses, buildings, automobiles, and roads; and products we consume in everyday life come from the earth\u27s mineral and fuel resources

Barite Deposits of Kentucky

Barite deposits are known to be present in 23 counties in Kentucky, principally in the Central Kentucky Mineral District and the Western Kentucky Fluorspar District. Field investigations and a literature search indicate the presence of barite at more than 170 outcrops, prospects, and abandoned mines. Geologically, most of the Kentucky barite deposits are classified as vein or residual deposits. The vein deposits are cavity and breccia fills along faults and joints, commonly in limestone. Residual deposits occur in an unconsolidated clayey residuum formed by weathering of preexisting vein or breccia deposits. Most deposits are mixed ores commonly containing calcite, fluorite, galena, and sphalerite. Host rocks are almost exclusively formations of Ordovician and Mississippian ages. Barite production in Kentucky has been small, and most has been from residual or gravel\u27\u27 deposits in weathered material above fault zones. Since barite is commonly associated with fluorspar and the two minerals have been difficult to separate in milling operations, mixed ores have been bypassed in a number of instances and little quantitative information is available on them. Further evaluation will require additional exploration, and, particularly, more core drilling. There were no active barite mines in Kentucky at the time of this investigation

Word order in Topic-Focus structures in the Balkan languages

The paper examines the word order patterns of Balkan languages with respect to the representation of the discourse categories of Topic and Focus in the Left Periphery of the Balkan clause. It is argued that Balkan languages share a number of syntactic properties relevant to the discourse organization of their embeddded clauses, and it is claimed that such discourse similarities must have been favored by multi-linguistic speakers in contact situations, in particular those that led to the establishment of the Balkan Srachbund

Chemical and Statistical Analysis of a Sampled Interval in the Camp Nelson Limestone (Upper Ordovician) Madison County, Central Kentucky

The Camp Nelson Limestone of the High Bridge Group (Upper Ordovician) is mined at seven sites in central and north-central Kentucky for industrial, construction, and agricultural uses. As part of a regional investigation of its chemical characteristics, a 67-foot section in the upper Camp Nelson, which is being mined at Boonesborough, Madison County, was sampled for major-element analysis. The upper Camp Nelson in the Boonesborough Mine consists of two zones (23 and 30 feet thick) of low-silica stone (4 percent or less total SiO2) separated by a 14-foot section of slightly argillaceous limestone with an average silica content of 5.19 percent. The lower 23-foot zone has an average silica content of 1.75 percent and an average total carbonate (CaCO3 + MgCO3) content of 96.03 percent. The upper 30-foot zone has an average silica content of 2.48 percent and an average total carbonate content of 93.17 percent. A statistical study showed a relationship between the sampling interval and the reliability of the mean carbonate (or contaminant) value for a limestone ledge. Moderately high reliability (0.80 to 0.85) can be obtained by taking three to four samples per ledge. If only high reliability (0.90) of the mean value is acceptable, samples should be taken at 1-foot intervals. Very high reliability would require sampling at 1/2-foot intervals