Investigation of the Lanthanide Content of

Talc- and Koenenite-Containing Samples

of the German Zechstein Basin
H.-J. Engelhardt & L.E. von Borstel
DBE Technology GmbH, Peine, Germany
In the case of the talc-bearing samples the sum of La, Ce, Sm,
Eu, Tb, Yb, Lu, analyzed by neutron activation is 98 g/g,
corresponding to a sum of LaLu of approx. 140 g/g
(Brammer, 1992). Shale standards have REE contents of 168
to 220 g/g (Table 1). The Eu anomaly of the talc-bearing
samples is more negative in comparison to the other samples
(Table 2).

Water-insoluble mineral fractions of marine evaporates are

dominated by illlite, chlorite, corrensite, talc and/or alteration
products of koenenite. This mineral consists of a salt layer
4
with the formula [Na4(Ca,Mg)2Cl12] , alternating with a
4+

hydroxide layer [Mg7Al4(OH)22] .

Koenenite
4 NaCl4(Ca,Mg)Cl25Mg(OH)24Al(OH)3
Reaction products of Koenenite with H2O
3(Ca,Mg)Cl25Mg(OH)24Al(OH)3XH2O
5Mg(OH)24Al(OH)34H2O

Maximum value
Average value
Minimum value

Hydrotalcite (Reaction with CO2)

5Mg(OH)2MgCO32Al(OH)34H2O
Talc is often found as pseudohexagonal, idiomorphic crystals,
which support an authigenic origin. In addition, the hardness
or the resistancy against mechanical impacts impedes a
transport of talc over long distances. The structure is built up
by Mg-hydroxide sheets, which are enclosed by siliciumoxide
sheets. The formula is Mg3[(OH)2/Si4O10] (Friedman, 1965).
The trioctahedral clay mineral assemblages are explained by
reactions of the detritus delivered into the evaporation basin
with the brines present in the salt deposits.
The investigations were performed to get a new insight into
the formation of the fine-grained minerals. The samples
belong to the mid-european Zechstein formation (z2z4).

Geochemical results of all samples show in comparison to

paleozoic shales and recent North Sea deposits an increase
2+
2+
2+
3+
of the Mg-content (Fig. 1, 2). The Fe /Al-, Fe /K-, Fe /Fe ratios are decreased. It is possible to correlate these findings
with mineralogical results: North Sea deposits consist of illite,
smectite, kaolinite, and chlorite (ripidolitic composition). Illite
and Fe-chlorite are the dominant clays in Kupferschiefer
deposits and common shales. However, in the evaporate
environment illite co-exists with chlorite (penninite,
clinochlore, sheridanite) and Mg-rich minerals, like koenenite,
talc, and mixed-layer minerals. The illite/chlorite ratio is
extraordinary low (< 1). A comparison with data extracted from
the literature show similar trends of clay assemblages in
evaporate rocks of North America, the alpine Haselgebirge
(Austria), the Alsace (France), and the Gipskeuper in
Germany. Noticeable are high Zn contents of the talc samples
up to approx. 600 g/g.

Fig. 2: Comparison of water-insoluble residues of evaporates with paleozoic

shales and the average value of the upper continental crust. Green dots denote
analyzed results. In the case of the red dots and red circles (Schauberger &
Ruess 1951) the analyzed MgO-contents were lowed according to the content
of MgCO3. The small triangle shows results of Kupferschiefer deposits (Kulick
et al. 1984).

Most of the samples have REE contents comparable to recent

North Sea, fluviatile, and glacial sediments as well as common
shale standards (Fig. 3, 4).

NS
195
177
160

GS
269
225
178

FS
235
228
220

KOE
250
171
135

TA

ES

140

220

Table 1. REE contents ( LaLu) of North Sea sediments (NS), glacial

sediments of Elsterian/Weichselian age (GS), fluviatile sediments of the Elbe
river (FS) (< 2 m) as well as koenenite- (KOE) and talc-bearing (TA) samples.

NS
Maximum value
Average value
Minimum value
Maximum value
Average value
Minimum value

Eu/Sm

0.25
0.22
0.18
Eu/Eu*
0.77
0.69
0.64

GS

FS

KOE

TA

0.22
0.20
0.18

0.24
0.23
0.22

0.21
0.17
0.12

0.08
0.06
0.04

0.71
0.64
0.59

0.75
0.74
0.73

0.72
0.64
0.50

0.24
0.19
0.14

Table 2. Characteristic values (gEu/g Sm; Eu/Eu*) of the Eu-anomaly of North

Sea sediments (NS), glacial sediments (GS), fluviatile sediments (FS) (< 2 m)
as well as koenenite- (KOE) and talc-bearing (TA) samples.

Fig. 3: REE contents of koenenite-containing samples (or the reaction

products of koenenite) normalized to paleozoic shales.

REE contents of the majority of the samples support the

detrital origin of most minerals, particularly illite and chlorite.
This finding suggests that some minerals, e.g. chlorite,
undergo considerable mineralogical changes. Differences to
the REE contents of sediments and shale standards are
limited to the samples containing talc suggesting a formation
in the saline environment. The REE results of koenenite
(hydrotalcite) containing samples surprise as the salt layer of
koenenite prove a formation in the saline milieu. It is supposed
that the contents of hydrotalcite are insufficient to cause

References
Brammer, K.-J. (1992): Stoffbestand und Lanthanidenverteilung der
wasserunlslichen Mineralfraktion in marinen Zechsteinevaporiten. Thesis
Technical University of Clausthal.
Friedman, G.M. (1965) Occurrence of Talc as a Clay Mineral in Sedimentary
Rocks. Nature, 4994, 283284.
Kulick, J.; Leifeld, D.; Meisl, S.; Pschl, W.; Stellmacher, R.; Strecker, A.-G.;
Theuerjahr, A.-K. & Wolf, M. (1984) Petrofazielle und chemische Erkundung des
Kupferschiefers der Hessischen Senke und des Harz-Westrandes. Geol. Jb.,
D68: 3223.
Fig. 1: Water-insoluble residues Concentration of major and minor
components normalized to mid-european paleozoic shales.

Fig. 4: REE contents of recent North See and Elbe sediments as well as of
glacial samples (< 2 m).

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Schauberger, O. & Ruess, H. (1951) ber die Zusammensetzung alpiner

Salztone. Berg- und httenmnnische Monatshefte, 96: 187195.