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Identification Of Cave Minerals By Raman Spectroscopy: New Technology For Non-Destructive Analysis, William B. White

International Journal of Speleology

The identification of minerals from caves generally requires that samples be removed from the cave for analysis in the laboratory. The usual tools are X-ray powder diffraction, the optical microscope, and the scanning electron microscope. X-ray diffraction gives a definitive fingerprint by which the mineral can be identified by comparison with a catalog of reference patterns. However, samples must be ground to powder and unstable hydrated minerals may decompose before analysis is complete. Raman spectroscopy also provides a fingerprint useful for mineral identification but with the additional advantage that some a-priori interpretation of the spectra is possible (distinguishing carbonates from …