Industrial Assessment of Mudstone Deposits of Gercus Formation as a Raw Material for Bricks Industry in Erbil Governorate, Northern Iraq

This paper evaluates the mudstone deposits' physical, chemical, and mineralogical properties and the possibility of use as a raw material to manufacture building bricks. Four sites are selected from the Gercus Formation in Shaqlawa district and the samples are tested. The mudstone samples are analyzed to define the grain size, Atterberg limits, chemical, physical and mechanical characteristics of the clay bricks. The grain size analysis of the mudstone samples showed they contained a high percentage of clay and silt and a low percentage of sand. The chemical analysis showed that silica (SiO2) was the major component in the mudstones. XRD analysis showed the presence of non-clay minerals i.e. calcite, quartz, albite and clay minerals of illite, palygorskite and chlorite. Raw samples of all studied sites were treated to prepare brick samples without addition, and others with 10% standard sand added. The results showed that the bricks prepared from the B to B10 and C to C10 stations have varying water absorption and compressive strength, while the efflorescence has light salts. All these properties are within the requirements of the Iraqi specification for brick manufacturing. The sample sites A, D, A10, and D10 are not compatible with the Iraqi standard in terms of absorption and compression.