Report on a preliminary micropalaeontological examination of the samples, submitted by the Frome - Broken Hill Co. Pty. Ltd., on November 3rd, 1947, from the Northern Flinders Range area. The examination was made with a view to giving assistance to the reconnaissance work now in progress.

Overview of staff involvement and general, field and laboratory work carried out during the month of August, 1947.

Overview of general work, sampling, mapping and levelling, drafting, and laboratory work carried out during the month of September, 1947.

The material submitted for examination came from 35 bores which were drilled in the Adelaide Plains during 1945 and 1946. For comparative purposes, material has also been examined from several bores previously drilled in the area. The bores were sunk for water and the area drilled extended from Bore No. 69 at Royal Park northwest of Adelaide, to Nathan Brewery Bore on the Torrens River. The bores range in depth from 160 to 620 feet. This report comprises descriptions of stratigraphic sequence, fossil fauna, and the structure of the Adelaide Basin, with reference to the material examined. Two accompanying plans are included.

A request was made for an estimation of the ore reserves indicated to date in the King Island Scheelite Mine, and for a drilling campaign to be drawn up to prove a total of fifteen years supply of ore at an annual rate of consumption of 200,000 tons. These two matters are dealt with in this report.

Bauxite deposits on Rosedale, Meadowbank and Riccarton Estates at Campbell Town were tested by shaft-sinking and boring during November and December 1946. Earlier than this the Tasmanian Mines Department had sunk a number of shafts on the deposits, mainly at widely spaced intervals. The work undertaken chiefly consisted of testing between the shafts sunk by the Mines Department so that the interval between the points tested was reduced to 200 feet or less. A few of the old shafts were cleaned out and resampled. The results of the tests at each estate are discussed in this report.

The report is the result of a five weeks survey of radio-active occurrences in the Marble Bar District. The principal deposits of alluvial monazite were checked and two new radio-active occurrences in granitic rocks were reported. Accompanying plans of the Marble Bar and Wodgina areas are included.

Notes on a small collection of opalized shells, bone fragment and specimen of precious opal from White Cliffs.

Results of a micropalaeontological examination of samples taken from a depth of 642 feet down to 1,568 feet. This series is in continuation of that reported upon 25/7/45.

Samples from 46 deposits of the known 76 occurrences of diatomite in Australia have been micropalaeontologically examined, and 27 genera of diatoms represented by 48 species have been identified from them. The distribution of these species in the various diatomites is given in Table II. The following tentative conclusions with regard to the suitability of Australian diatomites for filtration purposes are based on a study of the shapes and sizes of the contained diatoms,' in accordance with English and Californian experience. Extensive deposits of diatomite, which are dominated by the diatom Melosira and which are suitable for purposes other than filtration, are available in Queensland and New South W ales. Nevertheless, this type of diatomite is used successfully by Davis Gelatine (Australia) Ltd., as a filter medium. The commercial value of a diatomite as a filter aid, which depends on the amount necessary to give a perfectly clear filtrate, the speed of filtration, and the character of the press-cake and similar criteria, can only be satisfactorily determined by actual experiment. It is also necessary to establish a correlation between the characters determined by microscopic examination and actual filtration tests before a final conclusion can be stated.