Analysis of zinc suphide
Analysis of Sphalerite Sample
A Sphalerite (ZnS) sample has been analysed using combined EBSD and EDS on the Bruker system to determine the spatial distribution of elements in the sample, the structural/orientation information of the sample as well as its phase composition and distribution. The top left image is a backscattered electron image showing the presence of 4 different phases (ie, 4 different grey levels). The three coloured EDS map, top right, shows the chemical information – the veins are rich in carbon, the grain on the right is rich in iron and the veins contain grains rich in lead. The bottom left image is an orientation map (EBSD) showing that the sphalerite grains are banded along the crystallographic planes, and the phase distribution map (bottom right), also from the EBSD dataset, shows the presence of sphalerite, pyrite, smithsonite and galena.
(a) BSE image of a pyrite grain in a sphalerite sample. Dark veins of smithsonite, containing bright particles of galena are visible within the sphalerite and around the pyrite grain. (b) EDS map of the same region (c) EBSD orientation map showing growth twins in the sphalerite grains. (d) EBSD phase map showing the distribution of sphalerite, pyrite, smithsonite and galena in the sphalerite sample.