Studies of crystal size distributions (CSD) can reveal much about how rocks solidify and under what conditions. Data from two-dimensional sections can be readily acquired at many different scales, from electron microscope images, thin sections, slabs, outcrops, and so on, but the conversion to true, three-dimensional values is complex. The widely used Wager method does not have a good theoretical basis and does not give accurate results. A modification of the Saltikov correction method is proposed here that is more accurate and can account for different crystal shapes and fabrics. Population densities determined by this method differ by factors of 0.02 to 100 from those determined by the Wager method. Published CSDs determined using other methods can be recalculated if the crystal shape and fabric parameters can be estimated. The method has been incorporated into a new program, CSDCorrections.

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Measurement of crystal size distributions

Correlation of mineralogical and textural characteristics with engineering properties of selected granitic rocks from Turkey

Prediction of uniaxial compressive strength of sandstones using petrography-based models

A line-heat source apparatus was assembled for the purpose of measuring thermal conductivities of particulate samples under low pressures of a carbon dioxide atmosphere. The primary result of this project is the compilation of the first comprehensive suite of measurements of the dependence of thermal conductivity on particle size. The thermal conductivity increases with increasing particle size and atmospheric pressure. In particular, over the range of Martian atmospheric pressures, from 1 to 7 torr, the thermal conductivity was found to be empirically related to approximately the square root of the particle diameter and the square of the cubed root of the atmospheric pressure. At the average pressure of the Martian surface (6 torr) the thermal conductivity varies from 0.011 W/m K, for particles less than 11 μm in diameter, to 0.11 W/m K, for particles 900 μm in diameter. These results differ significantly from the particle size dependence estimated for Mars from previous measurements, except for 200-μm particles, whose thermal conductivity is 0.053 W/m K. The thermal conductivities of larger particles are lower than the previous estimate, by 40% at 900 μm, and the thermal conductivities of smaller particles are higher than the previous estimate, by 60% at 11 μm. These newer estimates agree with other lines of evidence from Martian atmospheric and surficial processes and lead to improved particle size estimates for most of the planet's surface.

https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1029/96JE03303

Thermal conductivity measurements of particulate materials 2. Results

A study of purified montmorillonite intercalated with 5-fluorouracil as drug carrier

Contents include: Thin-section preparation. Aids in thin-section study. Grain size, modal analysis, and photomicrography. Rotation methods for the polarizing microscope. Mineral separation, Powder methods of x-ray diffraction. Application of x-ray powder data to specific mineral groups. Specific gravity determination, Refractive index determination. X-ray fluorescence spectrometry. Atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Determination of chemical components not attainable by the foregoing methods. Display of data. Thermal analysis techniques. References. Appendix. Index. This handbook stresses the practical aspects of commonly-used petrographic techniques that are generally applicable to igneous and metamorphic rocks, Author is with the University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. -- AATA

Charles Strachan Hutchison

Papers

Laboratory handbook of petrographic techniques