Heavy Minerals in Colour

About this book

Paperback reprint of a book originally published in 1992.

Although some handbooks on the microscopic identi­fication of heavy mineral grains are available, a comprehensive manual illustrated in colour has not been published until now. Because the appearance of minerals in grain mounts differs considerably from those seen in a thin section, a different approach is necessary for the identification of detrital grains.

Coloured photomicrographs, showing their colour shades, pleochroism and interference tints, provide an excellent means of assisting recognition. As a number of mineral grains have similar optical proper­ties and morphology, it is equally important to describe them verbally in detail, pointing out characteristic features and differences. This book is intended primarily as a manual that describes and illustrates the transparent heavy min­erals most commonly found in sediments.

In Part I the concept of heavy mineral analysis is introduced and the relative significance of factors affecting heavy mineral assemblages is discussed. There are brief references to the commonly used laboratory methods and auxiliary techniques. It concludes with some examples of the application of heavy mineral studies. Part II contains the descriptions of 61 transparent heavy mineral species, including those which are commonly authigenic in sediments. Positive identi­fication of authigenic minerals is important to avoid confusion and to help recognition of diagenetic events. In the mineral descriptions, considerable emphasis is placed upon detrital morphology and diagnostic features. Optical properties and character­istics are detailed, together with information on host rocks.

Customer Reviews