COVER PHOTOGRAPHS

1

5

9

11

2

7

12

3

6

10

13

4

8

14

1. Asbestos ore

2. Lead ore-Balmat Mine, N. Y.

3. Chromite-chromium ore, Wash.

4. Zinc ore-Friedensville, Pa.

5. Banded iron formation.Palmer, 

Michigan

6. Ribbon asbestos ore, Quebec, Canada

7. Manganese ore, banded 

rhodochrosite

8. Aluminum ore, bauxite, Georgia

9. Native copper ore, Keweenawan 

Peninsula, Mich.

10. Porphyry molybdenum ore, Colo.

11. Zinc ore, Edwards, N. Y.

12. Manganese nodules, ocean floor

13. Botryoidal fluorite ore, 

Poncha Springs, Colo. 

14. Tungsten ore, North Carolina
World

Bauxite

Resources

By SAM H. PATTERSON, HORACE F. KURTZ, 

JANE C. OLSON, and CATHY L. NEELEY

GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 1076-B

An updating of information on the geologic and 

geographic occurrences of world bauxite 

resources and discussions of uses, 

exploration and mining, and production

UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON: 1986
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 

DONALD PAUL HODEL, Secretary

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 

Dallas L. Peck, Director

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Main entry under title:

World bauxite resources.

(Geology and resources of aluminum) (U.S. Geological Survey professional paper ; 1076-B)

Bibliography: p. 130.

Supt. of Docs, no.: I 19.16:1076-8

1. Bauxite. I. Patterson, Sam H. (Sam Hunting), 1918-. II. Series. III. Series: U.S. Geological Survey professional

paper;1076-B. 

TN490.A5W67 1986 553.4'926 85-600103

For sale by the Books and Open-File Reports Section, U.S. Geological Survey, 

Federal Center, Box 25425, Denver, CO 80225
CONTENTS

	Page

Abstract ........................................... Bl

Introduction ....................................... 1

Purpose of report, authorship responsibility ......... 1

Sources of information on bauxite .................. 2

Acknowledgments ............................... 3

Definitions ..................................... 3

Uses and typical composition ...................... 4

Bauxite used for aluminum .................... 4

Bauxite for uses other than aluminum ........... 4

Exploration and evaluation of bauxite deposits ....... 8

Mining methods ................................. 9

Bauxite processing ............................... 10

Alumina production .............................. 10

Byproducts ..................................... 11

United States and world bauxite production ......... 13

Geology of bauxite .................................. 14

Classification of deposits ......................... 14

Laterite-karst or silicate-carbonate classification .. 15

Classification based on shapes and occurrences ... 16

Other classifications .......................... 17

Mineralogy ..................................... 18

Bauxite minerals ............................. 18

Morphology, microtextures, and grain sizes of bauxite

minerals .................................. 21

Significance of mineral composition, crystal morphology, and organic matter ..................... 21

Trace elements .................................. 23

Physical characteristics ........................... 24

Origin ......................................... 26

Age and mineralogic and geographic distribution of

bauxite ....................................... 28

World bauxite resources ............................. 30

Definitions of terms .............................. 30

Estimates and distribution of world bauxite resources . 33

North America ..................................... 35

United States ................................... 35

History and production ....................... 35

Bauxite districts and regions .................. 35

Arkansas region .......................... 40

Southeastern United States ................ 42

Districts in the Coastal Plain ........... 42

Districts in the Valley and Ridge province 43 

Ferruginous bauxite in Washington, Oregon, and

Hawaii ................................ 44

Diaspore in Pennsylvania and Missouri ...... 46

Resources ................................... 46

Reserves ................................ 46

Subeconomic resources .................... 47

Undiscovered resources .................... 48

Summary of bauxite resources in the United

States ................................. 48

Mexico ......................................... 48

Central America .................................... 49

Costa Rica ...................................... 49

Honduras ...................................... 49

Panama ........................................ 49

Summary of bauxite resources in Central America .... 49

	Page

Caribbean Islands ................................... B50

Dominican Republic .............................. 50

Haiti .......................................... 51

Jamaica ........................................ 52

Other Caribbean occurrences ...................... 54

Summary of bauxite resources in the Caribbean region 55

South America ..................................... 55

Argentina ...................................... 55

Brazil .......................................... 55

Colombia ....................................... 60

French Guiana .................................. 61

Guyana ........................................ 62

Paraguay ....................................... 65

Suriname ....................................... 65

Venezuela ...................................... 68

Other South American countries ................... 70

Summary of bauxite resources in South America ..... 70

Europe ............................................ 70

Austria ........................................ 70

Czechoslovakia .................................. 72

France ......................................... 72

Greece ......................................... 73

Hungary ....................................... 75

Italy ........................................... 76

Romania ....................................... 77

Spain .......................................... 78

United Kingdom ................................. 79

U.S.S.R., including Soviet Asia .................... 80

West Germany .................................. 84

Yugoslavia ..................................... 84

Other European countries ......................... 86

Summary of bauxite resources in Europe ............ 87

Africa ............................................. 87

............................... 87

............................... 87

............................... 89

............................... 89

............................... 92

............................... 96

............................... 96

............................... 97

............................... 97

............................... 97

............................... 98

............................... 98

............................... 99

Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso) ................... 99

Zaire .......................................... 99

Zimbabwe ...................................... 100

Other African countries .......................... 100

Summary of bauxite resources in Africa ............. 101

Asia (excluding U.S.S.R.) ............................. 101

India .......................................... 101

Indonesia ....................................... 107

Iran ........................................... 110

Malaysia ....................................... 110

Pakistan ....................................... Ill

Angola ......

Cameroon .. . 

Chad .......

Ghana ......

Guinea ......

Guinea-Bissau 

Ivory Coast .. 

Madagascar . Malawi ......

Mali ........

Mozambique . 

Sierra Leone . 

South Africa .

in
IV CONTENTS

Page

Asia (excluding U.8.8.R.) Continued

People's Republic of China ........................ B112

Philippines ..................................... 116

Saudi Arabia .................................... 116

Taiwan ......................................... 117

Turkey ......................................... 117

Vietnam ........................................ 120

Other Asian countries ............................ 120

Summary of bauxite resources in Asia .............. 121

Oceania ........................................... B121

Australia ....................................... 121

Fiji ............................................ 128

New Zealand .................................... 128

Palau .......................................... 128

Solomon Islands ................................. 129

Other islands ................................... 129

Summary of bauxite resources in Oceania ........... 130

References ......................................... 130

ILLUSTRATIONS

FIGURE 1. Diagram of world bauxite production, showing contributions from different regions, 1935-83 ............... B15

2. Diagram showing typical occurrences of bauxite ...................................................... 18

3. Photograph of polished face of pisolitic bauxite from the Andersonville district, Georgia ................... 25

4. Photograph of polished face of transported bauxite from the Arkansas region ............................ 25

5. Diagram showing classification of bauxite resources .................................................. 31

6. Graph showing annual world bauxite production and estimates of reserves and total resources, 1935-83 ...... 34

7. Map showing locations of principal bauxite resources of the world ...................................... 36

8. Map showing locations of bauxite districts and areas in the Southern United States ....................... 39

9. Generalized geologic map of the Arkansas bauxite region .............................................. 40

10. Diagrammatic section showing principal types of deposits in the Arkansas bauxite region .................. 41

11-25. Maps showing locations of:

11. Ferruginous bauxite resources in the United States ........................................... 45

12. Bauxite districts in Haiti and the Dominican Republic ......................................... 51

13. Principal bauxite regions in Jamaica ........................................................ 53

14. Bauxite districts in Brazil ................................................................. 57

15. Bauxite districts in Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana ..................................... 61

16. Bauxite and aluminous laterite districts in Venezuela .......................................... 69

17. Bauxite districts in Europe exclusive of the U.S.S.R. and the United Kingdom .................... 71

18. Bauxite districts in the U.S.S.R. ........................................................... 81

19. Bauxite districts in Ghana, Cameroon, and Chad .............................................. 89

20. Bauxite districts and regions in Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, and Sierra Leone ......................... 93

21. Bauxite districts in India and Pakistan ...................................................... 102

22. Bauxite districts in southeastern Asia and the southwestern Pacific region ....................... 108

23. Principal bauxite districts in the People's Republic of China .................................... 113

24. Bauxite and diaspore districts in Turkey .................................................... 118

25. Bauxite districts in Australia .............................................................. 122

TABLES

	Page 

TABLE 1. Composition of typical bauxite used for aluminum ........................................................ B5

2. Chemical composition of bauxite produced for refractory, abrasive, and chemical uses .........................

3. Approximate leaching conditions of the European and American Bayer processes ............................

4. Ranges of major-oxide contents in red muds on a dry basis ...............................................

5. United States and world bauxite production, 1900-83 ....................................................

6. World production of bauxite by countries, 1961-83 ......................................................

7. Properties of bauxite minerals ........................................................................

8. Minor elements in bauxite ...........................................................................

9. Chemical analyses of typical bauxites and their parent rocks ..............................................

10. General age relations of world bauxite deposits .........................................................

11. Estimates of world bauxite reserves and other resources, 1936-84 .........................................

6

11

12

14

16

20

23

26

29

32
	CONTENTS V

	Page 

TABLE 12. Estimates of reserves, subeconomic and undiscovered resources, and total resources of bauxite as of 1983 ........ B38

13. Chemical analyses of bauxite, bauxitic clay, and kaolin from the Arkansas region ............................. 42

14. Ranges in grades and average composition of bauxite and bauxitic clay of the Andersonville district ............. 43

15. Average chemical composition of ferruginous bauxite in Washington, Oregon, and Hawaii ...................... 44

16. Bauxite reserves and other identified resources in the Arkansas bauxite region as of January 1, 1963 ............ 47

17. Chemical composition of bauxite mined in Jamaica and exported in 1952 ..................................... 54

18. Specifications of refractory and chemical grades of bauxite produced in Guyana ............................... 62

19. Chemical composition of bauxite produced at Onverdacht, Suriname ......................................... 66

20. Chemical composition of Romanian bauxite .............................................................. 78

21. Bauxite reserves in India, by States .................................................................... 107

22. Estimates of resources of bauxite and diaspore in Turkey and contents of major oxides ........................ 119

23. Summary of estimates of bauxite resources in Australia ................................................... 127

GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES

By SAM H. PATTERSON, HORACE F. KuRTZ1 , 

JANE C. OLSON, and CATHY L. NEELEY

ABSTRACT

Bauxite, a rock consisting of one or more aluminum hydroxide 

minerals, is the principal raw material used by the aluminum industry. 

The types of bauxite are (1) trihydrate, consisting chiefly of gibbsite, 

A12O3 -3H2O; (2) monohydrate, consisting mainly of boehmite, 

A12O3 H2O; and (3) mixed bauxite, consisting of both gibbsite and 

boehmite. A variety of the monohydrate type consisting chiefly of 

diaspore has the same chemical composition as boehmite but is denser 

and harder. Diaspore bauxite is used mainly in products resistant to 

high temperatures, but diaspore is a major mineral in some of the bauxite from which alumina is recovered in Greece and the People's 

Republic of China. The aluminum industry consumes nearly 90 percent of the bauxite mined; the remainder is used in many different 

types of refractories, abrasives, chemicals, and miscellaneous products.

Bauxite is mined mainly by open-pit methods. Most bauxite production is from laterite-type deposits at or near the surface that are 

mined by heavy equipment. The principal underground mines are in 

Europe, where much of the bauxite occurs at considerable depths. 

Some bauxite is beneficiated by washing out the fine-grained impurities, but much of it is merely dried before the alumina, A12O3, is 

recovered by the Bayer process, an alkaline leach under moderately 

high temperatures and pressures. Gallium is the principal byproduct 

of alumina production, but several other elements and materials either 

have been recovered in the past or are potentially recoverable.

Bauxite deposits have formed chiefly by weathering of aluminous 

rock; some have been transported to their present locations, but most 

are residual accumulations from which most constituents of the parent 

rock other than alumina have been leached. Bauxite occurs in rocks 

ranging in age from Precambrian to Holocene, and many deposits in 

the tropics are probably still forming. Most deposits of gibbsitic bauxite are in the tropics. A few occur in the temperate belts, but the climate 

was probably tropical or subtropical at the time these formed. Nearly all deposits of this type are of Cenozoic age. Deposits of boehmitic 

bauxite occur chiefly in southern Europe, the U.S.S.R., Turkey, and 

the People's Republic of China. Most deposits of this type are 

associated with carbonate rocks of Jurassic and Cretaceous age, but 

a few are of Paleozoic age. Though most of these deposits are north 

of the tropics, they could have formed under tropical conditions. Mixed 

bauxites are associated with both the gibbsite and boehmite types; 

however, they tend to be more abundant in deposits of Paleozoic and 

Mesozoic ages than in younger rocks.

The major world bauxite resources are in Africa, Australia, South 

America, and the Caribbean region; significant deposits are present 

in Asia and Europe. Guinea has the world's largest bauxite reserves, 

estimated to be 5.6 billion tons. Large reserves in Guinea and in other 

countries are indicated in the following table.

1Horace F. Kurtz, U.S. Bureau of Mines, Washington, DC 20241.

Country Bauxite reserves

(millions of 

metric tons)

Guinea ........................................ 5,600

Australia ...................................... 4,440

Brazil ......................................... 2,250

Jamaica ....................................... 2,000

India .......................................... 1,000

Indonesia ...................................... 750

Guyana ........................................ 700

Cameroon ...................................... 680

Greece ......................................... 600

Suriname ...................................... 575

Ghana ......................................... 450

Yugoslavia ..................................... 350

Countries having reserves of 100 million-300 million metric tons 

include Venezuela, Hungary, the U.S.S.R., Sierra Leone, and the People's Republic of China. The bauxite reserves in the United States 

are estimated to be only about 38 million metric tons. Several countries in Central American, the Caribbean region, Europe, and Asia 

have bauxite reserves of less than 100 million metric tons. Very large 

subeconomic and virtually certain speculative bauxite resources are 

present in Africa and South America; Asia and Australia may have 

large subeconomic and speculative resources; other major global 

regions rank well behind in these categories of resources.

INTRODUCTION

PURPOSE OF REPORT, 

AUTHORSHIP RESPONSIBILITY

This report is an updating of information on the 

geology, distribution, and quantities of reserves and 

resources of bauxite, which, except for minor use of 

nepheline syenite and alunite to produce aluminum in 

the U.S.S.R., is the only ore of aluminum. It also contains information on the exploration for bauxite, the 

mining and processing of bauxite, and the uses of bauxite for purposes other than making metal. It is chiefly 

a revision of parts of earlier reports (U.S. Bureau of 

Mines, 1953; S.H. Patterson, 1967).

In accordance with the understanding between the 

Directors of the Geological Survey and the Bureau of 

Mines (U.S. Bureau of Mines and U.S. Geological 

Survey, 1976), the Bureau of Mines coauthor, Kurtz,

Bl
B2 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

was responsible for estimates of the reserves,2 and the 

Geological Survey coauthor, Patterson, was responsible for the overall estimates of resources. Kurtz wrote 

most of the sections on exploration, mining production, 

processing, and use, and Patterson wrote the sections 

on geology. Neeley did much of the library research 

needed to gather information used in the report, 

prepared most of the illustrations, and assisted in 

writing and proofreading the text. Olson reviewed, 

edited, and computerized the bibliography and is 

responsible for the referencing in the text.

This report was prepared in response to increasing 

demands for information on bauxite resulting from 

wider recognition of the increased dependence on 

foreign sources for this essential raw material and its 

importance in the industrial economy of the United 

States. Domestic reserves of bauxite are less than 5 percent of the estimated minimum demand of the United 

States to the end of the century. Subeconomic bauxite 

resources are sufficient to meet less than 25 percent of 

the minimum demand during this period. Accordingly, 

the Nation must rely heavily on imports of bauxite, 

alumina, and aluminum until some of the large nonbauxite resources become viable sources. These potential 

sources included high-alumina clay (kaolin), anorthosite, 

alunite (Hall, 1978), dawsonite, aluminum phosphate 

rock, coal mine waste, coal ash, and copper leach 

materials.

SOURCES OF INFORMATION ON BAUXITE

A great deal of published information on bauxite has 

become available in the last two or three decades. The 

textbooks and reference volumes that have been 

published include textbooks by Valeton (1972), Bushinskiy (1971, 1975), Crockett (1978), Banks (1979), and 

Roskill Information Services (1979). Bardossy's (1977, 

1982) excellent text is on karst bauxite and was first 

published in Hungarian; an expanded English version 

was printed 5 years later. Two thorough volumes concerned with bauxite as well as all phases of the 

aluminum industry were prepared by the Australian 

Mineral Economics Pty., Ltd. (1981). Another summary 

was written by Butcher (1982). Chapters on bauxite by 

Harder and Greig (1960) and Shaffer (1975) are included in AIME's Industrial Minerals and Rocks volumes. 

Ikonnikov's (1975) report on mineral resources in the 

People's Republic of China contains considerable information on bauxite in that country. An excellent treatment of the crystal chemistry of the oxides and

2The metric system is used for all tonnage and other figures throughout this 

report, except where otherwise noted.

hydroxides of aluminum has been released by the 

Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa) (Wefers and 

Bell, 1972).

A thorough volume covering several phases of the 

aluminum industry has been written by Hungarian 

specialists. Separates of three chapters in this book 

(Bardossy, 1975; Bardossy, Vassel, and Arkossy, 1975; 

Solymar, Bardossy, and Jonas, 1975) examined by the 

senior author are in English, and they are of excellent 

quality. Books on world resources of bauxite have been 

written by Bracewell (1962) and Patterson (1967).

Several organizations have held symposia and (or) 

other meetings concerned with bauxite and related subjects, as discussed below. (1) The International Committee for the Study of Bauxite, Alumina, and 

Aluminium (ICSOBA) is the most active group. This informal society has held 18 periodic meetings for which 

the results have been published by 1'Academie 

Yougoslave des Sciences et des Arts at the time this 

Professional Paper was written. ICSOBA also has held 

five meetings that are called symposia or congresses. 

The results of four of these meetings (International 

Symposium of the International Committee for the 

Studies of Bauxites, Oxides, and Hydroxides of Aluminium, 1964-1965, 1971, 1973; International Congress 

for the Study of Bauxites, Alumina, and Aluminium, 

1978) were published when this article was prepared. 

(2) The Jamaica Geological Society held its first symposium on bauxite in 1971 and its fifth in 1982. Excellent papers on the geology, mineralogy, and mining 

of bauxite have appeared in the publications (Geological 

Society of Jamaica, 1971,1973,1975,1980,1982) resulting from these symposia. (3) An outstanding symposium on bauxite in the United States was held by the 

Society of Mining Engineers of AIME in 1984 (Jacob, 

1984). This symposium volume contains 47 articles written by many of the world's leading authorities on bauxite. Several previous meetings of the Society of Mining 

Engineers have included sessions on bauxite, and many 

citations of information resulting from these meetings 

appear on following pages. The Metallurgical Society 

of AIME holds annual meetings on light metals, and 

the yearly Light Metals volumes resulting from these 

meetings contain information on bauxite. (4) 

Monograph No. 5 of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy published in 1975 contains several 

bauxite papers presented at a symposium. (5) Several 

papers on bauxite are included in a report of meetings 

on lateritization processes held by Project 129 (International Seminar on Lateritisation Processes, 1981, 

1983) that is part of International Geologic Correlations 

Program series sponsored by the International Union 

of Geological Sciences (IUGS) with small financial assistance by the United Nations Educational, Scientific,
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B3

and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). (6) The centennial 

volume of the Hungarian Geological Institute edited by 

Bardossy (1970) contains many papers that are primarily concerned with the geology of bauxite.

Numerous contributions to the knowledge of bauxite have been published by universities and in professional journals such as Economic Geology, Mineralium 

Deposita, The American Mineralogist, and Clays and 

Clay Minerals. Trade journals, including Industrial 

Minerals, Engineering and Mining Journal, Mining 

Journal, Mining Magazine, Australian Mining, and 

Australian Mines Handbook, contain information on 

bauxite. The journal Aluminium published in Germany, 

the French Revue de rAluminium, a similar one in 

Italian, and the Aluminum Abstracts in the United 

States contain information or references on bauxite. 

Scientific information on bauxite has been contributed 

in Ph.D. theses printed by French universities. Various 

theses have been concerned with bauxite deposits in 

Turkey, Cameroon, Spain and France, Ivory Coast, and 

probably other countries.

Government agencies and other organizations that 

publish reports on bauxite include the U.S. Bureau of 

Mines; U.S. Geological Survey; Australian Bureau of 

Mineral Resources, Geology and Geophysics; Great 

Britain Institute of Geological Sciences; Indian Bureau 

of Mines, Geological Survey of India; West German 

Bundesanstalt fur Bodenforschung HannoverDeutsches Institut fur Wirtschaftsforschung Berlin; 

and Instituti Geologici Publici Hungarici. The International Bauxite Association (IB A) publishes considerable 

information on bauxite in its quarterly review series. 

The United Nations organizations have sponsored much 

work on bauxite. The United Nations Industrial 

Development Organization (UNIDO) (Balazs, 1984) and 

the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) have held meetings and published 

reports concerned with bauxite. The United Nations 

Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East has 

a report on bauxite in that region.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Much of the authors' knowledge of bauxite has been 

gained by conversations and exchanges of information 

with many authorities on bauxite. Among those to 

whom we wish to express thanks are James W. Shaffer, Consultant, formerly Kaiser Aluminum Co.; Alan 

W. Popp, Douglas D. Jinks, Wilson D. Michell, Derek 

Whitehouse, and John H. Moses, Reynolds Metals Co.; 

Neil Bliss, E.W. Greig, and I.M. Shvily, Alcan International, Ltd.; J.G. de Weisse, Fritz Schnorf, Robert 

Unger, and Felix Schmid, Swiss Aluminium, Ltd.;

Andrew Dacko and Leonard Jacob, Jr., Aluminum Company of America; Emile Amade and Alain Gesell, 

Pechiney Ugine Kuhlman; John Cornish, Miodrag 

Kaluderovic, and Vincent G. Hill, International Bauxite Association; Parris Lyew-Ayee, The Jamaica Bauxite Institute; Rene A. Cambridge, Suriname 

Government, Geological and Mining Service; Henry R. 

Ferrier, Grassalco; E.G. Hopkinson, Guyana Geological 

Surveys and Mines; George N. Nooten, Guyana Bauxite Co., Ltd.; M.C. Hamilton, Bauxite Industry Development Company, Ltd., Guyana; Patterson A. Thompson 

and W. Haslyn Parris, Guybau; Paul F. Bustion, J.L. 

Van Blommestein, and A.A. Meijer, Suralco; A. Brahim 

and Henk Morroy, N.V. Billiton Mij. Suriname; Carlos 

Romano Ramos, Departamento National da Producao 

Mineral, Belem, Brazil; Gyorgy Bardossy, Budapest, 

Hungary; G.I. Bushinskiy, Moscow, U.S.S.R.; Werner 

Schellmann, Bundesanstalt fur Bodenforschung, West 

Germany; Prof. Emilio Galan, University of Zaragoza, 

Spain; George Van Buren Day, the Aluminum Association; Betty A. Bryan, World Aluminum Abstracts, 

Metals Park, Ohio; Harland E. Gofer, Georgia 

Southwestern College; and the following consultants: 

Samuel Moment, Portland, Oreg.; Richard C. Roberts, 

Richmond, Va.; John Hook, Portland, Oreg.; Otis M. 

Clarke, Jr., Tuscaloosa, Ala. In addition to these 

authorities, many geologists and engineers assisted the 

authors in countless ways during visits to mines and 

plants and searches for information. We are grateful to 

all of them.

Resource Attaches, Economic Officers, and Charges 

in American Embassies and Consulates forwarded considerable information on bauxite referred to in this 

report. Francis E. Shafer, India; Terry V. Mclntyre, 

Australia; W. Siefken, Cameroon; B.D. Curran, GuineaBissau; D.B. Dlouhy, Republic of Guinea; Robert H. 

Knickmeyer, Venezuela; and P.T. Hansen, Brazil, were 

particularly helpful. J. Owen Zurhellen, Jr., Ambassador, and Jap Tjoen San, Assistant Economic Officer, Suriname; and John D. Blanken, Charge des 

Affaires, and Dennis Rudy, Economic Specialist, 

Guyana, provided assistance to the authors during 

visits to bauxite districts in those countries in 1977.

DEFINITIONS

Bauxite is a rock consisting mainly of aluminum 

hydroxide minerals. It is the principal source of alumina 

(A12O3 ), from which aluminum metal is smelted by an 

electrolytic process. Both bauxite and alumina are also 

used for several products other than metal. The name 

"beauxite" was proposed by Dufrenoy in 1845 

(Bracewell, 1962, p. 8) for a material occurring near Les
B4 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Beaux, France, that had been found to consist mainly 

of a mixture of hydrated aluminum and red iron oxides. 

The term was later changed to "bauxite" to conform 

to a change in spelling of the type locality.

Bauxites composed chiefly of the mineral gibbsite are 

commonly termed "trihydrate bauxites" or "the Suriname type"; those composed of boehmite are called 

"monohydrate bauxite" or the "European type"; those 

composed of a mixture of gibbsite and boehmite are 

called "mixed bauxites." The term "Jamaica type" is 

applied to very fine grained high-iron gibbsitic bauxite 

containing minor quantities of boehmite.

USES AND TYPICAL COMPOSITION

Approximately 90 percent of the world bauxite production is used for making alumina (A12O3 ), which is 

consumed mainly in making aluminum. The other major uses of bauxite are in refractories, abrasives, 

chemicals, and aluminous cements. Refractory bauxite 

is used mainly in making firebrick and mixes having 

A12O3 contents in the range 70-90 percent (Industrial 

Minerals, 1974). Abrasive bauxite is used for fused 

alumina grinding and polishing materials. The abrasives 

are made by fusing abrasive-grade bauxite in an arc 

furnace. Coke is added to reduce iron. The resulting 

product contains 94-97 percent A12O3 . Some of the 

fused alumina prepared this way is also used for special 

refractory applications. Chemical bauxite is consumed 

mainly in the production of aluminum sulfate for paper 

manufacture and water treatment. Other chemicals 

manufactured include aluminum chloride, aluminum 

fluoride, sodium aluminate, and aluminum acetate.

Minor quantities of bauxite are used in other applications. Bauxite is a raw material for making electrical 

insulators and other high-strength porcelain products, 

and welding rod coatings. It is a flux in steel making. 

Activated bauxite prepared by heating at various 

temperatures is used (1) in desulfurization, in decolorization, or as a drying agent in the food- and chemicalprocessing industries (Industrial Minerals, 1974); (2) in 

petroleum refining; and (3) as filler in rubber, plastic, 

and paint. Bauxite is used in highway, mine-road, and 

railroad construction in countries having abundant supplies of hard varieties. It is used as a building stone and 

in breakwater construction in India (Kumar and others, 

1977, p. 17-18). Calcined bauxite has properties desired 

in antiskid road aggregate (Hosking and Tubey, 1973).

Alumina also has several applications other than for 

making aluminum. Alumina hydrate from the Bayer 

process is used in chemicals requiring a higher degree 

of purity than can be obtained from bauxite, such as 

cracking catalysts for the petroleum industry and fire

retardant fillers. Calcined alumina is used in abrasives 

and several types of ceramic fillers, coatings, and refractories requiring its special properties of heat resistance, 

whiteness, and hardness. Activated alumina that has 

been calcined to remove all but about 6 percent water 

is used as a desiccant, as a catalyst carrier, and for other 

purposes (Carniglia, 1977). Tabular alumina, heated to 

near the fusion point to form tabular crystals, is used 

for spark-plug insulators, refractories requiring 

resistance to thermal shock, and fillers and coatings. 

Fused alumina is used mainly in synthetic corundum 

made for abrasives, and minor quantities are used in 

making synthetic gems.

Bauxite Used for Aluminum

Though high recoverable alumina (A12O3 ) contents 

are desirable in bauxite used for aluminum, the alumina 

contents of commercial bauxites range broadly (table 

1). The alumina contents of the deposits presently 

mined range from 55-60 percent A12O3 in the highgrade bauxite produced in Guyana, Suriname, and 

Guinea to low grade (30-35 percent available AlgOg) in 

the Jarrahdale district, Australia. Generally, reactive 

silica (SiO2 ) is the most significant impurity in bauxites, while the iron content is mainly a dilutant. In 1941, 

the specifications for commercial metal-grade bauxites 

were a minimum of 55 percent A12O3 and a maximum 

of 7 percent SiO2, 8 percent Fe2O3 , and 4 percent TiO2 

(Thoenen and Burchard, 1941, p. 35). By 1960, metalgrade bauxite treated in certain plants in the United 

States could contain a minimum of 48 percent A12O3 

and as much as 15 percent SiO2 (Harder and Greig, 

1960, p. 80). As early as 1952, the aluminum industry 

had learned to use high-iron bauxite; shipments from 

Jamaica in that year contained 18.9-20.5 percent 

Fe2O3 (Bracewell, 1962, p. 115).

Bauxites for Uses Other Than Aluminum

The bauxite used for making refractories, abrasives, 

and chemicals must fulfill more rigid compositional 

requirements than that used for aluminum. Refractory 

and abrasive grades of bauxite are calcined and chemical grades are dried before being sold or used. Calcined bauxite consists of corundum, A12O3 , mullite, 

AlgSigO^, a titanium-aluminum iron-oxide mineral called 

tiellite in Germany, and glass (Schneider and others, 

1982). High-quality low-silica (SiO2) bauxite (table 2) is 

required for all three uses. However, more silica can be 

tolerated in chemical-grade bauxite than in refractory 

and abrasive grades. The domestic refractory bauxite
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B5

TABLE 1.—Composition of typical bauxite used for aluminum

[Listed as reported in sources indicated. Most percentages are for total alumina, but several published sources failed to indicate whether available Al2Og

(recoverable by Bayer process) or total alumina was reported]

Australia

Weipa ..................

(Roberts, 1977, p. 5,

table 1).

Gove ...................

(International Bauxite

Association, 1977a, p. 37).

Jarrahdale ..............

(A. Murray, written

commun., 1978).

Brazil

Trombetas ..............

(Greig, 1977, p. 12, table 3).

France ...................

(Mercier and Noble,

1974, p. 782).

Ghana ....................

(Davies, Lloyd, and Macfie,

1974, p. 76).

Greece ...................

(Average of 30 samples;

Aronis, 1955).

Guinea

Boke-Sangaredi ..........

(Landi and Casola, 1977, p. 82).

Kindia-Debete ............

(Wyllie, 1976, p. 73).

Fria ....................

(Sparwald, 1978, p. 1).

Guyana ...................

(Lachmansingh and Nooten,

1977, p. 2).

Hungary ..................

(Bardossy, 1958a).

India

Ranch! ..................

(Roy Chowdhury, 1965,

p. 14-15).

East Coast province ......

(Bharat Aluminium Co., 1977).

Indonesia .................

A1203

54.8

50

30-35

(Available)

55.9

53.0

51.6

57.6

59.1-59.6

48

45.5

55-61

50-60

51-60

43.7-56.5

53

Major oxides, in percent

Si02 Fe203

5.3 5.20

3.4-4.2 17.1

0.3-2.0 10-25

(Reactive)

4.8 9.4

7.8 21.4

1.3 17.4

3.0 22.8

0.7-0.9 4.9-5.9

1-3

4.0 23.6

1-10 0.8-5

1-5

0.1-5 4-10

0.5-4.2 8.6-38.4

5

Loss on ignition

TiO2 (LOI) Bauxite minerals

Mainly gibbsite, minor

boehmite.

3.4 26.4 Mainly gibbsite, minor

boehmite.

Mainly gibbsite, trace boehmite.

1.3 28.6 Mainly gibbsite, <1 percent

boehmite.

2.6 13.3 Mainly boehmite.

1.9 27.78 Mainly gibbsite, about 9 percent

of total A12O3 is in boehmite.

2.75 12.17 Mainly boehmite, some diaspora

3.3-3.5 30.6-31.0 83-86 percent gibbsite, 3.5-5.5

percent boehmite.

No data available.

2.5 23.9 Mainly gibbsite.

2-5 30-35 Nearly pure gibbsite.

Mainly boehmite, minor

gibbsite.

0.3-17 22-28 Mainly gibbsite, minor

boehmite.

2.1-3.5 24.6-30.5 Mainly gibbsite, <5 percent

boehmite.

1.2 Mainly gibbsite.

(U.S. Embassy, Jakarta, 

Indonesia, State 

Department Airgram A-51, 

May 19, 1978, 1 p.).
B6 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM 

TABLE 1.—Composition of typical bauxite used for aluminum—Continued

Major oxides, in percent

A1203 Si00 Fe020, W3 TiO0

Loss on ignition 

(LOI) Bauxite minerals

Jamaica ...............

(Bracewell, 1962, p. 115; 

Strahl, 1971, p. 66).

Suriname 

Onverdacht ...........

(Aleva, 1975, p. 259).

United States 

Arkansas1 ............

49.1-50.6 0.7-6.1 18.9-20.5 2.5-2.7 24.6-27.3

58.5-60.0 3.4-4.3 2.7-4.4 2.4-2.7 30.7-31.4

45-50 13 8 2.5-3 25±

U.S.S.R. .........

(Sidorenko, 1973).

Yugoslavia ..............

Titograd and Mostar 

(Mercier and Noble, 1974, 

p. 783-784).

Ranges broadly, 2-10 

mainly 45-55.

5-15

56-58 3-5 20-22 2.5-2.7 13.0

Mainly gibbsite, 7-10 percent 

boehmite.

Nearly pure gibbsite.

Gibbsite, SiO2 is mainly in 

kaolinite.

Most deposits are boehmite; 

some are mixed with diaspore; 

a few are gibbsitic.

Mainly boehmite; SiO2 is in 

kaolinite.

1Average composition estimated by U.S. Bureau of Mines (R. B. Stroud, written commun., 1979).

TABLE 2. Chemical composition of bauxite produced for refractory, abrasive, and chemical uses 

[All values except bulk specific gravity in percent. LOI, loss on ignition; max, maximum; min, minimum; , no data]

A1203 SiO0 Fe0O,,

Bulk

Total specific 

alkalies Moisture gravity

Australia (R. H. Roberts, 1977; Mining 

Magazine, 1974, p. 19; Harben, 1978, 

p. 57).

Weipa district Comalco 

Abrasive1 ..................... 82-84

Guinea (Harben, 1978, p. 57) 

Sangaredi district 

Abrasive1 ............. 88.06

Guyana (Lachmansingh and Nooten,

1977).

Guyana Bauxite Company 

Refractory1 

Typical ..................... 88.00

Guaranteed ................. 86.50 min

Berbice Mining Enterprise 

Refractory1 

Typical ..................... 89.00

Guaranteed ................. 86.50 min

Chemical2 

Typical ..................... 60.00

Guaranteed ................. 59.00 min

4.5-5.5 7-8

1.07 5.18

6.50 2.00 

7.50 max 2.50 max

5.25 2.00

7.50 max 2.50 max

4.50 1.00

6.00 max 1.25 max

3-5 0.44

4.19 .70

3.25 .25 

 .50 max

3.50 .25

.50 max

2.70 30.50 3.00 

5.00 max

3.15

3.05
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B7

TABLE 2.—Chemical composition of bauxite produced for refractory, abrasive, and chemical uses—Continued

' Bulk

Total Specific

Al.,0, Si00 Fe0OQ Ti00 LOI alkalies Moisture gravity £, o z z o ft

People's Republic of China

(Industrial Minerals, 1978c).

Refractory1 

Flint clay ..................... 46.62 51.20 0.87 .87 .10 0.15 — 1.55

Diaspore 50 ................... 52.80 43.40 1.42 1.90 .20 0.19 — 2.65

Diaspore 60 ................... 63.50 32.40 1.50 2.20 .15 0.20 — 2.70

Diaspore 70 ................... 72.34 22.56 1.40 2.92 .18 0.20 — 2.75

Bauxite, grade I ............... 87.50 6.00 1.50 3.70 .20 (3) — 3.10

Bauxite, grade II .............. 84.50 6.50 1.50 4.00 .20 (4) — 2.80

Abrasive1 

Typical ....................... 87.35 5.2 1.95 3.5 .50

Suriname 

Alcoa (Metal Bulletin, 1977)

(production ceased in 1984). 

Refractory1 

Typical ..................... 90.5 4.8 1.6 3.0 .10 — — 3.0-3.1

Guaranteed ................. 85.0 min — 2.5 max

Abrasive1 

Typical ..................... 87.0 3.5 5.2 3.3 1.0

Guaranteed ................. 85.0 min

N.V. Billiton Maatschappij Suriname 

(Aleva, 1975, p. 259; A. Brahim, 

written communication, 

March 1977). 

Chemical and refractory2 ........ 60.0 3.4 2.7 2.5 31.4

59.1 3.8 3.4 2.7 31.0

58.5 4.3 4.0 2.4 30.8

58.6 3.9 4.4 2.4 30.7 

Grade C-4 .................... 60.5 4.0 1.5 — — — 53.0

Grade C-5 .................... 59.0 5.0 1.5 5 2.75 30-31 — 53.0

Grade C-7 .................... 59.0 6.5 max 7 1.5 5 2.75 30-31 — 53.0

United States 

Andersonville district, Ga.

(Industrial Minerals, 1972, p. 19). 

Refractory1 

Mulcoa 45 .................. 46.0 51.4 0.9 1.5 — — — 2.65

Mulcoa 60 .................. 60.9 35.3 1.2 2.3 — — — 2.78

Mulcoa 70 .................. 70.9 24.1 1.4 3.0 — — — 2.85

Calcined. As shipped uncalcined; four analyses. 3K20+Na20=0.50 percent. 4K90+Na90=0.40 percent. 5Approximately.

and some of the diaspore bauxite produced in the People's Republic of China also have considerably more 

silica than refractory bauxite produced elsewhere (table 

2). Refractory bauxite from China also contains more 

alkalies and alkaline earths than most refractory bauxite (Wittmer, 1982). Iron oxide (Fe2O3) contents must 

be low for chemical and refractory bauxite grades, but 

considerably higher proportions can be tolerated in 

abrasive grades (table 2) because iron is removed in processing. A minimum of 3 percent titania (TiO2) is required in most bauxite prepared for abrasive use because 

this oxide influences the toughness of alumina crystals.

Bauxite used in aluminous cements varies considerably in composition. Silica contents must be low for applications requiring rapid hardening properties, whereas 

as much as 25 percent iron oxide may be beneficial (Industrial Minerals, 1974, p. 10). Alumina contents must 

be high in bauxite used for cement requiring resistance 

to high temperatures and chemical corrosion.

Most bauxite used as a flux in steel making must be 

high in A12O3 content (>50 percent) and low in SiO2 

content. The bauxite used for this purpose in India is 

as much as 10 percent Fe2O3, and contents of TiO2 are 

even higher (Kumar and others, 1977, table 9.39).
B8 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Proppants are a nonmetallic use of bauxite that has 

been developed in the last few years. They are materials used in hydraulic fracturing of deep rocks to increase porosity and thereby improve the recovery of 

petroleum and gas. Such materials as quartz sand, 

plastic balls, steel shot, and ground walnut shells are 

used, but proppants made of fused abrasive-grade 

bauxite have been found to be more effective in fracturing rocks penetrated in deep wells (Crittenden, 1983). 

The proppants are spherical particles resembling 

shotgun pellets. One company advertised three mesh 

sizes of sintered bauxite proppants: 12/30, 20/40, and 

40/70 mesh, which are approximately equivalent to very 

coarse to coarse, coarse to medium, and medium sand 

sizes.

Minor quantities of calcined bauxite are used in 

welding flux (Andrews, 1984, p. 61). Compositional 

specifications of the bauxite for this use are proprietary 

and relate to the residual water after calcination because 

hydrogen reduced from water in the welding arc may 

dissolve the molten metal and cause the weld to be 

brittle.

Activated bauxite has several uses. According to 

Andrews (1984, p. 62), activated bauxite is produced by 

low-temperature roasting, which drives off two of the 

three molecules of the combined water. This dehydration is reversible, and the activated bauxite readily 

takes up water. The property of recombining with water 

makes activated bauxite an excellent drying agent for 

gases and organic liquids. Activated bauxite is also used 

as an absorbent agent for other elements, as a catalyst, 

and for filtration.

The major share of the world's abrasive-grade bauxite is produced in the Weipa district, Australia, and the 

Sangaredi district, Guinea; refractory-grade bauxite is 

obtained from the People's Republic of China and 

Guyana (Everts, 1984, p. 89). Suriname formerly ranked 

with the leading producers of refractory and abrasive 

grades of bauxite, but Suralco ceased producing calcined bauxite early in 1984 (J.A. Everts, oral commun., 

1984) leaving N.V. Billiton Maatschappij Suriname, 

which ships uncalcined bauxite for nonmetallurgical 

uses, as the only producer. According to Lebauer (1983, 

p. 10), refractory bauxite in the People's Republic 

of China (P.R.C.) occurs in the provinces of Guizhou, 

Henan, Shanxi, Hebei, Guangxi, and Sichuan. The 

Chinese refractory bauxite added to the national 

stockpile in 1982 came from Shanxi and Guizhou provinces (Luke Baumgardner, oral commun., 1984). The 

reserves of refractory-grade bauxite in the P.R.C. are 

thought to be as much as 1 billion tons (Lebauer, 1983, 

p. 9), and Guyana is reported to have 525 million tons 

of refractory bauxite (Hinds, Ralph, and Pollard, 1983, 

p. 15).

EXPLORATION AND EVALUATION 

OF BAUXITE DEPOSITS

Bauxite exploration programs ordinarily begin with 

geologic studies to identify areas where conditions have 

been favorable for the formation of bauxite for laterite. 

To locate large laterite-type deposits in tropical regions, 

one must find old plateau areas. As adequate topographic maps were not available, one company found 

aerial photographs very useful in finding old plateaus 

in the Amazon basin (Greig, 1977, p. 3). Another company had success in using side-looking radar imagery 

in this same region (Dennen and Norton, 1977, p. 82). 

Many of the early bauxite discoveries were made by 

prospecting outcrops and tracing bauxite stream 

gravels to their source, and this method is still used in 

favorable terrain. Some deposits have been discovered 

by the recognition of the high alumina content of soils 

analyzed for other purposes. In several tropical countries, stunted or distinctive vegetation has served as 

a guide to the distribution of bauxite deposits near the 

surface, because tropical weathering processes that 

formed the bauxite also removed essential plant 

nutrients.

Geophysical methods ordinarily are not very successful in locating bauxite because of insufficient differences in the properties of the deposits and the 

associated rocks; however, the methods have been used 

in several countries. Surficial karst-type bauxite 

deposits on Vaghina Island in the South Pacific have 

a radioactive response and were located by an airborne 

scintillometer reconnaissance (Chapman and Evans, 

1979). Remote sensing of bauxite by satellite has been 

applied to bauxite exploration with some success 

(Henderson, Penfield, and Grubbs, 1984). The techniques used include shortwave infrared, visible, very 

near infrared, and thermal infrared. By use of these 

methods it has been possible to outline some of the 

general areas containing bauxite in Australia and West 

Kalimantan, Indonesia. The topography of the basement rocks underlying coastal plain sediments, which 

influences the distribution of bauxite in Guyana, was 

mapped by seismic methods (Greig, 1977). Airborne 

magnetometer surveys have been used in locating bauxite in Guyana (Bracewell, 1962, p. 20), and magnetometer, seismic, and gravity techniques would be 

useful in Suriname (Doeve and Groeneveld Meijer, 

1963), where the occurrence of bauxite is related to 

igneous and metamorphic rocks. Geophysical methods 

have also been applied in bauxite prospecting in 

Hungary (Ottlik and Szabadvary, 1971), the United 

States (in Arkansas; Thoenen, Malamphy, and Vallely, 1945), Guyana (E. Anderson, 1969), and other 

countries.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B9

After a bauxite deposit has been found, it is sampled 

by drill holes and test pits or trenches. Many different 

types of percussion and rotary drills and augers have 

been used in bauxite exploration (Shaffer, 1975, p. 454). 

Initial sampling is ordinarily done by widely spaced drill 

holes to determine the thickness and extent of deposits, 

and holes are spaced closer in later evaluations. For 

example, in the exploration of deposits on the Mitchell 

plateau, Australia, holes were drilled in a grid of 975 m 

in the early stages, and later the spacing of holes was 

reduced to 122 m where bauxite was found (Joklik, 

Jackson, and Zani, 1975). The final drilling in the Mount 

Saddleback district, Australia, was at intersections of 

a 100-m grid, and selected areas were drilled at 20-m 

intervals (Owen and Hargreaves, 1975, p. 990). The 

evaluation of the karst-type deposits requires a much 

tighter grid of drill holes than does evaluation of the 

laterite deposits because of the irregular shapes and 

thicknesses of the karst-type deposits. Test pits or 

trenches are necessary to study the detailed geology of 

deposits and to obtain bulk samples required for processing tests under conditions similar to those in a Bayer 

plant.

Evaluation of bauxite deposits requires many chemical analyses and mineralogical determinations, and 

several methods are used. Some of these methods are 

designed for use in the field in reconnaissance work or 

in preliminary evaluations. Others, requiring sophisticated laboratories, are used for more accurate results 

and for scientific studies.

Some of the rapid methods that are used in the field 

or in partly equipped laboratories are based on measurement of weight loss and other changes taking place 

when bauxite is heated (Schellmann, 1974). Roy Chowdhury and Anandalwar (1964) and Pollard and Barron 

(1955) have applied loss on ignition as a guide in 

estimating the quantity of trihydrate bauxite. A thermogravimetric apparatus designed by Van Essen and 

others (1971) is also reported to be reasonably accurate 

for determining the quantity of gibbsite in bauxite. 

Portable differential-thermal-analysis (DTA) equipment 

is satisfactory for preliminary identification of minerals 

in bauxite (Hendricks, Goldich, and Nelson, 1946; Park, 

Hathaway, and Blackmon, 1956). More sensitive 

laboratory DTA apparatus is used for more refined and 

scientific studies of bauxite (Mackenzie, 1957; Jonas 

and Solymar, 1970).

A semimobile laboratory was designed by an aluminum company for use in the Amazon. It has specialized equipment ordinarily found only in well-equipped 

permanent laboratories including an atomic-absorption 

spectrophotometer, a photoelectric colorimeter and a 

rotating heat-pressure digestion system (Mining Engineering, 1971a). A neutron-activation probe developed

by Allan B. Tanner, Robert M. Moxham, and Frank E. 

Senftle of the U.S. Geological Survey and J.A. Baicker 

of the Princeton Gamma Tech Corporation (Tanner and 

others, 1972) may prove useful in exploration. This 

probe, when lowered down a drill hole, will provide semiquantitative determinations of the aluminum in the 

wallrock. Information on the content of titanium, iron, 

and other possible constituents in the bauxite might 

also be obtained by this method.

Standard pressure-temperature wet-chemical 

analyses are made in most bauxite exploration programs (Shaffer, 1975, p. 454; Greig, 1977), but several 

other analytical methods are also used. In the chemical 

method, bauxite samples are commonly analyzed for 

alumina, silica, iron oxide, titania, and loss on ignition. 

Available alumina, the alumina that can be recovered 

by the Bayer process, and reactive silica, the silica that 

combines with alumina and soda in the Bayer process, 

are also frequently determined. X-ray emission spectrography (Adler, 1966; Rose, Adler, and Flanagan, 

1963; Tertian, Fagot, and Jamey, 1964) and neutronactivation analysis (Dugain and Tatar, 1970; Weisse, 

Mannweiler, and Rybach, 1978) are efficient methods 

for determining several elements. X-ray diffraction 

(Rooksby, 1961; R.H. Black, 1953; Strahl, 1977; 

Bardossy and others, 1980) is probably the most reliable 

method of determining the mineral composition of bauxite, but infrared techniques (Frederickson, 1954; J.L. 

White, 1974; Solymar and J6nas, 1974), the electron 

microscope (Remizov, 1966; Bardossy, Vassel, and 

Arkossy, 1975; Bardossy, Csanady, and Csordas, 1978), 

and the electron probe (Bardossy and Pant6,1971) are 

also used. A computerized method used by one company 

for organizing the results of mineral identification by 

X-ray diffraction and analysis by X-ray emission and 

for tabulating thicknesses for reserve estimates was 

described by Strahl (1977,1982). An atomic-absorption 

spectrometer is used for analysis of samples taken during exploration and for plant processing control at 

Weipa, Australia (R.H. Roberts, 1977, p. 8).

MINING METHODS

Open-pit mining accounts for all the bauxite mined 

in the United States and 80-90 percent of the world 

bauxite production. In Arkansas, draglines, scrapers, 

shovels, and trucks are used in stripping operations. 

Stripping ratios as high as 10 m of overburden to 1 m of 

ore are common, and a ratio of 13 to 1 is the maximum 

considered feasible. Several pits in Arkansas have been 

mined to depths of more than 30 m, and about 66 m is 

the present economic limit for large ore bodies. The pits 

stand well for unconsolidated rocks, but slumping does
BIO GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

take place. Deeper flat-lying ore was recovered by 

Reynolds Mining Corp. in Arkansas by an underground 

method of room-and-pillar mining along a retreating 

cave line, but this company ceased underground operations in 1976.

In Jamaica, the bauxite deposits lie close to the surface, and the overburden of vegetation and topsoil is 

easily stripped. The ore usually requires no blasting. 

Shovels, draglines, and end-loaders are used to load the 

ore. Haulage is by truck, railroad, or aerial tramline to 

alumina plants or port facilities. In Suriname and 

Guyana, as much as 60 m is stripped by draglines, 

scrapers, or bucket wheel excavators. The ore is loaded 

into trucks by power shovels, backhoes, and draglines. 

In some districts the bauxite is trucked to stockpiles 

near the mines and is reloaded onto trams for haulage 

to plants.

At Weipa, Australia, bulldozers and scrapers remove 

the overburden. Front-end loaders, each mining in excess of 500 tons per hour, then load the free-flowing 

pisolitic ore onto trucks for a short haul to a beneficiating plant for sizing and washing. At the Del Park 

deposits in the Darling Range of Western Australia, 

forest clearing and overburden removal is followed by 

blasting of the hardcap, which comprises the top meter 

or two of the bauxite deposits. Front-end loaders load 

dump trucks for haulage to a mobile crushing plant. 

Bauxite is carried from the crusher to an alumina plant 

on a belt system 6.5 km long. The deposits mined for 

the Boke project in Guinea are under little overburden 

but require blasting. Loosened ore is loaded by large 

electric shovels directly onto rail cars for shipment 

137 km to a treatment plant and port at Kamsar. 

Underground mining accounts for most of the French 

and Hungarian bauxite production and is widely used 

in other parts of Europe, including the U.S.S.R. Roomand-pillar and various stoping methods are used.

Kriging and other geostatistical methods, some of 

which are computerized, are now applied to bauxite 

reserve calculations and mine planning (see several 

papers in the symposium volume published by the 

Geological Society of Jamaica, 1982).

BAUXITE PROCESSING

Bauxite treatment is usually confined to crushing, 

washing, and drying operations. Most of the bauxites 

that are mined do not require the more costly beneficiation techniques used on some other metal ores. Moreover, most impurities, such as the iron, silicon, and 

titanium, are commonly so finely dispersed in the bauxite that they cannot readily be separated by physical 

methods. Many bauxites are upgraded, however, by

washing or wet screening to remove sand and some of 

the clay minerals. Heavy-media separation and jigging 

have been used to separate iron minerals. In Arkansas, 

siderite has been removed by using spiral concentrators 

and magnetic separators.

Metallurgical and chemical grades of bauxite that 

must be transported appreciable distances are dried 

before shipment. Because crude bauxite may contain 

10-30 percent free moisture, drying results in considerable savings in freight. Drying also facilitates the 

handling of bauxite; the degree to which a specific bauxite is dried depends in part on its handling and dusting 

characteristics. Bauxite in Suriname is dried to 3-6 percent moisture, whereas Jamaican bauxite is shipped 

with about 15 percent moisture. Bauxite for use in 

refractories and abrasives must be calcined to remove 

both the chemically combined water and free moisture. 

Bauxite drying to reduce free moisture is done in kilns 

at about 300 °C. Calcined bauxite is processed by 

heating at 900-1600 °C to reduce total volatile matter, 

including water combined in hydroxyl form in the ore, 

to less than 1 percent. About 2 tons of crude ore are 

required to produce 1 ton of calcined bauxite.

ALUMINA PRODUCTION

Although research on alumina extraction from 

various mineral raw materials has continued for many 

years, virtually all the commercially produced alumina 

is obtained by a process patented by Karl Bayer in 1888 

(German Patent 43,977) for use on bauxite. The Bayer 

process involves a caustic leach of the bauxite, at 

elevated temperature and pressure, followed by separation of the resulting sodium aluminate solution and 

selective precipitation of the aluminum as the hydrated 

aluminum oxide (A12O3 • 3H2O).

Two major variations of the Bayer process are used. 

Though leaching conditions vary from plant to plant, 

the European process, which is applied to boehmitic 

bauxite, operates at higher pressures and temperatures, 

at stronger caustic concentrations, and for longer 

periods than the American variation, which is designed 

to treat gibbsitic ore (table 3). The American process 

also requires less evaporation and lower temperatures.

In both the European and American processes, the 

pregnant solution is separated from the insoluble red 

mud tailings by filtration when very high alumina bauxites are used and by countercurrent decantation and 

filtration when the bauxite processed contains only 

moderate or low percentages of alumina. The liquor is 

cooled until it becomes supersaturated and then is 

seeded with crystals of aluminum trihydrate. The 

alumina in solution is precipitated as the trihydrate,
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES Bll

TABLE 3.—Approximate leaching conditions of the European and 

American Bayer processes

Pressure, in grams per 

square centimeter. .

Temperature

Caustic concentration, 

in grams per liter. .

European American

15,000 4,000

200 °C 145 °C

Digestion time, in hours.

400

2-8

170 

0.5-1

filtered, and washed. Caustic soda is regenerated in the 

precipitation step and, together with the unprecipitated 

alumina, is recycled to the digesters. The filtered and 

washed alumina trihydrate is calcined for use in making metal. A portion of the washed alumina may be left 

in the trihydrate form for chemical uses or may be further processed under controlled conditions to produce 

a variety of chemical aluminas, such as activated or 

tabular alumina for uses other than metal.

The red mud contains Fe2O3 , TiO2, SiO2, and a complex sodium aluminum silicate compound which represents a loss of both alumina and soda. For this reason, 

ore containing more than 8 percent SiO2 is usually 

uneconomic for treatment by the Bayer process. Approximately 1.1 units (weight unit) of alumina and 1.2 

units of soda (expressed as Na2CO3) are lost for each 

unit of reactive silica in the ore in addition to soda losses 

in the washed mud. The loss of soda must be made up 

by addition of caustic soda or soda ash and lime to the 

spent leach solution to bring it up to the appropriate 

caustic concentration before it is recycled.

The materials other than bauxite required in the 

Bayer process are caustic soda or the equivalent soda 

ash and lime; starch, to aid settling and filtering; and 

oil, gas, or coal, chiefly for producing steam and calcining alumina. The use of caustic soda has generally 

replaced the use of soda ash and lime, although some 

lime is still used to recausticize spent caustic leach 

solution.

Bauxite containing more than 8 percent silica may be 

treated by the combination process developed by Alcoa. 

In this process, bauxite containing 12-15 percent silica 

is first subjected to a Bayer leach. The resulting red 

mud, containing the complex sodium aluminum silicate 

compound, is sintered with limestone and soda ash then 

leached with water to recover alumina and soda. The 

insoluble residue (brown mud) resulting from leaching 

the sintered material has a composition somewhat 

similar to that of portland cement.

The additional cost required in capital investment, 

raw materials, and processing by the combination 

method is partly offset by higher recoveries of alumina 

and soda. Mining costs are reduced and reserves are 

increased because high-silica bauxite, regarded as unsuitable for alumina production by the straight Bayer 

process, can be used. The upper limit of silica in bauxite processed by the combination method is about 

15 percent. However, in practice, bauxite containing 

some clay and as much as 25 percent silica is mined and 

blended with low-silica ore in proportions that will give 

a feed material of approximately 12-13 percent silica. 

The combination process is used in the two plants in 

Arkansas and in plants in the U.S.S.R.

In 1952, the American Bayer process was modified 

to treat the high-iron, low-silica bauxite of Jamaica. The 

major modifications resulted from the need to avoid difficulties in filtration of the red-mud slurry and from the 

presence of both boehmite and gibbsite in the ore.

The removal of iron and titanium oxides by highintensity magnetic separation has been shown to be 

workable in beneficiating some bauxites (Murray and 

Walker, 1979; lannicelli, 1984). The method is capable 

of upgrading bauxite from Arkansas and Suriname to 

meet specifications for refractory-grade bauxite.

BYPRODUCTS

The world's gallium requirements are now believed 

to be a little more than 16,000 kg annually (U.S. Bureau 

of Mines, 1985). Gallium to meet these needs is 

recovered as byproducts, and most of the gallium produced is recovered during the extraction of alumina 

from bauxite. Gallium is recovered from bauxite in West 

Germany, France, Hungary, People's Republic of China, 

and Japan. The Aluminum Company of America formerly produced gallium from bauxite in Arkansas, but 

in 1982 supplied this metal only from stocks (Petkof, 

1982) and apparently has no plans to reactivate production. The reported consumption of gallium in the United 

States in 1984 was estimated to be approximately 

7,000 kg (U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1985, p. 52).

The chemistry of gallium is similar to that of aluminum, and apparently gallium substitutes for aluminum 

in bauxite minerals in variable quantities (table 8). The 

percentages of gallium in several types of bauxite consumed in the United States (Hudson, 1965, table 1) are 

as follows: domestic ore—0.0070, Caribbean 

bauxite—0.0039, and Suriname bauxite—0.0074. In the 

Bayer process, gallium oxide is dissolved along with the 

aluminum hydroxide. The gallium is concentrated in the 

process liquor, from which it can be recovered. Gallium 

that is not extracted is lost in the alumina and red mud
B12 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

residue. Inasmuch as gallium is not recovered in most 

alumina plants, the potential for much greater recovery 

exists. Because it is practical to recover gallium only 

as a byproduct, the quantity available from the very 

large gallium resources in world bauxite deposits will 

be limited by the amount of bauxite processed for 

alumina.

Bauxite at the Boddington mine, Mt. Saddleback 

district, Western Australia, has been found to contain 

3-3.5 g/ton of gold (Engineering and Mining Journal, 

1985). Plans to construct a cyanide leach carbon-in-pulp 

plant to recover 165,000 troy ounces of this gold per 

year were in an advanced stage when this report was 

completed. According to the plan, tailings from the gold 

plant were to be stockpiled and used to supply an 

alumina plant.

Metals other than gallium and a few nonmetallic compounds are concentrated during the weathering processes that form bauxite. Some of these materials have 

been recovered during the processing of bauxite, and 

the recovery of others has been considered. Pig iron was 

recovered in a plant processing bauxite by the Pedersen 

process at ttyyanger, Norway, from 1928 to 1964 (Miller 

and Irgens, 1974). Vanadium and gallium are recovered 

as byproducts of bauxite in Hungary (Miskei, Toth, and 

Bogardi, 1978). Vanadium and chromium were 

recovered as byproducts of bauxite processing in Germany during World War II, and vanadium was recovered occasionally from bauxite in France (Bracewell, 

1962, p. 59-60). Studies have been made of the potential for recovering vanadium and a phosphate fertilizer, 

as well, from bauxite in India containing 0.05-0.10 percent V2O5 and 0.10-0.20 percent P2O5 (Bhattacharyya, 

1977). A sample of sludge precipitated from caustic 

liquor from a Bayer plant at Muri, India, contained 

1.92 percent V2O5 and 1.75 percent P2O5.

The high titanium content of bauxite has long attracted attention to that metal as a potential byproduct 

(Calhoun, 1950). To date, attempts to recover it have 

been unsuccessful because most titanium in bauxite is 

in the 325-mesh fraction (45 /on) and, therefore, is difficult to concentrate. Moreover, titanium is unaffected 

by the alkaline digestion process used in alumina extraction, and it is concentrated in the red-mud waste.

A significant untapped potential exists for the 

recovery of byproducts from the large quantities of redmud wastes generated at Bayer-process alumina plants. 

This material is ordinarily impounded in red-mud lakes 

near plants. The average quantity of red mud produced 

is probably about 1 ton of solids (dry basis) for each ton 

of alumina extracted. However, the amount varies 

greatly depending on the type of bauxite and the process used. For example, the extraction of 1 ton of alumina 

produces about 0.3 ton of red mud when Suriname-type

bauxite is the raw material and 2.0 tons when the 

Arkansas type is processed. The byproduct potentials 

exist because several metallic and other elements are 

concentrated as most of the alumina, the major component of bauxite, is removed. The recovery and sale 

of byproducts would lead to bonus profits and would 

reduce waste disposal problems. Red-mud disposal is 

a major environmental concern as well as a significant 

cost in the production of alumina.

A great deal of research has been done on the utilization of red mud. The U.S. Bureau of Mines (Fursman 

and others, 1970) has investigated methods of producing alumina, iron, titania, and portland cement from this 

waste material. A thorough assessment of the technology for possible mud uses was completed by the 

Battelle Memorial Institute for the U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency (Parekh and Goldberger, 1976). 

Much of the research is either outlined or referred to 

in reports by Fursman and others (1970) and Parekh 

and Goldberger (1976), and much of the research in Europe is either described or referenced in the publications 

of the International Committee for Studies of Bauxites, 

Oxides, and Hydroxides of Aluminium (ICSOBA). All 

this research and testing notwithstanding, only minor 

uses of red mud have been found, and the assessment 

by Battelle concludes that the technology required for 

significant use of red mud is yet to be developed.

The composition of red mud ranges broadly (table 4) 

because of variations in bauxite composition, in additives during processing, and in efficiency of alumina 

recovery. The alumina unrecovered in processing, as 

well as the abundant iron in typical red muds, is a 

tempting potential byproduct. The titania content of 

mud is appreciably higher than that of beach sand, the 

principal ore for this metal or oxide in the United States 

and elsewhere (Hartman, 1959, p 1402). Titania contents 

of some muds, such as those at one plant in India, are 

as much as 22.6 percent (Kumar and others, 1977, 

p. 318), which is considerably higher than titanium contents in mud at U.S. plants.

Calcium contents of mud are high at plants processing bauxite from Arkansas by the combination process 

because limestone is added at the sintering stage. The

TABLE 4.—Ranges of major-oxide contents in red muds on a dry basis 

[All values in weight percent]

Source of 

bauxite ALOQ Fe0O,, Si00 Ti00 CaO Na2°

Jamaica .... 13-22 43-53

Suriname . . 15-20 25-33

Arkansas1 . . 6-9 7-11

2-7 6-7

8-16 8-12

12-24 3-5

5-8 1-6

3-12 4-10

39-47 2-6

1Red mud from Arkansas is commonly called brown mud.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B13

limestone and the low iron content cause the mud to 

be brown rather than red, but it is the same general type 

of plant waste. The high calcium content of this mud 

is apparently the principal reason it has been tested as 

a building and road-construction material and as a soil 

conditioner.

Some of the possible uses of red mud that have been 

investigated, in addition to those mentioned above, include the following: (1) construction materials such as 

lightweight aggregate, building blocks and brick, landfill, and pozzolans for cement; (2) products using the absorptive and neutralizing properties of dry red mud in 

the abatement of pollutants from both gaseous and 

liquid effluents from industrial and municipal wastes; 

(3) fillers for such products as plastics and resins; (4) 

pigments for concrete, glass, and paint; and (5) flux in 

steel making, presumably to substitute for fluorspar.

Many minor elements are concentrated in red mud 

because they tend to occur in minerals that are inert 

during plant processing, and such elements are therefore potential byproducts. The red mud produced from 

Arkansas bauxite contains as much as 0.2 kg of thorium 

per dry ton and as much as 40 ppm uranium (Adams 

and Richardson, 1960, p. 1672, table 7), and it is considerably enriched in zirconium. Niobium makes up an 

average of 0.05 percent of the Arkansas bauxite (Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis, 1958, p. 99; Fleischer and others, 

1952) but is difficult to recover (Nieberlein and others, 

1954). Logomerac (1969) found concentrations of 

niobium, zirconium, uranium, and rare-earth elements 

such as lanthanum and yttrium as well as scandium, 

germanium, and hafnium in red mud in Suriname, and 

he suggested that recovery of many of these elements 

is feasible. In a later report (Logomerac, 1974), he noted 

that similar concentrations occur in other bauxites.

UNITED STATES AND 

WORLD BAUXITE PRODUCTION

Aluminum was extracted from bauxite in both France 

and England in the middle of the 19th century, but only 

small quantities of bauxite were needed for the less than 

50 tons of this metal produced by 1885 (Fox, 1932, 

p. 230). World production increased steadily in the late 

1800's and early 1900's, but the yearly demand for 

bauxite did not reach 1 million tons until 1917, when 

demand was influenced by World War I. World production of bauxite dropped after the war to a low of 318,000 

tons in 1921. A yearly production of 2 million tons was 

first reached in 1928. World production again dropped 

in the depression years of the early 1930's but recovered 

as World War II approached and reached a peak of nearly 14 million tons in 1943 (table 5, fig. 1). Production

again slumped sharply after the war as the economy adjusted to peacetime conditions and accumulated stocks 

were consumed. After recovering from this slump, annual world bauxite production exceeded 10 million tons 

in 1951, 20 million tons in 1958, 50 million tons in 1969, 

and 80 million tons in 1977. Between 1951 and 1977, 

world production declined only in 1963 and 1975, and 

it showed an average annual growth rate of 8.1 percent.

Bauxite production in the United States remained 

below 1 million tons annually until very intensive mining was started in 1942 to meet World War II requirements; a record production of 6.3 million tons was 

reached in 1943 (fig. 1). Domestic production has remained between 1.1 million and 2.2 million tons per year 

from 1946 to 1982.

France was the world's leading bauxite-producing 

country during most of the years from the time bauxite was first produced in the 19th century through 1939, 

except for the period from 1915 to 1923, when the 

United States was the leader. The United States again 

became the leading producer during World War II and 

held that position between 1942 and 1945. Bauxite production in both the United States and France dropped 

below 2 million tons in 1978 and has continued to decline 

since that date. Suriname was the leading producer for 

10 consecutive years, beginning in 1947. Jamaica, which 

did not produce bauxite until 1952, produced the most 

bauxite of any country in 1957 and continued to be the 

leader until 1971, when Australia took the lead (table 6). 

Australia increased production from less than 100,000 

tons in 1962 to 27.583 million tons by 1979, when it accounted for nearly one-third of the world's output. The 

two countries producing the next largest amounts of 

bauxite in recent years have been Guinea and Jamaica, 

each producing between 8 million and 15 million tons 

annually. Suriname and the U.S.S.R. have each produced 3 million-6 million tons per year, and Hungary, 

Greece, Guyana, Yugoslavia, France, and the United 

States have all exceeded 2 million tons per year. Countries in which major expansion of bauxite production 

is expected to take place in the next decade include 

Australia, Brazil, Guinea, India, and Venezuela, and 

possibly Cameroon, People's Republic of China, Ghana, 

Greece, and Indonesia.

Guyana, which has calcining capacity of nearly 1.1 

million tons a year (Lachmansingh and Nooten, 1977, 

p. 7-8), is the leading producer of high-grade bauxite 

for nonmetallurgical uses. Guyana exports both refractory and chemical grades. Two companies in Suriname 

produced bauxite used for refractories, abrasives, and 

chemicals (Industrial Minerals, 1974, p. 13). One producer in the Weipa district, Queensland, Australia, has 

an annual calcining capacity for abrasive-grade bauxite of 250,000 tons (R.H. Roberts, 1977, p. 11-12). The
B14 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

TABLE 5.— United States and world bauxite production, 1900-83 

[All values in thousands of metric tons]

Year

1900 .................

1901 .................

1902 .................

1903 .................

1904 .................

1905 .................

1906 .................

1907 .................

1908 .................

1909 .................

1910 .................

1911 .................

1912 .................

1913 .................

1914 .................

1915 .................

1916 .................

1917 .................

1918 .................

1919 .................

1920 .................

1921 .................

1922 .................

1923 .................

1924 .................

1925 .................

1926 .................

1927 .................

1928 .................

1929 .................

1930 .................

1931 .................

1932 .................

1933 .................

1934 .................

1935 .................

1936 .................

1937 .................

1938 .................

1939 .................

1940 .................

1941 .................

Preliminary. 

2Estimated.

United States

............... 23

............... 19

............... 27

4Q

............... 49

............... 49

............... 76

............... 100

............... 53

............... 131

............... 151

............... 159

............... 163

............... 214

............... 223

............... 302

............... 432

............... 578

............... 615

............... 383

............... 530

.............. 142

............... 315

............... 531

............... 353

............... 322

.............. 399

............... 326

............... 381

............... 372

.............. 336

1QQ

............... 98

.............. 157

.............. 172

949

.............. 386

.............. 432

.............. 316

.............. 381

.............. 446

QCO

World

88

105

i QQ

189

133

159

901

O CO

243

274

356

49fi

436

eqq

236

322

700

1028

817

569

Qftl

qi o

702

11 QQ

1153

1383

1375

1878

2031

2148

1630

1143

iftftft

1096

1325

1770

2830

3740

3870

4340

4390

6110

Year

1942 ..............

1943 ..............

1944 ..............

1945 ..............

1946 ..............

1Q47

1948 ..............

1Q4Q

1950 ..............

1951 ..............

1952 ..............

1953 ..............

1954 ..............

1955 ..............

1956 ..............

1957 ..............

1958 ..............

1959 ..............

1960 ..............

IQfil

1962 ..............

1 QCO

1964 ..............

1965 ..............

1966 ..............

1 QR7

IQfifi

1 QCQ

1Q70

1Q71

1972 ..............

1070

1Q74

1Q7K

1976 ..............

1Q77

1978 ..............

1070

1980 ..............

1 QQ1 1

1Qon2

1 QQO2

United States

................. .2644

................. .6333

................. .2860

.................. 997

................. .1122

................. .1221

................. .1481

................. .1167

................. .1356

................. .1878

................. .1694

................. .1605

................. .2027

................. .1817

................. .1772

................. .1439

................. .1332

................. .1727

................. .2030

................. .1248

................. .1391

................. .1549

................. .1627

................. .1681

................. .1825

................. .1681

................. .1692

................. .1873

................. .2115

................. .2020

................. .1841

................. .1909

................. .1980

................. .1801

................. .1989

................. .2013

................. .1669

................. .1821

................. .1559

................. .1510

.................. 732

fi7Q

World

8360

13970

6950

3430

4350

6320

8360

8230

8170

10840

12750

13780

16100

17300

18400

19900

20700

22300

26500

27800

29500

29000

32100

36000

39200

43300

44700

51600

57500

62800

65600

70900

79600

74800

77800

82400

81000

85400

89100

85500

77793

76016

People's Republic of China exports 100,000-150,000 

tons of refractory-grade and abrasive-grade bauxite a 

year. Other countries producing bauxite for nonmetallurgical uses include Guinea, France, Greece, Hungary, 

Turkey, and Yugoslavia. In the United States, bauxite 

used in refractories is produced in the Eufaula, Ala., 

Andersonville, Ga., and Arkansas districts, and 

deposits have been mined for abrasives and chemicals 

in Arkansas.

GEOLOGY OF BAUXITE 

CLASSIFICATION OF DEPOSITS

Bauxite deposits occur in a variety of geologic 

situations and geometric configurations, and many different classifications have been proposed. Several of 

these classifications are discussed in the following 

sections.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B15

WORLD PRODUCTIO

1935 1940 1950 1960 1970

YEARS 

FIGURE 1.—World bauxite production, 1935-83, showing contributions from different regions.

Laterite-Karst or Silicate-Carbonate Classification

The most widely used method of classification in 

Europe and other countries is to assign all bauxites to 

either karst or laterite types; this classification was used 

by Valeton (1972) and Bushinskiy (1975) among others. 

Laterite-type bauxite deposits are the very large 

blanket deposits formed mainly by surficial weathering 

in tropical regions. The karst-type deposits are concentrated in solution depressions in carbonate rock.

Because of their geographic distribution and associations with other rocks, karst deposits are also referred 

to as the terra rossa, limestone, French, or Mediterranean types (Zans, 1961). This two-fold classification was 

modified by Schellmann (1975), who replaced the terms 

"laterite" by "silicate" and "karst" by "carbonate." 

The basis for this usage is his idea that all silicate bauxite formed by lateritic weathering of siliceous rocks and 

all carbonate bauxite deposits are associated with 

limestone or dolomite. A problem with this classification
B16 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

TABLE 6.—World production of 

[From U.S. Bureau of Mines records. Minor production in Austria, West Germany,

Year

1961 ...............

1962 ...............

1963 ...............

1964 ...............

1965 ...............

1966 ...............

1967 ...............

1968 ...............

1969 ...............

1970 ...............

1971 ...............

1972 ...............

1973 ...............

1974 ...............

1975 ...............

1976 ...............

1977 ...............

1978 ...............

1979 ...............

1980 ...............

198P ..............

1982P ..............

1983e ..............

Australia

16

30

360

796

1,186

.... 1,827

4,244

4,955

.... 7,921

9,256

12,733

.... 14,437

17,596

19,994

21,003

24,084

.... 26,086

.... 24,293

27,583

27,178

.... 25,541

.... 23,621

24,500

Brazil

111

191

170

132

188

250

303

285

351

510

566

765

849

858

969

827

1,120

1,160

2,388

5,538

5,770

6,289

7,000

Dominican

Republic

3749

34717

34773

34760

34942

34833

34983

34994

31,093

31,067

341,088

341,035

341,145

341,210

34754

34627

34576

34568

635

606

457

141

—

France

2,225

2,195

2,029

2,433

2,664

2,811

2,813

2,713

2,797

2,992

3,184

3,402

2,970

2,,855

2,563

102,330

102,059

101,978

1,969

1,921

1,827

1,662

1,716

Ghana

204

243

314

250

319

323

351

285

246

342

329

340

310

363

320

272

244

328

214

225

181

64

63

Greece

1,120

1,287

1,277

1,047

1,270

1,371

1,659

1,836

1,948

2,292

2,861

2,408

2,748

2,783

3,006

2,551

2,88

2,663

2,812

3,286

3,216

2,853

2,900

Guinea

1,767

1,468

1,664

1,678

1,870

1,609

1,639

2,117

2,459

2,490

2,630

2,050

e3,660

7,600

8,406

10,848

10,841

5 11,627

5 11,326

5 11,862

5 11,112

311 11,827

11,080

Guyana

2,412

2,763

2,380

2,518

2,919

3,358

3,381

33,722

34,306

34,417

33,920

33,344

33,276

e33,250

e33,250

e 32,686

e32,731

32,425

32,312

31,844

31,681

1,430

"1,791

Haiti

3267

3442

3384

9437

9383

9361

359

5446

5665

5632

5643

5687

5743

5659

5522

5660

5588

4580

4584

4312

4427

4ii377

—

Hungary

1,366

1,473

1,363

1,477

1,477

1,429

1,650

1,959

1,934

2,022

2,090

2,358

2,600

2,751

2,890

2,918

2,949

2,899

2,976

2,950

2,914

"2,627

"2,917

India

476

587

567

593

707

750

804

961

1,085

1,374

1,517

1,684

1,297

1,114

1,274

1,449

1,519

1,663

1,952

1,785

1,923

"1,854

"1,923

eEstimate. pPreliminary.

Bone dry equivalent of bauxite shipments and bauxite converted into alumina. 

2May include 124,300 metric tons of cement-grade bauxite. 

3Dry bauxite equivalent of crude ore. 

4Shipments. 

5Dry bauxite equivalent of ore processed by drying plants.

Bauxite processed for conversion to alumina in Jamaica plus exports of kiln-dried ore. 

7Data shown include only bauxite (diasporic) for aluminum manufacture; in addition 100,000 to 200,000 tons were produced each year for refractories.

is that, although either the laterite-karst or silicatecarbonate classification can be applied to most of the 

world's bauxite, a few important deposits cannot be 

assigned to these classes (Bardossy, 1979). Transported 

deposits in Arkansas, Suriname, Guyana, Guinea, and 

small ones elsewhere are neither laterite nor karst, and 

the type of parent rock of some of them is unknown. 

Also, earthy red surficial deposits on carbonate rock, 

such as the large deposits in Jamaica, are both laterite 

and karst types of bauxite. A weakness of the silicatecarbonate division is that it is based on composition of 

the parent rock rather than on composition of the 

mineral deposit itself, which is the basis for naming 

most ores.

Classification Based on Shapes and Occurrences

A classification based on shapes and occurrences of 

bauxite deposits was used by Harder and Greig (1960).

A modification of this classification organized the 

varied kinds of bauxite deposits into blanket, interlayer, 

and pocket types (fig. 2).

Blanket deposits.—Blanket deposits occur at or near 

the surface and consist of a flat-lying layer of variable 

thickness and extent. Most blanket deposits are residual, having formed from underlying alumina-silicatebearing rocks of varying types, and only a few contain 

transported material. Many blanket deposits occur on 

old plateaus and plains formed during late stages of 

geomorphic cycles, representing long periods of stable 

geologic conditions. Typical bauxite in blanket deposits 

is high in iron and is of the type referred to as aluminous 

laterite (Fox, 1932). Several of the very large bauxite 

deposits in the world are of the aluminous-laterite 

blanket type, including extensive deposits in Australia 

(fig. 2F), Africa, South America, and India (fig. 2E). 

Low-iron blanket deposits form locally and contain very 

high grade bauxite. Blanket deposits also overlie 

nepheline syenite in Arkansas and elsewhere (fig. 2B, C).
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B17

bauxite by countries, 1961-83

Mozambique, Pakistan, Spain, and Zimbabwe not included. Thousands of metric tons]

Indonesia

420

461

493

648

688

701

920

879

765

1,229

1,238

1,276

1,229

1,290

993

940

1,301

1,008

1,052

1,249

1,203

n704

750

Italy

327

309

269

247

244

255

242

216

216

225

191

97

50

32

32

24

35

24

26

23

19

n24

24

Jamaica

36,770

37,615

3 7,014

1 37,936

138,651

1 39,062

1 39,396

38,526

10,499

6 12,010

6 12,440

6 12,543

6 13,600

3615,328

6 11,571

610,296

6 1 1,390

6 11,739

6 11,618

612,054

6 1 1,682

3 U8,361

7,300

Malaya People's 

and Republic 

Sarawak of China6 Romania

674

584

609

632

994

956

900

799

1,073

1,139

978

1,076

1,143

947

704

660

616

615

387

920

701

U589

460

400

400

400

7400

7400

7400

7 350

7380

7450

7500

7 550

7 550

7 760

7970

990

1,300

1,500

1,500

1,500

1,500

1,500

1,500

1,500

69

30

10

e?

e !2

e !5

e !5

e20

e50

304

e305

e305

e345

858

779

680

702

708

708

e710

e712

680

600

Sierra 

Leone

——

——

e30

153

207

272

342

470

454

440

590

694

693

672

716

651

745

716

672

766

e610

U606

600

Suriname

3,453

3,297

3,438

3,993

4,360

5,563

5,466

5,658

5,450

6,022

6,718

7,777

7,110

e6,706

4,928

4,613

4,805

5,188

5,010

4,646

4,100

U3,059

1,750

Turkey

——

——

——

4

10

32

21

——

2

51

153

471

352

665

631

461

567

449

e350

533

575

U508

U296

United 

States 1

1,248

1,391

1,549

1,627

1,681

1,825

1,681

1,692

1,873

2,115

2,020

1,841

1,909

1,980

1,801

1,989

2,013

1,669

1,821

1,559

1,510

U732

U697

U.S.S.R.6

2,500

2,600

2,600

3,000

3,200

3,300

3,600

83,700

83,800

84,000

84,100

84,200

8 4,300

84,300

8 4,400

84,500

84,600

84,600

84,600

84,600

84,600

84,600

84,600

Yugoslavia

1,232

1,332

1,285

1,293

1,574

1,887

2,131

2,072

2,128

2,098

1,958

2,197

2,167

2,370

2,306

2,033

2,044

2,565

3,012

3,138

3,249

U3,668

U3,500

World 

total2

27,800

29,500

29,000

32,100

36,000

39,200

43,300

44,700

51,600

57,500

62,800

65,600

70,900

79,600

74,800

77,400

81,900

81,000

85,400

89,100

85,500

77,793

76,016

8Excludes materials other than bauxite used for the production of alumina, estimated as follows in thousand metric tons: nepheline concentrates (25-30% 

aluminum), 1968—1,000,1969—1,000,1970—400,1971—1,100,1972—1,700,1973—2,200,1974-3,000,1975—3,400,1976-3,500,1977—3,600; ahmite ore (16-18% 

aluminum), 1970-200, 1971—400, 1972-500, 1973-600, 1974-600, 1975-600, 1976—600, 1977—600.

Quantities shown include about 14% moisture.

10Includes bauxite identified as "usable for fabrication of alumina" as follows, in metric tons: 1976—2,250; 1977—1,966; 1978—not available.

11 Reported figure.

Interlayer deposits.--The interlayer type of deposit occurs as discontinuous beds and lenses interstratified in 

sedimentary or volcanic rocks or along the contact between igneous or metamorphic and younger rocks. Interlayer bauxites are chiefly remnants of old residual blanket 

deposits that were covered by younger rocks, but they 

also include transported bauxites that are enclosed by 

sedimentary rocks. Interlayer bauxites occur (1) enclosed 

by sedimentary rocks in Arkansas (fig. 2C), northern 

South America, the Urals region of the U.S.S.R., the People's Republic of China, and elsewhere; (2) along the contact of igneous or metamorphic rocks with overlying 

sedimentary rocks in Arkansas and in northern South 

America; and (3) interbedded in sequences of basaltic lava 

flows at several places in Australia

Pocket deposits—Pocket deposits occur chiefly as fillings of depressions formed in limestone or dolomite 

(fig. 2A), but some are associated with other types of 

rock. Extensive pocket deposits occur at or near the surface in Jamaica (fig. 2D), and smaller ones have been

found on several coral islands in the Pacific. Pocket 

deposits interbedded with carbonate strata are widespread in Europe and occur in a few places in Asia. 

Deposits of this type vary greatly in shape and size. 

Some of the larger ones are tabular lenses that essentially form blankets. Others are shaped like saucers, 

cups, or inverted cones. In plan, they are circular, oval, 

or irregularly lobate. Many have slump blocks and other 

evidence of subsidence, as do several of the small 

deposits in Appalachia (Knechtel, 1963). Nearly all 

pocket deposits formed on carbonate rocks are partly 

red or are separated from the underlying strata by zones 

of red clay or other fine-grained rock that is commonly 

referred to as terra rossa.

Other Classifications

Several other classifications have been used by 

geologists. Davis and Hill (1974) grouped the deposits
B18 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Transported clay 

and bauxite

A Pocket deposits, Adriatic 

Coast, Yugoslavia

Blanket

Residual bauxite

Sedimentary Transported clay deposit 

rocks bauxite

B. Blanket deposit, Pocos 

de Caldas, Brazil

_\ Da . ^<?<^*. *

C. Blanket and transported 

deposits, Arkansas, 

United States

Red fine-grained 

massive bauxite

£. Blanket deposit, India

D. Pocket deposit, Jamaica

Red and brown 

concretionary bauxite

".M" '/MX U'. :' ,, m-

, Kaqhp c.o/itaining'minpr quar,t£ °0

• . . Kaolmitic sandstone '."•'. • '•'. • -.••.'••.- • ••.'••.'•'.'•'.'•. .'.'••.'• T 

F. Blanket deposit,York 

Peninsula, Australia

FIGURE 2.—Typical occurrences of bauxite. Modified from Patterson

(1967).

in Jamaica into the plateau and graben types, on the 

basis of geologic occurrence, and into uncontaminated 

and contaminated deposits, on the basis of their purity. 

Hose (1960) suggested that bauxites can be assigned 

to the following four types of deposits: (1) those formed 

on peneplains, (2) those formed on volcanic domes or 

plateaus, (3) those formed on limestones or karstic 

plateaus, and (4) sedimentary or reworked deposits. 

Grubb (1973) presented the idea of classifying bauxites 

as low-level and high-level types. He noted that highlevel deposits are typically developed on volcanic or 

other igneous rocks. Many deposits of this type are 

porous and friable but show a remarkable retention of 

parent rock textures. Low-level deposits are commonly 

associated with low-relief planation. They commonly 

evolve into a uniform pisolitic horizon that is rich in 

boehmite. Grubb recognized that the so-called karst 

bauxites are neither the high-level nor the low-level 

class. Several other classifications of bauxite deposits 

are used in the U.S.S.R. (Bushinskiy, 1975); in one 

system deposits are assigned to the geosynclinal and 

platform types on the basis of regional geology.

Hill and Ostojic (1984) have proposed a complex 

classification of bauxite based on contents of gibbsite,

boehmite, and iron oxides. The Hill and Ostojic classification divides lateritic bauxite into four types and 

karstic bauxite into six types.

Many classifications of bauxite and related clay and 

iron oxides based purely on their chemical and mineral 

composition have been proposed (Valeton, 1972, fig. 28; 

Bardossy and Nicolas, 1973; Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis, 

1958, fig. 30; Konta, 1973; and others). In these 

classification systems, bauxite and associated rocks are 

divided into such categories as bauxite, clayey bauxite, bauxitic clay, ferruginous bauxite, and ferruginous 

bauxitic clay, on the basis of definite percentages of 

composition. Most such classifications have merit, but 

they can be applied only after mineral or chemical compositions have been accurately determined.

MINERALOGY

Bauxite Minerals

Gibbsite.—The mineral gibbsite, termed "hydrargillite" in some of the European literature, is an aluminum 

trihydroxide, A1(OH)3 (Newsome and others, 1960, 

p. 62). It is commonly referred to as an alumina 

trihydrate, A12O3 • 3H2O, because chemical analyses of 

the mineral indicate a ratio of one molecule of alumina 

(A12O3) to three molecules of water. Gibbsite is the major mineral in trihydrate bauxite in the United States, 

Suriname, Guyana, and many of the large laterite-type 

bauxite deposits in tropical countries.

Nordstrandite, a polymorph of gibbsite, has been 

prepared synthetically in the laboratory (Van Nordstrand, Hettinger, and Keith, 1956). It was first found 

in natural occurrences in soils in western Sarawak (Wall 

and others, 1962, p. 264) and in Guam (Hathaway and 

Schlanger, 1965). Nordstrandite was found later in small 

bauxite deposits in Gippsland, Australia (Grubb, 1973, 

p. 229), and Davis and Hill (1974) have identified it in 

several bauxite deposits in Jamaica. It is also reported 

to be present in bauxite in the southern Urals (Novikov 

and others, 1975). In Yugoslavia nordstrandite is 

associated with gibbsite in terra rossa on Jurassic karst 

limestone in Croatia (Marie, 1967-68) and in Montenegro (Tertian, 1966).

Bayerite, the mineral precipitated in the extraction 

of alumina by the Bayer process, is also a polymorph 

of gibbsite. Bayerite has been reported to occur in bauxite in the middle Dnieper region of the U.S.S.R. and has 

been described by Khorosheva (1969). This bayerite occurs in laterite formed on amphibolite and serpentinite. 

Most of the bayerite is described as being fine grained, 

but some is in medium- and coarse-grained crystals 

associated with gibbsite, boehmite, and diaspore. It
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B19

was also reported to be found in Hungarian bauxites 

(Gedeon, 1956), but thorough investigation has not 

verified this occurrence (Bardossy, 1959, p. 6).

Boehmite.—This mineral is commonly classed as an 

alumina monohydrate, A12O3 -H2O, but it is more accurately an aluminum oxide hydroxide, AIO(OH). 

Boehmite is the most common bauxite mineral in many 

deposits in Europe, the U.S.S.R., and the People's 

Republic of China. It also makes up as much as 20 percent of the bauxite deposits in Jamaica, the Dominican 

Republic, and Haiti, and it is present in minor amounts 

in many laterite-type deposits.

Diaspore.—Diaspore has the same chemical composition as boehmite, but its atomic structure is more dense 

and it is harder (table 7). Diasporic bauxites are most 

abundant in the People's Republic of China, central 

Greece, northern Urals (U.S.S.R.), Vietnam, Romania, 

and Turkey (Bardossy, 1982, appendix 3; Coumoulos, 

1984, table 4).

Corundum.—Corundum, A12O3, which is most common in metamorphosed emery deposits, occurs in minor 

amounts in some bauxites. It is commonly found in 

pisolites in bauxite in the Soviet Union (Gladkovsky and 

Ushatinsky, 1964; Kuzemkina, 1960). Corundum has 

also been identified in Northern Ireland in bauxite 

deposits that are adjacent to dikes of igneous rock 

(Eyles and others, 1952, p. 34). It occurs in the Jarrahdale bauxite deposits in the Darling Range, 

Australia (Grubb, 1971a), and trace amounts of it have 

been identified by X-ray methods in samples from 

Arkansas bauxite (Keller, 1964, p. 130).

Other aluminous materials.—In addition to the bauxite minerals, aluminum occurs in several other minerals 

and in noncrystalline matter in bauxite. Minor quantities of alumina are recovered from some of these 

materials in Bayer processing. Brief discussions of some 

of these other forms of aluminum, which are treated as 

impurities in bauxite in this report, will be given in 

following sections.

Noncrystalline or very poorly ordered hydrated 

aluminous solid matter is present in many bauxite 

deposits. Such material has been called "cliachite" 

(Palache and others, 1944, p. 667), which presumably 

has a composition similar to that of gibbsite but may 

be more hydrated. In addition to "cliachite," the names 

"sporogelite," "gibbsitogelite," "diasporogelite," and 

"alumogel" have been used for noncrystalline 

aluminous matter in bauxite (Bardossy, 1959, p. 7). 

Allophane, a noncrystalline material having a composition generally similar to that of the clay mineral 

kaolinite but more variable (Ross and Kerr, 1934), has 

been identified in some bauxites including deposits in 

Yugoslavia (Bohor and Lahodny-Sarc, 1971). A gel-like 

material consisting of approximately 4.9 percent

A12O3, 2.2 percent SiO2, 0.3 percent Fe2O3, and about 

90 percent water was found in association with lowgrade bauxite in Hawaii (S.H. Patterson, 1971, 

p. 17-19). This material was later identified as being imogolite (Wada and others, 1972), which is similar to 

allophane in composition. Imogolite is probably more 

widely distributed in laterite-type bauxite deposits than 

presently recognized. In a study of many of the world 

bauxites of different ages and origins, Bardossy, 

Csanady, and Csordas (1978) found that noncrystalline 

matter was exceptionally abundant in very young 

deposits in the lies Loyautes.

True alumina gels no doubt occur in bauxites, but 

their presence is difficult to establish. Several 

authorities (Hose, 1960, p. 237; Jurkovifc and Saka£, 

1964, p. 260; Beneslavsky, 1959) believe that many of 

the banded colloform structures in bauxites are the 

result of precipitation from hydrogels. Vletter (1963, 

p. 1005) has observed jellylike masses in the overburden 

above bauxite at Onverdacht, Suriname, and Mikhailov 

(1971) found evidence of the influence of gels in the formation of bauxite in Guinea and the U.S.S.R.

Clay minerals.—The kaolin minerals—kaolinite, 

(OH)8Si4Al4O10, halloysite, (OH)8Si4Al4O10, and endellite, (OH)8Si4Al4O10 -4H2O, the hydrated form of 

halloysite—are the most common high-alumina clay 

minerals associated with bauxite deposits. They occur 

as virtually pure pockets, veins, concretions, and intergrowths with aluminum- and iron-bearing minerals. 

Kaolinite, the most common mineral in this group, is 

particularly abundant in deposits of Eocene age or 

older. Most of the kaolinite associated with bauxite is 

well ordered. In some deposits, however, the atomic 

structure of kaolinite is disordered, and the mineral has 

been incorrectly referred to in many reports as the "fireclay mineral" (Brindley, 1961, p. 65). Halloysite is most 

common in deposits younger than Eocene, but it also 

occurs in a few older deposits. Endellite is probably 

much more common in bauxite than is generally 

recognized because it converts to halloysite when dried 

in air at room temperature, and many investigators may 

have failed to preserve the natural moisture in samples 

until mineral identifications were made.

Minor amounts of chlorite occur in some bauxite 

deposits (Caillere, Henin, and Pobeguin, 1962; Gordon, 

Tracey, and Ellis, 1958, p. 91), and this mineral is 

reported to be a major constituent of the weathered rock 

from which bauxite has formed in Suriname (Kersen, 

1956, p. 371) and in Guinea (Lajoinie and Bontfas, 1962, 

p. 29-30). Probably much of the chlorite associated with 

bauxite deposits is an aluminous variety similar to that 

which occurs in high-alumina clays (Keller, 1964, p. 144).

Chamosite.-Chamosite, (Fe2+,Mg,Fe3+)5Al(Si3Al)O10 

(OH,O)8, is present in some karst bauxites of Paleozoic
B20 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM 

TABLE 1 .—Properties of bauxite minerals

Mineral

Common 

chemical 

formula 

and name

. ..A1,03 -3H20,

£t u £t

alumina 

trihydrate.

Alternate 

chemical 

formula 

and name1

O

trihydroxide.

Crystal 

system

j^j onoclinic

Alumina 

content 

(weight percent)

65.35

Combined 

water 

content 

(weight percent)

34.65

Specific 

gravity

2.3-2.4

Hardness 

(Mohs scale)

2.2-3.5

Boehmite A1203 -H20, 

alumina 

monohydrate.

Diaspore ............. Do. 2

A1O (OH), aluminum 

oxide hydroxide.

Do. 2

Orthorhombic

Do.

84.97

84.98

15.03

15.02

3.01-3.06

3.3-3.5

4-5

6.5-7

1Newsome and others, 1960, p. 9-10. 

Diaspore differs from boehmite in having a more closely packed and tightly bonded atomic structure.

and Mesozoic age (Bardossy, 1982, p. 263-264; Coumoulos, 1984, table 2). This mineral is reported to make up 

as much as 60 percent of some diasporic bauxites.

Iron minerals.—Hematite, Fe 2O3 , and goethite, 

Fe2O3 -H2O or FeO(OH), are the most abundant impurities in many bauxite deposits. These minerals occur as nodules, as concretions, and as finely 

disseminated forms inter grown with aluminous 

minerals. Hematite and goethite are the chief cause of 

the red and brown colors that are characteristic of many 

bauxites. Hematite tends to be most abundant in red 

bauxite, and goethite is the chief pigment in the brown 

and yellow deposits. Aluminum substitution for iron in 

goethite in soil was recognized by Norrish and Taylor 

(1961), and aluminous goethite is now known to occur 

in many bauxite deposits (Strahl, 1971; Sabiston, 1975; 

Solymar, 1970). The amount of alumina in bauxite in 

the form of goethite is as much as 5 percent (Strahl, 

1971, p. 6), and possibly as much as 7 percent more 

A12O3 could be recovered from Jamaican bauxite if this 

oxide were extracted from goethite (Davis, 1973, p. 8). 

In Suriname, goethite in bauxite in the Paranam district 

was found to contain about 9-13 percent A1OOH, and 

about twice that amount (20-25 percent A1OOH) is 

present in goethite in the more weathered deposits in 

the Moengo district (Grubbs, Rodenburg, and Wefers, 

1982).

Several other iron minerals occur in bauxite. 

Magnetite, FeFe2O4, and ilmenite, FeTiO3 , are common 

in some bauxites, particularly those that have altered 

from mafic igneous rocks. Maghemite, 7Fe2O3 , occurs 

in several bauxites (Strahl, 1971; Sabiston, 1975; 

Bushinskiy, 1975). Siderite (FeCO3 ) is the most abundant iron mineral in Arkansas bauxite (Gordon, Tracey, 

and EUis, 1958, p. 88).

Iron also may occur in isomorphous substitution for 

aluminum in bauxite minerals. Ferruginous boehmite,

in which iron is substituted for aluminum at a 1:1 ratio 

without any appreciable distortion of the crystal lattice, 

is reported to occur in bauxite deposits in Herault, 

France (Caillere and Pobeguin, 1961). Iron substitution 

in diaspore also has been reported (Bardossy, 1975).

Titanium minerals.—The titanium minerals in bauxite include the primary minerals ilmenite, FeTiO3 or 

FeOTiO2, rutile, TiO2, and titaniferous magnetite, and 

the secondary minerals anatase, TiO2 , and leucoxene, 

TiO2, formed during weathering. Titaniferous hematite 

and sphene, CaTiSiO5 or CaO-TiO2 -SiO2, are also present in some bauxites. Anatase, ordinarily very fine 

grained or cryptocrystalline, has been reported in many 

bauxites and is probably even more common than 

recognized. In many bauxites, it can be identified most 

satisfactorily by X-ray examination if the samples are 

first treated with acid to destroy gibbsite and heated 

to destroy kaolinite, because the X-ray reflections from 

these two minerals mask those of anatase (Brindley and 

Sutton, 1957, p. 395). Another method of overcoming 

the difficulty is to treat the samples with an organic 

solvent (Janekovic and Ivekovic, 1973). Leucoxene commonly occurs as a coating on weathered ilmenite and 

as pseudomorphic replacement of ilmenite or other 

titanium-bearing minerals. All the X-ray reflections on 

photographs of nearly 200 samples investigated by 

Hartman (1959, p. 1401) matched either anatase or 

rutile and suggests that leucoxene can be either one or 

a mixture of these two minerals.

Quartz.—Though most of the silicates in bauxite are 

clay minerals, quartz, SiO2, occurs in minor amounts in 

many bauxite deposits, and it is abundant in a few. Quartz 

is particularly abundant in deposits in the Darling Range, 

Australia, where it is the principal impurity in bauxite 

containing as little as 30 percent available AlgC^.

Calcite and dolomite—Cslcite, CaCO3 , and dolomite, 

CaMg(CO3 )2, occur in some bauxite deposits associated
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B21

with carbonate rocks. Most of the natural occurrences 

have been introduced by moving water after the bauxite formed. Artificial contamination of bauxite by calcite 

also occurs in mining in some places. The contamination results from the difficulty in separating the bauxite and the underlying limestone where the contact 

between them is very irregular.

Manganese minerals.—Several manganese minerals 

occur in minor quantities in bauxite. Those reported in 

Jamaican bauxite are lithiophorite, (Al,Li)MnO2(OH)2, 

described by Sabiston (1975), and hausmannite, 

Mn3O4 , manganite, MnO(OH), and woodruffite, 

2(Zn,Mn)-5MnO2 -4H2O, noted by Strahl (1971).

Phosphate minerals.—Minor amounts of the aluminum phosphate mineral crandallite, CaAl3(PO4)2(OH)5 

•H2O, and trace amounts of apatite, Ca5(PO4,CO3)3 

(F,OH,C1), occur in bauxite in Jamaica (Eyles, 1958; 

Sabiston, 1975), and two other aluminum phosphate 

minerals were found in the Mocho Mountain deposits 

in that country by Grubbs (1982, p. 59). Crandallite also 

has been identified in bauxite from the Rochelois 

plateau in Haiti (Bardossy and others, 1977b, table 1). 

Much of the P2O5 in bauxite on Rennell Island in the 

Solomon Islands is probably in the form of crandallite.

Accessory minerals and other minor impurities.—Any 

resistant accessory mineral that occurs in the parent 

rock may remain in the bauxite, and a few minor secondary minerals may have formed with or after the bauxite. Accessory minerals in Arkansas bauxite include 

zircon, tourmaline, kyanite, and garnet; the secondary 

mineral barite is scarce (Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis, 1958, 

p. 91-92). Accessory minerals in Guyana bauxites include zircon, tourmaline, rutile, and andalusite 

(Bleackley, 1961, p. 219). Muscovite partly altered to 

kaolinite has been noted in bauxite deposits in the 

Hateg Basin, Romania (Papiu and others, 1971). Nickel 

occurs in bauxite in Greece (Weisse, 1967), and 

chromium was found in boehmitic bauxite from the 

U.S.S.R. (Solymar, Bardossy, and J6nas, 1975). Many 

other mineral impurities occur in minor amounts in 

bauxite (Bardossy, 1977; Bushinskiy, 1975).

Organic carbon.—Minor amounts of organic carbon 

are present in many bauxites. Mercier and Noble (1974) 

reported the percentages of organic carbon in several 

commercial bauxites as follows: Weipa, Australia— 

0.2-0.3 percent; Boke, Guinea—0.15 percent; Kimbo 

(Fria), Guinea—0.3-0.4 percent; typical French 

bauxite—0.3 percent; Mostar and Titograd, Yugoslavia—O.I percent; and boehmite and diaspore bauxite processed at the Saint Nicolas plant, Greece—0.05 

percent. Bauxite from Rennell Island was found to contain 0.85 percent organic carbon (Matsunaga, Akiyama, 

and Fujie, 1978, table 2). Organic carbon in bauxite in 

the Harmons Valley and Mocho Mountains districts,

Jamaica, ranges from 0.1 to 0.5 percent, and the average 

is about 0.2 percent (Grubbs, 1982, p. 59). The radiocarbon age of organic carbon in Jamaican red bauxite is 

22,415± 1,800 years B.P., whereas the carbon in a 

yellow variety of bauxite is only 7,810±360 years B.P.

Morphology, Microtextures, and Grain Sizes 

of Bauxite Minerals

In scanning-electron-microscope investigations of 

bauxites from deposits of widely ranging ages and 

origins, Bardossy, Csanady, and Csordas (1978) found 

that mineral morphology, microtextures, and crystal 

sizes of bauxite minerals vary considerably. Most bauxite minerals occur in grains 0.05-100 /*m in longest 

dimension, but secondary crystals tend to be much 

larger. Generally, gibbsite and diaspore form the larger 

crystals; most boehmite grains are less than 5 ^m 

across. Many grains are equidimensional, others are 

flakes and rods, and colloform accumulations are common in a few deposits. The grain size and crystallinity 

of karst-type bauxites increase with increasing age, 

thickness of overburden, and tectonic stress; porosity 

varies inversely with these factors. The low-level laterite 

deposits generally are much finer grained than the older 

high-level deposits. The largest crystals in laterite bauxite tend to be in secondary growths in cavities. The extremely fine grained gibbsite forming the young bauxite 

in the lies Loyautes is in loosely packed stacks. This 

bauxite has 60-70 percent porosity because of the irregular spacings of the stacks. Triassic bauxites in tectonically deformed areas in Yugoslavia are dense and 

have porosities in the range 1-5 percent. Sabiston (1975) 

described two forms of gibbsite in Jamaican bauxite. 

One was in equiaxial crystals about 0.3 jim in diameter, 

and the other was in much smaller rod-shaped crystals.

Significance of Mineral Composition, 

Crystal Morphology, and Organic Matter

The mineral composition of bauxites has played a major role in the design and operation of Bayer-process 

alumina plants. Most Bayer plants have been designed 

to use bauxite from a specific deposit and may not function efficiently using bauxite from other districts. The 

European Bayer-process plants have been designed to 

recover alumina from boehmite bauxite (monohydrate 

type), which requires relatively high caustic concentrations and high digestion temperatures and pressures. 

Plants in the United States using gibbsite bauxite 

(trihydrate type) require milder digestion conditions. 

When trihydrate bauxite is the only type used, Bayer
B22 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

plant digesters are operated at 140-150 °C, about 

4,200 g/cm2 pressure, and 150-200 g/L caustic (as 

sodium carbonate). In plants that use a mixed gibbsiteboehmite bauxite, such as the bauxite from Jamaica, 

digesters are operated at 205-250 °C. Higher operating 

pressures and caustic concentrations are also used for 

mixed bauxite. Plants using primarily monohydrate 

bauxite require even more intense digestion conditions 

than those using mixed bauxite. The more intense digestion systems generally require heavier, more complex, 

and more expensive plant equipment (Cundiff, 1974, 

p. 69). The extraction of alumina from diasporic bauxite requires not only high digestion temperatures but 

also concentrated caustic solutions, long digestion time, 

and large additions of lime (Ostap, 1984, p. 654; 

Wargalla and Brandt, 1982).

The type of silicate mineral in bauxite is very important because some silicates cause costly reactions in the 

Bayer process. Quartz dissolves slowly in the digestive 

system and reacts little with the caustic solution during the recovery of alumina when the low-temperature 

process is used. Therefore, trihydrate bauxite containing comparatively high percentages of silica in the form 

of quartz can be processed profitably. The clay minerals 

kaolinite and halloysite dissolve in the first few minutes 

of digestion (Strahl, 1971, p. 67). The dissolved silica is 

reprecipitated in the digestion vessel in the form of 

sodium aluminum silicate, which is discharged in the 

red mud waste. Each ton of silica that is dissolved combines with approximately three-fourths of a ton of 

caustic soda and 1 ton of alumina. Because the loss of 

soda and alumina is costly, bauxites averaging more 

than 5 percent reactive silica generally are considered 

undesirable for Bayer processing. However, a plant in 

Arkansas processing bauxite having silica contents 

greater than 5 percent recovers soda and much of the 

alumina in the sodium aluminum silicate by the combination Bayer process (Stroud and others, 1969, p. 37). 

This process includes the addition of lime and a little 

soda to the residue and sintering. It permits the recovery of much of the alumina that was originally in 

kaolinite.

According to Ostap (1984, p. 657-658), the extent of 

dissolution of clay during Bayer processing is a function of the particle size and the degree of crystallinity. 

Fine-grained, poorly crystallized clay is dissolved completely in Bayer digestion, and the degree of attack on 

kaolinite decreases with increasing particle size.

In addition to the reactive silicates, other minerals, 

some of which are present only in minor quantities, 

cause problems in processing bauxite. For example, 

crandallite in Jamaican bauxite contributes recoverable 

alumina in Bayer liquors, but it also releases phosphorus (Sabiston, 1975; Ostap, 1984). Additional lime

must be added to precipitate the phosphorus as insoluble phosphates.

Before the existence of aluminous goethite was recognized, all iron minerals were considered undesirable contaminants, but a process for recovering the alumina in 

this mineral by using an iron hydrogarnet catalyst in 

the Bayer process has been developed in Hungary 

(Solymar, Zamb6, and Siklosi, 1984). The alumina in 

goethite is not recoverable in low-temperature Bayer 

plants, but plants using higher temperatures 

(240-260 °C) reach the point of goethite dehydration. 

The dehydrated form of goethite can be dissolved, and 

the alumina recovered from it is an extraction bonus 

(Sabiston, 1975, p. 46).

The concentration and properties of the iron minerals 

in bauxite greatly influence the settling and filtering 

properties of red mud waste required for the recovery 

of alumina by the Bayer process (Ostap, 1984). One 

property causing difficulties is the fineness of grain size. 

Iron minerals occurring in extremely fine particles, such 

as those in the Jamaica bauxite that are estimated to 

be as small as 50 A, require an extensive mud washing 

circuit and a high proportion of flocculant for acceptable 

alumina recovery. Bauxites containing iron minerals 

concentrated in sand-size or larger grains are much 

simpler to process. Bauxites containing iron in the form 

of hematite rather than goethite are also much simpler 

to process, as has been found in Jamaica (Ostap, 1984) 

and Hungary (Solymar, Zambo, and Siklosi, 1984). 

Several metallic elements are known to substitute for 

Fe in goethite, and some of the trace metals in bauxite 

are likely to occur in this mineral.

Significant variations in Bayer-process digestion and 

desilication times were noted by Bardossy, Csanady, 

and Csordas (1978, p. 261) for bauxites having the same 

mineralogical composition but different grain sizes, 

degrees of crystallinity, and textures. Sabiston (1975) 

also reported that variations in crystal morphology of 

Jamaican bauxites significantly influence Bayer-process 

technology. The smaller, rod-shaped crystallites, 

because of their much greater surface area per unit of 

weight, had greater caustic solubility than the larger 

crystals in the low-temperature Bayer system.

The organic matter in bauxite has a strong effect on 

the caustic leach solutions of the Bayer process and 

must be controlled to prevent problems in alumina 

recovery. Meusel (1974) found that as little as 0.21 percent of the bauxite from Weipa, Australia, was organic 

carbon, and this small amount caused problems in 

thickening and filtrating leach liquors. Similar problems 

were caused by the 0.85 percent organic carbon in bauxite from Rennell Island when this material was tested 

in a pilot plant (Matsunaga, Akiyama, and Fujie, 1978). 

According to Lever (1983) many organic compounds are
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B23

present in Bayer liquor, and sodium oxalate has one of 

the most detrimental effects on the alumina trihydrate 

precipitation process.

TRACE ELEMENTS

More than 30 different trace elements occur in bauxite, and they range widely in abundance (table 8). Some 

are present in a few deposits in sufficient quantities to 

be recovered during bauxite processing (see discussions 

of byproducts), others may possibly be recovered in the 

future, but most are of little more than scientific interest.

Trace elements in bauxite occur in several different 

forms. In the Amazon basin deposits, Cr, Ga, P, and 

V are mainly in iron oxides, and Ba, Pb, and Sr are in 

kaolin below the bauxite (Dennen and Norton, 1977). No 

preferential enrichment of trace elements was found in 

gibbsite, the principal bauxite mineral. Bardossy and 

Pantb (1973) found, as would be expected, that many 

of the trace elements in bauxite in several European 

countries are concentrated in detrital minerals. For example, Zr and Hf were found in zircon, Ce, La, Nd and 

other elements in monazite, and Cr in chromite. Identifiable traces of elements also occur in secondary 

minerals formed in bauxite, such as Ni in pyrite, Cu in

TABLE 8.—Minor elements in bauxite 

[All values in parts per million. Dash leaders (—), no data]

1. Arkansas, U.S.A., an average of 14 samples (Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis, 1958, table 9, p. 96).

2. Sarawak, Malaysia, an average of 8 samples of bauxite occurring on hills (Wolfenden, 1965, table 2, p. 1054).

3. Weipa, Australia, an average of 21 samples from one drill hole (Jepsen and Schellmann, 1974, table 18, p. 80-81).

4. I stria, Yugoslavia, an average of 18 samples (Sinkovec, 1973, table 2, p. 155).

5. Hercegovina, Yugoslavia, an average of 114 samples (Maksimovic, 1968, table 2, p. 65).

6. Sterea Ellas, an average of 24 samples (Maksimovic and Papastamatiou, 1973, table 1, p. 37).

7. India, range in analyses of 500 samples from 25 deposits (Banerjee, 1975, p. 177, table 2).

8. Iszkaszentgyorgy, Hungary, range of several samples (Dudich, 1973, table 2-AB, p. 50-53).

9. Tikhvin, U.S.S.R., average of 47 samples (Il'in, 1977, table 1, p. 134-135). 

10. Var, France, average of 36 samples (Caillere, Maksimovic, and Pobeguin, 1976, table 6).

10

As .............

B ..............

Ba .............

Be .............

Ca .............

Ce .............

Co .............

Cr .............

Cu .............

F ..............

Ga .............

In ..............

La .............

Li ..............

Mg .............

Mn .............

Mo .............

Nb .............

Ni .............

P ..............

Pb .............

Rb .............

S ..............

Sc .............

Sn .............

Sr ..............

Th .............

U ..............

V ..............

Y ..............

Zn .............

Zr ..............

___

.............. 31

.............. 170

.............. 2.2

.............. 1200

. . . . ——

.............. 1.4

.............. 110

.............. 14

. . . . . ——

.............. 86

——

.............. 100

——

.............. 370

.............. 1200

.............. 18

.............. 500

.............. 6.4

. . . . . ..... ——

.............. 6.7

——

....... . . . . ——

.............. 6.9

. . . . . ... . ——

.............. 190

——

......... . . . ——

.............. 92

.............. 150

.............. ——

.............. 1300

28

——

—— ——

700

73

21

260 120

—— ——

27 67

—— ——

37

—— ——

310

—— ——

50 29

198

37

—— ——

—— ——

17

r^lOQ ———

38

—— ___

240 490

37

13

400 966

__ __

—— ——

28

—— ——

—— ——

21 27

480 737

53 37

40

.5

138

23

—— ——

9

210 361

—— ——

69

4

23

—— ___

42

39.3

6.9

490 363

77

—— ——

480 383

__ ——

—— ___

26

—— ___

35

—— ——

28

676 40-1000

43

—— ——

<10-70

—— ——

110

—— ——

—— ——

567

5

—— ——

534

—— ——

62 <10->200

—— ——

—— ——

19

—— ——

12

—— ——

—— ——

275 30->200

47

—— ——

303 40-400

——

29-87

——

2.2-36

71-18000

——

——

14-626

——

600-5700

6.3-82

——

——

——

60-6000

63-3400

5.3-63

70-100

——

13-3400

——

——

80-13000

——

——

1300-3500

37-63

——

56-1200

——

——

80-1800

——

104

82

——

——

——

7

265

10

435

80

——

——

275

——

——

——

——

30

1025

41

——

——

42

——

275

——

——

307

——

——

560

——

——

4

5

——

——

21

440

9

——

59

——

257

——

——

190

10

69

143

——

108

——

——

32

——

76

——

——

400

117

——

431
B24 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

chalcopyrite, Pb in galena, and Ce, La, and Nd in 

bastnaesite. According to Caillere, Maksimovic, and 

Pobeguin (1976), Be, Sc, and Y are uniformly distributed 

through bauxite in Ariege, France; Ga, V, Nb, Mo, Cu, 

Mn, Zr, and Pb are concentrated in pisolites in some 

deposits and in the groundmass in others; and Ni, Co, 

La, Sr, and Ba are more abundant in the groundmass 

than in pisolites.

Though considerable research has been done on trace 

elements in bauxite scattered throughout the world, 

knowledge about them has many shortcomings. The 

reasons for the limited understanding of trace elements 

include the following: (1) They have been investigated 

for different purposes, such as to identify source rocks 

(Sinclair, 1967), to identify possible byproducts of bauxite (Sargi6 and Logomerac, 1974), and to increase 

scientific knowledge (Chowdhury, Chakraborty, and 

Bose, 1965). (2) Different methods have been used to 

analyze for trace elements; for this and other reasons 

the accuracy of determinations by different laboratories 

may be questionable. (3) Authors have presented their 

results in different ways and units; therefore, the results 

of studies are difficult to compare and synthesize. (4) 

The occurrences of trace elements in bauxite are 

variable and difficult to understand because their 

mobilities during weathering are influenced by many 

contradictory factors, as noted by Lelong and others 

(1976, p. 162-163). An indication of the random characteristics of trace elements of bauxite was noted by 

Dudich (1973, table 2A), who recorded the following 

ranges of concentration in bauxite in four European 

countries.

Concentration of trace elements in bauxite in four European countries 

[From Dudich (1973, table 2A); -, no data]

Major Average Little

Romania .......

Bulgaria .......

Hercegovina,

....V, Sr

. . ..Zr, Pb

.... Mn, Cu

....Cr, Ni

Ni, Zr, Ga

V, Ni, Cr, Ga

V, Zr, Ga

Cr

V, Cr, Zr, Ga

Mo

Ga probably has received more attention than other 

trace elements in bauxite. It was reported to be present 

in concentrations of 10-82 ppm in bauxites in India 

(Chowdhury, Chakraborty, and Bose, 1965; Banerjee, 

1975, table 2). Banerjee (1975) also found that Indian 

deposits are enriched in Cr, V, Zr, and Pb. Blackwood 

and others (1982, p. 82) found that Ga in bauxite in 

Jamaica ranges from 39 to 92 ppm, and the average is 

approximately 70 ppm. Liu (1965) discussed the Ga content in bauxite in the People's Republic of China, and

Gutkin (1971) reported on the Ga, Sc, Nb, and Ta 

contents in bauxite in the northern Urals. Dennen and 

Norton (1977) found that bauxite in the Amazon basin 

is strongly enriched in Ga, Fe, V, P, and Mn and is 

depleted in Pb, Sr, and Ba. In bauxite in Sarawak, 

Malaysia, only Cr was concentrated more than Al during the formation of bauxite (Wolfenden, 1965, table 5). 

Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis (1958, fig. 31) noted that Cr, 

Cu, Ga, Nb, and Mo are present in Arkansas bauxite 

and were concentrated more than Al during bauxite formation. These authors also noted that the deposits are 

enriched in Zr, Ti, Sc, V, Be, Mn, Y, and Pb, though they 

were concentrated less than Al as the bauxite formed. 

Other trace elements in Arkansas bauxite include an 

average of 88.2 ppm Th and 8.1 ppm U found in nine 

samples investigated by Adams and Richardson (1960, 

p. 1667). These two authors also found Th and U, as well 

as Zr, in samples of laterite- and karst-type bauxites 

from several countries.

The halogens (Cl, Br, and I) that occur in trace 

amounts in bauxites in several countries are distinctly 

less concentrated than halogens in marine sediments, 

according to the findings of Tenyakov and others (1974). 

These authors concluded that the low halogen contents 

are sound evidence proving that bauxite formed in fresh 

rather than marine waters.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Bauxite occurs in many different forms, and its structure, texture, and physical properties vary appreciably. 

Some deposits, particularly the karst type, are massive, 

dense, earthy material containing no recognizable structural features. Many bauxites are pisolitic (fig. 3) or 

oolitic, and compound pisolites in which several small 

pisolites are intergrown and are enclosed by larger pisolites are common. Pisolites range in size from 1-2 mm 

to more than 2 cm. Other features common in bauxites 

are brecciation, layering, nodules, and platy, cellular, 

vermicular, tubular, and spongy textures. Concentric 

banding is common in pisolites and other structures in 

bauxite, and presumably it indicates cyclic formation. 

Parts of some deposits retain the structural and textural features of the rocks from which they formed and, 

therefore, can be referred to as "saprolite." Waterrounded particles (fig. 4) range from sand to cobbles in 

size and are known to be present in a few deposits consisting of transported bauxite. Slump blocks and other 

subsidence features occur in some karst bauxites. 

Fossils are generally rare in bauxite, but marine forms 

have been identified in several deposits in Europe. The 

original material of most such fossils has been replaced 

by bauxite minerals.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B25

I I I I 

0 1 2 3 cm

FIGURE 3.—Polished face of pisolitic bauxite from the Andersonville district, Georgia.

FIGURE 4.—Polished face of transported bauxite from the Arkansas region. Specimen consists of dark pebbles and pisolites in a groundmass of bauxite and kaolin.
B26 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Colors of bauxite range broadly. The most common 

ones are shades of red or brown. Bauxites are frequently described as brick red, brownish red, reddish brown, 

or various hues of brown. Some deposits having low iron 

contents are gray, brownish gray, light gray, or nearly 

white. Other colors of bauxite include pink, violet, and 

yellow, and a few bauxite deposits are green. Parts of 

some deposits rich in organic material are nearly black.

Bauxite ranges from lightweight porous varieties that 

are less than 1.5 times the weight of water to dense types 

that are three times as heavy as water. Many deposits 

are soft and sufficiently unconsolidated to be loosened 

and loaded by heavy equipment, and others consist of 

dense, hard bauxite requiring blasting in mining.

ORIGIN

Geologists have been interested in the origin of bauxite for more than a century, and, although many theories have been proposed, many problems remain unsolved. 

Older theories include those that bauxite formed by (1)

precipitation from hot waters rich in aluminum salts, (2) 

alteration of aluminous parent materials in seawater, (3) 

deposition of aluminous materials in lakes, and (4) 

leaching of aluminous rocks by naturally evolved acid. 

Most authorities now agree that bauxite forms by 

weathering under conditions favorable for the retention 

of alumina and the leaching of other constituents of the 

parent rock (table 9). The weathering processes that alter 

rock are active within the zone of influence of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and biosphere. The processes are 

classified into chemical and mechanical groups. In 

chemical weathering, reactions take place with the parent 

rock that generally remove the more soluble components 

and add hydroxyl (OH) groups, oxygen, or carbon dioxide to the less soluble ones. Descending surface water is 

clearly the principal agent of chemical weathering. Living and decaying vegetation and bacteria affect the 

chemistry of water and elements leached. Mechanical 

weathering includes the breaking up of deposits, caused 

by penetrating roots and by alternating expansion and 

contraction due to solar energy.

TABLE 9.—Chemical analyses of typical bauxites and their parent rocks 

[All values in weight percent. From Patterson (1967). LOI, loss on ignition; ——, no data]

1. Nephelene syenite ("gray granite"), Saline County, Ark. (Gordon, Tracey, 

and Ellis, 1958, table 6, sample 5).

2. "Granitic-textured" bauxite derived from nepheline syenite, Saline County, 

Ark., average of 3 samples (Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis, 1958, table 10, 

samples 8-10).

3. Dolerite, Eagle Mountain, Guyana (Harrison, 1934, p. 17).

4. Leached bauxite from 3 (Harrison, 1934, p. 17).

5. Hornblende schist, Yarrikita Hill, Guyana (Harrison, 1934, p. 31).

6. Primary laterite above 5 (Harrison, 1934, p. 31).

7. Surficial bauxite above 6 (Harrison, 1934, p. 31).

8. Solid hornblende basalt, chloritized and saussuritized, Nassau Mountains, 

Suriname (Kersen, 1956, p. 322, sample I).

9. Residual kaolinitic clay above 8 (Kersen, 1956, p. 322, sample IV).

10. Yellowish-white pisolitic bauxite above 9 (Kersen, 1956, p. 322, sample V).

11. Green shale from the Voltaian System, Ghana (Cooper, 1936, p. 11, table 

I, sample 2047).

12. Average of 17 samples of lateritic bauxite formed on shale of the Voltaian 

System, Mount Ejuanema, Ghana (Cooper, 1936, p. 18, table IV).

13. Diabase, Mount Bougourou, Guinea (Lacroix, 1913, p. 290).

14. Porous gibbsitic laterite in contact with 13 (Lacroix, 1913, p. 290).

15. Compact superficial gibbsitic laterite above 14 (Lacroix, 1913, p. 290).

A1203 ..

Si02 ....

Fe203 ..

FeO ....

MgO .. 

CaO ....

Na20 . .

K20 ....

Ti02 . . .

'7~r\

P2O5

SO

MnO ..

H

r\~

H20+ ..

LOI ....

Total

1

21.11

56.51

1.80

1.20

.48 

.91

9.13

6.34

.50

.04

.06

.15

QQ

.24

OQ

1.50

100.45

2

59.8

5.3

1.9

——

__

——

——

2.0

——

——

——

nf\ f*

99.6

3

17.29

52.00

2.90

8.26

6.94 

8.80

2.81

.18

.53

.01

.05

.35

100.13

4

59.00

9.80

1.10

.97

Nil 

Nil

.05

.07

.70

.38

Nil

28.06

100.13

5

12.18

49.75

.03

9.88

9.54 

11.79

1.19

.11

4.60

.06

.48

.35

99.96

6

29.15

23.39

23.68

1.32

.05 

.01

.08

.07

4.07

Trace

__

18.25

100.07

7

62.44

2.79

2.05

——

.14

——

——

.45

——

__

31.96

99.83

8

14.01

48.75

3.44

10.80

6.99 

7.90

2.52

.45

1.10

.14

.20

.10

3.53

99.93

9

32.92

36.20

13.55

.00

.25 

Trace

.34

.00

3.41

.13

.00

cc

12.97

100.33

10

62.96

.40

.63

Trace

.19 

Trace

.55

Trace

3.89

.34

Trace

rj A

30.12

99.82

11

18.20

60.97

4.69

——

2.75 ) 

.63 j

.61

3.01

.98

——

.42

——

7.47

——

12

60.53

1.42

9.75

——

.73 {

——

——

2.21

——

——

25.59

——

13

12.36

51.27

3.29

6.16

13.26 

10.66

1.60

.41

.70

.11

——

.40

100.22

14

37.03

5.83

31.73

——

.06 

.19

——

——

1.29

——

——

23.02

Qfi

100.11

15

60.19

1.30

3.91

——

.17

——

——

1.03

——

——

32.00

1.40

100.00
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B27

Conditions favorable for weathering and the formation of bauxite, as listed by Harder (1952, p. 35), include 

"(1) presence of rocks with easily soluble minerals 

yielding residues rich in alumina; (2) effective rocky 

porosity, enabling easy access and free circulation of 

water; (3) normal to abundant rainfall alternating with 

dry periods; (4) vegetation, including bacteria, advantageously distributed; (5) available sources of appropriate solutions and precipitation agencies; (6) a tropical 

or at least a warm climate; (7) low to moderate topographic relief, allowing free movement of the water table 

but a minimum of erosion; and (8) long quiet periods in 

earth history."

Bauxite deposits have formed from almost every type 

of rock that contains alumina (Fox, 1932; Harder, 1952). 

Although bauxite forms more readily from rocks that 

are high in aluminum and lack resistance to weathering than from resistant rocks that are low in aluminum, 

parent materials are not as important as the intensity 

and duration of weathering. Very large deposits of bauxite at Weipa, Australia, have formed on clayey sandstone 

that apparently contained as little as 4 percent A12O3 

(Loughnan and Bayliss, 1961, p. 209), and Jamaica bauxite formed on very pure limestone, according to one 

theory (Hose, 1961, p. 196). Gibbsitic laterite near Energoprojekt's proposed Baniey bauxite mine in Guinea 

formed on quartzite that is 92 percent silica (Pavlovic 

and Nikolic, 1973). Nevertheless, a direct relation of the 

distribution of some bauxite deposits to aluminum-rich 

parent rocks has been noted in several countries. 

Nepheline syenite was the principal source rock of bauxite in Arkansas (Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis, 1958) and lies 

de Los, Guinea (Bonifas, 1959). Other types of igneous 

rocks on which bauxite formed include the following: (1) 

charnockite—Salem district, India (Valeton, 1968); (2) 

dolerite—Boke district, Guinea (Harder, 1952); (3) 

rhyolite, tuff, and granite—West Malaysia (Grubb, 1968, 

p. 60-83); (4) andesite—Sarawak, Malaysia (Wolfenden, 

1961); (5) basalt-Ireland (Eyles and others, 1952), Nassau Mountains, Suriname (Kersen, 1956), Minim-Martap 

and Ngaoundal-Ngaoundourou districts, Cameroon (Belinga, 1968,1969), and Kimberly region, Australia (Joklik, 

Jackson, and Zani, 1975); (6) Deccan trap—Madhya 

Pradesh, India (Roy Chowdhury, Anandalwar, and Tyagi, 

1968); and (7) leptynite- and cordierite-bearing granite, 

Manantenina, Madagascar (Balcet, 1966). Bauxite also 

formed on several types of sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. Some of the deposits in Madagascar 

weathered from gneiss (Balcet, 1966), and some in Sierra 

Leone formed on feldspathic rock and hypersthene gneiss 

(Bracewell, 1962, p. 98). Deposits in Ghana formed on 

phyllite, ash, and tuff of Precambrian age and shale of 

Carboniferous age (Cooper, 1936). Those in the Gove 

district, Australia, developed on shale, siltstone, and

sandstone of Cretaceous age (Grubb, 1970). Some of the 

bauxite in the very large East Coast province, India, 

formed on Archean khondalite (Bharat Aluminium Company, 1977; Ramam, 1977). The deposits on Bintan 

Island, Indonesia, formed on black hornfels (Bemmelen, 

1941), and deposits on nearby islands formed on phyllite, 

sandstone, and shale (Johnson and Marjono, 1963).

Opinions differ among geologists regarding the origin 

of karst-, Mediterranean-, or pocket-type deposits. This 

type of bauxite typically occurs above carbonate rocks 

containing very little alumina. One group of geologists 

believes that the bauxite formed from residual material 

remaining after the carbonate rocks were leached, and 

another group believes that aluminous parent materials 

of the bauxite were transported to positions above the 

carbonate rocks. Problems regarding the origin of these 

types of deposits in the Caribbean Islands are summarized in the first few paragraphs of the section "Caribbean Islands," and European deposits have been 

discussed by Bushinskiy (1975), Valeton (1972), Weisse 

(1964), and many others.

Although many field and laboratory investigations 

have been carried out, the conditions under which the 

bauxite minerals form are still not fully understood 

(Keller, 1964, p. 148; Grubb, 1973, p. 228-229). Ample 

evidence that gibbsite forms at surface temperatures 

during weathering of many different aluminous materials has been found in the field and laboratory. The 

laboratory synthesis of boehmite and diaspore, however, 

commonly requires temperatures and pressures appreciably greater than those present during weathering. 

The occurrence of these minerals, therefore, has been interpreted as indicative of burial at considerable depths 

or of active metamorphic processes, but the wide distribution of boehmite in laterite-type bauxite deposits 

seems to indicate that this mineral has formed under 

surface conditions. The dehydration of gibbsite by the 

hot tropical sun to form the boehmite in bauxite in 

Guinea was suggested by Harder (1952, p. 56). Balkay 

and Bardossy (1967) advanced the theory, based on 

limited data on the lattice energies of the bauxite 

minerals, that insolation provides enough energy to convert some gibbsite to boehmite and some boehmite to 

diaspora The minor corundum in some bauxites is also 

thought to have developed as the bauxite formed 

(Beneslavsky, 1959; Gorbachev, 1973).

Field evidence and experimental work support the 

conclusion that iron is removed by organic complexing 

during or after the formation of some bauxite deposits. 

Removal of iron and the formation of bauxite in peat 

swamps were suggested by Behre (1932) as an explanation for low-iron bauxite in Arkansas. This idea drew 

criticism from Harder (1933), who pointed out that many 

bauxite deposits could not have formed this way.
B28 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

However, the close association of low-iron bauxite and 

organic material has since been noted in several places 

and suggests that Behre's idea has considerable merit. 

In Ghana, Cooper (1936, p. 24) found low-iron, high-silica 

bauxite to be restricted to swampy areas rich in decaying organic matter. Similar conditions exist in some 

deposits in Suriname. Harden and Bateson (1963, 

p. 1307-1308) outlined the role of humic acids in the formation of bauxite in Guyana. Low-iron bauxite has 

recently been found in irregular patches of ferruginous 

deposits that are overlain by organic-matter-rich sandstone in Australia (A.H. White, 1976). Its origin is attributed to leaching of iron by descending water containing 

humic acids. Gibbsite formed in peaty swamps during 

Holocene time has been observed in Suriname (Kersen, 

1956, p. 298-299, 367) and Hawaii (S.H. Patterson, 1971, 

p. 45-51). The Hawaii occurrence is significant because 

the swamp deposits have very low iron contents, whereas iron is very abundant in well-drained areas. The suggestion that iron is leached by water rich in organic 

material causing unique conditions of acidity (low pH) 

and low oxidation potential (Eh) is sound on theoretical 

grounds (Norton, 1973; Petersen, 1971). Artificial 

weathering experiments in the laboratory (Pickering, 

1962; Sapozhnikov, 1968) also indicate that iron can be 

removed by organic acids.

According to Butty and Chapallaz (1984, p. 121), 

chelating organic compounds are produced by leaching 

of vegetable matter or are synthesized by organisms 

such as fungi, algae, lichens, and bacteria. The acid 

organic compounds promote protonation of the mineral 

lattice, thereby extracting metal cations and destroying 

the mineral framework, or they selectively complex such 

ions as Fe++, Fe+++, A1+++, and Mn++. Carboxylic 

acids are stronger than silicic acids and may replace adsorbed silica thereby increasing silica solubility.

The common gradation of bauxite downward into 

kaolinite-rich zones is proof that kaolinite tends to be 

an intermediate phase between aluminous minerals in 

fresh rock and bauxite minerals. Apparently quartz impedes the leaching of silica and hydrolysis of kaolinite 

(Gardner, 1970; Butty and Chapallaz, 1984, p. 130).

Taylor and Hughes (1975, p. 545-546) believed that 

bauxite deposits at low altitudes on Rennell Island formed 

by biogenic degradation of volcanic ash of andesitic composition in a shallow-water lagoonal environment. This 

theory is based on the fact that volcanism was widespread in the region in Pliocene to Holocene time, and 

these two geologists found evidence of hydrogen sulfide 

and pyrite forming in shallow brackish lagoons. The hydrogen sulfide produced by anaerobic bacteria is thought 

to have formed a reducing microenvironment of low Eh 

and pH in which feldspar and other minerals containing 

aluminum and iron in the upper layers of sediment were 

destroyed and alumina-silica gels formed. Gibbsite is

believed to have formed from the gels as a result of minor 

changes in pH at the sediment-water interfaca

Much of the difficulty in understanding the origin of 

bauxite minerals stems from their occurrence in so many 

different environments. In addition to the most favorable wet tropical environment, environments where gibbsite is known to have formed include such different 

conditions as those that existed during the development 

of alpine soils in the Cascade Mountains, Wash. 

(Reynolds, 1971), and those that existed during the 

hydrothermal alteration of rocks in Nevada (Hewett, 

Cornwall, and Erd, 1968). Most diaspore is in deposits 

showing little evidence of metamorphism, but some in 

Turkey and Greece is in areas that have been metamorphosed. Corundum is most abundant in metamorphosed 

emery deposits, but it is also reported to be present in 

minor quantities in laterite formed by surficial weathering. The alteration of gibbsite to boehmite and boehmite 

to corundum has taken place in thin contact-metamorphosed zones where bauxite has been intruded by basalt 

dikes in the Antrim district, Ireland (Eyles and others, 

1952), and at Bedarieux, France, and Remeti, Romania 

(Bardossy and others, 1972). Gibbsite transported by 

streams from lateritic deposits was found to be altering to chlorite on the sea floor off Kauai, Hawaii (Swindale and Fan, 1967).

Although most bauxite formed in place, some deposits 

in sedimentary beds have been transported short 

distances, and trace amounts of bauxite minerals that 

occur in ocean sediments have been transported great 

distances. Transported deposits occur in Arkansas, 

where bauxite is interbedded with the terrestrial Berger 

Formation (Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis, 1958). Transported 

deposits, of which most were deposited in fresh water, 

also occur in Gujarat, India (Roy Chowdhury and 

Venkatesh, 1972, p. 88), Sangaredi, Guinea (Akayemov, 

1975), and elsewhere. Some of the deposits of Devonian 

age in the U.S.S.R. are enclosed by marine beds, which 

is probably the basis for the older theories of marine 

origin. Very minor quantities of gibbsite of marine origin 

are widely distributed in Holocene ocean sediments 

(Biscaye, 1963). In 1971-73, two companies explored seafloor bauxite in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Australia (Ingram, 1973, p. 8). Only minor quantities of bauxite 

pisolites were found in the exploration program, and 

they probably were washed in from shore. This gulf is 

one of the most likely places in the world to find marine 

bauxite, because the very large Weipa deposits are actively being eroded from sea cliffs on its shores.

AGE AND MINERALOGIC AND GEOGRAPHIC 

DISTRIBUTION OF BAUXITE

Bauxite has formed intermittently throughout much 

of geologic time (table 10) and more intensively during
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B29 

TABLE 10.—General age relations of world bauxite deposits

Cenozoic

Quaternary

Holocene and Bauxite deposits in several tropical countries are in belts of heavy rainfall: they formed mainly in 

Pleistocene. Pleistocene time, and several are apparently still forming. Very young laterite-type deposits occur 

on volcanic rocks in Hawaii; Fiji; Cauca district, Colombia; and elsewhere. Very young karst-type 

deposits occur on coral rock in the Solomon Islands, lies Loyautes and on Samar in the Philippines. 

Many of the very large laterite-type bauxite deposits in Australia, South America, Africa, India, and 

Indonesia underlying old land surfaces started to form in Late Tertiary time or earlier and continued 

to be enriched in aluminum throughout the Quaternary.

Tertiary .................. Many of the very large laterite-type bauxite deposits in tropical countries were forming in late and

possibly even early Tertiary time. 

Pliocene .............. West Germany (Vogelsberg Mountains)—small deposits of ferruginous bauxite on basalt.

Pliocene and West Germany (Vogelsberg Mountains)—small deposits of ferruginous bauxite on basalt.

late Miocene. 

Miocene .............. United States (Oregon and Washington)—laterite-type bauxite on Miocene basalt, overlain by Pliocene

alluvial deposits. 

Jamaica, Haiti, and Dominican Republic—large deposits overlie Eocene to lower Miocene limestone; bauxite

formation probably continued throughout post-Miocene time. 

Oligocene ............. Yugoslavia (Slovenia and elsewhere)—small reworked deposits of Oligocene age.

Oligocene and Eocene . . . Guyana and Suriname (several districts in Coastal Plain region)—high-grade gibbsitic bauxite between

sedimentary beds of early Eocene and early Oligocene age. Most of the bauxite probably formed in 

middle and late Eocene time. 

Eocene ............... Hungary—in Siimeg, Iszkaszentgyorgy bauxite is underlain by Upper Cretaceous beds and overlain by

middle Eocene beds; in Gant bauxite is underlain by Triassic rocks and is overlain by middle Eocene 

beds.

Greece (Peloponnisos)—small deposits at three localities. 

Australia—at Bum Buln, bauxite formed on Eocene basalt and is overlain by lignite, sand, and clay of

Oligocene or late Eocene age.

United States (Arkansas, Alabama, Georgia)—gibbsitic bauxite. 

Paleocene ............. Hungary (Kislfld)—bauxite underlain by Triassic beds and overlain by middle Eocene beds.

Yugoslavia—in Istria bauxite is underlain by Upper Cretaceous (Campanian) beds and is overlain by 

Paleocene and Eocene strata; in Drnis, Imotski, and Mostar, bauxite is between limestone of Late 

Cretaceous (Santonian to Campanian) age and upper Paleocene limestone and terrestrial beds. 

Mesozoic

Late Cretaceous

Campanian ............ France (Var, Bedarieux)—boehmitic bauxite underlain by Jurassic rocks and overlain by Cretaceous

(Campanian to Maestrichtian) rocks.

Yugoslavia (Jace)—bauxite between Upper Cretaceous (Maestrichtian) formations. 

Santonian and Hungary (Halimba)—bauxite underlain by Triassic and Lower Jurassic carbonate beds and overlain by

Coniacian. terrestrial beds of Santonian Age. 

Turonian .............. Italy (San Giovanni Rotondo)—bauxite between Cenomanian and upper Turanian beds.

Greece (Giona, Parnassbs, Elikbn)—boehmitic bauxite between Cenomanian and upper Turonian rocks. 

Turkey (Akseki, Seydisehir, Sebilkoy)—boehmitic bauxite between older and post-Turanian (Cretaceous)

rocks. 

Cenomanian ........... France (Brignoles)—boehmitic bauxite between Jurassic and upper Turonian limestones; part of bauxite

may have been formed in early Turonian time. 

Italy (Abruzzi)—bauxite underlain by carbonate beds of Albian to Cenomanian Age and overlain by

younger Cenomanian beds. 

Early Cretaceous .......... France (Revest)—bauxite underlain by Lower Cretaceous and overlain by Cenomanian beds.

Greece (Elevsis, Megara, Mandra)—boehmitic bauxite between Upper Triassic and Cenomanian beds. 

Albian and France (Ariege)—bauxite in several stratigraphic positions in beds of Aptian and possibly Barremian

Aptian. Ages. 

Barremian and Hungary (Nagyharsany)—bauxite underlain by Jurassic beds and overlain by Barremian beds.

Hauterivian. 

Late Jurassic ............. Greece (Gibna, Parnassbs, Elikbn)—boehmitic bauxite between Upper Triassic and Lower Cretaceous

rocks.

Yugoslavia (Niksic)—boehmitic bauxite between Upper Triassic and Lower Cretaceous rocks. 

Late Triassic ............. U.S.S.R. (Southern Urals)—bauxite underlain by Upper Devonian beds and overlain by Lower Jurassic

rocks.

Late and Middle Yugoslavia (Lika, Bjelaj-Lipa)—large low-grade deposits between Middle Triassic (Ladinian) and Upper 

Triassic. Triassic (Carnian) rocks; minor deposits of approximately this age occur in several other districts.
B30 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM 

TABLE 10.—General age relations of world bauxite deposits—Continued

Paleozoic

Permian .................. People's Republic of China (P.R.C.) (Guizhou, Sichuan)—diaspore and boehmite.

Vietnam (Cao Bang)—diaspore. 

Pennsylvanian ............ P.R.C. (Yunnan, Shandong, Henan, Manchuria)—principal bauxite deposits are mixed boehmite and

(Late Carboniferous). diaspore in bed G in middle or Upper Carboniferous coal-bearing rocks. Smaller bauxite resources

occur in bed A and other beds in Upper Carboniferous rocks in Henan, Shandong, and Manchuria. 

U.S.S.R. (Central Asia)—bauxite found in Middle* Carboniferous rocks.

United States (Pennsylvania, Missouri)—diaspore deposits in coal-bearing rocks of Pottsville age. 

Mississippian ............. U.S.S.R. (Russian platform, Urals, Taymer Range)—bauxite in Lower* Carboniferous rocks.

(Early Carboniferous). 

Devonian ................. U.S.S.R. (Salar, Urals, Timanskiy)—Timan deposits are Middle Devonian; 3 bauxite zones in East Urals

are Eifelian (Middle Devonian); 2 zones in West Urals are Eifelian and 1 is Frasnian (Upper Devonian).

Late Proterozoic .............. U.S.S.R. (Bokson, Siberia)—diaspore and boehmite.

*Soviet nomenclature.

certain periods than others. The oldest known bauxite 

deposits—in the East Sayan Mountains of Asiatic 

U.S.S.R.—are of Late Proterozoic age (Goretskiy, 1958). 

More than three-fourths of the world's bauxite resources 

is in young laterite-type deposits. Most of these are no 

older than late Tertiary in age, and some are still forming. The principal ages of karst-type bauxite are Devonian (U.S.S.R.), Carboniferous (U.S.S.R., People's Republic 

of China), Permian (People's Republic of China), Jurassic 

(Mediterranean countries), Early Cretaceous (Mediterranean countries), Late Cretaceous (Mediterranean countries, U.S.S.R.) and Paleocene and Eocene (Mediterranean 

countries and Kazakhstan, U.S.S.R.). The large deposits 

in Jamaica, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic are Miocene and Pliocene in age. The youngest karst deposits 

are still forming on elevated coral reefs on Pacific islands.

The general relationship of monohydrate bauxite being more abundant in old deposits and the dominance 

of trihydrate type in young deposits was first pointed out 

by Tucan (1934). Though there are exceptions to this 

trend, diaspore is certainly far more abundant in Paleozoic deposits than in younger ones, boehmite is the dominant mineral in Mesozoic bauxite, and gibbsite is the 

major mineral in deposits of Cenozoic aga Moreover, 

many of the exceptions to the trend, such as diaspore in 

Tertiary bauxite deposits in Yugoslavia, are in tectonic 

zones (Grubic, 1975, p. 172), where crustal disturbances 

may have brought about dehydroxylization of gibbsita

In a general way, bauxite deposits of similar geologic 

ages and mineralogical characteristics are distributed in 

global belts that may have been shifted by plate tectonics. Nearly all the large upper Tertiary and younger 

laterite-type deposits are located in or near the tropical 

belts (between lat 30° S. and 30° N.). Most Mesozoic and 

lower Tertiary bauxites are in a global belt between lat 

35° and 50° N., but a few in Siberia are between lat 50°

and 60° N. Paleozoic bauxites in the U.S.S.R. are mostly 

between lat 50° and 68° N., but some have been found 

between 74° and 77 ° N. The occurrence of bauxites where 

the present climate is temperate or colder has long been 

puzzling to geologists. An interesting explanation has 

been advanced by Bardossy (1973,1977), who noted that 

the Devonian bauxite deposits in the northern Urals extend along the zone between the Russian and Siberian 

plates. On the basis of this and other observations, he 

applied modern concepts of plate tectonics and advanced 

the theory that many deposits are on plates having global 

positions quite different from their positions at the time 

the bauxite formed. Accordingly, deposits now located 

in cold regions may have formed in equatorial belts.

WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES 

DEFINITIONS OF TERMS

In this report, the term "resources" and related terms 

(fig. 5) are used as outlined by the U.S. Bureau of Mines 

and the U.S. Geological Survey (1980, p. 1-3). The definitions are applied to bauxite as follows: 

Resource.—A concentration of [bauxite in] the Earth's crust in such 

form and amount that economic extraction of the commodity from 

the concentration is currently or potentially feasible 

Identified Resources.—Resources whose location, grade, quality, and 

quantity are known or estimated from specific geologic evidence 

Identified resources include economic, marginally economic, and 

subeconomic components. lb reflect varying degrees of geologic certainty, these economic divisions can be subdivided into measured, 

indicated, and inferred.3

Demonstrated.—A term for the sum of measured plus indicated. 

Measured.—Quantity is computed from dimensions revealed in

3The terms "proved," "probable," and "possible," which are commonly used by 

industry in economic evaluations of ore or mineral fuels in specific deposits or 

districts, have been loosely interchanged with the terms measured, indicated, and 

inferred. The former terms are not a part of this classification system.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B31

IDENTIFIED RESOURCES

Demonstrated

Measured Indicated

Inferred

UNDISCOVERED RESOURCES

Hypothetical

Probability Range 

(or).

Speculative

ECONOMIC

MARGINALLY 

ECONOMIC

SUBECONOMIC

Reserves Inferred Reserves

Marginal Reserves

Demonstrated 

Subeconomic Resources

Inferred 

Marginal Reserves

Inferred

Subeconomic

Resources

Other 

Occurrences Includes nonconventional and low-grade materials

FIGURE 5.—Classification of bauxite resources. From U.S. Bureau of Mines and U.S. Geological Survey (1980, fig. 1).

outcrops, trenches, workings, or drill holes; grade and (or) quality 

are computed from the results of detailed sampling. The sites 

for inspection, sampling, and measurement are spaced so closely 

and the geologic character is so well defined that size, shape, 

depth, and mineral content of the resource are well established. 

Indicated.—Quantity and grade and (or) quality are computed 

from information similar to that used for measured resources, 

but the sites for inspection, sampling, and measurement are 

farther apart or are otherwise less adequately spaced. The degree 

of assurance, although lower than that for measured resources, 

is high enough to assume continuity between points of 

observation.

Inferred.—Estimates are based on an assumed continuity beyond 

measured and (or) indicated resources, for which there is geologic 

evidence. Inferred resources may or may not be supported by 

samples or measurements.

Reserves.—[Reserves consist of bauxite that] could be economically 

extracted or produced at the time of determination. The term 

reserves need not signify that extraction facilities are in place and 

operative. Reserves include only recoverable materials; thus, terms 

such as "extractable reserves" and "recoverable reserves" are 

redundant and are not a part of this classification system. 

Marginal Reserves.—That part of the [bauxite resources] which, at the 

time of determination, borders on being economically producible. 

Its essential characteristic is economic uncertainty. Included are 

resources that would be producible, given postulated changes in 

economic or technologic factors.

Economic.—This term implies that profitable extraction or production

under defined investment assumptions has been established,

analytically demonstrated, or assumed with reasonable certainty.

Subeconomic Resources.—The part of identified resources that does

not meet the economic criteria of reserves and marginal reserves. 

Undiscovered Resources.—Resources, the existence of which are only 

postulated, comprising deposits that are separate from identified 

resources. Undiscovered resources may be postulated in deposits 

of such grade and physical location as to render them economic, 

marginally economic, or Subeconomic. To reflect varying degrees 

of geologic certainty, undiscovered resources may be divided into 

two parts:

Hypothetical Resources.—Undiscovered resources that are similar to 

known mineral bodies and that may be reasonably expected to 

exist in the same producing district or region under analogous 

geologic conditions. If exploration confirms their existence and 

reveals enough information about their quality, grade, and quantity, they will be reclassified as identified resources.

Speculative Resources.—Undiscovered resources that may occur 

either in known types of deposits in favorable geologic settings 

where mineral discoveries have not been made or in types of 

deposits as yet unrecognized for their economic potential. If exploration confirms their existence and reveals enough information about their quantity, grade, and quality, they will be 

reclassified as identified resources.

The accuracy of an estimate of world bauxite reserves 

is limited because of the many problems involved. The 

problems include wide differences in thoroughness of 

geologic investigation and in methods of appraising 

deposits and reporting data, errors and incompleteness 

of chemical analyses and mineralogical determinations, 

and uncertainties in the technology and economics of 

recovering alumina from new deposits. These problems
B32 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

TABLE 11.— Estimates of world bauxite reserves and other resources, 1936-1984 

[All estimates in millions of tons; (M) metric tons, (L) long tons, (U) undesignated tons. —, no data]

Year Reserves

Subeconomic

and undiscovered

resources (rounded)

Total 

resources (rounded) References

1936 ...... 964 (U) - - R. J. Anderson, 1936.

1945 ...... 1,056 (L) - - U.S. Surplus Property Board, 1945.

1950 ...... 1,605 (M) - - U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1953.

1953 ...... 2,414 (M) - - Lipkowitz, 1953, p. 127.

1958 ...... 3,224 (L) - — Wilmot, Sullivan, and Trought, 1959, table 20.

1959 ...... 7,500 (L) — 10,000 (L) Daniels and Derbyshire, 1959, p. 10.

1960 ...... 5,220 (U) - - Vidal, 1963, table 6.

1962 ...... > 6,000 (U) - - Ginsberg, 1962, table 8.

1963 ...... 5,760 (U) 8,740 (U) 15,000 (U) S. H. Patterson, 1963.

1964 ...... 9,399 (M) - - Bardossy, 1964, table 2.

1965 ...... 5,800 (U) 9,600 (U) 15,400 (U) S. H. Patterson, 1967.

1968 ...... 3,993-6,310 (M) - - Weisse, 1968, table 2.

1969 ...... 9,437 (U) - - Kauter, 1968, p. 603.

1970 ...... 10,695 (U) - - Beneslavskiy, 1970, p. 35.

1972 ...... 8,000 (M) - - Weisse, 1972, table 3.

1974 ...... 15,000 (U) - - World Mining, 1975, p. 15. 1

1974 ...... 15,500 (L) 10,000-15,300 (L) 25,000-39,000 (L) U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1975a, p. 15.

1975 ...... 9,400 (M) 8,600 (M) 18,000 (M) Societe Aluminium Pechiney, 1975, table 1.

1975 ...... 17,748 (M)2 — — International Bauxite Association, 1976b, table 1.

1975 ...... - - 21,400 (M) Shaffer, 1975, table 5.

1976 ...... 20,210 (M) - - Industrial Minerals, 1978a.

1976 ...... 24,000 (L) 11,000-16,000 (L) 35,000-40,000 (L) U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1977.

1978 ...... - - 37,481 (M) Bielfeldt, Lotze, and Winkhaus, 1978, p. 106.

1978 ...... 27,000 (M) 13,000-23,000 (M) 40,000-50,000 (M) U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1979.

1978 ...... 14,075 (M)3 - 38,225 (M) Lotze, 1978, table 2.

1978 ...... 28,515 (M)4 - 28,515 (M) Zambb, 1978, table 1.

1978 ...... 32,700 (M) - - Cornish, 1978, p. 30.

1979 ...... 22,000-23,000 (M) 18,000-27,000 (M) 40,000-50,000 (M)5 S. H. Patterson and others, unpub. data.

1980 ...... 16,267 (M) 17,244 (M)6 33,611 (M)7 Souare, 1981, table 4.

1980 ...... 30,780 (M)8 108,946 (M)9 138,845 (M) Hill, 1980, table 2; Ostojic, 1980, table 1.

1981 ...... 34,000 (M) - - Bardossy, 1981, p. 287.

1981 ...... 28,700 (M) — — Australian Mineral Economics Pty., 1981, table 2.2.

1981 ...... 18,861 (M) 10 121,492 (M)11 140,353 (M) Hill and Ostojic, 1981, table 4.

1982 ...... 22,400 (M)12 18,000-28,000 (M) 40,000-50,000 (M) U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1982, p. 17.

1983 ...... - - 31,500 (M) Shaffer, 1983, table 5.

1983 ...... 20,236 - 31,913 (M)13 Peterson and Arbelbide, 1983, table 6.

1983 ...... 21,000 (M)14 — — Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, table 3.

1984 ...... 18,858 (M) - - Balazs, 1984, table 1.

1984 ...... 15,030 (M)15 85,660 (M) 16 100,000 (M) Lotze, 1984, table 4.

1984 ...... 21,000 (M) 33,000-55,000 (M) 55,000-75,000 (M) This report.

1 Summary of paper presented by B. Balkay.

2Estimate is for total reserves in International Bauxite Association member 

countries (Australia, Dominican Republic, Ghana, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Indonesia, Jamaica, Sierra Leone, Suriname, and Yugoslavia) only.

3Reserves in East European countries not included.

4Includes some subeconomic bauxite as the term is used in this report.

5Estimates are based on information available in December 1979, and they 

include broad assumptions for the sizes of subeconomic and undiscovered

resources.

reserves. 

World reserves.

^Measured, indicated, and inferred reserves.

Identified subeconomic and undiscovered resources. 

10Demonstrated and inferred economic resources. 

1 Undeveloped and subeconomic and undiscovered resources. 

12Estimate is for reserve base.

13Identified in situ material plus indicated and inferred bauxite. 

14Demonstrated in situ material associated with 91 mines in market-economy 

countries, excludes Yugoslavia. 

15Developed and undeveloped reserves. 

16Potential ores and undiscovered resources.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B33

are so great that two authorities concerned with world 

bauxite reserves have stated (Harder and Greig, 1960, 

p. 81):

The estimation of world reserves of aluminum ores presents a variety of problems that are not encountered in most other ore calculations, and therefore most estimates reflect individual opinions. One 

of the problems in any such estimate is the variety of raw materials 

which contain appreciable amounts of alumina ranging from *** 30 

to 50 percent in aluminous laterite and low-grade bauxite, from 50 

to 62 percent in medium and high-grade bauxite and from 55 to 75 

percent in diaspore rocks.

Additional errors may be introduced in any world 

bauxite estimate by variations in reporting tonnages 

in the extensive literature on this subject. Whether 

reserves are expressed in terms of tonnage in the 

ground, wet tons recoverable by mining, or the 

recoverable dry weight and in short, long, or metric tons 

may cause considerable discrepancies in estimates 

(Dreyer, 1977). The type or condition of the tons included is not indicated in many published reserve 

estimates.

The reserve estimates for most countries include 

measured, indicated, and inferred bauxite, and the last 

two categories account for the large totals. The 

estimates for the subeconomic and undiscovered 

resources are based on piecemeal information and 

geologic inferences concerning bauxite in the following 

locations. (1) Deposits in large regions of lateritic soils 

in tropical countries; many of these deposits are remotely located. (2) Bauxite deposits that are known to be 

present at depths too great to be mined profitably and 

that, therefore, have been inadequately explored. 

Deposits of this type occur mainly in Europe. (3) Large 

deposits in active districts and other identified bauxite deposits that contain too much reactive silica or are 

otherwise too low in grade to be classed as reserves. 

Because of the assumptions on which the estimates for 

the subeconomic and undiscovered resources are based, 

these estimates are at best little more than orders of 

magnitude.

One of the greatest problems in accurately estimating 

resources is due, in large measure, to different usages 

of terms in the official reserve estimates of foreign 

governments. The United Nations Economic and Social 

Council, Expert Group on Definitions and Terminology 

for Mineral Resources (1979, p. 9) has outlined the problem as follows:

The terms "resources" and "reserves" give rise to confusion because 

in a number of languages, among them English, French, and Spanish, 

they have general as well as technical meanings. In some languages 

only one term is available, while in Russian both terms have virtually the same meaning. Furthermore, it is not uncommon for the terms 

to be used interchangeably, as synonyms, by non-specialists. For example, the Economic and Social Council refers in its resolution to 

"reserves" where, in line with the established technical definitions

in many English-speaking countries, "resources" would have been 

more appropriate. The Expert Group therefore recommends that the 

term "resources" be used exclusively for general classification 

purposes.

The limitations on the accuracy of reserve estimates 

outlined in foregoing paragraphs are minimal compared 

with those that apply to subeconomic and undiscovered 

resources. In several tropical countries the known 

minable deposits are so large that very little attention 

has been given to the subeconomic, low-grade, and 

remote deposits, and, therefore, no estimates of their 

size have been made. Furthermore, some of these few 

estimates of subeconomic and undiscovered resources 

that have been made are so large that they have little 

value: for example, the estimate that 7 billion tons of 

speculative bauxite resources exists in remote parts of 

Guyana (Singh, 1972, p. 625).

ESTIMATES AND DISTRIBUTION OF 

WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES

Estimates of world bauxite resources have increased 

markedly in the last half century (table 11, fig. 6). When 

the first estimate was published, in 1936, the total 

known bauxite reserves were a little less than 1 billion 

tons; less than 100 million additional tons had been 

found by the end of World War II. Major increases in 

estimates of world bauxite reserves began in 1959, and 

the largest estimate currently published is the one for 

32.7 billion tons in an International Bauxite Association article (Cornish, 1978, p. 30). The estimate for world 

bauxite reserves in this report (table 11, 12) is 

22 billion-23 billion tons. It is smaller than the estimate 

in the International Bauxite Association article because 

that estimate includes considerable bauxite classified 

as subeconomic in this report. Estimates of subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite resources also have 

increased significantly in recent years. In this report, 

the bauxite in these two categories is estimated to be 

18 billion-33 billion tons; thus total resources are 

estimated to be 40 billion-55 billion tons. Because of 

the many assumptions on which the estimates for the 

subeconomic and undiscovered resources are based, 

these figures are at best little more than order-ofmagnitude estimates.

The major world bauxite resources are in Africa, 

Australia, South America, and the Caribbean region; 

significant deposits are present in Asia and Europe 

(fig. 7). Guinea has the world's largest bauxite reserves, 

estimated to be 5.6 billion tons. Large reserves in 

Guinea and in other countries are indicated in the following table.
B34

100,000

o" 10,000 ±i(S) -i z 

dO

1000

GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

'T I I I | II I I I I I I I | I I I I | I I I I | I I——I | I I I I | I I I I | I I I I | II I I

A Total resource estimate

(includes reserves, subeconomic 

and undiscovered bauxite)

• Reserve estimate

•

•

Lines connect upper and 

lower limits of an 

estimate range

International Bauxite 

Association (1975) 

(Member countries,\ 

only)

. 1 i r

100

CO

y

cc

CO

Z

o

10

Annual World Bauxite 

Production

1930 1940 1950 1960 

YEARS

1970 1980

FIGURE 6.—Annual world bauxite production and estimates of reserves and total resources, 1935-83.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B35

Country

Brazil ....................

India .....................

Indonesia .................

Guyana ...................

Cameroon .................

Greece .... ...............

Yugoslavia ................

Bauxite reserves 

(millions of 

metric tons)

..................... 5,600

..................... 4,440

..................... 2,250

..................... 2,000

..................... 1,000

..................... 750

..................... 700

..................... 680

..................... 600

..................... 575

..................... 450

..................... 350

Countries having reserves of 100 million-300 million 

metric tons include Venezuela, Hungary, the U.S.S.R., 

Sierra Leone, and the People's Republic of China. The 

bauxite reserves in the United States are estimated to 

be only about 38 million metric tons. Several countries 

in Central America, the Caribbean region, Europe, and 

Asia have bauxite reserves of less than 100 million 

metric tons.

Very large subeconomic and virtually certain 

speculative bauxite resources are present in Africa and 

South America; Asia and Australia may have large 

subeconomic and speculative resources; other major 

global regions rank well behind in these categories of 

resources.

NORTH AMERICA 

UNITED STATES

History and Production

The following brief history of the discovery of bauxite in the United States is summarized from a discussion by Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis (1958, p. 71-73) and 

from reports listed in their bibliography.

Pisolitic structures in bauxite attracted attention 

long before identifications were made and the value 

recognized. Rocks later found to be bauxite were described as early as 1842, under the names "amygdaloid" 

and "pudding stone." Bauxite was first identified in occurrences along the road from Little Rock to Sweet 

Home, Ark., by J.C. Branner, State Geologist of Arkansas, in 1887. His report, however, was not published for 

4 years. In the meantime, a note was published by 

Nichols (1888, p. 905) describing bauxite in Floyd County, Ga. This is usually considered to be the first 

documented discovery in the United States. The actual 

identification of bauxite in Georgia may have taken 

place as early as 1881.

Production of bauxite began in Georgia in 1888 and 

was followed by production in Arkansas in late 1894 or 

early 1895. Domestic production, including the World 

War I peak, remained below 1 million tons annually until very intensive mining was started in 1942 to meet 

World War II requirements; a record production of 6.3 

million tons was reached in 1943 (fig. 1). This provided 

such large stocks that only 2.9 million tons was mined 

in the following year and only 997,000 tons in 1945, the 

final year of the war (table 5). Since 1945, U.S. production has remained between 1.1 and 2.2 million tons per 

year, and imports have risen sharply.

Bauxite was mined in three areas in the United States 

in 1984, and several other districts were actively mined 

in the past. The Arkansas region has produced more 

bauxite than all other districts in the United States combined. About 71 million tons were produced in this State 

from 1899 through 1976. Production in other States 

from 1889 through 1976 amounted to only 4.9 million 

tons. Alabama produced about 61 percent of this total, 

Georgia, about 36 percent, and Tennessee, Virginia, Oregon, and Washington, the remainder. The bauxite mined 

in Oregon and Washington was for plant tests only. The 

Arkansas region was not only the leading producer but 

also the source of all domestic bauxite used for aluminum. Bauxite for use in refractories is produced in the 

Andersonville district, Georgia, and the Eufaula district, 

Alabama. Chemical-grade bauxite is mined on a small 

scale in Arkansas and has in the past been mined in the 

Andersonville district, Georgia, and in the Northwest 

Georgia district. Other areas in the Southeastern States 

where bauxite was produced before or during World War 

II include the following: (1) eastern Tennessee (Dunlap 

and others, 1965); (2) Warm Springs district, Georgia 

(WS. White, 1965); (3) Irwinton district, Georgia (Lang 

and others, 1965); (4) Rock Run and Goshen Valley areas, 

Alabama (Cloud, 1967); and (5) Anniston, Fort Payne, 

and Ashville areas, Alabama (Cloud, 1966). About 

30,000 tons of bauxite were mined in Virginia during 

World War I and World War II (Warren, Bridge, and 

Overstreet, 1965), and small tonnages were dug in the 

Tippah-Benton district in northeastern Mississippi 

(Tburtelot, 1964) and the Indian Mound district in 

western Tennessee (Dunlap and others, 1965).

Bauxite Districts and Regions

Bauxite deposits occur in several parts of the United 

States. The major deposits in the Arkansas region are 

near the boundary between the Mississippi embayment 

of the Gulf Coastal Plain and the Interior Highlands (fig. 

8). The Eufaula district, Alabama, and the Andersonville district, Georgia, are in the eastern part of the Gulf
B36 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

FIGURE 7.—Locations of principal
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES

bauxite resources of the world.
B38 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

TABLE 12.— Estimates of reserves, subeconomic and undiscovered 

resources, and total resources of bauxite as of 1983 

Most figures for reserves are on a recoverable-bauxite, dry basis and include 

measured, indicated, and inferred categories; however, some estimates used 

in compilation failed to designate types of tons used and whether converted 

to a dry basis. Few of the published estimates of subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite indicated the specifications of bauxite included, and most 

figures are believed to be on an in-the-ground basis. Differences between 

metric and long tons were ignored in most estimates because the resulting 

error is well within the limits of accuracy. Estimates for continents and 

regions are rounded to the nearest 500 million tons except for North and Central America. The limits for the range in world total reserves are rounded 

to the nearest 1 billion tons and the total resources (reserves and subeconomic 

and undiscovered resources) to the nearest 5 billion tons. 

All estimates in millions of metric tons. VS, very small; S, small, M, moderate. 

Subeconomic bauxite includes demonstrated and inferred bauxite, and undiscovered bauxite includes hypothetical and speculative deposits. Most 

estimates for subeconomic and undiscovered resources are rounded.

Subeconomic and 

undiscovered Total 

Reserves resources resources

North America 

United States ..... 38 275-300 300-325

Mexico .......... 0 S S

Subtotal 38 275-300 300-325

Probable additional 

subeconomic and 

undiscovered deposits ....... S VS

Total (rounded) . 40 275-300 300-325

Central America 

Costa Rica ...... 78 120 200

Honduras ........ 0 10? 10?

Panama .......... 0 70+ 70+

Subtotal ....... 78 200 280

Probable additional 

subeconomic and 

undiscovered deposits ....... S S

Total (rounded) 80 200 300

Caribbean region 

Dominican Republic 30 15 45 

Haiti ............ 10 40 50

Jamaica .......... 2,000 0-500 2,000-2,500

Subtotal ....... 2,000 0 500 2,000-2,500

Probable additional 

subeconomic and 

undiscovered deposits ....... 0-500 0-500

Total (rounded) . 2,000 0-1,000 2,000-3,000

South America

Brazil ........... 2,250 2,750 5,000 

Colombia ......... 0 100 100

French Guiana .... 42 130 170 

Guyana ........... 700 300 1,000

Suriname ........ 575 225 800

Venezuela ......... 235 6,000-8,000 6,000-8,000

Subtotal ....... 4,000 9,000-11,000 13,000-15,000

Probable additional 

subeconomic and 

undiscovered deposits ....... 6,000-10,000 6,000-10,000

Total (rounded) . 4,000 15,000-21,000 19,000-25,000

Europe 

Austria .......... 0 2 2

France .......... 30 500 500

Greece ........... 600 400 1,000

Hungary .......... 300 50-100 350-400

Italy ............. 5

United Kingdom . . 0 

U.S.S.R. .......... 300

West Germany .... 2 

Yugoslavia ........ 350

Subtotal ....... 1,500

Probable additional 

subeconomic and

Total (rounded) . 1,500

Africa 

Angola ........... 0

Chad ............. 0

Ghana ............ 450

Guinea .......... 5,600

Guinea-Bissau ..... 0

A^fllmxn O

Mali ............. 0

Qioirfi T &f\n{* 1 A.CI

Upper Volta ....... 0

(now Burkina Faso) 

Zaire ............... 0

Zimbabwe .......... 2

Subtotal ....... 7,000

Probable additional 

subeconomic and 

undiscovered deposits .....

Total (rounded) . 7,000

Asia 

India ............. 1,000

Iran .............. 0

People's Republic 

of China ........ 150

Philippines ........ 0 

Saudi Arabia ...... 0

Taiwan ........... 0

Turkey ........... 25

Vietnam .......... 0

Subtotal ....... 2,000

Probable additional 

subeconomic and 

undiscovered deposits .....

Total (rounded) . 2,000

Oceania

Fiji .............. 0

New Zealand ...... 0

Palau ............ 0

Solomon Islands ... 50

Subtotal ....... 4,500

Probable additional 

subeconomic and

Total (rounded) . 4,500

Total (rounded) . 21,000

45 

S 

100-150 

3 

300-400 

S 

450-550

2,000-3,000

M

2,000-3,000

10+ 

800+ 

30 

100 

2,400-4,400 

500? 

10 

200+ 

60 

880+ 

? 

M 

70 

20?

200+ 

3

5,000-7,000

. . 3,000-6,000

8,000-13,000

2,000-4,000 

1,250-1,750 

70 

5 

80-130

350-1,350 

200-300 

145 

50-100 

435 

200

3,000-8,500

. . 1,000-2,500

6,000-11,000

1,500-3,500 

10 

20 

40-50 

10

1,500-3,500

. . 1,UUU— Z,UUU

2,500-5,500

35,000-55,000

50 

50+ 

100-150 

3 

600-700 

2 

800-900

3,000-3,500

S

3,000-3,500

10+ 

1,500+ 

30 

550 

8,000-10,000 

500? 

10 

200+ 

60 

880+ 

2 

140+ 

70 

20?

200+ 

5

12,000-14,000

3,000-6,000

15,000-20,000

3,000-5,000 

2,000-2,500 

70 

20 

100-150

500-1,500 

200-300 

145 

50-100 

460 

200

7,000-10,500

1,000-2,500

8,000-13,000

6,000-8,000 

10 

20 

40-50 

60

6,000-8,000

1,000-2,000

7,000-10,000

55,000-75,000
f° I AHofbcene sediments

OF DISTRICTS AND AREAS

1. Arkansas district

2. Tippah-Benton district, Mississippi

3. Pontotoc district, Mississippi4. Winston-Noxubee-Kemper district, 

Mississippi

5. Margerum district, Alabama

6. Eufaula district, Alabama7. Springvale district, Georgia8. Andersonville district, Georgia9. Irwinton district, Georgia

17.

Warm Spring district, Georgia 

Spottswood district, Virginia Indian Mound district, Tennessee 

Elizabethton district, Tennessee Chattanooga district, Tennessee Summerville area, Georgia Hermitage, Cave Springs, and

Bobo areas, Georgia 

Fort Payne area, Alabama

Boundary of major physiographic divisions 

Boundaries outlined by patterns

18. Congo area, Alabama

19. Rock Run and Goshen Valley 

areas, Alabama

20. Ashville area, Alabama

21. Jacksonville area, Alabama

22. Nances Creek area, Alabama

23. Anniston area, Alabama24. DeArmanville area, Alabama25. Talladega area, Alabama

Formation boundary

Approximate position of the 

early Wilcox shoreline

Inner and outer lines of deposits 

in the Coastal Plain province

100 200 MILES

_I

100 200 KILOMETERS

I

» 

r 

o00

o

FIGURE 8.—Locations of bauxite districts and areas in the Southern United States.

WCO 

CD
B40 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Coastal Plain. Small deposits that are no longer mined 

are scattered through the Valley and Ridge province in 

Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, and Virginia, and small 

occurrences of bauxite are known in the Coastal Plain 

province of Mississippi and in the western part of Tennessee (fig. 8). Lateritic bauxite that occurs in Oregon, 

Washington, and Hawaii has been evaluated and mined for alumina recovery tests. Diaspore deposits in 

Missouri and Pennsylvania have been mined for many 

years for use in refractories but have little promise as 

sources of aluminum.

ARKANSAS REGION

The largest deposits of commercial bauxite in the 

United States occur within an area of about 700 km2 

in Saline and Pulaski Counties, Ark. (fig. 9). Arkansas 

bauxite is associated with a nepheline syenite intrusion

92°30'

(fig. 10), which, during early Tertiary time, stood as low 

hills above a plain sloping gently southeastward. Thick 

bauxite deposits formed on the hills by weathering processes, erosion, slumping, and subsequent weathering of 

heterogeneous material. Bauxite also accumulated as 

sedimentary deposits near the edge of the plain. After 

a change in physiographic conditions, most of the area 

was covered by a series of flat-lying sand and clay beds; 

only the tops of the syenite-cored hills remained exposed. Consequently, the largest deposits, and those 

with the least overburden, are near the present 

nepheline syenite exposures. No commercial deposits 

are known more than a few miles south and east of the 

syenite outcrops.

The bauxite in Arkansas formed almost entirely from 

nepheline syenite in place or from detritus derived from 

these rocks (Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis, 1958, 

p. 101-137). Detrital deposits in sedimentary rocks are

92°15'

34°30'

f: I:*::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: •••* '•'• 

:••:: :PULASki: COUNTY

01234 MILES

————'———'————'———— 

01234 KILOMETERS

FIGURE 9.—Generalized geology of the Arkansas bauxite region. Adapted from Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis (1958).
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B41

TYPE 2

Colluvial deposits 

at the base of the 

Berger Formation

TYPE 3

Stratified deposits 

within the Berger 

Formation

TYPE 4

Conglomeratic 

deposits at the 

base of the Saline 

Formation

TYPE 1

Residual deposits 

on the nepheline 

syenite

FIGURE 10.—Principal types of deposits in the Arkansas bauxite region. Adapted from Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis (1958, fig. 33).

confined to the Saline and Berger Formations of Wilcox 

age (middle and early Eocene) and are above an erosional surface cutting the Paleocene Wills Point and 

Kincaid Formations. Therefore, the principal period of 

bauxite formation is established as late Paleocene and 

early Eocene. Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis (1958) recognized the following types of deposits: (1) residual on 

nepheline syenite (fig. 10), (2) colluvial at the base of the 

Berger Formation, (3) stratified within the Berger Formation, and (4) conglomeratic at the base of the Saline 

Formation. The residual type formed in place by 

lateritic weathering. The three other types have all been 

transported from the residual deposits. Their classification as to type is based on stratigraphic position, particle size, and other sedimentary features.

Typical bauxite deposits in Arkansas are lenticular 

and range greatly in size. Some cover less than 0.4 hectare, but other tabular lenses extend over areas of more 

than one hundred times this size. The average thickness 

of type 1 (residual) deposits is approximately 5 m, and 

the maximum is more than 15 m. Most type 2 (transported) deposits have thicknesses similar to those of 

type 1. Type 3 deposits are commonly about 3 m thick, 

and the maximum thickness on record is about twice 

this. Most type 4 deposits are about 5 m thick, but some 

down dip are considerably thicker.

Most of the metal-grade bauxite is associated with 

lower grade bauxite, bauxitic clay, and kaolin. In type 

1 deposits, the best grade bauxite is ordinarily pisolitic 

material in the upper part. The pisolitic bauxite grades 

downward into granite-textured bauxite, which in turn 

grades, as silica content increases, into massive kaolin 

and into kaolinitic saprolite. Type 2 deposits are typically pisolitic in the upper part; the lower part consists of

fragmental gibbsitic material mixed with kaolin. Most 

type 2 deposits are both overlain and underlain by 

kaolinitic clay. Type 3 deposits consist of stratified beds 

and crossbedded detrital bauxite composed of pebbles 

and cobbles ranging from about 2 mm to 10 cm in 

diameter. Type 3 deposits interfinger with shale of the 

Berger Formation. Type 4 deposits consist of a transported rubble of irregular and angular blocks of bauxite having the lithologic characteristics of the residual 

type 1 deposits. The largest blocks are more than 1 m 

in longest dimension. In places, the type 4 deposits 

overlie granite-textured bauxite; elsewhere they interfinger with silty clay of the Wilcox beds.

Gibbsite is the major bauxite mineral in the Arkansas deposits; it occurs in crystalline, microcrystalline, 

and cryptocrystalline forms. The crystalline and microcrystalline forms commonly line cavities and are the 

principal components of pseudomorphs after feldspar 

in parts of residual deposits. Cryptocrystalline gibbsite, 

the most common form, occurs in pisolites and in the 

enclosing matrix in most of the bauxite. Boehmite is 

present in minor quantities in a few deposits (Gordon, 

Tracey, and Ellis, 1958, p. 85-86), and trace amounts 

of corundum have been reported to be present in Arkansas bauxite (Keller, 1964, p. 130). Kaolinite is the principal clay mineral in the bauxite, and halloysite is 

present primarily in residual deposits. As the alumina 

in this clay is recovered in the combination process, the 

clay is in a sense part of the ore.

Numerous mineral impurities are present in Arkansas bauxite. Siderite (FeCO3 ) is the principal iron 

mineral in most deposits. Hematite (Fe2O3), goethite 

(FeO(OH)), magnetite (FeFe2O4), and pyrite (FeS2) are 

present, and maghemite (7-Fe2O3) may also occur.
B42 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Most titanium is in anatase (TiO2), and minor amounts 

occur in unaltered ilmenite (FeTiO3 ), sphene 

(CaTiSiO5), and rutile (TiO2). Minor accessory minerals 

include chlorite, chamosite, zircon, and barite.

In addition to the major oxides mentioned in the 

foregoing discussion, the Arkansas bauxite contains 

several minor elements. Most of these are discussed in 

the section on minor elements, and one is mentioned in 

the section on byproducts.

Because of wide variations in the mineralogy and 

abundance of impurities, the contents of A12O3 and 

other oxides in Arkansas bauxite range broadly (table 

13). Some of the high-grade bauxite contains as much 

as 62.0 percent A12O3 , only 4.6 percent SiO2 , and very 

little Fe2O3 . The bauxitic clay deposits commonly contain at least 50 percent A12O3 and 19-22 percent SiO2 . 

Most of the gibbsitic Arkansas bauxite mined contains 

45-50 percent A12O3 , about 13 percent SiO2 , 8 percent 

Fe2O3 , 2.5-3 percent TiO2 , and about 25 percent H2O 

(table 1).

TABLE 13.—Chemical analyses of bauxite, bauxitic clay, and kaolin

from the Arkansas region

[All values in weight percent. —, not determined; LOI, loss on ignition. All 

data from Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis (1958, table 10, p. 109)]

A1203 ..........

Si02 ...........

Fe as Fe2O3 . . . . .

Ti02 ...........

LOI ............

Insoluble .......

FeO ............

Na2O ..........

K20 ...........

...... 62.0

...... 4.6

...... .9

...... .4

...... 31.6

...... .5

...... .2

...... —

...... —

52.6

22.2

.8

.8

23.2

.4

.2

—

—

40.7

38.7

2.4

2.5

15.4

.3

.3

—

—

50.3

19.5

3.0

2.6

24.2

.4

.3

—

—

54.02

—

11.65

2.16

29.31

2.39

—

.08

.06

57.36

—

8.04

.34

31.87

.65

—

—

—

1. Tan granular-textured bauxite.

2. Grayish-tan, soft, granitic-textured bauxitic clay.

3. Gray fragmental-appearing clay.

4. White granitic-textured bauxitic clay.

5. Pisolitic bauxite.

6. Granite-textured bauxite.

SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES

The bauxite deposits of the Southeastern United 

States occur in the Coastal Plain and the Valley and 

Ridge physiographic provinces (fig. 8). Most deposits 

in the Coastal Plain province lie along an arc, referred 

to as the "outer line" (Bridge, 1950, pi. 1), that extends 

from central Georgia into southern Alabama and 

eastern and northeastern Mississippi (fig. 8). A few 

deposits similar to those in the Coastal Plain extend as 

far inland as the "inner line" (fig. 8) in western Tennessee, northwestern Alabama, and central Georgia.

The "inner line" is the approximate inland boundary 

of the coastal plain that existed in Paleocene and Eocene 

time when the bauxite formed (Overstreet, 1964, p. 7). 

Deposits of the Valley and Ridge province extend 

discontinuously from northeastern Alabama northnortheastward through adjacent parts of Georgia and 

Tennessee into northeastern Tennessee and west-central 

Virginia (Bridge, 1950).

Districts in the Coastal Plain

The two active bauxite districts in the Southern 

States, the Andersonville in west-central Georgia (Zapp, 

1965; Beck, 1949) and the Eufaula in eastern Alabama 

(S.A. Alien, 1949; Warren and Clark, 1965; Clarke, 

1972), are both in the Coastal Plain. Deposits in both 

districts are in the Nanafalia Formation of Wilcox age 

(Paleocene). Most of the bauxite bodies are within large, 

flat-lying, lenticular kaolin deposits. Bauxite bodies in 

the Eufaula district extend over areas ranging from 

about 0.2 hectare to nearly 1.6 hectares and are 1- 

15m thick. Most deposits contain less than 10,000 tons, 

and the average size is about 3,000 tons. Those in the 

Andersonville district, Georgia, are larger and thinner; 

they may be as much as 4 hectares in areal extent and 

may have an average thickness of nearly 2 m.

In addition to the two active districts in the Coastal 

Plain, small bauxite deposits occur in the Irwinton 

district, Georgia (Lang and others, 1965); in the Warm 

Springs district, Georgia (W.S. White, 1965), where the 

deposits apparently are in outliers of Coastal Plain 

sediments on Piedmont crystalline rocks; and in northeastern Mississippi (Conant, 1965; Tourtelot, 1964). 

Although small tonnages of bauxite have been mined 

in some of these districts, they are not thought to have 

significant potential for future bauxite production.

In physical appearance and mineral content, the bauxite in the Coastal Plain deposits is similar to the 

transported bauxite deposits in the Arkansas region. 

The higher grade bauxite is pisolitic, and the lower 

grade tends to be more earthy or clayey. In many 

deposits, the higher grade bauxite occurs as pods in the 

centers of large bodies, in which the center core is 

enclosed by concentric envelopes of clayey bauxite, 

bauxitic clay, and kaolin. Because of the occurrence and 

variations of the deposits, several grades of bauxite and 

bauxitic clay are present (table 14).

By thorough work on the mineralogy of the deposits 

in the Andersonville district, Flock (1966) confirmed 

earlier conclusions that kaolinite is the most abundant 

mineral in the deposits, and gibbsite is the second most 

abundant. Titanium-bearing ilmenite, rutile, and 

brookite were identified by microscopic methods, and 

anatase was found by X-ray diffraction. Flock also
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B43

TABLE 14.— Ranges in grades and average composition of bauxite and bauxitic clay of the Andersonville district

[Average analyses computed from a large number of analyses of each grade of samples; range of constituents given in parentheses. Definition and composition

in percent. Modified from Zapp (1965, table 1)]

Mineralogic 

composition Material

Gibbsite 

exceeds 

kaolinite

Kaolinite 

exceeds 

gibbsite

Bauxite .............

Bauxite .............

Bauxitic clay ........

Chemical and 

physical 

definition

Grade A12O3 SiO2

. . . . . A >51 <7

. . . . . B >51 7-15

.... 45-51% ALO, 45-51 —— £t U

. . . . . 40-45% ALO, 40-45 <43

£t O

Average chemical composition

A1203

59.6 

(56-61) 

56.8 

(52.5-59.5) 

52.9 

(51-54) 

48.2 

(45-51) 

42.7 

(40-45)

Si02

5.6 

(3-7) 

11.9 

(7-15) 

18.9 

(15-22.5) 

27.1 

(22.5-53) 

37.4 

(32-43)

Fe203

1.4 

(0.5-3.0) 

1.0 

(0.3-3.0) 

1.0 

(0.3-3.0) 

1.1 

(0.5-3.0) 

1.1 

(0.5-3.0)

Ti02

2.8 

(2.5-3.5) 

2.4 

(1.8-3.0) 

2.2 

(1.6-2.9) 

2.0 

(1.4-2.6) 

1.8 

(1.2-2.5)

H20+

30.6 

(30-32) 

27.9 

(26.5-30) 

25.0 

(22-27) 

21.6 

(18-23) 

17.0 

(14.5-19)

found montmorillonite, which is ordinarily absent in 

bauxite deposits, to be present in amounts ranging from 

0.5 to 8.0 percent. This mineral was most abundant in 

the upper parts of kaolin deposits above the bauxite.

The origin of the bauxite in the Coastal Plain has long 

been puzzling to geologists. Clarke (1966, p. 913-914) 

theorized that the original source of the aluminum was 

"feldspars in granite, granite gneiss, and pegmatites" 

in the Appalachian Piedmont. He noted that carbonate 

beds in the Clayton Formation underlie the bauxitebearing Nanafalia Formation and thought that the clay 

and bauxite were deposited in ponds on a karst topography. Jones (1972) generally agreed with Clarke but 

thought the parent material was residuum in the Piedmont formed from several aluminous minerals. According to his idea, the iron content of the parent material 

was reduced during transportation. Burst (1974) 

pointed out the marked similarities between the 

deposits in the Andersonville and the Eufaula districts. 

He thought that the local depositional basins of the 

aluminous materials were cutoff meanders because of 

the "giant banana" shape of the deposits. His reason 

for not accepting the karst topography ideas was the 

absence of carbonate beds below the bauxite in the 

Andersonville district. Burst concluded that gibbsite 

formed by "desilicification" of degraded aluminosilicate 

lattices under proper pH conditions. Gibbsite was 

thought to have formed first in isolated nuclei, and silica 

moving outward from groups of nuclei formed halos 

around gibbsite concentrations. The envelopes of progressively lower grade bauxitic materials enclosing 

bauxite were believed to have formed in this way.

Several features of the bauxite deposits in the Coastal 

Plain remain unexplained. No adequate explanation for 

the low iron content of the bauxite has been advanced.

Burst's theory on the origin of envelopes of lower grade 

material seems to ignore the probable influence of moving subsurface water. The parent clays were probably 

higher in iron at the time of deposition, and iron was 

removed by chemical processes active in the presence 

of decaying organic matter and low pH conditions. The 

association of scattered impure lignite deposits with the 

bauxite suggests that conditions favorable for such a 

chemical environment existed at the time of bauxite 

formation.

Districts in the Valley and Ridge province

Several small bauxite districts are scattered through 

the Valley and Ridge physiographic province (fig. 8). 

The most productive districts were in eastern Tennessee 

(Dunlap and others, 1965; Mclntosh, 1949) and northwestern Georgia (W.S. White and Denson, 1966; 

Lewiecki, 1949). The largest deposits in these districts 

contained 150,000 to 200,000 tons; the largest may have 

contained as much as 300,000 tons. Small tonnages were 

also mined in districts in northeastern Alabama (Cloud, 

1966,1967) and west-central Virginia (Warren, Bridge, 

and Overstreet, 1965). Most known deposits in this 

province are either exhausted or depleted to the point 

that mining is no longer profitable.

Most of the bauxite in the Valley and Ridge province 

is in deposits occurring as subconical sinkhole fillings 

in Paleozoic carbonate rock. The deposits are commonly 

elliptical or subcircular in shape and less than 100 m 

in maximum horizontal dimension; the greatest depth 

from the surface to the bottom of deposits is a little less 

than 60 m. A few deposits are elongate, and they probably are in solution chambers along joints. The higher 

grades of bauxite are ordinarily enclosed by concentric
B44 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

envelopes of clayey bauxite, bauxitic kaolin, and kaolin. 

The outer kaolin envelope is commonly separated from 

the carbonate wallrock by an envelope of cherty red 

clay. Collapse structures occur in some deposits; apparently they were formed by the slumping of bauxite 

as the carbonate rock was dissolved. The outer red clay 

zone in some deposits has been referred to as terra rossa 

(Knechtel, 1963) and is similar in composition to the 

typical residuum on limestone and dolomite in the 

region.

Though geologists generally agree that most of the 

bauxite in the Valley and Ridge province formed in 

sinkholes, opinions differ as to the parent rock and explanations for the enveloping lower grade aluminous 

rocks and cherty materials. Bridge (1950, p. 193, fig. 7) 

postulated that the kaolin and bauxite were derived 

from crystalline rock debris transported from igneous 

and metamorphic rocks in the Blue Ridge and Piedmont 

provinces. Knechtel (1963) pointed out similarities between the terra rossa associated with sinkhole deposits 

and the cherty residuum on carbonate rock and suggested that the bauxite formed in filled sinkholes by 

leaching of introduced residuum. Leaching of residuum 

in sinkholes by acid water moving downward followed 

by collapse of deposits would also account for the present concentric envelopment of deposits and their low 

iron contents. The acidity of the water is suggested by 

scattered organic-matter-rich layers in the upper parts 

of some deposits and by the fact that typical sinkholes 

on the present surface are swampy and rich in decaying organic matter. Knechtel (1963, p. 155) thought that 

the bauxite in the Valley and Ridge province formed at 

many different times since the close of the Paleozoic 

Era.

FERRUGINOUS BAUXITE IN WASHINGTON, 

OREGON, AND HAWAII

Low-grade ferruginous laterite-type bauxite (table 15) 

occurs in the following districts (fig. 11): (1) Cowlitz and 

Wahkiakum Counties, Wash. (Livingston, 1966; V.T. 

Alien, 1948); (2) Columbia County, Oreg.; (3) Washington and Multnomah Counties, Oreg. (Libbey, Lowry, 

and Mason, 1945; Jackson, 1971); (4) Salem Hills, 

Marion County, Oreg. (Corcoran and Libbey, 1956); and 

(5) on Kauai and East and West Maui, Hawaii (S.H. Patterson, 1971). Small deposits having little value are also 

present in the Chehlam Hills, Estacada, Mehama, and 

other areas in Oregon, and very low grade aluminous 

material is present on the island of Hawaii. The lateritic 

bauxite in all three States occurs in irregular blanketlike 

layers. The deposits underlie the flat or gently sloping 

upland surfaces on thoroughly weathered basaltic lava 

flows and pyroclastic deposits. Most of the bauxite in

TABLE 15.—Average chemical composition of ferruginous bauxite in

Washington, Oregon, and Hawaii 

[All values in weight percent, n.d., not determined]

Loss on 

District A12°3 Si°2 Fe2°3 Ti°2 ignition

Cathlamet, Washington1 . . 38.8 6.6 28.7 4.2 21.7

Portland Hills, Oregon, 

Hutchinson-Nexon 

property, 14 samples2 . . 34.3 8.6 24.5 n.d. n.d.

2 test pits, Reynolds 

Metals Co., Oregon,

West Maid, Hawaii5 . . .

East Maui, Hawaii5 ....

. . 35

. . 35

. . 25.9

. . 38

. . 31.8

5

6.7

4.7

7

7.8

33

31.5

39.4

22

32

6

6.5

6.7

4

6 °/

20

20.2

n.d.

n.d.

n.d.

Livingston (1966, table 14).

2Libbey, Lowry, and Mason (1945, p. 36).

3Jackson (1971, p. 228).

4Corcoran and Libbey (1956, p. 1).

5S. H. Patterson (1971, table 12, p. 65 and 66).

Washington and Oregon is overlain by a younger silt 

overburden. This overburden generally is thin, but in 

places it is as much as 10 m thick. The bauxite in Hawaii 

and in most of the Salem district, Oregon, is overlain 

only by a thin layer of soil. However, some of the 

deposits in the Salem district extend downward from 

the uplands onto the surrounding slopes. Deposits on 

the slopes commonly are under red clayey material as 

much as 3 m thick.

The very low grade aluminous material on the island 

of Hawaii consists of ferruginous allophane clays containing minor quantities of gibbsite (Alien and Sherman, 

1965, p. 95). This material formed on a thin layer of 

volcanic ash overlying basalt. The area in which these 

deposits occur is now under cultivation and has far more 

value as cropland than as a potential source of 

aluminum.

The ferruginous bauxite deposits are the trihydrate 

type, and the gibbsite occurs mainly as fine disseminated clay-sized particles, pseudomorphic replacements 

of feldspar, irregular corallike nodules, and fillings of 

vesicles and veins. In Washington and Oregon, the 

bauxite is in dense clayey masses, nodules, and pisolites. 

The deposits in Hawaii are thought to contain appreciable quantities of noncrystalline alumina (S.H. Patter.- 

son, 1971, p. 17-19), and probably such material is 

present in the deposits in Oregon and Washington. 

Halloysite is the principal aluminous mineral other than
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B45

123° 122°

~~—

WASHINGTON

,WAHKIAKUM

Bauxite district

45°'

$< / 

OREGON |> <v

^)

3mHills^—

\

(/^Sale

1 "

MARION ^

0 25 50 MILES

_A , I

160°

I———T

0 25 50 KILOMETERS

158° 156°

:- £

I

20c|

HAWAII

B 50 100 150 MILES

I I I I

0 50 100 150 KILOMETERS

FIGURE 11.—Locations of ferruginous bauxite resources in the United 

States: A, Oregon and Washington; B, Hawaii.

gibbsite in the Hawaiian deposits. Halloysite also 

occurs in the Washington and Oregon deposits, but according to an old report (V.T. Alien, 1948), kaolinite is 

more abundant than halloysite. The iron minerals that 

formed during weathering of the parent rock are mainly goethite and hematite. Magnetitic ilmenite and 

magnetite are the principal original minerals remaining

from the parent rock. Magnetite and ilmenite are ordinarily so abundant in the bauxite that dry fragments 

can be picked up with a magnet. Most deposits are uncommonly rich in titanium, which occurs mainly in 

anatase and ilmenite.

In Washington, Oregon, and Hawaii, ordinarily only 

that part of lateritic bauxitic material containing 10 percent SiO2 or less is called bauxite. Large resources of 

higher silica laterite and weathered rock are present in 

all three regions. The bauxite tends to occur in the upper part of thick sections of weathered rock. The upper 

part of the bauxite is nodular, concretionary, or 

fragmental, the lower part of the bauxite is saprolitic, 

and the textures and structures of parent volcanic rock 

are preserved. In most places, the saprolitic bauxite 

grades downward into similar weathered rock having 

higher silica content (10-30 percent). The higher silica 

saprolite is ordinarily much thicker than the bauxite. 

Therefore, quantities of high-silica saprolite are much 

larger than the bauxite resources.

All the ferruginous lateritic bauxite deposits have 

formed from basalt or andesite lavas and related 

volcanic rocks. The deposits in Washington and Oregon 

formed on basalt and possibly related pyroclastic 

materials of the Columbia River Basalt Group of 

Miocene age. Silt overlying the bauxite in Oregon is of 

Pleistocene age (Livingston, 1966, p. 63). Lavas of the 

Kola Volcanics, on which the bauxite on Kauai, Hawaii, 

occurs, are of Pleistocene age. Most of the bauxite 

formed on these rocks in Pleistocene time, and the process is apparently still going on. The deposits on West 

Maui, Hawaii, formed on andesite and soda trachytes 

(S.H. Patterson, 1971, p. 56). These volcanic rocks are 

richer in aluminum than the parent rock of other bauxites in Hawaii, which is the reason the West Maui 

deposits contain the best grade bauxite in the State.

In addition to the geologic investigations cited in 

foregoing references, the ferruginous bauxite has been 

investigated by industry and by the U.S. Bureau of 

Mines. Four companies are known to have explored 

deposits in Washington and Oregon during the period 

1945-72. Tests of the Pedersen process by the U.S. 

Bureau of Mines (Blake and others, 1967; Fursman, 

Blake, and Mauser, 1968) have established that a 

reasonably good recovery of alumina can be obtained 

from Oregon bauxite containing as much as 13 percent 

SiO2. In 1970 Reynolds Metals Company mined a 

50,000-ton bulk sample from nine pits, including at least 

one in each of the four major districts in Oregon and 

Washington. This bauxite was shipped to Hurricane 

Creek, Ark., where metal-grade alumina was recovered 

in Reynolds' Bayer-process plant. Four aluminum companies also evaluated the lateritic bauxite in Hawaii 

(Abbott, 1958, p. 844). Investigations by Calhoun and
B46 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Hill (1962) have shown that 70.0-78.8 percent of the 

alumina in this bauxite can be extracted by the Bayer 

process. Furthermore, recovery of alumina can be increased to 79.5-85.5 percent of the amount present by 

calcining and caustic desilication.

DIASPORE IN PENNSYLVANIA AND MISSOURI

Diaspore, a constituent of bauxite in some countries, 

occurs in the Clearfield district, Pennsylvania, and the 

north-central Ozark region, Missouri. The diaspore in 

both States has been mined for many years for use in 

refractory products, and the deposits in Pennsylvania 

were investigated as a possible source of alumina during the World War II emergency (Conley and others, 

1947). The refractory products produced from diaspore 

are 50-70 percent alumina, and they are intermediate 

in temperature resistance between those made from 

calcined fire clay «45 percent A12O3) and the better 

grades of refractory bauxite and fused alumina (80- 

99 percent A12O3).

The diaspore deposits in the Clearfield district in 

Pennsylvania are part of a widespread kaolinitic flintclay bed associated with the Mercer coal of Pennsylvanian age (Pennsylvania Geological Survey, 1964). In 

these deposits diaspore replaces kaolin as small irregular veinlets and nodulelike masses, and it also occurs in fine disseminated form (Foose, 1944, p. 574; 

Bolger and Weitz, 1952). Some of the higher grade 

deposits consist of more than 50 percent nodules. Most 

of the diaspore is concentrated in lenticular bodies scattered irregularly through the lower grade flint clay.

The diaspore deposits in Missouri occur mainly in 

small deposits scattered through Crawford, Franklin, 

Gasconade, Maries, Osage, and Phelps Counties in the 

north-central Ozark region (McQueen, 1943). The 

deposits are of Early Pennsylvanian age (Keller, 

Wescott, and Bledsoe, 1954), and they are preserved in 

shallow karst depressions and sinkholes in Mississippian limestone that are as much as 33 m deep. The 

diaspore is commonly concentrated in nodules and 

oolites, and it also occurs in fine grains disseminated 

through the clay groundmass. Minor quantities of 

boehmite are commonly associated with the diaspore; 

the associated clay is chiefly kaolinite. The diaspore clay 

is commonly 65 percent A12O3, 12-15 percent SiO2, and 

about 1 percent Fe2O3.

Though deposits in the Clearfield district, Pennsylvania, will continue to be mined for use in high-alumina 

refractories, diaspore is not a significant potential 

source of aluminum for the following reasons. (1) Diaspore deposits in Missouri are virtually exhausted, and 

those in Pennsylvania contain only a few million tons. 

(2) Many diaspore deposits occur under considerable

overburden, and underground mining costs would be 

prohibitive. (3) Diaspore is even more stable than 

boehmite, and recovery of alumina from it would require 

higher digestive temperatures and major changes in 

plant design. Because of these factors, diaspore is not 

included in the estimates of bauxite resources in the 

United States.

Resources

RESERVES

The principal reserves of metal-grade bauxite in the 

United States are in the Arkansas region, and small 

reserves of refractory- and chemical-grade bauxite are 

present in the Andersonville, Ga., and Eufaula, Ala., districts. Deposits of refractory-, chemical-, and abrasivegrade bauxite, some of which may require beneficiation, 

also occur in the Arkansas region but are not separated 

from the metal-grade reserves, because of the absence 

of adequate information for resource estimates.

Arkansas region.—Several estimates of the bauxite 

reserves in the Arkansas region have been made. The 

U.S. Geological Survey (Gordon, Tracey, and Ellis, 

1958) and the U.S. Bureau of Mines (Malamphy and 

others, 1948) made estimates based on thorough investigations during World War II. Later the U.S. 

Bureau of Mines in cooperation with the Arkansas 

Geological Commission (Stroud and others, 1969, 

p. 33-43) updated the estimates. This update, which 

was based on 1963 figures, included estimates of deposits discovered by industry since the war in the 

estimates for metal-grade, marginal, high-iron, and submarginal bauxite and bauxitic clay (table 16). A more 

recent estimate of 55 million tons for wet bauxite 

reserves in Arkansas was prepared for the Minerals 

Availability System (MAS), a computerized data bank 

of the U.S. Bureau of Mines. This estimate included 

measured, indicated and inferred bauxite in deposits 

1.6 m or more thick and having an average A12O3 content of 45 percent or more.

The estimate used for Arkansas bauxite reserves as 

of 1983 in this report is 35 million tons. The 35-millionton figure is based on Stroud and others' (1969) estimate 

for metal-grade, marginal, and high-iron bauxite (table 

15) plus bauxite that was reclassified as reserves instead 

of subeconomic since 1963, minus the total mined since 

the estimate was made.

Southeastern States.—The bauxite reserves in the 

Southeastern States, which are in the Andersonville, 

Ga., and Eufaula, Ala., districts, are estimated to be 

about 3 million dry tons. Gofer, Wright, and Carey (1976) 

estimated that the Andersonville district contained 1.2
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B47

TABLE 16.—Bauxite reserves and other identified resources in the 

Arkansas bauxite region as of January 1, 1963

Modified from Stroud and others (1969, table 12), who considered estimates 

for all grades to be reserves. Calculations based on published and unpublished 

data, and personal communications with the Arkansas Geological Commission. Terms are those of Malamphy and others (1948, p. 5), defined as follows:

Metal-grade bauxite. Bauxite that inherently or through blending will yield a 

product containing more than 32 percent available alumina (determined by 

subtracting 1.1 times the percentage of SiO2 from the percentage of A12O3 ) 

and less than 10 percent ferrous oxide.

Marginal bauxite. Bauxite that met wartime requirements and that may be 

used as an ore in an emergency but that otherwise is of doubtful economic 

value.

High-iron bauxite. Bauxite that is not suitable for use as an aluminum ore 

under usual treatment methods because of its high iron content but that, 

if beneficiated by removal of the iron alone, would yield a marketable bauxite concentrate.

Submarginal bauxite. Bauxite containing more than 40 percent gibbsite that 

is not chemically suitable for use as an ore for reasons other than its iron 

content.

Bauxitic clay. Material containing between 15 and 40 percent gibbsite and 

less than 25 percent impurities.

Thousands of 

Classification dry tons

Metal-grade bauxite . Marginal bauxite . . . 

High-iron bauxite . . 

Submarginal bauxite 

Bauxitic clay .......

Total ............

37,000

12,100

. 12,890

18,800

34,680

115,470

million dry tons of indicated and about 600,000 tons of 

inferred bauxite reserves by 1976. This estimate was 

based on a study of drill core from about 600 exploratory drill holes and observations in many strip 

mines. The estimates of bauxite reserves in the Eufaula, 

Ala., district are privileged information, as most of the 

deposits were found by company drilling programs in 

the 1960's and 1970's. However, Clarke (1972, p. 89) 

reported that deposits containing 100,000 tons of bauxite have been found by several companies. Accordingly, the 1.8 million tons of indicated and inferred bauxite 

in the Andersonville district and several deposits of 

100,000-ton size in the Eufaula district support the 

estimate of approximately 3 million tons of bauxite 

reserves in the Southeastern States.

SUBECONOMIC RESOURCES

The subeconomic bauxite resources in the United 

States are mainly the ferruginous laterite deposits in 

Oregon, Washington, and Hawaii and bauxite and bauxitic clay deposits in the Arkansas region and the 

Southeastern States that are too low in grade or that 

for other reasons cannot be profitably mined under existing economic and technologic conditions.

Washington, Oregon, and Hawaii.—The resources of 

demonstrated subeconomic lateritic bauxite in Washington and Oregon are estimated to be 70 million dry tons. 

This estimate is the approximate 50-percent probability 

figure in the U.S. Bureau of Mines MAS file. The estimates of Washington and Oregon bauxite in the MAS 

file are modified from an unpublished report prepared 

by John W. Hook in cooperation with the Oregon 

Department of Geology and Mineral Industries. The 

weighted composition of the deposits in these estimates 

is as follows: 36.26 percent A12O3 , 5.90 percent SiO2, 

31.77 percent Fe2O3 , and 5.95 percent TiO2. The grade 

cutoff applied in arriving at the estimates was not less 

than 30 percent A12O3 and not more than 10 percent 

SiO2. All of this bauxite is considered to be in the 

subeconomic category because alumina has been recovered from it.

The low-grade lateritic bauxite deposits in Hawaii 

were estimated (S.H. Patterson, 1962, p. 2; 1971, 

table 12, p. 65 and 66) in short dry tons as follows: 

(1) Kauai—100 million, (2) West Maui—9 million, and 

(3) East Maui—22 million. Since 1961, the end of the 

field work leading to these estimates, considerable bauxite acreages on Kauai have been withdrawn, for all practical purposes, from possible mining by real estate 

development. In the Princeville Ranch area, northern 

Kauai (S.H. Patterson, 1971, pi. 1), hotels, condominiums, and recreational facilities now in existence, under 

construction, or planned have taken up so much land 

seaward from Hawaii Highway 56 that virtually no 

bauxite in this area is available. Considering the 

withdrawal of these resources and the likelihood that 

bauxite lands will continue to be lost because of higher 

value for other uses, the total subeconomic bauxite in 

Hawaii now should be estimated at only about 100 

million dry tons. All of this bauxite is classified in the 

subeconomic category because of its low grade and the 

fact that much of it is on lands that will be increasing 

in value for several uses other than mining.

The total resources of subeconomic ferruginous or 

lateritic type bauxite includes the 70 million dry tons 

in Oregon and Washington and the 100 million dry tons 

in Hawaii. Total resources of subeconomic lateritic 

bauxite are therefore about 170 million dry tons.

Arkansas and the Southeastern States.—The subeconomic aluminum resources in the Arkansas region 

consist mainly of 18.8 million dry tons of bauxite and 

34.5 million dry tons of bauxitic clay (table 16). In addition, high-grade bauxite in beds less than 1.6 m thick 

and some deeply buried deposits are in this category 

because they are unprofitable to mine. The total subeconomic bauxite resources in the Arkansas region are 

estimated to be 50 million-60 million tons.

Subeconomic bauxite resources in the Andersonville
B48 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

district, Georgia, and the Eufaula district, Alabama, 

consist mainly of bauxitic clay. Information now 

available on the total subeconomic bauxite resources in 

these two districts is incomplete, but the total is 

thought to be 15 million-20 million dry tons.

UNDISCOVERED RESOURCES

Moderate or large undiscovered bauxite deposits may 

be present at depth in one region, and small deposits 

may yet be found in others. The possibilities for moderate to large deposits at depth are mainly in the Mississippi embayment (fig. 8), a deep trough-shaped 

depression filled with Mesozoic and Cenozoic sediment. 

Masses of igneous rock are known to be present under 

considerable thicknesses of sedimentary beds at scattered localities in this large embayment. Some of these 

may have been exposed in early Eocene time and bauxite may have formed on them as it did on the nepheline 

syenite in Arkansas during the interval. One such 

buried mass is suggested by a geophysical anomaly a 

few kilometers east of the Arkansas bauxite region 

(Jespersen, 1964). This mass is likely to be the same 

type of syenite as the parent rock of the Arkansas bauxite, and it is probably covered by sedimentary rocks 

only a few tens of meters thick.

Small undiscovered bauxite deposits are very likely 

to be present in the following regions, although the most 

favorable areas have been prospected by industry and 

government. (1) The Washington and Oregon region 

contains several scattered areas that are, in varying 

degrees of probability, favorable for bauxite but that 

have not been thoroughly explored. More bauxite than 

is presently known no doubt exists in this region, but 

many deposits are likely to be on lands having high 

value for uses other than mining. (2) The Andersonville, 

Ga., and Eufaula, Ala., districts and the belt between 

these districts probably contain undiscovered bauxite. 

Probably the most favorable area for new discoveries 

is the part of the Andersonville district explored by 

widely spaced drill holes that may have missed small 

deposits (Cofer, Wright, and Carey, 1976). The Eufaula 

district has been thoroughly explored (Clarke, 1972), but 

a few small deposits probably remain to be found. Information on the possibilities for bauxite between these 

two districts is incomplete, and the belt is considered 

geologically favorable for bauxite. (3) The Valley and 

Ridge province of Appalachia has a long history of mining of small deposits, and it is very unlikely that all the 

bauxite in this region has been discovered. As the 

deposits in the province occur in karst depressions, the 

numerous sinkholes, small ponds, and swamps are considered the most favorable places for discovery of additional bauxite.

Insofar as the authors are aware, only a few attempts 

have been made to estimate the undiscovered bauxite 

resources. One estimate is the approximately 15 million 

tons of ferruginous bauxite projected at a 25- to 

50-percent probability on favorable but unexplored terrain in Washington and Oregon by John W. Hook (U.S. 

Bureau of Mines, unpub. data, 1975). Another is the 

hypothetical 1.5 million tons of bauxite and 6 million 

tons of bauxitic clay thought to be present in the Andersonville district, Georgia (Cofer, Wright, and Carey, 

1976, table 2). The Nation's undiscovered resources are 

probably at least twice that total thought to be present 

in the Andersonville district, Georgia, and Washington 

and Oregon, or 40 million-50 million dry tons.

SUMMARY OF BAUXITE RESOURCES IN THE UNITED STATES

Reserves of bauxite in the United States in 1983 were 

estimated, in millions of tons, as follows: metal grade 

in the Arkansas region—35; refractory grade in the 

Andersonville, Ga., and Eufaula, Ala., districts—3. The 

total is rounded at 38 million tons, the estimate published by the U.S. Bureau of Mines (Baumgardner and 

McCawley, 1983, table 3).

The Nation's subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite 

resources, expressed in millions of dry tons (metric and 

long tons are considered equal within the limits of accuracy), consist of the following: (1) 50-60 of bauxite 

and bauxitic clay in Arkansas; (2) 15-20 of bauxitic clay 

in the Andersonville, Ga., and Eufaula, Ala., districts;

(3) 70 of ferruginous bauxite in Washington and Oregon;

(4) 100 of ferruginous bauxite in Hawaii; and (5) possibly 

40-50 of hypothetical bauxite in Washington and 

Oregon, Arkansas region, and the Southeastern States. 

The total subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite 

resources are 275 million to 300 million tons, rounded. 

Total resources of bauxite in the United States consisting of reserves and the subeconomic and undiscovered resources are considered to be 300 million-325 

million dry tons.

MEXICO

Bauxitic materials reportedly occur at several places 

in Mexico. A bauxite deposit occurring under gypsum 

layer at a locality midway between the cities of Tampico and San Luis Potosi has been declared a national 

reserve by the Mexican government (Wilmot, Sullivan, 

and Trought, 1960, p. 236). High-iron lateritic weathered rocks have been investigated in the States of 

Veracruz, Puebla, Oaxaca, and Tabasco. Though much 

gibbsitic and kaolinitic rock containing 30-40 percent 

A12O3 is present, no commercial bauxite had been
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B49

found by 1959 (Salas, 1959, p. 10). The bauxitic clays 

in the State of Puebla, located 1-6 km south of 

Xicotepec de Juarez, were investigated further by the 

Mexico Consejo de Recursos Naturales No Renovables 

(1972, p. 59-60). They contain 600,000 tons of gibbsitic 

material having an average alumina content of approximately 27 percent.

CENTRAL AMERICA

Bauxite is known to occur at several places in Central America, but, at the time this report was written, 

efforts to produce it had not been successful. The Costa 

Rican Government has been interested in developing 

bauxite in that country for many years. One plan considered was joint participation with Alcoa in operating 

mines and an alumina plant. Alcoa withdrew from the 

project in 1975, but since that time other aluminum 

companies are reported to have expressed interest, 

though no firm plans have been announced. The other 

bauxite deposits in Central America that have attracted 

the attention of the aluminum industry are in Panama. 

Small bauxite deposits are reported to be present in 

Honduras, and bauxite probably occurs in other countries as well.

COSTA RICA

The principal bauxite district in Costa Rica is in the 

San Isidro region, on the Pan American Highway south 

of San Jose (Sandoval, 1969). The deposits are the 

laterite type that formed in weathered volcanic and 

sedimentary rocks of Tertiary age and in Pliocene and 

Pleistocene terrace gravels consisting of transported 

volcanic and igneous materials. Thicknesses of the 

deposits range from 1 to 7 m and average about 2.3 m. 

Gibbsite is the principal mineral in the deposits, and 

some contain appreciable quantities of iron oxides and 

silica. The A12O3 content of much of the bauxite in the 

San Isidro region ranges from 33 to 44 percent, and the 

reactive silica content ranges from 2.2 to 18.9 percent.

Total bauxite resources in Costa Rica are estimated 

to be approximately 200 million tons. Several reports, 

including Sandoval (1969, p. 2), indicate that a reserve 

of 150 million tons of bauxite containing 35 percent 

A12O3 is present in the San Isidro region. Sandoval 

reported that the region may contain an additional 150 

million tons having an A12O3 content of 25 percent or 

more. Subeconomic bauxite is present in two other 

areas. The Abejonal and Canon area is thought to contain approximately 40 million tons that is 30-35 percent A12O3 , and about the same quantity having an

average A12O3 content of 30 percent is present in the 

Guacimo area. Sandoval also observed that the geology 

of Costa Rica is far from completely known, and several 

more areas are favorable for valuable bauxite deposits. 

One of these apparently is the Zona de Paraiso de 

Cartago, where Dondoli (1970) identified 10 million15 million tons of gibbsitic bauxite. The nine samples 

of this bauxite analyzed by Alcoa ranged from 39.4 to 

51.4 percent A12O3 , of which 26.5-34.2 percent was extractable by the Bayer process. These samples also contained 13.7-25.4 percent SiO2 , 2.93-15.8 percent 

Fe2O3 , and 1.78-3.45 percent TiO2.

HONDURAS

During investigations of samples from Honduras, 

Ljunggren (1958) found that soils in some areas contain 

abundant alumina in hydrated form and suggested the 

possibility of finding valuable bauxite deposits. The 

areas in which the alumina is most abundant are on the 

southeastern slopes of mountains along the Pacific 

coast. Apparently these or other parts of Honduras 

have been examined for bauxite, as Bardossy (1964, 

table 2) listed an estimate of 10 million tons for the 

potential bauxite in Honduras and El Salvador.

PANAMA

Bauxite occurs in Panama in several areas in a belt 

scattered along the Pacific Coast. The largest deposits 

are in the so-called David area in Chiriqui province. 

Other deposits occur in the province, and small deposits 

have been found in Veraguas province. The deposits in 

Chiriqui have been evaluated by both Alcoa and Kaiser 

aluminum companies. They are estimated to contain 70 

million tons of bauxite that is 40 percent A12O3 and 6 

percent SiO2 (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Agency 

for Resource Inventories, 1967, p. T-9). The deposits 

in Veraguas province are apparently small; no estimates 

of their size are available.

SUMMARY OF BAUXITE RESOURCES 

IN CENTRAL AMERICA

The estimates of bauxite in countries in Central 

America in this report are, in million of tons: Costa 

Rica—approximately 200, Panama—70, and 

Honduras—possibly 10. Bauxite not included in these 

estimates has been found in places in Costa Rica and 

Panama, and small deposits will certainly be found in 

other countries. The reasons for this conclusion are that
B50 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

the geologic investigations of many areas in Central 

America are inadequate, and several areas are favorable 

for bauxite. The 150 million tons of bauxite in the San 

Isidro region of Costa Rica are considered to be 

reserves. An equal amount of subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite is estimated to be present in all of 

Central America. The total reserves and subeconomic 

and undiscovered bauxite are therefore estimated to be 

300 million tons.

CARIBBEAN ISLANDS

Bauxite was discovered in Jamaica in 1942, when an 

agronomist analyzed soil to find ways to improve its 

fertility. Attention then focused on the possibility that 

bauxite might be found on the other Caribbean Islands, 

and bauxite was recognized in Haiti and the Dominican 

Republic during World War II. The long delay in the 

discovery of these deposits was due chiefly to the fact 

that they are earthy and soil-like and very different from 

the aluminum ore that had been used before World War 

II.

The bauxite in Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, and 

Haiti occurs as earthy material on the karst surface of 

limestone. Most deposits are extremely fine grained 

porous bauxite that is soft to moderately hard and dark 

red, reddish brown, or mottled yellow, depending on the 

amount and form of iron oxide present. It is sticky when 

wet and friable when dry and will stand in steep mine 

faces for considerable periods of time. Most of it is 

massive, but pisolitic material is present in the upper 

parts of some deposits. The deposits in Jamaica overlie 

the White Limestone Formation of middle Eocene to 

early Miocene age. According to Robinson (1971, fig. 3), 

some of the bauxite in Trelawny and St. Ann Parishes 

could have formed in early Miocene time, the principal 

interval of formation of high-grade bauxite was late 

Miocene, and bauxite terra rossa and lateritic soils were 

still forming in Pleistocene time. The limestone below 

the bauxite in the Dominican Republic and Haiti is approximately the same age as the White Limestone in 

Jamaica.

The origin of the bauxite in the Caribbean Islands 

continues to be the subject of much discussion and differing opinions among geologists. The principal disagreement is over the source of the aluminous parent 

material of the bauxite. According to one school of 

thought (Schmedeman, 1948, p. 79; Hartman, 1955, 

p. 746; Hill, 1955, p. 687-688; Clarke, 1966; Sinclair, 

1967; Hose, 1963, p. 66-68), the bauxite formed by the 

alteration of residual material from a considerable 

thickness of the exceptionally pure limestone on which 

the deposits occur. Other geologists (Chubb, 1963;

Goldich and Bergquist, 1948, p. 109; Zans, Lemoine, 

and Roch, 1961; Burns, 1961; Lee, 1965; Roch, 1966; 

Kelly, 1961) have suggested that aluminous parent 

materials were transported to positions above the 

limestone. Most of these authors postulate that the 

andesitic tuffaceous rocks such as are exposed in the 

central part of Jamaica were the type of aluminous 

rocks transported. Hill and Davis (1971, p. 23) suggested that the bauxite formed both as residual material 

from limestone and as transported aluminous 

sediments. Comer (1974, 1984) has presented evidence 

that not all of the White Limestone Formation is as pure 

as previously thought; some of it contains thin-bedded 

and disseminated altered volcanic ash. He believed that 

this ash, which may have been introduced from 

volcanoes at some distance from Jamaica, was the principal source of the aluminum in the bauxite.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

History and Production

Bauxite was discovered in red soil in the Dominican 

Republic in July 1943 by geologists of the Reynolds 

Mining Corporation, and shortly thereafter the 

Aluminum Company of America located similar 

deposits. In 1944 the deposits were investigated by the 

U.S. Geological Survey, working in cooperation with officials of the Dominican Republic Government (Goldich 

and Bergquist, 1947). Alcoa began bauxite mining in 

1959. Annual production was a little more than 1 million 

tons during the early 1970's (table 6). It dropped to 

754,000 tons in 1975 during the worldwide reduction 

in aluminum demands, was well below 1 million tons in 

the 1976-81 period, and only 141,000 tons was produced 

in the recession year of 1982. No bauxite was mined in 

1983, and in 1984 Alcoa announced that it would mine 

no more bauxite in the Dominican Republic (Metal 

Bulletin, 1984). The deposits that were mined are in the 

Aceitillar district (fig. 12), located about 30 km northeast of Pedernales, and the Las Mercedes district 14 km 

northeast of this city.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

The principal bauxite districts in the Dominican 

Republic are on the slopes of the Sierra de Baoruco, 

Barahona province. The deposits in the Aceitillar 

district accumulated in valleys in middle and upper 

Eocene limestone (Goldich and Bergquist, 1947, p. 53). 

Those in the Las Mercedes district overlie middle and 

upper Oligocene limestone at altitudes of about 350 m
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B51

74'

20°

0 50 100 150 MILES

0 50 100 150 KILOMETERS 

EXPLANATION

• Bauxite district

HAITI

1. Savane Terre Rouge

2. Beaumont

3. Rochelois plateau

4. Savane Zombi

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

5. Aceitillar

6. Las Mercedes

FIGURE 12.—Locations of bauxite districts in Haiti and the 

Dominican Republic.

(Engineering and Mining Journal, 1977). Bauxite has 

also been found in the Canote area at an altitude of 

1,525 m and in the Masico-Abejo area at an altitude of 

1,190 m (Caribbean Geological Congress, 1980, p. 34). 

The bauxite in these two districts also rests on Tertiary 

limestone.

The bauxite occurs in elongate and funnel-shaped 

pockets that range in size from small occurrences to 

deposits extending over more than 2 km2. Most are 

6-15 m thick (Engineering and Mining Journal, 1977, 

p. 140-141), but one is more than 80 m thick.

Both trihydrate and mixed types of bauxite are present in the deposits. Deposits in the Aceitillar district 

are 60-75 percent gibbsite and contain only minor quantities of boehmite (Goldich and Bergquist, 1947, p. 69). 

Most of the Las Mercedes deposits contain 20 percent 

boehmite or a little more. Kaolinite is present in both 

districts, but a few deposits contain as much as 5 percent of this mineral. Hematite and goethite are the principal iron minerals, and quartz, zircon, magnetite, or 

ilmenite are present in minor amounts.

Resources 

The reserves of bauxite in the Dominican Republic

were listed by the International Bauxite Association 

(1976b, table 1) as 26 million tons measured and 45 

million tons total. The average grade of this bauxite was 

given as 50 percent total A12O3 and 5 percent SiO2. In 

a later article by this association (International Bauxite Association, 1977b, p. 49), it was noted that the total 

bauxite mined is 13.6 million tons and the reserves remaining are 32.4 million tons. The composition of the 

typical bauxite in these reserves is 50 percent total 

A12O3, 45 percent available A12O3, 2.5 percent total 

SiO2, 20 percent Fe2O3, and 25 percent LOI (loss on ignition). Subeconomic bauxite and bauxitic clay are 

known to be present in the Dominican Republic, but the 

extent of the deposits has not been determined. Highsilica bauxite is associated with the deposits mined, and 

bauxitic clay was found along a trail in the region west 

of the deposits mined (Goldich and Bergquist, 1947, 

p. 72). Though some undiscovered bauxite may be present in the Dominican Republic, few areas are favorable 

for finding large deposits. Probably at least 10 million 

tons of subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite is present in the Dominican Republic, and the total resources 

are about 40 million tons. According to the U.S. Bureau 

of Mines (Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, table 3), 

the remaining bauxite reserves in the Dominican 

Republic are 30 million tons. These reserves presumably 

include the deposits discovered in Pedernales Province 

(Mining Engineering, 197Ib, p. 12).

HAITI

History and Production

Bauxite was discovered in Haiti in 1943 (Schmedeman, 1948, p. 79), and Reynolds Haitian Mines opened 

its first mine in 1956. During the first 12 years of 

mining, annual production was in the 250,000- to 

450,000-ton range. After this period, production increased to 743,000 tons in 1973 but declined after that 

year (table 6). Reynolds Metals Company closed its 

Miragoane bauxite mine in late 1982 (Hyde, 1984, 

p. 1113). The reason given was that the high silica content of the remaining bauxite and the depressed 

aluminum market made further mining unprofitable. 

The deposits mined were on the Rochelois plateau at 

an altitude of approximately 600 m. The mines were 

about 10 km southwest of the port of Miragoane.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

The largest bauxite deposits in Haiti are on the 

Rochelois plateau on the the southern peninsula
B52 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

southwest of Miragoane; other deposits occur near 

(1) Beaumont, in the Massif de la Hotte; (2) Savane 

Zombi, in the Massif de la Selle; and (3) Savane Terre 

Rouge, on the plateau northwest of Gonafves (Goldich 

and Bergquist, 1948, p. 63,108-109). The bauxitic material is finely divided reddish-brown, yellowish-brown, 

and buff lateritic soil. Gibbsite, boehmite, hematite, and 

goethite are the principal minerals. Clay minerals, chiefly kaolinite, and compounds of titanium, manganese, 

and phosphorus are minor constituents; quartz, zircon, 

and magnetite are accessory minerals. Gibbsite and 

boehmite together compose about 60 percent of the 

deposits, but their proportions vary considerably. Some 

parts of the deposits are 25 percent gibbsite and 35 

percent boehmite, and others are as much as 45 percent 

gibbsite and only 13 percent boehmite (Goldich and 

Bergquist, 1948, p. 82). Recent mineralogical studies 

(Bardossy and others, 1977b, table 1) have confirmed 

the presence of as much as 27 percent boehmite in 

the deposits on the Rochelois plateau. Hematite was 

found to be approximately five times as abundant as 

goethite in these deposits; the titanium is mainly in 

the form of anatase, but minor quantites of rutile are 

also present. One of the samples studied contained a 

little chlorite, and the phosphate mineral identified was 

crandallite.

Resources

The reserves of bauxite in Haiti were listed by the International Bauxite Association (1966, table 1) as 

6.9 million tons measured and 14 million tons total. The 

average grade of these deposits is 50 percent total 

A12O3 and less than 7 percent total SiO2. According to 

Goldich and Bergquist (1948, p. 83-85, table 3), the 

average available alumina content in the better grade 

of bauxite on the Rochelois plateau is 44.8 percent. This 

bauxite contains 2-5 percent SiO2 and 20-23 percent 

Fe2O3. The deposits discovered in the Savane Zombi 

district are reported (Organization of American States, 

1972, p. 416) to range in A12O3 content from 45.32 to 

46.98 percent and in SiO2 content from 6.35 to 9.55 

percent.

Subeconomic high-silica bauxite is known to be 

associated with the reserves (Goldich and Bergquist, 

1948) and elsewhere. The remaining bauxite reserves 

in Haiti are estimated by the U.S. Bureau of Mines 

(Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, table 3) to be 10 

million tons. The total resources—reserves and 

subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite—may be as 

much as 50 million tons (Cheilletz, Le Mailloux, and 

Samama, 1973).

JAMAICA 

History and Production

Bauxite mining began in Jamaica in 1952, and by 

1958 this country was the leading world producer, a 

position held until Australia took the lead in 1971. The 

free moisture content of bauxite when mined ranges 

from 19 to 25 percent; it is reduced to 8-14 percent in 

oil-fired rotary dryers for export. Total bauxite produced in Jamaica from the first mining through 1982 

was 261 million tons. Annual production from 1961 

through 1983 is listed in table 6.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

Bauxite is mined in Jamaica in the Parishes of St. 

Ann, Clarendon, Manchester, and St. Elizabeth (fig. 13), 

which contain the largest deposits, and bauxite also occurs in the Parishes of St. Catherine, St. James, and 

Trelawny (Lyew-Ayee and Stewart, 1982, fig. 1). Lowgrade bauxites of little present value also occur in the 

John Crow Mountains in the eastern part of Jamaica 

(Hughes, 1973), and small deposits are known to be present in the westernmost Parishes.

Most bauxite deposits in Jamaica are overlain by soil 

that is rarely as much as 1 m thick; however, in a few 

places in Manchester and St. Elizabeth Parishes, 

detrital material has been deposited above the bauxite 

concealing it (Porter and Anderson, 1982). The detrital 

material, which consists mainly of limestone gravel and 

finer particles, ranges in thickness from a feather edge 

to about 30 m. Removal of the detrital overburden has 

led to the discovery of as much as 500,000 tons of additional bauxite. In a few places calcite from the overburden material has mixed with the bauxite, causing 

CaO content of as much as 7 percent.

The bauxite deposits are irregular in shape and of 

various sizes; they rest on the karst surface of the White 

Limestone Formation of middle Eocene to early 

Miocene age. In some of the irregular sinkhole fillings, 

narrow pipes of bauxite extend down into limestone 7 

or 8 m, and pinnacles of limestone extend upward into 

bauxite. In places bauxite extends over the limestone 

ridges between sinkholes. Deposits range in size from 

about 15 m in diameter to bowl-shaped masses more 

than 10 km across, and one trough-shaped deposit is 

nearly continuous for 30 km. Thicknesses range from 

less than 1 m to more than 30 m, and the average 

thickness of deposits mined is about 7 m. Tonnages of 

individual bauxite bodies range from a few thousand 

to tens of millions. The overburden ordinarily is only
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B53

^'X

, ST. K

XANDREW \

0 10 20 30 KILOMETERS 

FIGURE 13.—Locations of principal bauxite regions in Jamaica (modified from Lyew-Ayee and Stewart, 1982, fig. 1).

a thin soil that is stockpiled and used in reclamation 

of mined-out lands.

The bauxite is the Jamaica or mixed (trihydrate and 

monohydrate) type containing considerable quantities 

of iron minerals and a few other impurities. Gibbsite is 

the principal bauxite mineral present, and it is chiefly 

in grains of less than 1 /mi size (Hill, 1955, p. 680). Nordstrandite, a polymorph of gibbsite, has been found 

recently in several Jamaican bauxite deposits in quantities ranging from minor to abundant (Davis and Hill, 

1974). Boehmite occurs in most deposits, and in a few 

places this mineral constitutes as much as 20 percent 

of the bauxite. The bauxite mined commonly contains 

7-10 percent of this mineral (Strahl, 1971, p. 66). The 

high iron content of Jamaica bauxite is chiefly due to 

the abundance of very fine grained hematite and 

goethite, but some of the iron may be in noncrystalline 

form. In many deposits, the goethite contains aluminum 

in isomorphous substitution for iron.

Kaolinite and halloysite, the principal clay minerals, 

occur in only minor amounts in the bauxite that is mined, but they are abundant in the low-grade high-silica 

bauxite. Other mineral impurities in Jamaican bauxite 

include quartz, the titanium minerals rutile and anatase, 

manganese-bearing minerals, phosphate minerals, 

calcite, and numerous minor accessory minerals. The 

amounts of the mineral impurities vary, but the total 

is rarely more than 5 percent of the bauxite. In a few 

places, calcite that was introduced after the bauxite

formed is so abundant it makes the bauxite unsuitable 

for processing; such deposits are bypassed in mining. 

Most Jamaican bauxite is deep red due the presence 

of hematite; however, deposits enriched in goethite are 

yellow (Douglas, Hill, and Lyew-Ayee, 1984). Grubbs 

and others (1980, table 1) gave a summary of the 

mineralogy of red and yellow bauxites in the Mocho 

Mountains and Harmons Valley areas (listed in the 

following table).

Summary of the mineralogy of Jamaican red and yellow bauxites 

[In percent. From Grubbs and others (1980, table 1)]

Red bauxite Yellow bauxite

Gibbsite ........................ 69-75

Boehmite ...................... 1-4

Kaolinite ....................... 1-3

Hematite ....................... 10-14

Goethite ........................ 5-8

(A12O3 in goethite) ............. (11±3)

Anatase ........................ ' 2-3

Apatite ........................ <2

Secondary phosphates

(wavellite, crandallite, variscite) . .

64-69 

3-5 

1-3

1-5

14-24

(17±3)

2-3 

«1

<4

The high-grade Jamaica bauxite contains approximately 50 percent A12O3, nearly 20 percent Fe2O3, and 

very little SiO2 (table 17), and the low-grade bauxite 

contains less alumina and more reactive SiO2. Because 

alumina is extractable from gibbsite at low temperatures
B54 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

(150 °C) and higher temperatures are required to recover 

it from boehmite (Sabiston, 1975, p. 46), Bayer plants 

are modified to process Jamaica bauxite. Bauxite in the 

Claremont area, St. Ann Parish, Jamaica, contains an 

average of only 0.8 percent SiO2 (R.E. Anderson, 

1982). The Claremont bauxite contains 1.5-12 percent 

boehmite; Fe2O3 is mostly in the range 17-20 percent, 

and nearly all the iron is in goethite. Bauxite of little 

present value in St. Catherine Parish contains as much 

as 14 percent SiO2 (Bracewell, 1962, p. 115), and Lewis 

(1967, table 1) listed analyses of bauxitic clay in St. Ann 

Parish containing 12-23 percent SiO2 and only 13-23 

percent available A12O3. About 75 percent of the SiO2 

in most of the bauxite is in the form of kaolinite and 

halloysite and is therefore reactive in low-temperature 

Bayer process (Meikle, 1973). In addition to the major 

oxides, most Jamaica bauxite contains 1.7-2.8 percent 

TiO2, approximately 0.5 percent P2O5, and about 0.3 

percent MnO (R.E. Anderson, 1971). Some of the 

deposits contain more than 3 percent P2O5, which 

causes problems of phosphorus contamination of 

alumina. The contamination is prevented by the addition of 1.3 tons of CaO for each ton of P2O5 in the 

bauxite (Strahl, 1971, p. 67). The percentage of gallium 

in Jamaica bauxite has been found to range from 0.0039 

to 0.0082, and the average is approximately 0.007 

(Blackwood and others, 1982, p. 82).

Resources

Estimates of the bauxite resources in Jamaica have 

increased markedly in the last 25 years and are now 

very large. In 1957 the Chief Minister (Manley, 1957) 

announced that the reserves were 500 million-600 

million tons and the amount of noncommercial-grade 

bauxite was of the same order of magnitude as the 

reserves. According to the Jamaica Geological Survey 

Department (Hughes, 1973, p. 14), the reserves were 

believed to be in excess of 1 billion tons, and large tonnages of subeconomic bauxite were also known to be 

present. A recent estimate by the Jamaica Bauxite Institute lists the reserves as a little more than 2 billion 

dry tons (Lyew-Ayee, 1984, p. 280). All the reserves contain more than 40 percent A12O3 and less than 10 percent SiO2. In addition to the reserves, some bauxite of 

this grade is not included in the estimate because it is 

located under towns, residential areas, highway rightsof-way, and so forth, where it is unavailable for mining. 

Also bauxite deposits in red soil in the western and 

eastern parts of Jamaica, which are outside in the principal producing region and have not been thoroughly 

investigated, are not included in the estimates. The 

quantity of bauxite in these nonreserve categories is

TABLE 17.—Chemical composition of bauxite mined in Jamaica and 

exported in 1952

[All values in percent. From Bracewell, 1962, p. 115. 1, Average analysis of 

the 100,271 tons produced by Alumina Jamaica Limited in 1952. 2, Average 

analysis of the ore mined by Reynolds Jamaica Mines Limited in 1952. 3, 

Analysis of the first shipment of ore made by the Kaiser Bauxite Company 

in 1953. The free moisture content of No. 3 is given as 13.1 percent, the total 

available A12O3 as 48.1 percent, and the trihydrate available as 36.3 percent]

A1203 .........

Si02 .........

Fe203 .........

TiO2 ..........

Combined water

50.61

.75

18.91

2.59

27.14

49.08

.69

20.47

2.51

27.25

50.53

1.64

19.75

2.67

24.63

probably at least 100 million-300 million tons and may 

be greater. The total bauxite resources (reserves plus 

subeconomic, unavailable and undiscovered deposits) in 

Jamaica are estimated to be 2 billion-2.5 billion tons.

OTHER CARIBBEAN OCCURRENCES

Bahama and Grand Cayman Islands.—Low-grade 

lateritic bauxite is reported (Ahmad and Jones, 1969) 

to be present on Eleuthera and New Providence Islands 

in the Bahamas and on Grand Cayman Island. The 

deposits on all three islands contain considerable quantities of boehmite and gibbsite. No information on the 

size of deposits is available, but considering the small 

size of the islands it is unlikely that any of the deposits 

is large enough to be mined profitably.

Cuba.—A reconnaissance for bauxite deposits in Cuba 

was made by the U.S. Geological Survey during World 

War II (M.N. Bramlette, written commun., 1943). 

Several areas of laterite clay developed on limestone 

were examined. Deposits containing 26-37 percent 

A12O3 were located north of Guantanamo and in Camaguay Province. However, no bauxite having a grade 

comparable to the bauxite in Jamaica was found and 

no detailed investigations were made.

Investigations by Cuban and Soviet geologists 

(Buguelskiy and Formell Cortina, 1974) and authors 

cited by Lyew-Ayee (1984) revealed bauxite at the following localities: (1) laterite-type bauxite formed from 

gabbro in the central and eastern parts of Cuba, 

(2) karst-type bauxite in Camaguay and Guantanamo 

Provinces, (3) bauxite on carbonaceous chalky limestone 

in Pinar del Rio Province in the western part of the country, and (4) transported bauxite associated with 

limestone highlands in western Cuba. One sample of 

laterite bauxite on gabbro was 49 percent A12O3. In 

one area in Guantanamo, karst bauxite occurs on 

limestone of early Miocene age, and in another area the
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B55

bauxite is on limestone of middle Miocene age. The 

deposits on lower Miocene limestone are 35 ±7.2 percent AlgOg and 26.3±7.7 percent SiO2. The deposits on 

middle Miocene limestone are 28 ± 4.7 percent A12O3 

and 24 ± 4.7 percent SiO2.

The bauxite minerals in the deposits associated with 

carbonaceous limestones are diaspora and mixtures of 

diaspore and boehmite; hematite is the principal ironbearing mineral. The transported deposits consist of 

bauxite boulders in an unconsolidated clay matrix. The 

zone containing the boulders extends for 15 km and is 

100-400 m wide and 10-15 m thick. The bauxite 

boulders make up 30-60 percent of the deposits. The 

bauxite boulders are reported to be 55-58 percent 

A12O3 , 2-5 percent SiO2, and 22-25 percent Fe2O3.

Puerto Rico.—Aluminous laterite, saprolite, and soil 

occur on remnants of a high-level peneplain in eastcentral Puerto Rico (Briggs, 1960), and bauxitic clay occurs in sinkholes in limestone in the north-central part 

of the island (Hildebrand, 1960). The clays in the 

sinkholes consist of mixtures of boehmite, quartz, 

anatase, kaolinite, and halloysite. Eight samples analyzed (Hildebrand, 1960, p. 371) contained 23.2-40.7 percent A12O3, 18.7-36.9 percent SiO2, 10.8-18.3 percent 

Fe2O3, 1.0-1.8 percent TiO2, and 0.66-2.5 percent P2O5 . 

None of this material seems to be sufficiently high in 

ALOo to have value as bauxite.

SUMMARY OF BAUXITE RESOURCES 

IN THE CARIBBEAN REGION

The total bauxite reserves in the Caribbean region are 

estimated to be 2 billion tons (rounded), and the 

resources (reserves and subeconomic and undiscovered 

resources) are thought to be in the 2-billion- to 3-billionton range. The reserves, in millions of tons, are as 

follows: Jamaica—2,000, Dominican Republic—45, and 

Haiti—20. The subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite 

is mainly in Jamaica, but some in these categories, no 

doubt, is present in Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and 

possibly Puerto Rico.

SOUTH AMERICA

The principal productive bauxite deposits in South 

America are in Brazil, Guyana, and Suriname; large 

deposits have been discovered in Venezuela; deposits 

of moderate size occur in Colombia and French Guiana; 

and minor deposits occur in Chile and Bolivia. The 

deposits having the longest history of major production 

are in lowland areas in the coastal-plain region of 

Guyana and Suriname. Major mining in the Amazon

basin of Brazil has recently begun, and other new bauxite developments there and in Venezuela are planned. 

Large laterite-type bauxite deposits, which may be 

mined in the future, occur on plateaus in inland regions 

of Suriname and Guyana and in scattered areas, some 

of which are near the coast, in French Guiana and 

Colombia.

ARGENTINA

Argentina has no high-grade bauxite deposits, but the 

existence of low-grade bauxite and aluminous laterite 

in Misiones Province in the northern part of Argentina 

has been known for a long time. Small tonnages of this 

material have been mined for use in water purification 

(Bracewell, 1962, p. 189). A pilot test for extracting 

alumina from this material by the Alto Paran Mining 

Co. was reported in the Mining Journal (197la, p. 78).

BRAZIL

History and Production

Bauxite has been produced in Brazil since the mid1930's, and most mining has been in the POC.OS de Caldas 

district, Minas Gerais. During the period 1961-78 

(table 6), annual production increased from 111 thousand 

tons to 1.2 million tons. Virtually all of the increased 

production through 1978 was needed to fulfill the 

demands of the expanding domestic aluminum industry. 

With the opening of the Trombetas district in 1979 (Mining Magazine, 1983), Brazil entered the international 

bauxite market. Production increased to 5.8 million tons 

in 1981, and further major increases are forecast.

The aluminum industry in Brazil has expanded greatly in recent years. In southern Brazil, three companies 

are now operating integrated complexes (mining bauxite and producing alumina and aluminum), and a few 

others are mining bauxite. Alcan Aluminio do Brasil 

S.A., owned by Alcan Aluminum Ltd. of Canada, has 

bauxite reserves in several districts in Minas Gerais and 

produces alumina and aluminum at Saramenha, Minas 

Gerais, and aluminum at Aratu, Bahia. Companhia 

Brasileira de Aluminio, S. A., which is Brazilian owned, 

mines and washes bauxite in the POC.OS de Caldas 

district, Minas Gerais, and operates an alumina and 

aluminum plant at Sorocaba, Sao Paula Alcominas (Cia 

Miniera de Aluminio, S. A.), owned jointly by Alcoa, 

Hanna Mining Co., and Brazilian interests, operates an 

integrated complex in the Pocos de Caldas district. In 

addition to the aforementioned complexes, major complexes are either active or planned in the Amazon region.
B56 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

The Trombetas district operated by Mineracao Rio do 

Norte, S. A. (Brazilian Government, Alcan, and other 

interests) ranks with the world's leading bauxite 

districts. Bauxite from this district is exported and will 

also supply Alcoa's alumina plant at Sao Luis until this 

company's own deposits in the Trombetas district (International Bauxite Association, 1981) are mined. Also, 

thorough feasibility studies in preparation for bauxite 

mining in the Paragominas region have been completed 

(Sechiari and Sangster, 1979).

Several Brazilian and foreign companies and Brazilian 

government agencies were active in bauxite exploration 

in Minas Gerais and nearby States in the 1950's and 

early 1960's, and, about 1968 or a little earlier, exploration on a large scale shifted to the lower Amazon region. 

Though occurrences of bauxitic material along the 

Amazon have been known for a long time (Abreu, 1962), 

the enormous bauxite resources of this region were not 

discovered until a reconnaissance program was initiated 

by Alcan International (1975), Ltd. under the direction 

of E.W. Greig, vice president. The major discovery of 

large high-grade deposits was in the Trombetas region 

in 1976. This bauxite was found by an Alcan crew led 

by I.M. Shvily, chief geologist. The deposits in northern 

Brazil are now thought to be so large that, when adequately explored, this country may rank with Australia 

and Guinea as one of the leading countries in bauxite 

resources.

Bauxite Districts and Regions

AMAZON BASIN AND OTHER PARTS OF NORTHERN BRAZIL

The very large deposits of bauxite in the Amazon 

basin (fig. 14) are mainly along the Trombetas, Jari, and 

other tributaries in the States of Para and Amazonas 

and the territory of Amapa. Very large deposits also 

have been found in the Paragominas region along the 

boundary between Par& and Maranhao. Smaller 

phosphatic bauxite deposits occur at Chapada Pirocaus 

and Trauira Island, Maranhao.

The bauxite deposits in the lower Amazon basin occur on isolated terraces, most of which are at altitudes 

of 100-200 m. The bauxite is of the laterite type, and 

it formed by the weathering of horizontal beds of clays 

and sandy clays of continental origin. The bauxite is 

predominately gibbsite. The gibbsite occurs mainly as 

pisolites and concretions, but it also occurs in massive, 

compact, and, rarely, friable forms. Minable deposits 

contain 50 percent A12O3 and only about 5 percent 

silica after the ore is washed.

Many of the bauxite deposits in the Amazon basin 

occur in two zones (Wolf, 1972). The upper zone consists

of yellow plastic clay, 0-8 m thick; a layer of pisolitic 

gibbsitic bauxite that is rich in iron oxide, 0-1.5 m thick; 

and hard blocky ferruginous and siliceous concretions 

in clay or ferruginous laterite, 0-1.5 m thick. The lower 

leached zone consists of a layer of hard pink or red gibbsitic concretions and blocky masses in clay having 

variable contents of iron oxide, 0-4 m thick; nodular 

blocky gibbsite intermixed with kaolin and variegated 

clay, 0-1 m thick; and an underlying unit of pink and 

white speckled clay.

Almeirim.—The Almeirim district is located between 

the lower Par& and Jari Rivers in the State of Para. Lake 

other deposits in the Amazon basin, the bauxite is 

overlain by a clay stratum having an average thickness 

of 8 m (Assad and Machado, 1976). The bauxite varies 

from 2 to 6 m in thickness. According to the Brazil 

Departamento Nacional da Producao Mineral (DNPM) 

(1982, p. 122), the reserves of bauxite in the Almeirim 

district in millions of tons are as follows: measured— 

71.9, indicated—23.6, and inferred—0.37. According to 

Assad and Machado (1976), 15 million tons of the 

reserves are refractory-grade bauxite having the following composition: 58 percent total A12O3, 7 percent 

SiO2, and 2 percent Fe2O3. The metal-grade bauxite is 

45-53 percent available A12O3 and 2-6 percent SiO2.

Carajas.—Bauxite has been discovered in the Serra 

dos Carajas, which is located about 550 km south of 

Belem. The deposits are only about 2 km from the site 

of a future terminal on the railroad extending 890 km 

from Carajas to the port of Sao Luis now under construction (Ridley and Kaba, 1983).

The bauxite in the Carajas district occurs in 

weathered basalt in the vicinity of the N 5 Serra Norte 

iron deposits (Ridley and Kaba, 1983, p. 53, 57). The 

bauxite extends over about 65 km2. The deposits consist of three layers. The upper layer, which is overlain 

by only a thin soil, is earthy ferruginous bauxite containing some ferruginous nodules and pisolites. The 

second layer is hard laterite that is locally pisolitic. The 

lowermost layer consists of plastic red clay that is apparently an alteration product of basalt. By 1983, 120 

sample pits had been dug in the district, and the amount 

of bauxite present was estimated to be 48 million tons. 

This bauxite was found to be 35 percent A12O3, 1-7 

percent SiO2, 25 percent Fe2O3, and 4 percent TiO2. According to another report, the total bauxite in the Carajas district is estimated to be 120 million tons (Schiller, 

1977, p. 247).

Faro region.—The settlement of Faro is located on the 

east bank of Lago do Faro on the Nhamunda River, 

Para. According to a map by Greig (1977, fig. 2), bauxite deposits are located north of Faro and at several 

places on the west side of Lago do Faro, which are in 

Amazonas. Presumably the bauxite in the Faro region
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B57

70°

o°-

0 600 MILES

• Bauxite district

1. Boa Vista, Rio Branco

2. Oiapoque, Amapa

3. Amapa

4. Uatuma, Amazonas

5. Jatapu, Amazonas

6. Faro, Para

0 600 KILOMETERS 

EXPLANATION

7. Trombetas, Para

8. Parintins-Jurufi, Para

9. Almeirim, Para

10. Jari, Amapa

11. Mazagao, Amapa

12. Sao Domingos do Capim, Para

13. Irituia, Para

14. Ilha Trauira, Maranhao

15. Paragominas, Maranhao

16. Carajas, Para

17. Ouro Preto-Nova Lima-Mariana, 

	Minas Gerais

18. Pogos de Caldas, Minas Gerais

19. De Lajes, Santa Catarina

FIGURE 14.—Locations of bauxite districts in Brazil.
B58 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

is similar to that in the Trombetas district. According 

to the Brazil Departamento Nacional da Producao 

Mineral (1982, p. 122), bauxite reserves in the Faro 

region are 283.2 million tons. The average A12O3 content of this bauxite is 49.17 percent.

Paragominas region.—The Paragominas region is 

named for the town of Paragominas, which is on the 

Brasilia-Belem highway approximately 160 km south 

of Belem. The bauxite deposits extend north, south, and 

southwest of Paragominas into the headwater regions 

of the Capim and Gurupi Rivers, which are east of the 

Amazon basin.

The bauxite in the Paragominas region commonly 

occurs in an upper concretionary zone and a lower 

leached zone (Wolf, 1972). The concretionary zone from 

the surface downward consists of yellow plastic clay, 

0-22 m thick; a layer containing abundant aluminumrich spherical concretions that are less than 2 cm in 

diameter, 0-2 m thick; and ferruginous blocky laterite 

in clay, 0-4 m thick. The leached zone consists of pink, 

red, and white hard gibbsitic bauxite containing columnar structures as much as 10 cm long, 0-4 m thick; a 

layer of pink, red, and white gibbsitic clay containing 

columnar structures in its upper part, 0-4 m thick; and 

weathered red silty or sandy clay, 0-1 m thick. According to Kotschoubey and Truckenbrodt (1981), bauxite 

deposits in the Paragominas district were formed by 

complex processes marked by mechanical reworking of 

Al and Fe. Five stages of development are recognized: 

initial lateritization, formation of the hard cap rich in 

Al and Fe, the first phase of gibbsitization of the hard 

cap, reworking of the laterite and formation of pisolites, 

and finally the second phase of gibbsitization of the upper part of the laterite. The bauxite is reported (Assad, 

1973, p. 26) to be 53 percent A12O3, 5 percent SiO2, 12 

percent Fe2O3, and 0.8 percent TiO2. Gibbsite is the 

principal bauxite mineral, and the deposits contain little 

or no boehmite (Grubb, 1979, p. 740, fig. 3). The deposits 

contain only 9 ppm gallium, much less than in most 

bauxite (Kronberg and others, 1979).

Evaluations of bauxite in the Paragominas region 

have been concentrated in three districts. The Brazilian 

Government Company, Companhia Vale do Rio Doce 

(CVRD), through its subsidiary Rio Doce Geologia e 

Mineracao S. A. (Docegeo), investigated deposits in the 

Jabuti district, north-northeast of Paragominas, and the 

Future district, northeast of this town. Reserves in the 

Jabuti district are estimated to be 200 million tons, and 

the grade is 47.4 percent A12O3 and 5.3 percent SiO2 

(Mineracao Metalurgia, 1975). This same reference lists 

the reserves in the Future district as 150 million tons 

and the grade as 52.8 percent A12O3 and 6.7 percent 

SiO2. Mineracao Vera Cruz, Ltda., a subsidiary of Rio 

Tinto Zinc, evaluated deposits in the Miltonia area west

of Paragominas and within 32 km of the Capim River 

(Sechiari and Sangster, 1979). In this evaluation 

274 million tons of crude bauxite was blocked out. The 

recoverable washed bauxite from these reserves was 

calculated to be 165 million tons. The washed bauxite 

would have the following average composition: 

56.18 percent total A12O3, 50.72 percent available 

A12O3, 5.02 percent SiO2, 8.17 percent Fe2O3, 1.5 percent TiO2, and 9.43 percent moisture.

Trombetas.—This district is located on the Trombetas 

River about 120 km upstream from its junction with 

the Amazon at Oriximina (Engineering and Mining 

Journal, 1975), State of Para. The bauxite occurs on flattopped plateaus that are 70-120 m above the surrounding lowlands. A section downward through a typical 

deposit is as follows: (1) clayey overburden, approximately 6 m thick; (2) nodular bauxite, 1 m thick; (3) ironrich bauxite, 1 m thick; (4) massive bauxite of variable 

hardness; (5) mottled clay. Gibbsite is the principal 

mineral in the deposits. The average composition of the 

Trombetas deposits, in percent (Greig, 1977, table 3) is 

as follows:

Average composition of bauxite from Trombetas, Para, Brazil,

in percent

[LOI, loss on ignition. Available A12O3, gibbsite alumina extractable by lowtemperature digestion. From Greig (1977, table 3)]

Nodular bauxite Massive bauxite

LOI .........

Si02 ..........

Fe203 .........

TiO2 ..........

A1203 .........

Reactive SiO2 . . 

Available A12O3

27.8

7.1

8.2

1.4

55.5

6.8

47.2

28.6

4.8

9.3

1.3

55.9

4.6

50.0

The reserves of bauxite in the Trombetas district are 

now estimated to be 492 million tons of the massive 

variety and 100 million tons of the nodular type (Greig, 

1977, p. 17). The nodular bauxite must be washed to 

remove part of the silica, which occurs in the form of 

kaolinite, but the massive type does not require 

beneficiation. According to the initial plans for development, the massive type is to be shipped during the first 

year of production and the nodular type is to be stockpiled. At a later date, the washed nodular bauxite is to 

be blended with the massive type and shipped for use 

in Bayer processing plants.

Other bauxite deposits in northern Brazil.—Bauxite 

is known to be present at several places in northern 

Brazil in addition to the districts discussed on preceding 

pages. Deposits similar to those in the Trombetas district occur in the Uatuma and Jatapu districts northeast 

of Manaus, Amazonas (fig. 14), and the Parintins-Juruti
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B59

district on the south side of the Amazon west of 

Santarem (Greig, 1977). Bauxite deposits associated 

with sedimentary rocks occur in the Oiapoque and 

Mazagao districts, Amapa, and deposits on the Precambrian rocks are present at Boa Vista in northern 

Amazonas and Rio Branco and Tartarugal Hills, Amapa 

(L.J. Moraes, 1959; Suszczynski, 1973; Greig, 1977; 

Aleva, 1984).

According to the DNPM (1982, p. 22), the bauxite 

reserves in the minor districts in northern Brazil, in 

millions of tons, are as follows: Orem, Para—2.4 

measured and 9 indicated; Irituia, Para—57.4 measured 

and 61.6 indicated; Sao Domingos do Capim, Para—89.3 

measured, 13 indicated, and 31 inferred; Mazagao, 

Amapa—41 measured, 13 indicated, and 31.1 inferred; 

and Nhamunda, Amazonas—33 measured. The bauxite 

reserves in the Parintins-Juruti district are estimated 

to be 170 million tons (Schiller, 1977, p. 247).

Phosphatic bauxite and aluminous laterite deposits 

are located on Trauira Island and on the Chapada (mesa) 

Pirocaus on the northwest coast of the State of 

Maranhao (fig. 14). The deposits are formed on Precambrian phyllites. The phosphate is guano containing 

20-30 percent P2O5 , overlying the bauxite. Drilling in 

the Trauira deposits shows that phosphate contents 

decrease with increasing depth. The bauxitic rock is 

reported to contain 30 percent A12O3 (Abreu, 1962). 

Although they are low in aluminum content, these 

deposits may be of value because of the possibility of 

recovering phosphate as a coproduct (Feigl, Braile, and 

Ignacio Miranda, 1946). Preliminary development work 

suggests that the phosphatic bauxite deposits on 

Trauira Island contain 10 million tons (Jobim, 1941).

SOUTHERN BRAZIL

Bauxite deposits occur in several districts in southern 

Brazil (fig. 14). The principal deposits are in the Pocos 

de Caldas region, which is mainly in southern Minas 

Gerais but extends into adjoining parts of Sao Paulo 

and the Ouro Pr£to-Nova Lima-Mariana region of 

Minas Gerais. The minor deposits in southern Brazil include the bauxite in the Municipios de Nepomuceno, 

Descoberto, and Diamantina in Minas Gerais; 

Municipio de Mimoso do Sul in Espirito Santo; 

Municipios de Sao Paulo, Sao Bernardo do Campo, 

Aguas da Prata, and Mogi das Cruzes in Sao Paulo 

State; the area of the Itatiaia massif of alkaline rocks 

in Rio de Janeiro State; the Municipios de Correntina 

and Barra do Mendes in the State of Bahia (Abreu, 

1962); and the Municipio de Lajes, Santa Catarina.

Ouro Preto.—Although it is difficult to identify the 

rock on which bauxite has formed because of the intense 

weathering in the area, the bauxite at Ouro Preto

appears to have weathered from a hematitic-sericitic 

phyllite located at the top of the Minas group of 

Precambrian age (Abreu, 1962, p. 552-553). The bauxite is pink to red; the color results from the amount and 

state of oxidation of the iron inherited from the parent 

rock. The lighter colored bauxite tends to have the 

higher content of silica. The ore occurs in compact 

masses and in disseminated concretions in laterized 

rock.

Pogos de Caldas.—The bauxite deposits on the Pocos 

de Caldas plateau are underlain by gneiss and granite 

of Precambrian age intruded by Upper Cretaceous 

alkaline rocks. The alkaline rocks include gneissictextured syenite, eudialyte syenite, nepheline syenite, 

nepheline-cancrinite syenite, phonolite, and phonolite 

porphyry. According to Webber (1959a), high-quality 

bauxite commonly has formed on nepheline syenite and 

on the high-level alluvial deposits that were transported 

from nepheline syenite and phonolite porphyry. The 

bauxite formed on the gneiss usually contains silica as 

free quartz.

The bauxite occurs at elevations ranging from 

1,220 m at the foot of the highlands to 1,678 m on the 

tops of ridges. Some of the deposits are on slopes having 

maximum inclination of 27 °. Deposits are particularly 

abundant on alkaline intrusives in the northern part of 

the plateau. The bauxite occurs in four principal forms: 

(1) surficial nodule layers less than 1 m thick formed 

from the weathering of homogeneous bauxite deposits 

and the removal of interstitial clay; (2) light-yellow, 

porous, homogeneous bauxite composed almost entirely of gibbsite; (3) nodular gibbsite or kaolinite in a clay 

matrix; and (4) irregular masses of homogeneous bauxite in a clay matrix. This last form is apparently the 

result of incomplete bauxitization of the kaolinite clay. 

The principal bauxite mineral is gibbsite, and the clay, 

where present, is mainly kaolinite.

Santa Catarina.—Laterite-type bauxite and clayey 

bauxite in Municipio de Lajes, Santa Catarina, in 

southern Brazil have been thoroughly investigated by 

Casimiro and d'Avila (1975). The best grade deposits 

are in the Farinha Seca area. These deposits are altered 

from phonolite, and gibbsite is the principal mineral in 

them. Deposits elsewhere in de Lajes have formed on 

nepheline syenite and diabase. The Farinha Seca area 

has 4.5 million tons of proved bauxite resources containing 51.3 percent A12O3 , 5.3 percent reactive silica, 

and 7.4 percent Fe2O3 . About 40.3 million tons of lower 

grade clayey bauxite is present in this district. The total 

bauxite including low-grade material in Municipio de 

Lajes is approximately 75 million tons (Casimiro and 

d'Avila, 1975, table 21).

Other areas favorable for bauxite in southern 

Brazil.—Suszcynski (1978) announced the discovery of
B60 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

bauxite at several localities in an extensive belt along 

the eastern boundary of the Brazilian shield. The belt 

thought to be favorable for finding large bauxite deposits is 560 km long and ranges from 20 to 60 km in 

width. This belt lies between the small bauxite deposits in Rio de Janeiro, northeastern Sao Paulo, and 

Espirito Santo, which have been known for a long time, 

and the deposits now mined farther inland in Minas 

Gerais. The bauxite in this belt developed on aluminumrich volcanogenic schist-gneiss rocks of Precambrian 

age.

Deposits containing 60 million tons of bauxite have 

been discovered recently in the Cataguases district, 

Minas Gerais (L.H. Baumgardner, written commun., 

1984).

Resources

The estimates of bauxite reserves in Brazil have increased markedly in recent years. According to a 1973 

estimate published by the Brazil Departamento National da Producao Mineral (DNPM) (1973), the total 

measured, indicated, and inferred bauxite reserves in 

this country were only a little more than 440 million 

tons, and the reserves in the Trombetas district alone 

are now known to be much greater than this estimate. 

A 1977 estimate by the DNPM (1978) listed the reserves 

in millions of tons as follows: measured—1,929, 

indicated—140, inferred—38; the total of these figures 

is 2.1 billion. A report on the minerals in the State of 

Para by the DNPM (1975b) contains an estimate of 2 

billion tons for the bauxite in the Paragominas region 

and one of 3.3 billion tons for the total bauxite in the 

Amazon region.

The bauxite reserves in southern Brazil are much 

smaller than those in the north. According to Moraes 

(1978, p. 63) the total bauxite reserves in southern Brazil 

are 65 million tons. The DNPM (1978, p. 109) listed 

estimates for measured, indicated, and inferred bauxite reserves in Minas Gerais as having a total of 83 

million tons and totals for Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo 

of about 2 million tons each. This same report lists about 

1 million tons for bauxite reserves in Espirito Santo. An 

estimate of 5 million tons of bauxite reserves in Santa 

Catarina is listed in some reports.

Schiller (1977, p. 247) listed estimates for reserves in 

Amazon districts as having a total of a little more than 

3 billion tons. Wolf (1972) estimated that the Amazon 

reserves may possibly be as much as 4 billion tons. According to Moraes (1978), the total bauxite reserves in 

Brazil are 3.6 billion tons, and 98 percent of them are 

in the northern part of the country. Assad and Machado 

(1976), Grubb (1979, p. 735) Sugden (1984), and DNPM

(1982, p. 122) all list an estimate of 2.5 billion tons for 

the bauxite reserves in the Amazon basin.

In addition to the reserves there are large subeconomic 

and undiscovered bauxite resources in Brazil. 

Subeconomic bauxite is almost certainly present in all 

the known districts in the Amazon basin. Undiscovered 

bauxite most likely exists in the valleys of the Amazon 

and major tributaries headward from the known 

districts. One very large region that has not been explored for bauxite is the southern half of the Guyana 

shield. This shield of weathered Precambrian rock 

extends from the syncline along the Amazon River 

northward to the coastal-plain region of Venezuela, 

Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana, as pointed out 

by Aleva (1984, p. 316). The southern half of the shield, 

which is in Brazil, most likely has as much bauxite as 

the northern half, where large bauxite deposits have 

been found in Venezuela, Guyana, and Suriname. The 

presence of bauxite in the remote Boa Vista region 

district (Greig, 1977, fig. 1) is proof that bauxite does 

exist on the Guyana shield in Brazil. Large laterite-type 

bauxite deposits may also remain undiscovered in 

southern Brazil if Suszczynski's (1978) conclusion that 

aluminous weathered rocks are present throughout a 

very extensive belt is correct.

The bauxite reserves in Brazil were estimated by the 

U.S. Bureau of Mines (Baumgardner and McCawley, 

1983, table 3) to be 2.25 billion tons. Subeconomic and 

undiscovered bauxite resources in Brazil are almost certainly much larger than 2.7 billion tons. The 2.7-billionton figure was calculated by subtracting and rounding 

the reserve estimated from the total 5 billion tons of 

measured, indicated, and inferred bauxite (DNPM, 1982, 

p. 122).

COLOMBIA

Bauxitic laterites have been recognized in Colombia 

for a long time (Bracewell, 1962, p. 191). The principal 

deposits are in the Department of Cauca (Cathcart, 

1971; Rosas G., 1973, 1978); other deposits are located 

in the Serrania de la Macarena on the eastern flank of 

the Andes, Department of Meta (Dario Velasquez, 1973, 

p. 165, fig. 2). The deposits in Cauca are mined on a small 

scale for local use, presumably in refractory products. 

They have also been investigated by aluminum companies, but no plans for large-scale mining have been 

made. The remote location of the Serrania de la 

Macarena deposits detracts from their value, and insofar 

as the authors are aware, little interest has developed 

in them.

The bauxitic laterite in the Department of Cauca extends over a large area located between the city of
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B61

Popayan and the northern departmental boundary, a 

distance of about 80 km (Cathcart, 1971, p. 29-43). 

Small scattered deposits of the laterite also are present 

in southern Valle del Cauca, the Department adjoining 

Cauca on the north. The bauxitic material in this region 

formed by the weathering of water-laid tuffaceous beds 

in the Popayan Formation of Pliocene and Pleistocene 

age. Thicknesses of the laterite range from 1 m to as 

much as 5 m. The bauxite consists mainly of irregular 

impure aggregates of gibbsitic material as much as 5 cm 

in the longest dimension and tubular structures as much 

as 4 cm long. Both the aggregates and the tubular structures form on the surfaces of the weathered tuff as it 

dries. Apparently, the aluminous material brought to the 

surface with drying is either in aqueous solution or in 

very finely divided form.

According to Rosas G. (1973), 80 million tons of bauxitic clay are present in Cauca, and one-fourth of this 

material is in the form of gibbsitic aggregates that are 

considerably higher grade than the clay. According to 

analyses completed by the Institute National de Investigaciones Geologico-Mineras, the bauxitic clay is 

35.70-43.87 percent A12O3 , 20.07-32.34 percent SiO2, 

10.16-13.03 percent Fe2O3, 0.74-1.11 percent TiO2 , and 

16.67-23.41 percent LOI. A later report by Rosas G. 

(1978) contains an estimate of 400 million tons for bauxite in Cauca that is 38 percent A12O3. The report indicates that 100 million tons of washed bauxite could 

be recovered from this resource; its partial composition 

would be 59.02 percent A12O3 , 3.02 percent SiO2, 

4.43 percent Fe2O3 , and 1.19 percent TiO2.

FRENCH GUIANA

The existence of laterite in French Guiana has been 

known since the middle of the last century. Regions 

favorable for bauxite have been investigated by the 

Bureau Minier Guyanais (Annales des Mines, 1955) and 

by several aluminum companies. One of the plans advanced to develop the bauxite was by Compagnie Alcoa 

de Guyane (a partnership of Alcoa and Pechiney of 

France) to mine bauxite and ship it to the Suralco plant 

in Suriname. This plan was dropped in 1974, and options 

on the deposit were allowed to lapse.

The principal bauxite deposits in French Guiana occur on the Mahury plateau (fig. 15), which is near the 

coast about 10 km southeast of Cayenne, and in the 

nearly flat-topped Kaw and Roura Mountains. These two 

low mountain ranges are southeast of Cayenne, and most 

deposits in them are no more than 30 km from the coast. 

The deposits on the Mahury plateau are at altitudes of 

about 150 m, those in the Roura Mountains are 200-250 

m above sea level, and the deposits in the Kaw Mountains are as much as 100 m higher. Other deposits have

5°

0 50 100 MILES 

[ I I

0 50 100 KILOMETERS

EXPLANATION

0 Bauxite district 

[SsNX] Coastal plain sediments 

\//.\ Older crystalline rocks

Guyana

1. Pomeroon

2. Pakaraima Mountains

3. Blue Mountains

4. Essequibo

5. Mackenzie

6. Ituni

7. Kwakwani

8. Canje

Suriname

9. Bakhuis Mountains

10. Onverdacht-Paranam

11. Moengo

12. Brownsberg Mountains

13. Nassau Mountains

14. Lely Mountains

French Guiana

15. Mahury Plateau

16. Roura Mountains

17. Kaw Mountains

18. Mts.de 1'Observatoire

FIGURE 15.—Locations of bauxite districts in Guyana, Suriname, and 

French Guiana.

been found in the Monts de 1'Observatoire (Choubert, 

1962), which are east of the Kaw Mountains. Bauxitic 

laterite crusts on uplands in remote interior parts of 

French Guiana are also shown on geologic maps prepared by the Service de la Carte Geologique de la Franca
B62 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Some of the laterite deposits are as much as 30 m 

thick, but the average thickness is about 6 m (Annales 

des Mines, 1955, p. 12). The deposits in the Kaw Mountains have weathered from schists and greenstones and 

are separated from fresh rock by a thick zone of deeply 

weathered rocks rich in clay minerals. Finely crystalline 

gibbsite is the principal bauxite mineral, but small 

amounts of boehmite occur locally (Annales des Mines, 

1955, p. 7), and noncrystalline aluminous materials are 

probably also present. Only small amounts of quartz occur in the bauxite, and most of the silica present is in 

clay minerals. Iron is chiefly in the form of goethite and 

limonite, but X-ray analysis of one sample, presumably 

from the Kaw Mountains, showed that the bauxite was 

chiefly gibbsite and hematite (Keyser, 1959, p. 980, 

fig. 4). Minor amounts of rutile, brookite, anatase, ilmenite, zircon, and tourmaline have also been identified 

in the bauxite.

A considerable number of samples, representative of 

the 150 million tons of laterite in the Kaw Mountains, 

were analyzed by the Bureau Minier Guyanais (Annales 

des Mines, 1955, p. 10-12). Results of this work outlined 

reserves of 42 million tons of bauxite having a chemical 

composition of 41.5 percent A12O3,1.7 percent SiO2, 30 

percent Fe2O3, 4 percent TiO2, 0.8 percent other oxides, 

and 22 percent LOI. Tbtal resources are thought to be 

170 million tons (Shaffer, 1975, table 5), and probably 

more laterite-type deposits will be found in remote parts 

of the country.

GUYANA

History and Production

Deposits later found to be bauxite were first noted by 

government geologists in 1869 and 1873. However, the 

identification of bauxite and the recognition of its potential value was by Sir John Harrison, the pioneer in 

research on tropical weathering, in the period 1897-1910 

(J.B. Harrison, 1934). Bauxite properties, one of which 

was assigned to the Demerara Bauxite Company, were

acquired in 1916. The first shipment of 2,037 tons of 

bauxite was in 1917, and, from that year to the end 

of 1960, a total of about 39 million tons of bauxite 

(table 18) had been produced and exported (Bracewell, 

1962, p. 104). Guyana has long been the world leader in 

the production of calcined refractory-grade bauxite and 

ranked second behind Suriname in total bauxite produced for the period 1938-55. The Demerara Bauxite 

Company, Ltd. (Demba), a subsidiary of Aluminum of 

Canada, was the chief producer until its mines and 

plants were taken over by the government-owned 

Guyana Bauxite Company (Guybau) on July 15, 1971 

(Guyana Geological Surveys and Mines Department, 

1972, p. 2). The company known as Reynolds Guyana 

Mines, Ltd. became active in Guyana in 1952, and this 

company has been the second largest producer. The 

operations of Reynolds Guyana Mines were nationalized 

by Guyana on January 1, 1975 (Blumenreich, 1975, 

p. 92).

Guybau processes bauxite in a drying and calcining 

plant and operates an alumina plant at MackenzieLinden on the Demerara River. The drying plant, formerly owned by Reynolds Guyana Mines, Ltd., is at 

Everton on the east bank of the Berbice River south of 

New Amsterdam. This plant is now operated by the Berbice Mining Enterprise Total production increased from 

2.4 million tons in 1961 to a maximum of 4.4 million tons 

in 1970 (table 6). Production declined after the peak year 

to 1,430,000 tons in the recession year of 1982. The 

decline resulted from periodic labor difficulties, problems 

in mining, Guybau's efforts to increase the output of 

refractory-grade bauxite (which apparently restricted 

the mining of metal-grade bauxite), and the world-wide 

economic recession of 1982.

The bauxite mined in Guyana is high-grade trihydrate 

typa It is principally gibbsite, but small amounts of 

boehmite are present in most deposits. According to 

analyses listed by Pollard and Barren (1955, p. 39), bauxite mined in the Mackenzie and Ituni districts ranged 

in composition as follows: 59.03-60.45 percent A12O3,

TABLE IS.—Specifications of refractory and chemical grades of bauxite produced in Guyana 

[All values except bulk specific gravity in percent; min, minimum; max, maximum. Dash leaders (——), no data. From Lachmansingh and Nooten (1977)]

Guyana Bauxite Co. 

RASC1

A1203 ..........................

SiO2 ............................

Fe2Oq ..........................

Ti02 3 ............................

Loss on ignition ..................

Moisture ........................

Bulk specific gravity ..............

Typical

............. 88.00

............. 6.50

............. 2.00

............. 3.25

............. .25

.............. 3.15

Guaranteed

86.50 min 

7.50 max 

2.50 max

.50 max

Berbice Mining Enterprise

Refractory calcined

Typical

89.00 

5.25 

2.00 

3.50 

.25

3.05

Guaranteed

86.50 min 

7.50 max 

2.50 max

.50 max

Chemical

Typical

60.00 

4.50 

1.00 

2.70 

30.50 

3.00

Guaranteed

59.00 min 

6.00 max 

1.25 max 

3.20 max

5.00 max

Trade name for "super-calcined" refractory bauxite.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B63

4.78-7.07 percent SiO2 , 1.17-2.85 percent Fe2O3 , 

1.90-2.53 percent TiO2 , and 29.61-30.40 percent LOI. 

The uncommonly low iron and low silica contents of the 

bauxite fulfill rigid specifications for refractory bauxite (table 18).

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

The principal bauxite districts in Guyana are scattered through a belt in the inland part of the coastal 

plain (fig. 15), and low-grade deposits are present in 

laterite cappings of inland plateaus. The most productive districts are Mackenzie, located near Linden along 

the Demerara River about 105 km from its mouth, Ituni 

on the west side of the Berbice River, and Kwakwani 

on the east side of that river. Other deposits occur in 

the Pomeroon region in the western coastal lowlands, 

along the Essequibo River south of Georgetown, and 

in the Canje district in the eastern part of the country. 

Aluminous laterite deposits on much older crystalline 

rocks of the Guyanan shield occur in several places in 

Guyana. Some laterites, such as those in the Blue Mountains, are in uplands at intermediate altitudes and are 

surrounded by coastal plain sediments. However, the 

very large deposits are on higher plateaus in the 

Pakaraima Mountains and other inland areas.

The association of bauxite and laterite deposits in 

Guyana and elsewhere in northern South America with 

old planation levels has been recognized for a long time 

(Meulen, 1948), and prominent seaward-sloping levels 

were identified by Kersen (1956, p. 255-317) and 

Bleackley (1961, p. 224-226; 1964, p. 95-97, fig. 14). 

Prominent peneplains in the Pakaraima Mountains are 

at altitudes of 400-500 m and 700-800 m. The lower 

surface slopes seaward to an altitude of about 300 m 

in the Blue Mountains. Still lower planation levels extend seaward and are represented by unconformities in 

coastal plain sediments. Laterite on inland plateaus 

clearly has formed on the old planation surfaces, and 

bauxite is thought to have formed during periods of 

nondeposition represented by the unconformities in the 

coastal-plain sediments.

The bauxite deposits in the coastal plain of Guyana 

are in the sedimentary beds of the Corentyne Series 

(Bleackley, 1964, p. 20,148). Locally, the deposits rest 

on weathered crystalline rock, but at most places sand 

and clay containing some sandstone and conglomerate 

are present below the bauxite. The bauxite is overlain 

by the Berbice or White Sand Formation consisting of 

sand, silty clay, and silt that was probably deposited 

in brackish water. By a thorough study of pollen, Van 

der Hammenn and Wymstra (1964, p. 223, fig. 26) determined that the beds below the bauxite are of Late

Cretaceous (Maestrichtian) to early Eocene age and that 

the lower parts of those above the bauxite are of early 

Oligocene age. Therefore, the interval of bauxite formation was from early Eocene to early Oligocene.

Bauxite deposits in Guyana and elsewhere in northern 

South America formed in more than one way (Krook, 

1969). Most deposits in the region are underlain by clay 

consisting chiefly of kaolinite, but halloysite is also present. Several authorities agree that the kaolin layers are 

the immediate parent material of the bauxite, and 

Kersen (1956, p. 326) has presented mineralogical 

evidence supporting this theory, including electron 

micrographs of leached kaolin crystals and photomicrographs of kaolinite partly altered to gibbsite. Some of 

the kaolin deposits have been transported, and others 

have formed in place. Bauxite associated with 

transported kaolin probably formed by a two-stage 

process as suggested by Moses and Michell (1963) and 

Vletter (1963). The first stage included deep weathering of metamorphic and igneous rocks inland and the 

transportation to and deposition of the kaolinitic 

weathering products on the coastal lowlands. The second stage was the desilication of the kaolinitic materials 

and the formation of bauxite. Aleva (1965) recognized 

the relationships of the bauxite and underlying kaolin 

clay but believed that the two were distinct sedimentary units and that the bauxite formed from a porous 

arkosic or silty parent material. Bauxite that formed 

in place from residual clay on granite occurs at the 

Montgomery mine in the Mackenzie district, Guyana 

(Kersen, 1956, p. 301-305), and a deposit in the southern 

part of the Ituni group in Guyana is underlain by a thin 

brown clay retaining relict texture of the underlying 

gabbro (Pollard and Barren, 1955, p. 13). Most bauxite 

deposits on plateaus evidently formed in place, inasmuch as they grade downward into hard rock through 

saprolite and incompletely weathered zones. Gibbsite 

also formed below accumulations of decaying organic 

matter in swamps during Holocene geologic time 

(Kersen, 1956, p. 367-368). The parent material of this 

gibbsite is an illite clay in parts of the Coropina Formation that are thought to be of Pleistocene age. 

Halloy site occurs as an intermediate stage in the formation of gibbsite.

The high-grade bauxite in the coastal plain occurs in 

irregularly shaped beds and lenticular deposits that 

range in size from about 100,000 tons to as much as 

1 million tons (Lachmansingh and Nooten, 1977). Most 

deposits are dome shaped, and they range in maximum 

thickness from a few meters to as much as 20 m. Most 

deposits are underlain by kaolinitic clay that locally is 

residual on crystalline rock. Beds above the bauxite consist of sand, clay, and lignitic clay occurring in the 

following sequence from surface downward: (1) white
B64 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

sand or sandy clay ranging from a few meters to more 

than 50 m in thickness; (2) hard clay 2-20 m thick; and 

(3) a layer of lignitic cemented sand ranging from a few 

centimeters to 10 m in thickness. The uppermost part 

of the bauxite, called "capping," is commonly a mixture of bauxite pebbles and clay. This capping ordinarily 

is 20-25 percent reactive silica, and it is discarded with 

the overburden in mining.

The mineralogy of deposits at the Montgomery, Nieu 

Haarden, Maria Elizabeth, and Warababaru mines was 

investigated by Brindley and Sutton (1957), who used 

X-ray methods to analyze samples taken at 0.6-m vertical intervals. Gibbsite is the principal mineral in all 

deposits, and some samples contain as much as 95 percent of this mineral. Boehmite is present at all localities; 

the vertical distribution of this mineral is irregular. 

Most deposits contain only 1-3 percent boehmite. The 

highest concentration of boehmite is at the Maria 

Elizabeth mine, where layers containing 5 percent are 

common and one sample contained 15 percent. Anatase 

is uniformly distributed in amounts of 1-2 percent in 

nearly all the bauxite. Goethite occurs in all deposits 

but rarely makes up more than 5 percent of the deposit, 

except at Warababaru, where 5-15 percent is present 

in some layers. Hematite occurs in the bauxite at the 

Nieu Haarden and Warababaru mines, and one layer 

contains 10 percent of this mineral.

Large deposits of aluminous laterite and ferruginous 

bauxite have been discovered in remote parts of the 

Pakaraima Mountains (Bateson, 1961; Bleackley, 1964, 

p. 95-135). The most extensive deposits are on plateaus 

at altitudes of 670-760 m; other deposits are at 370- 

460 m and at about 915 m. The aluminous laterites have 

been investigated in three areas. Deposits in the 

Kopinang River basin are reported to be 3.5 m thick and 

to cover 1160 km2; the average partial composition of 

samples from 35 pits is 40.4 percent A12O3 , 6.1 percent 

SiO2 , 27.6 percent Fe2O3 , and 2.1 percent TiO2 . 

Deposits in the Sukabi River basin cover 965 km2, and 

the average partial composition of samples from the upper 5 m in three test pits is 34.4 percent A12O3 , 16.5 

percent SiO2 , 25.8 percent Fe2O3 , and 1.9 percent TiO2 . 

Deposits in the Kamarang-Kukui areas in the basin of 

the upper Mazaruni River cover 1545 km2, and the 

average partial composition of samples from the upper 

4.3 m in 16 test pits is 33.3 percent A12O3 , 20.3 percent 

SiO2, and 19.7 percent Fe2O3 .

Aluminous laterite deposits cap the surface of the 

Blue Mountains in several places (Bleackley, 1964, 

p. 85-87). These mountains and a smaller highland nearby, called the Oko Mountains, are about 8 km west of 

the Essequibo River. The surface of these highlands 

slopes about 2 or 3 m per kilometer from an altitude 

of 350 m in the south to 120 m above sea level in the

north. Aluminous laterite covers an area of 12-18 km2, 

and the amount present is approximately 50 million 

tons. This area was prospected by Harvey Aluminum 

Inc., and several patches of laterite containing an 

average of 50 percent A12O3 were located.

Aluminous laterites in the Hariwa area, 10 km north 

of Ituni, and the Kamakabara area, 16 km south of 

Ituni, were investigated by the Guyana Geological 

Surveys and Mines Department (1972, p. 31-32). Much 

of this laterite is as much as 45 percent A12O3 . Most of 

it is low in SiO2, and some is low in Fe2O3 . In 

preliminary investigations only about one-half million 

tons of aluminous laterite were identified, but total tonnages in these and other areas may be large.

Resources

Estimates of resources of bauxite in Guyana range 

widely. According to the Societfc Aluminum Pechiney 

(1975, table 1), the total bauxite reserves were estimated 

to be 300 million tons, of which two-thirds was considered certain and probable and one-third potential. 

Shaffer (1975, table 5) listed 290 million tons of reserves 

and additional potential resources of bauxite for this 

country. According to data supplied to the International 

Bauxite Association (1976b, table 1) by Guyana, the 

reserves are as follows: measured—500 million tons and 

total—1 billion tons. The grade of the bauxite is listed 

as 50-63 percent A12O3 and 1-5 percent SiO2 . A more 

recent report on Guyana published by the International 

Bauxite Association (1978a, p. 40) gave the measured 

reserves of high-quality ore (50-63 percent A12O3 , 1-10 

percent SiO2) as 520 million tons and the lower grade 

reserves (30-55 percent A12O3) as 170 million tons. This 

article further stated that possible reserves of both 

grades are 1,160 million tons. The measured reserves are 

all in the coastal-plain region, and they include deposits 

found during an exploration program carried on in 

1971-76. The major deposits discovered are in the Ituni 

and Mackenzie districts. The total 1,160-million-ton 

figure includes probable and possible reserves in the 

Essequibo, Kwakwani, and Canje districts, but no lowgrade laterite bauxite in inland areas is included in these 

estimates. The U.S. Bureau of Mines estimate for bauxite reserves in Guyana is 700 million tons (Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, table 3).

Subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite resources in 

inland laterite deposits are very large. In writing about 

the total resources, Singh (1972, p. 625), former Director of the Guyana Geological Surveys and Mines 

Department, made the following comments. 

In Guyana there are two types of aluminous rocks from which alumina 

and aluminum could be produced. There are the high-grade bauxites
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B65

of the coastal area, or the lowland bauxites which have been mined 

since the beginning of this century and upon which our present bauxitealumina industry is based. The other type of aluminous material is 

aluminous laterite, generally regarded as the upland type, which occurs in enormous quantities in Guyana. The total reserves of laterites 

so far computed are over 25,000 million tons. Of these reserves over 

7,000 million tons seem to be of potential commercial value, being 

similar in chemical composition to materials from which alumina is 

extracted on a commercial scale in other parts of the world. The bettergrade aluminous laterites occur in association with lower-grade ferruginous laterites in large bodies***.

In this report, the bauxite reserves in Guyana are considered to be 700 million tons, the rounded total of the 

high-grade and lower grade bauxite reported in the 

article published by the International Bauxite Association (1978a). The subeconomic bauxite resources in this 

country are assumed to be 300 million tons, and the 

total resources (reserves plus subeconomic deposits) are 

estimated to be 1 billion tons. The extremely large 

resources in the inland laterite deposits discussed in the 

foregoing paragraph are lumped with the total unevaluated and undiscovered bauxite in South America.

PARAGUAY

Laterite is widespread in southeastern Paraguay 

(Putzer, 1962, p. 124; Eckel, 1959, p. 79), and bauxite 

is reported to have been found at San Juan 

Nepomuceno, Alto, Piribebuy, and Paraguari. Some of 

the areas favorable for bauxite are underlain by 

weathered nepheline syenite, shonkinite, and other 

alkalic rocks similar to those on which the bauxite in 

the Pocos de Caldas region of Brazil have formed. Other 

areas in which the bauxite is reported are shown on a 

geologic map (Eckel, 1959, pi. 1) as basalt, and probably 

bauxite has also formed on this type of rock. Insofar 

as the authors are aware, none of the bauxite in 

Paraguay has been evaluated and no estimates of the 

resources present have been published.

SURINAME

History and Production

Bauxite deposits were known in Suriname by the turn 

of the century; it was first shipped by the Aluminum 

Company of America (Alcoa) in 1922, and a second company, NV Billiton Maatschappij Suriname, began mining in 1941. When both companies were active, 

Suriname led the world in bauxite production for the 

period 1947-1956. From the time of the first shipments 

through 1960 more than 50 million tons of bauxite had 

been exported. From 1960 to 1978 annual bauxite 

production has ranged from 3.3 to 7.8 million tons

(table 6). Production has declined since the peak year 

and reached a low of 3 million tons in the recession year 

of 1982. The bauxite consumed in Suriname is used for 

alumina and aluminum in a fully integrated industry 

inaugurated in 1965 when the Suriname Aluminum 

Company opened plants at Paranam to make both 

alumina and aluminum. Much of the electric power for 

this operation is from a dam and generating station on 

the Suriname River at Afobaka (Brokopondo Falls). 

Suriname is now a major exporter of bauxite, alumina, 

and aluminum. Part of the bauxite exported has been 

marketed for abrasive, chemical, and refractory uses.

In addition to the activation of an integrated 

aluminum industry, several developments related to 

bauxite have taken place in Suriname in recent years. 

Grassalco, the Suriname Government corporation, and 

Reynolds Suriname Mines, Ltd., in a 50-50 joint venture evaluated bauxite reserves in the Bakhuis Mountains (Michell, 1974, p. 103). Because of problems 

concerning the adequacy of reserves found during this 

project, Reynolds Metals Co. terminated its activities 

in Suriname with the agreement that the Suriname 

Government pay Reynolds $3.5 million for its bauxite 

concessions and exploration equipment (Michell, 1975, 

p. 72). Grassalco also has signed agreements to participate with Billiton Suriname NV in evaluating other 

bauxite resources in Suriname and possibly processing 

bauxite into alumina and aluminum. The Suriname 

Government, following the lead of Jamaica, moved to 

substantially increase revenues and government participation in bauxite and alumina production (Michell, 

1975, p. 72). Suralco and the Suriname Government 

signed a letter of intent in November 1974 to increase 

the production levy on bauxite to $11.02 a ton, retroactive to January 1, 1974. This rate is more than four 

times the previous one.

The principal bauxite mines in Suriname are near 

Paranam and Onverdacht (fig. 15) on the Suriname 

River and near Moengo in the eastern part of the coastal 

plain. Suralco operated mines west of Paranam and 

southeast of Moengo. The Billiton Company Suriname, 

a subsidiary of the Royal Dutch Shell Company since 

1973, has mines near Onverdacht. Mining is by openpit methods; overburden removal is complicated by 

excessive water resulting from poor drainage in low 

swampy terrain. As recently as 25 years ago, the maximum overburden removed was about 20 m thick; now 

as much as 30 m of overburden is removed; and in the 

future even greater thicknesses will be stripped (Van 

Lissa, 1975). Cost of removing overburden was a major factor leading to agreements between Suralco and 

Billiton Companies whereby the alumina plant at 

Paranam would be jointly owned (U.S. Embassy, Paramaribo, Suriname, State Department Airgram, 3/22/84).
B66 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

A further agreement was reached that bauxite would 

be mined by Billiton, whose deposits can be mined more 

cheaply than those controlled by Suralco. The joint ventures were approved by the Government of Suriname, 

which wants a greater share of the income from the use 

of the country's natural resources and may participate 

in joint ventures in the future.

The bauxite produced in the Onverdacht district is 

very high grade trihydrate type containing very little 

boehmite and silica. The chemical composition of representative shipments (table 19) listed by Aleva (1975) 

indicates the quality. However, not all of the bauxite 

produced is as high grade; Suriname Geologisch Mijnbouwkundige Dienst (1953, p. 21) listed 55.0-59.2 percent A12O3 and 3.8-10.0 percent Fe2O3 among the 

ranges of principal components. This same reference 

gave the composition of calcined bauxite as 85.3- 

86.0 percent A12O3 , 3.5-4.2 percent SiO2, 5.8-7.0 percent Fe2O3, and 2.9-3.5 percent TiO2.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

In Suriname, bauxite deposits occur in sedimentary 

beds in the coastal plain and as laterite-type cappings 

of inland plateaus. The deposits mined are in the Onverdacht, Paranam, and Moengo districts, which are in the 

eastern one-third of the coastal plain (fig. 15). The 

laterite-type bauxite deposits in inland regions are mainly in the Bakhuis Mountains, but other deposits occur 

in the Nassau, Browns, and Lely Mountains (fig. 15) 

(Bosma, Ho Len Fat, and Welter, 1973).

Most of the bauxite in the coastal lowlands overlies 

kaolin deposits and arkosic sand of the Berbice or 

Onverdacht Formation and is overlain by the White 

Sand or Coeswyne Formation (Montagne, 1964; Aleva, 

1965). Beds below the bauxite are reported to contain 

pollen of early Eocene age, and pollen in the beds above 

the deposits is Oligocene to Miocene in age. A major 

break in the sedimentary record during which weathering and bauxite formation took place is thought to have 

occurred in late Eocene to early Oligocene time (Aleva, 

1981a,b). The bauxite ranges from hard tough types requiring blasting for mining to plastic clay; concretionary, massive, cellular, banded, and breccialike forms 

are present.

Investigations by Aleva and others (1969) have established that the buried bauxite in the coastal plain occurs 

as preserved flat-topped cappings of older sediments. 

Deep erosion in late Eocene and early Oligocene time 

removed the coastal-plain sediments except in the bauxite-capped areas. In late Oligocene time, renewed sedimentation resulted in the filling of areas between the 

present bauxite, and later, in Pliocene and Pleistocene

TABLE 19.—Chemical composition of bauxite produced at Onverdacht,

Suriname

[All values in weight percent. From Aleva (1975); analyses are representative 

of shipments of 5,000 tons or more]

A100Q SiOn Fe000 H00

Metal grade . . . . . ..... 60.0

59.1 

58.5 

58.6

3.4

3.8 

4.3 

3.9

2.7

3.4 

4.0 

4.4

2.5

2.7 

2.4 

2.4

31.4

31.0 

30.8 

30.7

.... 60.8

60.1

59.3

3.6

4.6

6.1

1.2

1.4

1.2

2.8

2.6

2.5

31.6

31.3

30.9

time, sediment completely covered the bauxite. Valeton 

(1973a,b,c) noted evidence for bedding in bauxite near 

Onverdacht and Moengo and stated that heavy minerals 

in the bauxite are similar to those in the underlying 

sediments. She concluded that the parent material of 

the bauxite in the two districts came from crystalline 

rocks in different source areas because of differences in 

heavy-mineral suites. Kaolinite has been diagenetically 

altered to gibbsite in the upper parts of prebauxite sediment. The depositional environmental of the prebauxite sediment was probably a series of marine fans along 

the coast. Plant-root remains in the uppermost parts of 

the sediment suggest temporary emergence and probably the existence of mangrove swamps, but the 

presence of burrows in many places may indicate deposition in shallow marine water. Though Valeton is less than 

clear on this subject, she apparently believed that postdepositional alteration of kaolin and other aluminumbearing minerals was the most logical explanation for 

the origin of the bauxite.

The deposits mined differ in size; some are small, some 

large. The Moengo Hill deposit, now mined out, was 

5 km long and 1 km wide and yielded 10 million tons 

of bauxite. Most deposits are cappings 3-7 m thick on 

low, flat-topped hills and are overlain by only a thin 

veneer of soil and sedimentary rock. Most deposits rest 

on transported kaolin that overlies weathered schist and 

other Precambrian rocks, but a few rest on coarse sand.

Bauxite in the deposits mined has several different 

lithologies. They are as follows:

(1) Dense, homogeneous, pink to yellowish-white bauxite, some of which is fine grained and some of 

which consists of gibbsite crystals as much as 

4 mm in size. In this type, small vugs filled with 

white clay are common.

(2) Laminated bauxite consisting of alternating layers 

of gibbsite and kaolin or of dense and porous 

forms of gibbsite.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B67

(3) Porous bauxite containing vugs of various sizes 

and shapes, some of which retain the outlines of 

leached quartz grains.

(4) Very thin walled cellular bauxite consisting chiefly 

of crystalline gibbsite.

(5) Bauxitic clay containing concretions, as much as 

1.5 cm in diameter, consisting chiefly of dense 

fine-grained bauxite resembling kaolin.

The largest laterite-type deposits in Suriname are in 

an area in the Bakhuis Mountains formerly known as 

the Adampada-Kabalebo region (Janssen, 1966; Aleva, 

1971; Aleva and Hilversum, 1984). The bauxite in part 

of this region formed from rocks of intermediate composition including dolerite, gabbro, and charnockite 

(Pollock, 1981, p. 279). In other parts of the region, the 

bauxite formed from granulite interlayered with quartzite, calc-silicate rock and amphibolite, and a volcanic 

complex with intrusions of gabbro and ultramafic rock 

(Aleva and Hilversum, 1984, p. 330). The bauxite varies 

greatly in mineralogical and chemical composition. The 

patchy and irregular extent of deposits probably is 

caused by variations in the parent rock. The bauxite 

ranges in thickness from 2 to 8 m. Most deposits are 

richest in iron in their uppermost meter or two where 

local concentration of iron oxide are as much as 40 percent. Most of this highly ferruginous material is hard 

and brittle, and it is mainly in concretions and 

botryoidal masses lacking relict textures and structures 

of the parent rock. Iron contents generally decrease 

with depth, and the bauxite below the iron-rich layer 

has the consistency of compacted earth. Earthy bauxite grades downward into siliceous saprolite from which 

it is difficult to distinguish. Pollock (1981, p. 282-283) 

described one section of Bakhuis bauxite as follows: (1) 

topsoil with an organic layer, (2) fragmented cavernous 

hardcap with clayey material having nearly vertical 

banding, mostly dark brown, (3) pale-yellow clay with 

reddish-brown layers, (4) kaolinitic pebbles in a 

brownish-yellow clay matrix, (5) dark-brown clay matrix 

with kaolinitic pebbles, and (6) fresh crystalline rock. 

Pollock's report states that "the mineral composition 

of the bauxite is roughly as follows: gibbsite 63%, 

kaolinite 5%, quartz 1%, hematite 8%, goethite 18% 

and 2% anatase."

Iron has been leached from the upper parts of bauxite deposits where the deposits are almost continuously in contact with surface runoff water (Aleva and 

Hilversum, 1984, p. 338, table 5). Some of the leached 

bauxite contains 2 percent Fe2O3 and about 63 percent 

A12O3 and is the best grade bauxite in the district.

In addition to the Bakhuis Mountains, other uplands 

in Suriname capped by laterite-type bauxite include the 

Nassau, Lely, and Brownsberg Mountains (Aleva and 

Hilversum, 1984, fig. 1). Bauxite deposits on all three

uplands are much smaller than the deposits in the 

Bakhuis Mountains.

Resources

The bauxite resources in Suriname are in the highgrade deposits in the coastal plain region (Moengo, 

Onverdacht, and Paranam districts) and the iron-rich 

laterite deposits in mountainous inland districts. 

Suriname submitted to the International Bauxite 

Association (1976b, table 1) estimates of 270.8 million 

tons for measured bauxite reserves and 490 million tons 

for total reserves. According to Rene Cambridge (oral 

commun., March 1977), these estimates include 75 

million tons for deposits in the Bakhuis Mountains, and 

the remainder is for high-grade deposits in the coastal 

plain. Since 1975 approximately 30 million tons of bauxite have been mined from coastal plain deposits, leaving a total of about 385 million tons of bauxite in the 

coastal belt.

In an early assessment of the bauxite in the Bakhuis 

Mountains, it was inferred that the deposits extended 

over 800 km (Aleva and Hilversum, 1984, p. 327). As 

much as 5 billion tons of bauxite would be present if 

deposits were continuous and if the estimated thickness 

and density of 1.75 were correct. This large estimate 

was probably the basis for the estimate of 1.1 billion 

tons announced by a Suriname politician (American 

Metal Market, 1969) and the 1-billion-ton estimate for 

potential bauxite in the Bakhuis Mountains given by 

Dahlkamp and Kirchner (1968, p. 68). In more detailed 

investigations, it was found that the laterite-type bauxite in the Bakhuis Mountains was far more irregularly 

distributed than previously thought (Aleva and Hilversum, 1984, p. 328-329), and reserve estimates were 

reduced markedly.

After completing 3,000 drill holes in the AdampadaKabalebo region in 1971-73, Reynolds Suriname Mines 

Ltd. reported 40 million tons of proven, probable, and 

possible bauxite reserves (Roever, 1975, p. 99). Approximately 18 million tons of these reserves in one area 

contain 46-47 percent extractable alumina and 

1.5-3 percent silica. These deposits are 6-8 m thick and 

are under overburden that is 1-1.5 m thick.

The bauxite reserves in the Bakhuis Mountains were 

estimated by Dahlkamp and Kirchner (1968, table 2) as 

follows: 104 million tons containing 52.7 percent total 

A12O3 and 2.0 percent SiO2 , 94 million tons containing 

44.0 percent A12O3 and 3.9 percent SiO2 , and the total 

of both grades was 198 million tons. After Billiton 

Maatschappij Suriname completed a feasibility study 

for Grassalco, the Suriname government aluminum 

company, in 1979, Aleva and Hilversum (1984, p. 329,
B68 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

table 2) also estimated the reserves to be 198 million 

tons. This bauxite has an average thickness of 4.6 m. 

It contains an average of 48.6 percent A12O3 and the 

recovery by the low-temperature process is 42.8 percent; 

the reactive SiO2 is 2.5 percent. A little more than half 

of the bauxite (104 million tons) is considered higher 

grade bauxite. This higher grade bauxite has an average 

thickness of 3.9 m. It contains 52.7 percent A12O3, 

2.0 percent SiO2, and 14.8 percent Fe2O3. The A12O3 

available when the low-temperature process is used is 

50.0 percent, and the reactive SiO2 is 1.8 percent.

Doeve (1957, p. 25) calculated that reserves of bauxite in the Nassau Mountains total 14 million tons, the 

composition of which is 53.5-55.5 percent A12O3, 3- 

3.5 percent SiO2 , 8.5-10.5 percent Fe2O3, 4-6 percent 

TiO2 , and 27-29 percent LOI. In addition, 6 million 

tons that contains 47.5-49.5 percent A12O3 and 

17.5-19.5 percent Fe2O3 is present. Additional reserves 

of bauxite were found in the Nassau Mountains by company exploration during 1975 and 1976 (Rene Cambridge, oral commun., March 1977).

More than 1,000 exploratory drill holes have been put 

down since 1952 in the western two-thirds of that part 

of the coastal plain favorable for bauxite, but little more 

than bauxite shows have been found (Van Lissa, 1975, 

enclosure 45). However, many of these holes are widely 

spaced; large, inaccessible, swampy areas have not been 

explored; and many holes were not drilled to depths at 

which bauxite is now known to occur in the eastern part 

of the country. Therefore, undiscovered bauxite may be 

present in the western part of the coastal plain.

The total reserves of bauxite in Suriname are estimated to be 575 million tons (Baumgardner and 

McCawley, 1983, table 3), and the total resources are 

about 800 million tons. The figure for total resources 

is the estimate of the Suriname Geological and Mining 

Service (Rene Cambridge, oral commun., 1977). This 

estimate includes reserves plus deposits containing as 

much as 8 percent SiO2, instead of 6 percent as used 

in earlier estimates, and low-grade bauxite in remote 

parts of the Bakhuis Mountains. The total bauxite 

resources in Suriname are most likely considerably 

larger than 800 million tons, inasmuch as upland areas 

on the Guyana shield in remote southern parts of the 

country have not been fully explored for bauxite.

VENEZUELA

Venezuela has been an aluminum producer since 1967. 

The government initiated the construction of the Interalumina plant at Ciudad Guayana in 1969 (Rodriguez, 1982, p. 108). This plant when completed will have 

an annual capacity of 1.6 million tons of alumina. A

small tonnage of bauxite and kaolin is produced in the 

Upata district for use in refractories. The alumina plant 

will be supplied by imported bauxite. However, plans 

for mining the Los Pijiguaos bauxite and completing 

the integration of the Venezuelan aluminum industry 

were in an advanced stage when this report was written.

The Venezuelan government and private interests 

have put forth major efforts to find domestic bauxite 

resources. In the early prospecting, small subeconomic 

bauxite deposits similar to the deposits in the coastal 

plain in Guyana were found in the Orinoco Delta region, 

and laterite-type deposits were discovered in remote inland areas of Venezuela. Large laterite-type bauxite 

deposits were discovered in the Los Pijiguaos uplands 

(fig. 16) in the western part of the State of Bolivar in 

1974 by the Venezuelan Direccidn de Geologia, 

Ministerio de Minas e Hidrocarburos (Rodriguez, 1982). 

The Los Pijiguaos bauxite was explored by the 

Corporacidn Venezolana de Guayana (De Ratmiroff, 

1979). Feasibility studies of mining and transporting 

bauxite from these deposits were underway in 1978 and 

1979; other studies have been made more recently. The 

earlier investigations in other districts were by the 

Venezuelan Direccidn de Geologia del Ministerio de 

Minas e Hidrocarburos (Candiales, 1961; Lavie, 1974; 

Perfetti, Marquez, and Candiales, 1951) and by the 

University of Oriente Nucleo de Bolivar (Baptista 

G6mes, 1973; Amelinck and Herrero N., 1971-72). In 

this earlier work bauxite deposits were discovered in the 

following districts (fig. 16): (1) along the Toro, Aroy, and 

Acure Rivers, Delta Amacuro Territory; (2) La Mesa 

Copeyal, El Chorro and other mesas in the vicinity of 

Upata; (3) the Nuria plateau; (4) the Serrania de los 

Guaicas; and (5) highland areas in the Gran Sabana 

region near the Brazilian border. The last four districts 

are in the State of Bolivar.

Los Pijiguaos district.—The Los Pijiguaos bauxite 

district is in the western part of the State of Bolivar 

midway between the towns of Caicara and Puerto 

Ayacucho on the Orinoco River. The district is in the 

Los Pijiguao Mountains about 35 km east of the 

Orinoco River. The deposits occur on uplifted dissected 

plateaus. They formed from the Parguaza granite, 

which is a large batholith intrusion in volcanic rocks.

As described by Menendez and Sarmentero (1984, 

p. 401-402), the weathered profile on the Parguaza 

granite consists of the following zones. (1) A bauxite 

zone, which is overlain only by a very thin soil, made 

up of a bauxite crust of spongy textured cemented 

pisolites overlying a thicker layer of quartz-bearing 

earthy, pink to reddish-brown bauxite. The combined 

crust and earthy bauxite has an average thickness of 

about 8 m. This bauxite zone is 60-90 percent gibbsite, 

5-10 percent hematite, and <5 percent goethite and
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B69

72°

200 MILES

|

0 200 KILOMETERS 

EXPLANATION

• Bauxite district

1. Toro River, Delta Amacuro Territory

2. Aroy River, Delta Amacuro Territory

3. Acure River, Delta Amacuro Territory

4. Upata, Bolivar

5. Nuria Plateau, Bolivar

6. Serrania de los Guaicas, Bolivar

7. Gran Sabana region, Bolivar

8. Los Pijiguaos (now Los Pijiguigados), Bolivar

FIGURE 16.—Locations of bauxite and aluminous laterite districts in 

Venezuela.

contains traces of boehmite and kaolinite. (2) The second zone is a mottled earthy aggregate of kaolinite, 

quartz, and mica having granite pseudotextures in the 

lower part. (3) The third zone is a concretionary bauxite layer consisting of brownish-red spongy and cellular 

textured material. This concretionary zone was intersected by only one drill hole. (4) The fourth zone is 

a pallid layer having a composition similar to the mottled zone. (5) The fifth zone is saprolite in which the 

granite texture is preserved. (6) The lowermost zone is 

granite, the parent rock of the bauxite. Granite was 

penetrated in one drill hole at a depth of 49 m.

Other districts.—The minor bauxite resources in 

Venezuela, like those in the Los Pijiguaos district, 

formed from igneous and metamorphic rocks in the 

Guyana shield, except the small deposits in the Orinoco 

Delta region, which, like the bauxite in the coastal plain 

of Guyana, are in sedimentary beds. Most bauxite 

deposits in Venezuela, except the small deposits in the 

Orinoco Delta region, are the laterite type on plateaus, 

and they have formed from several types of rocks.

Deposits in the Upata and Nuria districts are at an 

altitude of about 600 m. In these two districts the bauxite has formed on gneiss, amphibolite, granitic rocks, 

and diabase. At some localities the bauxite is pisolitic, 

and at others it is compact, massive, cellular, and fine 

grained. At least some of the deposits in the Upata 

region evidently formed in place, inasmuch as lenses of 

bauxite overlie kaolin and kaolinized gneiss, and original 

textures of the parent rock are indicated by preserved 

sericite (Candiales, 1961, p. 1672).

Laterite from the Serrania de los Guaicas district, 

which is located 230 km south of Ciudad Bolivar in the 

State of Bolivar, was analyzed by Schoin and Labrecque 

(1983) and found to be 37.39 percent A12O3, 1.16 percent SiO2, 3.15 percent TiO2, and 35.77v percent Fe2O3. 

The parent of the deposits is diabase (Sinkovec, 1965). 

According to Sinkovec, the lateritic bauxite is composed of gibbsite, kaolinite, halloysite, quartz, a material 

referred to as "amorphous limonite," goethite, hematite, 

ilmenite, and leucoxene. Gibbsite occurs in cryptocrystalline and crystalline forms. Cryptocrystalline gibbsite occurs with goethite and "amorphous limonite" in 

colloform masses. Crystalline gibbsite is colorless 

replacements of plagioclase, and it occurs in lamellar, 

tabular, and square-shaped forms in fibrous aggregates.

Resources

During early exploration the Los Pijiguaos bauxite 

deposits have been evaluated by bomb digest testing 

of more than 1,500 samples from 139 drill holes and 20 

test pits (De Ratmiroff, 1979). The bauxite present was 

calculated to be 300 million tons containing more than 

50 percent A12O3 and less than 8 percent SiO2, and a 

total of 500 million tons, including the better grade, is 

more than 48 percent A12O3 and less than 10 percent 

SiO2. The A12O3 is in trihydrate form, most of the silica 

is in free quartz, and reactive SiO2 is low. The deposits 

included in these estimates extend over 30 km2.

After more thorough evaluation, Rodriguez (1982, 

p. 112) and Menendez and Sarmentero (1984, p. 404) 

listed the proven reserves in 9 blocks in the Los 

Pijiguaos district as 176.9 million tons. These reserves 

are 49.5 percent A12O3, 9.3 percent SiO2 (7.6 percent 

quartz), and 12.6 percent Fe2O3. The average thickness 

is 7.6 m. In addition to the proven reserves, some 

60 million tons in adjacent areas can be regarded as 

probable reserves. The total bauxite in the region may 

be very large inasmuch as Rodriguez (1982, p. 112) 

described the extent of bauxite-bearing rock as follows: 

"According to work carried out in the large northern 

bauxite of the Parguaza batholith by the Geological 

Survey of Venezuela, possible reserves are expected to
B70 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

be of the order of several billion metric tonnes in view 

of the extensive area covered by the parent rock of the 

Los Pijiguaos bauxite." Menendez and Sarmentero 

(1984, p. 404) pointed out that the surface of plateau 

remnants on which bauxite occurs extends over a total 

of 350 km2, suggesting the Pijiguao Mountains contain 

5.8 billion tons of possible bauxite reserves.

In addition to the deposits in the Los Pijiguaos 

district, bauxite resource estimates are available for the 

following districts. (1) The remote Urekan area in the 

Gran Sabana region is thought to contain 220 million 

tons (Amelinck and Herrero N., 1971-72). This estimate 

is based on the extent of the lateritic bauxite along the 

Cuquenan River for a distance of 50 km and some drilling and analytical work. The samples analyzed range 

in composition as follows: 50.9-63.6 percent A12O3, 

0.7-2.2 percent SiO2, 5.6-14.2 percent Fe2O3, 0.7- 

1.5 percent TiO2, and 28.5-35.2 percent LOI. (2) The 

quantity of bauxite in the Nuria Plateau district was, 

according to one estimate quoted by Lavie (1974, p. 551), 

27.5 million tons proven and 38.7 million tons probable. 

Lavie's own estimate was 41 million tons. The bauxite 

included in this estimate has the following composition: 

45.8 percent A12O3, 7.5 percent SiO2, and 22.9 percent 

Fe2O3. (3) The Upata district contains about 4 million 

tons of bauxite (Candiales, 1961, p. 1973). According to 

Rodriguez (1982, p. 109), the bauxite mined in the Upata 

district and used with kaolin for refractories is 60.12 percent A12O3, 11.78 percent Fe2O3, and 0.94 percent SiO2. 

(4) The Los Guaicas district contains hundreds of 

millions of tons of aluminous deposits (Baptista Gomes, 

1973, p. 59), but they are only about 35 percent A12O3 

and 37 percent Fe2O3 .

More conservative reserve estimates have been made 

by the Venezuela Direction de Geologia, Ministerio de 

Energia y Minas (Rodriquez, 1982, table 1) in millions 

of tons, as follows: Nuria district—8, Los Guaicas 

district—60, Camoiran district—54, Santa Elena 

district—49, and Upata district—2.

The bauxite reserves in Venezuela are estimated by 

the U.S. Bureau of Mines (Baumgardner and McCawley, 

1983, table 3) to be 235 million tons. The total resources 

are mainly the large possible bauxite deposits in the Los 

Pijiguaos district and the several minor districts that 

are probably 6 billion-8 billion tons.

OTHER SOUTH AMERICAN COUNTRIES

Discovery of bauxite in the province of Sud Yungas 

and near Suri, La Paz, Bolivia, has been reported (Mining World, 1955). No information is available on the size 

and grade of these deposits.

Four bauxite deposits have been identified in Chile 

(Metals Sourcebook, 1975a; Romero, 1971). The deposits

are in the Bio-Bio and Llanquihue regions in the 

southern part of the country. They are reported to contain 7.2 million tons of bauxite that could be mined by 

open-pit methods. Small bauxite deposits apparently 

having little value also occur in the Province of Aconcagua about 40 km north-northwest of Santiago. These 

deposits are the laterite type formed on Upper Cretaceous sedimentary rocks and overlain by volcanic rocks 

of early Tertiary age. Gibbsite is the major bauxite 

mineral, boehmite is also present, and parts of the 

deposits are mainly kaolinite.

SUMMARY OF BAUXITE RESOURCES 

IN SOUTH AMERICA

The total bauxite reserves in South America are 

estimated to be approximately 3.8 billion tons (rounded), 

and the resources (reserves and subeconomic and undiscovered resources) on the continent are probably in 

the 19- to 25-billion-ton range. The principal reserves, 

in millions of tons, are in Brazil—2,250, Guyana—700, 

Suriname—575, and Venezuela—235. The very large 

subeconomic and probable undiscovered deposits that 

are estimated to be 15 billion-21 billion tons include the 

7 billion tons of lateritic bauxite in inland areas of 

Guyana, similar areas in Suriname and Venezuela, and 

large areas in the Amazon basin and elsewhere in Brazil. 

Smaller subeconomic bauxite deposits are known to be 

present in Colombia and French Guiana, and the total 

bauxite in the latter country is probably considerably 

greater than the authors have been able to find listed 

in published reports.

EUROPE

The principal bauxite deposits in Europe are in 

France, Greece, Hungary, Yugoslavia (fig. 17), and the 

U.S.S.R.; smaller deposits occur in Austria, Italy, 

Romania, the United Kingdom, and other countries. 

Most of the European bauxites consist mainly of 

boehmite, but a few are mixed boehmite and gibbsite, 

and a very few are mainly gibbsite. Some deposits in 

Greece and northern Hungary are chiefly diaspora

AUSTRIA

Minor quantities of bauxite were produced from one 

mine in Unterlaussa, Austria, during the 20-year period 

1944-64. Most of the output was consumed by the 

Austrian iron, cement, and abrasives industries; a small 

proportion was shipped to an alumina plant in Bavaria 

(Bracewell, 1962, p. 137).
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B71

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o 100 200 300 400 500 MILES

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EXPLANATION

• Bauxite district 

Austria

1. Brandenberg

2. Untersberg

3. Unterlaussa

4. Dreistetten

Bulgaria

5. Trun 

Czechoslovakia

6. Rychnov

7. Mojtfn

France

8. Ariege

9. Herault 

10. Bouches-du-Rhone

11. Var 

Greece

12. Vroderon (Florina)

13. Thessaloniki

14. Skopelos

15. Ewoia

16. Elikon-Parnassos-

	Giona-Ofti Mountains

17. Elvsis-Megara-Mandra

18. Pelojaonnisos

19. Amorgos

Hungary

20. Vac, Nezsa, NayszSly

21. Gant

22. Iszkaszentgyorgy

23. Nyirad, Halimba, Kislod, 

Bakonyszentlaszlo-Fenyofo

24. Nagyharsany

Italy

25. Casamaina-Puzzili

26. San Giovanni Rotondo

27. Spinazzola-Ampliamento-Cavone

28. Palmariggi-Poggiardo-Otranto

29. Sassari, Sardinia

Romania

30. Padurea Craiului

31. Cirnpeni-Sohodol

32. Hateg basin

Spain

33. Lerida

34. Coastal area of Catalonia

35. Teruel and Ebro

West Germany

36. Vogelsberg

Yugoslavia

37. Podlipa Borovnica

38. Bosanska Krupa

39. Jace

40. Vlasenica

41. Rovinj

42. Gospic

43. DrniS

44. Mostar

45. NikSic

46. PriStina

47. KruSevo

FIGURE 17.—Locations of bauxite districts in Europe exclusive of the U.S.S.R. and the United Kingdom.
B72 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Small bauxite deposits occur in Austria in the following four districts (Ruttner, 1970): (1) Brandenberg, north 

of Rattenberg in Tirol, (2) on the northern slopes of the 

Untersberg near Salzberg, (3) Unterlaussa in southern 

upper Austria, and (4) Dreistetten, west of Wiener 

Neustadt. In the Brandenberg and Unterlaussa 

districts, the bauxite is in the lower part of a Cretaceous 

shale unit overlying pre-Cretaceous limestone. Austria 

apparently has no more than a few million tons of bauxite, and, because mining is inactive, these deposits are 

considered to be subeconomic resources in this report.

Resources of bauxite in Austria are too small to be 

worthy of much consideration in world estimates. 

However, in previous estimates, S.H. Patterson (1967, 

p. 61) listed a reserve of 1 million tons, and Bardossy 

(1964, table 2) gave figures of 0.7 million tons for proven 

and 2 million tons for indicated bauxite in Austria.

CZECHOSLOVAKIA

The small known bauxite deposits in Czechoslovakia 

occur at Rychnov in Bohemia (Konta, 1954, p. 58-60) 

near the village of Mojtin, between Zilina and Trencin, 

in central Czechoslovakia (Orlov, 1938). The bauxite at 

Rychnov overlies amphibolite schists and probably 

formed from both the schist and transported material. 

Three types of bauxite present are (1) dense mixtures 

of kaolin and boehmite containing minor amounts of 

gibbsite, (2) pisolitic bauxite that is chiefly boehmite, 

and (3) porous pisolitic diaspore. The Mojtin bauxite occurs as irregular scattered deposits in limestones of 

Triassic age and is overlain by Eocene conglomerates. 

Some of the bauxite probably formed in place as a 

chemical sediment or as the product of lateritization of 

clayey material that filled karst depressions. That part 

of the bauxite composed chiefly of boehmite may have 

been tranported (Orlov, 1939).

FRANCE 

History and Production

France was the leading producer of bauxite during the 

early years of the aluminum industry and again during 

the period 1923-39. Annual bauxite production was 

2 million-3.4 million tons during the period 1961-75 

(table 6). Production peaked in 1972; it has declined 

since then because of the increasing costs of underground mining and growing imports of bauxite from 

Guinea, Australia, and other countries.

Bauxite is mined at several places in southern France. 

The mines are located in the vicinity of Villeveyrac and

east of Bedarieux and elsewhere in Herault Province 

(Boudrot, 1975) and near Peygros, Mazaugues, and 

Maron in the Brignoles region, Var Province (Vidal, 

1963); and a mine has been opened near Les Baux, 

Bouches-du-Rh6ne Province (Brucy, 1973).

Most bauxite mining in France is by underground 

methods, but a few deposits are strip mined. Commonly the parts of deposits near the surface are stripped, 

the bauxite is removed, and then the underground 

mines are opened. In recent years, requirements for the 

protection of the environment have greatly increased 

mining costs (Brucy, 1973).

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

The principal bauxite deposits in France are in a belt 

in the southern part of the country, extending from near 

the Spanish border to within 75 km of the Italian border 

(fig. 17). The deposits and related rocks have been 

mapped by the Bureau de Recherches Geologiques et 

Minieres as part of broader geologic investigations, as 

for example the map of the region east of Brignoles by 

Mennessier (1969). The bauxite districts are also shown 

on small-scale maps by Caillere and Pobeguin (1965, fig. 

1), Nicolas (1970, fig. 2), and Combes (1970a, fig. 67). 

Much has been written about the geology of French 

bauxite deposits (see bibliographies in reports by 

Combes, 1970a, and Nicolas, 1970); one of the best summaries is a report by Combes and others (1974), who 

classify the bauxite deposits in southern France into 

primary and secondary types.

Secondary bauxites occur in sedimentary and displaced deposits. The sedimentary deposits consist of 

bauxite that formed elsewhere and was transported to 

and deposited at its present location. The typical 

sedimentary deposit is red in the lower part and grades 

upward through a rose- or pink-mottled zone into white 

bauxite (Lapparent, 1930). A few deposits are green, and 

some are gray where they contain minor quantities of 

organic matter. Most deposits are pisolitic or oolitic, 

some are massive, and a few are layered and brecciated. 

Sedimentary bauxites vary appreciably; some are 

uniform and high grade, but others are interbedded with 

clayey and ferruginous sediments. Displaced deposits 

have collapsed due to solution of underlying carbonate 

beds. They consist of mixtures of blocks of bauxite 

enclosed in argillite and heterogeneous brecciated 

material. Such deposits cannot be mined profitably 

underground, and some must be hand-cobbed.

The primary bauxite deposits, which occur only in the 

Ariege region, were formed on the north side of an 

elongate trench. Most of the coastal region along this 

trench was flat-lying lowlands characterized by littoral
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B73

swamps and lagoons, but seacliffs were present along 

part of the shoreline. The bauxite formed by leaching 

of several types of clayey sediments transported from 

the central massif to the north. Some of these sediments 

were deposited in swamps and, therefore, occur mainly 

in the form of lenticular bodies. Typical deposits consist of pisolitic bauxite that is underlain by bauxitic 

clayey argillite. The lowermost argillite rests on limestone having karst irregularities of only about 1 m. The 

upper parts of the deposits are commonly silicified and 

depleted in iron. In many places, a layer of lignitic clay 

is present between the bauxite and the overlying limestone. Most deposits are lenticular; some extend for 

several hundred meters, and maximum thicknesses are 

about 10 m.

The bauxite deposits in France are concentrated in 

a zone of tectonic disturbance. In Ariege the zone consists of the North Pyrenean structural trench (Combes, 

1970a). Farther east the disturbance is characterized by 

numerous faults and folds, which cause some of the 

bauxite beds to be essentially flat lying and others to 

be nearly vertical. Several deposits extend to depths of 

more than 600 m, which is about the maximum for profitable mining, and at a few places bauxite is known to 

be present at much greater depths.

According to Combes and others (1974), deposits in 

the Villeveyrac region, Herault, and in several districts 

in Var are above Upper Jurassic limestone and are 

overlain by Upper Cretaceous (Senonian) lacustrine 

limestone. Bauxite in Ariege occurs in several zones in 

Lower Cretaceous (Barremian and Aptian) beds 

(Combes, 1970a, p. 316). The rocks below the bauxite 

are Upper Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous carbonate 

beds.

The typical French bauxite deposit is principally 

boehmite (Caillere and Pobeguin, 1965), but some 

deposits in Ariege and a few other places contain appreciable quantities of diaspore, and some in Bouchesdu-Rh6ne and elsewhere contain a little gibbsite. Most 

of the silica in the bauxite is in kaolinite, and this 

mineral is the principal impurity of much of the 

subeconomic bauxite. Hematite is the most common 

iron mineral, and goethite occurs in a few deposits. Iron 

also occurs in the atomic structure of boehmite and 

diaspore (Caillere and Pobeguin, 1962). Calcite is a major impurity in some deposits.

The French bauxite currently mined contains 50- 

55 percent A12O3 and 5-10 percent SiO2 (Societe 

Aluminium Pechiney, 1975, p. 544). This bauxite, therefore, is more siliceous than much of the high-grade 

laterite type in tropical regions. Mercier and Noble 

(1974, p. 782) listed the composition of typical French 

bauxite processed in alumina plants as 53.0 percent 

A12O3 , 21.4 percent Fe2O3 , 7-8 percent total SiO2 ,

1.5-1.7 percent CaO, 2.6 percent TiO2 , 0.3 percent 

organic matter, and 13.3 percent LOI.

Resources

Bauxite resources in France consist of relatively small 

reserves and large subeconomic and undiscovered resources. The reserves that can be mined profitably by 

open-pit or underground methods were estimated by 

Weisse (1968, table 2) to be 50 million-70 million tons 

and by the Societe Aluminium Pechiney (1975, table 1) 

to be 40 million tons. The subeconomic resources consist of deposits near the surface that are too low in grade 

to be mined profitably, and others, including high grade 

deposits, that are too deep for profitable mining. Many 

of the deep deposits are subeconomic because they are 

below the water table where flooding problems are very 

costly to control. The total bauxite resources in France 

were estimated to be 240 million tons by Shaffer (1975, 

table 5). French geologists have told the authors that 

there is at least twice this amount of subeconomic bauxite in Franca This observation is similar to that of 

Bardossy (1977, table 1), who listed estimates of 330 

million tons for the bauxite in Provence and 200 million 

tons for the deposits in Languedoc. The estimate of the 

U.S. Bureau of Mines for the bauxite reserves in France 

is 30 million tons (Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, 

table 3), and the total resources are approximately 500 

million tons.

GREECE

History and Production

Bauxite has been exported from Greece for many years, 

and production has increased since 1965 (table 6) to keep 

pace with increased domestic requirements and growing 

exports. In recent years, most exports have been shipped 

to the European Economic Community and the U.S.S.R.

Eight companies mine bauxite at several localities in 

Greece (Industrial Minerals, 1973, p. 41). Most of the 

deposits mined are in the Elevsis-Megara-Mandra and 

Elik6n-Parnass6s-Gi6na-Oiti regions (fig. 17) and other 

districts in Sterea Ellas (Central Greece), including 

Dhistomon-Arakhova, Eliaon near Amfissa, Levadhia, 

and Voiotia.

Bauxite from the Parnass6s-Gi6na district has been 

investigated for use as refractory bauxite (Mposkos, 

Tsalikis, and Vgenopoulos, 1978). It was found that 

coarse-grained refractory bauxite could be made by mixing this material with phosphate rock and calcining it 

at 1500 °C.
B74 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

Karst-type bauxite of several different ages is widely distributed in Greece. Most deposits in Sterea Ellas, 

which are the largest and most productive in Greece, 

are associated with limestone of Mesozoic age 

(Papastamatiou, 1964). Deposits of Mesozoic age also 

occur in eastern Evvoia, on the island of Amorg6s 

(Papastamatiou, 1964), and in Thessaloniki (Tataris, 

1971). Deposits on the island of Skopelos consist chiefly of clay and diaspore, and they are thought to be 

slightly metamorphosed. Deposits of Eocene age have 

been discovered in western Greece and in at least three 

localities in Peloponnisos. Deposits along the contact 

of Cretaceous and Quaternary formations have been 

found in the Vroderon (F16rina) district.

Bauxite deposits in the Elevsis-Megara-Mandra 

district are between Upper Triassic and Upper Cretaceous limestones (Papastamatiou and Maksimovic, 

1970). The bauxite is 8-10 m thick, chocolate brown, 

and pisolitic in texture. The principal bauxite mineral 

is boehmite, and diaspore is present in quantities ranging from 3 to 12 percent. Hematite is the principal 

impurity; minor minerals include kaolinite, goethite, and 

rutile; and several other minerals including chromite 

have been identified. The bauxite is 48-49 percent 

A12O3 and 33-38 percent Fe2O3 . In addition to 

chromium, the deposits contain trace amounts of nickel 

and uranium. A red clay layer between the bauxite and 

the underlying limestone contains as much as 0.93 percent nickel (Papastamatiou and Maksimovic, 1970), and 

parts of a green clay zone a few millimeters thick contain more than 20 percent NiO (Weisse, 1967). Because 

of the chromium and nickel contents in the bauxite and 

other evidence, sediment transported from lateritized 

ultramafic rocks is believed to have been the parent 

material of the bauxite.

The major productive bauxite districts in Sterea 

Ellas, other than the Elevsis-Megara-Mandra district, 

are in the Elikon-Parnassos-Giona-Oiti Mountains 

(Aronis, 1953; Papastamatiou, 1965). Bauxite in these 

mountains occurs in three stratigraphic positions. The 

lower two, which are separated by a limestone formation, are in Upper Jurassic rocks. The upper one is in 

Upper Cretaceous strata. The bauxite and associated 

beds have been folded and faulted in several places. According to Bardossy and Mack (1967), the most valuable 

bauxite deposits are in the middle and upper stratigraphic positions. The deposits in the middle position 

are chiefly boehmite, and the main impurities are 

hematite and kaolinite. The upper deposits are chiefly 

diaspore; small quantities of corundum are also present. 

The principal iron minerals in these deposits are 

goethite and hematite, and most of the silica present

is in kaolinite. Nia (1968, 1971) has shown that the 

distribution of boehmite and diaspore is quite variable, 

and parts of the upper deposits are chiefly boehmite. 

The average composition of 30 samples of bauxite from 

the southern Parnass6s-Elikon area (Aronis, 1955) is 

57.61 percent A12O3, 3.05 percent SiO2, 22.80 percent 

Fe2O3, 2.75 percent TiO2 , and 12.17 percent LOI. This 

average composition is remarkably similar to that of the 

boehmite-diaspore mixed bauxite processed at the 

alumina plant near Dhisthomon. The bauxite processed 

has the following composition: 57.0 percent A12O3, 

22-23 percent Fe2O3, 3 percent SiO2 , 2.7 percent TiO2 , 

1.0 percent CaO, 0.05 percent organic matter, and 

13.0 percent LOI (Mercier and Noble, 1974, p. 784).

Deposits of gibbsitic bauxite have been discovered in 

the Vroderon (Florina) district in the western part of 

northern Greece (Vgenopoulos and Kanellos, 1978). The 

bauxite formed by the weathering of Pliocene aluminous 

sediment that was deposited in a graben basin 

(Papastavrou and Mitsaki-Hafner, 1983). The deposits 

occur mainly along the contact between Tertiary and 

Quaternary limestones. The bauxite is light gray, 

yellow, and red. Gibbsite is the principal bauxite 

mineral, and boehmite is present in most deposits. 

Kaolinite occurs throughout the deposits and is abundant locally. The A12O3 contents of 24 samples for 

which analyses were published (Vgenopoulos and 

Kanellos, 1978, table 1) were mostly in the 40- to 

45-percent range, and two-thirds of the samples were 

more than 15 percent SiO2. The light-gray bauxite has 

been found to convert to mullite when heated to about 

1500°C and is reported to be suitable for use in refractory products.

Vgenopoulos and Kanellos (1978, p. 934) stated that 

more than 200 exploration holes have been drilled in the 

Vroderon (F16rina) district and that "huge" bauxite 

reserves are present. According to Dacko (1979), the 

preliminary estimate of the bauxite present is 100 

million tons, and 25 million tons is considered proven.

According to Coumoulos (1984, table 2), of 56 percent 

A12O3 in Parnasse bauxite 17.2 percent is in boehmite, 

35.0 percent is in diaspore, and 3.8 percent is in kaolinite. The bauxite is 4.6 percent SiO2, which, except 

for a trace amount of quartz, is all in kaolinite. The 

bauxite is 21 percent Fe2O3 , 18.5 percent in hematite 

and 2.5 percent in goethite.

Resources

Estimates of the amount of bauxite in Greece have 

increased considerably in the last few years, because of 

expanded exploration programs and mining of bauxite. 

Mack (1964, p. 233) estimated that the total measured,
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B75

indicated, and inferred bauxite, located mainly in Sterea 

Ellas but including other deposits on the islands of 

Amorgos, Ewoia, and Skopelos, was 390 million tons. 

More recent estimates of the bauxite in Greece (Industrial Minerals, 1973, p. 41; Shaffer, 1975, table 5) 

listed 500 million tons, and Bardossy (1977, appendix 

1) listed estimates for reserves in 11 districts having 

a total of 484 million tons. The Societe Aluminium 

Pechiney (1975, table 1) estimated 100 million certain 

and probable and 500 million potential or a total of 600 

million tons for Greece. A news item in Industrial 

Minerals (1976), noted that one Greek bauxite mining 

company has 580 million tons of bauxite. Stamper and 

Kurtz (1978, table 5) gave an estimate of more than 

750 million tons for the bauxite reserves in Greece. 

Coumoulos' (1984, p. 758) estimate of bauxite reserves 

in Greece was 1 billion tons, and he considered 150 

million tons to be in the measured category. In this 

report the bauxite reserves in Greece are assumed to 

be 600 million tons as estimated by the U.S. Bureau of 

Mines (Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, table 3), and 

the total resources are 1 billion tons.

HUNGARY

History and Production

Bauxite mining began in Hungary during the First 

World War but was suspended from 1918 to 1922 

(Bracewell, 1962, p. 149). Significant mining was not attained until 1927. Annual bauxite production was about 

one-half million tons in 1938, and output was doubled 

to supply the German aluminum industry during World 

War II. In the 1970's Hungary's annual production was 

nearly 3 million tons (table 6). Both bauxite and alumina 

are exported; most shipments are to the U.S.S.R. and 

Austria, but other European countries receive shipments. In addition to being a major producer of both 

metallurgical alumina and bauxite, Hungary produces 

considerable alumina and bauxite for nonmetal uses. 

Alumina is used for artificial corundum, firebrick, and 

glass (Huvos, 1974, p. 373), and aluminum sulfate is 

made, presumably from bauxite, for both domestic use 

and export.

The principal bauxite mines in Hungary are in the 

Bakony and Vertes Mountains, which are in the Transdanube region southwest of Budapest. The most productive districts in recent years are Gant, Nyirad, 

Halimba, Kislo'd, and Iszkaszentgybrgy (Bardossy, 

1971). Most of the mining in the Gant district has been 

by open-pit methods, but underground mining has been 

necessary in most of the other districts. Because 

deposits near the surface are depleted, efforts are being

made to mine deeper deposits. The deeper mining 

creates several problems, one of which is mine dewatering. Because the bauxite is associated with carbonate 

rock, excessive ground-water flow is common. Hungarians have put forth considerable effort in increasing mining efficiency and in solving water problems, as is 

indicated by papers presented at symposia and 

meetings [for example, those by Kis (1971), Schmieder 

and Pohl (1970), and Vizy (1970)].

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

The principal bauxite deposits in Hungary are north 

of Lake Balaton; smaller deposits occur in the Nezsa 

and Naszaly districts northeast of Vac and in the 

Nagyharsany district in the southern part of the country (Bardossy, 1971). The major deposits north of Lake 

Balaton include those in the Gant, Iszkaszentgyorgy, 

Nyirad, Halimba, Kislod, and Bakonyszentlaszlo and 

Fenydfd districts. The largest deposits in Hungary are 

in the Halimba district (Erdelyi, 1965).

The bauxite deposits of Hungary are the karst type; 

they vary considerably in size and shape (Bardossy, 

1971; Barnabas, 1970). Most are lenticular pocket 

deposits whose size is controlled by the karst depression in which they occur. In some districts, the deposits 

are in grabens arranged in checkerboard fashion. Most 

deposits in Gant, Iszkaszentgybrgy, and Halimba are 

5-10 m thick, but some deposits in local deep depressions in the underlying karst surface are as much as 

40 m thick. Of 102 lenticular deposits in the Nyirad 

district, 40 extend over areas of 0.1-1.0 hectares, 53 

cover between 1.1 and 5.0 hectares, and 9 cover between 

5 and 10 hectares.

The period of bauxite formation began in the Early 

Cretaceous and lasted through early Eocene time (Karoly and others, 1970). Most known deposits are in one 

of two stratigraphic zones. The deposits in the lower 

zone, such as those in the Nagyharsany district, overlie 

Upper Triassic to Upper Jurassic limestone. These 

deposits are thought to have formed in Early 

Cretaceous (Hauterivian and Barremian) time, as some 

are overlain by slightly younger Lower Cretaceous beds 

and some by Upper Cretaceous units. The deposits in 

the second zone, including those in the Nyirad, Kislod, 

and Gant districts as well as the districts northeast of 

Vac, are overlain by lignitic clay and limestone of 

Eocene age. They are thought to be of Paleocene age.

Hungarian geologists have advanced several different 

theories of origin for the deposits in this country. As 

with the explanation of the origin of karst bauxite 

elsewhere, there are conflicting opinions as to whether 

the deposits formed mainly from residual materials
B76 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

from carbonate rock or from materials from other rocks 

introduced into carbonate depressions. Bardossy and 

Pant6 (1973) found that distinctive trace minerals in 

bauxite deposits in the Gant district are the same as 

those in granites in mountains 15 km southeast of the 

district, which indicates that some of the parent materials of the bauxite came from these granites. Some deposits seem clearly to have been reworked; some of the 

redeposition probably occurred shortly after the bauxite 

formed and before it was covered by younger sediments; 

some redeposition also may have occurred in Miocene, 

Pliocene, or Quaternary time after the overlying rocks 

had been eroded. Some deposits have been disturbed by 

collapse resulting from the solution of underlying carbonate rocks long after the bauxite formed.

Hungarian bauxites are mineralogically complex and 

variable, and though most deposits are mainly the monohydrate type, the proportions of monohydrate and trihydrate bauxite vary considerably. In studies of the Iszkaszentgyorgy bauxite, Komlossy (1970) found that boehmite 

is present in all and is the dominant mineral in all but 

two deposits in which gibbsite is the most abundant 

mineral Boehmite commonly forms 60-85 percent of the 

Nyirad, Halimba, Gant, and Nagyharsany deposits and 

as much as 50 percent of many other deposits (Bardossy, 

1959, p. 4-21). Gibbsite contents range from 1 to 35 percent in the Gant deposits and are rarely as much as 20 

percent in other deposits. Most of the gibbsite occurs as 

submicroscopic crystals in the groundmass of the bauxite, but it also occurs as secondary nodules and crusts. 

Diaspora is abundant in parts of the Nezsa bauxite and 

forms as much as 10 percent of the Nagyharsany bauxite. Most of the iron in Hungarian bauxite is in goethite 

and hematite; other iron-bearing minerals, including 

magnetite, ilmenite, ankerite, chamosite, and nontronite, 

occur in minor amounts. The silica in the bauxite is chiefly in kaolin minerals, but minor amounts of quartz and 

traces of many detrital silicate minerals are present. The 

kaolin minerals are chiefly well-crystallized kaolinite, but 

disordered kaolinite is abundant locally, and dickite has 

been identified at a few places. Titanium minerals in the 

bauxite are chiefly rutile, anatase, and brookite.

The chemical composition of Hungarian bauxite varies 

considerably (Bardossy, 1958a,b). Most deposits contain 

50-60 percent A12O3, but some contain as much as 76.8 

percent A12O3, and others are very low grade. In most 

deposits, SiO2 amounts to 1-5 percent. Some deposits 

contain almost no Fe2O3 , and others consist of as much 

as 50 percent Fe2O3.

Resources

Several estimates of the bauxite resources in Hungary 

have been made. Bardossy (1964, table 2) listed an

estimate of 150 million tons for the indicated bauxite 

reserves in this country; Weisse (1968, table 2) estimated 

the total at 100 million-150 million tons. Shaffer (1975, 

table 5) listed 150 million tons for the total estimated 

reserves and potential resources. The Societe Aluminum 

Pechiney (1975, table 1) estimate was 200 million tons 

certain and probable, 100 million tons potential bauxite, and 300 million tons total bauxite reserves in 

Hungary. In his thorough text on karst bauxites, 

Bardossy (1977, table 1) listed revised estimates for 

several Hungarian bauxite districts, having a total of 

371 million tons. In this report the reserves of bauxite 

in Hungary are considered to be 300 million tons, and 

the subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite resources are 

probably at least in the 50-million- to 100-million-ton 

range.

ITALY

History and Production

Although Italy has many scattered bauxite deposits 

and a long history of mining, production has decreased 

steadily since 1961 (table 6), and all of the metal-grade 

bauxite is imported. The Gargano mine, the last major 

metal-grade bauxite producer in Italy, closed because 

of the exhaustion of economically minable high-grade 

ore in 1974 (Quattroclocchi, 1975, p. 492). In that year, 

Italy imported 1.9 million tons of bauxite from Australia, Guinea, and Yugoslavia (U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1976).

In 1977 approximately 35,000 tons of bauxite was 

mined (U.S. Embassy, Rome, Italy, State Department Airgram A-160, September 7,1978, p. 6). This bauxite was 

used in cement and other nonmetal products. All of the 

production since 1978 has been for nonmetallurgical uses.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

Bauxite deposits are widely scattered through the central and southern parts (fig. 17) of the Italian mainland 

(Castaldo and Stampanoni, 1975, p. 132-136 and map). 

Most deposits are small, and few are favorably located 

for open-pit mining, which is the reason for the low production. The principal producing districts in past years 

are as follows: (1) San Giovanni Rotondo, (2) SpinazzolaAmpliamento-Cavone, (3) Casamaina-Puzzili, and (4) 

Palmariggi-Poggiardo-Otranto.

The bauxite deposits of central Italy are of the karst 

type. They occur in tabular lenses and thick fillings of 

narrow steep-walled karst depressions that are subconical 

in cross section. Most deposits in the Casamaina-Puzzili 

district are 50-300 m in lateral extent, but one deposit
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B77

at Campo Felice has an almost continuous outcrop for 

more than 1,000 m (Bardossy and others, 1977a). 

Deposits mined in the Spinazzola district were as much 

as 40 m thick. Most of the bauxite is associated with 

an unconformity between carbonate rocks of Early and 

Late Cretaceous age (Crescenti, 1970; d'Argenio, 1970). 

Deposits in the Palmariggi-Poggiardo-Otranto district 

in southern Italy are thought to be of Tertiary age 

(Crescenti and Vighi, 1964).

The mineral composition of Italian bauxite is typical 

of European deposits. Bardossy and others (1977a) 

found that boehmite is the main bauxite mineral. Gibbsite occurs in very minor amounts, and diaspore is rare. 

Quartz is rare in the bauxite, and virtually all of the 

silica present is in clay minerals. Hematite occurs in all 

the red bauxite, in amounts ranging from 14 to 24 percent. Aluminous goethite is widespread, but it is not 

as abundant as hematite. According to Bardossy and 

others (1977a, p. 27) the substitution of aluminum for 

iron in goethite ranges from 4 to 32 percent.

The 6 million tons of bauxite mined in the San Giovanni Rotondo district contained 54-60 percent A12O3 and 

only 1.5-4.0 percent SiO2 (Castaldo and Stampanoni, 

1975, p. 135). A small reserve of bauxite at D'Orsello, 

which is south of Casamaina, is 52.4 percent A12O3, 

8.5 percent SiO2, 25.5 percent Fe2O3, and 2.5 percent 

TiO2 (Weisse, 1973).

Bauxite deposits occur at several localities on Sardinia. They have been prospected in the Sassari district 

north of Alghero and in the Olmedo district (Stamper, 

Sullivan, and Trought, 1961, p. 248). Most deposits occur between limestones of Cretaceous age (Pecorini, 

1956). Both pisolitic and massive types of bauxite are 

present in the area north of Alghero. The composition 

of three samples of this bauxite (Moretti, 1955, p. 464) 

is 53.06-65.94 percent A12O3 , 6.64-13.14 percent SiO2, 

3.04-23.51 percent Fe2O3, 2.97-3.35 percent TiO2 , and 

13.23-15.15 percent H2O.

In 1979 a mining company became active in the Nurra 

region in northwestern Sardinia (Ceccarini, Oggiano, 

and Salvador!, 1984). The bauxite occurs between the 

Lower and Upper Cretaceous rocks, which consist of 

limestone and dolomite. A typical section of the bauxite from the base upward consists of bauxitic clay, 

40-50 cm thick; clayey bauxite containing oolite-like 

structures, 70-80 cm thick; compact bauxite with oolite 

and pisolite textures containing 0.8-5 percent SiO2 , 

100-200 cm thick; and pseudoconglomeratic bauxite 

containing 7-16 percent SiO2, 0-50 cm thick. According 

to Ce6arini, Oggiano, and Salvadori (1984, fig. 5), the 

bauxite ranges from 48 to 73 percent A12O3. It is principally boehmite with minor kaolinite; iron occurs as 

hematite and goethite; titanium is principally in the 

form of anatase; and quartz is virtually absent. Bauxite

resources in the Nurra district are estimated to be 50 

million-70 million tons (International Bauxite Association, 1982).

Resources

According to Bardossy and others (1977a, p. 5, 11), 

the bauxite resources in Italy are estimated to be approximately 45 million tons. The tonnage is distributed 

as follows: Apulia (now Puglia), which includes the San 

Giovanni Rotondo, Spinazzola-Ampliamento-Cavone, 

and Palmariggi-Poggiardo-Otranto districts—20 

million; Casamaina-Puzzili and scattered smaller 

districts to the south and southwest—25 million. The 

bauxite reserves in Italy are 5 million tons, according 

to the estimate by the U.S. Bureau of Mines (Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, table 3). The total resources 

of bauxite in this country including the recently discovered deposits in Sardinia are probably about 50 million 

tons.

ROMANIA

History and Production

Romania has made significant progress in expanding 

its bauxite mining production in the 1970's (table 6). 

About one-half of the country's bauxite supply is now 

produced domestically.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

The principal bauxite districts in Romania are 

P£durea Craiului (Apuseni Mountains), Hafceg basin 

(South Carpathians) and Cimpeni-Sohodol (Apuseni 

Mountains), Bihor. The bauxite in all three districts is 

of the karst or Mediterranean type. Deposits in the 

P£durea Craiului district occur above Upper Jurassic 

beds and are overlain by freshwater chalks (Papiu, Minzatu, and losof, 1970b, p. 241). Those in the CimpeniSohodol district are in formations of Late Cretaceous 

(Santonian) age (Papiu and others, 1975). The deposits 

in the Ha£eg basin are of Early Cretaceous (late Aptian) 

age. They rest on older Mesozoic limestones and are 

overlain by clayey detrital deposits of Late Cretaceous 

(Cenomanian) age (Papiu and others, 1971). According 

to Papiu and others (1970), the bauxite in P&lurea 

Craiului district, which is one of the principal centers 

of bauxite mining in Romania, is 54-62 percent 

diaspore, 15-17 percent kaolinite, 11-29 percent 

hematite, and 2.2-3.5 percent rutile and anatase, but
B78 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

deposits in part of this district may contain considerable 

boehmite (Papiu, Minzatu, and losof, 1970a). Bauxite 

deposits in the Ha£eg basin and Cimpeni-Sohodol 

districts are mainly boehmite (Papiu and others, 1975, 

1971). Most of the bauxite is high in iron content 

(table 20); hematite is the principal iron mineral, but 

goethite, leptochlorite, siderite, and pyrite are also 

present in most deposits. Kaolinite is the major silicabearing mineral, and apparently some deposits contain 

so much of it that they have little value. Most of the 

TiO2 in the bauxite is in anatase, but rutile is also present. The average alumina content of the deposits in the 

three major districts is about 50 percent (table 20).

TABLE 20.—Chemical composition of Romanian bauxite from three

districts

[Modified from Papiu and Udrescu (1973, tables 3 and 4). Major-oxide contents 

given in percent; minor elements given in parts per million]

Padurea- ClmpeniCraiului Hateg Sohodol

Major oxides

A1203 .............. £> O

Si02 ...............

Ti02 ...............

Fe re2OtJ3 ..............

.............. 50.8

.............. 3.8

.............. 2.8

.............. 29.4

50.3

3.4

2.5

29.5

50.65

10.5

2.7

20.3

Minor elements

Be ................

Sn ................

Ni ................

Sr ................

Ba ................

Zr ................

Ga ................

Cr ................

V .................

............... 10.7

............... 11.9

............... 138

............... 117

............... 39

............... 808

............... 43

............... 405

............... 372

7.0

8.2

134

337

51

733

46

216

370

13.0

34

130

603

130

625

51

134

238

Resources

The total reserves of bauxite in Romania are assumed 

to be 50 million tons, which is the total of the certain 

and probable categories published by the Societe 

Aluminium Pechiney (1975, table 1). Additional 

subeconomic deposits must be present, but the authors 

have found no estimates for such deposits.

SPAIN

History and Production

The small tonnages of bauxite produced in Spain are 

used in nonmetallic products; however, efforts have

been made to find domestic deposits that will make the 

nation less dependent on imports for aluminum raw 

materials (Corrick, 1974, p. 743). The annual production 

in recent years has been approximately 15,000 tons, and 

the bauxite is used in refractories and aluminous cement. Most of the mining is in the Sierra de Montroig 

and Aids de Balaguer areas near Lerida and the Canada 

de Verich, Valderrobres, and La Ginebrosa areas near 

Teruel.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

The principal bauxite deposits in Spain are located in 

the northeastern part of the country, and small deposits 

are present in the southeastern and northwestern 

regions. The deposits in the northeastern region (Closas 

Miralles, 1954; Cabellero, Menendez Del Valle, and Martin Vivaldi, 1974) are located as follows: (1) northeast 

of Lerida, (2) in the coastal area of Catalonia between 

Barcelona and Tarragona, and (3) in the Ebro area northeast of Teruel. The small deposits are located between 

Albacete and Murcia in the southeastern region and 

near Le6n in northwestern Spain.

The clayey bauxite deposits in northeastern Spain are 

of the karst or Mediterranean type. Most deposits are 

discontinuous stratiform bodies occurring above irregular surfaces on Jurassic limestone and overlain by beds 

of Cretaceous aga Combes (1970a) found that the Spanish bauxites are quite similar to those in southern 

Franca He concluded that the deposits formed in Early 

Cretaceous (Barremian to Albian) time from clayey sediments deposited in narrow marine lagoons and lakes. 

Galan, Lopez Aguayo, and de Aza (1977) believed that 

these bauxitic clays formed by lateritic weathering of 

clayey sediments that accumulated in karst depressions 

developed on carbonate rock. Galan (written commun., 

1979) thought that most of the bauxitic clays formed 

during Cretaceous time in low, flat terrain near a shoreline. He recognized three intervals of bauxite formationtwo in the Cretaceous Period, during the BarremianAptian transition, and one in Paleocene tima Deposits 

of the three ages are rarely present at the same locality.

The small deposits at Portilla de Luna near Le6n were 

described by Font-Altaba and Closas Miralles (1960) as 

being of Devonian age and were therefore thought to be 

the oldest deposits in Europa However, recent investigations have established that this so-called bauxite consists of minor weathering products of shales that formed 

in a much younger period (Bardossy and Fontbote, 

1977).

According to Cabellero, Menendez del Valle, and Martin Vivaldi (1974), the principal bauxite mineral in 

Spanish deposits is boehmite; however, Galan, Lopez
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B79

Aguayo, and de Aza (1977) found deposits northeast of 

Tferuel to be rich in gibbsita Virtually all the bauxite contains considerable quantities of kaolinite. Other minerals 

present include hematite, goethite, and anatase. A12O3 

contents of the bauxite range from 30 to 60 percent.

Resources

Bauxite resources in Spain have been inadequately investigated, and only a few resource estimates have been 

made. According to a metallogenic map prepared by the 

Spanish National Program of Mining (Spain Institute 

Geologic© y Minero, 1972), the total probable bauxite 

reserves in Spain are 62.27 million tons. Most of the 

probable reserves are in the districts near Tarragona and 

Teruel. Only a very few million tons, mainly in the Sierra 

de Montroig and A16s de Balaguer areas, Lerida, have 

been proved. An estimate of 100 million tons (Shaffer, 

1975, table 5) and one of 150 million tons (Corrick, 1974, 

p. 743) for the total bauxite resources in Spain have also 

been made. Considering the present limitations on the 

knowledge of bauxite resources in Spain, the authors 

have listed the total at 100 million-150 million tons 

(table 11). All these resources are classed in the 

subeconomic category, except for 5 million tons considered to be reserves by the U.S. Bureau of Mines 

(Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, table 3).

UNITED KINGDOM

History and Production

Low-grade bauxite in Northern Ireland has been 

mined intermittently over a long period. This bauxite 

was first mined in 1873 for use in refractory brick, alum, 

and quick-setting cement (Bracewell, 1962, p. 84). In 

1894 the British Aluminium Company began to use this 

bauxite for the manufacture of alumina. The total bauxite mined from 1882 to 1915 was 292,626 tons. During 

World War I, the output increased to a maximum of 

14,724 tons in 1917. Mining decreased after that war 

and ceased in 1934. Mining was again active between 

1941 and 1945 when about 300,000 tons was produced 

to help supply World War II needs. Since 1945, Ghana 

has been the principal source of bauxite used in the 

United Kingdom. Diaspore clays from the Ayrshire 

district, Scotland, have been used in the manufacture 

of alum and refractories (Bracewell and Healing, 1963).

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

Northern Ireland.—Bauxite deposits occur in the 

County of Antrim and in the Coleraine area in adjoining

parts of the County of Londonderry. The deposits are 

in a region of basaltic rocks and are associated with 

lateritic iron ores of late Miocene or early Pliocene age. 

Several similarities between the bauxites in Ireland and 

those in Oregon were noted by V.T. Alien (1960, p. 231). 

The chief difference between the two is that Oregon 

deposits are near the surface whereas Irish deposits, 

formed during "interbasaltic intervals," are overlain by 

younger basalt accumulations. The rocks of two "interbasaltic intervals" occur in the northern part of the 

region; the rocks of only one are present in the southern 

part (E.M. Patterson, 1955). The deposits associated 

with the bauxite include lignite, pisolitic iron ore, clays, 

basaltic lithomarge (saprolite formed from basalt), and 

weathered rhyolitic debris. Most of the bauxite deposits 

that were mined were 0.6-1.7 m thick. Three types of 

aluminous laterites or bauxites are present (Eyles and 

others, 1952, p. 5): (1) highly ferruginous red bauxite 

formed from basalt and commonly containing 20-30 

percent Fe2O3 and 5-10 percent SiO2 ; (2) siliceous gray 

bauxite formed mostly from rhyolitic debris and commonly containing 5-10 percent Fe2O3 and 20-40 percent SiO2; and (3) bauxites of mixed origin, which have 

formed from both basalt and rhyolitic material and are 

intermediate in composition between the first two types.

Gibbsite is the most common bauxite mineral present 

(Eyles and others, 1952, p. 39). Boehmite is common in 

parts of deposits near basalt dikes, and corundum was 

identified in one sample collected 15 cm from a dike. 

Hematite is the principal iron-oxide mineral in all three 

types of bauxite; minor amounts of goethite, magnetite, 

maghemite, and ilmenite are also present (Eyles and 

others, 1952, p. 39-42), and spherulites of a mineral having the optical properties of siderite were recognized by 

V.T. Alien (1960, p. 230). Titanium-bearing minerals in 

the bauxite and weathered basalt include anatase, 

brookite, rutile, and ilmenite. The most common clay 

minerals are kaolinite and halloysite, and a clay mineral 

that is probably of the chlorite type is also present 

(Eyles and others, 1952, p. 38, 50-51). The composition 

of 19 samples of bauxite from the Skerry, Lyles Hill, and 

Ballynabanish mines (Eyles and others, 1952, p. 63, 66) 

is 28.70-53.09 percent A12O3 , 1.58-12.12 percent SiO2 , 

17.85-32.30 percent Fe2O3 , 2.31-5.20 percent TiO2 , and 

13.54-27.70 percent LOI.

Scotland.—The Ayrshire high-alumina clay occurs 

along the west coast of Scotland in a belt extending 

about 19 km from Saltcoats eastward to Kilwinning and 

at other places as far south as Stranraer. In most places, 

the clay rests on mafic lava flows and is overlain by the 

lowest coal bed of the Coal Measures. The clay is in a 

discontinuous and lenticular bed, and deposits range 

from a few centimeters to nearly 10 m in thickness and 

from about 10 m to several hundred meters in lateral
B80 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

extent. Boehmite and diaspora occurring in pisolites and 

oolites were found in samples of the clay from one locality (Lapparent, 1936), but the clay now mined at other 

localities contains neither of these minerals. Some of the 

clay taken from the early mines was reported to be as 

much as 60 percent A12O3 (Wilson, 1922, p. 9).

Resources

According to one estimate (Daniels and Derbyshire, 

1959), the amount of bauxite in Northern Ireland containing about 10 percent SiO2 and 45 percent A12O3 is 

approximately 2.5 million-3 million tons. This bauxite 

should be considered as resources because it is in thin 

deposits that must be mined by underground methods 

and cannot compete with imported bauxite in peacetime. No estimates of the amount of the high-alumina 

clay in Scotland are available.

U.S.S.R., INCLUDING SOVIET ASIA

History and Production

Bauxite for use in making aluminum was first mined 

in the U.S.S.R. in 1931, and in recent years bauxite production has been 4 million-4.6 million tons annually 

(table 6). The Northern Urals region has long been the 

leader in bauxite mining in the Soviet Union (U.S. 

Bureau of Mines, Mineral Yearbooks; Sutulov, 1973, 

p. 146-152). Kazakhstan is second in bauxite production, and bauxite is also mined in the West Urals, the 

Tikhvin district, near Savinska on the Onega River, and 

elsewhere. Most of the mining in the Urals region is by 

underground methods, but open-pit methods are used 

in Kazakhstan, the Onega district, and elsewhere. According to Stankovich (1978), about 40 percent of the 

aluminum produced in the U.S.S.R. is made from imported bauxite and alumina. Many of the bauxite 

deposits mined in the U.S.S.R are high-silica varieties, 

and because of the high silica content a combined Bayersinter process is used in several alumina plants (Prokopov and Malts, 1974). Notwithstanding efforts to increase mine production in several districts, the U.S.S.R. 

finds it necessary to import substantial quantities of 

both alumina and high-grade bauxite (Levine, 1983, 

table 7).

The U.S.S.R. leads the world in the use of nonbauxite 

ores for aluminum. The nonbauxite materials used for 

aluminum are nepheline syenite and alunita Nepheline 

syenite is mined in the Kirovsk district on the Kola 

Peninsula and the Kiya-Shaltyr' (Belogorsk) area on 

the border of Krasnoyarskiy Kray and Kemerovskaya

Oblast'. The alunite is mined in the Zaglik district near 

Yervan, which is located in Azerbaijan, a few kilometers 

north of the Turkish border between the Black and Caspian Seas.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

Bauxite occurs at many places in the U.S.S.R. As 

shown on the bauxite map of the U.S.S.R. and described 

in the accompanying text (Sidorenko, 1973), the principal districts are in the following regions: Altai-Sayan, 

Urals, Timan, Tikhvin-Onega, Voronezh, Central Asia, 

Turgay, Central Kazakhstan, Yenisey, and Ukraine 

(fig. 18). According to Sidorenko (1973) and Bushinskiy 

(1975, p. 349-364), bauxite in the U.S.S.R. formed in 

several different geologic time intervals and occurs in 

rocks of the following ages: (1) Proterozoic and Early 

Cambrian, (2) Ordovician(?), (3) Devonian, (4) Carboniferous, (5) Triassic and Jurassic, and (6) Cretaceous 

and Paleocene. Most of the large deposits mined are of 

Devonian, Early4 Carboniferous, or Cretaceous and 

Paleocene age. The highest quality bauxite in U.S.S.R. 

is of the karst type filling shallow depressions in carbonate rock. The bauxite deposits in Ordovician rocks 

were discovered recently, but whether deposits of the 

grade and size required for mining exist is yet to be 

determined.

Since a symposium on the mineralogy and genesis of 

bauxite (Strakhov and Bushinskiy, 1958), in which 26 

papers were presented, most Soviet geologists accept 

the theory that bauxite formed by the deposition of 

alumina from weathering zones in sedimentary basins. 

U.S.S.R. bauxite deposits are assigned to two types 

(Bushinskiy, 1967), the platform type and the 

geosynclinal type. Deposits of the platform type are 

associated with carbonate and aluminum-silicate rocks. 

The geosynclinal type occurs along the margins of intrageosynclinal arches, the cores of which contain igneous rocks or shales. Both types ordinarily occur in 

karst depressions.

To aid in alleviating the shortage of aluminum raw 

materials, many geologists continue to search for ores 

for the expanding Soviet aluminum industry. The bauxite map of the U.S.S.R. (Sidorenko, 1973), which includes the work of many authors and compilers, 

summarizes the geology of Soviet bauxite and is intended to aid in the search for more deposits. G.I. 

Bushinskiy's volume (1975) contributes materially to 

the knowledge of bauxite in the Soviet Union as well 

as of deposits elsewhere in the world. The bauxite

4The terms "Early Carboniferous," "Lower Carboniferous," and "Middle 

Carboniferous," used in this section, are Soviet nomenclature.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B81

so1

0 500 1000 1500 MILES

I I i 

0 500 1000 1500 KILOMETERS

EXPLANATION

0 Bauxite district

1. Tikhvin

2. Onega

3. Voronezh

4. Ingulets-Dneprovsk, Ukraine

5. Timan

6. Cheremukhovo, Urals

7. Karpinsk, Urals

8. Krasnaya Shapochka, Urals

9. Kamensk-Ural'skiy, Urals

10. Novaya Frisian', Urals

11. Fergana, Central Asia

12. Kyzylkum, Central Asia

13. Turgay

14. Amangel'dy, Kazakhstan

15. Tselinograd, Kazakhstan

16. Ekibastuzsk, Kazakhstan

17. Kuznets. Altai-Sayan

18. Salair Range, Altai-Sayan

19. Yenisey

20. East Sayan, Altai-Sayan

FIGURE 18.—Locations of bauxite districts in the U.S.S.R.

literature is replete with hundreds of scientific papers 

that have been published by the Soviets since the last 

review of world aluminum resources (S.H. Patterson, 

1967). Most of these publications deal only with minor 

new discoveries or with additions to the knowledge 

about previously known deposits. In addition to investigations of bauxite, Soviet geologists have continued studies of other sources of aluminum. 

Altai-Sayan.—The Altai-Sayan bauxite region is in an

area of folded rocks on the southern rim of the Siberian 

platform (Sidorenko, 1973, p. 12-14). Bauxite in this 

region is mainly in the East Sayan Mountains and 

Kuznets districts. Scattered deposits have been found 

in the Salair Range elsewhere. Some of the deposits in 

the Salair Range are associated with limestone formations of Late Silurian to Middle Devonian age. The East 

Sayan deposits are in carbonate sedimentary rocks of 

the Late Proterozoic Bokson Series. The average
B82 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

thickness of the ore layers, which include bauxite and 

a variegated argillaceous schist overlying it, is 4.5 m, 

but these layers are 20-30 m thick in places. Diaspore 

and boehmite are the bauxite minerals. The bauxite is 

low grade, according to Sidorenko (1973, p. 13); it contains only 37 percent A12O3 and 23 percent SiO2. 

Deposits have been traced for tens of kilometers, and 

reserves are described as being substantial. The 

Kuznets district is a large area where several scattered 

bauxite deposits have been found, and it is considered 

favorable for the discovery of more deposits (Sidorenko, 

1973, p. 14). Apparently the best deposit found to date 

is the Lespromkhoz bauxite in the Tel'bes River valley. 

This bauxite consists of diaspore, corundum, chloritoid, 

spinel, and other minerals and is 30-50 percent A12O3.

Central Asia.—Many scattered bauxite occurrences 

have been found in the mountainous region of Central 

Asia (Sidorenko, 1973, p. 32-33). The deposits extend 

a considerable distance from the Fergana region on the 

east to central Kyzylkum on the west. The bauxite is 

in the upper part of a group of carbonate units of Devonian and Early and Middle Carboniferous age. Deposits 

in the Fergana region are as much as 15 m thick, and 

some extend 120 m laterally (Abdullayev, 1968). The 

bauxite is chiefly the monohydrate type. A few deposits 

are mainly diaspore, others are mixtures of diaspore and 

boehmite, and some are mainly boehmite. Kaolinite is 

the principal mineral impurity in many deposits. The 

deposits range considerably in composition, as indicated 

by the following analyses (Sidorenko, 1973, p. 33): 20-50 

percent A12O3 , 10-30 percent SiO2, and 10-60 percent 

Fe2O3 and FeO. Bauxites of Triassic and Jurassic age 

are known in at least three districts in Central Asia 

(Sidorenko, 1973, p. 37-39). They apparently have 

formed from several different types of sedimentary and 

volcanic rocks, and the deposits vary considerably in 

composition. Occurrences of bauxite of Early 

Cretaceous and Cretaceous to Paleocene age have also 

been found in Central Asia (Sidorenko, 1973, p. 49-50). 

Most of this bauxite is low grade. No deposits of significant economic value have been found to date, but Soviet 

geologists consider this area favorable for bauxite 

discoveries.

Central Kazakhstan.—The principal bauxite deposits 

occur in the following three districts: Amangel'dy, 

Tselinograd, and Ekibastuzsk. Small deposits are also 

known to occur at several scattered localities. The 

Amangel'dy district contains the largest reserves and 

is apparently the most active bauxite-producing area 

in Kazakhstan. The bauxite occurs in sandy and shaly 

sedimentary rocks overlying much older carbonate 

beds, and the bauxite deposits are restricted to karst 

basins and valleys developed on the carbonate units. 

Soviet geologists disagree as to the time of bauxite

formation (Sidorenko, 1973); some think it was 

Paleocene and early Eocene, others Late Cretaceous, 

and one believes Early Cretaceous. The bauxite is all 

gibbsitic, and deposits consist of layers of clayey and 

stony bauxite and refractory kaolinitic clay. 

Thicknesses of deposits range from 10 to 70 m, and the 

area! extent of deposits ranges from a few square meters 

to as much as 2 km2. The average partial composition 

of the bauxite is 12 percent SiO2, 47 percent A12O3, and 

12.5 percent Fe2O3. Bauxite occurs in many scattered 

deposits in the Tselinograd and Ekibastuzsk districts 

(Sidorenko, 1973). The deposits are in a weathered crust, 

commonly tens of meters thick, developed mainly on 

carbonate rocks but also locally on intrusive rocks. 

Palynological data indicate that the deposits are of Late 

Cretaceous and possibly Paleocene age. Gibbsite is the 

principal bauxite mineral in all deposits. Large deposits 

of kaolinitic clays are associated with the bauxite, particularly the deposits on intrusive rocks.

Timan.—Bauxite deposits of Devonian and Early Carboniferous age occur in the Timan region (Sidorenko, 

1973, p. 21-23, 28-30). The Devonian deposits are on 

the northwest limb of a horst-anticline. The parent 

material is thought to have been Proterozoic schists and 

younger volcanic materials. Thicknesses of bauxite 

range from 1 to 25 m. Most of the bauxite is dense, but 

some is spongy and fragmental (presumably brecciated). 

The bauxite minerals are diaspore and boehmite, and 

the major impurities include goethite and chamosite. 

Gibbsite, which is ordinarily rare in Paleozoic deposits, 

also occurs in some deposits (Demina, Gulyayev, and 

Kolokol'tsev, 1970). The best parts of the deposits contain 4-8 percent SiO2 and 48-53 percent A12O3, and 

the average partial composition of deposits in this 

region is 44-46 percent A12O3 , 8-10 percent SiO2, and 

27-30 percent Fe2O3 . The Lower Carboniferous 

deposits are mainly in the southern part of the Timan 

region. Most of these deposits are of lower grade than 

the Devonian bauxite, and they have not been fully 

explored.

Tikhvin-Onega province.—This province is on the 

northwest side of the Moscow basin, where the rocks 

overlap onto the eastern flank of the Baltic Shield. Most 

of the bauxite deposits are associated with watertransported sandy and shaly rocks containing brown 

coal and kaolinitic beds (Sidorenko, 1973, p. 25). These 

deposits and associated beds are of Early Carboniferous 

age. Soviet geologists have concluded that a tropical 

climate existed in this region at the time the bauxite 

formed (Grayzer and others, 1976). The bauxite minerals 

apparently formed by tropical weathering and were 

deposited in a swampy or lagoonal environment. The 

Tikhvin district is near Boksitogorsk, east of Leningrad. 

The bauxite deposits are associated with aluminous
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B83

clays that occur along an erosional unconformity between rocks of Devonian and Early Carboniferous age. 

Most of this bauxite consists of pebbles or pellets 

enclosed by fine-grained interstitial material. The coarse 

particles are chiefly boehmite, but they also contain 

diaspore and corundum (Gladkovsky and Ushatinsky, 

1964, p. 154). The interstitial material is chiefly kaolinitic clay, but some secondary gibbsite is also present. 

The principal oxides in the bauxite (Sidorenko, 1973, 

p. 26) range within the following limits: 10.5-16.9 percent SiO2 , 37.7-50.3 percent A12O3, 4.5-21.1 percent 

Fe2O3, 1.6-6.3 percent TiO2 , and 0.7-9.0 percent CaO. 

According to an old estimate, the Tikhvin district contains 8.3 million tons of bauxite, including some bauxitic clays. However, considerable mining has been done 

since that estimate was made, and the results of recent 

exploration in the district are not available. The bauxite deposits in the Onega district are located mainly in 

the Onega River valley north of Tikhvin. Most deposits 

in the region are similar to those in the Tikhvin district, 

but bauxite in an ancient weathering zone on diabase 

and diabase porphyry is also present. This bauxite is 

thought to have been formed by tropical weathering in 

Late Devonian time (Trubina, 1958a). The better grades 

of bauxite in the northern part of the Onega district contain 52-54 percent A12O3 , 16-19 percent SiO2 , and as 

much as 29 percent Fe2O3 (Sidorenko, 1973, p. 26).

Soviet geologists have found shows of bauxite in a 

few places between the Tikhvin and Onega districts. 

They regard this area as favorable for finding more 

deposits (Sidorenko, 1973; Grayzer and others, 1976).

Turgay.—Bauxite deposits in Albian-CenomanianTuronian (Lower and Upper Cretaceous) beds overlying the Paleozoic basement are present at several places 

in the broad Turgay basin (Kim, 1970). The deposits are 

in isolated bodies containing from a few hundred thousand to millions of tons of bauxite (Sidorenko, 1973, 

p. 40-43). Deposits of bauxite along the western limb 

of the Turgay depression are of the karst type and represent a continuation of the bauxite belt of the Central 

Urals (Kuzemkina, 1960). Pisolites in this bauxite range 

in size from 2 to 22 mm. Unaltered pisolites, investigated by X-ray methods, contain hematite, magnetite, 

corundum, siderite, pyrite, gibbsite, titanium minerals, 

and quartz. The corundum occurs in the central parts 

of the pisolites, and the outer parts are chiefly gibbsite. 

Kuzemkina believed that the corundum formed in place, 

because it occurs only in pisolites and no corundum is 

present in the cementing materials enclosing the pisolites or in the nonpisolitic bauxite. Bauxite deposits in 

the Turgay region vary appreciably in composition, but 

the following range is typical of many deposits: 4- 

12 percent SiO2 , 40-55 percent A12O3, 7-30 percent 

Fe203.

Ukraine.—Bauxite occurs at several places on the 

Ukrainian Shield in southern Ukraine (Sidorenko, 1973; 

Bass, 1958). The largest deposits are in the InguletsDneprovsk district in the eastern part of the shield area. 

Some of the bauxite is residual in weathered parts of 

Proterozoic amphibolite and schist. Other deposits have 

been transported and are associated with clay-rich 

sedimentary beds of middle Eocene age. Textures of the 

bauxite range from relict features of the parent rock to 

brecciated, pisolitic, and clayey materials. The bauxite 

minerals are mainly gibbsite and small quantities of 

boehmite. All the bauxite is reported to contain abundant iron in the form of hematite and goethite, and 

kaolinite, quartz, and ilmenite minerals are abundant 

in some deposits. The average composition of the bauxite is 8 percent SiO2, 38 percent A12O3, and 29 percent 

Fe2O3 . According to one report (Wilmot, Sullivan, and 

Trought, 1958, p. 236), deposits in the vicinity of the 

village of Shestunia near Dneprovsk contain about 20 

million tons of bauxite.

Urals.—Bauxite occurs in many districts scattered 

through the Urals region, which extends more than 

1,000 km from Ivdel' on the north to near Orsk in the 

southern part of the mountain chain (Sidorenko, 1973, 

p. 17-20). Deposits of Devonian, Carboniferous, Triassic 

and Jurassic, and Cretaceous and Paleocene ages are 

present. The best grade deposits are of Devonian age. 

The principal districts include Karpinsk, KamenskUral'skiy, Krasnaya Shapochka (Red Cap), Cheremukhovo, and others in the East Urals and Novaya Pristan' 

in the West Urals. Four bauxite zones have been found 

in Devonian carbonate rocks in the East Urals. The 

lower, which is of Middle Devonian age, is the principal 

one mined in Krasnaya Shapochka, Cheremukhovo, and 

other districts. This bauxite is of the monohydrate type 

and occurs in reddish-brown, dense, earthy rock that 

is 60-80 percent fine-grained diaspore. Boehmite is ordinarily only a minor constituent, but this mineral, 

together with pyrite and siderite, is abundant in the upper part of some deposits. Hematite is present in 

substantial amounts in most of the deposits, and other 

minerals present include kaolinite and leptochlorite. According to Sidorenko (1973, p. 19), the bauxite mined 

has the following ranges of composition: 3.2-6.5 percent 

SiO2, 46.4-59.4 percent A12O3, 16.1-24.2 percent Fe2O3, 

and 2.8-3.0 percent TiO2. In the West Urals, two 

bauxite zones are present, but only one, which is of Late 

Devonian age, contains significant minable deposits. 

Most of this bauxite is reddish brown and stony, but 

some is brecciated, and the lower parts of deposits are 

commonly pisolitic. The Novaya Pristan' deposits are 

the most valuable ones in this region. Soviet geologists 

(Kolesnikov, Nevzorova, and Shishakov, 1972) recognize 

the following types of bauxite in this group: (1) red karst
B84 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

bauxite of continental origin, (2) gray bauxite thought 

to have been deposited in a marine environment, and 

(3) mottled bauxite formed by leaching of the gray bauxite material. At places the upper parts of deposits are 

interlayered with marl containing plant impressions and 

a few thin coal lenses. The bauxite is of diasporeboehmite composition and according to Sidorenko 

(1973, p. 20) has the average composition of 9.3 percent 

SiO2, 48.8 percent A12O3 , 21.3 percent Fe2O3, and 4.6 

percent CaO. It is therefore somewhat lower in grade 

than the bauxite in the East Urals.

Voronezh.—The Voronezh bauxite deposits are in the 

Belograd iron-ore region. The bauxite is of Carboniferous age, and it is covered by younger strata 

400-700 m thick (Sidorenko, 1973, p. 27-29). The bauxite formed on phyllite and schist consisting mainly of 

quartz, sericite, biotite, and chlorite (Nikitina and 

Zvyagin, 1973). These authors believed the micaceous 

minerals altered to kaolinite by leaching and hydrolysis, 

and kaolinite was further weathered to form gibbsite. 

Gibbsite was presumably changed to monohydrate 

minerals by diagenesis after burial. The bauxite is 8-12 

percent SiO2, 30-52 percent A12O3, and as much as 30 

percent Fe2O3. Considerable quantities of bauxite at 

depths of 500 m or more are thought to be present.

Yenisey.—Low-grade bauxite deposits have been 

found in karst depressions in a few places in the Yenisey 

region. Most geologists believe this bauxite is of 

Paleocene and Eocene age, but its formation may have 

begun in the Cretaceous. The bauxite is gibbsitic and 

is mixed with variegated kaolinitic clays and ironbearing minerals. Most bauxite bodies are lenticular, 

and maximum thicknesses range from a few meters to 

40 m. The partial chemical composition of the bauxite 

in the Yenisey range is 6-9.5 percent SiO2, 37-39 percent A12O3 , 26-34 percent Fe2O3, and 4-4.5 percent 

Ti02.

Resources

Estimates of the total bauxite resources in the 

U.S.S.R. are not available; however, the many occurrences in rocks of several different geologic ages as 

shown on a recent map of bauxite resources (Sidorenko, 

1973) make it clear that the total resources are very 

large. Many of these resources are of low grade, and 

most of them apparently occur in large quantities only 

at considerable depths, and they are therefore of little 

value. One of the few published estimates of bauxite 

resources in the U.S.S.R. was by Bardossy (1977, table 

1), who listed the following figures, in millions of tons, 

for karst bauxite in the three principal producing 

regions: Turgay-Hateg—270, North Urals—220, and

Central Kazakhstan—190. The total in these three 

regions is 680 million tons. In the appendix of this same 

report, Bardossy listed the estimates for these three 

regions and estimates for eight more regions where apparently no bauxite is mined. The total of the estimates 

for all 11 regions is 994 million tons. Strishkov (1976, 

p. 483) estimated that the bauxite reserves in the 

U.S.S.R. suitable for Bayer plant processing are approximately 250 million tons, of which about 65 million tons 

is considered proved. The authors of this report are arbitrarily considering the bauxite reserves in the 

U.S.S.R. to be approximately 300 million tons, and the 

total resources (reserves and subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite) are thought to be 600 million-700 

million tons.

WEST GERMANY

Small bauxite deposits in red soil occur at several 

localities on the slopes of the Vogelsberg Mountains 

in Hessen. Small tonnages of bauxite have been produced from these deposits intermittently since the turn 

of the century for use in chemicals and abrasives. Production was 3,900 tons in 1965 and dropped to 800 tons 

in 1975 (Metallgesellschaft AG., 1976, p. 12). West Germany relies on imported bauxite to supply its alumina 

industry.

The Vogelsberg bauxite was thought to have formed 

by the weathering of basaltic lavas and tuffs in Pliocene 

time (Harrassowitz, 1922). Schellmann (1966) confirmed 

that the weathering-in-place explanation was correct 

when he found and described exposures showing that 

the bauxite and associated red soil grade downward into 

kaolinized basalt. Schellman also noted that the 

deposits are similar to other laterite-type bauxites on 

basalt, except that quartz was deposited during 

weathering in the Vogelsberg area. Gibbsite is the principal bauxite mineral. The bauxite nodules, which 

presumably are representative of the grade beneficiated 

and used, have the following composition: 52.9-53.6 percent A12O3, 3.02-3.44 percent SiO2, 9.67-10.3 percent 

Fe2O3, 2.19-3.54 percent TiO2 , and 27.5-27.8 percent 

H2O. According to the U.S. Bureau of Mines estimate 

(Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, table 3), the bauxite reserves in West Germany are 2 million tons.

YUGOSLAVIA

History and Production

Bauxite has been mined in Yugoslavia since before 

1920; however, annual production did not surpass 1
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B85

million tons until 1960. According to the International 

Bauxite Association (1978b), bauxite is mined in the 

following districts and regions (fig. 17): Vlasenica, 

Mostar, and Jace in Bosnia-Hercegovina; Rovinj, Istria; 

Drnisf, Dalmatian coast of Croatia; Niksfic, Montenegro; Podlipa-Borovnica, Slovenia; Pristina, Kosovo; 

and Krus'evo, Macedonia. The production in 1978 was 

approximately 2.5 million tons (table 6), and it increased 

to 3.7 million tons in 1982. Virtually all of this output 

was used in domestic alumina plants. The increases are 

part of a major change in the trend in Yugoslavia's 

aluminum industry. In 1972 only 17.5 percent of the 

bauxite mined was consumed domestically, and the rest 

was exported. In 1976, exports were reduced to 51.4 percent of production.

The composition of bauxite in Yugoslavia varies considerably. According to the Societe Aluminium 

Pechiney (1975, p. 544), most Yugoslav metal-grade 

bauxite is 53-55 percent A12O3 and 5-6 percent SiO2 . 

However, the domestic boehmite bauxite processed at 

the alumina plants built by Aluminium Pechiney at 

Titograd and Mostar has the following composition: 

56-58 percent total A12O3, 20-22 percent Fe2O3 , 3-5 

percent SiO2 , 0.5-1.0 percent CaO, 0.1 percent organic 

matter, and 13.0 percent LOI (Mercier and Noble, 1974, 

p. 784).

Bauxite in the vicinity of Niksl6 includes extensive 

deposits of white bauxite that is used in refractory products and in quick-setting cement (Dragovic, 1965, p. 33). 

This bauxite consists mainly of boehmite and variable 

quantities of admixed kaolinite. One grade of refractory 

bauxite produced contains a minimum of 45 percent 

A12O3 and a maximum of 5 percent Fe2O3 . Bauxite 

used in quick-setting cement contains a minimum of 50 

percent A12O3 and maximums of 12 percent SiO2 and 

25 percent Fe2O3. Abrasive-grade bauxite is produced 

in one mine near Bosanska Krupa mainly for shipment 

to the U.S.S.R. (Sondermayer, 1974, p. 887).

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

Bauxite occurs at more than 200 localities (Grubi6, 

1970, fig. 1) and in rocks of several different ages in 

Yugoslavia, and numerous reports have been written 

on the subject (see bibliographies by Sakac and Marusic, 1974,1978). Probably the best summary discussions 

of bauxite in this country are by Grubic (1970, 1975), 

and much of the information given here is from his 

reports. Bauxite is known to occur in or be associated 

with rocks of the following ages: Triassic; Jurassic; 

Cretaceous; between Late Cretaceous and Tertiary; 

Paleogene; middle Eocene; and Oligocene. Most deposits are in the Dinaric Alps, but others occur farther

southeast and in coastal areas. The typical deposits are 

residual accumulations of the karst or Mediterranean 

type, and some deposits in Cretaceous beds and at 

several different stratigraphic positions of Tertiary age 

have been transported from older deposits. Most of the 

transported deposits are low grade and therefore are not 

mined. All but a few deposits are in rocks that have been 

folded and faulted. Deposits in downfolded rocks are 

known to occur 700 m below the surface, and bauxite 

has been mined at depths of 400 m.

The mineralogy of Yugoslav bauxites varies with age 

(Grubi6,1975, p. 172; Weisse, 1948). Triassic bauxites 

are mostly boehmite and hematite but contain variable 

quantities of diaspore, and a few deposits are mainly 

diaspore. Jurassic and Cretaceous red bauxites, generally consisting of boehmite and diaspore, are rare. 

Kaolinite is abundant in the so-called white bauxites of 

this age. Boehmite is the most abundant bauxite 

mineral in deposits of Paleogene age, but gibbsite is ordinarily also present. Lutetian (middle Eocene) deposits 

contain abundant gibbsite and goethite, but some are 

rich in boehmite. Oligocene bauxites in Slovenia consist mainly of clay-sized minerals and, surprisingly, contain as much as 36 percent diaspore. Some bauxites are 

uncommonly rich in chlorite, and a few contain as much 

as 50 percent of this mineral. The abundance of chlorite 

and monohydrate bauxite minerals in younger bauxites 

may be due to metamorphism.

Bauxite at Rovinj, in Istria, occurs in cone-shaped 

bodies in karst depressions on Late Cretaceous 

(Cenomanian and Turonian) limestone (Sinkovec, 

1973). In some places the deposits are overlain by carbonate rocks of Paleocene and Eocene age; in others this 

rock has been eroded and the deposits are covered only 

by terra rossa. Boehmite is the principal mineral in most 

deposits, and gibbsite occurs in a few. Hematite, 

kaolinite, and anatase are the major impurities. The 

average composition of the bauxite is 54.28 percent 

A12O3, 21.88 percent Fe2O3, 5.93 percent SiO2, 3.18 percent TiO2, and 14.00 percent LOI.

According to Grubic (1975, p. 62-65), the extensive 

bauxite deposits in the Vlasenica district are above 

Triassic limestone and are overlain by marl of middle 

Cretaceous age. These deposits are mainly the 

monohydrate type, as indicated by the low LOI in 

analyses of samples from 15 deposits (Grubi6, 1975, 

table 15) having the following ranges of composition: 

29.4-56.2 percent A12O3 , 1.3-19.6 percent SiO2 , 

15.49-40.32 percent Fe2O3, 2.1-4.70 percent TiO2, and 

9.4-12.3 percent LOI.

Bauxites of Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous age occur interbedded with carbonate rocks in the Niksfi6 

district (Dragovi6,1965). The bauxite has many colors, 

and much of it is shades of red, brown, gray, or white.
B86 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

The white and lighter colored bauxite tends to be concentrated in the upper parts of deposits. Grades of bauxite range from high-quality monohydrate types to very 

high silica material containing much kaolinite. The 

imprints of leaves and carbonized plant material found 

in the white bauxite suggest the deposits formed in an 

acid environment capable of forming aluminum silicates 

and reducing trivalent iron (Lukovi6,1966). The grades 

of white, high-silica bauxite produced for use in refractory products and quick-setting cement are given in the 

section on history and production. Most of the bauxite 

mined for aluminum contains more than 50 percent 

A12O3 and is low in SiO2 .

The bauxite deposits in the Jace district occur 

between two formations of Late Cretaceous (Maestrichtian) age. According to Grubi6 (1975, p. 72-76, 

170), some of the deposits have been transported 

and redeposited. Four analyses of bauxite from this 

district (Grubic, 1975, table 18) show the following 

ranges in composition: 51.7-59.0 percent A12O3 , 

1.6-9.7 percent SiO2 , 21.3-23.7 percent Fe2O3, 1.6-3.3 

percent TiO2 , and 11.8-15.0 percent LOI. The LOI 

in these analyses indicates that the bauxite is mainly 

boehmite.

Bauxite in uppermost Cretaceous or lower Paleocene 

rocks occurs in Istria, on the islands of Cres, Rab, Pag, 

and Hvar, in Dalmatia (Obrovac, Drnis7, and Sinj), and 

in the Mostar basin, Hercegovina (Grubi6,1975, p. 170). 

Four samples from the Mostar basin (Grubi6, 1975, 

table 22) range in composition from 40 to 58 percent 

A12O3 and from 3 to 20 percent SiO2 .

The authors were successful in finding only a few odds 

and ends of information on the geology of bauxite mined 

in the Pristina and Krusevo districts (International 

Bauxite Association, 1978b) during their search of the 

literature. These districts are apparently southeast of 

the Dinaric Alps, and, as noted by Grubi6 (1975, p. 170), 

few results of research on such deposits have been 

published. The one analysis of Krusevo bauxite found 

(Edlin and Tenyakov, 1975, table 1) records 47.90 

percent A12O3, 4.20 percent SiO2 , and 20.80 percent 

Fe203 .

Bauxite occurs in several places in Slovenia. The total 

bauxite in most districts is in the 1-million- to 3-millionton range, but as much as 50 million tons is present in 

the Podlipa-Borovnica area (Bardossy, 1977, appendix 

1). The four analyses of Podlipa bauxite listed by Buser 

arid Lukacs (1970) gave the following ranges of composition: 40.00-57.06 percent A12O3, 13.70-20.74 percent 

Fe2O3 , 8.69-21.41 percent SiO2 , 1.15-1.55 percent 

TiO2 , and 11.75-75.58 percent LOI. This bauxite was 

50-60 percent boehmite, 1.5 percent diaspore, and 

10-20 percent kaolinite.

Resources

According to the Societe Aluminium Pechiney (1975, 

table 1), the bauxite reserves in Yugoslavia located 

mainly in the Drills', Gospi6, Mostar, Vlasenica, and 

Niksi6 districts are 170 million tons. Large deposits 

having high iron and silica contents, which are subeconomic under foreseeable economic conditions, are present in these and several other districts (Grubi6, 1975, 

p. 171). Total bauxite resources were listed at 300 

million tons by Shaffer (1975, table 5). Yugoslavia submitted an estimate of 200 million tons of measured 

reserves and 400 million tons of total reserves for a compilation of total reserves in member countries of the International Bauxite Association (1976b, table 1). The 

400-million-ton estimate included bauxite containing as 

little as 45 percent A12O3 and as much as 10 percent 

SiO2 . In his summary of karst bauxite resources, 

Bardossy (1977, table 1) listed 290 million tons in 

Dalmatia and 210 million tons in Montenegro for 

Yugoslavia, and therefore his total for the country was 

500 million tons. In appendix 1 of the same report, he 

listed estimates for 29 bauxite districts, including many 

having only small resources, in millions of tons by provinces, as follows: Slovenia—63, Istria—41, Dalmatia, 

Bosnia, Hercegovina—295, Montenegro—210, 

Vlasenica—70. The total of these estimates, which must 

apply to reserves and subeconomic resources as used 

in this report, is 679 million tons. However, meaningful 

information on the quantity of subeconomic bauxite 

resources containing excess quantites of silica and iron 

is unavailable. Grubi6 (1975, p. 171) stated that enormous quantities of bauxite in the Lika, Bosanska 

Krupa, and other districts must be considered 

uneconomic reserves because of their high silica and iron 

contents. Yugoslav geologists have told the authors 

that several hundred million tons of this low-grade 

bauxite is present. In this report the bauxite reserves 

in Yugoslavia are considered to be 350 million tons as 

estimated by the U.S. Bureau of Mines (Baumgardner 

and McCawley, 1983, table 3). The total resources 

including reserves, subeconomic resources, and undiscovered bauxite are estimated to be 700 million-900 

million tons.

OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

Small bauxite deposits occur in Albania, and 

presumably they are similar to those in Montenegro, 

Yugoslavia, to the northwest. An estimate of 1 million 

tons for the inferred bauxite in Albania was listed by 

Bardossy (1964, table 2).
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B87

Small deposits of bauxite occur in Bulgaria near 

Trim, which is 61 km west of Sofia. The deposits are 

reported to be of low grade (McCroskey, 1944, p. 16), 

but they were worked prior to World War II (Bracewell, 

1962, p. 138).

Bauxite deposits that are high in silica and presumably small occur between rocks of Triassic and 

Jurassic age in Switzerland (Badoux and Weisse, 1959).

Deposits of mixed gibbsite-boehmite karst-type bauxite containing about 1 million tons are reported to occur at Andorinha, Portugal (Bardossy, 1977, appendixes 

1 and 3).

SUMMARY OF BAUXITE RESOURCES IN EUROPE

The total bauxite reserves in Europe are estimated 

to be 1.5 billion tons (rounded), and the resources 

(reserves and subeconomic and undiscovered resources) 

are thought to be in the 2.5-billion- to 4-billion-ton range. 

The principal reserves, in millions of tons, are distributed in the following countries: Greece—600, 

Yugoslavia—350, Hungary—300, and the U.S.S.R.— 

300. The reserves in France are about 30 million tons, 

and those in Romania are estimated to be 50 million 

tons. The rounded reserve estimate is similar to the one 

by Zambo (1978, table 1), who listed the reserves of 

bauxite suitable for processing by Bayer technology, 

in millions of tons, as follows: Western Europe (France, 

Greece, Italy, Spain)—368 proved and 317 estimated; 

European Socialist countries (Hungary, Romania, the 

U.S.S.R., Yugoslavia)—510 proved and 360 estimated. 

According to these estimates, the total proved and 

estimated bauxite in Europe is 1,600 million tons. The 

subeconomic bauxite is mainly in low-grade deposits 

and deposits of all grades occurring at depths too great 

for profitable mining in the countries containing the 

reserves. Undiscovered bauxite deposits no doubt exist in Europe. However, the discovery of large highgrade deposits that are favorably situated for mining 

is unlikely because most of Europe has been thoroughly 

prospected. The total subeconomic and undiscovered 

bauxite in Europe is arbitrarily estimated to be 

1 billion-2.5 billion tons.

AFRICA

The known bauxite resources in Africa are larger than 

those on any of the other continents. The principal 

reserves are in laterite deposits in Guinea, Ghana, and 

Sierra Leone, the three countries in Africa currently producing bauxite. Cameroon is also considered to have 

reserves because of the efforts to produce domestic raw

material to supply the aluminum smelter at Edea. Small 

bauxite reserves are present in Mozambique where 

bauxite is mined for nonmetallurgical uses. The principal subeconomic resources are in the three major 

producing countries and in Cameroon, Malawi, 

Madagascar, Mali, Zaire, and Guinea-Bissau. Small 

subeconomic bauxite resources have been found in 

Chad, Ivory Coast, Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso), 

South Africa, and Zimbabwe, and bauxite may occur 

in Angola. Much of tropical Africa is favorable for the 

discovery of additional laterite-type bauxite, and no 

doubt more will be found in remote regions of Zaire, 

Cameroon, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, and other 

countries.

ANGOLA

A contract for the exploration of bauxite in Angola, 

between the Government of Portugal and N.V. Billiton 

Maatschappij of The Hague, Netherlands, was announced in 1957 (U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1957). One 

report (Mining World, 1960) noted that a Portuguese 

aluminum company has investigated bauxite deposits 

in the Dondo district where an aluminum plant having 

a capacity of 50,000 short tons a year has been considered. No information is available on the size and 

grade of the deposits; however, a figure of 10 million 

tons for possible bauxite in Angola is listed by Martens 

(1971, table 8).

CAMEROON

History

An aluminum smelter has been operating at Edea 

since 1957, and the Cameroonian government and 

aluminum industry have been interested in extracting 

alumina from the large domestic bauxite deposits to 

supply this plant. The principal effort was by the 

Societe d'Etudes des Bauxites du Cameroon 

(SEBACAM), a group financed mainly by the Government and Pechiney-Ugine-Kuhlmann of France and with 

minor participation by Vereinigte Aluminium Werke of 

West Germany and Kaiser Aluminum of the United 

States; SEBACAM was formed in 1970 to encourage the 

production of alumina (U.S. Embassy, Yaounde, 

Cameroon, State Department Airgram A29, July 26, 

1976, 3 p., 1 end.). This group evaluated the large bauxite deposits in the central part of the country and the 

possibilities for mining and processing. Though considerable interest in development exists, problems in 

transportation, lack of power, and infrastructure
B88 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

financing make it unlikely that production will begin 

for several years. One of the difficulties is that the 

Trans-Cameroon railroad now extending into the 

general region of the large bauxite deposits lacks heavyload-bearing capacity, and a heavy-gauge railroad more 

than 600 km long probably would have to be built.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

The major bauxite deposits in Cameroon are located in the Minim-Martap and the NgaoundalNgaoundourou districts in the Adamaoua region and 

the Fongo-Tongo district (Laplaine, 1969, p. 47-56). The 

two districts in the Adamaoua region that contain 

Cameroon's very large deposits are in the central part 

of the country (fig. 19) approximately 500 km from the 

port of Douala. The Fongo-Tongo district is located 

12 km northwest of Dschang.

Minim-Martap and Ngaoundal-Ngaoundourou 

districts.—The bauxite in these districts occurs as 

laterite cappings of flat-topped remnants of a plateau. 

The deposits are at altitudes of 1200-1300 m and are 

100-200 m above the local streams. The parent rock of 

the bauxite is mostly basalt and trachyte of Cretaceous 

and Tertiary age. The laterite cappings range from 3 

to 15 m in thickness. Most deposits and particularly 

those in the central parts of the larger upland areas are 

brown and reddish brown and consist mainly of gibbsite, goethite, kaolmite, and anatase (Belinga, 1968, 

1969,1970,1972; Nicolas and Belinga, 1969). Deposits 

near the edges of the laterite cappings apparently have 

been leached more than those in the central parts, 

because they contain considerably less SiO2 in the 

form of kaolinite. Large blocky masses of displaced 

laterite crust blanket the slopes of the uplands. These 

bauxite masses are brecciated and commonly contain 

boehmitic oolites and pisolites.

Four prospecting programs have been completed in 

the Minim-Martap and Ngaoundal districts (Gsell, 

1984). The first one was in 1958-61 by the Direction des 

Mines et de la Geologic du Cameroun and by the Bureau 

de Recherches Geologiques et Minieres (BRGM). During this period 276 pits were hand dug to depths of more 

than 17 m in the Minim-Martap district. The next two 

programs, 1969-70 and 1970-71, were conducted by 

SEE AC AM in the Minim-Martap district. This work consisted of drilling 810 holes on 11 plateau remnants. It 

was designed to delineate sufficient tonnage of bauxite for mining. The last exploration program, 1971-72, 

was the drilling of 116 holes (total 12,196 m) and the 

analysis of samples from 11,692 m of drill core. A 

300-ton test batch of bauxite collected from bulldozed 

trenches 12 m deep was sent to the alumina plant at

Gardanne, France. It was found that alumina could be 

extracted from this bauxite by the low-temperature 

Bayer process. The prospecting programs on 11 plateau 

remnants in the Minim-Martap district proved the 

reserves of 560 million tons. One square kilometer in 

this district contains 18 million tons of bauxite (dry 

basis) that is 48.6 percent total A12O3, 43 percent extractable A12O3, and 1.8 percent reactive SiO2. The exploration in the Ngaoundal district proved reserves of 

120 million tons of bauxite. One square kilometer in this 

district contains 30 million tons of bauxite (dry basis) 

that is 46.3 percent total A12O3, 39.2 percent extractable A12O3, and 1.8 percent reactive SiO2.

In addition to the 11 areas in the Minim-Martap 

district that were thoroughly explored, bauxite is 

known to be present on 15 plateau remnants having a 

total area of 24 km2. With the addition of this bauxite 

to the proven reserves, the available bauxite in the 

Minim-Martap and Ngaoundal districts is considered 

to be 1 billion tons.

Fongo-Tongo district—Most of the bauxite in the 

Fongo-Tongo district occurs in upland areas, but part 

of it is in talus and transported material on the slopes. 

The largest deposits formed on basalt in the Bambouto 

massif (Laplaine, 1969, p. 48), and smaller deposits have 

developed on trachyte (Hieronymus, 1971). Gibbsite is 

the principal bauxite mineral, and kaolinite and hematite are the major impurities.

Resources

The Bureau de Recherches Geologiques et Minieres 

and the Cameroon Direction des Mines have estimated 

that 1.1 billion tons are present in the Minim-Martap 

and Ngaoundal-Ngaoundourou districts (Laplaine, 1969, 

p. 54). According to other estimates (Michell, 1972, 

p. 35; Belinga, 1973, p. 209), the total bauxite in this 

region is 1.5 billion tons. The larger estimate includes 

blocks of bauxite talus on slopes on the edges of 

plateaus that were not included in the smaller estimate. 

Gsell's (1984, p. 565) estimate for the available bauxite 

reserves in these two districts was 1 billion tons.

The bauxite in the Fongo-Tongo district found in one 

prospecting program is estimated to be 46 million tons, 

from which 34 million tons could be recovered by 

washing and screening (Laplaine, 1969, p. 50). The grade 

of the washed bauxite would be 47 percent A12O3 and 

3.6 percent SiO2 . The Bambouto area in this district 

contains an additional 4 million tons of bauxite that is 

46 percent A12O3 and 4.3 percent SiO2.

The U.S. Bureau of Mines (Luke Baumgardner, written commun., 1984) estimate for bauxite reserves 

in Cameroon is 680 million tons. The total bauxite
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B89

10°

10° ^

UPPER VOLTA

NIGER

,7_x \

( / DAHOMEY )

\ ^"»-» *

CHAD

IVORY \

COAST) GHANA

NIGERIA

f

[ GABONL ZAIRE

100 200 300 MILES

• Bauxite district 

Ghana

1. Asafo

2. Nyinahin

3. Affoh-Sefwi Bekwai (Awaso)

4. Mount Ejuanema

5. Kibi-Atewa Range

0 100 200 300 KILOMETERS

EXPLANATION 

Cameroon

6. Fongo-Tongo

7. Minim-Martap

8. Ngaoundal-Ngaoundourou

Chad

9. Pala

FIGURE 19.—Locations of bauxite districts in Ghana, Cameroon, and Chad.

resources in this country are probably at least 1.5 billion tons.

CHAD

Laterite-type bauxite occurs on small plateaus in the 

vicinities of Koro and Pala (Wacrenier, 1961). The 

deposits are on weathered kaolinitic clays and sand of 

Tertiary age. Gibbsite is the bauxite mineral present, 

and the deposits are about 50 percent A12O3. The 

resources of this grade bauxite have been estimated to 

be about 8 million tons. Total bauxite resources are

presumably as much as 30 million tons {Bardossy, 1964, 

table 2).

GHANA 

History and Production

Bauxite was discovered in Ghana in 1914 by Sir 

Albert Kitson, former Director of the Gold Coast 

Geological Survey (Cooper, 1936, p. 6), and mining 

began in 1940. Production rose to 168,000 tons in 1943. 

The average annual rate was about 141,000 tons during
B90 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

the 1950's. The peak annual production was 363,000 

tons in 1974 (table 6), and during all of the 1960's and 

1970's the annual production was greater than 200,000 

tons. Production fell to about 180,000 tons in 1980 and 

to little more than 64,000 tons in 1982. Most of the mining has been in the Kanaiyerebo (Awaso) deposits in the 

Affoh-Sefwi Bekwai district, which originally contained 

10.2 million tons of bauxite (Bracewell, 1962, p. 91). By 

the late 1960's, reserves in these deposits were depleted, 

and the Ichiniso deposits, which are also near Awaso, 

were opened (Doughman, 1971, p. 328). The bauxite was 

mined and exported to the United Kingdom by British 

Aluminium Company, Ltd. In 1973, the Government 

of Ghana acquired a 55-percent equity in the operations, 

and a jointly owned company, Ghana Bauxite Company, was formed.

The Government of Ghana has long been interested 

in developing other domestic bauxite deposits and in 

constructing an alumina plant to supply the smelter at 

Tema, and several groups have considered schemes. 

Perhaps the most thorough study was made by Bascol, 

a consortium of Kaiser Aluminum and Chemical Corp., 

which has a major interest in Volta Aluminum Company Ltd., and five Japanese companies. Bascol investigated the feasibility of an alumina plant supplied 

with bauxite from the Kibi deposits.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

Bauxite in Ghana is scattered across a belt 250 km 

long and 80 km wide, located 130-160 km north of the 

coast (fig. 19). The major groups of deposits are in the 

following areas: (1) Nyinahin, Ashanti Region, (2) 

Affoh-Sefwi Bekwai (includes Awaso), Western Region, 

(3) Asafo near Asempaneye, Western Region, (4) Mount 

Ejuanema near Nkawkaw, Eastern Region, and (5) 

Kibi-Atewa Range area, Eastern Region (Kesse, 1974, 

1984). The principal bauxite deposits in Ghana occur 

on flat-topped remnants of highly dissected plateaus, 

and they formed on several types of rocks. The deposits 

in the Ashanti and Western Regions rest on steeply dipping, folded and sheared phyllites, lavas, ashes, and 

tuffs of probable Precambrian age. These rocks locally 

contain grits, conglomerates, and granitic intrusions 

that weather to bauxite rich in silica or iron. The 

Ejuanema deposits and others in the Eastern Region 

formed on flat-bedded shales of Carboniferous age.

Nyinahin.—The bauxite deposits in the Nyinahin 

district, about 60 km west of Kumasi, are scattered 

through a belt 30 km long. The bauxite occurs on 

flat-topped, steep-sided hills at altitudes of 450-730 m. 

Kesse (1974, p. 11-43) described the deposits as being 

12-21 m thick and overlain by only a thin clayey

overburden. The bauxite is soft in the lower part and 

hard in the upper part, and most of it is pisolitic. The 

best grade bauxite is in low-iron deposits located in 

shallow basins in upland areas. These deposits are 

associated with peaty material, and iron has been 

removed by organic complexing. Gibbsite is the principal bauxite mineral present, but considerable quantities of boehmite occur in some deposits. Some of the 

gibbsite occurs as small crystals lining pore spaces and 

interstices between pisolites, but most of it is cryptocrystalline. Iron-free aggregates are nearly colorless, 

and iron-rich ones are dark red and brown. Impurities 

that have been identified in the bauxite include 

kaolinite, zircon, brookite, ilmenite, and rutile. Lava and 

phyllite are the principal rocks from which the bauxite 

has weathered.

When Kesse's (1974) report was written, the total 

measured and indicated bauxite on eight concessions 

in the Nyinahin district was 277 million tons. This total 

did not include deposits in large areas in the district that 

are known to contain bauxite but have not been investigated sufficiently to determine the quantities present. 

However, the total measured, indicated, and inferred 

bauxite in the district is estimated to be 350 million tons 

(Kesse, 1984, p. 574). The measured and indicated bauxite in the eight concessions is summarized as follows:

Measured and indicated bauxite resources in eight concessions,

Nyinahin district, Ghana 

[From Kesse (1974, p. 42); Do, ditto]

Concession Reserves 

(thousands of metric tons)

Grade 

(percent)

Measured Indicated SiO

Nyinahin 1 and 2

and south part

of Aya ......

Do ............

5 others ......

....... 101,403

....... 0

....... 0

0

0

0

0

0

33,376

52,121

17,069

19,812

32,004

22,047

44.4

47.1

49.3

51.0

49.4

48.9

50.2

2.5

2.3

2.5

4.4

2.8

3.1

3.9

Affoh-Sefwi Bekwai (Awaso) district— This bauxite 

district is located a short distance north of the town of 

Sefwi Bekwai and about 90 km northwest of Dunkwa. 

The deposits cap a group of hills at altitudes of 450- 

550 m. The ore has been mainly the trihydrate type, but 

about 9 percent of the total A12O3 in it was in the 

monohydrate form (Davies, Lloyd, and Macfie, 1974, 

p. 76). A typical analysis of this bauxite is as follows: 

51.64 percent A^Og, 1.28 percent SiO2, 17.43 percent

Fe2O3, 1.87 percent TiO2, and 27.78 percent LOI. Bracewell (1962, p. 91) reported that sufficient monohydrate
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B91

was present to warrant recycling at high temperatures 

and pressures after the alumina in trihydrate form had 

been removed.

The mineralogy of the bauxite mined at Awaso was 

also investigated by Trashliev and Stefanov (1974). 

These Soviet geologists found the bauxite to be chiefly 

gibbsite, which occurs in both crystalline and cryptocrystalline forms. Only a minor amount of boehmite 

was recognized, and it occurred mainly in lighter colored bauxite. Analyses of the raw and washed bauxite 

and waste reported by Trashliev and Stefanov (1974) 

follow:

Analyses, in percent, of raw and washed bauxite and waste from

Awaso, Ghana 

[From Trashliev and Stefanov (1974)]

SiO2 ................

Ti02 ................

A1203 ...............

£t O

Fe r2Ou3 ............... 

H20 ................

Raw

............. 2.60

............. 1.88

............. 52.54

............. 15.92

............. 27.03

............. 99.97

Washed

1.02

1.76

54.86

13.60

28.85

100.09

Waste

8.65

2.40

45.55

20.85

22.49

QQ Q4

The differences between the results of the two investigations may be that Davies, Lloyd, and Macfie 

(1974) listed an analysis typical of the deposits mined 

at Kanaiyerebo, whereas Trashliev and Stefanov (1974) 

reported on the Ichiniso deposits.

Kesse (1984, p. 574) listed the reserves in the Sefwi 

Bekwai (Awaso) district as 19 million tons.

Asafo district—The Asafo bauxite deposits occur in 

hills east of the Bia River 65 km northwest of Wiawso, 

which is about 165 km by road from Dunkwa. The best 

deposits apparently are about 8 km northeast of Asempaneye. Observed thicknesses of the bauxite range from 

7.5 to 11.5 m. Cooper (1936, p. 30) estimated the bauxite resources in the Asafo district at 25 million tons. 

About 80 percent of this bauxite contains 50 percent 

A12O3 and 20 percent Fe2O3, and more than half of it is 

even higher grade.

Mount Ejuanema district—The Mount Ejuanema 

bauxite deposits are on a flat highland along the escarpment of the faulted and dissected Kwahu plateau. They 

are at an altitude of about 750 m and are 525 m above 

the railway at Nkawkaw 3 km away. This town is 

180 km from the port at Accra. The bauxite has 

weathered from a bed of shale in the upper part of a 

thick section of sedimentary rocks of probable Carboniferous age. The following section, which is typical 

of the deposits in general, is a modification of Cooper's 

section (1936, p. 18), which was based on earlier work 

by Kitson (1925, p. 17-22).

Geologic section of bauxite in the Ejuanema district, Ghana 

[From Cooper (1936, p. 18)]

Thickness 

(meters)

Red soil (finely granular bauxite) .......

Massive bauxite boulders and blocks,

partly pisolitic ....................

Rubbly bauxite ......................

Bauxitic clay, grading downward through

partially altered shale into fresh shale .

1.7

3.8 

2.5

1.4

The deposits were estimated by Cooper (1936, p. 19) 

to contain only about 4 million tons, but they are high 

grade, and therefore an attempt was made to mine 

them. Cooper listed the mean of 17 samples analyzed 

as 60.55 percent A12O3, 9.75 percent Fe2O3, 2.21 percent TiO2 , 1.42 percent SiO2, and 25.59 percent H2O. 

In the attempt to mine the deposits during World War 

II a road was built from the district to the Nkawkaw 

railway station (Bracewell, 1962, p. 89).

Kibi-AtewaRange district—The Kibi-Atewa Range 

bauxite deposits occur on flat-topped summits of low 

mountains (Hunter, 1961). They overlie a complex group 

of rocks of Precambrian age including phyllite, clay, 

shale, graywacke, and basic intrusive rocks (Szabo, 

1973). The best grade bauxites in this district are 

residual deposits in the uplands. Low-grade bauxite also 

is associated with some of the better deposits and occurs on the slopes of plateaus. Local muddy swamps 

underlain by kaolin occur on the plateaus. The bauxite 

associated with such deposits is ordinarily low grade.

The bauxite reserves in the Kibi-Atewa Range 

district are estimated to be 152-180 million tons (Kesse, 

1984, p. 574).

Resources

Several estimates of the bauxite resources in Ghana 

have been made. Those the authors are aware of include 

the following: (1) Kibi-Atewa Range—120 million tons of 

high-grade bauxite (Michell, 1972, p. 34), 182 million tons 

(International Bauxite Association, 1977e, p. 33), and 300 

million tons (International Bauxite Association, 1977c), 

(2) Nyinahin district—150 million tons (Michell, 1972, 

p. 34), 350 million tons (Kesse, 1974, p. 42), and 580 

million tons (International Bauxite Association, 1977e, 

p. 33), (3) Awaso—20 million tons (International Bauxite Association, 1977e, p. 34), (4) Ejuanema district—4 

million tons (Cooper, 1936, p. 19), and (5) Asafo district—25 million tons (Cooper, 1936, p. 30). In addition, 

bauxite occurrences are known at several other localities 

in Ghana (Ghana Geological Survey, 1962, p. 9, 10).
B92 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Estimates for the total bauxite reserves in Ghana include the following: (1) 300 million tons (Societe 

Aluminium Pechiney, 1975, table 1), (2) 570 million tons 

(International Bauxite Association, 1976b, table 1), (3) 

590 million tons (Zambo, 1978, table 1), (4) 780 million 

tons (International Bauxite Association, 1977e, p. 33), 

(5) 520-550 million tons (Kesse, 1984, p. 474), and (6) 

450 million tons (Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, 

table 3). The total bauxite resources in Ghana are 

assumed to be 780 million tons, the estimate published 

by the International Bauxite Association in 1977.

GUINEA

History and Production

Guinea has the world's largest bauxite reserves. It 

produced 10.8 million tons in 1976 (table 6) and became 

the second ranking bauxite-producing country. Bauxite mine development in Guinea began on the lies de 

Los near Conakry in 1938 by the Societe Bauxite du 

Midi, a subsidiary of Alcan, but large-scale mining on 

the lies de Los did not begin until 1952.

Currently, all Guinea's bauxite comes from three large 

mining operations on the mainland. The Fria mine was 

the first of these to begin production. All of the bauxite from this mine has been used to supply an alumina 

plant at Kimbo, which began production in 1960. This 

operation, known as Friguia, is owned by the Government of Guinea (49 percent) and a consortium of foreign 

aluminum companies (51 percent). The annual capacity of the alumina plant is 700,000 tons, and bauxite production is 1.5 million-2 million tons.

In 1973, the Guinea Bauxite Company (CBG) began 

bauxite production at a mine in the Sangaredi district 

of the Boke region. CBG is also owned 49 percent by 

the Government and 51 percent by a consortium of 

foreign companies. The bauxite is transported 140 km 

by rail to the new port of Kamsar. CBG has facilities 

at Kamsar for crushing and drying metallurgical-grade 

bauxite and for calcining abrasive-grade bauxite 

(Hoppe, 1978). CBG was expected to produce bauxite 

at its rated capacity of 9 million tons by 1979.

A third producer, Office des Bauxites de Kindia 

(OBK), began mining bauxite at Debele in the Kindia 

district in 1974. OBK is owned entirely by the Government of Guinea; however, the U.S.S.R. provided financial and technical assistance in the construction and 

technical assistance in the operation of the project. 

Bauxite is shipped by rail approximately 100 km to Conakry for export, largely to the U.S.S.R. Production 

capacity was rated at 2.5 million tons per year (Wyllie, 

1976).

In addition to the active mining operations, several 

plans for the development of new bauxite deposits were 

under consideration. The Governments of Guinea, Saudi 

Arabia, Kuwait, Libya, Egypt, Iraq, and the United 

Arab Emirates have agreed to a joint venture to build 

a large bauxite-alumina complex based on the bauxite 

deposits at Aye Koye in the Boke region. Other proposals included the development of deposits in the 

Dabola and Tougue regions.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

The extensive bauxite deposits in Guinea occur mainly in Boke, Fria, Kindia, Tougue, and Dabola regions 

(fig. 20). The small high-grade deposits in the lies de 

Los are no longer mined. All of the deposits on the 

mainland are of the laterite type. The plateaus on which 

they occur range in elevations from about 1,200 m at 

Tougue, the farthest inland region, to about 300 m at 

Boke and Fria. The plateaus typically have open or 

brushy gently rolling uplands incised by wooded stream 

valleys. This type of country is known as "bowes" or 

the singular "bowal."

Fria. —The bauxite mined at Fria occurs near the junction of the Badi and Konkoure Rivers. In a brief outline 

published by the International Bauxite Association 

(1979), the bauxite is described as red earthy material 

containing hard lumps and crusts, and the deposits are 

8-12 m thick. The bauxite overlies and apparently 

formed on a dolerite sill. Gibbsite is the only bauxite 

mineral in the deposits (Mercier and Noble, 1974, 

p. 780). Most of the iron is in goethite, but hematite is 

common in the upper parts of deposits. Kaolinite is the 

principal clay mineral present. About one-third of the 

silica occurs as very fine grained quartz, and most of 

the remainder is in kaolinite. The bauxite contains about 

0.3-0.4 percent organic matter. The typical composition 

of the Fria bauxite is 48 percent A12O3, 2.5 percent 

SiO2, 21 percent Fe2O3, 2.2 percent TiO2, and 25 percent LOI.

The estimates of the bauxite reserves in the Fria 

district have increased considerably since the early exploration programs. The Annales des Mines (1958, 

p. 690) reported that 150 million tons had been found 

by drilling and test pitting on 150-m centers over an area 

of more than 1,240 hectares. Estimates increased in more 

recent years, and Charbonneaux's (1974, p. 566) figure 

was 500 million tons. This reserve estimate is apparently 

the official one of the Guinea Government (International 

Bauxite Association, 1979).

Boke region (Sangaredi and Aye Koye districts).— 

Boke is located on the tidal estuary of the Nunez River 

about 160 km north of Conakry. The very large bauxite
16°

WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES

12°

B93

50

I

100 MILES

50 100 KILOMETERS 

EXPLANATION

• Bauxite district 

Guinea-Bissau

1. Grand Boe

2. TransFefine

Republic of Guinea

3. lies de Los

4. Forecariah

5. Aye Koye, Boke

6. Sangaredi, Boke

7. Fria

8. Kindia-Debele

9. Teltmele

10. Gaoual

11. Pita

12. Labe

13. Tougue

14. Dabola

15. Dinguiraye

16. Siguiri

Sierra Leone

17. PortLoko

18. Mokanji Hills

19. Sierra Leone Peninsula

20. Krim-Kpaka Chiefdom

FIGURE 20.—Locations of bauxite districts and regions in Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, and Sierra Leone.
B94 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

deposits in this region are in the Sangaredi and Aye 

Koye districts in the drainage of the Congon River 

50-60 km northeast of Boke.

The bauxite occurs in the capping laterite layer of the 

bowes. The lower slopes of stream valleys between the 

bowes are generally covered by soil and forest, but 

laterite extends down into the valleys locally. Rock outcrops and boulders in the streams are chiefly gabbroic 

diabase that is believed to be part of a large diabase sill 

forming the parent rock of the laterite (Harder, 1952, 

p. 55). The diabase is fine grained and consists chiefly 

of andesine-labradorite, augite, and minor amounts of 

biotite and perthitic quartz-orthoclase intergrowths. 

Nearly horizontal thin-bedded sandstone and micaceous 

siltstone and shale of probable early Paleozoic age crop 

out in the Congon River and its deeper tributaries. 

These rocks presumably are part of the host rocks into 

which the diabase sill was intruded. Some of the bauxite also formed on sedimentary rocks such as those 

Balkay and Bardossy (1967) have observed at 

Kassongoni near Boke. At Kassongoni the bauxite 

overlies schist of Silurian age. Deposits in the Sangaredi 

district are reported to rest on weathered mixtures of 

schist and sandstone of Devonian or post-Devonian age, 

and the uppermost fresh rock under the bauxite is cordierite hornfels (Schmidt, 1984, p. 495).

The Sangaredi bauxite is unique because it is the 

thickest and highest grade deposit in the world. The 

average thickness of the bauxite is about 15 m, but 

locally deposits are nearly twice that thick. According 

to Akayemov (1975), the bauxite occurs in three layers 

or members. The upper member, which is 8.7-13 m 

thick, consists of alternating layers and lenses of poorly sorted rounded grains and pebbles of bauxite. The 

middle member is 8-19.5 m thick and consists of fairly 

well sorted gravelly bauxite. The lower member is 

2.5-13 m thick and consists of interbedded gravelly and 

clayey bauxite. The lower member rests with a sharp 

contact on Silurian siltstone. Gibbsite is the principal 

mineral in the bauxite, and boehmite is present in minor 

amounts. The latter tends to increase in abundance with 

depth; this tendency is the opposite of the trend in 

typical laterite-type deposits elsewhere.

Two samples of Boke (Sangaredi) bauxite were investigated by an Italian aluminum company (Landi and 

Casola, 1977). The samples are apparently representative of the bauxite produced in this district and have 

the following mineralogical composition: 83-86 percent 

gibbsite, 3.5-5.5 percent boehmite, approximately 1 percent kaolinite, 0.5-1.0 percent quartz, a trace of hematite, 5.5-6.5 percent goethite, 1 percent rutile, and 2 

percent anatase. The chemical composition of these 

samples was 59.09-59.62 percent total A12O3, of which 

3.00-4.50 was in monohydrate form; 0.74-0.86 percent

SiO2, of which approximately one half was reactive; 

4.93-5.92 percent Fe2O3; 3.31-3.47 percent TiO2; and 

30.56-30.99 percent LOI.

The age and origin of the Sangaredi deposit are still 

somewhat conjectural Bushinskiy (1975, p. 384) stated 

that the information now available suggests the 

deposits formed in about Oligocene and Miocene time. 

Akayemov (1975) concluded that the bauxite had been 

transported, on the basis of rounded pebbles and grains 

of gibbsite and boehmitic gibbsite and bedding. He 

believes deposition took place in lakes, lagoons, and 

coastal alluvial deposits. If this interpretation is correct, the deposits are quite different from the typical 

laterite-type bauxite elsewhere. Winnowing of impurities from gibbsite particles during transportation 

and rapid deposition of the particles may be the reasons 

for the high grade and uncommon thickness of the 

Sangaredi deposits.

Estimates of the bauxite reserves in the Sangaredi 

district include the following: (1) 150 million tons that 

is 60 percent A12O3 and 1.3 percent SiO2 found during 

exploratory drilling in 1948-1952 by Bauxites du Midi 

(Bushinskiy, 1975, p. 383), (2) 300 million tons (Charbonneaux, 1974, p. 568), (3) 420 million tons (Martens, 1971, 

p. 49), and (4) 120 million tons remaining after mining 

80 million tons (Schmidt, 1984, p. 496). Schmidt stated 

that this reserve was high grade and that an additional 

300 million tons of bauxite containing approximately 

10 percent less A12O3 than the Sangaredi deposits was 

present in the immediate vicinity. Furthermore, 

resources of such lower grade bauxite (approximately 

50 percent A12O3) occur in practically unlimited quantities within a radius of 10 km of Sangaredi.

Bauxite in the Aye Koy6 district is similar to the 

Sangaredi bauxite. In most of the Aye Koye district, 

the bauxite has formed from dolerite, but on one plateau 

bauxite grades down into weathered rock having 

sedimentary structures. The bauxite deposits are 

characterized by three zones. An upper zone, 2 m thick, 

is an iron-rich crust overlying massive bauxite about

3 m thick. The lowermost zone, which is approximately 5 m thick, consists of gravelly bauxite having lower 

A12O3 and higher Fe2O3 content than the massive 

bauxite. The average grade of an estimated nearly

4 billion tons of bauxite in the Aye Koye district is 

44-45 percent A12O3 and 1.7-2 percent SiO2 (Schmidt, 

1984, p. 496). About 1.1 billion tons of this bauxite is 

about 49.5 percent ALjOg and 1.5-1.7 percent SiO2. Investigations with closely spaced drilling have proved 

195 million tons of the higher grade bauxite.

The total estimates of bauxite reserves in the Boke 

region range broadly, depending on which authority is 

selected. Estimates of reserves were stated to be several 

hundred million tons in Annales des Mines (1958, p. 690)
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B95

and Mining Journal (1971b). Other sources listed 1 

billion tons that is 55 percent A12O3 (Bushinskiy, 1975, 

p. 383), more than 1 billion tons (Engineering and Mining Journal, 1967, p. 130), and 1.5 billion tons that is 

58 percent A12O3 (Charbonneaux, 1974, p. 568); two 

authorities (Hassan and Williams, 1969, p. 55) published 

an estimate of nearly 4 billion tons. The estimate of the 

Guinea Government published by the International 

Bauxite Association (1979, p. 38) is 2 billion tons that 

is 58-62 percent A12O3 and 0.8-1 percent SiO2 . 

Schmidt's (1984, p. 496) estimates are 120 million tons 

of high-grade bauxite plus 300 million tons of moderategrade bauxite within 10 km of Sangaredi. In addition 

the Aye Koye district contains nearly 4 billion tons of 

bauxite of which 1.1 billion tons is of moderate grade 

and 195 million tons have been proved by closely spaced 

drilling.

Dabola.— The town of Dabola is on the ConakryKankan railroad in central Guinea, about 400 km from 

the coast. Bauxite deposits in this region are on bowes 

between the Niger and Tinkisso Rivers. The deposits 

on the Oursa bowal near Dabola formed on diabase; 

elsewhere in this region laterite formed on mica schist 

(Lacroix, 1913, p. 283). Extensive drilling on the Oursa 

(Ouroussa) and Sinseri bowes a few kilometers north of 

Dabola (Moyal, 1956, p. 1062) and on other bowes 32 km 

east and about 50 km west of Dabola has revealed very 

large deposits of bauxite. The Yugoslav Energoproject, 

which has plans for mining in this district, is reported 

to have confirmed 425 million tons of high-grade bauxite in the Dabola district (International Bauxite 

Association, 1977d, p. 3). Total reserves in the Dabola 

district have been estimated to be as much as 1.5 billion 

tons (Michell, 1977, p. 55). The estimate of the Guinea 

Government for reserves in the Dabola district (International Bauxite Association, 1979, p. 38) is 1 billion 

tons that is 48-52 percent A12O3 and 2-3 percent SiO2.

lies de Los.— The exhausted bauxite deposits in the 

lies de Los consisted of an upper layer 1-3 m thick 

cemented by ferruginous material and an underlying red 

concretionary layer 5-10 m thick (Bonifas, 1959, 

p. 82-91). The concretionary layer, in turn, graded 

downward into fresh nepheline syenite, from which the 

bauxite had weathered, through a porous layer only 

5-10 cm thick. Gibbsite was the principal mineral in the 

deposits, but some hematite and anatase were also present. The washed bauxite from these deposits contained 

an average of 54 percent A12O3, 6 percent SiO2, 11 percent Fe2O3 , and 28 percent H2O.

Kindia including Debele.—The Kindia bauxite district 

centers around the town of that name located 120 km 

northeast of the capital and port city of Conakry. The 

deposits occur on scattered bowes, and bauxite is mined 

on the largest one, named Debel6 (Wyllie, 1976). The

Debele bauxite ranges in thickness from 3 to 12 m, and 

most of it is 6-8 m thick. Gibbsite is the principal bauxite mineral in the Kindia district (Kowalski, 1970). 

Minable bauxite in the Kindia district extends over 

areas having a total of 737 hectares (Annales des Mines, 

1958). The Debel6 deposit contains 41 million tons of 

bauxite (Wyllie, 1976). Available estimates for the bauxite reserves in the entire district are 85 million tons (Annales des Mines, 1958, p. 690) and 100 million tons 

(Martens, 1971, p. 49). The Debele bauxite has an 

average A12O3 content of 48 percent, and SiO2 ranges 

from 1 to a maximum of 3 percent (Wyllie, 1976). The 

estimate of the Guinea Government for the bauxite 

reserves in the Kindia district (International Bauxite 

Association, 1979, p. 38) is 200 million tons that is 

48-52 percent A12O3 and 2-3 percent SiO2. Schmidt's 

(1984, p. 498) estimate is that the Kindia district 

originally contained 100 million tons of bauxite, and, 

considering present-day production of about 2.5 million 

tons annually, the district contained about 75 million 

tons of bauxite in 1984.

Tougue. —The extensive Tougu6 district is in central 

Guinea (fig. 20) about 100 km north of Dabola. Lateritetype bauxite deposits in this district occur as cappings 

of several dozen bowes having a total area of about 

1,000 km2 (Bushinskiy, 1975, p. 382).

Estimates of bauxite reserves in the Tougu6 district 

range widely. Bushinskiy (1975, p. 382) noted that 

reserves of 1,526 million tons are present on six bowes 

and the predicted reserves are 4 billion tons. Other 

reserve estimates for the Tougu6 district include 2 

billion tons (Mining Journal, 197 Ib, p. 185) and 3 billion 

tons (Michell, 1977, p. 55). The estimate of the Guinea 

Government for the bauxite reserves in the Tougu6 

region (International Bauxite Association, 1979, p. 38) 

is 4 billion tons that is 47-52 percent A12O3 and 3- 

4 percent SiO2. Schmidt (1984, p. 498-499) stated that 

investigation in the Tougu6 region in 1956-58 discovered reserves of more than 1 billion tons of bauxite, and 

reserves in both the Tougu6 and Dabola regions have 

a total of about 2.5 billion tons of which 500 million tons 

can be considered higher grade.

The parent rock of the bauxite is assumed to be 

dolerite (Schmidt, 1984, p. 498); however, sandstone and 

schist are known to be present in the region. A typical 

profile of the bauxite consists of a top layer of cemented 

bauxite blocks several meters thick that is overlain only 

by a thin soil. The middle layer is similar to the top one 

except the bauxite blocks are smaller. The lowermost 

zone is dark-reddish-brown, fine-grained bauxite containing some gravel in the upper part. The average 

thickness of the bauxite is about 8 m. Bauxite on the 

Pontiola plateau near the town of Tougu6 has average 

contents of 47 percent A12O3 and 2 percent SiO2.
B96 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Other districts.—In addition to the bauxite districts 

summarized in foregoing sections, bauxite is known to 

occur at several other places. Bauxite reserves were 

listed in a report on Guinea published by the International Bauxite Association (1979) for the districts listed 

in the following table:

Bauxite reserves and analyses for five districts in Guinea

[From International Bauxite Association (1979). Reserves in millions of tons;

analyses in percent]

District Reserves A10OQ Si00

Pita ..................

Forecariah .............

........... 200

........... 60

........... 30

........... 10

........... 200

48-52

45-48

45-48

44-47

58-60

2-3

3-4

3-4

4-5

1-2

In addition to these districts, bauxite is reported to 

have been investigated in the Labe and Telimele 

districts under the direction of the Guinea Ministry of 

Mines and Geology (U.S. Embassy, Conakry, Guinea, 

State Department Airgram A-004, January 13,1977).

Resources

In this report the bauxite reserves in Guinea are considered to be 5.6 billion tons as estimated by the U.S. 

Bureau of Mines (Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, 

table 3). The total bauxite resources are probably at 

least in the 8- to 10-billion-ton range. Although the 

Guinea Government submitted an estimate of 8.2 billion 

tons for the bauxite reserves in this country to the International Bauxite Association (1979), the estimate is 

conservative. Schmidt (1984) noted the presence of 4 

billion tons in the Aye Koye district, 80 million tons of 

high-grade and 300 million tons of lower grade bauxite 

in the Sangaredi district plus practically unlimited 

quantities of bauxite within a 10-km radius of this 

district, and 2.5 billion tons of bauxite in the TougueDabola region. Lotze's (1984, table 4) estimate of the 

bauxite in Guinea is developed and undeveloped 

reserves—4.555 billion tons and potential bauxite in 

developed and undeveloped districts—14.240 billion 

tons, and the total is 18.795 billion tons. In this report 

the total bauxite resources in Guinea are assumed to 

be 8 billion-10 billion tons.

GUINEA-BISSAU

In Guinea-Bissau laterite-type bauxite, which is considered to be an extension of the deposits in the Boke

region of Guinea, occurs in the Grand Boe and the Trans 

Fefine regions. The Grand Boe region is between the 

Corubal River and the Guinea border mainly northeast 

of the town of Madina. The second region is farther eastnortheast on the far side of the Fefine River.

The bauxite deposits rest on dolerite sills that overlie 

impure sandstone (Hose, 1960, p. 239). The laterite was 

described by Weisse (1954, p. 176) as consisting of a 

hard cemented surficial layer 2-3 m thick overlying a 

brick-red vesicular layer 10-12 m thick. These two 

layers are separated from the underlying weathered 

dolerite by a clayey concretionary layer and a bleached 

clay zone having a total thickness of 3-5 m. Gibbsite 

is the principal mineral in the deposits, but some 

boehmite is also present, as identified by differential 

thermal analysis. Mottled bauxite from these deposits 

contains 53.73-53.82 percent A12O3, 0.89-1.25 percent 

SiO2, 14.87-16.40 percent Fe2O3 , 1.68-1.79 percent 

TiO2, and 26.24-28.74 percent LOI; a white bauxite 

contains 63.42 percent A12O3 (Weisse, 1954, p. 177).

N.V. Billiton Maatschappij is reported to have explored bauxite deposits in the Grand Boe region of 

Guinea-Bissau in the late 1950's. According to 

newspaper accounts, 120 million tons of bauxite were 

found. Of this amount, 24 million tons, presumably the 

best grade, contained 47 percent A12O3 and 3 percent 

SiO2. Recent preliminary studies by foreign experts 

have suggested that as much as 500 million tons of 

moderate- and low-grade bauxite is present in the Grand 

Boe and Trans Fefine regions (U.S. Embassy, Bissau, 

Guinea-Bissau, State Department Airgram A-01, 

March 1, 1977). All of the bauxite in Guinea-Bissau is 

presently considered to be subeconomic because of the 

economic uncertainties about mining it.

IVORY COAST

Small laterite-type bauxite deposits have been 

discovered on isolated plateaus at many localities in 

Ivory Coast (Zanone, 1971). The districts in which the 

bauxite has been found include Bongouanou, Toumodi, 

Divo, Sassandra-Lakota, and Tabou. The deposits are 

mainly gibbsite, but most contain minor quantities of 

boehmite. Apparently the best grade and largest 

deposits are in the Benene district, which is approximately 170 km north of Abidjan. These deposits are 

estimated to contain 10.7 million tons of bauxite that 

is 50 percent A12O3 (Zanone, 1971, p. 95). As Benene is 

smaller than some of the other districts, the total 

subeconomic bauxite resources in Ivory Coast is probably at least 3 or 4 times the total in this district.

The only published estimates of bauxite resources in 

Ivory Coast found by the authors were the 10.7 million
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B97

tons in the Benene district (Zanone, 1971) and one for 

10 million tons proved, 100 million tons estimated having the total of 110 million tons (Zamb6,1978, table 1). 

Inasmuch as the basis for Zambo's estimate is 

unknown, the subeconomic bauxite resources in Ivory 

Coast are assumed to be 10 million tons in this report 

(table 12).

MADAGASCAR

Pechiney, the French aluminum company, evaluated 

bauxite deposits at Manantenina and elsewhere along 

the southeastern coast of Madagascar. The deposits in 

the Manantenina region occur on weathered leptynite, 

gneiss, and cordierite-bearing granite (Balcet, 1966). 

Deposits farther north are on weathered basalts. 

Weathering in most areas has progressed to depths of 

10-20 m. Most of the bauxite is intermixed with clay. 

The following average partial composition of the 

>1.6-mm fraction of bauxite from four test pits is given 

in the Balcet article: total SiO2—11 percent, combined 

SiO2—1.7 percent, total A12O3—50.1 percent, reactive 

A12O3 [recoverable by Bayer process]—46 percent, 

Fe2O3—8.9 percent. Deposits investigated by Pechiney 

were estimated to be 75 million tons (Mining Journal, 

1971a, p. 82). Presumably, this estimate applies to the 

tonnage that can be recovered by washing, as another 

estimate (Mining Journal, 1970, p. 427) lists the total 

as 100 million tons.

Bauxite deposits also occur at several places in 

Madagascar (Besairie, 1960, 1962, 1964) other than in 

the Manantenina region. Ferruginous bauxite deposits 

on the Analavory and Marangaka plateaus at altitudes 

of 1,460 to 1,680 m are 0.5-6.3 m thick (Emberger, 

1957). The deposits overlie granitic rocks from which 

they presumably have weathered. Much of the bauxite 

is in irregular porous and pisolitic ferruginous concretions scattered throughout fine-grained ferruginous 

rock; however, massive bauxite blocks are also present. 

The Analavory deposits are estimated to contain 4 million tons that is 54 percent A12O3, and the Marangaka 

deposits contain 40 million tons that is 38 percent 

A12O3 (Besairie, 1960). Very ferruginous bauxite deposits occur at several places on the Tampoketsa plateau 

(Hottin, 1960). Some of these deposits are on basalt, and 

others on sedimentary rocks. Much of this bauxite contains only 36-38 percent A12O3, but scattered deposits 

contain as much as 50 percent A12O3. Ankazobe deposits are estimated to contain approximately 800,000 tons, 

those at Fenoarivo 3.8 million tons, and the Analamaitso deposits as much as 5 million tons of bauxite.

The potential bauxite resources in Madagascar are 

estimated to be 200 million tons by the Societe

Aluminium Pechiney (1975, table 1). All of these 

resources are considered subeconomic in the absence of 

plans to mine them.

MALAWI

Bauxite has been found in several places in Malawi. 

The largest and best deposits and the only ones in this 

country that are considered to contain possible commercial bauxite are on the Lichenya plateau in the Mlanje 

Mountains. These deposits were investigated by the 

Malawi (formerly Nyasaland) Geological Survey in the 

1950's (Cooper, 1957) and again by industry in the 

1969-72 period (Manos, 1977). The other localities in 

which bauxite is known to occur in Malawi include the 

Chambe, Sombani, and Little Ruo plateaus, the Sombani and Ruo valleys, the flanks of Manene Hill (Dixey, 

1925), and the Zomba and Nyika plateaus (Manos, 

1977).

The bauxite on the Lichenya plateau is the laterite 

type formed on syenite cut by granite intrusions and 

by pegmatite dikes and veins (Cooper, 1957). Gibbsite 

is the principal aluminous mineral in these deposits 

(Stephen, 1963), and it occurs in fine grains that are intermixed with kaolin minerals, quartz, and feldspar, as 

well as goethite, ilmenite, and several other heavy 

minerals. Quartz is particularly abundant where the 

bauxite is derived from pegmatite veins.

The Lichenya deposits were estimated to contain approximately 60 million tons of bauxite (Cooper, 1957, 

p. 15-16). The average partial composition of 250 

analyses is 42.73 percent A12O3, 13.93 percent Fe2O3 , 

and 1.57 percent TiO2 ; the bauxite contains 15.65 percent quartz and 2.2 percent other silicates. Investigations of these deposits between 1969 and 1972, which 

include test pitting and drilling, were reported to have 

proved a reserve of 28.8 million tons. These so-called 

reserves are reported (Manos, 1977) to contain 43.7 percent A12O3, 13.3 percent free quartz, 2.2 percent combined silica, 14.2 percent Fe2O3 , 1.8 percent TiO2 , and 

24.6 percent LOI. In this report, the Lichenya deposits 

are considered to be subeconomic resources because of 

the absence of active plans to develop them.

MALI

Ferruginous laterites are present in many plateau 

areas in the western part of Mali, and bauxite deposits 

occur along the River Niger. One old report (France 

Bureau d'Etudes Geologiques et Minieres Coloniales, 

1933) describes bauxite deposits near Koulouba, Kita, 

the Bassaro Plateau, M'Pebougou, along the River
B98 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Niger, near Segou, and at Quenkoro. Deposits from 

M'Pebougou reportedly contain 70-75 percent A12O3 , 

1-2.6 percent SiO2, and 2.0-2.8 percent Fe2O3 . Some of 

the laterites along the River Niger are alluvial deposits 

(Jodot, 1934). The bauxite near Koulouba and Segou is 

chiefly in pisolites of boehmite, but some gibbsite is also 

present (Lapparent and Hocart, 1938). Exploration in 

the 1950's resulted in the discovery of a deposit in the 

Fantofa plateau area where the bauxite is reported to 

contain 45 percent A12O3 (Wilmot, Sullivan, and 

Trought, 1960, p. 238).

The total low-grade (39-44 percent A12O3 ) bauxitic 

later!te in parts of Mali near the Guinea border was 

estimated to be 550 million tons (De Kun, 1965, p. 79). 

A brief note (U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1973a, p. 1036) indicates that the French Bureau de Recherches Geologiques et Minieres and the Societe Aluminium Pechiney 

were studying the deposits in western Mali. The region 

is thought to contain 820 million tons of bauxite that 

is 40 percent A12O3 , and most of it has less than 4 percent SiO2. Ibtal potential bauxite resources in Mali 

were estimated to be 1 billion tons by the Societe 

Aluminium Pechiney (1975, table 1). According to a 

report of a study released by the Malian Ministry of 

Mines (U.S. Embassy, Bamako, Mali State Department, 

telegram 02286, July 1,1977), the total bauxite reserves 

in this country are estimated to be approximately 880 

million tons. All this bauxite is considered to be 

subeconomic because of its remote location.

MOZAMBIQUE

The bauxite deposits in the mountainous region along 

the border of Mozambique and Zimbabwe continue to 

be mined on a small scale (Soares-Rebelo, 1972). This 

bauxite is exported and used mainly in making refractory products; South Africa has been the leading purchaser in recent years.

The bauxite occurs at altitudes of nearly 2,000 m near 

Penhalonga, Zimbabwe It is in the form of gibbsite intermixed with aluminous clay. The rock containing the 

bauxite is weathered to depths of more than 30 m. The 

average chemical composition of bauxite mined to 1941 

was 61 percent A12O3 , 10 percent SiO2, and 1-2 percent 

Fe2O3 (Colin, 1942, p. 329); other analyses published by 

the Southern Rhodesia Geological Survey (Rhaup, 1937, 

p. 79) report that nodules of this grade are present. The 

reserves of bauxite in the Penhalonga deposits are 2.4 

million tons, according to an old estimate (Colin, 1942, 

p. 331). Presumably more deposits have been discovered 

since that estimate was made.

Bauxite was found in the Mauzo Mountains in central Mozambique by the Mozambique Services de 

Geologia e Minas (Afonsos and Pinto, 1977).

SIERRA LEONE

Bauxite mining began in Sierra Leone in 1963 when 

10,000 tons were shipped by the Sierra Leone Ore and 

Metal Co., a subsidiary of Suisse Aluminum Industrie 

AG. The total tonnage mined from the first shipment 

through 1982 was more than 10 million tons (table 6).

All bauxite mining prior to 1982 was in the Mokanji 

Hills district in the Moyamba region. In 1982 most of 

the mining activity was shifted to the Gondama district, 

which is about 35 km southeast of Mokanji Hills. After 

the Gondama mines were opened, the only mining in 

Mokanji was small lots on special requests (Schmidt, 

1984, p. 489). The bauxite in both districts is sufficiently 

soft that it can be loaded with hydraulic shovels without 

blasting, although ripping is required for the removal 

of some hard zones. The bauxite is crushed, washed, 

screened, and trucked to Nitti, which is on tidal water.

The major bauxite deposits in Sierra Leone have 

formed from the Precambrian Kasila Series. This series 

forms a belt parallel to the coast with a strike in a northwesterly direction. Rocks within the series on which 

most of the bauxite rests are granulites containing 

feldspar, garnet, pyroxene, and andalusite. The parent 

rock resembles granite.

The bauxite in the Mokanji Hills occurs in lenticular 

bodies (50-200 m wide and 400-1,000 m long). Deposits 

occur in parallel channels 5-20 m thick that wedge in 

and out irregularly (Schmidt, 1984). The extent and 

orientation of deposits is apparently controlled by 

drainage conditions. In places good bauxite is terminated on fresh rock, and big bauxite boulders commonly contain unaltered cores of parent rock. The 

bauxite ranges from light yellow to reddish brown, and 

color depends on the content of mafic minerals in the 

parent rock. The lighter colored bauxite is the best 

grade. Beneficiated bauxite from this district is pure 

trihydrate ore containing 55-57 percent A12O3 and 

about 4.5 percent SiO2. It is exceptionally low in 

titanium minerals as it contains less than 0.4 percent 

Ti02.

The bauxite in the Gondama district is considerably 

more uniform and less jointed than deposits in the 

Mokanji Hills. Some blanket-shaped deposits are as 

much as 400 m wide and 1,000 m long. Thicknesses vary 

from 2 to 18 m, and the average is about 9 m. Some of 

the bauxite is intermixed with soft kaolin layers, and 

this clay also occurs in cracks. Beneficiated bauxite from 

the Gondama deposits is also the pure trihydrate type 

containing 53-55 percent A12O3, 2.5-3 percent SiO2, 

10-13 percent Fe2O3, and 0.7-0.9 percent TiO2.

Although scattered bauxite deposits had been found 

in the Port Loko district earlier, the potential of this 

district was not recognized until the 1970's. Bauxite in
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B99

the district has also formed from the feldspathic rocks 

in the Kasila Series. Bauxite deposits in this district 

range widely in grade and shape. They occur in 

numerous isolated lenses. Deposits of value range from 

50 to 500 m in width and from 100 to 500 m in length. 

The overburden is soft dark soil containing lateritic 

gravel that ranges in thickness from 0.5 to 5 m. Bauxite thicknesses range from 2 to 15 m, and the average 

is 7 m. Due to high contents of kaolin impurities, 

recovery from washing will be low. The beneficiated 

bauxite is expected to be about 47 percent A12O3 , 

4 percent SiO2, 21.5 percent Fe2O3 , and 1.9 percent 

TiO2. The Port Loko district straddles a railroad 

extending from the Marampa iron ore district to the 

deep-water harbor 15 km from the bauxite district. 

According to Schmidt (1984, p. 493), there is no doubt 

that the Port Loko bauxite will be mined when economic 

conditions become favorable, and it is likely to be used 

in a local alumina plant.

Bauxite deposits in Sierra Leone, mentioned in the 

Annual Reports of the Sierra Leone Geological Survey 

Department, other than those in the Mokanji Hills, 

Gondama, and Port Loko districts, are in the following 

areas: (1) Gbonge, located about 40 km southeast of the 

Mokanji Hills. These deposits are along the strike of 

the same feldspathic Kasila Series that is the parent 

rock of the deposits mined in the Mokanji Hills. (2) The 

Sierra Leone Peninsula, where deposits were prospected 

by geologists of the British Aluminium Company. (3) 

The Krim-Kpaka chiefdom, where some of the deposits 

are on feldspathic gneiss that is weathered to depths 

of 10-12 m. Others near Lake Mabesi are under about 

1.5 m of loose soil and extend to depths of as much as 

8 m. (4) An inland region located along the Guinea 

border, where a mineral map of Sierra Leone (Sierra 

Leone Geological Survey Department, 1975) shows high 

bauxite potential.

Bauxite reserves (beneficiated basis) in Sierra Leone 

are as follows: Mokanji district—2 million tons, Gondama district—10 million tons and an additional 5 

million tons indicated, and Port Loko district—104 

million tons (Schmidt, 1984, p. 489-492). The U.S. 

Bureau of Mines (Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, 

table 3) gives an estimate of 140 million tons for the 

bauxite reserves in Sierra Leone, which is the same 

estimate used by Shaffer (1983, table 5) for the total 

bauxite in this country.

SOUTH AFRICA

South Africans have been searching for a suitable 

domestic raw material for aluminum (McColloch, 1967). 

Several different types of rock including diaspore,

syenite, anorthosite, clay, and scattered occurrences of 

lateritic bauxite have been investigated (Brabers, 1974). 

The first discovery of significant bauxite in South 

Africa was announced (Chamber of Mines Journal, 1976; 

Industrial Minerals, 1976), and it was suggested that 

the deposits may be large enough to be a source of 

alumina for the smelter at Richards Bay. The bauxite 

occurs in the Nome region in north-central Natal, the 

Karkloof district in central Natal, and near Weza in 

southern Natal. The deposits are the laterite type 

formed by the weathering of dolerite of Jurassic age. 

Nine samples from the Karkloof district investigated 

by Bredell (1983, table 1) range from 51.9 to 62.4 percent gibbsite. The potential bauxite resources near the 

town of Weza were reported to be 15-20 million tons 

(Industrial Minerals, 1977b). According to Shaffer 

(1983, table 5), the total bauxite resources in South 

Africa are estimated to be 70 million tons.

UPPER VOLTA

(now Burkina Faso)

Bauxite deposits occur on many plateaus in the central and western parts of Upper Volta (Upper Volta 

Direction de la Geologic et des Mines, 1970). In the 

Kaya-Kongoussi area, 10 hills with about 1 million-1.5 

million tons each of bauxite that is very rich in A12O3 

have been reported. In the western region, surveys have 

discovered the occurrence of bauxite near Sabi, Diekui, 

and Kono (U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1973b, p. 1057). A 

deposit containing 6 million tons of bauxite is reported 

95 km north of Ouagadougou (U.S. Bureau of Mines, 

1972, p. 998). Total resources of bauxite, all of which 

are in the subeconomic category, are probably more 

than 20 million tons.

ZAIRE

The principal bauxite deposits in Zaire are located in 

the Sumbi district (Zaire Department des Mines, 1975), 

and occurrences have been reported in the northern and 

northeastern part of the country. The Sumbi district, 

which is referred to as the Mayumbe region in some 

reports, is located 50-75 km north-northwest of the falls 

on the Zaire (formerly Congo) River at Inga. The bauxite occurrences in the other regions include those noted 

in the Basoko and Niangara areas (Vanderstappen and 

Cornil, 1955) and on weathered granitic rocks on a 

remote high plateau bounded by the Ituri, Bima, and 

Rubi Rivers (Sluys, 1946).

The deposits in the Sumbi district were investigated 

by the Societ6 de Recherches et d'Exploration des
B100 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Bauxites du Congo (Bracewell, 1962, p. 167) and by 

Belgian geologists (Stas, 1959; Grosemans, 1959). The 

bauxite has formed on mafic lavas and consists principally of gibbsite, goethite, and kaolinite. According 

to Stas (1959), only a small part of it contains more than 

40 percent A12O3; SiO2 is commonly in the 5-10 percent range, and Fe2O3 is 15-20 percent. Large porous 

blocks in some deposits are 0.5 percent SiO2, 36.9 percent Fe2O3 , and 42.6 percent A12O3 .

The Society Aluminium Pechiney (1975, table 1) gave 

an estimate of 200 million tons for potential bauxite in 

Zaire. This estimate is apparently for the resources in 

the Sumbi district, because the authors have found no 

reports on detailed studies of bauxite in the remote 

northern and northeastern parts of Zaire, where large 

regions are favorable for the discovery of bauxite. All 

bauxite in Zaire is considered to be subeconomic in this 

report because of low alumina and high iron contents. 

However, opinions have been expressed that the Sumbi bauxite might be suitable for treatment by the 

Pedersen process (Bracewell, 1962, p. 167). Interest in 

these deposits will no doubt increase if the power potential at Inga Falls is ever developed.

ZIMBABWE

Alumina-rich clays, gibbsite-rich nodules, and laterite 

occur in Zimbabwe on the slopes of ridges along the 

Zimbabwe-Mozambique border and in the area north of 

Umtali. Deposits north of Penhalonga are unsuitable 

for refractory brick but can be used for aluminum 

sulfate. One partial chemical analysis (South African 

Mining and Engineering Journal, 1941) listed 64.91 percent A12O3 , 5.86 percent silica, and 1.09 percent iron.

A geochemical profile described by Grubb (1973, 

fig. 4E) indicates that bauxite at Mountain Home in the 

Penhalonga district is more than 20 m thick. Gibbsite 

is the only bauxite mineral present, and the deposits 

contain minor quantities of kaolinite. The upper parts 

of the deposits are rich in hematite and goethite, and 

quartz and muscovite are abundant at depth. According 

to an old report (Rhodesian Mining Journal, 1957), 2 

million tons of bauxite occur near the Southampton 

mine about 7 km north of Umtali. Shaffer (1983, table 

5) listed an estimate of 5 million tons for the total bauxite resources in Zimbabwe.

Diaspore is mined on a small scale in the Nuanetsi 

district and sold as a fluxing material in the ferroalloy 

industry (Grubb, 1976). The diaspora occurs mainly in 

cryptocrystalline nodules associated with quartz, 

kaolinite, and goethite. It overlies the Karoo shale but 

is near intrusive dolerite and probably formed by 

metamorphism of the products of lateritic weathering.

OTHER AFRICAN COUNTRIES

Bauxite deposits in Liberia occur near Zigida in the 

Western Province (now Lofa County) and in the 

Careysburg district in the Central Province (now Montserrado County) (Bracewell, 1962, p. 171). According to 

Bushinskiy (1975, p. 381), bauxite and laterite occur 

below Eocene lavas on the Ahuggar heights in Algeria. 

Martens (1971, table 8) lists probable bauxite resources 

of 50 million tons for Sudan, but he gives no details on 

location or source of information. Extensive laterite 

deposits in Nigeria were reconnoitered for bauxite by 

the British Aluminium Company (Bracewell, 1962, 

p. 94); however, no valuable bauxite was discovered. The 

occurrence of bauxitic material on the Seychelles 

Islands has been known for many years (Bauer, 1898), 

but these deposits reportedly have very little economic 

value (Fox, 1932, p. xxix). Bauxite has been discovered 

on Baumann (Agu) Mountain in Togo (Robertson, 1921, 

p. 40-41), about 95 km northwest of the port of Lome. 

This bauxite contains 46-53 percent A12O3 and 18- 

30 percent Fe2O3 (Arnaud, 1945, p. 84). Low-grade 

lateritic bauxite has been reported in Uganda in the 

Northern and Eastern Provinces and Buganda (Uganda Geological Department, 1921, p. 54), and diaspore 

occurs on Kaweri Island in Lake Kyogo (Bisset, 1943, 

p. 18). Deposits of ceramic-grade diaspore and 

pyrophyllite containing 51.7 percent A12O3 occur in 

Swaziland (De Kun, 1965, p. 308). Aluminous deposits 

in the Phalaborwa area have been explored, but no large 

deposits of bauxite have been found (Mining Journal, 

1965, p. 185). Most of these deposits are probably ferruginous laterites and have little value as bauxite. Very 

large deposits of weathered aluminous phosphatic rocks 

in Senegal have been called laterite (Bruckner, 1957, 

p. 248-250); however, this rock is quite different in composition from typical laterites. Large areas favorable 

for bauxite in the Tanganyika region of Tanzania have 

only been partly explored. Several small deposits have 

been reported, and the outlook is favorable for additional discoveries. The best bauxite that has been 

reported (Teale and Gates, 1946, p. 70-71) is on the 

Usambra highlands near the town of Amani, which is 

about 80 km west of the port of Tanga. At this locality, the bauxite overlies hornblende-pyroxene granulite 

and garnet-biotite-pyroxene gneiss. One of three 

samples from Amani that were analyzed (Teale and 

Gates, 1946, p. 71) contained 57.7 percent A12O3, 10.53 

percent SiO2 , 1.15 percent Fe2O3, 1.66 percent TiO2, 

and 26.8 percent H2O, but the other two samples were 

high in SiO2 and low in A12O3. Small bauxite deposits 

occur in Luanda, Angola (Peterson and Arbelbide, 1983, 

table A-4).
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B101

SUMMARY OF BAUXITE RESOURCES IN AFRICA

The total bauxite reserves in Africa are estimated to 

be about 7 billion tons (rounded), and the continent's 

resources (reserves plus subeconomic and undiscovered 

resources) are thought to be in the 15- to 20-billion-ton 

range. The reserves in the principal bauxite-producing 

countries are as follows: Guinea—5.6 billion tons, 

Ghana—450 million tons, and Sierra Leone—140 million 

tons. At least 2 million tons of reserves and probably 

considerably more is present in Mozambique, where 

bauxite is mined for nonmetallurgical uses. Cameroon 

is considered to have 680 million tons of bauxite 

reserves, because of the continuing efforts to develop 

domestic deposits. The principal subeconomic deposits, 

which are estimated to have a total of 5-7 billion tons, 

are located in the countries that have large reserves, and 

in Guinea-Bissau, Malawi, Mali, Madagascar, and Zaire. 

It is virtually certain that additional bauxite deposits 

will be discovered in African countries known to have 

bauxite, and the total subeconomic and undiscovered 

bauxite is probably in the 8- to 13-billion-ton range.

ASIA (EXCLUDING U.S.S.R.)

Extensive deposits of bauxite occur in India, the People's Republic of China, and Indonesia (United Nations 

Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East, 1963); 

deposits of small or moderate size occur in Turkey, 

peninsular Malaysia, Pakistan, and Vietnam; and lowgrade laterite is common on some of the islands in the 

Philippines. In addition, large areas of Southeast Asia 

lie in the tropics, and many extensive areas favorable 

for bauxite have not been explored adequately. Accordingly, significant bauxite discoveries may be made in 

the future in Kampuchea and Laos, as well as in countries in which bauxite is now known to occur. Bauxite 

is now mined for aluminum in India, Indonesia, 

Malaysia, Turkey, and the People's Republic of China. 

Small tonnages of bauxite were mined in Sarawak, 

Malaysia, until deposits were exhausted in 1965. Some 

bauxite was produced in Vietnam during World War II; 

minor quantities of bauxite in Pakistan have been used 

in making cement and for other nonmetallic uses.

INDIA

History and Production

The existence of bauxite at many places in India has 

long been known (Roy Chowdhury, 1974). Mining for 

nonmetallurgical uses began about 1910. During the

1940's, two Indian aluminum companies began to mine 

bauxite in the Rancht district, Bihar, for the recovery 

of alumina. The yearly bauxite production reached 

387,000 tons in 1960, and by 1970 the output had increased to more than 1.3 million tons (table 6). Bihar, 

Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat are the 

leading producing states, and bauxite is mined in four 

other states. According to the Indian Bureau of Mines 

(1974, table 11-38), 12 companies are mining bauxite. 

Most of the bauxite mined is used for metallurgical purposes; however, in 1970 the nonmetallurgical uses included 61,609 tons for refractories, 43,630 tons for 

chemicals, 56,388 tons for cement, 14,143 tons for iron 

and steel flux, and 14,437 tons for ceramics, abrasives, 

foundry uses, paints, and other uses (Indian Bureau of 

Mines, 1974, table 11-38). A few thousand tons of 

diaspore is also produced in India for refractory uses 

each year.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

All but a few bauxite deposits in India are the laterite 

type. They occur mainly as blanket deposits on extensive high plateaus and as capping on the Hill ranges 

of peninsular India and on scattered lower inland 

plateaus and coastal lowlands (Roy Chowdhury and 

Venkatesh, 1972). Many of the laterite cappings are indurated, and in several districts significant bauxite 

resources occur as talus of laterite blocks on the slopes 

on the edges of the plateaus. Most of the higher plateau 

deposits are at altitudes of approximately 1,000 m; the 

lower ones are at altitudes of 250-300 m. The major 

high-level deposits occur mainly in the following regions 

(fig. 21): (1) the plateau bordering the states of Bihar 

and Madhya Pradesh, (2) Maikala Range in Madhya 

Pradesh, (3) Western Ghats, and (4) East Coast bauxite province, Andhra Pradesh and Orissa. The principal 

low-level deposits are in the Katni area, Madhya 

Pradesh; the Saurashtra and Kutch districts, Gujarat; 

the Kolaba district, Maharashtra; and coastal areas of 

Karnataka (Mysore) and Goa.

Gibbsite is the principal mineral in the laterite-type 

bauxite deposits, but minor quantities of boehmite are 

present in many deposits (Roy Chowdhury and Venkatesh, 1972, p. 83). Cliachite is apparently also present 

in some deposits. Kaolinite, hematite, anatase, and 

rutile are the principal mineral impurities in several 

deposits, and many other minerals occur in minor 

quantities.

Contents of silica and iron oxides in Indian bauxites 

vary considerably. Most of the high-level deposits are 

low in silica and rich in iron, but there are several exceptions. Typical deposits in southern India are 10-20
B102 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

70° 80° 90° 100°

30°

' ^Bffl***»«»«

3UJARAT ^\

,- -

MADHYA PRADESH

250 500 KILOMETERS

India

1. Punch

2. Riasi

3. Kutch

4. Saurashtra

5. Banda

6. Jabalpur

7. Mandla and Balaghat

8. Raigarh

9. Bilaspur and Shahdol

10. Surguja (Ambikapur)

11. Ranch! and Palamau

12. Monghyr

13. Kolaba

14. Kolhapur

15. Belgaum

16. Goa

17. South Kanara

18. Cannanore

19. Alleppey and Quilon

20. Trivandrum

21. Salem

Pakistan

22. Ziarat

23. Sargodha-Khushab, Salt Range

24. KotliTehsil

25. Campbellpore, Kala Chitta Range

26. Muzaffarabad

FIGURE 21.—Locations of bauxite districts in India and Pakistan.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES BIOS

percent SiO2 , whereas most deposits on the Central Indian Plateaus (Deccan upland) and Gujarat contain 

less than 5 percent silica. Deposits formed on the Deccan Trap in Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, and Maharashtra 

have uncommonly high TiO2 contents of 5-12 percent. 

Indian bauxite also contains several other metals in 

trace amounts (Roy Chowdhury and Venkatesh, 1972, 

p. 85-86). The possible recovery of vanadium and 

phosphate during Bayer processing of Indian bauxite 

has been investigated by the Indian Bureau of Mines 

(Bhattacharyya, 1971).

Most Indian bauxites have formed by lateritic 

weathering of the Deccan Trap, and a few have formed 

from other types of igneous rocks (Roy Chowdhury and 

Venkatesh, 1972, p. 86). Some deposits in Gujarat are 

thought to have been transported from other bauxites, 

as suggested by the presence of poorly sorted bauxite 

pebbles and grains. Deposits in Karnataka have formed 

from sedimentary clays (Radhakrishna, 1965), and those 

in Uttar Pradesh developed on feldspathic sandstone 

(Swamp, 1973). Deposits on the Bargru Plateau, Ranch! 

district, Bihar, formed on granite gneiss (Guha, 1967); 

those in the Kalahandi (Bhawanipatna) district, Orissa, 

developed on Precambrian garnetiferous quartzsillimanite schist and hypersthene-bearing plutonic rock 

(Murty, 1963); the parent rock of deposits in the 

Monghyr area, Rancht, Bihar, is shale (Hasan, 1966). 

Small deposits in the Ahmadabad district of Gujarat 

are in irregular pockets on limestone and are of the 

Mediterranean or terra rossa type. The bauxite in 

Jammu and Kashmir is associated with kaolin clay 

occurring above limestone. This bauxite differs from 

other deposits in India in consisting mainly of diaspore. 

The few thousand tons of diaspore mined each year in 

India for refractory uses is produced primarily in 

Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh (Indian Bureau of 

Mines, 1974, p. 277).

Bihar.—The major bauxite deposits mined in India 

are in the highlands of the Rancht district (fig. 21) and 

adjoining parts of the Palamau district, Bihar State 

(Roy Chowdhury, 1958, p. 29). Extensive laterite-type 

bauxite deposits cap plateaus and ridges at altitudes 

of 950-1,100 m, and accumulations of detrital laterite 

occur at scattered localities in valleys. Roy Chowdhury 

(1958, p. 36) thought the bauxite formed as a residual 

weathering product on the Deccan Trap. Guha (1967, 

p. 101-102) pointed out that the Deccan Trap is 

nowhere exposed in the district, and he presented 

several pieces of evidence indicating that granite gneiss 

is the parent material. Guha also identified gibbsite as 

the principal bauxite mineral and stated that only minor 

amounts of boehmite are present. The bauxite occurs 

in pisolitic, oolitic, brecciated, and fine-grained forms. 

Small low-grade deposits occur in the Kharagpur Hills,

Monghyr district, Bihar (Anandalwar, 1962). These 

deposits contain about 1.5 million tons of bauxite. Most 

of it is only 35-40 percent A12O3 , but some higher 

grade bauxite is also present.

The Rancht district has for several years been India's 

leading producer of metal-grade bauxite. The yearly output has been approximately one-half million tons. Approximately one-half of this tonnage has been in the 

grade range of 45-50 percent A12O3, and one-half has 

been 50-55 percent A12O3 (Indian Bureau of Mines, 

1974, table 11-35).

The Indian Bureau of Mines estimate for the bauxite 

reserves in Bihar (Kumar and others, 1977, supp., p. iii), 

in millions of tons, is as follows: measured—10.82, 

indicated—16.56, inferred—48.10, and total—75.48. Das 

Gupta (1984, table 2) lists the reserves as 45 million 

tons.

East Coast bauxite province.—The East Coast bauxite province is an extensive belt in northeastern Andhra 

Pradesh and southern Orissa in which major bauxite 

discoveries have been made recently (Bharat 

Aluminium Company, 1977; Ramam, 1977). Bauxite 

deposits in this province occupy an area of approximately 25,000 km2 . The province is 300 km long; it lies approximately between 17 °30' and 20 °00' N. latitude and 

81°30' and 83 °0' E. longitude.

The deposits occur on plateaus and formed on the Archean khondalite of the Eastern Ghats. Plateau surfaces 

are 300-500 m above the surrounding valleys. Surfaces 

are generally flat and have gentle slopes, and most have 

a laterite boulder cover with local grassy and marshy 

patches underlain by clay-rich zones. At most places the 

laterite profile is 10-15 m thick, but thicknesses range 

from 5 to 51 m. The deposits are mostly red, reddish 

brown, and pink, but cream-colored bauxite occurs locally. The khondalite on which the bauxite formed is a 

quartz-feldspar-sillimanite-garnet-graphite schist. 

Evidence that this schist is the parent rock of the bauxite includes relict foliation, pseudomorphic replacement 

of the minerals in and gradational transition of bedrock 

into bauxite.

The bauxite is mainly the trihydrate type, but some 

monohydrate minerals and considerable impurities also 

occur in the deposits (Bharat Aluminium Company, 

1977). In addition to gibbsite, the principal mineral, the 

trihydrate minerals nordstrandite and bayerite are 

reported to make up as much as 9 percent of some of 

the deposits. Boehmite and diaspore make up less than 

5 percent of the deposits, and the latter is ordinarily 

present only in trace amounts. Hematite and goethite 

are the principal iron minerals, and identifiable quantities of siderite are present. Much of the goethite is the 

aluminous variety, and trace amounts of aluminum are 

reported to occur in hematite. Anatase and rutile are
B104 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

the principal titanium minerals present. Most of the 

SiO2 is in kaolinite, but sillimanite is also present. Investigation by the Bharat Aluminium Company has 

established that bauxite in 19 deposits in the East 

Coast province extends over areas having a total of 

113.7 km2. About 4 percent of this area has been 

drilled and sampled with closely spaced holes, and an 

additional 20 percent has been explored by widely 

spaced holes. The remaining area has been explored by 

surface studies and sampling along scarps and other 

outcrops. The total possible bauxite in these deposits 

is estimated to be 1.2 billion tons (Bharat Aluminium 

Company, 1977). The composition of the bauxite is as 

follows: 43.7-56.49 percent A12O3, 0.55-4.20 percent 

SiO2, 8.65-38.39 percent Fe2O3, 2.10-3.55 percent 

TiO2, and 24.56-30.55 LOI.

Other estimates of the bauxite reserves and total 

resources in the East Coast province have been published by the Indian Bureau of Mines. One (Kumar and 

others, 1977, supp., p. i-ii) lists the total measured, indicated, and inferred reserves, in millions of tons, as 

923.28 for Orissa and 398.23 for Andhra Pradesh. The 

total bauxite resources in the province are, therefore, 

approximately 1.3 billion tons. Kumar and others (1977, 

supp., p. vii) also cite an unpublished report by the 

Geological Survey of India which gives an estimate of 

more than 1.6 billion tons for the bauxite in Orissa and 

Andhra Pradesh. The bauxite included in these 

estimates is less than 5 percent SiO2 and 45-49 percent A12O3; 680 million tons of this total has A12O3 contents in the 46- to 51-percent range. According to the 

latest available estimates by the Indian Bureau of 

Mines and the Geological Survey of India, the East 

Coast province contains 3 billion tons of bauxite 

resources (Das Gupta, 1984, p. 483; G.V. Rao, 1982, 

p. 40).

Goo. —Lateritic bauxite at a low level near the coast 

has been discovered in Goa. Mining began in 1968, and 

most of the bauxite produced has been shipped to 

Europe. Reserves were estimated to be 80 million tons 

(Roy Chowdhury, Venkatesh, and Banerjee, 1970, 

p. 181). However, the Indian Bureau of Mines (Kumar 

and others, 1977, supp., p. iii) listed more conservative 

estimates, in millions of tons, as follows: measured— 

8.23, indicated—9.34, inferred—7.02, and total—24.59.

Gujarat —Ferruginous bauxite in laterite plateau cappings occurs in belts along the coast in Saurashtra and 

Kutch and in small inland districts in Saurashtra (Roy 

Chowdhury, 1965, p. 108-123). The laterite in the principal districts along the coast is thought to have formed 

from pyroclastic material in the Deccan basalts, and 

some of the bauxite in the small inland districts may 

have weathered from calcareous sediments (Sahasrabudhe, 1964). Kutch has the largest reserves, which are

estimated to be 27.7 million tons (Vittal, 1973, p. 2). The 

Jamnagar and Bhavnagar districts in Saurashtra contain about 12 million tons. According to U.D.G. Rao 

(1975), the reserves of bauxite in Gujarat are 37 million 

tons. Considerably more bauxite must have been found 

in Gujarat in the last few years, inasmuch as Das Gupta 

(1984, table 2) listed reserves as 100 million tons. 

Another estimate by the Indian Bureau of Mines 

(Kumar and others, 1977, supp., p. iii) lists the bauxite 

reserves in Gujarat, in millions of tons, as follows: 

measured—40.11, indicated—3.97, inferred—1.63, and 

total—45.71. Part of this bauxite contains reactive silica 

in the form of kaolinite, and the total metallurgicalgrade bauxite is 20 million tons. The metallurgical-grade 

bauxite in Kutch contains 4.2 percent SiO2, 56.1 percent A12O3, 8.9 percent Fe2O3, 4.7 percent TiO2, and 1.0 

percent CaO. Bauxite has been mined for export in three 

major districts for several years, and some bauxite from 

the small inland districts has been used in making 

Portland cement and in purifying kerosene.

Karnataka (Mysore).—The best known bauxite 

deposits in Karnataka are in the inland Belgaum 

district, but bauxite also occurs in districts in coastal 

regions and elsewhere. The Belgaum bauxite is of the 

laterite type overlying the Deccan Trap; its average 

thickness is about 5 m (Roy Chowdhury, 1965, p. 88). 

Lateritic bauxite in the South Kanara district along the 

coast is underlain by pebbles (Nagaraja, 1967, p. 5), indicating that the parent material was sedimentary rock. 

Much of the bauxite in the coastal region is a high-silica 

variety containing 45-55 percent A12O3 (Radhakrishna, 

1965, p. 65-66). Content of iron oxide is variable, and 

quantities of TiO2 present are rarely more than 2 percent. Bauxite has been mined in the Belgaum district 

for several years and shipped for use in the ceramic, 

chemical, and metallurgical industries (Nanjundaiah 

and Krishnachari, 1971). Total measured, indicated, and 

inferred reserves of bauxite in Karnataka are reported 

to be more than 15 million tons (Indian Bureau of Mines, 

1974, table 11-34), and in more recent estimates, the 

Bureau (Kumar and others, 1977, supp., p. iv) increased 

the total in these three categories to 23.6 million tons.

Although the best known bauxite in Karnataka is in 

the Belgaum district, larger low-grade deposits are present in the Mundalli, Bhatkal, and Bainduru districts 

(Das Gupta, 1984, p. 476). These three districts have a 

potential bauxite reserve of 40 million tons. The bauxite is approximately 48 percent A12O3, 16 percent SiO2 

(4.5 percent reactive SiO2), 11 percent Fe2O3, and 

1.3 percent TiO2.

Jammu and Kashmir. —Deposits of bauxite having 

very high alumina contents occur in several areas near 

the town of Riasi, Jammu Province, and in the Punch 

area. These deposits are stratigraphically above a rock
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B105

unit known as the "great limestone" and are overlain 

by a series of coal-bearing rocks of Eocene age (Roy 

Chowdhury, 1955, p. 214). The bauxite is in areas of dipping strata, and altitudes range from 1,200 to 1,700 m. 

Thicknesses of the bauxite range from 1 to 7 m. Both 

massive and pisolitic types are present, and diaspore 

is reported to be the principal mineral (Caillere and 

Singh, 1967). In these deposits, the bauxite grades 

downward into a clay zone above the "great limestone." 

The best grade deposits are restricted to areas where 

the coal series has been eroded. Where deposits extend 

under thick overburden the bauxite is replaced laterally by clay, which suggests that the bauxite formed by 

weathering at or near the surface after erosion of the 

coal-bearing rocks.

Deposits in five areas in the Riasi district are 

estimated to contain 2 million tons of bauxite that is 

75-82 percent A12O3 and 1-5 percent SiO2 (Roy 

Chowdhury, 1959, p. 26). These deposits are associated 

with approximately 10 million tons of bauxite that is 

65-75 percent A12O3 and 6-15 percent SiO2 . Deposits 

in the Punch area of Kashmir contain 600,000-800,000 

tons, most of which contains more silica than the better grade bauxite in the Riasi district.

According to the Indian Bureau of Mines estimates 

(Kumar and others, 1977, supp., p. iv), the bauxite 

reserves in Jammu and Kashmir are 2.78 million tons, 

and all is in the inferred category. Das Gupta (1984, 

table 2) listed the reserves as 3 million tons.

Kerala.—In Kerala, bauxite has been found in the 

Trivandrum, Quilon, Alleppey, and Cannanore districts. 

According to Kumar and others (1977, p. 95-96), who 

refer to unpublished work by the Geological Survey of 

India, some of the deposits are residual on Archean 

rocks and others are detrital sedimentary units underlying sandstone and clays. According to the Indian 

Bureau of Mines (Kumar and others, 1977, supp., p. iv), 

the bauxite reserves in Kerala, in millions of tons, are as 

follows: measured—0.77, indicated—4.2, inferred—2.72, 

total—7.7.

Madhya Pradesh.—Bauxite occurs at more than 100 

localities in Madhya Pradesh. According to Roy Chowdhury (1965, p. 26), the major districts are as follows: 

(1) the continuation of the plateau region of Bihar into 

the districts of Surguja (now Ambikapur), Raigarh, and 

Bilaspur, (2) the plateau region forming the Maikala 

Range of hills in the districts of Shahdol, Bilaspur, 

Drug, Mandla and Balaghat, and (3) the Katni area of 

the Jabalpur district. Bauxite also occurs in three other 

regions in the state, but insofar as presently known 

these regions do not contain significant resources.

The most productive mines are in the Katni area of 

the Jabalpur district and in the Shahdol district. For 

several years, bauxite was produced for use by the

chemical, refractory, and abrasives industries, and, in 

recent years, metal-grade bauxite has also been produced. Thickness of bauxite mined in the Jabalpur 

district is as much as 7 m, and the A12O3 contents of 

several deposits in this district range from 55 to 70 percent (Pathak, 1958, p. 35-38). Much of the bauxite in 

the Shahdol district is 54-60 percent A12O3 (Roy 

Chowdhury, 1965, p. 51-52), and, like other deposits on 

the Deccan Trap, it is low in silica, rich in titania, and 

moderately rich in iron oxides. Gibbsite is the principal 

bauxite mineral, as is indicated by the high LOI.

The bauxite on the Phutka Pahar plateau, Bilaspur 

district, has been investigated thoroughly by the 

Geological Survey of India (Roy Chowdhury, Anandalwar, and Tyagi, 1968). Like other bauxites in 

Madhya Pradesh, these deposits were found to overlie 

the Deccan Trap; however, some are separated from the 

underlying basalt by a layer of tuffaceous clay. The 

bauxite is light gray to pinkish white. Thicknesses 

range from 1 to 5 m, and the average thickness is 2- 

2.5 m. Gibbsite is the principal mineral in the bauxite, 

but boehmite is common in parts of the deposits. 

Diaspore is also present locally in minor quantities. The 

iron is mainly in the form of hematite, but goethite is 

also present. Chemical composition of the bauxite is 

50-60 percent A12O3 , 3-9 percent Fe2O3, as much as 2 

percent SiO2 and 8 percent TiO2, and LOI is 23- 

27 percent. The specific gravity of the bauxite ranges 

from 2.49 to 2.56. The area contains 1.96 million tons 

of proved bauxite that is at least 50 percent AlgC^ and 

3 million tons that is 45 percent A12O3.

The Amarkantak area, which is in the Maikala Range, 

Shahdol and Mandla districts, was investigated as a 

possible source of bauxite for an Indo-Hungarian 

aluminum project (Roy Chowdhury, Venkatesh, and 

Paul, 1968). Also, the Hindustan Aluminum Co. has controlled leases in the area and has mined bauxite on a 

small scale for several years. The bauxite deposits in 

the Amarkantak area are similar to plateau deposits 

elsewhere in Madhya Pradesh. Parts of the deposits contain appreciable quantities of boehmite, and goethite 

is abundant in others. In detailed studies by the Geological Survey of India (Roy Chowdhury, Venkatesh, 

and Paul, 1968), 8.5 million tons of bauxite ore was 

proved, and an additional 4 million tons was inferred 

to be present. All this bauxite contains more than 

45.5 percent A12O3, and 1.9 million tons is 57.0 percent 

A1203 .

The total reserves of bauxite in Madhya Pradesh were 

estimated by the Indian Metallurgical and Engineering 

Consultants, Ltd., in millions of tons (U.S. Embassy, 

New Delhi, India, State Department Airgram, Aug. 21, 

1976) as follows: measured—59.08, indicated—12.83, 

inferred—28.58, and total—100.49. The Indian Bureau
B106 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

of Mines estimates (Kumar and others, 1977, supp., 

p. iii), in millions of tons, are as follows: measured— 

56.36, indicated—13.40, inferred—37.26, and total— 

107.02. According to Das Gupta (1984, p. 466), the 

Geological Survey of India estimated the measured 

bauxite reserves in Madhya Pradesh to be 59 million 

tons and the potential reserves to be 42 million tons.

Maharashtra. — Lateritic bauxite occurs on several 

plateaus in Maharashtra. The largest resources are in 

the Kolhapur district, but the smaller deposits in the 

Kolaba district are attractive because they are located 

near the coast. Bauxite resources in several other 

districts are apparently small (Roy Chowdhury, 1965, 

p. 92-106).

The deposits in the Kolhapur district cap plateaus at 

altitudes of 700-1,300 m and overlie the Deccan Trap. 

The bauxite ranges in thickness from 2.6 to 8 m. It is 

overlain by ferruginous laterite 0.3-2.6 m thick and 

underlain by 4-10 m of soft porous laterite that is, in 

turn, underlain by 3-7 m of soft lithomarge and 13- 

20 m of kaolinized basalt. The bauxite is chiefly gibbsite but contains minor quantities of boehmite (Mathad 

and Altekar, 1960). According to Balasubramaniam and 

Paropkari (1975), the iron in deposits on the Nagardaswadi plateau in this district is in the form of goethite 

and maghemite, silica is in the form of kaolinite and 

halloysite, and leucoxene was the only titanium-bearing 

mineral identified. The average partial chemical composition of the better grade bauxite is 55.54 percent 

A12O3, 1.13 percent SiO2 , 7.45 percent Fe2O3 , 7.17 percent TiO2, and 27.73 percent LOI.

The total reserves of bauxite in Maharashtra were 

estimated by the Indian Metallurgical and Engineering 

Consultants, Ltd. (U.S. Embassy, New Delhi, India, 

State Department Airgram, Aug. 21,1976), in millions 

of tons, as follows: measured—52.42, indicated—50.95, 

inferred—17.58, and total—120.95. These estimates of 

the bauxite reserves in Maharashtra are similar to those 

of the Indian Bureau of Mines (Kumar and others, 1977, 

supp., p. ii), which are, in millions of tons, as follows: 

measured—50.69, indicated—32.09, inferred—45.36, 

and total-128.14. Das Gupta (1984, p. 473-475) listed 

the following bauxite resource estimates for Maharashtra: Kolhapur district—72 million tons, Satara and 

Thana districts—2.6 million tons, and Kolaba and Ratnagiri districts—10 million tons. Das Gupta noted that 

an area of 20 mi2 (50 km2) in the Ratnagiri district is 

covered with an aluminous laterite having an average 

thickness of about 10m. Detailed exploration and successful beneficiation may establish in the future the 

economic viability of using about 1 billion tons of 

lateritic bauxite in this area.

Tamil Nadu (Madras). —Most of the bauxite in Tamil 

Nadu is in laterite that caps six hills in the Shevaroy

Hills, Salem district (Krishna Rao, Borreswara Rao, and 

Sundar, 1974), and small deposits occur in the Nilgiri 

and Palni Hills nearby. The Shevaroy Hills are 13 km 

south of the town of Salem. The flat tops of the hills 

are at elevations of about 1,800 m. The best grade bauxite is the Shevaroy Hills deposits, which have weathered 

from leptynite (Krishnan, 1942); the lower grade Nilgiri 

deposits formed on charnockite (Valeton, 1968).

The bauxite deposits are 7-10 m thick, and the quantity present is estimated to be 6-7 million tons (Roy 

Chowdhury, 1955, p. 210). The average A12O3 content 

of the bauxite is 50 percent; silica and titania are low, 

but most of the bauxite contains more than 8 percent 

Fe2O3. The bauxite is chiefly gibbsite; limonite, ilmenite, quartz, and kaolin are the principal impurities. 

The Indian Bureau of Mines estimates (Kumar and 

others, 1977, supp., p. iv) list the following reserves, in 

millions of tons: measured—3.16, indicated—0.95, 

inferred—2.26, and total—6.37.

Uttar Pradesh. —Bauxite was discovered in 1965 in 

the Rajuhuan area, Banda district, near the southern 

border of Uttar Pradesh (Swarup, 1973). This bauxite 

occurs in blanket-type laterite deposits in residual accumulations on feldspathic sandstone. The deposits are 

on flat-topped hills at altitudes of about 360 m, which 

is appreciably lower than the large deposits on the Deccan Trap farther south. The bauxite is of irregular 

thickness, but some deposits are as much as 30 m thick. 

Mineralogical studies by Srivastava and Srivastava 

(1970) have revealed that gibbsite is the principal bauxite mineral, but minor quantities of boehmite are also 

present. The bauxite is uncommonly rich in anatase, and 

TiO2 contents range from 6 to 18 percent (Swarup, 

1973, p. 176). The deposits contain 8 million-10 million 

tons of bauxite, and large areas are favorable for the 

discovery of more bauxite (Swarup, 1973, p. 169). 

Deposits in the Banda district are now being mined on 

a small scale (Indian Bureau of Mines, 1974, table 

11-35). The Indian Bureau of Mines estimates for the 

bauxite reserves in Uttar Pradesh (Kumar and others, 

1977, supp., p. iv), in millions of tons, are as follows: 

measured—10.38, indicated—3.70, inferred—1.40, and 

total—15.48.

Resources

Several estimates of the reserves of bauxite in India 

have been made, and the estimates have increased 

markedly in recent years. According to one estimate 

published by the United Nations Economic Commission 

for Asia and the Far East (1962, p. 6), the total bauxite 

reserves in India were 64 million tons. An estimate ten 

years later by Roy Chowdhury and Venkatesh (1972,
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B107

p. 87) of the Geological Survey of India listed the total 

bauxite reserves as 179.8 million tons, the largest 

reserves being in the states of Madhya Pradesh and 

Maharashtra. An estimate by the Indian Bureau of 

Mines (1974, table 11-34) completed in 1971 gave bauxite reserves, in millions of tons, as follows: measured— 

145.21, indicated—33.37, and inferred—54.08. 

Estimates compiled jointly by the Indian Bureau of 

Mines and the Geological Survey of India in 1971 

(Kumar and others, 1977, p. 163) were, in millions of 

tons, as follows: measured—141.8, indicated—33.4, 

inferred—51.6, and total—226.8. Revised estimates 

made 4 years later by the Indian Bureau of Mines and 

the Geological Survey of India (table 21) list a total of 

more than 1.7 billion tons. Das Gupta (1984, table II) 

listed the proven bauxite reserves in India as 255 million 

tons and the potential reserves as 1,994 million tons 

with a total of 2,249 million tons. Das Gupta's report 

also makes the following statement (p. 483): "A potential reserve of 1,500 million tonnes and proved reserve 

of 114 million tonnes of aluminous laterite which can 

be treated by the Bayer process has been claimed by 

Government Survey Departments for both Orissa and 

Andhra Pradesh***." Estimates for 1,500 million tons 

for each of two States equals the 3,000-million-ton 

estimate for the bauxite reserves in the East Coast 

province (G.V. Rao, 1982, p. 40).

In this report the bauxite reserves in India are assumed to be 1 billion tons, the estimate of the U.S. 

Bureau of Mines (Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, 

table 3). The total resources (reserves and subeconomic 

and undiscovered bauxite) are estimated to be 3 billion5 billion tons. This estimate includes the 3 billion tons 

thought to be in the East Coast province, about 1 billion 

tons of low-grade bauxite in the Ratnagiri district, 

Maharashtra (Das Gupta, 1984, p. 475), and the 

resources in all the other bauxite districts in India.

INDONESIA

History and Production

Bauxite was discovered in the Riau Archipelago in 

1924, and mining began on the island of Bintan in 1935. 

Most production has been on Bintan, but bauxite has 

also been mined on other small islands nearby (Sigit and 

others, 1969, p. 71). Annual production for most years 

during the period from 1936 to 1960 was between 

100,000 and 400,000 tons. Output rose to more than 

900,000 tons in 1967 (table 6). In 1969, Kidjang Strait 

was dredged to accommodate ore ships as large as 

30,000 tons, and the loading facilities were expanded 

(Indonesian Ministry of Mines, 1970, p. 7). Production

TABLE 21.—Bauxite reserves in India, by States 

[All values in millions of tons. —, no data Estimates by Indian Bureau of Mines 

and the Geological Survey of India (Kumar and others, 1977, supp.)]

State Measured Indicated Inferred Total

Orissa ..............

Andhra Pradesh ....

Maharashtra ........

Madhya Pradesh ....

Bihar ... ......

Gujarat ...........

Goa .... ......

Karnataka ..........

Uttar Pradesh ......

Kerala .............

Tamil Nadu .........

Jammu and Kashmir

15.43

16.98

50.69

56.36

10.82

40.11

8.23

1.19

10.38

.77

3.16

—

353.89

56.25

32.09

13.40

16.56

3.97

9.34

8.97

3.70

4.24

.95

—

553.96

325.00

45.36

37.26

48.10

1.63

7.02

13.51

1.40

2.72

2.26

2.78

923.28

398.23

128.14

107.02

75.48

45.71

24.59

23.67

15.48

7.73

6.37

2.78

Total .......... 214.12 503.36 1,041.00 1,758.48

during 1969-81 averaged more than 1 million tons per 

year, but only 700,000 tons were produced during the 

recession year of 1982. All production is now under the 

management of the government enterprise, P.N. Aneka 

Tambang. Virtually all Indonesian production has been 

exported; most shipments have been to Japan, but some 

have gone to Western Europe and North America.

Bauxite mining in Indonesia could increase appreciably if a planned alumina plant that will process Indonesian bauxite is constructed. Although alumina has 

never been produced in Indonesia, the construction of 

two large alumina plants, one on Bintan Island (Metals 

Sourcebook, 1974a) and one in West Kalimantan 

(Metals Sourcebook, 1975b, p. 1), has been proposed. 

The construction of an aluminum smelter drawing 

power from a hydroelectric development on the Asahan 

River in Sumatra has created an increased demand for 

alumina in Indonesia.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

Until the recent discovery of large bauxite deposits 

in West Kalimantan, the largest bauxite deposits in Indonesia were thought to be on Bintan Island (fig. 22), 

which is in the Riau Archipelago approximately 100 km 

southwest of Singapore. The bauxite on Bintan is in a 

laterite layer 2-10 m thick; the average thickness is approximately 4 m. The bauxite consists of layers of hard 

lateritic concretions dispersed in a soft mottled clay. 

The concretions are 2.5-10 cm in longest dimension. 

They are chiefly gibbsite and goethite, but minor 

amounts of silica-bearing minerals are also present. Interstitial clay makes up one- to two-fifths of the total 

laterite mass (Bemmelen, 1940, p. 112). This clay is
BIOS GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

115° 120° 125°

0

EXPLANATION

Small bauxite district 

Major bauxite district

50

15°

TM J

0 50 100 KILOMETERS 

100° 105°

100 MILES

_I

Malaysia

1. Pahang

2. Selangor

3. Malacca (now Melaka)

4. Johore-Pengerang

5. Munggu Belian, Sematan, Bukit Gebong 

(now Bukit Jebong Perigi), 

and Tanjong Serabang

6. Kaibau

Indonesia

7. Bintan, Batam, Lobam, and Lingga Islands; 

Riau Archipelago

8. Bangka Island; Riau Archipelago

9. West Kalimantan

Philippines

10. Batag Island

11. Samar Island

12. Bucas Grande Island

13. Nonoc Island

FIGURE 22.—Locations of bauxite districts in southeastern Asia and the southwestern Pacific region.

higher in silica content than the concretions; therefore, 

the quality of the bauxite can be improved by washing 

out the clay. A black, aphanitic hornfels of probable 

Triassic age is the parent rock of the bauxite. A section of the bauxite and underlying rocks that is

presumably typical of the bauxite areas was described 

by Bemmelen (1941, p. 635). In modified form, the 

description is as follows: (1) surficial bauxite, 7 m thick, 

(2) clay, 45 m thick, upper part structureless, lower part 

contains streaks of intensely weathered siliceous rocks,
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B109

lowermost 4 m contains blocks of unweathered parent 

rock, and (3) black hornfels parent rock.

Low-grade bauxite deposits located inland from the 

mining districts on Bintan were investigated by three 

Japanese aluminum companies during 1967-69 (lijima, 

Kimiya, and Yanagimoto, 1973). These deposits have an 

average thickness of a little more than 2 m and are 

overlain only by a thin soil. They contain 5.5 percent 

Fe2O3 and have an average SiO2 content of 12.8 percent. More than one-half of the silica is in reactive form. 

The principal minerals in these deposits are gibbsite, 

kaolinite, quartz, hematite, goethite, and lepidocrocite. 

Minor quantities of boehmite were found to be present 

in the middle part of the deposits.

Several small bauxite deposits on five small islands 

near Bintan and Bat am were intensively prospected in 

1962 by the Indonesian Government with technical 

assistance from the U.S. Agency for International 

Development. These deposits are very similar in occurrence to those on Bintan. During this work, syenite intrusions, volcanic rocks, and phyllite were found to be 

favorable for the formation of a good grade of bauxite, 

but only thin low-grade deposits formed on sandstone 

and shala Johnson and Marjono (1963, p. 9) found about 

1 million tons of bauxite that is 50 percent A12O3 and 

600,000 tons of lower grade bauxite on Lobam and 

Ngenang Islands. PT. Alcoa Minerals of Indonesia also 

found bauxite on Bangka Island and in the Lingga 

Archipelagos (Gunawan and Valk, 1972, p. 29).

All the bauxite on the several islands in the Riau Archipelago is high in iron content except the deposits on 

Lobam Island. Some of these deposits are residual on 

granitic rocks, and some consist of concretionary material 

in marine terraces that has been transported and deposited near shore (Johnson and Marjono, 1963, p. 36-37). 

These authors have estimated reserves of low-iron bauxite to be 228,000 tons measured and 65,000 tons probable. 

According to Sigit and others (1969, p. 71), these low-iron 

deposits are 61.5 percent A12O3, 2.5 percent Fe2O3, 2.5 

percent SiO2, 0.25 percent TiO2, and 33.0 percent H2O.

Bauxite deposits in West Kalimantan in a belt 300 km 

long and 50-100 km wide that is parallel to and inland 

from the west coastline were investigated by P.T. Alcoa 

Minerals of Indonesia and Indonesian geologists during 

1969-74 (Rodenburg, 1984). These bauxite deposits are 

the laterite type formed on an uplifted and dissected 

peneplain. They occur capping low hills of 15-60 m of 

local relief. These hills are surrounded by swampy areas. 

Parent rocks of the bauxite in the northern part of the 

belt include basalt, andesite, dacite, and quartz monzonite that are cut by lamprophyre, aplite, and pegmatite 

dikes. The deposits in the southern part of the belt 

formed on sandy shales, sandstone, limestone, granite 

batholiths, gabbro, diorite, and dolerite.

According to Gunawan and Valk (1972, p. 31), the 

typical laterite in West Kalimantan consists of the 

following sequence of layers from the surface downward: (1) soil and clay overburden generally 0.5-2.0 m 

but locally as much as 5 m thick, (2) aluminous laterite 

generally 0.5-4.0 m but locally as much as 9 m thick, 

(3) transition zone of saprolite 0.5-2.5 m thick, and (4) 

bedrock. The upper part of the laterite consists of gibbsite concretions in clay matrix, and the clay content 

ranges from 20 to 40 percent. The concretions range in 

size from a few millimeters to more than 10 cm, and they 

occur in platy, botryoidal, elongate, cylindrical, and irregular forms. The lower zone consists of irregular 

laterite boulders and blocks having relict textures of the 

parent rock.

The West Kalimantan bauxite in place contains 13-29 

percent SiO2, but it is amenable to beneficiation 

(Rodenburg, 1984), because gibbsite is concentrated in 

coarse nodules and the SiO2 is mainly in kaolinite. 

Crushing, washing, and sieving concentrates a coarse 

(plus 12 mesh) fraction, and the kaolinite is removed in 

the fine fraction.

Resources

The high-grade bauxite reserves are on the island of 

Bintan where mining is underway. Bauxite reserves on 

Bintan were estimated to be 40 million tons (Hassan 

and Williams, 1969, p. 55); however, they were somewhat less in 1979 because of depletion. Japanese interests have since discovered additional bauxite on 

Bintan that is lower in grade than the deposits mined. 

These lower grade reserves are reported to contain 28 

million tons by lijima, Kimiya, and Yanagimoto (1973, 

p. 56) and 78 million tons by the Metals Sourcebook 

(1974a).

P.T. Alcoa Minerals of Indonesia found considerable 

bauxite. Proven bauxite was established by test pits on 

a 200-m by 200-m grid and analysis of washed samples 

for available A12O3 and reactive SiO2. Proven bauxite 

in the West Kalimantan bauxite belt was calculated to 

be 809 million tons (Rodenburg, 1984, p. 613-617). This 

bauxite has the following average composition: 38,4 percent available A12O3 and 3.0 percent reactive SiO2. The 

total bauxite is inferred to be more than 2 billion tons 

(washed basis), because only a part of the laterite belt 

in West Kalimantan has been systematically evaluated 

on a 200-m-grid pattern.

The U.S. Bureau of Mines estimate for the bauxite 

reserves in Indonesia is 750 million tons (Baumgardner 

and McCawley, 1983, table 3). The total resources of 

bauxite in this country are more than 2 billion tons and 

are probably as much as 2.5 billion tons.
B110 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

IRAN

Deposits of high-alumina clays near Tehran have been 

worked for a long time for use in refractory brick, and 

bauxitic clay deposits occur at many places (Swiss, 

1970). Diaspore clays of Permian age are scattered 

through an extensive belt in the central part of the 

country, extending from near Yazd to southeast of 

Kerman. Boehmite-bearing clays of Cretaceous age have 

been found in west-central Iran. All the bauxitic clays 

are apparently low grade and have high SiO2 contents; 

they are therefore unsuitable for Bayer processing. 

Bardossy (1977, appendix 1) estimated that about 70 

million tons of karst-type bauxite is present in eight 

districts in Iran. This bauxite is considered to be 

subeconomic as an aluminum resource because the maximum quantity in a single district is 15 million tons.

MALAYSIA

History and Production

Bauxite has been produced in Peninsular Malaysia 

since before World War II and was also produced in 

Sarawak during the period 1957-65. Bauxite mining 

began on the peninsula in 1936 when 36 tons were produced (Grubb, 1968, p. 38). During World War II, the 

Japanese took over mining and produced about 50,000 

tons of bauxite containing 55-59 percent A12O3; about 

40,000 tons of this amount remained in a stockpile at 

the end of the war. Aluminum Company of Canada 

(Alcan) prospected for bauxite in the southern part of 

Peninsular Malaysia before World War II. This company renewed its interests in the postwar period and, 

after the political unrest of 1948, had some of the 

deposits mined under contract by Ramunia Bauxite 

Limited, a Malaysian company which began producing 

bauxite in 1952. In 1962, Alcan formed a subsidiary 

company, Southeast Asia Bauxites Ltd., and became 

the largest of the two bauxite producers in Malaysia. 

The annual production peaked at a little more than 1.1 

million tons in 1973 (table 6) and has decreased in most 

of the following 10 years. The low year was 1979 when 

only 387,000 tons was produced; 589,000 tons was produced in the recession year of 1982.

All the bauxite produced in Malaysia has been beneficiated by washing to obtain a high-grade ore mainly 

for export to Japan. In the early history of mining, considerable bauxite was lost in the washing process. 

Because of the existence of the bauxite-rich tailings, 

Peninsular Malaysia is one of the few places in the world 

where washing wastes have been recycled. In the process used, the tailings were blended with low-grade

bauxite to avoid clogging screens with excessive finegrained material (Grubb, 1968, p. 76, 98).

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

Peninsular Malaysia.—The best grade and most productive bauxite deposits in Malaysia are in the 

Pengerang area in southeastern Johore, approximately 50 km east of Singapore. Other deposits are known 

to exist elsewhere in Johore and in Malacca (now 

Melaka), Selangor, and Pahang. Though several of the 

deposits outside of the Pengerang area are high grade, 

insofar as is now known they do not contain large 

reserves.

According to Grubb (1968, p. 60-83), the valuable 

bauxite in the Pengerang area, Peninsular Malaysia, occurs in residual and alluvial deposits. The residual 

deposits have formed on rhyolite, tuff, granite, micropegmatite, diaspore-pyrophyllite-bearing hornfels, and 

schistose rocks. Bauxite in these deposits occurs in 

pisolites, concretions, and nodules and in shaly forms. 

Most residual deposits cap hills that are less than 65 m 

in altitude and have slopes not exceeding 30 degrees. 

Gibbsite is the principal mineral in the deposits; 

limonite (probably goethite), hematite, and kaolin 

minerals are the principal impurities. The accessory 

minerals include anatase and zircon, and the deposits 

that formed on schistose rocks contain some graphite 

and vermiculite. The alluvial deposits are scattered 

through the broad low southern coastal plain. The 

largest known deposit covers approximately 648 hectares. It ranges in thickness from a few centimeters to 

nearly 3 m and contains a minimum of 4 million tons 

of bauxite (Grubb, 1968, p. 76).

Sarawak.—Bauxite was discovered in Sarawak in 

1949, and by 1959 more than 20 deposits had been 

found. A local company began mining bauxite in 1957, 

and within 2 years bauxite became Sarawak's most 

valuable mineral product (Wolfenden, 1961, p. 972). 

Mining ceased in 1965 after the production of a little 

more than 1.5 million tons. The best deposits are at 

Munggu Belian, Sematan, and at Bukit Gebong (now 

Bukit Jebong Perigi) about 8 km southeast of Sematan; 

ferruginous bauxite deposits occur at Tanjong Serabang. The bauxite at Munggu Belian formed by 

weathering of andesite. The deposits are on hills less 

than 35 m high that are flanked by terrace alluvium and 

alluvial swamp deposits. The bauxite is chiefly gibbsite 

and contains minor amounts of quartz, kaolin minerals, 

and iron and titanium minerals. It occurs as hard pinkbrown and gray nodules 0.5-30 cm long. The nodules 

are scattered through a buff or brownish-red clayey 

saprolite, and part of the bauxite occurs as fillings of
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES Bill

vesicles preserved from the parent andesite. Microcrystalline gibbsite is commonly a pseudomorphic 

replacement of plagioclase laths. Mixtures of gibbsite 

and iron minerals replaced pyroxene, but magnetite and 

rutile of the parent andesite are unaltered (Wolfenden, 

1961, p. 975).

The scattered lateritic bauxite deposits formed from 

several types of rocks. Gabbro and diorite are the parent 

materials of deposits at Bukit Gebong. Deposits at 

Bukit Siol formed from quartz diorite and are high in 

silica; other deposits formed from plagioclase amphibolite, saussuritized gabbro, and several types of 

altered intermediate and mafic volcanic rocks.

Reserves of easily accessible washed bauxite were 

originally about 5.5 million tons (Wolfenden, 1961, 

p. 972), and unappraised resources of bauxite underlie 

alluvium at Munggu Belian and probably at several 

other localities in Sarawak. One grade of washed bauxite recovered from the deposits at Bukit Gebong was 

52.10 percent A12O3 , 4.66 percent SiO2 , 13.14 percent 

Fe2O3 , 0.49 percent TiO2, and 29.61 percent LOI; a second grade was 46.97 percent A12O3 , 7.27 percent SiO2 , 

18.02 percent Fe2O3 , 0.57 percent TiO2, and 27.17 percent LOI. According to the Malaysia Geological Survey 

(1981, p. 53), an estimated 1.5 million tons of washed 

bauxite probably still could be recovered from 265 hectares of bauxite-bearing terrain in the Bukit Gebong 

district.

Sabah.—Bauxite has been discovered in a number of 

shallow pits dug in an area about 1.6 km west of Kaibau 

(Collenette, 1961, p. 68). This bauxite appears to have 

been derived from coarse-grained basalt. It is considered 

to be of medium grade, but the amount present is unknown, and it is unfavorably situated for development.

According to the Malaysia Geological Survey (1981, 

p. 69), ferruginous bauxite formed on gabbro intrusions 

is present in several areas in the lower Labuk valley. 

Also, bauxite deposits extending over an area 1.6 km 

by 2.4 km, located south of Telupid, were investigated 

by pitting. About 2.5 million tons of medium- to highgrade bauxite may be present in the Telupid district.

Resources

The bauxite reserves in Malaysia are located principally in the Pengerang district, and reserves in this district 

were estimated in 1979 to be about 8 million tons 

(Malaysia Geological Survey, 1981, p. 40). Reserves scattered in other districts amount to only a few thousand 

tons (Grubb, 1968, table 50). The U.S. Bureau of Mines 

(Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, table 3) gave an 

estimate of 15 million tons for the bauxite reserves in 

Malaysia. Subeconomic bauxite resources in Peninsular

Malaysia, Sarawak, and Sabah have a total that is probably about 5 million tons. Tbtal bauxite resources in 

Malaysia are considered to be about 20 million tons in 

this report.

PAKISTAN

Bauxite, bauxitic clays, and aluminous laterite occur 

at many places in Pakistan. Bauxite and clays in the 

Kala Chitta Range are mined for use in refractories 

(Ashraf, Ahmad, and Faruqi, 1976). Small tonnages have 

been produced for use in chinaware and as building and 

road surfacing materials (S.A. Stanin, written commun., 

1965), and minor quantities have been used in making 

cement (United Nations Economic Commission for Asia 

and the Far East, 1962, p. 11). The Pakistan Government has long been interested in the development of the 

deposits as a source of alumina. A pilot plant test was 

made of bauxite from the Sargodha district, which is 

in the Salt Range (Metals Sourcebook, 1974b). The efforts were increased with construction of a plant having the capacity of 1 ton per day (Industrial Minerals, 

1978b). The deposits evaluated are in the Campbellpore 

(Kala Chitta Range) and Khushab (Salt Range) districts.

The principal bauxite and clay deposits in Pakistan 

are in the Kala Chitta Range (Ashraf, Ahmad, and 

Faruqi, 1976) and the Salt Range (Ashraf, Chohan, and 

Faruqi, 1972). The Salt Range deposits occur below an 

erosional unconformity of post-Permian age and are 

overlain by Paleocene and Eocene beds. The Kala Chitta deposits are in a formation of Jurassic age. The 

deposits in both ranges are in strata that are structurally 

deformed; dips in the Kala Chitta Range are as much 

as 79 °. The bauxite and clay occur in tabular lenses ranging from about 70 m to more than 300 m in length, and 

the average thickness of the deposits is 3 m. The principal bauxite mineral in the Salt Range deposits is 

boehmite; the Kala Chitta deposits are mainly diaspora 

Kaolinite is abundant in both regions. On the basis of 

the few analyses published, the Kala Chitta deposits are 

36.6-74.0 percent A12O3 and 7.6-37.8 percent SiO2. The 

Salt Range deposits are 36.0-72.8 percent A12O3 and 

8.6-46.96 percent SiO2. The deposits in both districts 

are remarkably low in iron oxide; few of the available 

analyses reveal the presence of as much as 2 percent.

The laterite in the Ziarat district, Quetta Division, 

occurs between Cretaceous limestone and younger limestones of Cretaceous and Paleocene age. Most deposits 

in this district are 1-3 m thick, but some are more than 

15 m thick. According to Shah (1960, p. 86), boehmite 

and diaspore are the principal bauxite minerals present. 

This bauxite has been described as being pisolitic, shaly, 

marly, sandyf concretionary, and nodular.
B112 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

Other bauxite districts include Kotli Tehsil (southeast 

of Rawalpindi) and Muzaffarabad, Kashmir (S.A. Stanin, 

written commun., 1965). Surficial aluminous laterite deposits also occur at several localities in southern Pakistan 

(S.A. Stanin, written commun., 1965), and laterite with 

Devonian carbonate rocks has been found in northern 

Pakistan (Stauffer, 1969). This Devonian laterite consists 

mainly of boehmite, diaspore, and hematite.

Tbtal resources of bauxite, clay, and low-iron laterite 

in Pakistan have been estimated to be about 500 million 

tons (Ashraf, Ahmad, and Faruqi, 1976, p. 41). The reserves of bauxite in these resources were estimated to 

be 20 million tons by the U.S. Bureau of Mines (Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, table 3). All these reserves 

are considered to be refractory grade because of the present use and high content of diaspore in many of the 

deposits. Inasmuch as kaolinitic clay makes up a high 

proportion of the resources, how much of the 500 million 

ton estimate should be considered subeconomic bauxite is problematical. An estimate of 100 million-150 

million tons for the total bauxite, including reserves, is 

assumed in this report.

PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA

History and Production

Aluminum was first made in China by the Japanese 

in 1938. The active plants in the World War II era were 

in the Fushun area of Liaoning Province and the Boshan 

area of Shandong Provinca According to a report on the 

Canadian Minerals and Metals Mission to China (Canadian Mining Journal, 1973, p. 25), the Fushun plant has 

a capacity of about 100,000 tons of aluminum per year. 

Although this may be the largest aluminum smelter in 

China, reports indicate that China may have several 

plants with annual capacities over 30,000 tons and a 

large number of very small operations. Because the People's Republic of China does not publish production data, 

the output of bauxite, alumina, and aluminum can be 

at best estimated. Estimates by the U.S Bureau of Mines 

(table 6) show that bauxite production rose from less 

than 500,000 tons in 1961 to 1.3 million tons in 1976 

and is thought to have been about 1.5 million tons in 

recent years. The bauxite production data (table 6) include 100,000-200,000 tons produced each year for use 

in refractories. China exports refractory-grade and 

abrasive-grade bauxite.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

Aluminum resources in the People's Republic of China 

consist of bauxite, aluminous shale, and alunita Bauxite

was discovered by two Japanese geologists, who were 

investigating refractory clay deposits in the Penchi (now 

Benxi) basin, Liaoning. This bauxite and most other 

large deposits discovered later occur in Carboniferous 

and Permian sedimentary rocks and are the 

monohydrate type. Small deposits of trihydrate bauxite of Tertiary age are present in one district. Shales, 

some of which are associated with bauxite and are rich 

in diaspore or boehmite, or both, were used for aluminum 

by the Japanese during World War II and still are the 

principal raw materials of at least one alumina plant. 

Alunite occurs in very large quantities in the People's 

Republic of China. This mineral was also used for 

aluminum by the Japanese during the World War II occupation, and some may still supply small alumina 

plants.

T. Sakamoto and T. Oobane, who discovered the Carboniferous and Permian bauxite and aluminous shale, 

found a series of beds that they designated G to A 

(Sakamoto, 1958; Ikonnikov, 1975, 1984). These designations are still widely used in referring to bauxite in 

China. Bed G, which has been the principal source of 

the bauxite mined, occurs at the base of Middle or Upper 

Carboniferous strata and rests on older Paleozoic 

limestone. Bed F, which is mainly clay, occurs above bed 

G; at most places the two beds are separated by a sandy shale about 1 m thick. Bed E is also mainly clay, and 

its stratigraphic position is below Upper Carboniferous 

limestone. Beds D and C are aluminous shales of Late 

Carboniferous aga Bed B is clay, but it is sufficiently 

rich in aluminum locally to be classified as bauxita Bed 

A, at the base of Upper Permian formations, is mainly 

clay containing local bauxite deposits. Other beds of clay 

containing minor quantities of bauxite are present in 

younger Permian coal measures, but this bauxite is apparently of little economic importance.

According to the information now available, the bauxite in beds G and A is the monohydrate type. Diaspore 

is the principal mineral, and boehmite is the second most 

common one. Virtually all the deposits either contain 

or are closely associated with kaolinitic flint clay, which 

means that many deposits are rich in reactive silica. 

Many of the bauxite deposits contain gallium and germanium in sufficient quantities for industrial use, and 

some contain uranium (Ikonnikov, 1975, p. 363).

Many of the deposits in beds A and B are similar to 

the diaspore deposits in the United States, as was also 

noted by Schiiller (1957). The diaspore of both China and 

the United States is of late Paleozoic age, and deposits 

in both countries are closely associated with coal.

Yunnan Province.—Very large deposits of bauxite 

occur near Kunming, and other deposits are present in 

the Anning and Fumin districts in Yunnan Province 

(fig. 23). Most deposits mined are in bed G. The bauxite
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B113

0 100 200 300 400 500 MILES

I_____I_____i_____I

0 100 200 300 400 500 KILOMETERS 

EXPLANATION

• — International boundary

—— Provincial boundary

• Bauxite district

1. Kunming, Anning, and Fumin

2. Guiyang

3. Sichuan

4. Gansu Province

5. Xi'an

6. Gongxian

7. Yangquan

8. Kaiping basin

9. Nanding

10. Benxi-Fuxian

11. Zhangpu

12. Pingguo

FIGURE 23.—Locations of principal bauxite districts in the People's Republic of China.
B114 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

is reported to be composed of both diaspore and boehmite. Dr. P.F. Kerr of Columbia University identified 

boehmite in one sample by X-ray methods (Li and Hsieh, 

1946, p. 4); available information on the identification of 

diaspore is less reliable. The deposits were described as 

similar to the bauxites in Guizhou Provinca Bauxite 

reserves in the vicinity of Kunming are estimated to be' 

100 million-150 million tons, and 20 million tons of the 

resource is considered to be high-grade reserves of bauxite (K.P. Wang, 1959, p. 75). The high-grade ore is 70 percent A12O3, 6 percent SiO2, and 11 percent Fe2O3; the 

average grade is 52 percent A12O3, 33 percent SiO2, and 

3 percent Fe2O3.

Guizhou Province.—Very large bauxite deposits occur 

in the vicinity of Guiyang and in other areas in the central and west-central parts of the Province, and smaller 

deposits are present elsewhere. The large deposits in the 

central parts of the Province are in bed G. These deposits 

are in extensive tabular lenses as much as 8 m thick. The 

bauxite is in massive, oolitic, and pisolitic forms. One 

sample of this bauxite was found by Dr. P.F. Kerr of Columbia University by means of X-ray methods to be chiefly diaspore (Li and Hsieh, 1946, p. 3). The other bauxite 

deposits, which are mostly smaller, are in the Kaiyang, 

Wungnan, Chianhsi (now Qianxi), and Dafang districts 

(Wang Chung-hsing, 1969). These deposits are of Early 

Permian age, and they presumably are in bed A. They 

are similar to bed G deposits, but they occur in thinner 

and lower grade masses. According to Wang Chung-hsing 

(1969, tables 1 and 2), the bed G deposits are 60-80 percent A12O3, 2-20 percent SiO2, 2-20 percent Fe2O3, and 

2-3 percent TiO2, and they contain very minor amounts 

of CaO, CO2, and S and trace amounts of Ga, Ge, Be, 

and U The Permian bauxite is 50-70 percent A12O3, 

2-30 percent SiO2, 5-12 percent Fe2O3, and 1.5-3 percent TiO2. According to Ikonnikov (1975, table VI-1), 

Guizhou contains only 100 million tons of bauxite, but 

KP. Wang (1959, p. 75) listed the resources of bauxite in 

the Guiyang district as 200 million-500 million tons and 

indicated that at least 50 million tons is high grade.

Sichuan Province.—Bauxitic clays occur in the 

southern part of Sichuan Province. The clays are in lenses 

and pockets in the upper part of a coal series of Permian 

age, and they are overlain by limestone. Alumina contents 

of this clay range from 48 to 78 percent (Li and Hsieh, 

1946, p. 4). No estimates of the amount of bauxitic clay 

in this Province are available.

Gansu Province.—Bauxite, alunite, and high-alumina 

shale and clay occur in Gansu Province. The bauxite is 

in the southern part of the Province. The aluminous shale 

and clay are mainly in coal fields, and the alunite occurs 

in weathered deposits. According to Ikonnikov (1975, 

table VI-1), Gansu Province contains 351 million tons 

of bauxite.

ShoanxiProvince.— Bauxitic deposits have been discovered recently in the vicinity of Xi'an. Detailed information on the geology, location, and size of these 

deposits is not available, but they probably supply the 

new alumina plant at Xi'an. The deposits are undoubtedly extensive and probably consist of aluminous 

shale, some of which is of good grade (K.P. Wang, 1959, 

p. 75-76).

Henan.—G bed and other bauxite deposits occur in 

the Kunghsien (now Gongxian) district and elsewhere 

in Henan (Ikonnikov, 1975, p. 363, 402). The Gongxian 

bauxite district extends over an area several tens of 

kilometers long and several kilometers wide. Six layers 

of bauxite are present in the district, and fossil plants 

of Late Carboniferous age occur in the third layer from 

the base. Bauxite bodies, particularly in bed G deposits 

and associated clay, occur in extensive layers of uniform 

thickness. The bauxite is light gray to white; oolitic, 

pisolitic, and massive types are present. Diaspore is the 

principal bauxite mineral, and muscovite, chlorite, 

kaolinite, rutile, and quartz are the main impurities. 

According to Ikonnikov (1975, p. 402) the pisolitic bauxite is 53-60 percent A12O3, 16-30 percent SiO2, 1-4 percent Fe2O3 , and 2.9-3.8 percent TiO2.

Bauxite deposits in the Gun district were investigated 

by Schiiller (1957). These deposits occur above a karst 

surface on Ordovician limestone and are overlain by 

black fusulinid-bearing limestones of Late Carboniferous age. Diaspore is the principal mineral, and massive, 

oolitic, and pisolitic forms are present. According to 

chemical analyses of five samples (Schuller, 1957, tables 

1 and 2), the bauxite is 54.1-68.9 percent A12O3 , 

10.6-12.7 percent SiO2, 0.6-3.7 percent Fe2O3 and FeO, 

and 2.9-3.8 percent TiO2 , and spectrochemical 

analyses record that it contains some Ba, Cr, Cu, Mg, 

Na, Ni, Pb, and V.

According to Ikonnikov (1984, p. 548), a Chinese 

source stated that bauxite in the G bed in the Gongxian district contains proven reserves of 270 million 

tons "presumably of alumina."

Shanxi Province.—High-alumina shale deposits 

reportedly occur in the vicinity of Yangchuan (now 

Yangquan), Shanxi Province (K.P. Wang, 1959, p. 75). 

The deposits are reported to contain 45-55 percent 

alumina. The size of the deposits is unknown, but they 

are probably at least moderately extensive.

Hebei Province.—Bauxitic clays and high-alumina 

shales occur in several places in the Kaiping basin, 

Hebei Province. The deposits are estimated to contain 100 million-400 million tons of aluminous rock, and 

at least 30 million tons is probably high grade (K.P. 

Wang, 1959, p. 75). The rock is 50-70 percent A12O3, 

5-27 percent SiO2 , 1-15 percent Fe2O3, and 1-3 percent TiO2.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B115

Shandong Province.—The most productive bauxite 

mines in mainland China are near the Tsingtoa-Tsinan 

railroad in the general vicinity of Nanding, Shandong 

Province. Bauxite was mined from these deposits during Japanese occupation (Kleinhans, 1948, p. 4), and the 

deposits now supply the alumina plant at Nanding. The 

most productive areas are reported to extend over 

800 km2. Chinese newspaper accounts cited by Ikonnikov (1984, p. 549) describe the deposits as being the 

largest in China, and one of the very few largest in the 

world. The bauxite is described as rich, under shallow 

overburden, and close to water and land transportation.

The G-bed deposits have been mined most extensively, but several other bauxite beds, including bed A, 

aluminous shale, and alunite deposits are also present 

in Shandong. According to Kleinhans (1948, p. 4), the 

G-bed deposits are irregular in thickness, and the best 

bauxite occurs near the middle of the thicker parts of 

the bed. Diaspore is the principal bauxite mineral present, and kaolinite occurs in the upper and lower parts 

of the deposits. The best grade bauxite is reported to 

be 60 percent A12O3 , 13 percent SiO2 , 10 percent Fe2O3 , 

and 2 percent TiO2 . Reserves and resources are 

estimated to be between 100 million and 300 million 

tons; at least 30 million tons (K.P. Wang, 1959, p. 75) 

and possibly as much as 68 million tons (C.C. Wang, 

1932, p. 30), is high-grade bauxite.

Inner Mongolia.—Small alumina reserves have been 

reported as occurring on the Ordos grasslands in Inner 

Mongolia (Nei Monggol). These deposits were found during extensive work by many teams of prospectors. No 

detailed information on the deposits is available. 

However, Sakamoto (1958) mentioned that bed G occurs in Inner Mongolia, and the deposits are probably 

aluminous shales associated with coal-bearing rocks.

Liaoning.— Both bauxite (beds G and A) and 

aluminous shale occur in Liaoning (Ikonnikov, 1975, 

p. 378-380). The principal bauxite deposits are in the 

Benxi-Fuxian region and in the Fuzhou district 30 km 

west of Fuxian. Aluminous shale occurs in the Niuxintai 

district 15 km northeast of Benxi. The Fuzhou bauxite 

is 50-72 percent A12O3 , 7-30 percent SiO2, 1.5-2.5 percent Fe2O3 , and 2.2-3.1 percent TiO2. The Niuxintai 

aluminous shale is 45-55.5 percent A12O3 , 20-30 percent SiO2, 2-3 percent Fe2O3 , and 2-3.1 percent TiO2. 

The aluminous shale deposits in the vicinity of Benxi 

contain 50 million-100 million tons, and possibly 

20 million tons is high grade (K.P. Wang, 1959, p. 75). 

The grade of the rock mined is 53 percent A12O3, 

20 percent SiO2, 10 percent Fe2O3 , and 3 percent TiO2. 

Sakamoto (1958) gave an analysis of the shale that is 

considerably higher in alumina than analyses given by 

Wang, but no information on the amount of the highgrade material is available. According to Ikonnikov

(1972, p. 357), the reserves of bauxite in this province 

are estimated to be 110 million tons.

Fujian Province.—Small (3- to 4-m-thick) bauxite 

deposits consisting chiefly of gibbsite occur in the 

Zhangpu district along the coast southwest of Amoy. 

The bauxite has formed by weathering of basalt. Some 

deposits are residual; others evidently have been 

transported, inasmuch as they contain boulders of bauxite several tens of centimeters in diameter. Ikonnikov 

(1975, p. 365) reported that the average composition of 

this bauxite is 47.6 percent A12O3 , 22.4 percent SiO2, 

and 20.4 percent Fe2O3 . The deposits are small but 

probably contain more than the 500,000-ton estimate 

(Kleinhans, 1948, p. 7).

GuangxL—Several trade journals published notes in 

1978 that high-grade bauxite has been discovered 

recently in the Pingguo district. The deposits are 

reported to be located along the Yu Jiang River. They 

are described as being 59.9 percent A12O3 and minable 

by open-pit methods.

Resources

Estimates of the bauxite resources in the People's 

Republic of China range widely because of the variety 

in mineralogy of rocks included, the unavailability of 

reliable evaluation data, and the language barrier, 

among other problems. Reserves of high-grade bauxite 

in Shandong, Liaoning, Guizhou, Hebei, and Yunnan 

Provinces are approximately 150 million tons (K.P. 

Wang, 1959, p. 75), the estimate used in this report 

(table 12). Reserves of lower grade bauxite and 

aluminous shale have been estimated by the Geological 

Survey of the People's Republic of China to be as much 

as 882 million tons (Ikonnikov, 1972, p. VI-1). Total 

resources of all bauxite and aluminous shale in China 

have been estimated to be 400 million-1.3 billion tons 

by K.P. Wang (1959, p. 75) and 550 million-1,450 

million tons (United Nations, Economic Commission for 

Asia and the Far East, 1962, p. 4). For the purpose of 

this report total resources of bauxite and aluminous 

shale in the People's Republic of China are considered 

to be 0.5 billion-1.5 billion tons. Even the upper limit 

of this estimate would probably be proven conservative 

if adequate and thorough evaluations of all the 

resources in this country were available.

An estimate of 150 million tons of bauxite reserves 

in the People's Republic of China was published by the 

U.S. Bureau of Mines (Baumgardner and McCawley, 

1983, table 3). Shaffer's (1983, table 5) estimate of the 

total bauxite resources in the People's Republic of China 

is 1 billion tons. Both Lebauer (1983, p. 9-11) and the 

International Bauxite Association have published
B116 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

estimates of 1 billion tons for the refractory-grade bauxite in this country. The refractory-grade bauxite is 

reported by Lebauer (1983) to be located in Guizhou, 

Henan, Shanxi, and Sichuan provinces and the 

Kwangsi-Chung (Guangxi-Zhuang) autonomous region.

PHILIPPINES

Bauxite was discovered on the Island of Samar in 

1970 (Weisse, 1976), and the Philippines Bureau of 

Mines began investigating it in 1975 (Jacolino, 1977). 

The deposits are the karst type and occur on limestone 

of middle and late Miocene age. They are located mainly in the central part of Samar and on the small island 

of Batag off the northern coast. The bauxite consists 

of fine-grained (mostly less than 1 /mi) particles of brickred, chocolate-brown, and yellowish-brown material. The 

principal bauxite mineral is gibbsite, considerable 

boehmite is also present, and nordstrandite has been 

found in several places (Weisse, 1979, p. 11). Vanadium 

minerals are identifiable in it, but the varieties were not 

reported (Jacolino, 1977). According to Weisse (1976, 

table 1), samples analyzed by Alusuisse had the following composition: 46.5-50.9 percent A12O3 , 1.0-4.5 percent SiO2 , 20.9-24.0 percent Fe2O3, 1.6-2.2 percent 

TiO2 , 0.8-2.6 percent P2O5, 0.5-1.1 percent MnO2 , and 

the LOI is 21.4-24.1 percent. A sample analyzed by 

Comalco (Jacolino, 1977, table 3) contained 39.40 percent total A12O3, 31.10 percent available A12O3, and 

28.90 percent trihydrate A12O3. This sample also contained 6.50 percent total SiO2 , of which 2.00 percent 

was quartz, and 1.17 percent organic carbon.

Bauxite deposits in the Salcedo and Mercedes 

municipalities in eastern Samar have been investigated 

by the Philippine Bureau of Mines and Geosciences 

(Isaac, 1982). The bauxite consists of reddish to 

yellowish-brown unconsolidated fine-grained material 

that resembles laterite or soil. The bauxite deposits occur as pockets in sinkholes and as blankets covering 

Pliocene and Pleistocene limestones. The bauxite is a 

gibbsite-boehmite variety containing varying amounts 

of silica and alumina. Much of the bauxite in the 

Salcedo-Mercedes deposits is 33-45 percent A12O3, 

1-5 percent SiO2 , and 24-27 percent Fe2O3, and it contains minor quantities of CaO and MgO.

The Philippine Bureau of Mines evaluated the bauxite on Batag Island but had only reconnoitered the 

deposits on the main island of Samar when Jacolino's 

report (1977, p. 14-17) was published. The deposits on 

Batag contain more than 11 million tons of bauxite, of 

which 7.7 million tons is considered recoverable. Potential bauxite areas on the main island cover 182,000 hectares, which is much larger than the areas underlain by

bauxite on Batag. Therefore the total bauxite in Samar 

including Batag is no doubt larger than the published 

estimates.

The Philippine Bureau of Mines has also investigated 

low-grade aluminous ferruginous laterite on Nonoc 

Island (Esguerra, 1961) and Bucas Grande Island 

(Esguerra, 1967). Both islands are parts of the Surigao 

Mineral Reservation, Mindanao. The Nonoc deposits 

contain an estimated 100 million tons of low-grade 

laterite (United Nations Economic Commission for Asia 

and the Far East, 1963, p. 29), and Esguerra (1967, p. 71) 

estimated about 200 million tons for similar laterite on 

Bucas Granda Only a small part of this laterite contains 

more than 30 percent A12O3.

The total amount of bauxite in the Philippines is probably 200 million-300 million tons. Most of the bauxite 

is low grade, and the best grade deposits are on Samar. 

The total bauxite in several districts on this island is 

reported to be 120 million tons (Wu, 1983, p. 798). 

Deposits in the central part of the island contain a little 

more than 35 percent available A12O3.

SAUDI ARABIA

Bauxite was discovered near the village of Zabirah in 

northern Saudi Arabia in the early 1950's by geologists 

of the Arabian American Oil Company (Bramkamp and 

Ramirez, 1963; Bramkamp and others, 1963). The 

deposits were investigated by the Riofinex Geological 

Mission, Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, during the period 

1979-81 (Black, 1982; Black, Lozej, and Maddah, 1984). 

Zabirah (27° 55' N. 43° 41' E.) is 180 km north of the 

town of Buraydah. The nearest deep-water port is 

Dharhran, which is on the Arabian Gulf about 650 km 

east-southeast.

The Zabirah bauxite is a Cretaceous paleolaterite that 

formed on rocks probably THassic to Middle Jurassic age, 

was buried by younger sedimentary beds, and later was 

exposed by erosion resulting from late Tertiary or Quaternary uplift. The bauxite is in the Wasia Formation of Albian (late Early Cretaceous) to Turanian (early Late 

Cretaceous) aga The Wasia Formation consists mainly 

of fluviatile sandstone with some siltstone and mudstona

The Zabirah bauxite occurs in a laterite profile that 

is known to be preserved over an area of at least 250 km. 

The deposits are discontinuous lenses, the largest of 

which extends over a few kilometers. In most places the 

pisolitic bauxite zone is 2-3 m thick, and the maximum 

thickness is about 7 m. The bauxite is generally hard 

and compact, but weathered parts of deposits near the 

surface are friable and soft. A kaolin clay zone occurs 

above the bauxite and another one is present below the 

bauxite.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B117

The bauxite minerals in the Zabirah deposits are chiefly boehmite and gibbsite, and only trace amounts of 

diaspore have been found. The boehmiteigibbsite ratios 

vary from 1:1 to 4:1, and the average is about 2:1 (Black, 

Lozej, and Maddah, 1984, p. 627). Most of the boehmite 

occurs in pisolites, and boehmite tends to be most abundant in the lower parts of the bauxite zone. Gibbsite 

tends to occur as interstitial material and as rims enclosing boehmite pisolites. Iron in the bauxite is in the form 

of hematite and goethite, which are present in varying 

proportions. One distinctive form of goethite is pseudomorphic after pyrite. Kaolinite is the principal silicate 

mineral in the bauxite; minor amounts of quartz and 

traces of tourmaline, zircon, kyanite, and staurolite are 

also present.

The indicated bauxite resources in the Zabirah district 

are calculated to be 33.7 million tons, and an additional 

109.0 million tons of bauxite is inferred to be present 

(Black, 1982, p. 70). Almost 45 million tons of the indicated and inferred bauxite is in the central part of the 

district where the average A12O3 content is 61.9 percent and the SiO2 is 6.7 percent. Nearly 100 million 

tons of indicated and inferred bauxite is in the southern 

part of the district where the average A12O3 content is 

57.0 percent and the SiO2 is 6.6 percent. The indicated 

and inferred resources are in deposits having an 

overburden-to-bauxite ratio of 4.5:1.

In addition to the bauxite, the Zabirah district contains approximately 1 billion tons of high-alumina clay 

(Black, 1982, p. 72). This kaolinitic clay is in beds having an average thickness of 5 m, containing 45 percent 

A12O3 and 24 percent SiO2. This clay has an average 

overburden-to-clay ratio of 2.8:1.

TAIWAN

Small (mostly less than 1-m-thick) deposits of bauxite were discovered on the island of Chinmen (Quemoy) 

in 1948. The deposits are associated with clays overlying weathered basalt. In the early 1950's, 2,000 tons was 

shipped to the Taiwan Aluminum Corporation in 

Taiwan for testing. The tests showed that contents of 

A12O3 in the bauxite range from 40 to 50 percent, and 

both iron oxides and silica are abundant in most of the 

deposits. Reserves in these deposits were estimated at 

150,000 tons (U.S. Bureau of Mines, 1948); however the 

reserve estimate was probably overly optimistic (S. 

Rosenblum, oral commun., 1963). The quality of the 

bauxite is not competitive with that of imports from 

Malaysia and Indonesia.

Laterite-type bauxite, formed on rocks of the Tatun 

Volcanic Group, has been found on Taiwan (Taiwan 

Mining Research and Service Organization, 1977, p. 32).

The deposits are on slopes, lowlands, and coastal terraces. They consist of gibbsite, fine-grained quartz, 

cristobalite, goethite, and magnetite. The ranges of principal oxides in these deposits are 20-45 percent A12O3, 

14-50 percent SiO2, 10-16 percent Fe2O3, and 1-1.5 

percent TiO2. Processes of upgrading this bauxite to 

produce a suitable material to supply an alumina plant 

are being investigated. According to one published note 

on these deposits (Dacko, 1979), they are reported to 

contain several hundred million tons of lateritic bauxite. In this report the estimate of 200 million tons given 

by Shaffer (1983, table 5) is assumed to be correct for 

the subeconomic bauxite in Taiwan.

TURKEY

History and Production

The first production of bauxite in Turkey was in 1964 

when the Turkish Mineral Research and Exploration Institute mined and shipped 800 tons of high-silica bauxite from the Akseki deposits for use as refractories in 

metallurgical furnaces near Antalya. The total produced 

that year was 4,500 tons. Production of bauxite in 

Turkey remained small until 1970 when the output was 

more than 50,000 tons. Bauxite mining, mainly in the 

Seydisehir region, increased rapidly and was more than 

one-half million tons in the mid-1970's (table 6). The 

growth in bauxite mining resulted from increasing exports to the U.S.S.R. and the activation of an alumina 

plant at Seydisehir in 1973. This plant has a capacity 

of 220,000 tons per year; about one-half of the output 

supplies an aluminum plant nearby and the remaining 

alumina is shipped to the U.S.S.R. (Kurtz, 1975, p. 203). 

The U.S.S.R. assisted in the financing and construction 

of the aluminum complex.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

The principal bauxite deposits in Turkey are in the 

Seydisehir-Akseki region in the western Taurus Mountains (fig. 24), but small deposits occur in Zonguldak 

Province and at several other localities (Ankara Maden 

Tetkik ve Arama Enstitusii, 1965, 1966; Goksu, 1954). 

All these deposits are of the Mediterranean or karst type, 

and the deposits in most districts occur as numerous 

pockets and lenses (Ozlu, 1978). The country rock in most 

districts has been folded and faulted, which makes the 

evaluation and mining of the deposits more difficult. Virtually all the deposits are the monohydrate type

Zonguldak Province.—The bauxite deposits in this 

Province are located in the Hayatkoy-Kokaksu Mevkii
B118 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

25°

BULGARIA

35°

BLACK SEA

40° 45°

U.S.S.R.

40°

37C

\

TURKEY

A A 15

.8-10

"A

\

S IRj

•'T

SYRIA IRAQ

\i

0 150 MILES

1 I I 

0 150 KILOMETERS

EXPLANATION

BAUXITE

• Bauxite district

1. Zonguldak-Kokaksu

2. Konya-Isparta

3. Konya-Seydi§ehir

4. Antalya-Akseki

5. Antalya-Alanya-Giindogmu§

6. Malatya-Dogan§ehir

7. Gaziantep-Islahiye

8. Hatay-Dortyol-Payas-Kuzguncuk

9. Hatay-Dortyol-Payas-Sardam, Kizilkaya

10. Hatay-Dortyol-Payas-Caglalik

DIASPORE

A Diaspore district

11. Mugla-Milas-Yatagan

12. Konya-Ayranci-Bolkardagi

13. Adana-Saimbeyli-Magra Bolgesi

14. Kayseri-Sariz-Haydankoy

15. K. Mara§-G6ksun-Acielma-K6rkuyu

FIGURE 24.—Locations of bauxite and diaspore districts in Turkey.

district (Ankara Maden Tetkik ve Arama Enstitiisii, 

1965, p. 15), which is approximately 3 km south of the 

city of Zonguldak on the Black Sea. They are at altitudes of about 300 m. The bauxite is in lenses and 

pockets on a karst surface on Carboniferous limestone 

and is overlain by middle Cretaceous sandstone. Hard 

and soft varieties of bauxite are present. The hard type 

contains abundant diaspore pisolites (Goksu, 1954, 

p. 195), and the soft type is similar to terra rossa. Goksu 

(1954, p. 195) listed the average chemical composition 

of hard bauxite as 55 percent A12O3, 5 percent SiO2, 

20 percent Fe2O3, 3 percent TiO2, and 13 percent LOI

and of soft bauxite as 40 percent A12O3, 30 percent 

SiO2, 10 percent Fe2O3, 2.5 percent TiO2, and 15 percent LOI.

Seydi$ehir-Akseki region.—More than 100 occurrences of bauxite are known in the Seydisehir-Akseki 

region, but only a few are large enough to be of value 

(Ankara Maden Tetkik ve Arama Enstitiisii, 1965; 

Goksu, 1954; Giildari, 1973). The bauxite occurs as 

pockets and lenticular deposits within Upper Cretaceous limestone. They are along an unconformity on Turonian limestone beds and are overlain by limestone 

breccias and conglomerates of Senonian age (Wippern,
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B119

1964). The deposits are associated with terra rossa and 

are of the karst or Mediterranean type. According to 

Wippern (1962), the bauxite originated from reworked 

feldspathic material from igneous rocks. The bauxite is 

chiefly boehmite (Goksu, 1954, p. 189).

The Mortas bauxite deposit located 15 km south of 

Seydisehir consists mainly of boehmite but contains 

variable quantities of diaspore (Atabey, 1976). The bauxite also contains minor amounts of gibbsite, kaolinite, and 

montmorillonite. Iron occurs in the form of hematite and 

goethite. Noncrystalline aluminous materials are also 

present (Atabey, 1976). The bauxite varies considerably 

in composition; ALjO,, ranges from 40 to 60 percent, SiO2 

from 5 to 12 percent, and Fe2O3 from 14 to 20 percent. 

Most of the bauxite is about 2.5 percent TiO2.

Other districts.—Deposits at Islahiye are underlain by 

limestone of Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous age and 

are overlain by a limestone series of Late Cretaceous age. 

Much of the bauxite is pisolitic and dark brown, and all 

is rich in iron. Of 110 samples analyzed (Goksu, 1954, 

p. 193), 48 contained more than 50 percent Alf>3 and 23 

contained more than 45 percent A12O3. The Fe2O3 contents in these samples ranged from 15 to 17.41 percent.

Small bauxite deposits having high silica contents occur along the unconformity between Lower and Upper 

Cretaceous limestones at Kas (Ankara Maden Tbtkik ve 

Arama Enstitiisii, 1965, p. 21). Small deposits of Eocene 

age also occur in this area.

Goksu (1954) noted that bauxite has been found at Kan 

in the east Taurus Mountains, at Sebilkoy near the southern coast, and elsewhere. Probably these deposits are too 

small to be of much valua

Several bauxite occurrences have been found in the area 

between Seydisehir-Akseki and the city of Alanya on the 

coast (Peyronnet, 1971). Some of this bauxite contains 

considerable diaspora A sample of one deposit was found 

to be uncommonly rich in gallium (Peyronnet, 1969).

Diaspore.—The extensive diaspore deposits in Turkey 

occur mainly near the southwestern coast on the Aegean 

Sea, but other deposits are scattered throughout the 

southern part of the country. Most of these deposits are 

lens-shaped and occur in marble along the boundary between Permian and Triassic rocks (Wippern, 1964; 

Peyronnet, 1971). The deposits are generally scattered 

along the flanks of a crystalline massif (Ankara Maden 

Tfetkik ve Arama Enstitiisii, 1965, p. 2). The diaspore is 

believed to have been formed by metamorphism of bauxite deposits in the late Paleozoic or early Mesozoic.

Resources

The reserves of bauxite in the Konya-Seydisehir region 

were estimated by the Ankara Maden Tetkik ve Arama

Enstitiisii (Apaydin and Erscen, 1981, p. 2) to be approximately 42,473 thousand tons. The U.S. Bureau of Mines 

(Baumgardner and McCawley, 1983, table 3) made a 

more conservative estimate of 25 million tons. In addition to the reserves in the Konya-Seydisehir region, an 

estimated 276,490 thousand tons of bauxite is present 

in nine other districts (table 22). Diaspore resources in 

five districts, which are presently considered subeconomic, are estimated to be 143,443 thousand tons. The 

total bauxite and diaspore resources in Turkey are 

estimated to be about 460 million tons (table 22).

TABLE 22.—Estimates of resources of bauxite and diaspore in Turkey

and contents of major oxides 

[Modified from Apaydin and Erscen (1981, p. 2)]

District

Reserves 

(thousands 

of tons)

Typical analyses 

(percent)

Bauxite

1. Zonguldak-Kokaksu . .

5. Antalya-Alanya6. Malatya-Dogansehir 

(3 yatak) ..........

7. Gaziantep-Islahiye . . . 

8. Hatay-Dortyol-PayasKuzeruncuk .......

8,000 

. 64,000

. 42,473

. 43,920

8,130

140

. 120,000 

. 18.100

55 A12O3 

42 ALO,, 6 SiO9, 36 Fe9O,,

£t O £t £t O

4TiO2 

53-59 A12O3, 5-11 SiO2

50-69 ALO,, 1-15 SiO9

£t O ft

23-67 ALO,, 6-29 SiO9 £t O £t

38-73 A12O3, 6.6 SiO2,

21.64 Fe2O3 

46-58 A12O3, 4-9 SiO2

20.20 ALO.,. 21.3 SiO~.

9. Hatay-Dortyol-PayasSardam, Kizilkaya

32 Fe2O3

. 12,000 20.20 A12O3, 21.3 SiO2,

10. Hatay-Dortyol-PayasCaglalik ........... 2,200

32 Fe203

25.77-57.46 Al2O3 +TiO2, 

11.98-23.52 SiO0

Tbtal bauxite . . . 318,963

Diaspore

11. Mugla-Milas-Yatagan . . 89,593

12. Konya-AyranciBolkardagi ......... 10,000

13. Adana-SaimbeyliMagra Bolgesi ...... 40,400

14. Kayseri-SarizHaydankoy ........ 450

15. K. Maras-GoksunAcielma-Korkuyu . . . 3,000

Tbtal diaspore . . . 143,443

Tbtal bauxite and 

diaspore ...... 462,406

40-61 A12O3 

67 A12O3, 2 SiO2 

28-51 A12O3, 6-52 SiO2

47.31 A12O3, 15.7 SiO2, 

26.9 Fe2O3

32.75 A12O3, 18.1 SiO2, 

34.7 Fe2O3
B120 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

VIETNAM

Bauxite was discovered in Vietnam by Japanese 

geologists in 1941 and has been investigated by Soviet 

and Hungarian geologists more recently. The deposits 

are located near the border with the People's Republic 

of China and are now known to occur in nine districts 

scattered through a belt about 125 km long (Chebotarev 

and Buy Fu Miy, 1961; Koml6ssy, 1976). Small tonnages of bauxite were mined at Lang Son near Don 

Dang and Dai Phat during the Japanese occupation 

(Harrington, 1948). Presumably this bauxite was for 

test purposes, because there are no reports of significant production.

The bauxite is the karst type, occurring in deformed 

Paleozoic rocks. The deposits are of Late Permian age. 

They are underlain by Carboniferous and Permian rocks 

and overlain by limestones and marine shales of Late 

Permian and younger ages. They range considerably in 

thickness because of irregularities in the subjacent 

karst surface, but some are as much as 40 m thick. Most 

deposits are steeply inclined, and some are cut and 

displaced by faults.

Koml6ssy (1976, table 4) investigated 421 samples of 

bauxite from six of the Vietnam districts and found 

them to be mainly the monohydrate type. The 220 

samples from five districts had diaspore contents of 

16.3-46.7 percent, and the average boehmite content 

ranged from 2.0 to 21.4 percent. The samples from 

deposits in the one district having low diaspore contents 

had an average kaolinite content of 34.9 percent. 

Kaolinite was also present in the samples from the other 

districts, and chamosite, hematite, and goethite occur 

in considerable quantities in all districts. Chebotarev 

and Buy Fu Miy (1961) recorded the following ranges 

of major oxides in the bauxite: 49-54 percent A12O3, 

7-10 percent SiO2 , and 22-26 percent Fe2O3 .

Laterite-type deposits occur at several places in 

former South Vietnam. Hebb (1974, p. 301, table A) 

noted that deposits occur at Thua Thien and Quang 

Nam. Presumably these deposits and others in plateau 

areas in the lower Mekong basin were investigated in 

1961 by the United Nations Economic Commission for 

Asia and the Far East (1962, p. 18). No reports on the 

results of this work have been widely circulated, but 

Fontaine and Workman (1978, p. 588-589) noted that 

deposits in southern Vietnam are reported to contain 

40-50 percent A12O3 .

According to Bardossy (1977, appendix 1), districts 

in the vicinity of Lang Son in the southern part of the 

bauxite belt near the People's Republic of China contain 70 million tons, and 130 million tons of bauxite is 

present near Cao Dang in the northern part of the belt. 

The total resources of 200 million tons have little value

as a source of aluminum because of the high diaspore 

contents. However, the technology of alumina extraction from this bauxite has been investigated by Vietnamese and Soviet specialists (Dik, Eremin, and 

Chestyakova, 1976).

OTHER ASIAN COUNTRIES

In Yemen (Aden), a thin zone of bauxitic rock 

associated with lignite and gypsum occurs in variegated 

shales between sandstones of Cretaceous age and 

massive limestone of middle Eocene age (Little, 1925, 

p. 105, 136-137). The aluminous rock and associated 

strata crop out in cliff faces north of the port of Makalla 

(Mukalla). The bauxitic zone is about 1 m thick and 

white to pink. At the surface it is brittle to powdery, 

and the hard parts break with a conchoidal fracture. At 

one locality the bauxite contained 46 percent A12O3; at 

another, 67 percent A12O3 and small quantities of 

Fe2O3 , CaO, MgO, K2O, and SiO2.

Occurrences of bauxite in the alluvium-filled Mae 

Klong and Khwae Noi valleys in Thailand were described 

by Richardson (1947). These deposits, reported to be 2 

m thick, consist of irregularly shaped gray concretions.

Bauxite is known to occur in three places in Kampuchea. Deposits associated with Permian limestone 

occur in the Battambang and Sisophon areas in northwestern Kampuchea (Gorovoy and Nyrkov, 1974; Dottin, 1972; Fleuriot de Langle, 1973). Deposits at one 

locality are mixtures of boehmite and chamosite, and 

those at another are chiefly diaspore and hematite. Some 

of this bauxite has A12O3 contents in the range 50-60 

percent (Workman, 1972, p. 62-65). Bardossy (1977, appendix 1) gave an estimate of 3 million tons for the bauxite in the Sisophon area. Red lateritic bauxite is known 

to be present in the Haut Chhlong (Khet Mondolkiri) 

plateau area in the extreme eastern part of Kampuchea 

(Fontaine and Workman, 1978, p. 587). Three samples 

of the bauxite from the Haut Chhlong plateau contained 

43-50 percent A12O3 , 17-24 percent Fe2O3, 3 percent 

TiO2 , and 1-2 percent SiO2.

Small bauxite deposits are reported at Qandahar in 

Afghanistan (Bardossy, 1977, appendix 1). They are the 

karst type and are of Late Jurassic age. They are 

thought to contain approximately 5 million tons.

In a reconnaissance survey, Dissanayake and Vitanage 

(1977) found some evidence of bauxite in Sri Lanka. One 

laterite soil horizon in the central part of the island was 

46.7 percent A12O3, and gibbsite was the principal 

bauxite mineral. This soil is 19.6 percent SiO2 that is 

in the form of quartz and halloysite.

Small bauxite deposits have reportedly been discovered in Israel (Chemical Age, 1956). These deposits are
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B121

in the Ramon area in the Negev region. These may be 

the deposits Bardossy (1977, appendix 1) noted in the 

Maktesh area that contain 5 million tons of bauxite. 

Several mining journals (Engineering and Mining 

Journal, 1976; E/MJ International Directory Mining 

Activity Digest, 1976; Mining Magazine, 1976) published reports of the discovery of large bauxite deposits 

in South Korea. These news items were inaccurate 

reports of the discovery of a large mass of anorthosite 

by the Korea Research Institute of Geoscience and 

Mineral Resources (Dr. Byung Koo Hyun, written commun., 1976).

SUMMARY OF BAUXITE RESOURCES IN ASIA

The total bauxite reserves in Asia are estimated to 

be approximately 2 billion tons (rounded), and the 

resources (reserves and subeconomic and undiscovered 

resources) are thought to be 6 billion-11 billion tons. 

The principal reserves, in million of tons, are located in 

the following regions: India—approximately 1,000, 

Indonesia—750, and the People's Republic of China150. Malaysia, Pakistan, and Turkey each have reserves 

in the 15-million- to 30-million-ton range. The large identified subeconomic bauxite deposits of little or no 

foreseeable value are mainly in India, Indonesia, and 

the People's Republic of China. The principal regions 

where undiscovered bauxite deposits are likely to be 

present are India, Indonesia, People's Republic of 

China, and at scattered places in the tropical belt of 

Southeast Asia and the Philippines.

OCEANIA

The principal bauxite resources in Oceania are in 

Australia, but smaller resources are known in the 

Solomon Islands, Palau, and Fiji. Very small deposits 

occur on several other islands, and low-grade ferruginous laterite deposits are known in New Zealand. 

Little mineral prospecting has been done on several 

Pacific islands having areas favorable for bauxite formation, and therefore more bauxite deposits of small 

to medium size (5 million-100 million tons) will probably 

be discovered in the future.

AUSTRALIA 

History and Production

In less than 30 years, Australia has progressed from 

an alumina-importing nation to the world's leading

producer of bauxite and alumina. In 1971, Australia 

took over world leadership among the bauxiteproducing countries with an output of 12.7 million tons, 

and in 1977 the total was twice that amount (table 6). 

Though bauxite had been produced on a small scale for 

refractory and chemical products at several places for 

a long time and is still mined for these uses, the alumina 

for the first aluminum plant at Bell Bay was imported 

(Coghill, 1972). Bauxite deposits of sufficient size and 

grade to support an aluminum industry were discovered 

in 1955 near Weipa on the Cape York Peninsula (fig. 25), 

by Harry Evans, the chief geologist of Frome Broken 

Hill Co. (Raggatt, 1968, p. 85). The bauxite deposits on 

this peninsula are now known to be among the largest 

in the world.

Metal-grade bauxite is mined at Gove, Northern Territory; Jarrahdale and Del Park in the Darling Range, 

Western Australia; and Weipa, Queensland (fig. 25). The 

major production of bauxite in Australia for nonmetallurgical uses is in the Weipa district, but minor tonnages are also mined in other districts. The Weipa 

district now has the capacity for calcining 250,000 tons 

of abrasive-grade bauxite per year. Ingram (1973) gave 

the following list of other bauxite deposits mined for 

nonmetallurgical uses. (1) Deposits in the Tambourine 

Mountain (now Hendersons Knob) district, Queensland, 

have been used for water purification, making aluminum sulfate, and road metal. (2) More than 175,000 tons 

of bauxite has been mined in the Moss Vale district, 

New South Wales, for flux in steel making and as a raw 

material for cement. (3) Deposits in the Mirboo district, 

Victoria, are used for aluminous chemicals, and approximately 100,000 tons have been mined.

Bauxite Districts and Deposits

NEW SOUTH WALES

The Inverell district contains many separate bauxite deposits (Owen, 1954, p. 29-63). The bauxite is in 

laterite that is derived from basalt and is overlain by 

younger basalts of Pliocene age. The deposits range in 

thickness from 5 to 13 m. The bauxite is pisolitic and 

earthy in texture and grades downward into clay-rich 

weathered rocks in which basaltic textures have been 

preserved. Proved and indicated reserves of bauxite in 

the Inverell district are 15,606 million tons (Ingram, 

1973, p. 11). The composition of this bauxite is 38.6 percent A12O3, 3.2 percent SiO2, and 30.1 percent Fe2O3.

Bauxite occurs in surficial laterite derived from basalt 

in several places in the Moss Vale district. Some deposits are as much as 15 m thick, but most are less than 

6 m thick. The upper part of most deposits is dark-red
B122 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

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EXPLANATION

• Major bauxite district • Minor bauxite district

1. Escape River-Vrilya Point, Cape York Peninsula

2. Wenlock River, Cape York Peninsula

3. Weipa, Cape York Peninsula

4. Aurukun-Pera Head, Cape York Peninsula

5. Hampton

6. Tambourine Mountain (now Hendersons Knob)

7. Inverell

8. Moss Vale

9. Boolarra-Mirboo North

10. Myalla

11. Saint Leonards

12. Ouse

13. Walpole

14. Mount Saddleback, Darling Range

15. Huntly-Del Park, Darling Range

16. Jarrahdale, Darling Range

17. Chittering, Darling Range

18. Mitchell Plateau, Kimberley region

19. Cape Bougainville, Kimberley region

20. Marchinbar Island

21. Gove Peninsula

FIGURE 25.—Locations of bauxite districts in Australia.

pisolitic laterite, which is separated from fresh basalt 

by layers of variegated red and buff kaolinized basalt. 

Some of the bauxite in the Moss Vale district has been 

used as a flux in making steel. The Moss Vale district 

is estimated to contain 4 million tons of proved and indicated bauxite. The better grade of bauxite in these 

deposits is 39.4 percent A12O3, 5.4 percent SiO2, 31.1 

percent Fe2O3, and 5.2 percent TiO2 (Ingram, 1973, 

p. IDSeveral small deposits of bauxitic laterite occur in the 

Trundle district 80 km west of Moss Vale. These 

deposits are estimated to contain 770,000 tons of bauxite containing about 24 percent free alumina (Ingram, 

1973, p. 11).

NORTHERN TERRITORY

Gove.— The largest deposits in the Northern Territory 

are at Gove (fig. 25). These deposits, which were among 

the first large laterite-type bauxites discovered in 

Australia, were described briefly by Owen (1954, p. 169). 

They underlie remnants of an undulating plateau surface at 30-50 m above sea level. Thicknesses of minable 

bauxite are as much as 10 m, but most deposits are 

3-4 m thick. Somm (1975) described a typical section 

of the bauxite exposed in mines as 2.0 m of overburden, 

3.0 m of loose pisolitic bauxite, 1.5 m of cemented 

pisolitic bauxite, 1.0 m of tubular bauxite, and 5.0 m 

of ferruginous and siliceous (barren) laterite.

According to Grubb (1970), the bauxite on the Gove 

Peninsula formed on thick beds of nearly horizontal 

shales, siltstones, and sandstones, which rest on an 

irregular granitic basement. The sediments were originally thought to be Proterozoic, but they are now considered to be Early Cretaceous in age. The shale units 

in the sediments are considerably more bauxitized than 

the beds of other lithologies. A drill hole described by 

Grubb from the surface downward penetrated the following beds: bauxite, mainly pisolites, 0-7.5 m; mottled 

clay, 7.5-9 m; purplish clay, apparently weathered from 

shale, 9-18 m; sands, partly arkosic, 18-175 m. Most 

of the bauxitization that formed the Gove deposits 

probably took place in the late Tertiary, but some of 

the initial weathering probably began in the Mesozoic. 

The bauxite consists mainly of gibbsite, but some 

boehmite is present, particularly at shallow depths. 

Silica contents are low, and this oxide occurs mainly in 

kaolinite. Iron minerals present are mainly hematite and 

goethite. The bauxite also contains titanium in rutile, 

anatase, and ilmenite.

Minable bauxite at Gove extends over areas covering a total of 63 km2 . According to Somm (1975, 

p. 964), proven reserves are 250 million tons. The International Bauxite Association (1976a, p. 37) listed this 

same figure for measured bauxite and 500 million tons 

for total reserves in the region. Somm (1975, p. 964) 

stated that the average grade of the reserves is 51 percent A12O3 and 4 percent SiO2. The International 

Bauxite Association (1977a, p. 37) reported the following analysis for the reserves: 50 percent A12O3, 

3.4-4.2 percent total SiO2, 3.4 percent reactive SiO2 , 

17.1 percent Fe2O3, 3.4 percent TiO2 , and 26.4 percent 

LOI.
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B123

Marchinbar Island.—Eight deposits of bauxite on 

Marchinbar Island in the Wessel Islands have been 

described by Owen (1954, p. 150-168). The bauxite is 

in laterite resting on quartzite, massive sandstone, and 

shale of Precambrian age. The bauxite probably formed 

during the Tertiary Period. It is partly covered by a 

layer of wind-blown sand as much as 0.3 m thick. Approximately 10 million tons of bauxite containing 

47.7-53.3 percent A12O3, 4.1-8.8 percent SiO2, and 

6.4-17.2 percent Fe2O3 was found on Marchinbar 

Island during early investigations (Owen, 1954, p. 15).

Minor deposits of bauxite occur in Melville and 

Croker Islands and the Coburg Peninsula, Northern 

Territory (Hughes, 1978). Deposits on Croker Island 

have been estimated to contain 660,000 tons by one 

company and 5 million tons by another. As much as 50 

million tons may be present on Vashon Head on the 

Coburg Peninsula. Most of this bauxite contains more 

than 10 percent reactive silica according to the few 

analyses that are available.

QUEENSLAND

Extensive bauxite deposits occur in several districts 

in the western part of the Cape York Peninsula (fig. 25). 

Small deposits are located in the Escape River district 

on the northeastern coast of the peninsula and in the 

Tambourine Mountain (now Hendersons Knob) and 

Hampton districts in southeastern Queensland.

Districts in western Cape York Peninsula. —Weipa, 

the largest and the only presently producing district 

on the Cape York Peninsula, is in the central part of 

a belt extending for about 350 km from Aurukun in the 

south to Vrilya Point in the north (Raggatt, 1968; 

MacGeehan, 1972).

The Weipa bauxite deposits are flat-lying to gently 

dipping blanket deposits having an average thickness 

of 2.4 m and less than one meter of overburden (Evans, 

1959, 1975). The bauxite deposits are underlain by a 

thick sequence of arkosic, sandy, silty, and clayey strata 

that some geologists date as Cretaceous (Grubb, 1971b) 

and others as Tertiary (Evans, 1975). The bauxite 

grades downward through bauxitic kaolin into strata 

consisting of clay and sand (Murray, 1984) that are the 

parent material of the bauxite. These strata are 30-60 

percent quartz sand, and the remainder is chiefly kaolinite with minor quantities of illite, montmorillonite, 

and titanium-bearing and other heavy minerals. The 

heavy minerals in the clay-sand strata are similar to 

those in the bauxite (Grubb, 1971b), which supports the 

conclusion that the clay-sand strata are the parent 

materials of the bauxite. The bauxite formed mainly by 

leaching by meteoric water under seasonal tropical conditions, and the lateritization process is still going on

within the profile (Evans, 1972). The upper 2-3 m of 

deposits in the Weipa district consists of loose pisolitic 

bauxite (Jepsen and Schellmann, 1974). Boehmite 

makes up as much as 20 percent of this upper zone, but 

this mineral decreases in abundance with depth and is 

ordinarily rare below depths of about 3 m (Schellmann 

and Jepsen, 1973). Kaolinite is present throughout most 

of the deposits. This clay and some of the quartz, 

hematite, goethite, and heavy-mineral contaminants are 

removed by washing.

Weipa bauxite deposits are overlain only by a soil that 

is as much as 1 m thick and is missing in places. The 

bauxite is as much as 6 m thick (Loughnan and Sadleir, 

1984, p. 441). It consists of loosely bound red pisolites 

with minor quantities of interstitial material of a deeper 

red. Pisolites in the upper part of the bauxite are coarse 

grained, and many of them exceed 20 mm in diameter. 

Pisolites in the lower part tend to be much finer grained. 

The pisolitic bauxite is underlain with sharp contact by 

a dark-red, iron-enriched concretionary zone that is 

generally several meters thick. In most places the concretionary zone is massive, but tubular structured bauxite occurs locally. The concretionary zone contains less 

A12O3 than the pisolitic zone, and it is not being mined. 

The concretionary zone is separated from the underlying Weipa Formation by a partly mottled bleached 

kaolinitic sand of variable thickness. The average grade 

of beneficiated bauxite produced in 1977 (see table) was 

approximately 54.8 percent A12O3 and 5.3 percent 

SiO2 . Some higher grade bauxite has been produced; 

Weipa bauxite shipped to West Germany (Meusel, 1974, 

p. 92) was 58 percent A12O3 , 4 percent SiO2 , 7 percent 

Fe2O3 , 0.21 percent organic matter, and 27 percent 

LOI. One of two samples of Weipa bauxite analyzed in 

Italy by Landi and Casola (1977, table la) was of similar 

composition. The other sample was 55.61 percent 

A12O3 . The percentage of A12O3 occurring in the form 

of boehmite in these samples was 14.0 and 15.0.

Average grades of bauxite from Weipa, Cape York Peninsula, Australia 

[In percent. From Roberts (1977)]

A13O3 SiO2 Quartz Fe2O3 Gibbsite Boehmite

North of

Mission

River...... 50-55 1-7 0.5-2 12-20 36-44 8-15

Weipa

Peninsula. .. 56-60 3-10 1-4 5-8 36-45 8-16 

South of

Embley

River...... 45-56 6-10 2-4 7-15 30-40 10-15

Bauxite resources in the Weipa district, which includes Andoom, a part of the district north of the Mission River where mining is underway, and an area south
B124 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

of the Embley River, are estimated to be 3,133 million 

tons (National Miner, 1977, p. 90). Reserves of recoverable (washed) bauxite were estimated to be 2.5 billion 

tons as of 1975 (Roberts, 1977, p. 3-4). Of this amount, 

599 million tons was proven, 794 million tons probable, 

and the remainder possible bauxite. The three categories of reserves used by Roberts apparently are 

approximately equivalent to measured, indicated, and 

inferred.

The bauxite in the Aurukun district described by 

MacGeehan (1972) is quite similar to the deposits at 

Weipa. It also is differentiated into an upper, boehmiterich and a lower, gibbsite-rich zone. MacGeehan attributed the differences in mineralogy to youthful and 

mature stages of formation, and the development of the 

second stage is thought to have followed a lowering of 

the water table. According to Evans (1976, table 1), who 

referred to Aurukun as the Archer River district, the 

bauxite reserves are 600 million tons. The National 

Miner (1977, p. 90) listed the reserves in this district 

as 1,016 million tons and the grade as 53.5 percent 

A12O3 and 8.5 percent SiO2.

Other bauxite districts in the western part of the Cape 

York Peninsula include the following: (1) Pera Head, 

which is located on the coast between Aurukun and 

Weipa. The resources in this district are reported to be 

73 million tons; they are low in silica and have an average A12O3 content of 55.5 percent (National Miner, 

1977, p. 90). (2) South Weipa, south of the principal 

Weipa leases. Bauxite reserves owned by the AustralPacific Mining Corporation in this district are estimated 

to be 139 million tons containing 45 percent A12O3 (National Miner, 1977, p. 90). Evans (1976, table 1) made 

a questionable estimate of 92 million tons controlled by 

Austral-Pacific/Falkirk in this district. (3) Wenlock 

River, an inland district along the upper reaches of a 

stream of this name, northeast of Weipa. According to 

the National Miner (1977, p. 90), there are 51 million 

tons of bauxite in this district. The grade of the deposits 

is not available, but they are believed to be high in silica. 

Evans (1976, table 1) listed the Wenlock River reserves 

owned by "C.R.A./N.B.H.C." as being 45 million tons. 

(4) North Weipa, which is, as the name indicates, north 

of the principal Weipa leases. It is near the coast and 

on the south side of the Wenlock River. According to 

the National Miner (1977, p. 91), this district is owned 

by Alcan of Australia, Ltd. The bauxite reserves are 76 

million tons and the grade is unavailable. Evans (1976, 

table 1) listed the Alcan deposits in the Wenlock River 

district as 296 million tons containing >45 percent 

A12O3 and <15 percent total silica. (5) Vrilya Point, in 

the northwest part of the Cape York Peninsula (National Miner, 1977, p. 89). No estimates of the bauxite 

resources in this district are available.

Escape River district—Low-iron bauxite has been discovered in the Escape River district (fig. 25) in northeastern Cape York (A.H. White, 1976). The low-iron 

deposits are in the low parts of a gently undulating prePliocene lateritic surface. They grade through thin transition zones into high-iron (more than 15 percent 

Fe2O3) bauxite on the crests of the undulations. The 

deposits contain only about 5 million tons, and they are 

therefore probably too small to be mined profitably. 

However, they are of interest because they are the only 

low-iron deposits so far found in Australia, and possibly 

a grade of bauxite suitable for some of the nonmetal 

uses could be recovered from them. The low-iron bauxite is 44.6 percent A12O3 , 31.3 percent SiO2, 0.65 percent Fe2O3, and 2.3 percent TiO2. Gibbsite is virtually 

the only bauxite mineral present in these deposits, and 

silica occurs in the form of quartz and clay minerals. 

A.H. White (1976) concluded that the iron was leached 

from these deposits by percolating water having a low 

Eh and moderately low pH. This chemical environment 

resulted from humic acids formed from organic matter 

in overlying eolian sand.

Tambourine Mountain (now Hendersons Knob).—The 

bauxite deposits at Tambourine Mountain are about 

56 km south-southeast of Brisbane. The bauxite is in 

laterite deposits formed from the weathering of 

andesitic and basaltic lavas of probable Eocene or 

Oligocene age. Most of the laterite caps high ridges, but 

some of it occurs at intermediate altitudes. The bauxite in these deposits has been mined for use in aluminum 

sulfate. The size and grade of the deposits are incompletely known; however, the deposits are 8 m thick at 

one locality, and they are estimated to contain about 

1.3 million tons of proved and indicated bauxite (Owen, 

1954, p. 15). The bauxite is 37.3-41.0 percent A12O3, 

4.0-7.0 percent SiO2, and 22.0-24.0 percent Fe2O3 .

Hampton.—The bauxites at Hampton, northwest of 

Brisbane, are presumably similar in occurrence to the 

Tambourine Mountain deposits. Hampton deposits 

contain about 250,000 tons of indicated bauxite whose 

partial composition is 1.9 percent SiO2, 37.8 percent 

A12O3, and 32.7 percent Fe2O3 (Owen, 1954, p. 15).

TASMANIA

Several small bauxite deposits occur near Ouse, Saint 

Leonards, and Myalla in Tasmania. Laterite and ferruginous bauxite occur in the Ouse area in a layer of 

weathered rock derived from dolerite (Matthews, 1975). 

After the formation of the laterite the rocks were 

faulted, tilted, eroded, and buried by freshwater 

sediments and basalt flows. The bauxite is associated 

with remnants of the former land surface uncovered by 

erosion. Reserves of bauxite are estimated to be about
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B125

625,000 tons having 38.6-41.0 percent A12O3 , 5.6-6.1 

percent SiO2, and 25.7-30.2 percent Fe2O3 (Owen, 

1954, p. 15). Small deposits of bauxite resting on dolerite 

occur in the Saint Leonards area near the city of 

Launceston. The deposits contain about 140,000 tons 

of proved bauxite having 40.9-41.7 percent A12O3 , 

5.6-7.1 percent SiO2 , and 25.7-27.4 percent Fe2O3 . 

Several small deposits of bauxite derived from basalt 

occur near Myalla. These deposits are estimated to contain about 190,000 tons of bauxite.

Total bauxite reserves in Tasmania are estimated to 

be only 975,000 tons (Ingram, 1973, p. 13). The average total alumina content of this bauxite is 41 percent.

VICTORIA

Most of the bauxite deposits in Victoria are scattered 

over the part of County Buln Buln that is south of the 

Gippsland railway. The bauxite is derived from basalt 

and is probably of early or middle Eocene age. According to Bell (1961), the distribution of the deposits is controlled by a major fault system, and the origin of the 

bauxite is apparently related to ground-water movement along the vaults.

The bauxite reserves in the Boolarra and Mirboo 

North townships, Victoria, were listed by Ingram (1973, 

p. 12), who cited earlier work, as 798,000 tons measured 

and 118,000 tons indicated. The measured bauxite is 

50.7 percent A12O3, 7.6 percent SiO2, 8.5 percent Fe2O3, 

and 5.5 percent TiO2. A bauxite exploration program 

by Reynolds Metals Corp. in the region of these districts 

in 1959 failed to find significant additional reserves 

(Bell, 1961, p. 51). Bauxite has been mined since 1927 

on a small scale in the Mirboo North district for use in 

aluminous chemicals.

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Darling Range. —The bauxite districts in the Darling 

Range are in a belt 350 km long and 60 km wide located 

30 km inland and parallel to the southern part of the 

west coast (Murray, 1979). The principal districts are 

the following: (1) Jarrahdale, 48 km south-southeast of 

Perth. The bauxite in this district is trucked to a central point, where it is crushed, screened, and then 

shipped to Alcoa's alumina refinery at Kwinana. (2) The 

Huntley-Del Park district, about 90 km south of Perth. 

The bauxite is trucked to a mobile crusher and transported by a continuous conveyer to the Pinjara alumina 

plant (Kirk and Murray, 1979). (3) Boddington, near 

Mount Saddleback, 130 km south-southeast of Perth 

(Ingram, 1973, p. 16). Mining began in the Boddington 

district in 1983. This bauxite is transported to an alumina refinery at Worsley owned by Reynolds Australia

Alumina Ltd. (40 percent), the Shell Co. of Australia (30 

percent), Broken Hill Proprietary Co. Ltd. (20 percent), 

and Kobe Alumina Associates (10 percent) (International Bauxite Association, 1983a, p. 5). Development 

schemes have been advanced for two other large bauxite districts. (4) Cluttering, in the northern part of the 

Darling Range 40 km northeast of Perth. (5) The 

Walpole district, described by Ingram (1973, p. 17) as 

being 100 km west of Albany and, therefore, in the 

southern part of the Darling Range.

The bauxite in the Darling Range occurs on a dissected undulating plateau. The deposits are mainly at 

elevations of 250-340 m, but some deposits occur on 

isolated ridges as high as 500 m (Baker, 1975). The 

bauxite occurs in blanket deposits, and the better grade 

deposits are on ridge slopes rather than on crests or in 

valleys. Ore bodies range in size up to about 80 hectares. 

Most deposits are overlain by an overburden of loose 

sand 0.3-0.6 m thick. The upper part of the bauxite consists of a ferruginous hardcap having a maximum 

thickness of about 1.5 m. The bauxite zone has an 

average thickness of about 4 m, but in places it is more 

than 12m thick. Lithologies of this zone vary considerably. In some places it is massive, and in others it is 

fragmental, pisolitic, and, rarely, tubular or layered.

The bauxite deposits in the Darling Range formed on 

ancient complex rocks, and some difference of opinion 

exists among geologists as to whether or not the bauxite has had a complex history. According to Owen and 

Hargreaves (1975), the bauxitic laterite is of two principal types depending on its parent rock. Deposits on 

granitic rocks have high quartz contents, whereas 

deposits on intermediate and mafic rocks are virtually 

free of quartz. Grubb (197la) suggested that the bauxite, instead of forming on ancient crystalline rocks, 

developed on a blanket of feldspathic fluviatile Cretaceous sediments for which little evidence remains. Baker 

(1972; 1975, p. 984) took issue with this idea and pointed 

out that, at one isolated locality, the shale from which 

the bauxite formed could be of Proterozoic age.

The Jarrahdale deposits, which are more or less 

typical of the Darling Range bauxites, are low grade as 

compared with other bauxite deposits in Australia and 

elsewhere. The principal bauxite mineral is gibbsite, but 

boehmite, diaspore, and corundum are also present in 

very minor quantities (Grubb, 197la). The Jarrahdale 

and other deposits in the Darling Range are uncommonly rich in silica, but nearly all of it is in the form 

of quartz, which is nonreactive in the Bayer process for 

extracting alumina. The principal iron minerals are hematite and goethite, and, as in most laterites, hematite 

tends to be most abundant in the upper parts of deposits. The goethite in these deposits, like the bauxite 

in the Kimberley region farther north, is thought to
B126 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

contain aluminum (Owen and Hargreaves, 1975). The 

composition of typical bauxite mined in the Darling 

Range is given by Sibly and Bucket (1982, p. 130) as 

total A12O3 37 percent, available A12O3 30 percent, total 

SiO2 24 percent, reactive SiO2 1.5 percent, LOI 20 percent, Fe2O3 18 percent, and T1O2 1 percent.

The large bauxite resources in the Darling Range are 

scattered in several districts. The reserve estimates, in 

millions of tons, are as follows: (1) Gigegannup area 

south of Chitterling—69 (National Miner, 1977, p. 92); 

(2) Jarrahdale-80 (National Miner, 1977, p. 91); (3) 

Huntly-Del Park—1,000 (National Miner, 1977, p. 92);

(4) Mount Saddleback—250 (Ingram, 1973, p. 16); and

(5) Chittering (Muchea)—100-200 (National Miner, 1977, 

p. 92; Ingram, 1973, p. 16). Other large bauxite deposits, 

which are described by Evans (1976, table 1) as "substantial" and are in areas of claims covering 620 km2 

(Ingram, 1973, p. 17), are present in the Walpole district 

in the southern part of the Darling Range. Also, numerous small deposits in the Mount Saddleback district extending over areas as large as 3 hectares and containing 

as much as 300,000 tons were considered too small to 

be included in reserve estimates (Owen and Hargreaves, 

1975, p. 991). Ibtal bauxite resources in the Darling 

Range are more than 1.6 billion tons (rounded).

Kimberley region (Mitchell plateau and Cape Bougainville).—The bauxite deposits in the Kimberley region are 

on the Mitchell plateau and Cape Bougainville, which 

border the Admiralty Gulf on the northern coast of 

Western Australia (Joklik, Jackson, and Zani, 1975; Ingram, 1973; Parker and Sadleir, 1984). Reynolds Pacific 

Mines Ltd. discovered bauxite on Cape Bougainville in 

1958 (Gellatly and Sofoulis, 1969, p. 15). American Metals 

Climax (Amax) explored the two districts in the late 

1960's (Joklik, Jackson, and Zani, 1975). Amax had plans 

for producing bauxite in this district, but construction 

was deferred due to a decline in aluminum demand in 

1972. Mitchell Plateau Bauxite Co. Pty. Ltd. and Alcoa 

of Australia took over Amax's interests and re-evaluated 

the Mitchell bauxite deposit in 1979 and 1980.

The bauxite deposits in the Kimberley region are on 

a plateau that slopes northward from an altitude of 350 m 

in the southern part of the Mitchell plateau to about 60 

m at the northern end of Cape Bougainville. The plateau 

is supported by Proterozoic volcanic rocks, which are the 

parent material of most of the bauxite Locally small 

deposits of bauxite formed from sedimentary beds that 

are interlayered with the volcanic rocks.

According to Joklik, Jackson, and Zani (1975, p. 970- 

971), the Mitchell plateau bauxite covers 40 km2 and 

has an average thickness of 3.2 m. It is 47 percent Alf)3 

and contains an estimated 230 million tons of bauxite

The bauxite of Cape Bougainville described by Joklik, 

Jackson, and Zani (1975) is similar to that on the Mitchell

plateau. However, the Bougainville deposits contain less 

aluminum and more iron and are much thicker than the 

Mitchell plateau deposits. The Cape Bougainville 

deposits cover 44 km2, have an average thickness of 8.6 

m, are 36 percent AlgOg, and contain an estimated 980 

million tons of bauxite

During the investigation of the Mitchell plateau it was 

found that the overburden above the bauxite consists 

of soil and a ferruginous laterite layer (Parker and 

Sadleir, 1984). The soil consists chiefly of clay and 

humus material and is 1 m thick. The ferruginous 

laterite layer varies in aluminum content and is enriched 

in hematite and goethite or maghemite The bauxite 

layer is of variable thickness; the average thickness is 

about 3 m. The bauxite is underlain by a lateritic clay 

zone consisting of nodules embedded in a clay matrix, 

which is as much as 5 m thick. Below the lateritic clay 

zone is a layer consisting of kaolinite containing minor 

quantities of montmorillonite and iron and titanium 

oxides.

The mineralogy of the Mitchell plateau bauxite is 

typical of laterite-type deposits (Parker and Sadleir, 

1984; Grubb, 1970). Gibbsite is the most abundant 

aluminum mineral in the deposits. Amounts present 

range from more than 60 percent in high-grade deposits 

to less than 25 percent in low-grade deposits. At most 

places gibbsite contents increase with depth to a maximum at the centers of deposits. Gibbsite occurs as 

white massive mineral aggregates of submicroscopic 

grains. Boehmite occurs in quantities ranging from less 

than 1 percent to about 10 percent of the bauxite, and 

the average is about 4 percent. Boehmite tends to be concentrated near the top of deposits. Kaolinite contains 

the reactive silica in the bauxite; quartz is rarely present. The average clay-mineral content of the bauxite is 

about 6 percent, and it can be reduced to less than 

3 percent by washing and screening out the <35 mesh 

(smaller than 0.725 mm) particles (Joklik, Jackson, and 

Zani, 1975, p. 973). Goethite is the most common iron 

oxide mineral; most of the bauxite contains between 1 

and 3 percent A12O3 in this iron mineral. Parts of 

deposits depleted in iron oxide have potential for 

refractory-grade calcined bauxite

Resources

According to the Australia Bureau of Mineral Resources, Geology and Geophysics (1978, table 8), resources of bauxite, in millions of tons, in this country 

are as follows: demonstrated—2,703, inferred—1,740, 

paramarginal—1,598, and submarginal—137; totaling 

6,179. Totals from other published resource estimates 

for the various districts (table 23) range from 6.5 billion
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B127

TABLE 23.—Summary of estimates of bauxite resources in Australia 

[Estimates given in thousands of tons. Metric and long tons considered equal within Umits of accuracy. —, no data]

Grade (weight percent)

Resources A1203 SKX Fe0O0 Use References

Queensland 

Turtle Head (Escape River) .... 5,000 38.4-52.5 12.7-52.5 0.7-36.0 —— A.H. White, 1976, p. 1526.

Vrilya Point ................ Small? —— —— —— —— National Miner, 1977, p. 90.

North Weipa ........ 76,000-296,000 >45 <15 (total) —— —— National Miner, 1977, p. 91;

Evans, 1976, table 1. 

Wenlock River ....... 45,000-51,000 — Probably — — Evans, 1976, table 1; Nahigh tional Miner, 1977, p. 89. 

Weipa and Andoom ...... ^.SOO.OOO 50-60 1-7 12-20 Aluminum, Roberts, 1977, p. 3,4; Naabrasives. tional Miner, 1977, p. 90;

Evans, 1976, table 1.

South Weipa ........ 92,000-139,000 45 —— —— —— Evans, 1976, table 1; National Miner, 1977, p. 90. 

Pera Head ................. 73,000 55.5 Low —— —— National Miner, 1977, p. 90;

Evans, 1976, table 1. 

Aurukun (Archer River) ............

.............. 600,000-1,000,000 53.5 8.5 —— —— National Miner, 1977, p. 90;

Evans, 1976, table 1. 

Tambourine Mountain ........ 1,300 35.3-41.2 4.4-7.6 19.3-27.3 Road metal, Owen, 1954, p. 15.

aluminum sulfate. 

Hampton ..................... 250 35 —— —— —— Ingram, 1973, p. 9.

Western Australia 

Chittering (Muchea) . 100,000-200,000 31 —— —— —— ' National Miner, 1977, p. 92;

Evans, 1976, table 1;

Ingram, 1973, p. 16. 

Gigegannup ................ 69,000 —— —— —— —— National Miner, 1977, p. 92.

Jarrahdale ................. 80,000 —— —— —— Aluminum National Miner, 1977, p. 91.

Huntly-Del Park ......... 1,000,000 25-45 1.2 —— Aluminum National Miner, 1977, p. 92.

Mt. Saddleback ............ 250,000 32 (available) —— —— —— Ingram, 1973, p. 16; Owen

and Hargreaves, 1975. 

Walpole .............. Substantial2 — — — — Evans, 1976, table 1.

Mitchell Plateau ........... 230,000 47 2.6 —— —— Joklik, Jackson, and Zani,

1975, p. 970. 

Cape Bougainville .......... 980,000 36 1.9 —— —— Joklik, Jackson, and Zani,

1975, p. 970. 

Northern Territory 

Gove ............. 250,000-500,000 51 4 17 Aluminum Somm, 1975, p. 964;

McLeod, 1976, p. 104;

International Bauxite

Association, 1977a, p. 37. 

Marchinbar Island .......... 10,000 48-51 4.1-6.5 6.4-17.2 —— Evans, 1976,table 1;Owen,

1954, p. 15. 

New South Wales 

Inverell .................... 15,000 30.6 3.2 30.1 —— Ingram, 1973, p. 10.

Moss Vale .................. 4,000 37.3-39.4 4.4-6.1 31.1-32.8 Flux in steel making Ingram, 1973, p. 10.

Trundle ...................... 770 —— —— —— —— Ingram, 1973, p. 11.

Somersby ................... Small —— —— —— Flux in steel making, Ingram, 1973, p. 11.

road metal. 

Victoria 

Boolarra ..................... 916 —— —— —— Aluminous chemicals Ingram, 1973, p. 12.

Tasmania ......... ........... 975 — —— —— —— Ingram, 1973, p. 13.

Total (rounded) 6,500,000-7,500,000

1 1975 estimate, includes 499 million tons of proved bauxite containing 54-56 percent ALO- and 4.5-9.0 percent SiO2> and 794 million tons of reserves classified as probable that are 

48-56 percent A12O3 and 8-12 percent SiO2; the remainder is considered possible reserves. 

2Bauxite claims cover about 620 km2 (Ingram, 1973, p. 17).

to 7.5 billion tons (rounded). Only a few bits of information support a conclusion that large subeconomic and 

undiscovered bauxite resources are present in Australia, 

including the following: (1) The Western Australia 

Department of Resources Development (1983, p. 3)

noted that the State has bauxite reserves and resources 

exceeding 3,500 million tons containing 27- 

42 percent available A12O3 ; (2) Smart (1977, p. 18) 

observed, "Bauxite reserves in the west coast of Cape 

York Peninsula are considerable, and are probably over
B128 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

3000 million tons of economic grade; in addition, there 

are large reserves of lower-grade ore;" and (3) many 

deposits in some districts that extend over areas as 

much as 3 hectares are considered too small to be included in reserve estimates. No estimates are available 

for the Vrilya Point and Walpole districts.

In this report the bauxite reserves in Australia are 

considered to be 4,440 million tons (Baumgardner and 

McCawley, 1983, table 3), which is the rounded sum of 

the demonstrated and inferred reserves given in the preceding paragraph. Subeconomic and undiscovered bauxite resources are thought to be 1.5 billion-3.5 billion tons. 

The total bauxite resources in Australia are considered 

to be 6 billion-8 billion tons.

FIJI

The possibilities for commercial bauxite deposits have 

been investigated on the main islands of Viti Levu and 

Vanua Levu and on 13 of the Lau islands. Bauxite 

deposits have been found on most of these islands 

(Bracewell, 1962, p. 134; Guest, 1959). The aluminous 

materials occur as (1) irregular gibbsite nodules as much 

as 15 cm in diameter scattered throughout surface 

gravels, (2) brown earthy saprolitic bauxite occurring 

chiefly as exfoliated shells of weathered basalt, and (3) 

earthy phosphatic bauxite associated with limestone. 

The gibbsite nodules contain an average of 57 percent 

A12O3 , 9 percent SiO2, 4.5 percent Fe2O3 , 0.8 percent 

TiO2, and 29 percent LOI; brown earthy bauxite contains 51 percent A1203 , 3 percent SiO2 , 16 percent 

Fe2O3 , 1.7 percent TiO2, and 28 percent LOI.

The largest bauxite deposits in Fiji are on Vanua Levu. 

They are located in the Wainunu region on the eastern 

flank of the Seatura volcano and in four districts in 

northwest Vanua Levu (Colley, 1976). A Japanese company began mining preparations at Savu Levu in the 

Wainunu region during 1969-72 but ceased operation 

prior to the first shipment of washed bauxite.

The deposits in the northwestern part of Viti Levu occur near the surface of dissected peneplain remnants 

that slope seaward from an altitude of 170 m down to 

55m. Other deposits occur north of Vakambuli and elsewhere in the Lautoka-Mba region. The bauxitic layer 

ranges in thickness from 3 to 6.5 m. Washing would be 

required to obtain an acceptable grade, and preliminary 

tests indicate that recovery would range from 20 to 30 

percent. The deposits on Viti Levu are estimated to contain 6.5 million tons of bauxite (Houtz and Phillips, 1963, 

p. 25). According to Colley (1976, table 19), 1.2 million 

tons containing 35 percent extractable A12O3 could be 

recovered by washing this bauxite.

The total bauxite recoverable by washing Fiji 

bauxite deposits is listed by Colley (1976, table 19) as

14.6 million-17.5 million tons. The recoverable A12O3 

content of this bauxite ranges from 34 to 53 percent.

NEW ZEALAND

The low-grade bauxite in New Zealand occurs as gibbsite in red and brown soils on volcanic rocks in North 

Auckland. Most of these soils contain kaolin minerals 

in addition to gibbsite, and most are high in iron oxide 

and titania. This bauxitic soil is very similar to deposits 

in Hawaii, and apparently the deposits in the two areas 

formed under similar conditions (Kear, Waterhouse, and 

Swindale, 1961, p. 5). Potentially valuable bauxitic soils 

cover 12 km2, and very low grade bauxitic clays cover 

an additional 77 km2. The soils richest in alumina are 

in an area of little more than 2.5 km2 near the town of 

Kerikeri. They were investigated by Swindale (1959) and 

by Kear, Waterhouse, and Swindale (1961, p. 11), who 

found that deposits in seven areas are 3-5 m thick and 

contain approximately 20 million tons of bauxite. The 

probable average composition of this bauxite is 37.4 percent A12O3 , 5.5 percent SiO2, 25.6 percent Fe2O3, 

6.4 percent TiO2, and 23.6 percent LOI. The probable 

extractable alumina content is 30.6 percent.

PALAU

Bauxite deposits occur south and southeast of the 

village of Ngardmau and in the northwestern part of 

Babelthaup Island of Palau. The bauxite occurs in deeply weathered andesitic agglomerates. Deeply weathered 

rocks support only a dense fern growth, and generally 

areas are heavily forested only where fresh rock is at 

or near the surface; therefore, the distribution of fern 

growth outlines areas worth prospecting. According to 

Bridge and Goldich (1948, p. 22), the vertical sequence 

of weathered rocks containing the bauxite is typically 

as follows: (a) A surface bauxitic gravel bed 10-15 cm 

thick; (b) a reddish- or yellowish- brown clay 12-30 cm 

thick, containing small bauxite concretions; (c) concretionary dark reddish brown clay 1.2-1.8 m thick at most 

places, containing concretions and hard beds of bauxite as much as 0.6 m thick; (d) a mixed zone of reddishbrown clay and variegated kaolinitic clay 0.3-0.6 m 

thick, containing a few sheets and layers of ferruginous 

gibbsite along joints; (e) variegated purple, red, brown, 

yellow, and gray clay having an estimated maximum 

thickness of 12.2 m and retaining ghosts of structures 

and textures of parent rock; and (f) volcanic agglomerate 

parent rock.

Gibbsite is the chief bauxite mineral present, and 

hematite is the chief impurity. Minor amounts of
WORLD BAUXITE RESOURCES B129

boehmite and goethite and appreciable quantities of 

kaolinite and halloysite are also present in the bauxite. 

The average chemical composition of unwashed samples 

from one locality representing a bauxite layer 7.3 m 

thick is 35.89 percent A12O3, 10.33 percent SiO2, 20.75 

percent Fe2O3, 0.7 percent TiO2, and 32.56 percent LOI 

(Bridge and Goldich, 1948, p. 26).

A Japanese company produced approximately 

370,000 tons of washed bauxite on Babelthaup from 

1938 through part of 1944, when operations were terminated by American bombing. The composition of this 

washed bauxite was 51 percent A12O3 , 2.5 percent 

SiO2, and 16 percent Fe2O3 (Bridge and Goldich, 1948, 

p. i).

Japanese geologists have estimated that 2 million3 million tons of washed bauxite can be recovered from 

deposits in which the concentrate is 30 percent by 

weight. The resources would be as much as 5 million 

tons if the washed concentrate requirement is reduced 

to 20 percent of the bauxite in the ground. Very tentative estimates place the total potential bauxite resources on Babelthaup at 40 million-50 million tons 

(Bridge and Goldich, 1948, p. 6-8).

SOLOMON ISLANDS

Bauxite deposits occur on several islands in the 

Solomon Islands. Those on Santa Cruz and Vanikero 

were found shortly after World War II (Owen, 1954, 

p. 234); larger and better grade deposits have been 

found on Rennell, New Georgia, and Vaghena (Wagina), 

and small deposits have been found on Rendova 

(Michell, 1976, p. 29). Several plans to develop these 

deposits have been considered, but only bulk samples 

used for pilot plant tests have been mined.

The bauxite on both Vaghena and Rennell is in terrarossa type soils occurring in tropical rain forests and 

is overlain only by humus a few meters thick (Chapman 

and Evans, 1979; Matsunaga, Akiyama, and Fujie, 

1978). Thickness of deposits varies considerably, 

because the bauxite occurs in discontinuous pockets. 

The pockets fill depressions on the uneven karst surface of uplifted Pleistocene coral limestone. The average 

pocket deposit on Rennell contains only 5,500 tons of 

bauxite. The deposits on both islands are extremely fine 

grained trihydrate type; those on Vaghena are 60 percent <1 /*m particles. Goethite is the only iron mineral 

present, and most of it is aluminous. Organic carbon 

is present in amounts as much as 0.85 percent; the average P2O5 content of the deposits on Rennell is 1.7 

percent.

The origin of the bauxite on Vaghena and Rennell has 

been discussed by Weisse (1970), Taylor and Hughes

(1975), Matsunaga, Akiyama, and Fujie (1978), and 

Chapman and Evans (1979). Weisse (1970) believed that, 

like the large depostis in Jamaica, the bauxite deposits 

on Vaghena and Rennell are weathering products of 

limestone. Taylor and Hughes (1975) cited evidence for 

a theory that the deposits formed by biogenic degradation of andesitic volcanic ash sediments in a shallowwater lagoonal environment. Matsunaga, Akiyama, and 

Fujie (1978)d and Chapman and Evans (1978) favored 

the limestone source rock idea but agreed that some of 

the aluminum in the bauxite may have originally been 

in volcanic ash.

Deposits on Rennell contain 25 million tons of bauxite of which 80 percent is considered proved (Matsunaga, Aikyama, and Fujie, 1978), and 30 million tons 

of bauxite is known to be present on Vaghena (Chapman and Evans, 1978). Typical analyses of the deposits 

follow:

Typical analyses of bauxite on Rennell and Vaghena, Solomon Islands 

[—, no data. Analyses in percent]

Rennell Vaghena

A1203 ...........................

SiO2 ............................

Fe203 ...........................

Ti02 ............................

P205 ............................

Total carbon .....................

Organic carbon ...................

Loss on ignition ..................

Weight loss on heating to 100 °C

. . . . . 48.0

. . . . . .2

. . . . . 18.4

. . . . . 2.1

. . . . . 1.7

. . . . . 0.50-0.95

. . . . . 0.38-0.85

. . . . . 29.5-30.1

29.5-32.5

47.09

3.04

16.69

1.75

3.35

—

—

27.0

—

According to the U.S. Bureau of Mines (Peterson and 

Arbelbide, 1983, table 6) the bauxite reserves in the 

Solomon Islands are 50.3 million tons. Total bauxite 

resources in these islands are at least 60 million tons.

OTHER ISLANDS

Small bauxite deposits have been found on Manus in 

the Admiralty Islands and the Mussau, Woodlark, and 

Deboyne (now Panaete) Islands (Ingram, 1973, p. 23; 

Grainger and Grainger, 1974). Though several areas 

have been prospected in the Papua half of New Guinea, 

no bauxite has been found. Hose (1960, p. 246) reported 

an analysis of bauxite from Mare Island, New Caledonia, and Weisse (1976) examined deposits on Ouvea 

and Lifou, which are in the lies Loyautes.

Several samples of laterite from Samoa contain 33-38 

percent A12O3 (Seelye, Grange, and Davis, 1938), but 

no estimates of the amount of this rock on the island 

have been made. Bauxitic soils overlie limestone on 

Guam (Carroll and Hathaway, 1963, p. 39-40), but
B130 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

deposits on this island are probably too small to be of 

value (Tracey and others, 1964, p. 74). Small deposits 

of bauxite also occur on several islands of the Caroline 

group other than Palau. Bauxite deposits covering 25 

hectares on Witipon and small deposits on Moen in the 

Truk Islands have been described by Stark and Hay 

(1963, p. 13). Bauxite also occurs on Ponape and Saipan 

(Bridge, 1948, p. 224) and on Yap and Kusaie (Watanabe, 1939); deposits on Ponape contain about 300,000 

tons of low-grade bauxite (Fischer, in U.S. Bureau of 

Mines, 1953, p. 111-45).

About 600,000 tons of bauxite having an average 

thickness of 2 m and containing about 50 percent 

A12O3 has been found in the Lepatuan area on Manus 

Island (Jaques, 1976, p. 10). Other areas on this island 

are known to contain low-grade bauxite, but none of 

these deposits are considered to be of economic 

importance.

SUMMARY OF BAUXITE RESOURCES 

IN OCEANIA

The total bauxite reserves in Oceania are estimated 

to be 4.5 billion tons (rounded), and the total resources 

(reserves, subeconomic, and undiscovered bauxite) are 

thought to be in the 7-billion- to 10-billion-ton range. 

The reserves are located in Australia—4.5 billion tons— 

and the Solomon Islands—60 million tons. The subeconomic resources are also located mainly in Australia; 

small deposits have been found in Fiji, Palau, and New 

Zealand. It seems virtually certain that undiscovered 

bauxite deposits exist in Australia and several of the 

Pacific Islands. The total bauxite in the subeconomic 

and undiscovered categories is arbitrarily estimated to 

be 2.5 billion-5.5 billion tons.

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B134 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

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B140 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

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B148 GEOLOGY AND RESOURCES OF ALUMINUM

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*U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE:1986-491-409:40007