Fast mineral identification using elemental LIBS technique

Rapid and on-line scanning of rock and drillcore samples gives fast results that can be used to ease the decision-making process during exploration and to guide the future drilling activities without delays. Recently, faster and more efficient ore characterization by combining various laser-based and contactless measurement techniques has drawn tremendous attention in research. However, complexity of different measurement setups and the difference between the sources of light make it non-economic and complicated for industry. Considering the wide range of the elements which can be detected by Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy and bearing in mind that LIBS is a very simple spectroscopic technique, the importance of applying LIBS for fast scanning purposes is certified. This study proposes a simple statistical analysis technique leading to mineral identification from the elemental results of LIBS. It is shown that LIBS can be used for calibrating and giving complementary information to other fast scanning techniques like Laser-Induced Fluorescence imaging. The application of the point-wise LIBS measurement technique for online and fast estimation of the minerals abundance from the surface of the rock and drillcore samples is discussed.