0, I
y. 50 .r rVv, rv
O. ^
NORTH CAROLINA
DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT
R. BRUCE ETHERIDGE, DIRECTOR
DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES
jasper L. Stuckey, State Geologist
Bulletin No. 50
The Vermiculite Deposits
of North Carolina
By
THOMAS G. MURDOCK AND CHARLES E. HUNTER
Prepared and Published in Cooperation with the Tennessee Valley Authority
under the direction of
Jasper L. Stuckey, North Carolina Department of Conservation and Development
and
H. S. Rankin, Tennessee Valley Authority
RALEIGH
1946
NORTH CAROLINA
DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT
R. BRUCE ETHERIDGE, DIRECTOR
DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES
JASPER L. STUCKEY, STATE GEOLOGIST
Bulletin No. 50
The Vermiculite Deposits
of North Carolina
By
THOMAS G. MURDOCK AND CHARLES E. HUNTER
Prepared and Published in Cooperation with the Tennessee Valley Authority
under the direction of
Jasper L. Stuckey, North Carolina Department of Conservation and Development
and
H. S. Rankin, Tennessee Valley Authority
RALEIGH
1946
North Carolina State Library
Raleigh, N. C.
MEMBERS OF THE BOARD OF CONSERVATION AND
DEVELOPMENT
Governor R. Gregg Cherry, Chairman Raleigh
J. L. Horne, Vice-Chairman Rocky Mount
Charles S. Allen . .
".' Durham
Oscar P. Breece Fayetteville
J. Wilbur Bunn Raleigh
K. Clyde Council Wananish
R. Floyd Crouse Sparta
W. J. Damtoft Canton
Percy B. Ferebee Andrews
A. H. Guion Charlotte
W. Roy Hampton Plymouth
R. W. Proctor Marion
Eric Rodgers Scotland Neck
Miles J. Smith Salisbury
D. M. Stafford Pomona
A. K. WlNGET Albemarle
R. Bruce Etheridge, Director
11
CONTENTS Page
Letter of Transmittal v
Preface vi
Abstract 1 1
Introduction .' 1
Production and Reserves 3
Properties of Vermiculite 4
Uses of Vermiculite 6
Geology 7
Mineralogy of Vermiculite 9
Sampling of Vermiculite Deposits 10
Mining Methods 10
Processing of Vermiculite 12
Vermiculite Deposits in Other States 14
Description of Vermiculite Deposits 15
.Avery County 17
Frank Deposit 17
Unproven Localities 17
Buncombe County 17
Bee Tree Deposit 17
Lake Eden Deposit 17
Other Localities 17
Clay County 21
Mark Rogers Property 21
Barnett Anderson Property 21
Other Localities 21
Haywood County 21
Henderson County .. 21
Iredell County 22
Jackson County 22
Addie District 22
Fisher Property 22
Ocher Creek District 22
Cane Creek District 24
Caney Fork District 24
Cowarts Property 26
John Lovedohol Property 26
Cowards Property 26
Other Localities 27
Macon County 28
Ellij ay District 28
Ammons Property 28
Angel Property 28
McGuire Property 31
Bud Mincey Mine 31
Ellijay Creek Prospect 31
Gneiss District 31
Corundum Hill Deposit 31
Salem School and Pine Grove School Prospects 34
Other Localities 34
Charles Mincey Place 34
Jake Henry Place — 34
Higdon Mountain 36
Vance Jennings Place . . —... 36
Adams Place . 36
Norton Property 36
iii
CONTENTS
—
Continued Page
Madison County 36
Mitchell County 37
Bear Creek 37
Transylvania-Jackson Counties 37
Canada-Sapphire Section 37
Upper Wolf Creek 39
Yancey County 39
Appendix 40
Procedure 40
Apparent Density of Crude Ore 40
Exfoliation 40
Apparent Density of Exfoliated Vermicuite 40
Observations 40
Samples Tested 41
Chemical Analyses 49
ILLUSTRATIONS
FIGURES
Figure 1. Placing vermiculite insulation in attic 6
2. Occurrence of small pegmatite with vermiculite 8
3. Open cut and hand windlass, Mincey mine, Ellijay 11
4. No. 1 Pit of Bee Tree Vermiculite Mines 12
5. Screening plant of Cary Mineral Co., Ammons mine 13
6. Flow sheet used at Bee Tree plant 14
7. Screening plant, Bee Tree Vermiculite Mines 14
8. Vermiculite filling of major joint in serpentinized
dunite, Ocher Creek 24
9. Typical jointing of dunite with vermiculite filling,
Ocher Creek 24
10. Vermiculite vein over drift portal, Cowarts mine 27
PLATES
Plate 1. Location of vermiculite deposits of western North Carolina.. 2
2. A. Lump of crude vermiculite 5
B. Exfoliated vermicuulite house-fill insulation 5
3. Location of dunite formations, Frank District 16
4. Location of vermiculite mines and prospects, Bee Tree
District 18
5. Sections and plan, No. 1 Pit, Bee Tree Vermiculite Mines ...
.
19
6. Section and plan of No. 2 Pit, Bee Tree Vermiculite Mines 20
7. Location of dunite formation, Addie District 23
8. Location of vermiculite mine and prospects Caney Fork
District 25
9. Vermiculite mines, prospects, and olivine deposits,
Ellijay District J 29
10. Geologic map, Ammons Vermiculite Mine 30
11. Geologic map, Angel Vermiculite Mine 32
12. Sections and index map, Angel Vermiculite Mine 33
13. Location of dunite formations, Gneiss District 35
14. Location of peridotite areas, Sapphire District 38
IV
LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
Raleigh, North Carolina
July 1, 1946
To His Excellency, Hon R. Gregg Cherry,
Governor of North Carolina.
Sir:
I have the honor to submit herewith, as Bulletin No. 50, a
report entitled "Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina," by
Thomas G. Murdock and Charles E. Hunter.
Vermiculite, a non-metallic mineral of a varied industrial
use, is produced in North Carolina on a small scale. It is hoped
that the information presented herewith will prove helpful to
vermiculite producers and perhaps lead to an increased pro-duction.
Respectfully submitted,
R. Bruce Etheridge,
Director.
PREFACE
Vermiculite has been known to occur in North Carolina for
many years and there has been a small commercial production
for the last decade. The present report is the first attempt to
set forth the pertinent data relative to its geological occurrence
and technology, based on detailed field examination and labora-tory
testing.
These investigations were conducted in cooperation with the
Tennessee Valley Authority during the summer of 1941; how-ever,
the pressure of a more critical war program has caused
the delay in publication. Due to the excellent qualities of
vermiculite as an insulating material, its possible use in an en-larged
building program makes the publication at this date quite
opportune.
Jasper L. Stuckey,
State Geologist.
VI
THE VERMICULITE DEPOSITS OF NORTH CAROLINA
By
Thomas G. Murdock1 and Charles E. Hunter2
ABSTRACT
Vermiculite is a group of hydrated silicate minerals, with a mica-like cleavage and a peculiar quality of ex-foliation
with intense heat, that has become of commercial importance in recent years because of its insulating
properties after dehydration. It occurs associated with the dunite and pyroxenite formations from Clay County
northeast to Avery County, but the principal production has been in the Ellijay area of Macon County and the
Swannanoa area of Buncombe County. The mining has been principally from shallow open cuts or drifts along
the vermiculite veins.
Most of the North Carolina vermiculite has been exfoliated in oil-fired shaft kilns near the mines at Swan-nanoa
and Franklin. The processed vermiculite is used principally for loose house-fill insulation and aggregate
for refractory brick and lightweight insulating concrete.
More than 30 vermiculite deposits and prospects are described in this report. Exfoliation tests on samples
from these deposits indicate that 14 of these are promising for commercial use and nine might be beneficiated to
meet commercial standards. Some of the samples tested were found to be slightly friable, but the material
produced by the commercial plants is equivalent in quality to the vermiculites from the western States.
Due to the nature of its occurrence, vermiculite cannot be blocked out or reserves estimated with any degree
of certainty ; however, a detailed investigation of the occurrences in the State indicates that there might be a
probable reserve amounting to 212,000 short tons and an additional possible reserve of 228,000 short tons—
a
total of 440,000. The exploitation of this tonnage, however, may necessitate some concessions by the market, a
wider use, especially in the region near the deposits, and a change in general mining methods. Utilization of the
vast deposits of olivine might lead to the recovery of low cost by-product vermiculite.
INTRODUCTION
The vermiculites of North Carolina are associated with peridotites and other basic magnesium rocks, which
occur coexistent with the Blue Ridge Mountains, and deposits of apparently commercial grade are found in a
number of localities between Clay County on the southwest and Avery County on the northeast. The chief
development has been around Ellijay, Macon County, and near Swannanoa Buncombe County. Promising
deposits are found, also, at a number of localities in Macon and Jackson Counties. Many of the old abandoned
corundum mines in Transylvania, Madison, Mitchell, Yancey, and Iredell Counties have showings of vermicu-lite.
Plate 1 shows the location of the principal deposits which are described in some detail by counties in this
report.
The commercial value of vermiculite prior to 1925 was of little or no importance, and the development and
use of the mineral since that time has been due chiefly to the efforts of the Zonolite Company, whose mines are
located at Libby, Montana.
Recognition of the value of vermiculite as an insulating material and as an aggregate in refractories and
light-weight concrete has led to the development of an industry in North Carolina and since 1933 activities have
been reported by several companies and individuals.3 Exfoliation plants have been operated at Bee Tree, Bun-
1 Assistant State Geologist, Division of Mineral Resources, North Carolina Department of Conservation and Development.
2 Geologist, Regional Products Research Division, Commerce Department, Tennessee Valley Authority.
3 Hunter, C. E., and Mattocks, P. W., Vermiculites of western North Carolina and north Georgia: Tennessee Valley Auth. Geol.
Bull. 5, p. 1, 1936.
PLATE 1
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 3
combe County, by Bee Tree Vermiculite Mines, Inc., and at Franklin, Macon County, by Minerals, Inc., and its
successor, Vercalite Industries, Inc. Shipments of crude vermiculite have been made by R. G. LeTourneau
Company of Toccoa, Georgia; Cary Minerals Company of Ellijay, Macon County; Philip S. Hoyt of Franklin,
Macon County; and others.
This report presents data obtained in an economic geological field survey and laboratory investigations. The
work was done during the summer of 1941 as a cooperative project of the Mineral Resources Division, North
Carolina Department of Conservation and Development and the Regional Products Research Division, Commerce
Department, Tennessee Valley Authority, under the direction of Dr. Jasper L. Stuckey, State Geologist, and
Mr. H. S. Rankin, Senior Mining Engineer, respectively. The field investigations were in charge of Thomas G.
Murdock, Assistant State Geologist of North Carolina, and Charles E. Hunter, Geologist, Tennessee Valley Au-thority.
The exfoliation tests were made by Mr. F. A. W. Davis, Assistant Mining Engineer at the Authority's
Minerals Testing Laboratory, Norris, Tennessee. Dr. W. A. Reid, Chemist, Division of Mineral Resources,
furnished the vermiculite analyses except where otherwise mentioned. The authors were assisted in the field
surveys by Messrs Mason K. Banks, John W. Harrington, R. S. Ingle, Roy L. Ingram, and William T. McDaniel,
Jr., student aides from the University of North Carolina, State College and Chapel Hill units.
The field work was greatly facilitated by the helpful cooperation of many residents of western North Caro-lina,
particularly that of Messrs. H. A. Coggins, George Coggins, and Eldredge Coggins of Bee Tree Vermicu-lite
Mines ; F. C. Cary and Alexander Ammons of Cary Mineral Company; E. C. Soper, Theodore Higdon, and El-don
Coggins of Minerals, Inc. ; and Philip S. Hoyt of Southern Mining and Milling Company, Franklin.
PRODUCTION AND RESERVES
The following tabulation gives the production statistics for the entire United States, and for North Caro-lina
during recent years when there were as many as three producers and the figures could thus be reported
separately
:
Screened and Cleaned Vermiculate Sold or Used by Producers1
UNITED STATES NORTH CAROLINA
Year Short tons Value Value per ton Short tons Value Value per ton
Average
1926-1930 604
3,352
16,933
26,556
20,700
21,174
22,299
23,438
57,848
46,645
54,116
$ 16,270
41,822
185,787
260,664
192,000
174,587
137,698
125,444
319,931
471,595
541,744
$ 26.94
12.48
10.97
9.77
9.28
8.25
6.18
5,35
5.53
10.11
10.01
Average
1931-1935
1936 ..
1937...
1938
1939 1,400
1,040
$ 14,400
8,070
$ 10.29
1940 7.76
1941
1942 1,612 19,048 11.75
1943
1944
U. S. Bur. Mines, Mineral Yearbook, 1940 to 1944.
During 1943 the exfoliated material was quoted at 70 cents to $1.25 a bag, each bag containing 4 cubic feet
and weighing 25 pounds, or $56 to $100 a short ton, f. o. b. works. Assuming an average value of $75 a ton for
exfoliated vermiculite, and a 10 percent loss in weight on exfoliating, the value of sales in the United States, in
1944, would be approximately $3,652,800.
4 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
The nature of the occurrence of vermiculite in North Carolina does not permit blocking out ore. This is
because of its irregularity and the undeterminable amount of gangue. Its continuity, both horizontally and
vertically, is quite unpredictable. It is with considerable hesitation, therefore, that reserves are estimated.
Nevertheless, the information gained from a detailed study of the active mining operations and knowledge of
the general characteristics of the mineral give some data which may be applied in estimating unexploited
deposits and unprospected areas. In a few cases it is possible to actually make a rough cubication (making a few
assumptions as to unexposed dimensions), but generally the most practical method is to base the estimate on
the reported production of some other property which offers certain general similarities. In considering the re-serves
on a regional basis, it is believed that the figures are conservative.
It seems desirable to make a separation of the reserves into two classes, on the basis of what might be
termed "probable vermiculite" and "possible vermiculite." Any other classification is obviously impractical.
These terms are purely arbitrary ones and indicate in general a different degree of potentiality.
No estimate can be attempted regarding the relative quality of the reserves. The exfoliation tests indicate
that the samples from outcrops do not give an exact index as to the grade of the material which may be found at
depth; the samples from producing properties are consistently heavier after exfoliation than is similar ma-terial
when processed in a plant, due to the difficulty of reproducing commercial plant conditions in a laboratory.
In general, it is believed that the estimated tonnages are of a quality which has some commercial possibility.
Estimated Reserves of Vermiculite in North Carolina
COUNTY PROBABLE POSSIBLE TOTAL
(Short Tons) (Short Tons (Short Tons)
Avery 14,000 9,000 23,000
Buncombe 45,000 34,000 79,000
Clay 10,000 10,000 20,000
Jackson 48,000 52,000 100,000
Macon 85,000 93,000 178,000
Others 40,000 40,000
Total. 202,000 238,000 440,000
PROPERTIES OF VERMICULITE
The properties of vermiculite have been summarized by Petar5 as follows
:
The most pronounced characteristic of vermiculite is its extraordinary expansion on
heating; the volume may increase up to 16 times the original (pi. 2). Some varieties
contain as much as 20 percent of water and the expansion or exfoliation takes place in
only one direction, at right angles to the cleavage. At the same time the color changes
from black or dark brown to a silvery or golden hue, according to the degree of heat and
the exposure to the air. The change of color is believed to be due to the oxidation of the
iron. The specific gravity of the raw material is in the neighborhood of 2.5 whereas after
heating, the expanded mass has been reported to have an apparent gravity as low as 0.087.
The untreated material weighs about 100 pounds per cubic foot; after heat-treatment the
average product varies in weight from 6 to 20 pounds per cubic foot.
The exfoliation of vermiculite has been described by ByersG as follows
:
The scales or plates of all micas and vermiculites have a strong tendency to warp
when heated strongly and it is this warping that causes the expansion of the material.
The dehydration causes unequal strain within the crystals when the water is expelled,
and this strain causes them to warp and twist. The reason vermiculite expands is because
the bonding of the planes of cleavage is weaker than the warping and twisting force and
the plates are pressed apart, while in micas the bonds between the planes of cleavage are
stronger than the twisting force which results in the same warping and twisting of the
whole sheet, with some spreading thereof or a trace of swelling, but with no such expansion
as occurs on heating a vermiculite in which the crystals are less tightly bound due to the
natural solvent action along cleavages before the subsequent heat treatment. Warping
occurs only while the water is being driven off and a dehydrated vermiculite will not
warp or expand further with subsequent heating.
5 Petar, Alice V., Vermiculite: U. S. Bur. Mines Inf. Circ. 6720, p. 1, 1933.
°Byers, W. B., Method of treating vermiculites, U. S. Patent 2,030,239, pp. 2-3, Feb. 11, 1936.
PLATE 2
NNj
£ X
- j §
|
- II
N
-
"*!S
6 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
The thermal conductivity7 of expanded vermiculite compares favorably with other materials, as shown in
the following table
:
Thermal Conductivity of Vermiculite Compared with Other Materials8
Material Weight per cubic foot Thermal Conductivtiy1
Expanded Vermiculite 6 lbs. 0.26
Mineral Wool 2 to 7 lbs. 0.27-0.30
Compressed Cotton.. 6.3 lbs. 0.21-0.29
Pure Wool 6.24 lbs. 0.26-0.32
Cork, "ground 8.1 lbs. 0.27-0.31
USES OF VERMICULITE9
The best grades of expanded vermiculite have a weight of 6 to 8 pounds per cubic foot. This low density,
together with the properties of comparatively high refractoriness, low thermal conductivity, and freedom from
deterioration, makes it ideal for thermal and acoustic insulation. Fireproof insulating boards made of the ex-panded
material can be used between two sheets of metal in the form of standard units for pre-fabricated metal
houses, and will withstand exposures to 1,700°F. without any appreciable expansion or contraction.
Fig. 1. Placing Vermiculite Insulation in Attic.
In loose, granular form, the expanded material is used extensively as a fill insulation in the walls and roofs
of dwellings (see fig. 1), industrial buildings, furnaces, oven and refrigerators. It is also used in thermal jugs,
as filling in life preservers, and as a loose fill for packing chemicals, shells and bombs.
Expended vermiculite, combined with bonding materials, is fabricated into a wide variety of products,
such as pipe covering, insulating blocks, refractory insulating concrete, roof fill, high temperature cements,
insulating and acoustical plasters and tiles, and structural roof slabs.
7 Conductivity: British Thermal Units transmitted per hour per square foot of material one inch thick, per C F. difference in
temperature of the two faces.
8 Tyler, P. M., Home insulation, an effective conservation and national defense measure: U. S. Bur. Mines Inf. Circ. 7166, p. 10,
1941.
9 Gwinn, G. R., Marketing vermiculite: Bur. Mines Inf. Circ. 7270, pp. 9-10, January 1944.
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 7
Precast slabs of concrete, using vermiculite as an aggregate can be assembled into a finished structure,
and can be sawn, cut, drilled and nailed in much the same way as lumber. Vermiculite concrete is an ex-tremely
light-weight building material, weighing 20 to 40 pounds per cubic foot. It has a compressive
strength of 50 to 250 pounds per square inch and a thermal conductivity of 0.60 to 0.80 B.t.u. at 50° to 90° F.
It is made like ordinary concrete ; expanded vermiculite of 3- to 20-mesh size is used as an aggregate in place
of sand, gravel, or stone. The most common use of vermiculite concrete is as insulating roof fill, lightweight
soundproofing, insulating floor fill, and structural roof deck. Cants, saddles, and slopes for roof drainage
also may be made from this. When poured around steel girders, vermiculite concrete protects them from
buckling if they are exposed to prolonged intense heat, and, because of its light weight, it greatly reduces
the dead weight in building construction. During the war, slabs and blocks of this concrete were placed
on decks and used as fire walls on tankers in danger of bomber attack.
There is an increased use of vermiculite insulating brick. Industry utilizes a lightweight type made
expressedly to obtain the lowest possible conductivity, even though structural strength is sacrified, and also
one which may be used for building purposes. The lightweight brick are used principally in the arches of
open-hearth furnaces, where no structural strength is needed and where they may be used repeatedly. The
structural brick find a wide utilization in petroleum cracking units, where they serve as a combination re-fractory
and insulator.
A plastic insulation made with vermiculite is used on the exterior of boilers and refinery columns for heat
insulation and on the interior of automobiles and airplanes for sound proofing.
Some highly specialized uses of vermiculite have been widely adopted by the trade ; others are still in the
experimental stage but may be expected to increase its future application. Some of the more common uses
are as a filler for linoleum, an ingredient of grease and enamel, paint pigments, filter for greases and oils, partial
substitute for cork, soil conditioner, and insecticide carrier.
The consumption of vermiculite in North Carolina, and the South in general, is expected to increase. This
is an exceptionally good area for the marketing of insulation material, because of the extended hot season, the
high cost of fuel during the winter, and the fact that the local supply of lightweight concrete aggregates is
limited. 10 For several years vermiculite has been recognized as a satisfactory loose house-fill material in this
area. Recently it has begun to be accepted as standard roof deck material for large flat top construction. Re-search
is continuing on its use in plaster, acoustical board, light-weight precast concrete, pipe insulation, and
protection for steel frame work, and the germination of seeds. According to laboratory tests conducted by
North Carolina University11 in cooperation with the Tennessee Valley Authority, vermiculites mined in North
Carolina are equivalent in quality and interchangeable in use with the Montana vermiculites.12
GEOLOGY
Vermiculite, one of the important accessory minerals found in the peridotite formations of western North
Carolina, was known in Massachusetts as early as 1824 when Webb13 gave it this name from the Latin "verm-iculari,
to breed worms," because of its property of expanding and unfolding into worm-like forms when heated.
Vermiculite is commonly regarded as an alteration product of biotite or phlogopite due to hydrothermal
agencies.14 Field evidence indicates that the North Carolina vermiculites more properly belong to the chlorite
group and have retained the optical character and the cleavage of the original chlorite mineral from which they
10 Moyer, F. T., Lightweight aggregates for concrete: U. S. Bur. Mines Inf. Circ. 7195, p. 24, January 1942.
11 Scholes, W. A., and others, The development of lightweight concrete from North Carolina vermiculites: North Carolina Univ.
Eng. Exper. Sta. Bull. 24, 70 pp., 1942.
12 Bowles, O., Vermiculite: U. S. Bur. Mines Mineral Trade Notes, vol. 13, no. 6, p. 26, December 20, 1941.
13 Webb, T. H., New localities of tourmaline and talc: Am. Jour. Sci., vol. 7, p. 55, 1824.
14 Spence, H. S., Mica (Chapter), Industrial minerals and rocks (Seeley W. Mudd Series), Am. Inst. Min. Eng., p. 460, 1937.
Gwin, G. R., op. cit., p. 2.
Scholes, W. A. and others, op. cit., p. 7.
Kriegel, W. W., Summary of occurrencs, properties, and uses of vermiculite at Libby, Montana: Am. Ceramic Soc. Bull., vol.
19, no. 3, pp. 94-97, March 1940.
8 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
were derived. It is believed that most of the North Carolina deposits have been formed by hydration and altera-tion
of chlorite and that the type of chlorite altered frequently has determined the properties of the resulting
vermiculite.
The rock formations in the mountain province of western North Carolina are mostly crystalline schists,
gneisses and granites, and are considered to be pre-Cambrian in age. These formations have a prevailing north-east
and southwest strike and a southeast dip, although locally these may vary considerably. The principal
vermiculite deposits of the State are associated with dunites and pyroxenites intruded into these highly crystal-line
formations. These basic intrusions range in diameter from a few feet to more than a mile. The geological
features of these dunite and pyroxenite formations were discussed in detail by Pratt and Lewis15 and later by
Hunter16
.
Fig. 2. Occurrence of Small Pegmatite with Vermiculite.
Vermiculite was first noted in North Carolina by Dr. Genth17 in 1873 as a mineral associated with corun-dum.
Essentiality all the commercial production from North Carolina has been derived from deposits associated
with ultra-basic igneous formations—dunites and pyroxenites. Vermiculite-like material of inferior quality is
occasionally found associated with biotite schists and pegmatites. Some vermiculite probably occurs with all
the basic-magnesian rock formations of North Carolina. However, the principal deposits are associated with
the purest dunites and pyroxenites into which pegmatites have been intruded or segregated from the original
basic magma (see fig. 2).
is Pratt, J. H., and Lewis, J. V., Corundum and peridotites of western North Carolina: North Carolina Geol. and Econ. Survey,
vol. 1, 464 pp., 1905.
16 Hunter, C. E., Forsterite olivine deposits of North Carolina and Georgia: North Carolina Dept. Cons, and Devel. Bull. 41, 117
pp., 1941.
17 Genth, F. A., Corundum, its alteration and associated minerals: Am. Phil. Soc, vol. 13, p. 359, 1873.
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 9
«
The largest and most persistent of the vermiculite veins and lenses are found along the contact between the
dunite or pyroxenite masses and the enclosing schists or gneisses. However, the purest veins are those along
interior fractures or zones of weakness within the basic formation. The width of the vermiculite veins may
vary from a tiny stringer to more than 20 feet. They usually have a steep dip and may strike in any direction.
Small amounts of unaltered chlorite often are found in the vermiculite veins. The depth at which a vein is pre-dominantly
chlorite is generally determined by the depth of local weathering and drainage. It is interesting to
note that core drilling of the dunite formation18 at Webster has revealed vermiculite zones at a depth of 157
feet.
MINERALOGY OF VERMICULITE
•The term "vermiculites" includes a number of individual minerals, members of a group of hydrated
silicates, the best known of which are vermiculite and jefferisite. Dana19 lists a number of other varieties in-cluding
culsageeite, kerrite, lucasite, lennilite, hallite, painterite, pelhamite, philadelphite, vaalite, proto-verm-iculite,
maconite, dudleyite, pyrosclerite, roseite, and wilcoxite.
Pratt and Lewis20 list six varieties from North Carolina and describe them as follows
:
1. Jefferisite (or Culsageeite) occurs at the Corundum Hill mine in foliated masses of yellowish-brown
color and also in greenish, brownish yellow scales not over one-eighth of an inch in diameter.
2. Kerrite consists of innumerable fine scales of a pale greenish-yellow color and of a pearly luster and was
also found at the Corundum Hill mine.
3. Maconite was also found at the Corundum Hill mine and is a dark-brown scaly mineral with pearly luster
inclining to sub-metallic. It closely resembles the scaly jefferisite.
4. Lucasite, also similar to jefferisite and found at the Corundum Hill mine, is yellowish brown in color
and made up of small laminae not over 2 mm. in diameter. The basal cleavage is eminent and the
luster is sub-metallic to greasy. It is found with grass-green actinolite.
5. Wilcoxite occurs in greenish white scales of a pearly luster, somewhat resembling talc. It has been
identified at Shooting Creek and the Buck Creek mine in Clay County ; also at the Corrundum Hill mine.
It is one of the easier of the vermiculites to identify in the field.
6. Dudleyite has been found very sparingly. It has a soft bronze or brownish yellow color and a pearly
luster.
All of these minerals have a decidedly soft greasy feel whether wet or dry and the laminae are elastic.
The following tabulation shows the varying chemical composition of the six varieties just listed: 21
Chemical Composition of Some North Carolina Vermiculites
Si02
A12 3 ....
la
33.97
18.87
2
38.31
11.41
1.93
0.32
3
34.22
21.53
12.41
0.32
0.12
14.46
4
39.81
12.99
5.29
0.11
24.83
5a
29.23
37.53
1.33
2.41
17.27
6
32.43
28.42
Fe2 3
FeO
NiO
5.17
0.46
0.46 .
22.57
4.99
1.72
MgO
(NiCo)O
.
26.30
0.29
16.87
Na2
K2
0.51
5.70
0.20
5.76
0.54
0.05
0.14
6.49
2.44
1.52
0.56
Cr2 3 _
MnO
CaO
Li02 0.19
H2 . 11.85 10.76 3.66 .
Ignition 18.83 21.22 13.43
from tv
Total
Specific Gravity
a Average of samples
100.33
vo localities.
99.78
2.303
101.12
2.827
100.48 100.36 100.12
1S Hunter, C. E., Murdoch:, T. G., and MacCarthy, G. R., Chromite deposits of North Carolina: North Carolina Dept. Cons, and
Devel. Bull. 42, p. 32, 1942.
10 Dana, J. D., The system of mineralogy, descriptive mineralogy, 6th ed., pp. 664-668, New York, Jno. Wiley & Sons, 1909.
20 Pratt, J. H., and Lewis, J. V., op. cit., pp. 319-322.
21 Idem.
10 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
SAMPLING OF VERMICULITE DEPOSITS
In the course of the investigation 30 samples of vermiculite were collected. An effort was made to secure
samples representative of the material which might be obtained by selective mining. Where stock-piles or
materials in bins were available, at the active and abandoned properties, the sample was taken from these
sources rather than from material in place. It is logical to believe that where the outcrops have not been
prospected the vermiculite is very badly weathered and a sample taken at a greater depth would be higher
grade. This fact should be considered in evaluating the results of the exfoliation tests.
The samples ranged in weight from 20 to 25 pounds when originally taken but were partly dried when they
reached the laboratory. A 1-pound sample was taken from each larger sample for chemical analysis. The
source of the sample is given in the Appendix following the description of the tests. Inasmuch as a satisfactory
grade of vermiculite was being produced at the active properties, only a single sample was taken at some of
these and more sampling was done at virgin deposits where there appeared to be sufficient quantity to warrant
exploration. For purposes of comparison, several samples of material which was clearly not a true vermiculite
were taken.
The samples were sent to the Authority's Minerals Testing Laboratory at Norris, Tennessee for exfoliation.
The results of these tests are given in the Appendix of this report.
MINING METHODS22
Vermiculite along the contact zones of the dunite masses was a serious deferent to early corundum opera-tions.
The mineral is so soft and slippery that a tremendous amount of timber was necessary to hold the verm-iculite
in place so that the drift could be continued through the vein. In many cases the drift had to be aban-doned
because of the inability to hold back the vermiculite.
Many of these old corundum drifts have now been reopened to mine the vermiculite. In other localities,
where vermiculite was found outcropping, new drifts were run to intersect the vein. If a large pocket was struck
in these, a good tonnage could be recovered, but if the pocket proved to be small the venture often failed. One
of the chief disadvantages of this method is the poor recovery in case all of the mineral does not slump, which is
frequently the case since the veins alternately widen, pinch, and at times disappear completely. This method
is also dangerous because the miners have to work under tons of material which they are trying to make fall.
The frequent joints in the peridotite cause large blocks to become loose when undermined, and supporting these
requires considerable timber. In some cases vermiculite caves all the way to the surface, causing subsidence and
making impossible the recovery of any pockets which are not interconnected with that being pulled.
The principal underground development for vermiculite has been at the Ammons mine where over 1,100
feet of development work has been done. This includes a 96-foot shaft with drifts at the bottom and on an in-termediate
level. Other work consists of a series of drifts into the side of a hill, following interior zones of
weakness in the weathered and serpentinized dunite. These drifts follow and intersect veins and zones of
high-grade vermiculite, and are carried on a slight up-grade to provide drainage; they are irregularly spaced
vertically and in general run in a northerly direction. The drifts are usually 6 feet high by 5 feet wide and had
to be timbered and lagged as advanced. Local pine and chestnut timber was used, the size varying with the
ground conditions. Drifting usually entailed only excavation of the ground by alternate picking and shovelling
in the face ; the weathered and serpentinized dunite is so soft that blasting is generally not necessary. Under-ground
transport was by wheelbarrows equipped with rubber tires. The waste material was dumped near the
mouth of the drift and the vermiculite into a wooden chute leading to a tram car on the level of the lowest drift,
which carried it to the screening plant about 400 feet away. The gangue minerals were hand picked from the
vermiculite as it came from the vein and the crude product was sometimes partially dried in the sun prior to
screening.
Murdock, T. G., Vermiculite mining in North Carolina: Am. Inst. Min. Eng., Contr. 26-H, February 1942.
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 11
The Angel mine, adjacent to the Amnions, has been developed partly by drifts but more recently an open-cut
method has been introduced, and also used at the Bud Mincey mine, just east of Ellijay Post Office. In this
open-cut method a vein was located by the vermiculite float which occurs in the soil as flakes. The strike of the
vein was determined as well as the location of any lenses near the surface. This can be done by a little pick
work. Where outcrops are found to be large enough to mine, actual extraction can be started, either bagging
the vermiculite immediately or drying it in the sun. When a pocket pinches out, or an excess amount of gangue
or wall rock must be handled, the miners move along the strike to another location. As the cut gets deeper, a
hand windlass mounted on skids is placed over the section being mined (see fig. 3) and the vermiculite is
hoisted to the surface. At both these properties the wall rock is a fairly sound olivine and a few stulls are
all the timber that is needed.
Fig. 3. Open Cut and Hand Windlass, Mincey Mine, Ellijay.
Operations at the Bee Tree mine were by open-cut methods, employing hand mining. The main production
was from No. 1 pit (see fig. 4.) Overburden is absent on the northwest side but measures 4 feet on the southeast
side. The pit reaches a maximum depth of 50 feet from the northwest rim where a joint surface of pyroxenite
outcrops, forming the upper limit of the pit and dipping 54°SW. A road enters 6 feet above the bottom of the
pit and permits proper spotting of a truck for transporting vermiculite to the plant and providing a bench for
shovelling muck from the pit bottom to the truck. Waste disposal was accomplished by dumping into a flume,
with water pumped from a small dam on a nearby branch.
12 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
The operations of R. G. LeTourneau Company at Corundum Hill used a bulldozer. The method consisted es-sentially
of pushing the weathered dunite away from the exposed veins and pockets of vermiculite, loading these
out by hand and then repeating the cycle. The hillside topography provides ample room for waste disposal and
large boulders are easily removed. Considerable dilution would be expected from such a process, but the im-purities
are mostly in the fines and can be removed by screening either before or after exfoliation. The Le-
Tourneau Company also mined some vermiculite by sinking an eight-foot circular boiler plate caisson in a verm-
Fig. 4. No. 1 Pit of Bee Tree Vermiculite Mines.
iculite zone to a depth of about 12 feet, thus supporting the walls and permitting the ready removal of the verm-iculite.
The operations of the Bee Tree Vermiculite Company, near Tigerville, South Carolina, use a bulldozer for
mining, with considerable success.
It is believed that the use of a bulldozer will be of increasing importance in future mining.
PROCESSING OF VERMICULITE23
Vermiculite processing plants have been operated at Ellijay and Franklin in Macon County and Swannanoa
in Buncombe County. The Cary Minerals Company plant at Ellijay has not been operated since 1941 and part
of the Bee Tree Vermiculite Company plant has been moved to Tigerville, South Carolina, where it has operated
-'" Murdock, T. G., op. cit.
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 13
since 1943 ; essentially the same flow-sheet, with some minor improvements, is in use. The plant at Franklin
operated part time during the war, however the Vercalite Industries, Inc. is now on a full-time schedule.
The flow sheet of the screening plant of the Cary Minerals Company operation was quite simple. The plant
(see fig. 5) was constructed on a hillside and the crude vermiculite moved by gravity from the bin at the end of
the tram lines from the nearby mine workings to the storage shed and loading platform. The rotary drier
used was 4 feet in diameter, 20 feet long, and inclined at a 31/2° angle. It revolved slowly and was wood-fired,
the temperature being insufficient to cause exfoliation. From the lower end of the drier the vermiculite fed into
a small Sturtevant crusher, discharging into a revolving screen four feet in diameter, 18 feet long. The screen
was divided into 18 panels and made a classification of six sizes.
Fig. 5. Screening Plant of Cary Mineral Co., Ammons Mine.
At the plant of Bee Tree Vermiculite Mines both screening and exfoliation was carried out. These opera-tions
are shown in detail in the accompanying flow-sheet (see fig. 6) . The drying was carried out in a rotary
kiln, 3 feet in diameter and 20 feet long. Fuel oil was used and consumption was 2 to 2-i/
2 gallons per hour, de-pending
upon the moisture content of the crude vermiculite, and the quantity dried was between % ton and 3
' tons per hour. The crusher was of the type commonly used in crushing tan bark and had a maximum capacity
of 5 tons per hour. The screening plant (see fig. 7) employed vibrating screens for the largest sizes. The 40-
mesh screen was a fixed one, discharging overs to the fines bin. The expander was a shaft furnace, approx-imately
20 inches square in cross-section and rising to a height of 22 feet. The falling feed passed over stag-gered
baffles and upon coming in contact with the ascending heat from an oil-fired burner, at a temperature of
2,000°F., exfoliated or opened up into the characteristic accordion-like porous granules, the result of the trans-formation
into steam of the combined water in the crude vermiculite. The continuation of the fall of the ex-panded
material to the bottom of the shaft brought about quick cooling and thus rendered it tough and pliable.
The different sizes were exfoliated separately for best results, and to avoid any tendency of the larger sizes to
insulate the smaller ones and prevent their exfoliation. The expander consumed 6-!/o to 7-Vl> gals, of fuel oil
per hour and its normal capacity varied between 40 and 48 bags of finished product per hour, each bag weighing
14 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
25 pounds and containing approximately 4 cubic feet. A cyclone was placed at the top of the expander and the
finer particles of "stack dust" were collected in this way. When house fill and concrete aggregate sizes were
being expanded the fines blown out into the cyclone amounted to about 4 cubic feet per hour. An 8-mesh oscil-lating
screen, driven by a small motor, was placed between the expander and the sacking shed, in a chute lead-ing
from the top of the bucket elevator at the foot of the expander. Electric power was used throughout the
plant—the vibrating screens and bucket elevators being driven by I-V2 hp. motors ; the screw conveyor and the
drier by a lYi hp. motor; and the crusher and drag conveyor by a 5-hp. one.
VERMICULITE DEPOSITS IN OTHER STATES
Vermiculite has been reported in eleven States in this country, however the principal commercial develop-ments
have been in Colorado, Montana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wyoming. The
greater part of the production has come from Montana, from the operations of the Zonolite Company, in the
Rainy Creek district near Libby. According to Pardee and Larsen-4 the deposits occur in a stock of alkaline
Mine Pit
1
1
Truck
1
1
Storage Sr
Screw Con
ed
veyor
1
Rotary Kil
Crusher
n
1
Drag Conveyor
Bucket Elevator
20-Mesh Screen
Over
I
Under
1
8- Mesh Screen 40-Mesh Screen
Over Under Over Under
HOUSE FILL AMRE9ATE
BIN BIN
FINES FINES
STOCKPILE WASTE
Bucket Elevator
1
1
Expander
1
Bucket Elevator
8- Mesh Screen
Over Under
HOUSE FILL A98RE0ATE
BIN BIN
Sacks Sacks
Fig. 6. Flow Sheet Used at Bee Tree Plant.
rocks that is intruded into Algonkian argillites and quartzites. The operations of the Zonolite Company have
been described by Steele.25 Several promising occurrences of vermiculite have been reported from Colorado and
Alderson- has described those near Salida, Iola, and Westcliffe. The jefferisite variety occurs in the Brinton
serpentine quarry, near West Chester, Pennsylvania ; the deposit was worked in 1929 by John Warren Watson
24 Pardee, J. T., and Larsen, E. S., Deposits of vermiculite and other minerals in the Rainy Creek district near Libby, Montana:
U. S. Geol. Survey Bull. 805-B, pp. 1-12, 1929.
2Z Steele, W. S., Vermiculite production and marketing by the Zonolite Company: Am. Inst. Min. Eng. Trans., vol. 109, pp. 418-
426, 1934.
26 Alderson, V. C, Jefferisite: Colorado School of Mines Inf. Circ, 4 pp., undated.
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 15
Company of Philadelphia. Some production was reported in 1931 by the Parco Development Company, from a
property near Encampment, Wyoming. Vermiculite occurrences in Georgia have beenreported by Smith,27 and
later by Prindle.
~
s
Since 1943 the Bee Tree Vermiculite Company has been exploiting two of five known deposits, about 1 mile
east of Tigerville, Greenville County, South Carolina. These deposits have been prospected by shafts and by
auger borings. The widths of their outcrops range from 40 to 175 feet ; the lengths range from 150 to 800 feet.
In some shafts, good quality vermiculite has been found to a depth of 45 feet. The occurrence, a result of the
alteration of pyroxenite lenses in the Carolina gneiss, is an unusual one ; the entire mass of pyroxenite has been
Fig. 7. Screening Plant, Bee Tree Vermiculite Mines.
altered so completely that it is difficult to locate even a small remnant. The vermiculite exposed by mining op-erations
is cut by several pegmatites, 1 to 3 feet thick. The rather complete alteration of the pyroxenite has re-sulted
in a very uniform vermiculite which is well adapted to low-cost mining by open-cut methods and the pro-duction
of a small flake material suitable for use as concrete aggregate. Vermiculite reserves in the area with-in
a 1-mile radius of the company's plant have been estimated at 300,000 tons.
DESCRIPTION OF NORTH CAROLINA VERMICULITE DEPOSITS
For convenience of description the occurrences are discussed by counties (which are taken up alpha-betically)
. However, most of the production has been from Buncombe and Macon Counties. The deposits have
been named from nearby prominent geographic points, or are identified by the name of the owner of the prop-erty
where they are found. In most cases these names coincide with those applied to the same occurrences in
27 Smith, R. W., Vermiculite, the heat insulator of tomorrow: Georgia Div. Geology Inf. Circ. 3, p. 2, 1934.
28 Prindle, L. M. Kyanite and vermiculite deposits of Georgia: Georgia Geol. Survey Bull. 46, pp. 41-45, 1935.
PLATE 3
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 17
previous reports. The estimate of tonnage reserves is given by counties in a previous section of this report. De-tailed
results of the exfoliation tests, chemical analyses, and identification of the source of the samples are given
in the Appendix.
AVERY COUNTY
FRANK DEPOSIT
The Frank deposit is % mile west of the Frank Post Office, on U. S. Highway 19-E (see pi. 3).29 The verm-iculite
is associated with anthophyllite zones in a dunite mass approximately 1,400 feet long and 400 feet wide.
The development consists of several small open cuts which expose asbestos and vermiculite. One carload of
vermiculite was shipped from this deposit in 1936. The exploitation of the property appears to be possible
only through the production of by-product anthophyllite.
UNPROVEN LOCALITIES
Small bodies of olivine, with some chlorite, are found near Senia Post Office and north and east of Frank.
It might be advisable to prospect these localities.
BUNCOMBE COUNTY
BEE TREE DEPOSIT
The Bee Tree deposit is about 21/2 miles north of Swannanoa and a short distance south of Asheville City
Bee Tree water reservoir (see pi. 4)
.
The development here consists of three principal workings. All the production in this area has been from
open cuts. The largest of these is found on a hill to the east of the home of H. A. Coggins and a short distance
south of Spruce Branch. This cut, about 75 feet in diameter, has been almost entirely in vermiculite which oc-curs
along the contacts of a pyroxenite mass (see pi. 5) . Several small pits along the strike to the northeast of
the largest cut have encountered good quality vermiculite.
About 1,300 feet northwest of this cut and near Bee Tree Dam is another open cut, on the northwest limb of
the pyroxenite mass. This latter cut has exposed several zones of vermiculite 8 to 12 feet in width and occurring
as interior veins in pyroxenite (see pi. 6) . Numerous small pits and trenches have shown the presence of verm-iculite
to the northeast of this cut.
About % mile southwest of Bee Tree Dam and on the north side of Bee Tree Creek, there occurs an ex-cellent
prospect. The vermiculite at this point is exposed by an erosion ditch and prospect pits along the eastern
border of the lens.
Perhaps 50 percent of the vermiculite in the Bee Tree area is suitable for house-fill material.
The principal associated minerals in the Bee Tree area are chlorite and actinolite. Hornblende inclusions
are found in several places.
LAKE EDEN DEPOSIT
The Lake Eden deposit is % mile southeast of the Bee Tree. This property has been developed by an open
cut, which exposes commercial grade orthoclase and muscovite in a pegmatite. A small amount of vermiculite
occurs at the contact between altered pyroxenite and the pegmatite. It is possible that commercial grade verm-iculite
might be found along the contact zone to the northeast and southwest of the workings as only a small
amount of prospecting has been done there. This property, however, has greater merit for its mica and feld-spar;
it has been exploited for these minerals, both some years ago and more recently.
OTHER LOCALITIES
There are a few unproven localities in Buncombe County where some prospecting seems advisable. For ex-ample
there are peridotite and pyroxenite areas between Swannanoa and Oteen ; dunite masses are near Demo-crat
and Newfound Gap ; and, serpentine occurs in the Juno area.
29 Quadrangles shown in index map of Avery County, and in other county maps following are 7%' quadrangles prepared by Ten-nessee
Valley Authority on scale of 1:24,000.
North Carolina Stafe Uhrsr/
gdeigh, N. C.
PLATE 4
PLATE 5
Fault zone
Surface
FIG A
CROSS SECTION OF CONTACT VEIN
TAKEN N 20" £
Vermiculite vein
shown in Fig. A
Highest side of pit
FIG B
CROSS SECTION OF INTERIOR VEIN
TAKEN PARALLEL TO JOINT FACE - S 68° E
>;; Sta A
SYMBOLS:
I V—Pyroxenite
\=i—-Vermiculite
V A—Roan gneiss
V/A—fault surface
fc^l—Pegmatite
Scale 4 8 Feet
si
FIG C
PLAN VIEW
Vertical distance between A -3 =50'.
Direction of slope shown by hachures.
I 1 1
I I
'
I I
REV. DATE MADE CHKDJSUPV. INSP.
DRWN-TRCD.-
HPl...
CHKD.
COMPUTED
ENGINEER
BEETREE, BUNCOMBE COUNTY, N. C.
SECTIONS AND PLAN
NO. I PIT
BEETREE VERMICULITE MINES
NC DEPT OF CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT
DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES
AND
TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY
COMMERCE DEPARTMENT
KNOXVILLE 4-16-42 W CO I 82IGI6R0
PLATE 6
s.
$-5
««. 1
§ % "* *-
<3 T k % ^
v. ki "*J -9
1] Uj
fry _OJ
Oz
>-*
HZ
=>
o
o
u
CD
OOz
D
CD
bJ U
cc
H
ui u
to
wot
-Z -I
< u. U
^2|z*Ui
*°- u
U ^ U
a|P
OQ < UJ
Ui m
Q in
_j uj
y o
12
z o
°o
51
* u
UJ ^
So i
id o
i u
bl
5:
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 21
CLAY COUNTY
As in other counties, the vermiculite of Clay County is found in association with the peridotites. These
basic formations are found only in the eastern part of the county, on the headwaters of Shooting Creek and of
Buck Creek.30
Prospecting for vermiculite has been carried out at several localities, particularly near Shooting Creek
Post Office. Some commercial shipments have been reported from this county.31
MARK ROGERS PROPERTY
The Mark Rogers property is I-V2 miles southeast of Shooting Creek Post Office. Prospect pits expose small
veins of fair quality vermiculite along the east contact of a pyroxenite mass ; poorer grade material, occurring as
a six-foot vein, is exposed on the west contact of the mass.
BARNETT ANDERSON PROPERTY
To the south of the Mark Rogers property and approximately V4 mile N.13°W. from the Barnett Anderson
home on Giesky Creek, a single pit has been sunk, on the eastern contact of a pyroxenite mass with gneiss. A
5-foot zone of a vermiculite-like schistose material is exposed 6 feet from the contact. This material was
sampled as representative of that frequently mistaken for true vermiculite.
OTHER LOCALITIES
One mile from the mouth of Thumping Creek and 3 miles east of Shooting Creek Post Office, vermiculite oc-curs
as small lenticular masses on either side of a hypersthene dike. According to Bryson32 "this dike extends
some little distance across the hills and valleys and at one or two places cross-cutting showed vermiculite zones
of 15 or 20 feet with a length a little greater. At one place a depth of 35 feet was reached without any change
in the material."
Two and one-half miles up Buck Creek and near the top of the rugged Nantahala Mountains, large masses
of dunite suggest possible localities for future exploration. The dunite deposit consists of a series of intrusions,
some of which have undergone much alteration.33 It is cut by many small pegmatites, which have apparently
contributed to the alteration of parts of the dunite into chlorite. It appears highly possible that development
along the contacts and interior zones of weakness of the dunite would locate some commercial vermiculite. Pratt
and Lewis34 definitely record the occurrence of both wilcoxite and dudleyite at Buck Creek, the latter very
sparingly.
HAYWOOD COUNTY
Pratt and Lewis35 mention a minor occurrence of vermiculite at Retreat, on Pigeon River, 6 miles southeast
of Waynesville
:
The rocks are saprolitic garnetiferous gneisses and schists, cutting through which are many small per-matites
accompanied by seams of vermiculite.
In the approximate center of the Hominy Grove dunite mass, 2-1/2 miles northeast of Canton, which is ap-proximately
2,000 feet long and 200 feet wide with the long axis trending east and west36
, a single vermiculite
occurrence is found. The flakes which are less than 14 inch in diameter and exfoliate slightly when heated are
mixed with clay. The vermiculite could not be traced, but it is apparently an interior vein which might develop
into a small commercial body. Some kaolin present indicates a permatite intrusion.
HENDERSON COUNTY
About 2 miles south of Zirconia, to the north of Lake Summit, a potash feldspar pegmatite containing dis-seminated
crystals of zircon and xanthitane has been exploited. This pegmatite has furnished the entire do-mestic
production of commercial zircon.37 It is intruded along the contact of fine-grained hornblende gneiss and
30 Pratt, J. H. and Lewis, J. V., op. cit., pp. 36-38.
31 Smith, Richard W., op. cit., p. 3.
32 Bryson, H. J., Letter in flies of State Geologist, 1936.
33 Hunter, C. E., op. cit., p. 108.
31 Pratt, J. H., and Lewis, J. V., op. cit., p. 322.
35 Pratt, J. H., and Lewis, J. V., op. cit., p. 256.
36 Hunter, C. E., op. cit., p. 65.
37 Pratt, J. H., Zircon, monazite and other minerals: North Carolina Geol. and Econ. Survey Bull. 25, p. 19, 1916.
22 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
mica schist. Large books of micaceous material are found along the contact, and in fractured interior zones.
This material appears to have been biotite originally ; it delaminates freely in the flame of a match. Along the
south side of Lake Summit a biotite schist crops out over a maximum thickness of 50 feet and lies adjacent to
granite. Much of the exposed schist has been altered to a vermiculite-like material and some flakes of this have
a maximum diameter of V4 inch. This material is mixed with quartz, feldspar, and kaolin. The Lake Summit
occurrences have none of the characteristics of those of a true vermiculite ; they are as typical books in a regular
pattern in a pegmatite, rather than as veins, pockets, or lenses of individual interlocking crystals like those of
chlorite, in basic magnesian rocks. The exfoliation tests indicate the material from both localities at Lake
Summit has none of the desired qualities of vermiculite.
IREDELL COUNTY
Vermiculite is found at the following localities near Statesville : At Hunters, 7 miles to the west, in a dark
green amphibolite accompanying corundum and chlorite ; at the Acme corundum mine, l-i/> miles to the west
;
and on the Plyler farm, 7 miles to the northeast, in a mass of impure soapstone. These occurrences are as a
minor associated mineral and none of them are considered of any commercial importance.
JACKSON COUNTY
ADDIE DISTRICT
Vermiculite occurs rather widely throughout the Addie dunite mass, which extends % mile northwest and
slightly more than 1 mile south of the Addie railroad station. This formation attains its maximum width of
2,000 feet at a point 14 mile south of the station, and constitutes the eastern part of a series of saxonite and
dunite intrusions which occur as an elliptical-shaped ring. This ring has a long axis of about 6 miles and a
short axis of about 3-J^ miles (see pi. 7).
FISHER PROPERTY
The main body of the Addie dunite mass, the major part of which is known as the Fisher property, lies be-tween
Scott and Ocher Creeks. Numerous veinlets of vermiculite crop out along the secondary road southeast of
the Fisher home, especially where the road passes through the zone of relatively unaltered olivine. These ex-posures
are made up of both first-class and low-grade vermiculite, accompanied by talc and some pegmatite ma-terial
. A prospect trench runs S.35°E. from the road for approximately 600 feet; the southeast third of this
trench exposes an almost continuous series of vermiculite veins. Vermiculite has been found in a number of
scattered tests pits located on a hill about V4 mile west of the trench. These openings are between a schist in-clusion
and the western boundary of the dunite mass, in adjoining areas of unaltered olivine and serpentinized
dunite. Conditions are favorable for additional prospecting around the perimeter of the schist inclusion in the
approximate center of the dunite deposit.
Vermiculite occurs in two nickel prospect pits in this area, one of which is located about 900 feet south of
the Fisher home and shows a 14-inch vein of large flake material extending from the surface to a depth of 20
feet. Several veins, reaching a maximum of 2 feet in width, are to be seen in association with a pegmatite in
the bank of a tributary flowing northwest into Scott Creek, about 200 feet north of the road. On the south bank
of Scott Creek, opposite the railroad siding, a series of vermiculite veins is exposed over a length of 125 feet, ex-tending
to within 50 feet of the east contact.
OCHER CREEK DISTRICT
The southern part of the Addie dunite mass narrows to about 400 feet in width and crops out along a steep
bluff overlooking Ocher Creek to the southwest. A gravel road passes through the center of this section of the
formation and follows a zone of interior vermiculite veins (see figs. 8 and 9) . These veins are exceptionally
closely spaced ; some of them reach 2 feet in thickness. In 2600 feet of road cut, the width of vermiculite
exposures totals 40 feet or 1.5 percent ; approximately half of this is of first-class flake size and grade. The bet-ter
grades of vermiculite are seen only in a zone about 20 feet wide, approximately 400 feet north of the point
where the road crosses a small tributary of Ocher Creek and turns sharply south to cross the southwest contact.
Vermiculite is also exposed in a branch road, southwest of the main road.
PLATE 7
o
hi o: o
l- I-
> ZJ o z
h-
I U
1-7
z QS ife D >^ >- n
«
O S2°jg
o B1U1ZJ "
ZZ<< .
z
o L. u. oo
5«]
> wU
u IE U UJ
o < o
Ld
< Q_
-> O
CO
CM
O
CM
00
24 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
Fig. 8. Vekmiculite Filling of Major Joint in Serpentinized Dunite, Ociier Creek.
CANE CREEK DISTRICT
The Cane Creek olivine mass, 3-1/2 miles southeast of Sylva, is also a part of the Webster-Addie ring dike
structure. Most of the vermiculite found in pits and road cuts north of the Mary Hooper home indicates that it
was formed along a zone trending north-northeast. Ten percent of the flakes are large ; the rest are very small.
Kyanite frequently accompanies the vermiculite along the southeast contact. There has been only a small
amount of prospecting, however the existence of a small, possibly productive zone, is suggested.
Fig. 9. Typical Jointing of Dunite with Vermiculite Filling, Ocher Creek
CANEY FORK DISTRICT
The Caney Fork District is east of the town of East Laport on the Tuckasegee River. Vermiculite prospects
have been opened at the Cowarts, John Lovedohol, and Cowards properties (see pi. 8)
.
PLATE 8
HAZCLWOOD
1 1
TUCKASEIGEE
1175 SE
3" xaney-;
'FORK/
/////// WA
INDEX MAP
LOCATION OF VERMICULITE
MINE AND PROSPECTS
CANEY FORK DISTRICT
N C DEPT OF CONSERVATION & DEVELOPMENT
DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES
AND
TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY
COMMERCE DEPARTMENT
KNOXVILLE 4-30-42 w co i 82IG23 ro
26 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
cowarts property
At this property, 3-1/2 miles by road from East Laport and V4 mile N.39 E. of Cowarts Post Office, a large
pyroxenite dike trends in a general east-west direction. It is 3,400 feet long and ranges in width from 800 feet
on the east to a narrow belt hardly 100 feet wide on the west. The dike is apparently intruded into a horn-blende
gneiss which is surrounded by mica schist.
There are eight vermiculite prospects, in a general north-south line approximately 600 feet from the east
end of the pyroxenite formation. These openings have explored interior zones and the contacts both with the
gneiss and the schist. It is significant that each prospect working encountered a pegmatite of some shape or
form, in association with the vermiculite.
The principal opening is about 400 feet east of, and about 100 feet vertically above, Caney Fork ; it consists
of an open cut 50 feet long. This cut runs N.82°E. to the portal of a 50-foot drift which follows a 3-foot vein
of first-class vermiculite. A branch drift to the right turns off at a small angle at a point 15 feet from the
portal, and roughly parallels the main drift. Vermiculite is exposed in the back and sides of both drifts, not
continuously but with the usual admixtures of impurities. A section of the open cut taken over the drift at its
portal shows the 3-foot vein (see fig. 10).
About 340 feet northeast from the main working in the northern contact zone, an open cut exposes a 5-foot
vein of first-class vermiculite with a 7-foot vein of similar material joining it at right angles. About 50 percent
of the cut face shows high-grade material. Approximately 140 feet west of this opening, also in the northern
contact zone, a 100-foot trench trends N.50°W. and exposes a 10-foot vermiculite zone containing material of
various sizes and grades ; about 50 percent of this is of good and intermediate quality.
At the western end of the dike an old corundum drift runs S.70°E. Its portal is in gneiss, but further in,
according to local reports, it passes through the contact. Several vermiculite veins are cut by a 60-foot crosscut
running north from this drift. A 30-foot shaft at the face of the crosscut encounters a 2-1/2 foot vein. An ex-amination
of the dump shows much fine and schistose vermiculite, and pegmatite material. A series of old pits
northeast of the drift mouth shows small veins of schistose vermiculite and some indications of vermiculite are
found in the pyroxenite area west of the main dike.
This property shows considerable promise of a potentially important production, judging by the large
amount of comparatively high-grade material exposed. The main opening and the two along the northern con-tact
zone appear the most favorable for further development work and additional prospecting along all contacts
appears warranted.
JOHN LOVEDOHOL PROPERTY
This property is approximately 2-Vi miles by road southeast of the Cowarts property and 11/2 miles east
of the Caney Fork School. Prospect cuts have been put down and a structure similar to that at Cowarts is
indicated. In one of the cuts, 75 feet long and 8 feet deep, vermiculite is exposed over its entire length. On
the southeast side of this cut several veins of relatively high-grade material are seen ; some of these are 2
feet wide and are adjacent to weathered pyroxenite on both sides. Some clay impurities are present in the
vermiculite veins, but the clay would not be expected at greater depths. A vermiculite schist, associated
with small pegmatites, is exposed in the floor of the cut. An inspection of a stockpile indicates an inter-mediate
grade vermiculite, the flakes of which average 3/16 inch in diameter.
COWARDS PROPERTY
This area is l-i/i miles by road east of the John Lovedohol property and on the headwaters of John's
Creek ; it is not to be confused with the Cowarts property about 4 miles to the west. The vermiculite occur-rence
is best exposed in a pit 4,000 feet northeast of Polly Wandin Gap, on a hill northeast of John's Creek, 300
feet northwest of Cowards Cemetery. This 30-foot pit exposes an alternating series of weathered pyroxenite
and masses of vermiculite, 4x6 feet. The pyroxenite dike is 30 feet wide at this point and dips 20° NW. The
vermiculite consists of masses of crystals, preserving the original structure of the pyroxenite joint blocks ; each
crystal is thus a pseudomorph after pyroxene.
The Vermiculite Deposits op North Carolina 27
Most of the exposed vermiculite is of an intermediate grade and size ; any production will contain an excess
of fines due to the disintegration of interlocking crystals upon crushing. Prospecting appears warranted just
south of Cowards Cemetery where relatively fresh pyroxenite crops out.
OTHER LOCALITIES
About 2 miles south of Sylva vermiculite occurs at several places in the Webster peridotite. This peridotite
is the largest of the Webster-Addie series ;
38 it is crescent shaped and has a length of 2-% miles and a max-imum
width of 1,800 feet. It is very well known because of the early experiments with associated nickel
silicates.39
Fig. 10. Vermiculite Vein Over Drift Portal, Cowauts Mine.
Indications are that the amount of vermiculite in this area is quite small in comparison with the other prop-erties
studied in detail, although prospecting, at least along the contacts, has not been widely done. It also ap-pears
that the vermiculite occurring in association with the nickel silicates, garnierite and genthite,40 might be
more important for its nickel content than for its usual properties.
3S Hunter, C. E., op. cit., p. 91.
30 Pawel, G. W., Nickel in North Carolina: Eng. & Min. Jour., vol. 140, pp. 35-38, Oct. 1939.
40 Ross, C S., Shannon, E. V., and Gonyer, F. A., Origin of nickel silicates at Webster, N. 0„ Econ. Geol,, vol. 23, pp. 528-45,
1928.
28 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
MACON COUNTY
ELLIJAY DISTRICT
AMMONS property
The Ammons property is in the western portion of the Moore's Knob dunite formation on the headwaters of
Ellijay Creek, % mile northeast of Ellijay and about i/
2 rnile northeast of Moore's Knob (see pi. 9). This prop-erty
was operated by the Cary Mineral Company between 1935 and 1941. Development work includes a
shaft, drifts, and several open cuts (see pi. 10) . The underground development work has a total length of over
1,100 feet. The vermiculite encountered in the workings has been mostly along interior structural weaknesses
in the serpentinized dunite, as veins, pockets, and lenses.
The principal vermiculite production from the Ammons property has been from the shaft and the drifts
in the central part of the formation. This shaft was caved at the time of the examination but it was reported
to have been 96 feet deep with drifts at two levels. The drifts were irregular in both direction and grade, as an
attempt had been made to follow the zones of vermiculite. These workings exposed veins of vermiculite as
much as 15 feet wide and perhaps 125 feet long. Several vermiculite "pockets" were cut and these consisted of
commercial grade material sometimes containing as high as 300 tons per "pocket". The greater part of the
vermiculite was recovered by mining along the drift and in a limited amount of stoping. However, in no case was
there a complete recovery of any of these "pockets", because of the inability to hold the heavy ground for suf-ficient
time to remove the vermiculite.
The western contact area of the Ammons property has not been adequately prospected. A few short drifts
and shallow pits show the presence of vermiculite in this area. Especially the contact between the dunite for-mation
and the mica schist along the northwest area should be prospected.
Much associated pegmatite material is visible in most vermiculite veins exposed by the workings. At many
points small lenses of actinolite are completely surrounded by vermiculite. Nickel silicate minerals are asso-ciated
with a few of the vermiculite zones.
Angel property
The Angel property, about 600 feet east of the Ammons mine, has been in intermittent production since
1935 ; it has been operated by Minerals, Incorporated, of Franklin, and its successor company. The original de-velopment
was by shafts and drifts in search of corundum, and was done about 1890.
The geology of the Angel property is similar to that of the Ammons and, in fact, both properties are within
the Moore's Knob dunite mass. The vermiculite production from this property has been from shafts, drifts,
and open cuts (see pis. 11 and 12). Open cut mining has been rather extensively employed here and has yielded
the greater part of the production. The open cuts are excavated along interior vermiculite veins and the work
is continued in depth until the vermiculite pinches out or the walls of the cut become too difficult to hold. Some
of the cuts have reached a depth of 35 feet.
Some of the underground workings at the Angel property have exposed inclusions of mica schist and gneiss
within the dunite formation. In the western part of this property much excellent vermiculite was found around
these inclusions.
The eastern contact zone of this formation has not been prospected. This should be done because verm-iculite
is found in the surface soil there. Minerals associated with the vermiculite veins on the Angel property
include brownish actinolite, green chlorite, and locally, considerable garnierite and genthite.
Recent drifting, a short distance southwest of the most southwestern openings, has encountered a 5-
foot vein of vermiculite along the wall of a schist inclusion, and at an elevation below that of the other work-ings.
This inclusion may prove to be an extension of the one found in the large open cut (No. 11) and the ad-jacent
drift, about 400 feet to the northeast (see pi. 11). If this is true, an important mineralization may occur
along this contact.
PLATE 9
PLATE 10
Serp
MVmatr-C.
2550
2500
2450
2400
2350
2300
ZT
CUT N
UD CUT M
DRIFT I
DRIFT A
2
GEOLOGIC MAP
AMMONS VERMICULITE MINE
MACON COUNTY, NC
N C DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION S. DEVELOPMENT
DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES
AND
TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY
COMMERCE DEPARTMENT
KNOXVILLE j 3-7-42 |w |co| I |82IG7rO
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 31
An interesting new development by the operator of this property consists of some experimental work on
chlorite found there. Large crystals, definitely identified as that mineral, exfoliate at high temperatures and
yield a light weight, tough, whitish product.
MCGUIRE PROPERTY
This property is about i/
2 m^e southwest of Ellijay Post Office and about 1,000 feet east of Ellijay Creek
(see pi. 9). The vermiculite is associated with a very sound dunite mass about 1,000 feet long.
The vermiculite production from this property has been less than that of either the Ammons or the Angel.
The most recent production has been from two drifts driven from the northern slope of a hill. A small quan-tity
has been mined from open cuts near the crest of this hill. The vermiculite veins on this property seldom
exceed 4 or 5 feet in width. Most of the veins trend east and west, perpendicular to the most common direction
of those in the Ellijay district. The material from the McGuire property is pale green as contrasted with the
brown material from the neighboring ones. This greenish vermiculite, upon exfoliation, weighs about 6 pounds
per cubic foot, which is much below the average for the Ellijay district. The contacts have not been explored
extensively ; this should be done, especially on the southeast side.
BUD MlNCEY MINE
This property, opened as a corundum operation about 1900, is on the south side of Berry Prong of Ellijay
Creek and about 800 feet east of Ellijay Post Office. The principal workings then consisted of a 125-foot shaft,
a 122-foot drift, and several open cuts. All of these workings encountered vermiculite. In 1941 Minerals, In-corporated,
began producing vermiculite from the property ; in 1944 a new shaft was sunk in the bottom of the
large open cut to prospect old corundum showings.
The principal vermiculite production has been from a new open cut about midway between the old corun-dum
shaft and the creek, which followed a persistent, clean vermiculite vein. The walls of the cut are relatively
sound dunite, which occassionally had to be held in place by stulls. This vermiculite vein ranges from 18 inches
to a maximum of 10 feet in width ; some parts of it have been worked to a depth of 40 feet. To date, the verm-iculite
production of this mine has consisted of a relatively small flake variety, best suited for plaster or con-crete
use. The property holds promise of becoming a producer of some importance, especially when the contacts
are explored.
ELLIJAY CREEK PROSPECT
This prospect is about V2 m^e northwest of Ellijay Post Office and 2,000 feet west of Ellijay Church, on
the bank of Ellijay Creek just upstream from the mouth of Berry Prong.
This occurrence is in one of the smallest masses of dunite in the Ellijay district. The mass has a length of
about- 500 feet and a maximum width of approximately 200 feet. Its crest lies about 40 feet above Ellijay Creek.
Several small prospects have opened up the formation; most of these encountered small pockets of ex-cellent
vermiculite. All of these pockets are less than 3 feet wide. The vermiculite is brown in color, relatively
free from clay and other impurities, and the flake size is sufficiently large to be used for house fill.
The principal production, by the Cary Mineral Company, was from two small open cuts, near the north-eastern
contact, both of which are about 30 to 60 feet long. The production from this deposit would necessarily
have to be small because of its location, adjacent to Ellijay Creek, which would cause a water problem in mining
below the creek level.
GNEISS DISTRICT
CORUNDUM HILL DEPOSIT
The Corundum Hill mine is 6 miles southeast of Franklin and 1-V4 miles northeast of Gneiss (see pi. 13).
The dunite mass there was extensively exploited for corundum prior to 1910. The first vermiculite production in
North Carolina came from this locality in 1933, by Philip S. Hoyt. Since that date the property has been ex-ploited
intermittently by various operators. Corundum Hill has produced perhaps one-half of the vermiculite
shipped from the Franklin area.
PLATE 11
/ anthophyllite
stringer in tunnel^
15'
'V. schist in open cuf^
Steatized olivine
Mi & Talc fitting
fractures
20 zone high
in picket silicates
DRIFT 14
Open cut above
\ drift in olivine
highly fractured
talc & anthophyllite
filling fractures.
OPEN CUT 12
H5
Serp 't 'd Dunite in
open cut for new
drift to cut vein_
of open cut IB.
Cuts in vermiculife. Vein
average 2?'. Occurs as
lens like veins I ~5' wide.
Follows fault zone.
Dunite, broken 8 jointed
Joints contain chlorite,
vermicultte, chalcedony,
& bronzite
Old shaft reported
60 ' deep ^
accompamng
section (PI 12)
OPEN CUT a
Reported drift following talcose
mat 'I with good Iter. Actinoliie yc>-
present, § talc -, r——__ --''' «<*
yermiculife, Schistose with talc (2")
Serpentmized Dunite with
chalcedony filling fractures
- Vermiculife In floor
IB "good Ver
OPEN CUT E
Entire area fractured and
jointed olivine with mixture
talc, chalcedony <$ verm
joints filled with chalcedony
5"V
Old drift reported as following \
V showing Bj - 4 wide
DRIFT 5
OPEN CUT B
In 5 yermiculite zone DRIFT C
_
Soapstone —,
Hornblende gneiss
with pockets of
yermiculite £ soap-stone
inclusions
DRIFT D
Reported 200' long and
cutting vermiculite of
Drift C present in 3 veins
J'ver/y -
zone// 90 shaft reported
3' vein- open cut
Garnet Muscovite Schist with
small Ft V Also small pegmatites
parallel to schistosity
Scale 30
GEOLOGIC MAP
ANGEL VERMICULITE MINE
MACON COUNTY, N.C.
N C -DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION & DEVELOPMENT
DIVISION OF MINERAL RESOURCES
AND
TENNESSEE VALLEY AUTHORITY
COMMERCE DEPARTMENT
5-26-42 W CO I 82IK3IR0
PLATE 12
„ v*^
^ K-iD
k
,5
009S
Ak I 5>^
—
u
^k
o
\I
1 1
<:
Oi OOfrS
S~ rp\ <t
/
v \ -i
1 \
ry\n ^ I
^
\ v
<* ci\ \ h h \ k
B j
H i (V
d! \ ^
k
\ \ t Rn
K
5) 1/ 1 K -!'
<o A—- ^ - 1
1
/
'4 i^
-!' k
5>
Q \ i 1] Q
-J \ i O 1 i
002S
|
k
1
<o
<* t
K ,.Q -5
<*> V H *
K - . Q: | 1 *
5) Q !i ^ O ,
4i-U "1
u
iiii
1
kl -2
<^ 3 LTt
k
-J £
1
o
^1
0. u
1 s O
iij|
z
. Q H >
Z "j b
o o _J
z
< 5
oo
(0
zo
LlI >
-J
zoo
— < III
o
LlI
(0
Z
<
£
z o
p ^ U o
z o
z
0095 3
009(3
i»
00K3
1 1
00053
k ^ 2
Osl">
j> ki Q
Cj 5: ^ O ^ £
kj ^ $
i>. X ij
S. Co 't ^ ^ to
34 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
The principal production has been from open cuts along the northwest contact of the dunite formation with
the enclosing gneiss. This contact vein is persistent both along the strike and dip. It has been worked
around the periphery of the dunite for a distance of about 400 feet. At several places mining reached a maxi-mum
depth of 100 feet. At two points on this vein the clean vermiculite has a width slightly in excess of 20
feet. The dunite wall of this vein was supported with considerable difficulty, even with heavy square sets.
There are two important areas at the Corundum Hill deposit that have not been prospected for vermiculite.
These are the northeastern contact zone and the border of the mica schist inclusion near the northwest side of the
formation. It is reported that old corundum workings reached a depth of 300 feet and that good-quality verm-iculite
was found at this depth. The Corundum Hill vermiculite usually consists of extremely large flakes, many
of which reach a diameter of 5 or 6 inches, a most unusual size for North Carolina vermiculite. This material is
said to require a higher exfoliation temperature than average vermiculite.
Salem School and pine Grove School prospects
These prospects are in a long dike of amphibolized dunite which may be traced for 2 miles, from the head-waters
of a tributary of Crows Branch to the south border of the Corbin Knob Quadrangle (167-NE) ; it crosses
Highway 64 and the Cullasaja River 1,000 feet northwest of Walnut Creek Road (see pi. 13)
.
The Salem School prospect is about 1,600 feet N.23°E. of Salem School. At this point the host rock might
be described as a dunite-soapstone-chlorite mass and the accessory vermiculite has been explored by several pits
and an old drift. One of these pits exposes first-class vermiculite. The size of this pit and the amount of verm-iculite
in the dump indicate that the vein must have been 3 or 4 feet wide. The vermiculite flakes range in diam-eter
from 1/16 inch for a schistose variety to 1-1/2 inches. The drift has been driven along the contact of
the gneiss country rock on the west and the soapstone on the east, exposing an 8-inch vein immediately adjacent
to the soapstone and separated from a 3-inch vein by a thin lens of talc. This vermiculite is second grade and
the crystals range from 1/16 inch to 2 inches in diameter. The banding of the country rock strikes N.15°W.
and dips 61°W. ; it is parallel to the vermiculite veins and an 8-inch pegmatite which lies in the soapstone, about
6 feet from the contact.
The Pine Grove School prospect is V2 rnile southwest of the schoolhouse and % mile east of Dill's Knob.
The formation is exposed over a width of about 50 feet by an erosion gully, at a point about 300 feet west of a
secondary road. Vermiculite is found in the dump of an old corundum opening, between the erosion gully and
the road ; some of the flakes are of 1-inch diameter, however most of it is schistose material.
Vermiculite float is observed at a number of points along the dike and the material in place is exposed in
road cuts. Additional exploration is needed to determine the quality and the quantity of the material. It is
possible that prospecting along the contacts will prove up some vermiculite.
Other localities
Charles Mincey Place—A narrow dunite mass occurs 2,200 feet southeast of the Charles Mincey home and
1 mile south of Ellijay School (see pi. 9) . A prospect pit in the dunite-gneiss contact on the top of the ridge to
the west shows five 1/0-inch to 2-inch vermiculite stringers of low-grade material. To the northeast an interior
zone of vermiculite strikes N.60°E. and is exposed by several open cuts and a 25-foot drift, along a distance
of 180 feet from the crest of the ridge to the southwest, almost to the end of the formation. This zone is made
up of several 5- to 10-inch veinlets, largely surrounded by chlorite, and follows a single large joint in the
dunite.
Jake Henry Place—The above-mentioned dunite mass may be traced to the east and appears, together with
another belt which extends from the south, on the Jake Henry Place about 4,000 feet north of Cedar Knob.
About 50 feet north of a small stream, a contact zone of brown, resinous, fine-flake vermiculite and vermiculite
schist is exposed, in contact with mica schist. The zone is made up of two veinlets, 12 and 8 inches wide. About
400 feet northwest of this exposure, anthophyllite has been mined from a 30-foot cut, 8 feet deep, and
a 6-inch stringer of good vermiculite is exposed. Between this contact zone and the top of the ridge to the west,
there are about 15 pits of variable size and shape. These have been sunk in what appears to be an inclusion of
weathered biotite schist in the dunite mass. This material decrepitates, but does not exfoliate as does a true
vermiculite.
PLATE 13
36 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
Higdon Mountain—Several dikes of altered dunite occur around Rough Knob on the eastern part of Hig-don
Mountain (see pis. 9 and 13). These dikes average about 30 feet wide and 300 to 400 feet long. At many
points along the contacts, much prospecting for corundum has been done. The dumps show vermiculite, but
most of it is second grade. The formation is so badly fractured that is is doubtful if much good vermiculite
could be taken from this area.
Vance Jennings Place—This prospect lies in the west-central rectangle of the Glenville Quadrangle (176-
NW) , about 1/2 mile east of the Angel property and the same distance south of Little Rocky Mountain. There
are several drifts and pits in a soapstone mass about V4 mile north of the Jennings home. The best showing of
vermiculite is in a drift running N.16°W. for 30 feet, thence N.82°W. for 39 feet, and cutting a highly faulted
contact zone made up essentially of gneiss, but with three fault blocks of talc exposed. Numerous small peg-matites
have impregnated the fault zone and a series of veinlets and small pockets of vermiculite up to 2
inches in width cut the talc blocks. Very fine flake disseminated vermiculite constitutes about 5 percent of
the gneiss. All the vermiculite in this drift is of a good grade. The other openings show only small vermi-culite
exposures. The commercial possibilities of this property appear doubtful.
Adams Place—This prospect is about 2,300 feet north of Little Rocky Mountain and just west of Little
Salt Rock Cove, near the northwestern border of the Glenville Quadrangle (176-NW). A lens of altered dunite
is found there ; it has a length of 1,900 feet in a north-south direction and the width ranges from 400 feet in
the center to 200 feet on the ends. The country rock is biotite schist ; the dunite has been highly steatitized
and is accompanied by highly crinkled and folded schistose talc. The north contact has been partly explored by
a short drift which exposes 18 inches of low grade, clayey vermiculite at a point six feet from the mouth; the
drift is caved but apparently runs south for about 18 feet, and exposes boulders of decomposed olivine with
narrow 1-inch stringers of vermiculite surrounded by anthophyllite. Several other openings expose minor show-ings,
but on the whole the property does not appear to merit extensive prospecting.
Norton Property—The Norton dunite occurs 14 miles south of Franklin, on the north side of Commis-sioners
Creek and 1 miles west of the Tullulah Falls Railroad. There are seven vermiculite prospect pits along
the east contact. Six of these expose only a weathered biotite, stained a golden brown, and the seventh cuts a 6-
inch vein of vermiculite-like material, with a large pegmatite as the hanging wall and weathered soapstone as
the footwall. A small quartz vein, in the middle of this material, indicates that it was probably originally bio-tite
around quartz and was formed when the pegmatite came up, and later weathered. It is possible that verm-iculite
in some quantity might be found at this property. The dunite mass contains a little olivine ; it is com-posed
mostly of anthophyllite and chlorite, which in places might have weathered to vermiculite.
MADISON COUNTY
The belt of peridotites that passes through Democrat, Buncombe County, crosses the extreme corner of
Madison County. The Holcombe Branch dunite mass is IV2 miles north of Democrat, on both sides of Holcomb
Branch. Hunter41
, describes the formation as very irregular in outline; the maximum length and width are
3,000 and 1,500 feet, respectively. The formation is somewhat broken up by faults and it contains several
schist inclusions. While the occurrences of commercial vermiculite is not indicated, the presence of chlorite in
joints is definitely known and some vermiculite may be found along the contacts and particularly along those
adjacent to the schist inclusions. Pratt and Lewis42 report that corundum was mined at the old Carter mine
on Holcombe Branch ; it was found in an interior vein, enclosed by chlorite and vermiculite. Two and one-half
miles northeast of the Carter mine, 2 miles above the mouth of Terry Creek, is a massive, dark green to
almost black serpentine with some soapstone and chlorite in an outcrop about 200 feet. Peridotites occur in
several other parts of Madison County, but there is no particular reason to consider them as potential verm-iculite
prospects.
11 Hunter, C. E., op. cit., p. 58.
12 Pratt, J. H., and Lewis, J. V., op. cit., p. 258.
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 37
MITCHELL COUNTY
There are numerous outcrops of peridotite and enstatite rocks in this county, but reports indicate very little
associated vermiculite. The Bakersville dunite mass, on White Oak Creek 1 mile southeast of Bakersville, has
been described by Hunter.43 Overburden obscures a part of the formation, but it appears to be about 300
feet long and 60 feet wide. The most unique feature of this deposit is the presence of chrysotile asbestos as
seams up to 6 inches thick and as individual fibers and clusters of fibers penetrating individual olivine grains.
bear Creek
The vermiculite-like material on the Pipkins property, at the headwaters of Little Bear Creek and approx-imately
1/2 mile west of Little Bald Mountain (209NE), constitutes a unique occurrence. An open cut runs S.
68°E. into a pegmatite for 50 feet and then turns to the southwest for 30 feet. The vermiculite-like material,
which is 3. feet thick with extensions running downward at right angles, strikes N.16°E. and dips 28°W. Blocks
of intergrown crystals 2 feet or more in diameter can be found in the sides of the cut. Faulting is quite pro-nounced
throughout the entire exposure and the seam ends with a fault plane. The entire pegmatite has been
injected into a hornblende gneiss although the capping at the cut entrance is a garnet-biotite schist. The ma-terial
varies in color from black to light golden and grades from a hard, "harsh" biotite into a smooth, soft
vermiculite-like mineral. The occurrence is as books, intergrown into the pegmatite with feldspar around the
individual books.
One-fourth mile S.32°W. of this opening, on the Pitman Property, another cut runs S.30°E. for about 100
feet into the side of the mountain, and reaches a depth of about 25 feet. Feldspar is the principal mineral ex-posed
and is highly kaolinized. In the southeast end of the cut a vermiculite-like material, somewhat similar to
that found at the other opening, is exposed.
These occurrences are the only ones seen in the field which even suggest that biotite might have been the
ancestor of vermiculite ; this is not conclusive since the material could hardly be classed as a true vermiculite.
It is not, however, the usual biotite or iron-stained muscovite, since upon heating it does not merely delaminate,
but really exfoliates. Field tests indicated this to be the case and laboratory tests showed a sample from the
Pitman property to be one of the best. The only explanation lies in the fact that faulting in the area has pro-vided
ready access for what might be called "vermiculizing" solutions from a nearby altered peridotite which
is known to occur.
TRANSYLVANIA-JACKSON COUNTIES
CANADA-SAPPHIRE DISTRICT
This district is in the southeast part of Jackson County and adjacent Transylvania County east of Sapphire
and between Horsepasture River on the south and Toxaway River on the north (see pi. 14). There has been
practically no vermiculite exploitation in the district, although it was once an important center of corundum
mining. The Canada area lies near the headwaters of Tuckasegee River (East Fork), on partially improved
State Highway 281, approximately 12 miles from Tuckasegee. The Sapphire area is adjacent to Highway 64,
between Rosman and Cashiers. Both areas have been described in detail by Pratt and Lewis.44 The 1941
field work there consisted only of a brief reconnaissance to visit localities where some activity had been re-ported
and to study the general possibilities of the district.
In the northwest rectangle of the Lake Toxaway Quadrangle (185-NW) about 3,000 feet south of Wolf
Creek Church, several vermiculite zones are exposed in a folded dunite dike. One of these, in the road cut 300
feet east of Wolf Creek Post Office, consists of a 2V->-foot contact vein of low grade, small flake, schistose ma-terial.
Near a small graveyard, a 15-foot contact zone of good grade vermiculite associated with talc is exposed,
consisting of a 7-foot vein and two smaller ones. Most of the vermiculite is Vi inch in diameter and consider-able
clay impurities are present, probably resulting from the weathering of near-by granite. This condition
should not continue at depth. In this vicinity dunite and enstatalite (enstatite rock) occur in several places,
particularly near the mouth of Tennessee Creek. At the old Whitewater mine, 5 miles southwest of Sapphire,
13 Hunter, C. E., op. cit., p. 57.
"Pratt, J. H., and Lewis, J. V., op. cit. pp. 42-47; 252-256.
PLATE 14
>
I
<
0t*Z8
X
o
36"-
00
MOUNT
GUYOT
35°-
30
00-.C9 ^
u
*
ou
0CvC8^
'I
I- o
E Q $
Ui uj -J
"- f z
° n" <
i f T
->
Q co
UJ ->
5 2 £2 ^ LI
o
<n 2
ui o z o
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 39
in an oval outcrop of peridotite about 100 feet wide, fine scaly vermiculite occures along the joints and in con-tacts
with gneiss. Soapstone, probably representing similar rocks, occurs on the southern slopes of Terrapin
Mountain, 2 miles west of the Whitewater mine. A small mass of peridotite is reported on the north end of
Whiteside Mountain, near Devils Courthouse.
The accompanying map (pi. 14) shows the distribution of peridotites near Sapphire. Vermiculite was en-countered
in association with corundum in many of these peridotites. The most southerly outcrop is at the old
Bad Creek mine, 1 mile south of Sapphire. Here a lenticular mass, 50 by 200 feet, consists chiefly of enstatalite,
but in places passes into dunite. The old Socrates mine is located V2 m^e northeast of the Bad Creek, where a
lens of enstatalite, about 250 by 900 feet, occurs. At the northeast end of the outcrop the gneiss dips 40° SE.,
under the pyroxenite. One or two feet of the gneiss at the contact are thickly impregnated with a fine, scaly
vermiculite. Between this and the pyroxenite is a sheet of similar vermiculite about 4 inches thick with a few
inches of pulverant and scaly talc, and some chlorite next to the pyroxenite.
Corundum was produced from these old mines and asbestos as well, from the Rattlesnake, Brockton, Sap-phire
and Burnt Rock. The latter property is on Highway 64 and a large amount of vermiculite is to be seen
in the old dump and in the caved mouth of the old portal. At the Brockton mine vermiculite gangue was rather
widespread in the early corundum mining. Other localities in this area where peridotite rocks occur include
:
southeast of Great Hogback Mountain ; 3 or 4 miles east of Sapphire, where several dunite masses occur
;
about 15 miles northeast of Great Hogback Mountain, where a dozen small outcrops of saxonite and enstatalite
are found ; 1 mile east of Buck Mountain and 4 miles due south of Sapphire where a mass of dunite 150 feet
wide outcrops in a road cut ; and, 5 miles northwest of Sapphire and V2 mile north of Sheep Cliff Mountain,
where large outcrops of dunite occur. It is probable that carefully planned prospecting in these areas would
locate a considerable tonnage of vermiculite. In many cases, however, the location would not be readily ac-cessible
and delivery to main highways would be costly.
Upper Wolf Creek
Some exploration for vermiculite, consisting of three shallow pits sunk in a biotite schist member of the
Carolina gneiss, is noted on Wolf Creek, 3,000 feet above the mouth of Cold Creek, and % mile northeast of
Charley Knob, in the southwest rectangle of the Sam Knob Quadrangle (164-SW) . Due to the entire absence of
any basic rocks in this vicinity, the vermiculite-like material exposed can hardly be considered as a true verm-iculite,
although it does bear a certain resemblance.
YANCEY COUNTY
While there has been no development for vermiculite in Yancey County, the possibility of the existence of
commercial vermiculite is suggested by the occurrence of several large peridotite masses and the active opera-tion
of an olivine quarry. The Toecane area, about 12 miles long and 8 miles wide, is about 30 miles northeast of
Asheville and extends from the center of Yancey County to a short distance beyond Bakersville. This area is
described by Hunter45 as being characterized by fine-grained dunites and saxonites that have a distinctive
yellow color on the weathered surface.
The largest and most outstanding peridotite in the Toecane area is at Day Book, about 3 miles north of
Burnsville, on Mine Fork of Jack's Creek. This deposit is about 2,000 feet long and 600 feet wide and outcrops
as hills on both sides of Mine Fork. Much of the outer portion hes been altered by hydrothermal solutions, while
the relatively unaltered material occurs as a lens-shaped zone near the center of the formation. Near the faults
and larger joints in the deposit the olivine shows signs of chloritization. An interior vermiculite zone, exposed
on the west side of the quarry operated there, is 2 to 3 feet wide. Anthophyllite is exposed along the northwest
contact. The vermiculite is schistose, of a resinous luster ; it breaks down into very fine flakes and is accom-panied
by talc and actinolite. Some vermiculite is also exposed on the east side of the quarry but it is less pro-nounced
than on the west. The southwest contact offers the possibility of vermiculite, more so than does
the northwest one where the dunite is in contact with a granite mass.
15 Hunter, C. E., op. cit., p. 48.
APPENDIX
COMPILATION OF DATA OF VERMICULITE EXFOLIATION TESTS
AND CHEMICAL ANALYSES
Thirty samples of vermiculite, taken from western North Carolina deposits by the field geologists during
the survey, were sent to the Authority's Minerals Testing Laboratory at Norris, Tennessee. The tests were
conducted by Mr. F. A. W. Davis, who had carried out previous research on vermiculite.40 In this Appendix is
given a description of the procedure used and observations made as a result of the tests. The locations from
which the samples were taken, the results of the screen analyses and exfoliation tests, and chemical analyses are
given in tabular form following the subject matter.
PROCEDURE
After prolonged air drying, the crude samples were quartered down for mechanical analyses. Material
from each crude sample was sized by screening. Mechanical analyses were run on all the crude sizings ex-foliated.
These analyses serve to indicate the degree of disintegration of the various sizings during exfoliation.
Apparent density of Crude Ore
The apparent density of each crude sizing was determined by placing a pasteboard carton, having a capacity
of 482 cubic centimeters, in a sieve pan mounted on the electric vibrator. This carton was filled with sized ma-terial,
adding additional sizings from time to time until vibrated to refusal, that is, until constant volume is ob-tained.
The material in the carton was then weighed in grams and converted to pounds per cubic foot.
Exfoliation
For exfoliation a Hoskins electric muffle furnace was heated to its maximum temperature (900° C). A
portion of one sizing was then spread thinly over the bottom of a sheet iron pan made to fit easily within the
muffle. The pan, which was attached to a long flat iron handle, was slid rapidly into the muffle and the door of
the furnace closed. The temperature leveled off, ranging from 640° to 740° C. during each charging. Charging
of the pan was repeated until the entire amount of the sizing contained in the carton has been through the
furnace.
The correct time period for complete exfoliation was determined. In most of the sizings the time period for
exfoliation varied from 30 to 45 seconds; however, some required only 20 seconds while others required at
least 60 seconds.
Apparent density of exfoliated vermiculite
During the heating process the material expands or exfoliates, thereby changing the apparent density. All
of the expanded material derived from a carton of crude sizing was vibrated to constant volume, using the
same carton. The apparent density of that particular sizing in grams per cubic centimeter was converted to
pounds per cubic foot. Furthermore, the enlarged volume, divided by the original volume of the crude sizing
in the carton, gives the actual number of times the original volume had increased due to exfoliation.
OBSERVATIONS
Impurities noted were talc, serpentine, feldspar, silica, clay, and iron oxide. Some of the sizings contained
sufficient gangue to more or less smother the exfoliation of the good vermiculite. Extremely weathered crude
vermiculite exfoliates very little. The presence of impurities or any vermiculite which does not exfoliate, al-though
not in sufficient quantities to hinder exfoliation, increases the apparent density after exfoliation. The
46 Davis, F. A. W., and Johnson, M., Research work on North Carolina vermiculite: Tennessee Valley Auth. Div. Geology Bull. 5,
pp. 11-21, December 1936.
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 41
minus 60 crude ore should be wasted as too high in clay, iron oxide, and fine gangue materials. To get the lowest
apparent density after exfoliation, removal of the gangue either before, during, or after exfoliation would be
necessary for about 60 percent of the crude samples tested.
Tests on the platy type of ore indicated better bulking values than the so-called lump type. The lump type
is probably derived from books of the platy type irregularly weathered around the edges. During exfoliation
the smaller cross-sections of each lump are detached from it, causing disintegration.
It was not possible to exfoliate at temperatures above 740° C. with the equipment and method used. It
might be possible, however, that temperatures up to 900° C. might increase the degree of exfoliation somewhat
in some of the samples.
Of the crude sizings, 60 percent had less than 60 percent of the particles retained on plus 10 mesh, which is
a low yield for "Housefill." Care in processing the crude material is very important in order to cut down on
the finer sizes. Crude ore as it comes from the mine should be gently dried at 110° C. and then fed to a vib-rating
screen to take out the minus V2 mesh. The oversize should then be accumulated and disintegrated to
yield as much minus V2 Pms 4, minus 4 plus 10 mesh as possible.
All the exfoliated material was found to be quite friable and would break down unless handled carefully. It
is necessary therefore to cut down on the number of times the exfoliated material is handled, both in process-ing
and when used, especially the minus !/2 plus 4 and minus 4 plus 10 mesh in "Housefill."
It would seem this disintegration due to handling might be obviated by transporting the sized crude ore to
the site of the job and exfoliating it there. A portable furnace for the proper exfoliation of the material would
have to be designed. Yield could also be increased if some method could be found for forming the finer ex-foliated
material into clusters, and strengthening the particles, thereby permitting them also to be used as
housefill.
SAMPLES TESTED
Below is an identification of the samples listed in Tables I and II.
Sample
No.
1
2
3
4
Addie No.
Addie No.
Addie No.
Location
1 (Ocher Creek)
2 (Ocher Creek)
3 (Ocher Creek)
Addie No. 4 (Ocher Creek)
5 Addie No. 5 (Fisher)
6 Addie No. 6 (Fisher)
7 Addie No. 7 (Fisher)
8 Ammons Mine
9 Angel Property
10 Angel Tunnel No. 13
11 Bear Creek No. 1
12 Bear Creek No. 2
13 Cane Creek No. 1
14 Cane Creek No. 2
15 Coggins No. 1 Bee Tree
16 Coggins No. 2
17 Cowards Property
18 Cowarts No. 1
19 Cowarts No. 2
20 Cowarts No. 3
Description
Taken over a 20-foot zone about 400 feet from branch.
From zone similar to Sample No. 1, located 180 feet to the northwest.
From southwest contact vein.
Composite of two five-foot zones of good vermiculite and a two-foot zone of
schistose material, occurring just north of the intersection of Ocher Creek
road with the east-west one.
Composite of clayey material exposed in two pits south of the propect trench.
From exposure of higher grade material at the end of the trench.
Composite of lower grade material cut 100 feet to the northwest by the trench
and of two test pits to the east.
Run-of-mine vermiculite from screening plant bin.
From material being mined from open cut 12.
Schist bearing small flakes of vermiculite as exposed in drift 13.
From Pipkins Place.
From Pitman Place.
Composite of different vermiculite zones exposed in a test trench northwest
of the Hooper home.
Composite containing 80 percent from test pit north of Hooper home and re-mainder
from outcrops in that area and at the base of the hill.
Run-of-mine material from No. 1 pit.
Stock-pile of heavy white-centered material from No. 3 pit.
From pit at Cowards prospect.
Largest size of screened vermiculite shipped from the plant at Cowarts.
Smallest size of screened vermiculite shipped from the plant at Cowarts.
Run-of -mine material from the crude bin at Cowarts.
42 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
Sample
No. Location
21 Day Book
22 Ellijay Creek
23 Lake Summit No. 1
24 Lake Summit No. 2
25 Lovedohol Property
26 McGuire Property
27 Bud Mincey Mine
28 Anderson Place—Shooting
Creek
29 Rogers Place—Shooting Creek
30 Wolf Creek
Description
Vermiculite exposed west of Day Book olivine quarry.
Of sacked material piled near the old workings at the property.
Micaceous material occurring with the kaolinized feldspar at the exposure 200
feet vertically above the lake.
Small flake material occuring with the biotite schist adjacent to the granite
near the lake shore.
From stock-pile.
Taken from some sacked material piled near the principal underground workings.
Vermiculite being extracted from the main trench.
From five-foot zone of exposed vermiculite-like schistose material.
Standard sample from the most northeastern pit.
Taken by cross-sectioning the principal exposure.
TABLE I
Screen Analyses of Crude and Exfoliated Vermiculite Ore
U. S. Series Sieve Numbers
Crude Ore E.<foliated Ore
Sample
No.
Cumulative Percent Retained On Crude Sizing--4+10 Crude Sizing — 10+30 Crude Sizing— 30+60
1" H" 72 4 10 30 60 -60
%
1+4
%-4
+10
%
-10
%
+10
%-io
+30
%
-30
%
+30
%-30
+60
%
-60
1 20.61
24.95
10.82
16.10
13.60
28.75
32.95
4.94
13.83
44.41
37.95
34.47
45.25
30.48
56.30
52.77
14.27
39.47
3.94
83.83
93.95
61.37
47.80
31.99
29.07
16.48
11.10
62.57
52.05
55.68
63.60
44.95
72.50
67.06
35.46
58.96
12.08
89.76
96.86
71.22
62.80
53.69
63.86
58.33
64.90
0.19
81.87
41.74
38.86
48.98
21.85
34.03
27.36
48.15
55.28
65.44
33.76
85.87
78.32
77.88
85.10
71.85
87.99
84.01
72.84
83.53
23.50
96.03
98.78
84.54
80.46
80.88
84.39
90.50
92.00
73.94
93.30
62.12
64.14
71.23
54.00
65.85
61.07
75.90
83.33
92.44
77.86
94.38
91.53
89.40
93.99
88.71
94.50
92.36
88.55
93.85
64.60
98.31
99.50
92.92
90.66
91.06
92.20
95.95
96.67
92.58
97.62
81.92
82.66
85.17
79.05
80.98
82.69
89.75
92.13
98.12
93.27
5.62
8.47
10.60
6.01
11.29
5.50
7.64
11.45
6.15
35.40
1.69
.50
7.08
9.34
8.94
7.80
4.05
3.33
7.42
2.38
18.08
17.34
14.83
20.95
9.02
17.31
10.25
7.87
1.88
6.73
17.5
3.4
18.6
16.9
15.2
25.5
22.5
25.5
27.0
56.5
60.4
58.1
59.1
44.1
41.6
58.1
46.2
49.1
26.0
36.2
23.3
24.0
40.7
32.9
19.4
28.3
23.9
15.0
8.4
16.5
17.0
11.7
36.8
14.7
39.2
17.2
1.2
9.6
21.4
9.9
13.0
26.6
34.8
11.1
44.0
23.0
15.7
5.2
13.5
9.2
8.2
22.1
15.7
15.2
78.8
78.9
72.9
73.8
74.1
56.4
69.5
60.0
69.5
65.6
77.4
66.0
77.7
73.3
68.7
62.7
85.2
50.6
68.0
70.3
62.2
80.5
72.4
77.2
45.8
75.9
62.9
6.2
12.7
10.6
9.2
14.2
6.8
15.8
0.7
13.3
32.8
13.0
12.6
12.4
13.7
4.7
2.5
2.7
5.4
9.0
14.0
32.6
6.0
18.4
14.6
32.1
8.4
21.9
26.5
13.9
11.6
15.1
13.6
16.2
11.9
54.6
20.4
6.0
18.7
24.1
15.9
22.0
26.5
24.2
28.0
26.1
26.7
17.9
15.0
27.0
10.8
22.3
25.3
28.4
15.7
69.5
74.0
78.4
77.5
70.8
77.0
74.7
42.1
62.4
87.8
73.7
68.5
70.3
73.3
67.8
70.2
67.0
64.6
67.0
72.4
75.2
64.0
87.0
69.7
64.3
66.4
76.2
4.0
2 12.1
3 10.0
4 7.4
5 15.6
6 6.8
7 13.4
8 4.3
9 17.2
10 6.2
11
12
13
4S.00
63.80
54.57
74.20
62.52
80.56
69.59
85.07
40.22
24.30
6.17
3.13
2.19
16.5
29.3
10.0
18.8
26.7
35.2
8.4
21.2
66.6
44.5
50.6
48.3
53.9
57.8
79.4
54.3
16.9
26.2
39.4
22.9
19.4
7.0
12.2
24.5
7.6
7.5
13.8
14 4.7
IS 5.7
16 5.6
17 5.0
18 9.3
19 6.3
20 30.59
9.07
10.65
1.26
69.58
29.38
23.76
32.87
3.93
16.01
11.95
34.24
27.38
34.44
17.43
8.3
0.0
10.4
10.1
5.0
3.4
22.5
39.3
41.8
23.4
42.7
58.0
41.3
37.0
44.9
40.3
49.9
76.6
46.9
31.9
53.7
59.6
32.6
20.4
9.7
21 9.8
22 9.0
23 13.0
24 8.0
25 9.81
4.12
11.14
10.24
2.32
6.93
10.4
26 5.2
27 8.1
28
29 24.5
4.9
64.4
46.3
11.1
48.8
31.6
9.3
65.7
81.6
2.7
9.1
45.2
19.6
50.2
75.5
4.6
30 4.9
The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina 48
H
m<
n3 o
.S-o
E E E
E
E°
c3=a
E
E
c a C C C G E c E c e E c c G E
cd U.
c c
uuQ cu cu cu cu cu OOO OOOcuOOOOOOOcuOOO cu >*- o O
'n t-.U^l-iCl-Cl-.U.U. ^- — u- •-. v- — : . _ — ^ ^ ^ :_ — ~ u. -- UU
CO
cu
-a
3
in
OOUO^CJ^CQOQM MfcmucQwmwcQmfcuwMCQum mm
cu
_N
CO
o
+
. • cu 00-*0\r-ioOOOCOnTf O^^OOCSiN^sOONOOMDVO^ONaN^ON ro O
"o c E OOOGOM^OOLOr-iOO OONCM^CO^^OChGO'-i^aN^NKON^O ON MD
U
>>
>~H NNMHNHtN^^H CNNHMM(SHH(Sr^(SrOHM(SMN coc-1
J-H
cu • 00^000^0^-00 OioMOOOO^'ooONOMOHLnO u-t O 0)
CO o cxcfcl OOii-i-^CONNOONr^^O l-HOO^fOCh'^NNO^}rH\OO^COtO(^ i—<^0
cu uoc
co
S 3 CON^-*^i^^(NO^O ^^'OiooONONOD^OrHc^u^O^OOON c^N
1 3° NnMCSNMlNHCSim NHCN)H(NNmHHH(VltSCSCNNrHrH rH(S
cu . . CU ^00'-irnONO^ loNm ^ro^ON^ioNOOMD^OMrocOTHvO u-jOn
. w "o"E OO^^OOr^COr^rHMD Ou-)(>^) 1^nNiriN'vONOO'-Ha\ro'^0 i-O^O
"o >
c
CO
OCI
+
MmcncocSTH^NmH CNlTttcNco-^S-1 ^!—i^fT^^Ocncoolco^-rti-^ t^^
CU . i-oO^DO-—iQOooi^O ONO<^'-nOOOr^co»-naNCOOOO Lri ,J^ ^)N
rt O c^<ii h^ihN^hON^OO i^^^O^Oh^ONhvOhNNhO ONOO
,j
*~*
S 3 nnONNH^COOMS^ oOmO'O^Nvnfnntn'^ONnvDvO^ 1^ i—t-rf
cu 1
-Q u > hJ <D
CO
T3 cu . . <^ f^00N0N00rHin\0^O O^OMDuiO^N^ ^ to 1^ OO (N rH \o CO SHN N "o c 6 I^.I^i-ocou->tJ«coOOn i^iLOO^NiOONN o-*thO'*co'*oox;\o\d
o •
X
.2
5
-co
o •^ N m -^ ro \D -rH co ^O mi^coiour^H^
Ul cu WX + CU • ^OOOr^i-oooOOr^- ^(^HCo^O 1^ O^OOCOOvMOCO OO Q.t±: ^OO'-'OC^oo^rncn cocoes-—'^^MDCO nNMO\c-irHCON ^Oro
U-.
O 1 S s ^Nc^i^\O0>N00O\ \OhOhh-^N^ CSCSNCSNVOOOi CNI«
-9 w i-H CS 1—1 i-H l-H -—
*
t—t i—1 C<»-H 1-H i-H -^H i—
1
^H ^^ i-H C~l r-H l-H H i-l 1—
1
>> (-3 o
CU vO^OOOn oo co O O ^O O co o OA CO 1^
c
cu Q
d
o. <
_N ^D O OJ >-0 LO CN1 O >-o ON ^O ^O l^ CO •—
'
^- *
co
+
^f c*-» r*~> co xjn M3 CO LO luO LO T^ CS -* ro \0 60-^(
u
CU •
tt<±: mCOO^H 1_l VO ON O <—' oo O ^o O o!Suo X -^^)roNTf ^0 l-H <S» lun i-H --H ro "; VO r—1 W ^4H
1 S 3 i—i ^ HHr^(l ON t^ co r-H «j-> o O (Nl LO GO LO CO ^^2 i—
1
1—1 i—i ,—
i
r-H i-H i—< C-l 1
' r^>
CU CU • ^ooooootHO^omd^; 0<>lVOCO^CO^^ror-lVO'^CX)MDOOCCiC^VOO^O
1) c (NOO^m^CNCN^COC OOiHNn-^n^OtNNON^^Ji-Hcn^OHrH^O
> C <<UX^£6« 6 0^'-| 0\!7\^3^D(Sroi?' Ch-^m^)ONvo ,t, 'Oi^io>n^)OLncoN\Onco
to u O -° o NNN\DMDMDvONN\C i^l lON'ON\ON^OiO\£)'ONLnNN^O'O^^DN
E-i 60
c
n3
OJ
IH
fc 'in CU -OT3
o cu _— _— <U CU "O '"O "T3 -^
~C CU CU OJ OJ CU CU QJ M
H t-> -o -a -a i- t-_r-_r;-o-a-c "O "^ i-i "^ "^ "^ "^ "T3 ""O ""O "^ ""O (~< i-< ^3 "^ "T3 ™ ~^ "~Q
< rt cucucu^^'T^'ZIcucucl CUCUCU(UCUCUCUCUCUCUCUCUtU'U<lJCU<U tUCUcU
H cu
cuajcuT)T!ajcu tL)tL,lL
-C ^C ^C rt a -> -> -C _c _c
+->•*-» *J <L) O !^ ;> -i-j .u Hu-
^Ui-;UUUhUi1-.1-i^-iI-i !_,(-!,(-; Ui U l-< > li l-i
cu cu iZ ajcucuajcucucucucuj_ij_icucucu''^cu<u Uol £ xj: rt-cx-exxx^xx rt rtJ=-n-c: >.js jh
Eh
4-J*VJ CU4->4-'+-»4—•-l-'-l—'4->4-»-^—' CJ CL> +-* -»—' 4—' —i -•—' +-
'
o rt rt rt [> j> .^ . rtrtcc
cucucu'**'*''-3t''>*cucua.
c3rt>nJrtrtrtrtrtrtrtrt>>r3rtrttUrtnJ
CUCU'> CUCUCUCUCUtUCUCUCU'*''> CUCUCUC<UCU
H tub £ £ £ —>, >> t;"5 £ £ 9 •— XX « « vtjt; 60 &o " ^ *- 4J4JT34JJJ4->4J4J4-'-P*J4J'^T34J4-liJi3+J-t-> p OOOrtca----OOC OOcqOOOOOOOOOnJrtOOOx^O
£ £ £ oa m 55 55 ^ ^ ^ ^^aq^;^^^^,^i^^;^impQ^;^;^;w^;^
CU
CU CL cu
cu cu cu 5
3M
o8 3 3 3 r s * C3 CU cu U jj g g S 60 fn * * [x. *
HH 1 „,*# ^ '#**#* * # ^ * * *
OJ
* -D 60 60 CU 60>.O CU^JCUCU s>CUCUCUCUCU CU CU K> CU CU CU
"co
>
o o^<a EoSiJEfJo^rO^^, ^^oy<>3aC^aciocj oiii5 ^ t^o^
HhHHwhMUwSu OO h CSOOOUO HOOHh ouo
cu c^
3 ~t
+J CO cu HH h-1 J J
U CU (h
3 BO
cor1
<3 c^ c^ oCi
cujCLiPHi-jeucuPH&HD- CL, Ph h-1 Ph D-c Ph Cu >J J >_) Cu J J J hJ Dh Pu hJJ Ph ,_)
cu
CU ;
cu <
^^ cu
S_« _b< -y
"a, CU CU CU CU
E CU cu cu cu cu 'C 60
CU O C
CO
QJ CU V V " fc ^
-c -c -c -c "S -5 "5
c*- H 'CX Uh
o C
i : 1 ' cu H o) ^ cu >,
CO
1 -2
ao
*£3
cu cu cu cu .!2 .22 .E2 OOOO^^h fe a.
H (L
6 6.°^™^ u
cu
n
<nI c~
_i<
G* D*
.ti.t: p ET c- J3 J,
cu
o 6666<?66„°-
cu cu cu cu,cu CU CU c 'Tj 'T
'3/3 -3 'S '"3 ^3 -3 3 m 6
T3 13 T3 T3 "O "O -O C C C
CU jj O 1)HH ^
L_ l_l *H *H -— -_ "-j W C/l CO ^- o cjcjcj g S"B-et: t 8
u, u^cuSc'Sigrtrtgx
g E £££1^ cu^
n C C7 u2 Cn, u
cy cu cu cur') cu cu cu <-t- i^j* .±4 > V c -a 6o-s
cu curtrtOOOOO O <J 33 M « O l_^ w C O^
<<<;<;<;<<;<<<
•5 ° i—ir~lc<-i-*Lo^Ot~^cX)C7NC r—( OC1 CO ^H to ^O t^ OO ON O *—1 CsJ C~l -^ LO vo t^ oo o O
^£ o CN cs O <N Cs CN CNCNC-rt
c
c
XO
S o
cu
tu
3
IH
cu
>1
cn
O 60
c O N
<s\ N 4-»
u c
« aj
3 Ih
Oct
da -
E3
Ui O
i-l to
i^TS
c
CO
Cu 13
cu
'T —
hU O
Cu cu
c
CU
6/
b.
E
c
cu
a
CU
>
3 c_ cd
i-J ,
^J
co
00 4-<
> OJ
rt
u c
« J3 ^H -
p-h<
44 The Vermiculite Deposits of North Carolina
TABLE III
Chemical Composition47
Sample No. Si02 AFO3 Fe2Os MgO K2 Na2 Ignition Loss Total
1 37.40
33.58
37.04
36.40
35.80
36.01
34.10
34.70
33.00
No ana
No ana
No ana
40.80
33.94
40.16
34.34
No ana
36.80
35.82
38.40
35.68
38.20
35.36
35.68
37.02
33.96
33.80
No ana
34.66
34.96
39.00
59.90
29.98
11.69
22.80
10.53
22.68
16.13
9.42
12.24
11.16
15.44
lysis made
lysis made
lysis made
11.30
13.16
12.98
14.08
lysis made
12.48
10.64
8.83
14.53
21.89
19.25
13.99
16.77
10.57
14.66
lysis made
11.72
15.91
18.64
17.79
22.89
2.61
4.98
4.96
7.12
14.75
4.64
6.46
12.34
13.36
5.70
3.64
12.58
15.48
5.52
14.06
15.57
2.15
5.13
14.57
9.11
14.91
7.45
6.62
13.08
15.90
15.16
8.11
2.23
24.24
21.44
28.95
15.70
11.73
29.83
29.00
22.03
23.97
24.98
24.84
18.52
16.60
25.04
27.25
26.43
24.65
26.30
20.50
22.30
22.40
33.00
31.10
21.89
24.80
23.10
10.10
28.40
24.40
18.00
17.60
18.40
18.55
19.55
18.60
13.18
15.18
18.00
19.04
9.28
10.80
21.50
11.10
10.50
21.63
7.43
11.23
18.20
8.37
9.57
12.08
13.86
9.12
3.80
3.70
14.05
100.34
2 100.80
3 99.08
4 100.30
s 96.96
6 99.45
7 100.40
8
9
2.48 4.08 99.97
100.95
10
11
12
13 100.78
14 94.62
IS
16
17
18
3.81
4.26
3.50
4.30
100.83
99.86
101.34
19 98.87
20 99.73
21 98.64
22 98.95
23 100.91
24 99.28
25 99.47
26
27
0.15 1.98 96.68
98.26
28
29
30
0.60 3.44 99.25
100.69
A 99.70
B 99.60
c 97.55
A is sample of expanded vermiculite from Bee Tree plant (Swannanoa).
B is sample of kyanite matrix from contact zone at Cane Creek property.
C is sample of chlorite from Mincev mine (Ellijay).
"Analyst, W. A. Reid, Chemist, Division of Mineral Resources, Dept. of Conservation and Development, Raleigh, N. C.
Norili Cero'!:: 3
Raleigh,
\h
In.
! -e Library
G
F8b28'64SL
•
Date Due
MAM-tLTL- /3P<
m s m -imsm "*-^ S 1995 1
Mi 1 '
1 l
J
BRODART.INC. Cat No 23 233 Printed ,n U b A
A