Geochemical Characteristics of Modern River-Sand and Its Bearing on the Mineral Exploration in the Manufahi Area, Timor-Leste

Geochemical mapping of river sands in the Manufahi area of Timor-Leste revealed potential areas for future mineral exploration. River sand samples from the study area were collected and geochemically analyzed to identify anomalous concentration distributions of several valuable elements and locate p...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Vital Vilanova, Tomoyuki Ohtani, Satoru Kojima, Kazuma Yatabe, Elizario Moniz
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-12-01
Series:Geosciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/14/12/338
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850041128512913408
author Vital Vilanova
Tomoyuki Ohtani
Satoru Kojima
Kazuma Yatabe
Elizario Moniz
author_facet Vital Vilanova
Tomoyuki Ohtani
Satoru Kojima
Kazuma Yatabe
Elizario Moniz
author_sort Vital Vilanova
collection DOAJ
description Geochemical mapping of river sands in the Manufahi area of Timor-Leste revealed potential areas for future mineral exploration. River sand samples from the study area were collected and geochemically analyzed to identify anomalous concentration distributions of several valuable elements and locate potential target areas and geological formations that may host mineral deposits. The 26 major and minor elements were identified using wavelength-dispersive X-ray fluorescence. The river sands exhibited varying elemental concentrations, with Cr, Cu, Zn, and Ba showing deviations from the normal distribution patterns. Identification of geochemical anomalies is an important task in mineral exploration geochemistry. The mean+2 standard deviations (mean+2STD), median+2 median absolute deviations (median+2MAD), and Tukey’s inner fence (TIF) methods were used to determine the geochemical thresholds. This study shows that TIF and principal component analysis (PCA) methods are highly effective in calculating appropriate threshold values and identifying relevant elemental associations. These approaches have proven useful for delineating target areas for mineral deposits, resulting in reliable outcomes. Four predicted target areas with high potential for deposits and mineralization anomalies of Cr, Cu, Ni, and Ba were delineated in the study area.
format Article
id doaj-art-856dd14e295242ff8beee779f2b0a790
institution DOAJ
issn 2076-3263
language English
publishDate 2024-12-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Geosciences
spelling doaj-art-856dd14e295242ff8beee779f2b0a7902025-08-20T02:55:52ZengMDPI AGGeosciences2076-32632024-12-01141233810.3390/geosciences14120338Geochemical Characteristics of Modern River-Sand and Its Bearing on the Mineral Exploration in the Manufahi Area, Timor-LesteVital Vilanova0Tomoyuki Ohtani1Satoru Kojima2Kazuma Yatabe3Elizario Moniz4Department of Civil Engineering, Gifu University, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu 501-1193, JapanDepartment of Civil Engineering, Gifu University, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu 501-1193, JapanDepartment of Civil Engineering, Gifu University, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu 501-1193, JapanDepartment of Civil Engineering, Gifu University, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu 501-1193, JapanInstituto de Geociência de Timor-Leste (IGTL), Dili, Timor-LesteGeochemical mapping of river sands in the Manufahi area of Timor-Leste revealed potential areas for future mineral exploration. River sand samples from the study area were collected and geochemically analyzed to identify anomalous concentration distributions of several valuable elements and locate potential target areas and geological formations that may host mineral deposits. The 26 major and minor elements were identified using wavelength-dispersive X-ray fluorescence. The river sands exhibited varying elemental concentrations, with Cr, Cu, Zn, and Ba showing deviations from the normal distribution patterns. Identification of geochemical anomalies is an important task in mineral exploration geochemistry. The mean+2 standard deviations (mean+2STD), median+2 median absolute deviations (median+2MAD), and Tukey’s inner fence (TIF) methods were used to determine the geochemical thresholds. This study shows that TIF and principal component analysis (PCA) methods are highly effective in calculating appropriate threshold values and identifying relevant elemental associations. These approaches have proven useful for delineating target areas for mineral deposits, resulting in reliable outcomes. Four predicted target areas with high potential for deposits and mineralization anomalies of Cr, Cu, Ni, and Ba were delineated in the study area.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/14/12/338Manufahi areaTimor-Lesteriver sandsX-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysisgeochemical anomalystatistical analysis
spellingShingle Vital Vilanova
Tomoyuki Ohtani
Satoru Kojima
Kazuma Yatabe
Elizario Moniz
Geochemical Characteristics of Modern River-Sand and Its Bearing on the Mineral Exploration in the Manufahi Area, Timor-Leste
Geosciences
Manufahi area
Timor-Leste
river sands
X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis
geochemical anomaly
statistical analysis
title Geochemical Characteristics of Modern River-Sand and Its Bearing on the Mineral Exploration in the Manufahi Area, Timor-Leste
title_full Geochemical Characteristics of Modern River-Sand and Its Bearing on the Mineral Exploration in the Manufahi Area, Timor-Leste
title_fullStr Geochemical Characteristics of Modern River-Sand and Its Bearing on the Mineral Exploration in the Manufahi Area, Timor-Leste
title_full_unstemmed Geochemical Characteristics of Modern River-Sand and Its Bearing on the Mineral Exploration in the Manufahi Area, Timor-Leste
title_short Geochemical Characteristics of Modern River-Sand and Its Bearing on the Mineral Exploration in the Manufahi Area, Timor-Leste
title_sort geochemical characteristics of modern river sand and its bearing on the mineral exploration in the manufahi area timor leste
topic Manufahi area
Timor-Leste
river sands
X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis
geochemical anomaly
statistical analysis
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/14/12/338
work_keys_str_mv AT vitalvilanova geochemicalcharacteristicsofmodernriversandanditsbearingonthemineralexplorationinthemanufahiareatimorleste
AT tomoyukiohtani geochemicalcharacteristicsofmodernriversandanditsbearingonthemineralexplorationinthemanufahiareatimorleste
AT satorukojima geochemicalcharacteristicsofmodernriversandanditsbearingonthemineralexplorationinthemanufahiareatimorleste
AT kazumayatabe geochemicalcharacteristicsofmodernriversandanditsbearingonthemineralexplorationinthemanufahiareatimorleste
AT elizariomoniz geochemicalcharacteristicsofmodernriversandanditsbearingonthemineralexplorationinthemanufahiareatimorleste