Reports

Petrolab reports can be tailored in format to meet individual client requirements. Petrolab can integrate the findings of an optical microscopy study with the results from chemical assay and SEM based analysis techniques.

A standard full mineralogical report includes:

Preparation of petrographic thin-sections for optical microscopy
Mineral identification
Liberation study
Quantitative modal analysis
Detailed mineralogical description
Accurately scaled high quality photomicrographs annotated to illustrate key findings
Summary

Selected example report pages and photomicrographs can be viewed (pdf format) by clicking on the links listed below. Further examples can be selected from the Projects page.

Middle Africa, Heavy Mineral Sands
Investigation of titanium distribution in a placer deposit. Project management of mineral processing testwork (PSD by sieve size analysis, Mozley table separation, dense media separation and magnetic separation), XRD and XRF assays. Mineralogical investigation by optical microscopy on testwork products: mineralogical description, modal analysis, liberation and locking, annotated photomicrographs. Key minerals: rutile, pseudorutile, ilmenite, zircon, kyanite.
See example pages. See example photomicrographs.

Turkish Copper Cobalt
Size distribution and locking relationships of copper and cobalt bearing minerals in crushed ore fractions. Optical microscopy and electron microprobe analysis. Key minerals: cobalt-rich pyrite, chalcocite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite.
See example page and photomicrographs.

North Sea Jurassic Sandstone
Detailed petrographic description and quantitative modal analysis of sandstone drill core: composition, grain and pore size distribution, sphericity, sorting, roundness, clay matrix and cement composition.
See example page and photomicrographs.

Ethiopian Gold
Investigation to determine the distribution of gold in the sample, Mineralogical description, ore characterisation with special reference to gold mineralisation. Key minerals: pyrrhotite, pyrite, galena, chalcopyrite.
See example photomicrographs.

Silica Sand Contamination
Optical microscopy study and SEM/EDS analysis on samples from a cargo of silica sand and rust from the ship's hold. The purpose of the investigation was to identify and compare the composition of the rust in the silica sand sample with the rust from the ship's hold. SEM/EDS analysis was used to analyse the composition (Fe, Cr, Mn, Si) of the rust (hematite) and the magnetic fraction of the silica. Key minerals/ phases: quartz, hematite, magnetite, steel shards, welding splatter.
See example photomicrographs.

 

(Note: example reports have been modified to maintain commercial confidentiality)