Deliniation of weathering in the Catalca granite quarry with the very low frequency (VLF) electromagnetic method

Abstract

Faulting and weathering can endanger quarry operations by decreasing the total reserve, quarry's useful life and production value. We investigated weathering and faulting problems in the Catalca granite quarry at Istanbul in Turkey, using the Very Low Frequency (VLF) method. VLF method is an electromagnetic method which is very successful in locating vertical discontinuities such as faults and fracture zones. This method measures the apparent resistivity of the rocks in the region, besides the electromagnetic parameters such as tilt angle and ellipcity. Apparent resistivity is a very sensitive parameter to water presence inside the pores and fractures of the rocks. This feature enables the VLF method to map the boundaries between the fresh and cracked granite and altered zones in the quarry. In this work we mapped the faults and weathered zones within the granite in Catalca quarry and found a high resistivity zone at the central part of the survey area which may be suitable for production. This study also shows the efficiency of the VLF method in understanding the structural and textural features of a quarry and estimating zones with high quality rocks for production planning.