Uses
Aquifers in Western Australia are of saprolite grit. Poorly weathered saprolite grit aquifers are capable of producing groundwater, often suitable for livestock. Yields depend on the texture of the materials and their depth from which the aquifer is derived.
The distributions of gold and calcium carbonate or calcium magnesium carbonates are closely correlated and documented in the southern Yilgarn Craton, Western Australia, in the top 1 to 2 m (3.3 to 6.6 ft) of the soil profile and locally as deep as 5 m (16 ft). The gold-carbonate association is also apparent in the Gawler Craton, South Australia. Supergene enrichment occurs near the surface and involves water circulation with its resulting oxidation and chemical weathering. Deep weathering causes the formation of many secondary and supergene ores – bauxite, iron ores, saprolitic gold, supergene copper, uranium and heavy minerals in residual accumulations.
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