High-Carbonate and Low-Silica Stone in the High Bridge Group (Middle Ordovician), Fayette County, Central Kentucky

The High Bridge Group (Middle Ordovician) of central Kentucky, a major source of limestone and dolomite for construction and agricultural stone, is also a potential source of stone for industrial uses requiring carbonate rocks of high chemical purity. Chemical analyses of foot-by-foot samples from a Fayette County core show that several thick zones of high-carbonate and low-silica stone are present in the High Bridge at a minable depth

Tectonic Implications of Erosional and Depositional Features in Upper Meramecian and Lower Chesterian (Mississippian) Rocks of South-Central and East-Central Kentucky

Erosional and depositional features in upper Meramecian and lower Chesterian (Mississippian) carbonate rocks of south-central and east-central Kentucky suggest the influence of coeval structural activity. The study area, which extends from Pulaski County northeastward into Powell County, is underlain by (1) the Greenwood Anomaly, a large north-trending gravity anomaly, which probably represents part of a Precambrian rift system, and (2) the western part of the Rome Trough, an east-trending graben-like structure, which represents a Late Precambrian to Cambrian continental rift zone. The study focused on the St. Louis Limestone and lower Monteagle Limestone of south-central Kentucky and correlative carbonate rocks of the Slade Formation in east-central Kentucky. Several lines of evidence suggest Mississippian reactivation of rift-related faults associated with the Greenwood Anomaly and the Grenville Front, which extends along the west side of the anomaly: (1) local subaerial exposure of St. Louis sediments, (2) local depositional thinning of lower Monteagle sediments, (3) relatively widespread erosion during early Monteagle time, and (4) thickness variation in Mississippian units across the anomaly. In east-central Kentucky, erosional and depositional features suggest Mississippian movement along the Locust Branch and Glencairn Faults of the Irvine-Paint Creek Fault System in the interior of the Rome Trough during deposition of the Slade Formation. Reactivation along the projected trend of the Locust Branch Fault in Estill and Jackson Counties apparently resulted in (1) abrupt thinning of the Renfro Member, (2) penecontemporaneous soft-sediment deformation of Big Sinking bed deposits, and (3) extensive erosion of the Burnside member. Movement along the Glencairn Fault in Powell and Wolfe Counties is indicated by more pronounced erosion of the Burnside member along the border of the upthrown side. Mississippian reactivation of faults apparently was caused by migration of lithospheric bulges through the area. Based on recent investigations that relate Mississippian depositional sequence to lithospheric flexure, passage of an east-migrating, relaxation-phase, Acadian bulge and a north-migrating Ouachita bulge seems to have been contemporaneous with the fault movements and may explain evidence of fault reactivation and its consequences on Mississippian carbonate deposition in the area

Use of Limestone, Lime, and Dolomite for SO\u3csub\u3e2\u3c/sub\u3e Emission Control in Kentucky

Flue-gas desulfurization and atmospheric fluidized-bed combustion systems for sulfur dioxide (SO2) emission control have been installed at 13 coal- and gas-fired plants and one research laboratory in Kentucky. Limestone, lime, and dolomite are the principal SO2 sorbents used in these systems. Nine coal-fired, electricity-generating plants in the State have installed wet-scrubbing systems for flue-gas desulfurization. Lime-based scrubbers are using Thiosorbic® lime, produced from the Camp Nelson Limestone (Ordovician) of north-central Kentucky, and carbide lime, a byproduct from the manufacture of acetylene in Louisville. Limestone-based scrubbing systems at three of the plants have used stone from the Warsaw, Ste. Genevieve, and Paoli Limestones (Mississippian) of western and west-central Kentucky, southern Indiana, and southern Illinois. An experimental dry scrubber operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority uses lime produced from the Moccasin Formation (Ordovician) of eastern Tennessee. Limestone and dolomite are employed as SO2 sorbents in commercial, research, and demonstration atmospheric fluidized-bed combustion (AFBC) units. The New Market Limestone (Ordovician) from northern Virginia and a mixed sorbent consisting of Camp Nelson Limestone from north-central Kentucky and Peebles and Greenfield Dolomites (Silurian) from southern Ohio are used in steam-generating systems equipped with AFBC units at two commercial plants. Pilot and demonstration plants operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority to test and demonstrate utility-scale AFBC units have used Warsaw and Ste. Genevieve Limestones from western Kentucky. Dolomite from the Oregon Formation and limestone from the Grier Limestone Member of the Lexington Limestone, both Ordovician units in central Kentucky, have been used for tests of coals and alternate fuels in an industrial-size AFBC pilot plant, operated by the University of Kentucky and Kentucky Energy Cabinet. Pilot-plant tests have shown that other Kentucky dolomites (Silurian Laurel Dolomite and Mississippian Renfro Member of the Slade Formation) and limestones (Mississippian Salem and Warsaw Formations and Ste. Genevieve Limestone) also are effective AFBC sorbents

\u3ci\u3eSchoenophyllum aggregatum\u3c/i\u3e Zone: Stratigraphic Marker for Investigations of Mississippian Limestones in Western Kentucky

Schoenophyllum aggregatum, a Mississippian colonial rugose coral, has a widespread geographic distribution and narrow stratigraphic range in the upper Ste. Genevieve Limestone of western Kentucky. This coral zone serves as a useful stratigraphic marker for commercial and geologic investigations of the extensive limestone deposits formed by the Ste. Genevieve and enclosing limestone units in the region. S. aggregatum is also present in rocks correlative with the Ste, Genevieve that occur in the Monteagle Limestone Slade Formation of south-central Kentucky and the Newman Limestone of southeastern Kentucky

Bronston and Burnside Members: Subdivision of the St. Louis Limestone in South-Central Kentucky

The St. Louis Limestone (Mississippian) of south-central Kentucky consists of two major lithologic units that herein are named, in ascending order, the Bronston Member and Burnside Member. Two other lithologic units occurring in the St. Louis Limestone and in correlative rocks of the Slade Formation (Mississippian), which extends from south-central into northeastern Kentucky, herein are named the Ringgold Bed and Big Sinking Bed. The principal part of the St. Louis Member of the Slade Formation, which consists of Burnside lithologies, herein is renamed the Burnside Member of the Slade. This renaming addresses the problem associated with the previous use of the name St. Louis for both a formation and a member that is only partly correlative with the formation

Generalized Geologic Map for Land-Use Planning: Casey County, Kentucky

This map is not intended to be used for selecting individual sites. Its purpose is to inform land-use planners, government officials, and the public in a general way about geologic bedrock conditions that affect the selection of sites for various purposes. The properties of thick soils may supercede those of the underlying bedrock and should be considered on a site-to-site basis. At any site, it is important to understand the characteristics of both the soils and the underlying rock

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

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

Limestone and Lime for SO\u3csub\u3e2\u3c/sub\u3e and Pollutant Control in the Ohio Valley

The purpose of this conference is to emphasize the importance of limestone resources for controlling SO2 emissions from coal-fired power plants. We have brought together experts from utilities to describe important factors in limestone performance in scrubbers and from the stone industry to describe important factors in limestone and lime production. Conference speakers include also representatives from research institutes, equipment manufacturers, government agencies, and geological surveys

Limetstone and Dolomite Resources of Kentucky

Large quantities of limestone and dolomite suitable for construction, agriculture, and industrial uses are available in Kentucky. Deposits of hard and durable stone are quarried and mined for construction. The stone is crushed to produce aggregate for concrete and asphalt used in the construction of highways, streets, and buildings. Much of the state’s stone being produced for construction also meets the chemical and physical specifications for aglime, which is used to adjust the pH of soils for agricultural crops and pastures. Deposits of chemically pure stone are used for the manufacture of lime and cement, and for industrial applications such as a sorbent for reducing sulfur oxide emissions from coal-burning power plants, rock dust for explosion abatement in underground coal mines, and as fillers. Dimension stone has been quarried from several of the limestone and dolomite units. In 2008, the latest year for which industry statistics are available from the U.S. Geological Survey, production by the stone industry of Kentucky ranked 12th in the nation (U.S. Geological Survey, 2008). Ninety-five operations produced 51 million metric tons of stone valued at $411 million. At least 60 percent of the production was construction aggregate. Kentucky led the nation in the production of stone from underground mines in 2008 and it ranked third in lime production. A western Kentucky quarry was the largest producing operation in the United States for several years