Publication details

Application of self-organizing maps to the study of U-Zr-Ti-Nb distribution in sandstone-hosted uranium ores

Authors

KLUS Jakub POŘÍZKA Pavel PROCHAZKA David MIKYSEK Petr NOVOTNÝ Jan NOVOTNÝ Karel SLOBODNÍK Marek KAISER Jozef

Year of publication 2017
Type Article in Periodical
Magazine / Source SPECTROCHIMICA ACTA PART B-ATOMIC SPECTROSCOPY
MU Faculty or unit

Faculty of Science

Citation
web http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0584854716303718
Doi http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.sab.2017.03.008
Field Analytic chemistry
Keywords Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy; Uranium ore; Elements distribution; Self-organizing maps
Description This paper presents a novel approach for processing the spectral information obtained from high-resolution elemental mapping performed by means of Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy. The proposed methodology is aimed at the description of possible elemental associations within a heterogeneous sample. High-resolution elemental mapping provides a large number of measurements. Moreover, typical laserinduced plasma spectrum consists of several thousands of spectral variables. Analysis of heterogeneous samples, where valuable information is hidden in a limited fraction of sample mass, requires special treatment. The sample under study is a sandstone-hosted uranium ore that shows irregular distribution of ore elements such as zirconium, titanium, uranium and niobium. Presented processing methodology shows the way to reduce the dimensionality of data and retain the spectral information by utilizing self-organizing maps (SOM). The spectral information from SOM is processed further to detect either simultaneous or isolated presence of elements. Conclusions suggested by SOM are in good agreement with geological studies of mineralization phases performed at the deposit. Even deeper investigation of the SOM results enables discrimination of interesting measurements and reveals new possibilities in the visualization of chemical mapping information. Suggested approach improves the description of elemental associations in mineral phases, which is crucial for the mining industry.
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