Gospodarka Surowcami Mineralnymi - Mineral Resources Management

In Moncongloe area, Maros Regency, South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia, zeolite mineralization in porphyritic rhyolite and green tuff was identified occurred in a volcano-sedimentary sequence, members of the Miocene Camba Formation. This paper describes a recent study of the zeolite mineralization on the basis of field and laboratory data, which focused on its genetic aspects and potential utilizations based on its mineralogical and chemical characteristics. The laboratory works applied in this study include mineralogical analysis (petrography and XRD) and bulk chemical analysis (XRF for major oxides, ICP-OES and ICP-MS for trace elements). Microscopic and XRD studies indicate that the zeolite is a phillipsite type, which is associated with smectite, and was formed as an alteration product of the primary K-feldspar phenocrysts as well as fine crystalline ground mass and volcanic glass. The presence of phillipsite-type zeolite associated with smectite were also confirmed by the chemical compositions. The zeolite mineralization associated with smectite in the study area were formed by alteration process by hydrothermal fluid in alkaline seawater condition, during Late Miocene to Pliocene. So, it can be concluded that the hydrothermal alteration is occurred in that time range. The magma that forms the volcanic host rocks is an alkaline series magma, intermediate to acid in composition, and originates from subduction zone.The K-rich phillipsite-type zeolite in the study area can be used for, among other things: to remove lead from water, remove paraquat from wastewater, extract potassium from seawater, remove thorium from carbonate solutions, as catalyst in knoevenagel, as dietary supplementation for pets, to uptake ammonia in water, and for colorectal cancer therapy.