Clay Mineral Distribution in Selected Locations along The Tigris and Shatt Al-Arab Rivers, Southern Iraq

19-02-2014

B. Albadran

Geology department, University of Basrah, Iraq.

ABSTRACT

Four sites were sampled during Nov. 1984, in order to measure the clay mineral assemblages. These sites, All Al-Sharki, AlMajer, A1-Mes’heb and Shaft Al-Arab, are distributed along the Tigris river and around Qarmat All, south of Iraq. The clay mineral assemblages are; chlorite, illite, kaolinite with traces of illite-chlorite mixed layer and a notable quantity of amorphous silica. Chlorite is high in Al-Sharki and Al-Mas’heb sites. There is a tendency of increasing in percentage of illite toward the Shaft Al-Arab river. The kaolinite percentage is relatively stable in the studied sites. The Tigris and Shaft Al-Arab rivers are lack of smectite. The amorphous silica is abundant in Al-Mas’heb site. The clay mineral assemblages prove the origin of the recent sediments which, originated from the formations, that outcropped in catchment area of Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

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