Iron Ore Mining and Grade Control

Using Thermo Scientific Portable XRF

Analyzers

Introduction
Iron (Fe) is the most common element, by mass,
forming the planet Earth, and is the fourth most
common element found in the Earths crust.
Because of its high concentration and the magnetic
property of its oxide minerals particularly
magnetite the exploration and mining of Fe
is easier than other base metals. One of the
important features of iron ore is the presence of
penalty elements, such as phosphorous (P) and
aluminum (Al).
Application
Portable x-ray fluorescence (XRF) instruments
are successful in the exploration and mining of
iron ore deposits, as well as in grade control of
the penalty element concentrates. Because P and
Al are considered light elements, the need for a
more sensitive analysis is required. With Thermo
Scientific portable XRF analyzers, users are able to
use its Light Filter ability, which is specifically
designed to analyze these light elements.

industry worldwide, analyzing a broad range of

elements from magnesium (Mg) to uranium (U).
In particular, the handheld Thermo Scientific
Niton XL3t GOLDD+ Series analyzer delivers
fast, accurate elemental analysis with unmatched
efficiency for companies across all stages of mining
and exploration.
Also available are Thermo Scientific sample
collection and preparation tools, which deliver a
full lab-to-field solution for on-site XRF analysis.
These compact, portable, battery-powered tools
provide everything required to handle the sample
collection and preparation of geological material
for rapid elemental analysis in the field.

Portable XRF Analyzers

Portable XRF is a technique that provides the
ability to deliver fast and accurate results with
little or no sample preparation in various stages
of mining activity from grass root exploration
to ore grade control, and even environmental
investigations.
More than 3,000 Thermo Scientific portable XRF
instruments are used extensively in the mining

Figure 1. RC pulp sample is lightly pressed to make a flat surface for

analysis.

in improving accuracy and precision of the

portable XRF assay. For example, correlation
with lab data increased from 0.8910 in the piled
samples to 0.9957 in the prepared, pulp specimen.
Similar improvements are seen in the penalty
elements as well.
Sample
Type

Fe

Mn

Ti

Si

Al

Pile

0.8910

0.6912

0.9388

0.8251

0.8453

Pulp

0.9957

0.9976

0.9892

0.9903

0.8945

Table 1: Correlation (R ) between assay data from Thermo Scientific

Niton XL3t XRF analyzer and lab.
2

The handheld Thermo Scientific Niton XL3t GOLDD+ Series analyzers

deliver fast, accurate elemental analysis with unmatched efficiency
for companies across all stages of mining and exploration.

Methodology
Thirty five reverse circulation (RC) samples
were analyzed using a Niton XL3t XRF
analyzer. Commonly, in an RC drill, a pneumatic
reciprocating piston (hammer) drives a tungstensteel drill bit, which through the help of an air
compressor drying the material out, produces
rock chips that are returned to the surface. Sample
preparation, including crushing and pulverizing,
eliminates effects of sample heterogeneity and
improves the accuracy of portable XRF data. For
this study, each sample was analyzed both in RC
piles (chips are variable in grain size starting at
10 mm in diameter) as well as in pulp specimen (see
Figure 1).

Because analysis is performed by making direct

contact with soft samples, the reading window
was checked for any contaminants following a
detector calibration. An SiO2 blank standard was
analyzed using Soil Mode, which measured a range
of elements from chlorine (Cl) to U. Any significant
readings of elements in this range would identify
contaminants on the window. Samples were
analyzed for 40 seconds (Main and Low filters
for 10 seconds each, and 20 seconds for the High
filter).
Results
The coefficient of determination, the R value, is a
measure of how closely the data sets correlate to
each other. A perfect correlation would have an
R value of 1. This study shows a high correlation
between the Niton XL3t analyzer data and the lab
data for Fe, manganese (Mn), and titanium (Ti), as
well as penalty elements, Si and Al (see Figures 2-4,
Table 1). P concentrations were below detection
limits in the analyzed samples. This investigation
also indicates the importance of sample preparation

Conclusions
The results yielded by both the RC sample piles
and the pulps show strong correlations between
the portable XRF results and the lab data, which
indicates that portable XRF is a reliable, fast, and
effective tool for iron ore grade control and mining.
Such real time data can be crucial in helping
geologists to make decisions in the field, saving time
and money. The improved correlation data for the
RC pulp data versus the RC sample piles data set
suggests that better accuracy and precision can be
achieved through better sample preparation. The
fewer variables in the samples, the less error there
will be in the assay data. Our sample preparation
tool kits can be utilized to obtain pulverized
specimen from a variety of geological samples
ranging from chip rock to drill cores.
To discuss your particular applications and
performance requirements, or to schedule an
on-site demonstration, please contact your
local Thermo Scientific portable XRF analyzers
representative or contact us directly by email at
niton@thermofisher.com, or visit our website at
www.thermoscientific.com/niton.

Thirty five reverse circulation (RC) samples were analyzed on site

using a Thermo Scientific Niton XL3t XRF analyzer.

Lab
vs Niton
Pulp - Fe
Pulp
Samples

70.00

Lab
Niton RC - Fe
PilevsSamples
70.00

60.00

y = 0.9376x + 0.7527
R = 0.9957

50.00

Fe (%) - Lab

Fe (%) - Lab

60.00

40.00

30.00

20.00

y = 0.9296x + 2.1503
R = 0.891

50.00

40.00

30.00

20.00

10.00

10.00

0.00
0

10

20

30

40

50

60

0.00

70

10

20

Fe (%) - Niton XL3t 900

30

40

50

60

70

Fe (%) - Niton XL3t 900

Figure 2. Correlation between Fe values measured by portable XRF and lab in the pile and the prepared pulp samples. Note significant
improvement in R value in the prepared pulp samples.
2

Lab
vs Samples
Niton RC - Al
Pile
25.00

20.00

20.00

y = 0.8295x - 0.0874
R = 0.8945

15.00

Al (%) - Lab

Al (%) - Lab

Pulp
Samples
Lab
vs Niton
Pulp - Al
25.00

10.00

5.00

y = 0.8361x - 0.1043
R = 0.8453

15.00

10.00

5.00

0.00

0.00
0

10

12

14

16

18

20

10

15

20

25

-5.00

-5.00

Al (%) - Niton XL3t 900

Al (%) - Niton XL3t 900

Figure 3. Correlation between Al values measured by portable XRF and lab in the pile and the prepared pulp samples.

Pulp
Lab
vs Samples
Niton Pulp - Si

Lab
Niton RC - Si
Pilevs Samples
35.00

35.00

30.00

y = 1.1044x - 1.1426
R = 0.9903

25.00

y = 1.5139x - 2.6623
R = 0.8251

25.00

20.00
Lab vs Niton Pulp - Si
Linear (Lab vs Niton Pulp - Si)

15.00

Si (%) - Lab

Si (%) - Lab

30.00

20.00

15.00

10.00

10.00
5.00

5.00
0.00
0

10

15

0.00
0

10

15

20

25

30

Si (%) - Niton XL3t 900

35

-5.00

Si (%) - Niton XL3t 900

Figure 4. Correlation between Si values measured by portable XRF and lab in the pile and the prepared pulp samples

20

25

In addition to these
offices, Thermo Fisher
Scientific maintains a
network of representative
organizations
throughout the world.

Americas
Boston, MA USA
+1 978 670 7460
niton@thermofisher.com
Europe
Munich, Germany
+49 89 3681 380
niton.eur@thermofisher.com
Asia Pacific
New Territories, Hong Kong
+852 2885 4613
niton.asia@thermofisher.com
www.thermoscientific.com/niton

Rare Earth Elements (REE) measurable with either the Niton XL3t or the Niton XLp 522K
Heavy Rare Earth Elements (HREE): Requires Niton XLp analyzer

Thermo Scientific Niton XRF analyzers are the ideal choice for measuring both light and heavy rare earth elements as well as providing reliable
results for a comprehensive range of key element groups for mineral exploration.

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