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Kimberlites and plate-tectonics in West Africa

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Abstract

MESOZOIC kimberlites in West Africa are the source of most of the alluvial deposits of diamond which bolster the economies of Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, Ivory Coast and Ghana. Difficulties encountered in the interpretation of geophysical, geochemical and mineralogical prospecting methods led to a structural investigation into the distribution and tectonic controls of kimberlite magmatism in eastern Sierra Leone. Here we attempt to show a correlation between the continental continuations of transform fault fracture zones and kimberlite magmatism in West Africa.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geology, University of Sierra Leone, Freetown, Sierra Leone

    H. R. WILLIAMS & R. A. WILLIAMS

Authors
  1. H. R. WILLIAMS
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  2. R. A. WILLIAMS
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WILLIAMS, H., WILLIAMS, R. Kimberlites and plate-tectonics in West Africa. Nature 270, 507–508 (1977). https://doi.org/10.1038/270507a0

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