MINERALOGY, EVALUATION AND UPGRADING STUDIES ON SOME ECONOMIC MINERALS IN BEACH BLACK SANDS, EL ARISH AREA, EGYPT.

Abstract

The present \Vork deals with minenilugy. evaluation and upgrading of . some economic heavy minerals in the beach black sands of El Kharrouba nrcn. North Sinai. El Kharrouba area locates between the longit11des 33° 561 and J:;o 581 E, anclthe latitudes 31 o I01 3011 and 31o II1 3011 N, east of El Arish city <lnd

occupies 4.5 Km2 . The !"ore-shore in IJ Kharrouba area is narrow (20- 40 m) and !lat. The back-slwrL• is mo tly cuvcn:d hy relatively high coastal sand dunes (up to 3X n1. in ckv; tion). ThcSL' dunL'S <II'L' ul" barchan type th 1t coakscc ami join to;ether to kmn longitudinal dunes that L'Xtcnd southward to IJ /\rish I Rafah hig!m:1y. Samples collection was C<llTicd out in a grid pattern manner that lifty S<lmples h:1d been collected li•llln tilL• top meter through pi'.s arranged in ftve prolilcs. The grain size analyses indicate th;t tilL' s: ml li•actions n;pn;scnt the lll<lill . component of the beach sand in 1:;:1 Kharroub;area. The very coarse sw1d si1.c ti•nction ( 4 - 2 mm) can not be detected in any ui' the samples. The coarse sand li•action (2 •- I mn1) t::1n he dell:cted nwinly i11 the !"ore-shore s:1mpks with :Ill avcrilgc 0.13 '%, and vary from 0.02 '%to 0.32 '%,while it is mn; in the h:lck- shore clune samples. Slimes and organic malter percentages ;•anges !l•om 0.1 <y., ' to 1.5 ')'(, with an average of 0.45 %. The liner sand Jl•actions (< 0.063 mm) were recorded in all of the samples, wh rc they increase landward. The gri1in size distribution of the beach sediments in El Kharrouba area is bimodal, where the medium and line sand lhil'tions me the predominnnt size fractions.