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Titanium mineral resources in heavy-mineral sands in the Atlantic coastal plain of the southeastern United States

Scientific Investigations Report 2018-5045
By:  and 
https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20185045

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Abstract

This study examined titanium distribution in the Atlantic Coastal Plain of the southeastern United States; the titanium is found in heavy-mineral sands that include the minerals ilmenite (Fe2+TiO3), rutile (TiO2), or leucoxene (an alteration product of ilmenite). Deposits of heavy-mineral sands in ancient and modern coastal plains are a significant feedstock source for the titanium dioxide pigments industry. Currently, two heavy-mineral sands mining and processing operations are active in the southeast United States producing concentrates of ilmenite-leucoxene, rutile, and zircon. The results of this study indicate the potential for similar deposits in many areas of the Atlantic Coastal Plain.

This study used the titanium analyses of 3,457 stream sediment samples that were analyzed as part of the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Geochemical Survey program. This data set was analyzed by an integrated spatial modeling technique known as Bayesian hierarchical modeling to map the regional-scale, spatial distribution of titanium concentrations. In particular, clusters of anomalous concentrations of titanium occur: (1) along the Fall Zone, from Virginia to Alabama, where metamorphic and igneous rocks of the Piedmont region contact younger sediments of the Coastal Plain; (2) a paleovalley near the South Carolina and North Carolina border; (3) the upper and middle Atlantic Coastal Plain of North Carolina; (4) the majority of the Atlantic Coastal Plain of Virginia; and (5) barrier islands and stretches of the modern shoreline from South Carolina to northeast Florida. The areas mapped by this study could help mining companies delimit areas for exploration.

Suggested Citation

Van Gosen, B.S, and Ellefsen, K.J., 2018, Titanium mineral resources in heavy-mineral sands in the Atlantic coastal plain of the southeastern United States: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2018–5045, 32 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20185045.

ISSN: 2328-0328 (online)

Study Area

Table of Contents

  • Abstract
  • Introduction
  • Heavy-Mineral Sands
  • Industrial Uses and Significance of Titanium and Zircon
  • Outlook for Heavy-Mineral Sands Production
  • The Bedrock Provenance of Titanium Minerals
  • The Atlantic Coastal Plain of the Southeastern United States
  • Study Techniques
  • Study Results
  • Summary and Conclusions
  • References Cited
Publication type Report
Publication Subtype USGS Numbered Series
Title Titanium mineral resources in heavy-mineral sands in the Atlantic coastal plain of the southeastern United States
Series title Scientific Investigations Report
Series number 2018-5045
DOI 10.3133/sir20185045
Year Published 2018
Language English
Publisher U.S. Geological Survey
Publisher location Reston, VA
Contributing office(s) Central Mineral and Environmental Resources Science Center
Description Report: v, 32 p.; Read Me; Data Release
Country United States
Online Only (Y/N) Y
Additional Online Files (Y/N) Y
Google Analytic Metrics Metrics page
Additional publication details