Bentonite clays of the Adigen group: geology, petrology, conditions of origin and prospects of use

In the master’s thesis bentonite clay deposits that located in the territory of historical Meskheti, in the Adigeni municipality, in the surroundings of villages: Arali, Churchuto-Chikheli and Benara, are reviewed. Churchutto-Chikheli and Benara deposits are located in the southern part of the Sviri-Bolajuri syncline, at 1200-1300 m above sea level. As regards, the Arali deposit, it is located 0.5 km away from the south east of Aral, at 1090-1225 m above sea level. The geological structure of these three deposits involves Upper Oligocene and Mio-Pliocene age Goderdzi's suite rocks, which covers quaternary deluvion-eluvionic low thickness sediments. The present work deals with geology, petrology, conditional origin, prospects of use, and mineralogical-chemical composition of Сhurchuto-Chikheli, Arali and Benara bentonite clays. We have studied and examined the above mentioned deposits with different research methods. In the scope of the survey, field work was done in the Adigeni municipality as well as in the areas adjacent to the deposits, the thin sections were made and studied, after that samples were prepared for various research, such as chemical analysis and granulometric analysis. Methods of research, the new data and many other issues are detailed review and discussed is presented in the presented thesis.