Evaluation of salts in salt pans, Siwa Oasis, Egypt

Siwa Oasis is a tectonically induced depression located in the northern part of the Western Desert. It is intensively characterized by salt mineralization and salt pans. This paper aims to investigate the evaluation of salts from the near-surface underground water in Siwa Oasis to assess the quality of salt for several uses. The study results show that the precipitated minerals identified by XRD are halite, sylvite, gypsum, carnallite, magnesium sulfate hydrate, sodium chlorate, and bischofite. More than 90% of NaCl present in the solution precipitate alone in the first stages. Analysis of heavy metals and trace elements indicated that all the salt samples were found at very low concentrations below the allowable limits. The study indicates that the type of Siwa salt is a very good quality salt, which needs a very simple refining process to meet and exceed the international standards of edible (food) salt.