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An ultrasonic probe for the extraction of microscopic quantities of minerals for X-ray work

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 July 2018

Veselin Kovachev
Affiliation:
University of Mining and Geology “St. Ivan Rilski”, Sofia 1100, Bulgaria
Strashimir Strashimirov
Affiliation:
University of Mining and Geology “St. Ivan Rilski”, Sofia 1100, Bulgaria

Abstract

The instrumentation and procedure is described for the extraction of very small and pure samples from polished mounts and thin sections of minerals, for X-ray analysis and other micro-analytical techniques. It uses a stand-mounted, tunable ultrasonic probe (400 W/15–50 kHz) inclined at 45°C to a microscope stage. The tip of the probe, usually a steel needle, is located on the desired mineral and an appropriate ultrasonic frequency is selected. Very fine powders are produced from grains as small as 0.01–0.005 mm. A distinct advantage of this technique is that, as different minerals powder at different rates and different frequencies, it is possible to separate a single mineral from an intergrowth of two or more minerals.

Type
Mineralogy
Copyright
Copyright © The Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland 1996

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