Porosity and Geomechanical Characteristics of banded Iron Ore from Itakpe, North Central Nigeria
Authors
- Amidu Abiola Ige-Adeyeye
- Olawale Babatunde Olatinsu
- Vitalis Chidi Ozebo
- Lionel Esteban
Keywords:
Itakpe iron ore, porosity, uniaxial compressive strength, elastic modulus, modulus ratioAbstract
The microstructural characteristics of geological materials are fundamentally influenced by their pore configuration and geomechanical properties. The banded iron ore samples from Itakpe, North Central Nigeria, have been examined using: (i) X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy for preliminary iron content assessment; (ii) low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and water imbibition porosity (WIP) techniques for pore structure evaluation; and (iii) bulk density and stress-strain analysis for the geomechanical characterisation. The average weight of haematite, silica, alumina and iron contents in the samples are 53%, 22%, 12%, and 37%, respectively. These values show that the Itakpe iron ores are low-grade and hence, significant enrichment is required for economic viability. The pore system of the ore samples is basically bimodal without any indication of macropores, in agreement with the metasedimentary origin of the ores. The transverse relaxation time ranges for the pore regions are: (a) micropores (0.2818 – 1.413 ms) and (b) mesopores (7.943 – 79.43 ms). The mean porosities estimated via NMR and WIP techniques are 0.365 p.u. and 0.488 p.u., respectively. Computed porosity and water content from NMR and WIP techniques show high degree of correlation which are 87% and 76%, respectively. The average UCS, elastic modulus and dry bulk density of the samples are 101.28 MPa, 3.94 GPa and 3.46 g/cm3, respectively showing high strength ores. The plots of UCS versus dry bulk density for the samples shows an increasing exponential relation, while the UCS versus NMR porosity, modulus ratio versus dry bulk density as well as modulus ratio versus UCS all show decreasing exponential relations. The UCS is negatively correlated with NMR porosity but positively correlated with bulk density. Integrating NMR and geomechanical techniques can reliably: (i) predict mechanical behaviour without destructive testing; (ii) complement traditional porosity methods; and (iii) assist in mine design for safety and ore optimisation.
Author Biographies
Amidu Abiola Ige-Adeyeye
Department of Physical Science, Lecturer II
Olawale Babatunde Olatinsu
Department of Physics, Senior Lecturer
Vitalis Chidi Ozebo
Department of Physics, Professor
Lionel Esteban
NMR Lab, CSIRO, Senior Research Fellow
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