Interactive web analysis and presentation of computer-controlled scanning electron microscopy data

Peter Riisager,Christian Knudsen,Jørgen Tulstrup,Uffe Larsen,Nynke Keulen,Roger K Mclimans

doi:10.34194/geusb.v20.4994

Abstract

In the following we describe the result of the Titan Project, an interactive web application (Titan) developed at the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) together with DuPont Titanium Technologies. The main aim of Titan is to make computer-controlled scanning electron microscopy (CCSEM) data, generated at GEUS, available via the internet. In brief, CCSEM is a method automatically to detect particles with a scanning electron microscope (SEM), and based on computer-controlled imagery to measure the chemistry and grain morphology of each particle in a given sample (Knudsen et al. 2005; Bernstein et al. 2008); Keulen et al. 2008. Titan makes data available on-line so that the user can interact with the data sets and analyse them using a web browser. In addition to CCSEM data, Titan contains a global database of titanium deposits and various reports. The web application is customised, such that the functionality and amount of data available for a given user depend on the privileges of that user.

Highlights

In the following we describe the result of the Titan Project, an interactive web application (Titan) developed at the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) together with DuPont Titanium Technologies
The mineral classification scheme is based on the measured concentration of elements, and different schemes are available depending on the type of sample
Important to underline that this progress does include the scientific instruments and analyses themselves, it represents a major challenge to store and analyse the huge quantities of data generated (Fig. 2)

Summary

Titanium deposits and reports

Data on titanium deposits can be entered directly into the database through Titan, and at present it contains detailed information about more than 600 deposits around the world. A prerequisite for making Titan available on the internet is that the data are stored in a relational database allowing for fast querying and retrieval. A detailed description of the data model is not given here, but we will make a short overview of the different data types and how the data are inserted and managed in the database. The data are stored in an Oracle 10g database that is housed and maintained by GEUS (Tulstrup 2004)

CCSEM data

Number of analyses

Web interface

Examples of applications

Concluding remarks