Analytical resources in Geology
Instruments and techniques used to investigate the composition, structure, and physical properties of rocks and minerals, providing essential insights into Earth’s formation, evolution, and dynamic processes.
Petrotectonics Analytical Facility
The facility houses a Rigaku Primus II X-ray floresence (XRF) spectrometer funded by the Knut & Alice Wallenburg Foundation. The XRF is used for the analysis of rock powders The Department also provides basic rock and thin-section preparation, as well as mineral separation facilities. Other equipment includes high-power petrographic microscopes, digital cameras and imaging software, picking microscopes, a PetroScope, and the PetroTectonics Library.
XRF
Rigaku Primus II X-ray Fluorescence spectrometer
Funded by the Knut & Alice Wallenburg Foundation, installed in 2007, provides particularly accurate major element (oxide) analyses, with good reproducibility and precision for most trace elements. Such chemical analyses are used for a variety of studies, from experimental mineralogy and micro-structural analysis to igneous and metamorphic petrology.
Phoenix autofuser
Samples are prepared for analysis using pulverized rock powder mixed with lithium metaborate flux at 5:2, which facilitates fusing. Our Phoenix autofuser allows us to fuse four samples simultaneously and insures uniform preparation of fused glass disks for XRF analysis.
Our standard element suite includes the 10 major elements (Si, Al, Ti, Fe, Mn, Ca, Mg, K, Na, P) and 18 standard trace elements (Sc, V, Ni, Cr, Ba, Sr, Zr, Y, Rb, Nb, Ga, Cu, Zn, Pb, La, Ce, Th, Nd).
For more information, contact: Victoria Pease, vicky.pease@geo.su.se
Ore research
The Ore Research Group – ORG
carries out research into the formation of ore deposits from source area processes, ore fluid chemistry and fluid flow mechanisms to precipitation mechanisms for ore deposits. Key research areas include:
- Source area processes
- Tracing sources of ore fluids
- The composition and state of ore-forming fluids
Last updated: 2025-12-15
Source: Department of Geological Sciences