Correlation of uranium, thorium, and potassium with aeroradioaetivity in the Berea Area, Virginia

In the Berea area, a small quartz monzonite pluton intrudes chlorite-actinolite schist and is overlapped by Coastal Plain sand and gravel deposits. A detailed aeroradioactivity survey of the area shows unusually high radioactivity (1,150 counts per second) over the quartz monzonite. A total of 22 auger samples was taken across all formations to a depth of 2 to 3 feet, and radioelement concentrations were determined by gamma-ray spectrometry. There is a general direct correlation of high radioactivity with increase in radioelement concentrations. Abundances of uranium and particularly thorium in the quartz monzonite are two and three times the average for rocks of this type; a comparison is made with other granitic rocks high in uranium and thorium. © 1971 Society of Economic Geologists, Inc.