Quantitative Mineralogical Analysis Research Articles

Quantitative mineralogical analysis of clay-containing materials using ATR-FT-IR spectroscopy with PLS method.

A universal method for quantitative analysis of clay components, in terms of mineral composition, using ATR-FT-IR spectroscopy (in the mid-IR and far-IR regions) combined with partial least squares (PLS) regression technique (ATR-FT-IR-PLS) is reported. For the PLS method development, altogether 222 samples covering natural clay sources and various archaeological/cultural heritage artefacts were used as calibration and validation standards. This is the largest calibration set used for creating an ATR-FT-IR-PLS method for clay minerals. The quantitative compositions of these standards containing combinations of altogether 29 minerals for the PLS method were determined using XRD analysis. The developed ATR-FT-IR with PLS method is quick and easy to use, and enables analysis of very small sample amounts (down to a few mg). This is very important when working with samples from archaeological and cultural heritage objects. The developed ATR-FT-IR-PLS method enables quantifying the contents of 7 main classes of minerals in different clays with a root mean square error of prediction (RMSEP) ranging from 0.9 to 5.1 g/100g. This means that in some cases, depending also on the content of the mineral in the sample, the accuracy is at a semiquantitative level. This quantitative method was successfully applied to 11 cultural heritage case-study samples.

Content of rare earth elements in basalt aggregate from Winna Góra, Poland

Seek for new Rare Earth Elements (REE) sources encourage looking for easily available sources located in Europe. REE in evolved magmatic systems are predominantly associated with alkali environments. Therefore, it was decided to identify the content of REE in alkali igneous rocks of the Winna Góra basalt quarry located in Lower Silesia, Poland. In this study, a commercially available basalt aggregate from Winna Góra deposit located in the south-western part of Poland near Jawornik was examined for REE content. Mineral content and chemical composition were examined with a light microscope, XRD and XRF, whereas trace element content was measured with the ICP-MS technique. A new method of sample preparation for the purpose of REE identification in basalt aggregate based on pressure microwave mineralisation was developed. Mineral composition and TAS diagram classify aggregate as tephrite. The mineral composition of samples reflects typical mafic and ultramafic rocks. Quantitative mineralogical analysis by the Rietveld method showed that the main minerals are anorthite (46.7%) and augite (37.4%) with a minor content of forsterite (7.5%), nepheline (7.4%) and apatite below 1%. The total content of REE does not exceed 132 ppm. Chondrite normalised curves show the highest concentration of La and Pr. In the case of HREE, the majority of elements (Eu, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Yb) concentrations were below 1 ppm, a Tm and Lu were not detected. The low enrichment in HREE was also reflected in La/Gd ratios. Obtained results are comparable to the REE contents in the western part of the Cenozoic European Volcanic Province.

Evaluation of mine waste characterization to identify opportunities for optimizing project economics using fragmentation analysis

ABSTRACT As metal mineral resources get depleted over time, there is a need to recover metals from ores of lower grades and waste. Mining wastes are largely characterized using physical and mineralogical heterogeneity properties. There is variation in the geochemical properties with different grain sizes, thus, different metal recovery potential. The research evaluated mine waste characterization and identified opportunities for optimizing project economics using fragmentation analysis. This study linked petrographic, compositional and quantitative mineralogical analyses with fragmentation data resulting from conventional mechanical communition of mined-out waste rock. The results improve the understanding of what grain sizes are optimal for metal recovery from the waste rock and established that environmental threats can be mitigated by removing fines from waste. The economic metals including Ni and Cu sulphides are predominantly held in pentlandite and chalcopyrite within the rocks. Maximum liberation and metal recovery are in the finer grains.

Modal Analysis of Rock Forming Minerals: Contribution of XRD/Rietveld Analysis Compared to the Classic Point Counting Method

The determination of the mineral composition of aggregates which constitute an important component of concrete is essential to understand and estimate the durability of structures. The modal (quantitative mineralogical) analysis of rocks is generally determined by point-counting method on thin sections or slabs. However, there is a difficulty of mineral identification depending not only on the experience and capability of the operator but also on the size of observable grains. In this study, XRD (X-Ray Diffraction)/Rietveld analysis is proposed as an alternative and a comparison study is performed for eight different rocks. The results show equivalent proportions to those of the point counting method for the major phases (minerals), although discrepancies are observed for the minor minerals. Complementary tests as XRF (X-Ray Fluorescence) and density measurements are also performed to pre-characterize and confirm the obtained modal analysis. For instance, the density calculations based on XRD/Rietveld analysis provide close values to the measured densities. Overall, this method can be an excellent alternative to the point counting method especially in the context of construction materials laboratory.

Coupling Mineralogical Analyses, Leaching Tests and Kinetic Modelling to Unravel Groundwater Flow-Paths in a Complex Landslide: An Attempt from the Vedriano Case Study (Northern Italian Apennines)

As the rise in pore water pressure is one of the main factors in triggering landslides, the understanding of groundwater processes taking place at the hillslope scale is a crucial issue in slope stability analysis. However, identifying flow-paths travelled by water molecules from their infiltration is still a complex task. Hydrochemistry is recognized as a powerful tool that can help to gain useful hydrogeological information and has gradually become increasingly used in addition to conventional study methods. This manuscript presents a comprehensive geochemical investigation consisting of leaching tests and quantitative mineralogical analyses on soil samples, chemical analyses on groundwater samples and modelling. Our results highlighted the usefulness of coupling, even in hydrogeological studies focusing on landslides, geochemical surveys on both water and the soil matrix to constrain the interactions between host-rocks and groundwater. Moreover, it demonstrated that kinetic-based geochemical models, if properly calibrated on leaching tests, can provide valuable information on groundwater dynamics, allowing us to elucidate water-mixing processes beneath the soil surface.

Lithofacies characterization and quantitative mineralogical analysis of the sediments from Sahaiawei-1well in the northern Delta Depobelt of the Niger Delta Basin

The sediments of Sahaiawei-1 Well in the Northern Delta Depobelt are represented by sand and shale alternation. Lithofacies characterization and X-ray diffraction technique were used to characterize the sediments from the well in order to characterize the lithofacies, identify the minerals present, determine environment of deposition and identify potential zones for hydrocarbon exploitation. The lithofacies characterization was based on the textural properties, mineralogical composition, fossil content, homogeneity and heterogeneity of the lithofacies units of the well. The lithofacies analysis for Sahaiawei-1 Well identified four (4) lithofacies types of mainly sandstone, shaly sandstone, sandy shale and shale; and fourteen (14) lithofacies zones. The result of the X-ray diffraction analysis identified the following clay minerals – kaolinite, illite/muscovite, chlorite and sepiolite; carbonates and non-clay minerals. Therefore, due to the high percentage of kaolinite in Sahaiawei-1 Well (2% to 39.87%), it could be concluded that pore filing kaolinite may have more effect on the reservoir quality than the pore bridging illite and pore lining chlorite.
 Keywords: alternation, lithofacies, X-ray diffraction, reservoir, mineralogy

Developing a Rock Garden at Edith J. Carrier Arboretum, Harrisonburg VA (U.S.A.) as a Resource for Promoting Geotourism

Virginia is a state in the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States of America that offers spectacular sceneries and varied geologic history that covers about 1.5 billion years. A rock garden was developed at the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum in Harrisonburg, VA. The rock garden at the Edith J. Carrier Arboretum is a place where rocks look as they did when they were part of an outcrop on the side of a mountain or a creek in the Shenandoah National Park. Rock slabs were collected along the existing trails of the Arboretum and classified based on the mineralogy and physiographic province. The rock garden offers a place to observe Earth materials from Virginia without potentially travelling long distances. The goal is to educate the community on the local resources and promote sustainable geotourism. This paper illustrates a method for rapid and accurate quantitative mineralogical analysis of complex mixtures using X-ray powder diffraction. Correctly classifying a fine-grained sample such as a sedimentary rock using primarily the identification of minerals in a thin section or in hand specimens could not be accurate; thus, X-ray diffraction was used to confirm hand sample analyses. The samples are mostly sedimentary rocks from the Appalachian Mountains. Three different lithological types (dolostone, limestone, and shale) play the most important role in the geological context of the Rockingham county. The mineralogical features shown in this paper provide a detailed picture of the geological significance of the resources that shape the Appalachian Mountains in the Shenandoah National Park.

Probing silicate weathering reactions in soils with B isotopes

The determination of the mechanisms and extent of soil mineral weathering can be challenging, and the caveats reside in 1) difficulty identifying minerals that are actually involved in weathering reactions, 2) non-stoichiometric release of cations during weathering processes due to coupled dissolution, precipitation and transformation reactions and, 3) impact of vegetation activity on elemental cycles in upper soil horizons.To better characterize mechanisms controlling mineral weathering in soils and trace the evolution of B concentration and isotope ratios during chemical weathering, quantitative mineralogical analyses were coupled to B isotopes in a group of minerals (biotite, muscovite, K-feldspar and albite). Samples were selected along an Alocrisol (Alumic Cambisol, WRB FAO) soil profile from the bedrock (at 130 cm depth) up to 20 cm depth, developed on granitic bedrock in the Breuil-Chenue forest (France). The samples consist of residual primary minerals associated with weathering secondary phases (vermiculite, kaolinite…) in varying proportions.The B isotopic compositions of the most pristine minerals span a very narrow range of values (around −31‰), whereas all secondary phases point to a much heavier value (around −16‰), regardless of mineralogy. Our results also show a mineral-dependent evolution of B concentration or isotopic composition as weathering progresses: no variation is observed during dissolution of K-feldspars; B behaves like a very mobile element in micas (biotite and muscovite), whereas it concentrates in weathered products derived from albite. However, rates of B concentrations and changes in isotopic compositions appear to be much faster than those inferred from mineralogy or major element concentrations determined by XRD and bulk chemical analyses, respectively. These results indicate that B is involved in very early weathering reactions and raises the question of its actual location in the structure of the various soil minerals as well as its pathway to solution.

Enhanced quantification of wollastonite and calcite in limestone using fluorescence correction based on continuous wavelet transformation for Raman

Raman spectroscopy offers a nondestructive means to identify minerals in rocks, but the ability to use the technology for quantitative mineralogical analysis is limited by fluorescence that can mask the spectral features of minerals. In this paper we apply continuous wavelet transformation (CWT) to remove fluoresence from Raman data acquired from 26 carbonate rock samples. We then record the intensity values of individual spectral features, proxies for mineral abundances, using the original Raman data and the thus inferred CWT data. The intensity values are then compared against the known mineral abundances determined using the scanning electron microscope (SEM) technology. This comparison is conducted using a linear regression model to determine whether fluorescence removal enhances the mineral abundance predictions. Our results suggest that CWT enhances the accuracy of mineral abundance estimates, thus highlighting the importance of fluorescence removal when using Raman for quantitative mineralogical analysis.

Mineralogical clustering of the structural mortars from the Sarno Baths, Pompeii: A tool to interpret construction techniques and relative chronologies

Abstract Structural mortars constitute one of the most diffuse geomaterials, with stones and bricks, in ancient monuments and architectural complexes, especially related to the Roman civilization, which pushed the binder technology to technical levels unsurpassed until post-industrial revolution times. The archaeometric study of mortars is an essential tool to extrapolate great amounts of information concerning supply of raw materials, technological skills of the ancient civilizations and, finally, relative and absolute chronologies of diachronic construction phases, both related to ancient and modern architectural modifications of the buildings. In this contribution, a novel approach for the quantitative mineralogical analysis of ancient mortars is proposed. The analytical process is based on the integrated application of quantitative phase analysis (QPA) of mineral components by means of the Rietveld method applied to X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) data and multivariate statistical treatment of the obtained results by means of the principal component analysis. The methodology has been applied on a wide set of binding materials sampled from different structural elements of the Sarno Baths, a five-storey building located in the Pompeii archaeological site. The building is characterized by a marked complexity both in terms of structural layout and constructive techniques, being the result of several modifications in ancient times from the Late Republican age up to the Vesuvius eruption in 79 AD. Furthermore, several poorly documented restorations have been performed between the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century AD. In this perspective, a quantitative characterization of the employed mortars resulted useful not only to define ancient constructive technologies and relative chronologies, but also to discriminate between the original and restored parts of the building for the execution of adequate restoration procedures. The statistical clustering of the quantitative XRPD data clearly defined two ancient constructive phases and allowed a precise definition of the structural elements rebuilt in recent times. Furthermore, the obtained results have been cross-checked with additional analyses, namely XRD analyses on the separated binder fractions, petrographic analyses and scanning electron microscopy-energy-dispersive microanalyses. Such multi-analytical approach allowed the detailed characterization of the employed raw materials, of the pozzolanic reactions between binder and aggregate and of the textural and microstructural characteristics of the mortars. The data interpretation yielded interesting insights both on the advanced optimization of mix designs of binding materials in Roman times, to improve the structural properties of the architectural elements according to their functions, and on the formulation of the restoration products during the historic excavations in Pompeii.

Thermal decomposition of struvite in water: qualitative and quantitative mineralogy analysis

ABSTRACT Struvite (MgNH4PO4·6H2O) is a potential fertilizer mineral that can be obtained from wastewaters. When the ambient temperature changes, struvite may decompose in water and other phosphate-bearing minerals form instead. The wet decomposition may include complex mineralization, as the struvite crystal structure releases both water molecules and ammonia. An in-situ x-ray measurement for the wet transformation of the struvite is needed to get insight into the mineral formed and into the influence of the water temperature on the decomposition/remineralization. In this study, the X-ray diffraction (XRD) sample holder containing struvite and water in a sealed condition was heated to temperatures of 55 to 120°C for 24 h. Later the still sealed sample holder was exposed to the X-ray beam with the Debye-Scherrer transmission technique, and the diffraction pattern was analyzed by the XRD Rietveld method. With increasing temperature (<100°C), struvite first dehydrated to dittmarite (MgNH4PO4·H2O). Moreover, a decomposition of struvite into an amorphous form of magnesium hydrogen phosphate has occurred as the XRD background increased dramatically and showed a structured profile with very broad intensity maxima. Furthermore, struvite transforms into dittmarite, newberyite, and bobierrite when the sample was heated above 100°C. The outcome of this work is expected to add knowledge on the instability of struvite, which may occur in the fields of the wastewater treatment and in the bio-mineralization in the urine of animals and humans.

A novel mineralogical approach for provenance analysis of late Quaternary marine sediments: The case of Myrtoon Basin and Cretan Sea, Aegean, Greece

Sediments from two deep-sea bottom cores from the Myrtoon basin in the SW Aegean Sea and Eastern Cretan Sea were examined by quantitative mineralogical and geochemical analysis to infer sediment provenance and climatic conditions and palaeo-environmental control on sediment deposition. Both cores contain calcareous muds and silts with dark olive-grey organic rich intervals corresponding to the regional sapropel S1 horizon. The presence of a few tephra layers documents volcanic activity in the southern part of the Aegean Sea. The bulk sediments contain abundant carbonate minerals (mainly calcite and Mg-calcite) and clay minerals (mainly illite and smectite) and accessory serpentine, talc and hornblende, which attest to contributions from ultrabasic sources. There is a sharp decrease of the Mg-calcite content and the Mg/Ca ratio of the carbonate fraction in sapropelic sediments followed by an increase of the average grain size. A well expressed negative relationship between illite and smectite was observed in the clay fraction in full accordance with previous studies. However, this trend is absent from the bulk sediments, because smectite is significantly overestimated in the oriented clay fractions. Clay mineral distribution is controlled mainly by sediment sorting, with deposition in the sapropelic sediments being also affected by climatic changes. The different types of smectite in the cores and the presence of smectite with high dehydroxylation temperature in the SE Aegean, suggests that the sediment supply from SE Mediterranean sources should be limited.

Geometallurgical models creation principles

The following article explores the aspects of geometallurgy models creation and its position in the general chain of geological and technological mapping. The following article describes models creation process and principles applied in the framework of different approaches to geometallurgy models creation. Currently, this type of modeling is considered as the most important and reliable tool for forecasting the technological and economic performance of mining companies. The most progressive is the approach based on the use of quantitative mineralogical analysis for geological and technological modeling, which is very labor-intensive and requires modern and expensive equipment. Approach is being developed in the Russian Federation, which is based on the transformation of a geological database into technological one. The article discusses the algorithm for creating geometallurgy models, which includes several components: exploration, mineralogical and petrographic, technological, statistical, geostatistical and economic. The most important points of modeling are studies to identify the factors that determine the ore processing and criteria for ore typification, which ultimately leads to the development of principles for recognizing types of ore in each geological sample. It is in this way that the geological database is converted into a geological-technological database, and a geological-technological model is created on its basis.

Mineralogical Analysis of Historical Mortars by FTIR.

A method for quantitative mineralogical analysis by ATR-FTIR [1] has been used first time for analysis of historical mortars. Mixtures of different minerals and gypsum were used in order to measure the minimum band intensity that must be considered for calculations and the detection limit. In this way, the molar absorptivity coefficient in the Lambert–Beer law and the components of a mixture in mol percentage can be calculated. The GAMS equation modeling environment and the NLP solver CONOPT (©ARKI Consulting and Development) were used to correlate the experimental data in the samples considered. The characterization of the vernacular mortars by FTIR analysis identifies the predominant minerals of the samples, and in conjunction with XRF and XRD, shows the exact composition of historical mortars, which will optimize the restoration and conservation of monuments, preserving our heritage.

The compositions of the lunar crust and upper mantle: Spectral analysis of the inner rings of lunar impact basins

The innermost ring in impact basins exposes material originating from various depths, and can be used to study the composition of the lunar crust with depth. In this study, we conduct quantitative mineralogical analyses of the innermost ring in 13 lunar impact basins using reflectance data from the Kaguya Multiband Imager and radiative transfer modeling. We use results from recent hydrocode modeling to calculate the depth of origin of the material exposed by the innermost rings. We find that the most abundant rock type on the innermost ring of most basins is anorthosite. The mafic assemblages are dominated by olivine in some cases, but most often by pyroxene. The impact modeling suggests that the innermost ring material was excavated from a wide range of depths. Here we focus on two mean depths: a crustal component and a mantle component. The crustal component largely dominates the innermost ring material, and the mantle component is present on the innermost ring of 9 of the basins we studied. On these 9 rings, the abundance of low-calcium pyroxene decreases with the proportion of crustal component, suggesting a dominantly mantle origin. However, as we do not detect exposures of ultramafic material, such mantle material is possibly present at the sub-pixel scale (<62 m). This quantitative study reassesses the composition of the lunar crust and upper mantle, which is of great importance for understanding the formation of the Moon.

Biomass briquette as an alternative reductant for low grade iron ore resources

The present study explores the application of biomass briquette, produced from the unutilized vegetative remnants, as an alternative reductant for the reduction roasting-magnetic separation of an iron ore slime sample assaying 56.2% Fe. The X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) studies indicated tridymite and quartz to be the only crystalline mineral phases present in the biomass briquettes while the Fourier Transform Infra Red (FTIR) spectra identified several organic functional groups representing the biomass. Iron ore concentrates with ∼65% Fe and ∼64% weight recovery were obtained with reduction conditions such as temperature: 650–750 °C, reductant to feed ratio: 0.15, reduction time: 30–45 min and reductant size: −3+1 mm. The analysis of the statistically designed experiments suggested that temperature is the most crucial factor followed by time, reductant to feed ratio and reductant size. Magnetite and hematite were found to be the only major phases present in the magnetic fractions produced from roasting at the optimum conditions. Many feebly magnetic phases like wustite, fayalite and clinoferrosilite appeared at higher temperature and reductant to feed ratios, which was confirmed by XRD, reflected light microscopy and quantitative mineralogical analysis.

Mineralogy of an active eolian sediment from the Namib dune, Gale crater, Mars

AbstractThe Mars Science Laboratory rover, Curiosity, is using a comprehensive scientific payload to explore rocks and soils in Gale crater, Mars. Recent investigations of the Bagnold Dune Field provided the first in situ assessment of an active dune on Mars. The Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin) X‐ray diffraction instrument on Curiosity performed quantitative mineralogical analyses of the &lt;150 μm size fraction of the Namib dune at a location called Gobabeb. Gobabeb is dominated by basaltic minerals. Plagioclase, Fo56 olivine, and two Ca‐Mg‐Fe pyroxenes account for the majority of crystalline phases along with minor magnetite, quartz, hematite, and anhydrite. In addition to the crystalline phases, a minimum ~42 wt % of the Gobabeb sample is X‐ray amorphous. Mineralogical analysis of the Gobabeb data set provides insights into the origin(s) and geologic history of the dune material and offers an important opportunity for ground truth of orbital observations. CheMin's analysis of the mineralogy and phase chemistry of modern and ancient Gale crater dune fields, together with other measurements by Curiosity's science payload, provides new insights into present and past eolian processes on Mars.

On the development of a non-linear calibration relationship for the purpose of clay content estimation from the natural gamma ray log

The Shurijeh Formation of Early Cretaceous age is an important clastic sandstone reservoir rock in the Gonbadli field, NE Iran. The quantitative determination of Shurijeh clay minerals has been considered to be a very important and challenging task due to the heterogeneity of formation. The calibrated gamma ray log has been traditionally used as the primary estimator of volume of clay in the subsurface formations. The comparison between the core-measured values and the resulting estimates from the old calibration methods in Shurijeh Formation revealed that despite of applying old calibrations, the Shurijeh clay contents suffers from overestimations. Thus, the most accurate calibration for natural gamma ray log was developed, using the integration of quantitative mineralogical analyses from 76 core samples to estimate the volume of clay in Shurijeh Formation. The least percent relative error, i.e., 11.4%, was achieved in developing a new regression relationship in the form of a rational function acting as the most accurate non-linear clay indicator. The reliability of it was verified by the excellent correlation between the laboratory-measured clay contents in the core samples from another wells drilled in the mentioned Formation and the estimated values. The spectral log ratios have also been used to estimate the Formation depositional environment and different clay minerals types in it. It could truly be inferred that the Shurijeh was deposited in a marine environment with most of data having a thorium to uranium (Th/U) ratio in the range of 1–10. However, the indirect clay typing accomplished by several cross-plots, did not provide consistent results with the laboratory-determined types from the XRD test.

Quantitative mineralogical analysis of European Kupferschiefer ore

Kupferschiefer samples from five distinct deposits in Germany and Poland were studied with the aim to quantitatively determine their mineralogical composition using complementary approaches. Their inherently extremely fine-grained matrix, sheet silicate-dominated mineralogy, and highly variable copper sulphide content in the presence of organic components, render quantitative mineralogical analysis difficult. In an attempt to develop a comprehensive yet feasible analytical routine for Kupferschiefer black shale and associated sandstone- and carbonate-hosted ores, analytical techniques were tested and adapted to suit this purpose. This study focuses on a combination of mineralogical approaches using quantitative X-ray diffraction (XRD) and image-based automatic mineral liberation analysis (MLA). Quantitative bulk-powder XRD was achieved by Rietveld refinement, based on phase identification and selection of suitable structural models. The identified minerals were verified with scanning electron microscopic measurements coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and optical microscopy. Results of QXRD and MLA were compared to chemical assay data. It is concluded that MLA and QXRD deliver satisfactory results for this complex raw material, but only when used in combination. When used independently, XRD and MLA are susceptible to significant errors related especially to sample preparation, mineral misidentification and quantification. To assure a successful quantitative mineralogical description of complex raw materials or processing products it is thus strongly recommended to verify all mineralogical information by independent analytical techniques – and to validate quantitative mineralogical information with quantitative chemical data.

COMBUSTION AND LEACHING BEHAVIOR OF TRACE ELEMENTS IN LIGNITE AND COMBUSTION BY-PRODUCTS FROM THE MUĞLA BASIN, SW TURKEY

The Muğla Basin is one of the most well-documented coal basins of Anatolia, SW Turkey. Previous studies mainly focused on coal geology, as well as on the environmental impacts from trace elements emitted into the atmosphere during coal combustion. However, the environmental impacts from coal utilization also include groundwater contamination from hazardous trace elements leached from exposed lignite stockpiles or ash disposal dumps. In the present study a comparative assessment of the combustion, as well as the leaching behaviour of trace elements from sixteen lignite, fly ash and bottom ash samples under various pH conditions is attempted. The samples were picked up from three regions in the Muğla Basin, namely, these of Yeniköy, Kemerköy and Yatağan. Proximate and ultimate analyses were performed on all samples. Quantitative mineralogical analysis was carried out using a Rietveld-based full pattern fitting technique. The elements Ag, As, B, Ba, Be, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ga, Hf, Li, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sr, U, V and Zn were grouped according to their volatility during combustion and their leachability in the various types of samples. The pH of the leaching agent little affected the leaching trends of most elements and the mode of occurrence proved to be the major factor controlling primarily combustion and to a lesser extent leaching. The elements were classified into 7 classes with increasing environmental significance with Mo, Sr and V being the most potentially hazardous trace elements in the Muğla region.