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Genesis and assessment of clay materials suitability for earthenware production in northern Cameroon

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Abstract

Field description and sampling along four representative pits were done to determine the occurrence and the perspective earthenware valorisation from clay materials in the northern Cameroon. The methodology used include grain size analysis, Atterberg limits determination, mineralogical and geochemical analyses, and technological tests. Sand fraction was important in all samples. Interval plastic is tight to wide and the main clay minerals were kaolinite, illite and smectite. They were associated to quartz and feldspar minerals. Geochemically, SiO2 (48.46–65.62%), Al2O3 (14.8–20.28%), Fe2O3 (4.79–11.47%) and 5 to 13% of flux elements (CaO, MgO, K2O and Na2O) were found as main oxides. The presence of smectite is attributed to the low landscape positions, the presence of a clay-rich alluvial parent material and the hydrological conditions in this region, which is characterised by low rainfall and high temperature inducing high evaporation and thus soil solutions concentrated in silica and basic cations. Kaolinite is formed by the decomposition of orthoclase feldspar. The simultaneous occurrence of smectite and kaolinite, as a result of bisiallitisation and monosiallitisation processes respectively, could be related to light and successive variations in drainage conditions. Firing specimens showed red colour, which is attributed to the presence of hematite in the mineral composition. The presence of kaolinite promotes mullite formation while that of illite and smectite may promote glassy phase formation, which leads to the densification (1.7 to 2.09 g/cm3) and the good cohesion of the fired products with temperature development and the evolution of the metallic sound. Following some standards, the water absorption values (10.47 to 20.12%) and the compressive strength (2 to 5.7 MPa) suggest that the studied clay materials are suitable for earthenware production.

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Acknowledgements

This research was conducted within the framework of a Research and Development Project (PRD 2020-2025) entitled “Valorisation of local resources for the design and promotion of new high performance, accessible and eco-responsible building materials in the Sudano-Sahelian zone of Cameroon” funded by the Academy of Research and Higher Education in Belgium (ARES-CCD). The authors thank the population, the traditional and administrative authorities in the study area for their help during the field work. Anonymous reviewers and the editor are also gratefully thanked for their comments and suggestions on the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Maroua, P.O. Box 814, Maroua, Cameroon

    Désiré Tsozué, Aubin Nzeugang Nzeukou & Bertin Pagna Kagonbé

  2. Local Materials Authority Promotion (MIPROMALO), P.O. Box 2396, Yaoundé, Cameroon

    Bertin Pagna Kagonbé & Achille Balo Madi

  3. Department of Mining Engineering, School of Geology and Mining Engineering, University of Ngaoundéré, P.O. Box 115, Meiganga, Ngaoundéré, Cameroon

    Jacques Richard Mache

  4. Department of Soil Science, Faculty of Agronomy and Agricultural Sciences, P.O. Box 222, Dschang, Cameroon

    Dieudonné Lucien Bitom

  5. UR. Clay, Geochemistry and Sedimentary Environments (AGEs), Department of Geology, Faculty of Science, University of Liège, B-4000, Liège, Belgium

    Nathalie Fagel

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  1. Désiré Tsozué
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  2. Aubin Nzeugang Nzeukou
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Correspondence to Désiré Tsozué.

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Tsozué, D., Nzeukou, A.N., Kagonbé, B.P. et al. Genesis and assessment of clay materials suitability for earthenware production in northern Cameroon. Arab J Geosci 15, 1376 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-022-10603-7

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