Mineral Identification - Melinda Darby Dyar, Mickey E. Gunter & Dennis Tasa

Mineral Identification

By Melinda Darby Dyar, Mickey E. Gunter & Dennis Tasa

  • Release Date: 2018-12-14
  • Genre: Geology

Description

This chapter discusses which analytical techniques are most useful in the identification of minerals and the most common instruments available for determining mineral properties: Polarizing Light Microscope (PLM), X-ray Diffractometer (XRD), and a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) with a Scanning Energy-Dispersive Spectrometer (EDS).  Once the mineral properties are identified or measured, a searchable mineral database is used to narrow the possible mineral species. 
 Topics covered in Chapter 19 include: The Process of Identification Our Mineral Database Other Databases Strategies New Minerals