Thin Section Petrography

If you don t wipe off the excess epoxy when it is liquid you will have to grind it off later which is no fun.

Thin section petrography. Petrology thin section petrography petrographic analysis provides a detailed description of the texture grain size sorting and grain contacts sedimentary structures laminations bioturbation framework grain composition authigenic minerals and types and distribution of macroporosity seen in a thin section. 3 x2 thin sections are also available for larger samples. Coat the thin section side of the chip unlabeled side with epoxy and let it sit for a minute to soak in.

Put the chip back on the hot plate to cure about 30 minutes. Since textural details contribute greatly to knowledge of the sequence of crystallization of the various mineral constituents in a rock petrography progressed into petrogenesis and ultimately into petrology. Final thickness of the sample is typically 30 microns however various thicknesses may be requested.

Thin section petrography became the standard method of rock study. Petrographic reports sometimes refer to core porosity as total porosity. In optical mineralogy and petrography a thin section or petrographic thin section is a laboratory preparation of a rock mineral soil pottery bones or even metal sample for use with a polarizing petrographic microscope electron microscope and electron microprobe.

Take the chip off the hot plate and wipe off all excess epoxy. It is usually less than effective porosity from logs or core analysis because it does not include microporosity inside grains or rock fragments. A thin sliver of rock is cut from the sample with a diamond saw and ground optically flat.