Elemental mapping of some collected gold samples from Al-Amar gold mine in Saudi Arabia
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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Elemental mapping of some collected gold samples from Al‑Amar gold mine in Saudi Arabia Abdallah A. Shaltout1,2 · Mohamed H. Mahamoud3,4 · Omar H. Abd‑Elkader5,6 · M. A. Yassin7 Received: 6 August 2019 / Accepted: 5 November 2020 © Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract The mining waste in Al-Amar gold mine is 150 kg a year due to leakage in the extraction process. Studying the textures of gold deposits can be helpful to improve the process of gold extraction. The present work aimed to study the texture, structure, and composition of gold deposits that have different textures and structures using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), and Micro X-ray Fluorescence (µXRF). The ore minerals at different gold deposits were determined and these are pyrite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite, galena, and silica. The contents of Si and Zn in some specific areas are highly indicated to silica and sphalerite minerals, respectively. Additionally, the high contents of Fe and S, as well as some Cu, confirm the presence of pyrite and chalcopyrite minerals. The µXRF technique was used for elemental mapping of S, Si, Ca, Ti, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Pb, and Au. The spectral interference between Zn-Kβ and Au-Lα was found at different pixels and the Au-Lβ was free from interference and used for following the gold in the samples under investigation. The positive correlation between the Au and the elements Zn, Fe, Pb, and Si indicates the existence of the Au element in different minerals as an invisible specks. Keywords Micro X-ray fluorescence (µXRF) · Scanning electron microscope (SEM) · Electron probe microanalysis (EPMA) · Gold deposits
Introduction
* Abdallah A. Shaltout [email protected] 1
Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Taif University, P. O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia
2
Spectroscopy Department, Physics Division, National Research Centre, El Behooth St., Dokki, Cairo 12622, Egypt
3
Central of Metallurgical R & D Institute, P. O. Box 87, Helwan, Cairo, Egypt
4
Chemistry Department, Faculty of Science, Taif University, P. O. Box 11099, Taif 21944, Saudi Arabia
5
Physics & Astronomy Department, Science College, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
6
Physics Division, Electron Microscope & Thin Films Department, National Research Centre, El Behooth St., Giza 12622, Egypt
7
Botany & Microbiology Department, Science College, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
There are many ancient gold mining areas in Saudi Arabia. The famous gold mines are Mahd Al-Dhab, Al-Amar, AlHajar, Bulghah, Bi’rTawilah, and Suhkaybarat (Aljuhani 2002; Madani 2011; Madani and Harbi 2012; Al-Hobaib et al. 2013; Sonbul et al. 2016). Depending on the tectonic settings and the host rocks, gold deposits were categorized into three different types. The first one is volcano-sedimentary sequences, which are deposited in the juvenile oceanic environment and were accreted from crustal blocks. This ty
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