Geochemical mapping in stream sediments of the Carajás Mineral Province, part 2: Multi-element geochemical signatures using Compositional Data Analysis (CoDA)

Abstract The geological imprint on the geochemical background in stream sediment of the Itacaiunas River Watershed (IRW), located in the most prominent mining area of Brazil, the Carajas Mineral Province, was evaluated. The stream sediment dataset from the Itacaiunas Geochemical Mapping and Background Project of the Instituto Tecnologico Vale was used to address multi-element associations and for the definition of surface geochemical compartments by applying a series of multivariate geostatistics tools and geoprocessing techniques, through the Compositional Data Analysis (CoDA) perspective. In this study, the geochemical dataset was processed for centered log-ratio (clr) transformation prior to the Principal Factor Analysis (PFA). The spatial distribution of factor scores derived from PFA indicates a pronounced control on stream sediment geochemistry by the underlying geological setting and lithology. Relevant hidden correlations were observed among the nine extracted factors. An unsupervised classification based on k-means clustering algorithm was performed for the factor scores of 761 stream sediment samples. A multiproxy approach that combines the cluster classification and geoprocessing tools revealed a strong similarity in the spatial distribution of different geochemical compartments and geological domains of the IRW. Threshold values of 51 elements were calculated by a variety of statistical methods for references to the main four geological domains of the IRW defined using the geological framework and the geochemical compartments. These values were then compared to the background concentrations of the entire study area and to the investigation levels proposed by the Brazilian environmental agencies for potentially toxic elements. The new threshold values for the geochemical compartments of the IRW can be used for improving the assessment of environmental impact by anthropic activities, and to establish more realistic threshold values for different chemical elements in stream sediments. This study provides useful information for new mineral development projects and ore prospects, with potential benefit to the mineral sector and industry.