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Natural resources form the basis of a huge proportion of that human kind’s activities. From energy generation to building materials, from plastics to natural hazards, an understanding of what is in the earth, where it can be found and its relationships to dynamic processes is key. Oxford Instruments provides a range of tools to solve geological, mineralogical and petrological problems with the highest levels of accuracy, at high throughput and with maximum flexibility.
View all of our Geology, Petrology & Mining application notes
We demonstrate how a suspected meteorite has been characterized by scanning electron microscopy coupled with Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectrometry (SEM/EDS), to determine its authenticity and classification.
Reconstructing the metamorphic evolution of rocks often depends on the identification of key minerals that are only stable at specific temperatures and pressures. Combined EBSD and EDS analyses enable more rigorous phase identification than conventional techniques, with the added benefit of providing insights into a rock’s deformation and chemical history.
Combining electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) techniques for geological sample characterisation, helps to unlock even more information on the likely formation and history of the sample.
This application note examines how the AutoPhaseMap technique can be used to determine and characterise the phases present in an igneous rock.The results are compared to the phase mapping results calculated from an EBSD dataset collected simultaneously with the EDS acquisition, to validate the result of the AutoPhaseMap method.
By using a range of solutions within Oxford Instruments’ AZtec and INCA software suite, detailed qualitative and quantitative information can be gained on the chemistry and mineralogy of geological samples of a wide range of types.
AztecFeature’s FeaturePhase functionality allows for the automated analysis of complex geological materials – in situations where an accurate result would otherwise be impossible to obtain.
The manual characterisation of cut sections of geological materials can be a laborious, time consuming process which can be very subjective. AZtecFeature, used in conjunction with large area X-MaxN SDDs can automate this process enabling complex mineralogies to be characterised quickly and accurately
This application note examines how the AutoPhaseMap technique can uncover previously missed minor phases - even when their constituent elements are not known to be present in advance.
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