Geochemistry of Alluvial Deposits in the Baboa De Kole Area (Tshopo Province, Democratic Republic of Congo): Implications for Provenance, Chemical Alteration and Tectonic Setting
Keywords:
Baboa de Kole, Alluvial sediments, Geochemistry, Greenstone belt, Tectonic settingAbstract
The Baboa de Kole alluvial sediments (Tshopo Province, Democratic Republic of Congo) constitute a key archive for reconstructing weathering, provenance and sediment recycling in the Archean greenstone belts of Central Africa. This study integrates major- and trace-element geochemistry to evaluate chemical weathering intensity, sediment maturity, source-rock characteristics, trace-element enrichment patterns and tectonic setting. Elemental compositions obtained by energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) reveal silica-rich assemblages dominated by quartz, together with significant TiO2 and Fe2O3 contents reflecting heavy minerals and secondary iron oxides. High CIA (81–91) and PIA (> 89) values indicate intense chemical weathering under humid tropical conditions, consistent with advanced feldspar alteration and clay formation. Herron’s discrimination diagram shows that most samples plot in the ferruginous sandstone field, with minor ferruginous shale–litharenite compositions, pointing to oxidative weathering typical of ferralitic soils. Provenance indicators suggest derivation mainly from mafic protoliths, combined with contributions from recycled crustal material and possible hydrothermal quartz inputs. Enrichment of Cr, V and Zr reflects the concentration of resistant heavy minerals, whereas anomalous Ag and Cd contents may be linked to sulfide phases and/or hydrothermal influence. Tectonic discrimination plots display mixed signatures between passive and active continental margin settings, implying a composite geodynamic control on sediment supply. Overall, the geochemical dataset reveals highly weathered, compositionally mature sediments sourced from variably altered mafic rocks and recycled materials, deposited under humid tropical conditions. These results provide new insights into sediment generation processes and the tectono-sedimentary evolution of alluvial systems associated with Archean greenstone terranes in Central Africa.
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