ANALYTICAL TECHNIQUES FOR THE SEPARATION AND SEM IDENTIFICATION OF HEAVY MINERALS IN MUDROCKS

Heavy-mineral investigations must be preceded by effective heavy-miner al separation, identification, and determination of mineral compositio ns. Provenance determinations by heavy-mineral variations and direct m easurement of the control of trace elements by heavy minerals in mudro cks has not been possible because of the difficulties in separating he avy minerals from the obscuring mass of the clay matrix. The technique to separate, identify, and determine the variability of heavy mineral s in mudrocks presented here is nondestructive and works well with mud rocks of variable induration and maturation from mudstones to shales. This methodology uses lithium metatungstate for heavy-liquid separatio ns of bulk samples and a combination of optical and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for identification and quantification of heavy-minera l proportions.