X-Ray Diffraction Service . . . XRD Service for Identification of minerals or other crystalline materials at only $40 a sample.
At Attard's Minerals in San Diego, California we provide an affordable X-Ray Diffraction Service for the Identification of minerals or Characterisation of man-made crystalline materials. In Industrial circles this is often referred to as phase ID. We provide this service to Industry and other organsiations as well. We prefer XRD over Electron Microprobe for mineral identification ... able to distinguish between different structures even when the composition is the same; like calcite / aragonite but we can do Microprobe / EDS when needed. Our regular rate for X-Ray Diffraction is $40 and this includes the interepretation of the X-Ray data. We do not give you the spectrum and then tell you that you have to pay us extra to interpret it!
X-Ray Diffraction has long been the Professional's method of choice for mineral ID but at a hundred bucks a sample that most laboratories charge it has been prohibitively expensive for mineral collectors and enthusiasts. Corporations have kept paying the high prices anyway...they have big budgets.
Our Mission in this is to provide an affordable X-Ray Diffraction Service. By special arrangement between one of us and a past employer (it is good to leave on good terms) we are able to offer such Mineral or Phase ID Service at a special rate of $40 a sample! (complex orders may be more).
We will provide you with results quickly unless we are at a trade show or similar busy time ... so ask us first by email attard@attminerals.com or phone 619 275-2016 (from 7 am to 7 pm US Pacific Standard Time please) to find out if we anticipate any delay.
X-Ray Diffraction takes into account not only the chemistry of a mineral but most importantly its crystal structure. This is where it excels over other methods. Example: calcite and aragonite are both calcium carbonate but X-Ray Diffraction distinguishes them easily as their crystal structures are different. A material need not have obvious external crystallinity: it could be polished material and XRD will work just fine!
A) Mineral Collectors/ Dealers: It will help a lot if you send us the clean mineral or at least tell us clearly which part of a sample you are interested in. To do this use a small clean screwdriver on a clean sheet of paper to break off a representative but non-prominent crystal from a specimen so as to avoid damage. You need to send a sample only about 2 mm across . . . more is better but not a tiny speck! A fragment the size of a rice grain , or even half that is enough but do not try to send a little as possible especially when you have plenty of material: your spectra will look much better. Part or all of the material will be powdered and we may do additional tests if needed (additional reason to send more) but we anticipate that X-Ray Diffraction will give definitive information. We will email you the ID results or call you with them, and then send you a nicely generated and easy-to-understand printout in the mail or email to act as documentation for what you have. We believe you will usually be very pleased with the instant clarity of the results. If the amount is extremely tiny we can do it by microprobe but it takes longer and results may be less conclusive than X-Ray Diffraction. So whenever possible send a piece large enough for XRD. We will run it using the most appropriate method be it XRD, microprobe or other method. Please no inclusions unless you have already isolated them out of the matrix.
It is to be pointed out that there is no perfect method for identifying minerals. For example although XRD is what we believe to be the best method for mineral ID it will not always give a definitive identification: it may tell us something is a garnet but not necessarily which one it is. In such a case microprobe work may be needed at an additionl fourty bucks. If one were to start off doing microprobe, bypassing XRD one may get to know composition but not that the mineral is a garnet. In other words the two methods are complimentary. Usually XRD by itself is sufficient... but in about 10% of cases microprobe needs to suppliment it. Be assured we have no wish to maximise your expenditure.
If you wish to learn more about the science regarding XRD and promise not to yawn at the physics, visit http://pubs.usgs.gov/info/diffraction/html/index.html . . but there is no link to get you back here, you will need to click the "back" button of your browser. We may mention that results you get from us regarding your analysis, will be much clearer than this old USGS paper shows due to our use of more modern equipment.
B) Industry: XRD can also analyze man-made materials (phase analysis or phase identification) as long as they are crystalline; it is of great value to Industry. The extensive databases we work from have not only the over 4000 known minerals but the more than 100, 000 man-made materials that Chemists, Materials Scientists and Engineers worldwide have produced for electronic, optical, semiconductor, laser and for pure research purposes over decades of work. Price to Industry: Essentially $40 too BUT but this fourty bucks is for basic service. Industry often asks for more detailed work and may therefore cost more.
To use our service, please send the sample or samples in a small plastic or paper bag in a padded envelope or little package to the address below being sure you supply your address, phone and email address.We receive such envelopes from anywhere in the world usually by postal service which is very economical.
It is important that you tell us by phone or email attard@attminerals.com ahead of time you are sending samples, so we let you know how soon we can run them for you. For XRD it will usually be faster than your envelope or package takes to get to us. You can pay by credit card , check or money order etc but do not send cash in the mail.
We cater to Foreign Customers as well . . . we are here to serve everyone! Our service is 28 Euros or 4560 Yen or whatever you use that correspomds to 40 US Dollars. . . . payment questions just ask us. Your envelope from anywhere in the world with just regular postage is very economical to send and it takes only about five days to reach us. We can email you the Full Report and that is immediate! (If you prefer postal service we can do that too). Due to the undervalued US Dollar you will probably find that our service costs less than in your country. Again we suggest you email us first as to what you intend to send. attard@attminerals.com . ... Please send samples to:
John Attard
ATTARD'S MINERALS
P. O. Box 17263
San Diego, CA 92177.
USA.
(619) 275-2016 . . . . attard@attminerals.com . . . Page updated August 17, 2008.