Search

Kirana, Rabwa and Chiniot areas of the Punjab province, Pakistan has a number of isolated hills jutting out of a flat alluvial plain. These rocks are Upper Proterozoic in age. The exposed volcano-sedimentary sequence is slightly metamorphosed (lower greenschist facies). The dolerites have also undergone auto metasomatic changes. The Kirana Hills are the main resource of aggregate in southern and middle Punjab. These aggregates are used in subbase, base course, in rail ballast, as riprap and for the cement and asphalt concrete. The main lithologies in Kirana Hills are dolerites and rhyolites, lithic greywackes, volcanogenic slates and quartz wackes. This paper deals only with the dolerites and their petrographic composition and engineering properties, as well as adhesion values. The variably auto metasomatized dolerites are now composed of variable amounts of plagioclase, chlorite, calcite and amphibole with quartz, magnetite, hydro mica, K-feldspar, epidote and sphene as subordinate to accessory minerals. Flakiness, Elongation, Specific Gravity, Water Absorption, Soundness, Los Angeles, Aggregate Crushing, Aggregate Impact and Adhesion Values are all within ASTM limits. Therefore, the dolerite aggregates of Kirana area have excellent Engineering Properties. They can also be used for subbase, base course and riprap material. However, quartzites, lithic greywackes, volcanogenic slates and rhyolites which can be used for these purposes are available in the area, therefore dolerites should not be used because they are the only good source of asphalt concrete and especially for the wearing course (since it gives a good road grip and resists polishing) in Punjab province with an area of 205344 km2. Dolerites should be reserved for cement and asphalt concrete. Petrographic studies show that dolerites do not have Alkali-Silica Reaction Potential and are hydrophobic and can be used for cement as well as asphalt concrete. This area has total estimated 3097.3 million tons of reserves of all types of aggregates. The aggregate resource map of this important area is being presented for publication for the first time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coal is an organoclastic sedimentary rock, composed essentially of lithified plant debris. Coal is an important energy source and is available in all over the world. Pakistan possesses huge coal reserves across the country that can play a pivotal role in development of the country overcoming the energy crises prevalent in four seasons. Government of Pakistan is seriously looking for alternative resources other than hydro and thermal energy to meet the ongoing and growing energy requirements. Most of the world's lignite deposits are located in Asia. Pakistan is among the top most lignite coal-bearing countries in Asia possessing almost 97% of the coal reserves bearing lignite variety. The rest of the grades are of sub-bituminous to bituminous content. Amongst all the reserves in Asia, 3% are located in Pakistan. The major coal reserves in Punjab are found in Eastern & Central Salt Range and Trans-Indus Range. Most of the region's coal and carbonaceous coal deposits are located in the Paleocene Patala Formation, with a minor occurrence in the Tobra formation of the Permian age. Mining techniques are being pursued viz; room and pillar method and longwall system that are commonly applied in the areas. Supports are provided without geotechnical evaluation. Timbering is provided as supports in these coal mines. The analysis of accidents shows that roof collapse and fall of side walls are the most common and frequent type of fatal accidents making almost of total accidents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Composite soil samples were collected at different distance from eastern, western and southern sides of the produced water ponds of Sadqal oil and gas field Fateh Jang, Punjab, Pakistan to assess the anions, cations and heavy metal concentrations. The concentrations of sodium (Na+), potassium (K+), calcium (Ca+2), magnesium (Mg+2), chloride (Cl-), florid (F-), sulfate (SO4-2), nitrate (NO3-) and nitrite (NO2-) were determined by using Ion chromatography (Metrohm, 800 series). Heavy metal concentrations i.e. chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), cadmium (Cd), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), nickel (Ni) and iron (Fe) were analyzed using Atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The results were compared with reference soil sample of the study area. It was found that maximum parameters of soil samples collected from the surrounding of ponds were high in concentration as compared to that of reference soil samples. A consistent decrease of most of the cations, anions and heavy metals was noticed with increasing distance from the ponds. The soil proximal to the ponds is highly contaminated and can pose health related threats to the human beings and may also cause damaging effects on the plants of the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]