Characteristics of the Clayey-Siliceous Rock From The Dylągówka–Zapady Deposit (Polish Flysch Carpathians) as a Mineral Raw Material

Examinations were carried out on three samples from the as yet unexploited Dyl¹gowka-Zapady shale deposit. The samples represent various horizons of the deposit, from which the following characteristic features were determined: phase composition (using XRD analysis, infrared spectroscopy IS, and thermal analysis), chemical composition, grain-size distribution, and sorption properties. The results prove that the shales show vertical variability with respect to their chemical and mineral compositions, being generally rich in the minerals of the smectite group (montmorillonite). The content of this mineral ranges from 28 to 43%. The next mineral phase that significantly affects the technological properties of the prospective commodity is opal. This siliceous compound was identified with the XRD and DTA methods as two phases, i.e., opal-A and opal-CT. Additionally, in a sample collected from the overburden of the deposit, another mineral with sorption properties, i.e., clinoptilolite (group of zeolites), has been identified. The presence of higher amounts of smectite, opal, and zeolite results in the considerably fine grain size of the rocks as well as good sorption properties, being a potential sorbent of contaminants of various kinds.