Wollega University

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College of Natural and Computational Sciences

Department of Earth Sciences

PRACTICAL ECONOMIC GEOLOGY
Shibiru Merga (MSc.)
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HAND SPECIMEN FROM SAKARO UNDERGROUND MINE,

SHAKISSO, SOUTHERN ETHIOPIA.
 Contents
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1. Introduction to ore/mineral petrography (Lecture & Discussion)

2. Identification of ore minerals in hand specimens (Demonstration in Lab)

3. Study of Various Parts of the Reflected Light Microscope (Discussion &

demonstration)

4. Optical Properties of Ore Minerals (Lecture & demonstration)

5. Optical Properties and Identification of Ore Minerals in Polished Sections (Lab)

6. Drawing and Interpretation of Maps of Ore/Mineral Bodies (Discussion & Lab)

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1. Introduction to ore mineral petrography

An ore is a naturally occurring rock or material composed of a mineral or minerals of economic

value that can be extracted at a reasonable profit.

Ore minerals generally show a high density and a metallic luster, compared with semi-metallic
and nonmetallic minerals.

Therefore, ore minerals are not transparent and thus cannot be investigated microscopically
under transmitted light.

During the first part of the eighteenth century, scientists (e.g., Lieberkühn) invented
another method of microscopic investigation, namely the “reflected light microscopy.”

From 1920 ore microscopy received a real impetus, mainly due to the very detailed systematic
work of Paul Ramdohr.

Paul Ramdohr was able to identify several hundreds of ore-mineral phases under the
reflected-light microscope qualitatively with the additional use of etching techniques.
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PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF ORE MINERALS

In this section, we briefly discuss the most common characteristic properties of ore minerals
that are used to distinguish them in reflected light.

A. Hardness: Hardness is the resistance of a mineral to scratching. It is a property by which

minerals may be described relative to a standard scale of 10 minerals known as the Mohs
scale of hardness.
 There are numerous ways of estimating hardness in polished surfaces.
 The relative hardness of minerals can be estimated by the depth and the width of
existing scratches from the grinding and polishing procedure.
 With some experience a relative hardness estimate can also be made by carefully
observing grain boundaries of coexisting minerals.
 When a specimen is polished, obviously the harder minerals will be cut less than the
softer and thus stand in positive relief with respect to the softer.
 Another possibility of relative determination of hardness is the Kalb hardness.
 At the junction of a hard and soft grain, there tends to be a slight departure from
flatness.
 The hardness can also be measured quantitatively by a microhardness tester.
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B. Texture:
 Textures are fundamental sources of information on conditions of initial deposition,
origin and subsequent post depositional events.
 Some opaque minerals exhibit special textures of the polished surface, such as the
intersection of orthogonal cleavages in galena (PbS), which gives rise to prominent
triangular pits.
 There are numerous other textural features such as the shape of the mineral, cleavage,
zonation and specific exsolution textures.

Types of Ore Textures :

Texture of ore minerals can be categorized into two main groups:
1. Primary textures- are those formed when the minerals precipitate/crystallize from
melt or solution.
 The terms euhedral, subhedral, colloform, etc., are used to describe primary ore
textures.
2. Secondary textures- are those textures formed after the initial deposition of the
mineral and they are resulted from the deformation, dissolution, re-precipitation, etc.
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C. Color: is one of the diagnostic properties of ore minerals.

 The colors of metals or alloys are used as standards for describing the color of ore
minerals: tin white (arsenopyrite), steel gray (molybdenite), brass yellow (chalcopyrite), and
copper red (native copper).

D. Streak:
 The color of a mineral is what you see when light reflects off the surface of the sample.
 One reason that color can be so variable is that the surface texture is variable.
 A way to get around this problem is to grind a small amount of the sample to a powder and
observe the color of the powder.
 This color is the mineral’s streak.
 The mineral can be powdered by scraping the sample across a piece of unglazed porcelain
called a streak plate.

E. Luster:
 Luster is the way light reflects off the surface of a mineral, and the degree to which it
penetrates into the interior.
 The key distinction is between metallic and non-metallic minerals.
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F. Specific Gravity:
 Specific Gravity is a measurement that determines the density of minerals.
 Two minerals may be the same size, but their weight may be very different.
 The specific gravity of a mineral determines how heavy it is by its relative weight to water.
 The specific gravity value is expressed upon how much greater the weight of the mineral is
to an equal amount of water.

G. Crystal Habit:
 Crystal habit is the tendency for specimens of a mineral to repeatedly grow into
characteristic shapes.
 These shapes are influenced by the atomic structure of the mineral, but they can also be
influenced by the environment of crystal growth.

G. Diaphaneity:
 The diaphaneity of a mineral describes the ability of light to pass through it.
 If the light enters and exits the surface of the substance in relatively undisturbed
fashion, then the substance is referred to as transparent.
 If the light can enter and exit the surface of the substance, but in a disturbed and
distorted fashion, then the substance is referred to as translucent.
 If the light can not even penetrate the surface of the substance, then the substance is
referred to as opaque.
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OPTICAL PROPERTIES OF ORE MINERALS

A. Reflectivity:
 Reflectivity is defined as the ratio of the intensity of the light reflected by a mineral to
the intensity of the light incident upon it, expressed in percent with a variation from below
10% to nearly 100% in opaque substances.
 The qualitative degree of reflectivity is judged in comparison with a known mineral.
 It must be considered that the visual impression of the reflectivity is influenced markedly
by the effect of contrast to neighboring crystals with higher or lower reflectivity.
 For example, consider a polished specimen of quartzose gangue with molybdenite
(reflectivity R = 20.9–40.0%) and arsenopyrite (R = up to 52.0%), the molybdenite appears
bright against the gangue, but when there is arsenopyrite in the field, the molybdenite is so
dull that it hardly appears to be the same mineral as before.
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B. Reflectance Color:
 Is color formed and observed to the eye due to reflectivity of minerals.
 It is important to note that a difference in reflectivity can affect the eye, and where two
minerals have a similar color but different reflectivity, the one of higher reflectivity
appears the clearer because of its greater brightness.
 The color of a mineral is strongly influenced by the color of neighboring crystals-mutual
color interference.
 For example, chalcopyrite (CuFeS2) by itself has a characteristic and easily recognizable
yellow color.
 Inside sphalerite (ZnS), it appears a very clear yellow, but in contrast with native gold, it
appears a dull greenish yellow
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B. Reflectance Color:
 Is color formed and observed to the eye due to reflectivity of minerals.
 The color of a mineral is strongly influenced by the color of neighboring crystals-mutual
color interference.
 For example, chalcopyrite (CuFeS2) by itself has a characteristic and easily recognizable
yellow color.
 Inside sphalerite (ZnS), it appears a very clear yellow, but in contrast with native gold, it
appears a dull greenish yellow

C. Bireflectance:
 Bireflectance or bireflexion is the change in intensity of the light reflected from a mineral
as it is rotated on the microscope stage.

D. Reflection pleochroism:
 Reflection pleochroism is the variation in tint of a colored mineral observed as it is rotated
on the microscope stage.
 A pleochroic mineral is by necessity also bireflectant.

NB! The bireflectance depends on the difference between the two reflectivities whereas the
pleochroism depends on the differences between the dispersions of the two reflectivities.