GR
Gaschnig, Richard M
Wed, Jan 26, 2022 2:30 PM
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.comhttp://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com/
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com<http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com/>
KL
Kurt Leinenweber
Wed, Jan 26, 2022 8:20 PM
Hi, the standard thing is to grind sea sand. I do that first. But after that I always grind NaCl (dry) and then flush it out with water. Otherwise the sand is still in there. I found that out working on germanates!
Kurt
Get Outlook for iOShttps://aka.ms/o0ukef
From: Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk msa-talk@minlists.org
Sent: Wednesday, January 26, 2022 7:30:33 AM
To: msa-talk@minlists.org msa-talk@minlists.org
Subject: [MSA-talk] cleaning procedures for mortar/pestle
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.comhttps://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com/__;!!IKRxdwAv5BmarQ!OYY_Naqu4c5Ue2vwoU-1V6kKKMbPcsHXPdMVhJtfrq3N-hBG1JWtowiMQrAE$
Hi, the standard thing is to grind sea sand. I do that first. But after that I always grind NaCl (dry) and then flush it out with water. Otherwise the sand is still in there. I found that out working on germanates!
Kurt
Get Outlook for iOS<https://aka.ms/o0ukef>
________________________________
From: Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk <msa-talk@minlists.org>
Sent: Wednesday, January 26, 2022 7:30:33 AM
To: msa-talk@minlists.org <msa-talk@minlists.org>
Subject: [MSA-talk] cleaning procedures for mortar/pestle
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com<https://urldefense.com/v3/__http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com/__;!!IKRxdwAv5BmarQ!OYY_Naqu4c5Ue2vwoU-1V6kKKMbPcsHXPdMVhJtfrq3N-hBG1JWtowiMQrAE$>
JF
Jon Fox
Wed, Jan 26, 2022 9:14 PM
Mine is ceramic and per the manufacturer:
- Warm water rinse
- Warm water wash with scrubber
- Warm water rinse
- Air dry
Regards,
Jon
Jon S. Fox, P.G. (NY, PA)
Owner/Principal Geologist
Fox Professional Geology, PLLC
310 Cherry Road
Syracuse, New York 13219
Phone: 315-935-5467 (mobile)
E-Mail: mailto:jon.fox@jonfoxpg.com jon.fox@jonfoxpg.com
Website: http://www.jonfoxpg.com/ www.jonfoxpg.com
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From: Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk msa-talk@minlists.org
Sent: Wednesday, January 26, 2022 9:31 AM
To: msa-talk@minlists.org
Subject: [MSA-talk] cleaning procedures for mortar/pestle
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com/
Mine is ceramic and per the manufacturer:
1. Warm water rinse
2. Warm water wash with scrubber
3. Warm water rinse
4. Air dry
Regards,
Jon
____________________________
Jon S. Fox, P.G. (NY, PA)
Owner/Principal Geologist
Fox Professional Geology, PLLC
310 Cherry Road
Syracuse, New York 13219
Phone: 315-935-5467 (mobile)
E-Mail: <mailto:jon.fox@jonfoxpg.com> jon.fox@jonfoxpg.com
Website: <http://www.jonfoxpg.com/> www.jonfoxpg.com
____________________________
Confidentiality Notice
This e-mail, including all attachments, is confidential and is intended
solely for the use of the individual or entity to which it is addressed.
This communication may contain information that is privileged and/or
protected from disclosure under State and/or Federal law. Please notify the
sender of this e-mail immediately if you have received this communication in
error and delete this e-mail immediately from your system. If you are not
the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any disclosing,
copying, distributing, or taking any action in reliance on the contents of
this information is strictly prohibited.
From: Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk <msa-talk@minlists.org>
Sent: Wednesday, January 26, 2022 9:31 AM
To: msa-talk@minlists.org
Subject: [MSA-talk] cleaning procedures for mortar/pestle
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
<http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com/>
RC
Rex Couture
Wed, Jan 26, 2022 10:40 PM
On 1/26/22 8:30 AM, Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk wrote:
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between
samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
A little of the next sample would be the least contaminating. I
find that a thin film of the previous sample (as shown by iron oxide
stains, for example) can be difficult to get off without abrasive cleaning.
Wet quartz sand works very well if you can tolerate a trace of
quartz. Neither the water nor the quartz is very efficient alone, but
the combination is very effective.
--
Rex Couture, Ph. D.
Dept. of Earth, Planetary, and Environmental Sciences
MSC 1169-204-110
Washington University in St. Louis
1 Brookings Dr.
St. Louis MO 63130
Voice: (314) 935-4194
Fax: (314) 935-7361
rex@wustl.edu
On 1/26/22 8:30 AM, Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk wrote:
>
> Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
> mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between
> samples?
>
> Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
>
> Assistant Professor
>
> Graduate Coordinator
>
> Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
>
> University of Massachusetts Lowell
>
> Lowell, MA 01854
>
> http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
>
A little of the next sample would be the least contaminating. I
find that a thin film of the previous sample (as shown by iron oxide
stains, for example) can be difficult to get off without abrasive cleaning.
Wet quartz sand works very well if you can tolerate a trace of
quartz. Neither the water nor the quartz is very efficient alone, but
the combination is very effective.
--
Rex Couture, Ph. D.
Dept. of Earth, Planetary, and Environmental Sciences
MSC 1169-204-110
Washington University in St. Louis
1 Brookings Dr.
St. Louis MO 63130
Voice: (314) 935-4194
Fax: (314) 935-7361
rex@wustl.edu
NC
Nicholas Castle
Thu, Jan 27, 2022 12:03 AM
My experience has been that how you clean depends a lot on what
contamination you're concerned with. When I was making basalt powders for
elemental chemistry (i.e. not isotopic analysis, nor trace-element
analysis), I washed the mortar and pestle with water and soap, then ground
with quartz-rich sand three times, then washed it again with soap and
water. Before I would use it again, I would pre-grind the basalt material
in the mortar and pestle, then wash it out with DI water and allow it to
air dry before using it for the sample that I care about. This is labor
intensive, but the process seemed to eliminate contamination from whatever
my lab-mates had ground before me and the pre-grind of the sample helped
eliminate the leftover quartz sand from cleaning.
Just my 2¢.
Nick
On Wed, Jan 26, 2022 at 7:37 AM Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk <
msa-talk@minlists.org> wrote:
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
MSA-talk mailing list -- msa-talk@minlists.org
To unsubscribe send an email to msa-talk-leave@minlists.org
My experience has been that how you clean depends a lot on what
contamination you're concerned with. When I was making basalt powders for
elemental chemistry (i.e. not isotopic analysis, nor trace-element
analysis), I washed the mortar and pestle with water and soap, then ground
with quartz-rich sand three times, then washed it again with soap and
water. Before I would use it again, I would pre-grind the basalt material
in the mortar and pestle, then wash it out with DI water and allow it to
air dry before using it for the sample that I care about. This is labor
intensive, but the process seemed to eliminate contamination from whatever
my lab-mates had ground before me and the pre-grind of the sample helped
eliminate the leftover quartz sand from cleaning.
Just my 2¢.
Nick
On Wed, Jan 26, 2022 at 7:37 AM Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk <
msa-talk@minlists.org> wrote:
> Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
> mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
>
>
>
> Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
>
> Assistant Professor
>
> Graduate Coordinator
>
> Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
>
> University of Massachusetts Lowell
>
> Lowell, MA 01854
>
> http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> MSA-talk mailing list -- msa-talk@minlists.org
> To unsubscribe send an email to msa-talk-leave@minlists.org
>
H(
H.R. (Dick) Naslund
Thu, Jan 27, 2022 3:02 PM
I agree with Nick. When analyzing whole rock samples, I clean everything
with coarse quartz sand followed by high pressure air. I then clean
everything by running a
small split of the sample I want to analyze. I discard this initial small
split, clean everything as best as possible with high pressure air,
followed by alcohol and a paper towel,
and then grind the sample of interest. Extra thorough cleaning, of course,
if I am switching between very different rock types.
H. R. (Dick) Naslund
On Thu, Jan 27, 2022 at 9:37 AM Nicholas Castle via MSA-talk <
msa-talk@minlists.org> wrote:
My experience has been that how you clean depends a lot on what
contamination you're concerned with. When I was making basalt powders for
elemental chemistry (i.e. not isotopic analysis, nor trace-element
analysis), I washed the mortar and pestle with water and soap, then ground
with quartz-rich sand three times, then washed it again with soap and
water. Before I would use it again, I would pre-grind the basalt material
in the mortar and pestle, then wash it out with DI water and allow it to
air dry before using it for the sample that I care about. This is labor
intensive, but the process seemed to eliminate contamination from whatever
my lab-mates had ground before me and the pre-grind of the sample helped
eliminate the leftover quartz sand from cleaning.
Just my 2¢.
Nick
On Wed, Jan 26, 2022 at 7:37 AM Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk <
msa-talk@minlists.org> wrote:
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
MSA-talk mailing list -- msa-talk@minlists.org
To unsubscribe send an email to msa-talk-leave@minlists.org
I agree with Nick. When analyzing whole rock samples, I clean everything
with coarse quartz sand followed by high pressure air. I then clean
everything by running a
small split of the sample I want to analyze. I discard this initial small
split, clean everything as best as possible with high pressure air,
followed by alcohol and a paper towel,
and then grind the sample of interest. Extra thorough cleaning, of course,
if I am switching between very different rock types.
H. R. (Dick) Naslund
On Thu, Jan 27, 2022 at 9:37 AM Nicholas Castle via MSA-talk <
msa-talk@minlists.org> wrote:
> My experience has been that how you clean depends a lot on what
> contamination you're concerned with. When I was making basalt powders for
> elemental chemistry (i.e. not isotopic analysis, nor trace-element
> analysis), I washed the mortar and pestle with water and soap, then ground
> with quartz-rich sand three times, then washed it again with soap and
> water. Before I would use it again, I would pre-grind the basalt material
> in the mortar and pestle, then wash it out with DI water and allow it to
> air dry before using it for the sample that I care about. This is labor
> intensive, but the process seemed to eliminate contamination from whatever
> my lab-mates had ground before me and the pre-grind of the sample helped
> eliminate the leftover quartz sand from cleaning.
>
> Just my 2¢.
> Nick
>
> On Wed, Jan 26, 2022 at 7:37 AM Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk <
> msa-talk@minlists.org> wrote:
>
>> Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
>> mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
>>
>>
>>
>> Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
>>
>> Assistant Professor
>>
>> Graduate Coordinator
>>
>> Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
>>
>> University of Massachusetts Lowell
>>
>> Lowell, MA 01854
>>
>> http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> MSA-talk mailing list -- msa-talk@minlists.org
>> To unsubscribe send an email to msa-talk-leave@minlists.org
>>
> _______________________________________________
> MSA-talk mailing list -- msa-talk@minlists.org
> To unsubscribe send an email to msa-talk-leave@minlists.org
>
KU
Kolitsch Uwe
Thu, Jan 27, 2022 3:02 PM
Mechanical cleaning with water + detergent,
followed by ultrasonic cleaning with a dedicated ultrasonic cleaning agent.
If you have crushed very hard material (e.g. some ceramics), the surface becomes too pitted after a while and has to be repolished.
The desired cleanliness will depend on how much you have to worry about contaminants in the next sample to be crushed.
Von: Rex Couture via MSA-talk msa-talk@minlists.org
Gesendet: Mittwoch, 26. Jänner 2022 23:41
An: msa-talk@minlists.org
Betreff: [MSA-talk] Re: cleaning procedures for mortar/pestle
On 1/26/22 8:30 AM, Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk wrote:
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.comhttp://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com/
A little of the next sample would be the least contaminating. I find that a thin film of the previous sample (as shown by iron oxide stains, for example) can be difficult to get off without abrasive cleaning.
Wet quartz sand works very well if you can tolerate a trace of quartz. Neither the water nor the quartz is very efficient alone, but the combination is very effective.
--
Rex Couture, Ph. D.
Dept. of Earth, Planetary, and Environmental Sciences
MSC 1169-204-110
Washington University in St. Louis
1 Brookings Dr.
St. Louis MO 63130
Voice: (314) 935-4194
Fax: (314) 935-7361
rex@wustl.edumailto:rex@wustl.edu
Information gemaess UGB Par. 14 Abs. 1
Naturhistorisches Museum
1010 Wien, Burgring 7
Firmenbuchnummer: FN 236724z
Firmenbuchgericht: Handelsgericht Wien
UID: ATU 38020609
Rechtsform: Wissenschaftliche Anstalt
oeffentlichen Rechts des Bundes
Mechanical cleaning with water + detergent,
followed by ultrasonic cleaning with a dedicated ultrasonic cleaning agent.
If you have crushed very hard material (e.g. some ceramics), the surface becomes too pitted after a while and has to be repolished.
The desired cleanliness will depend on how much you have to worry about contaminants in the next sample to be crushed.
Von: Rex Couture via MSA-talk <msa-talk@minlists.org>
Gesendet: Mittwoch, 26. Jänner 2022 23:41
An: msa-talk@minlists.org
Betreff: [MSA-talk] Re: cleaning procedures for mortar/pestle
On 1/26/22 8:30 AM, Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk wrote:
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com<http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com/>
A little of the next sample would be the least contaminating. I find that a thin film of the previous sample (as shown by iron oxide stains, for example) can be difficult to get off without abrasive cleaning.
Wet quartz sand works very well if you can tolerate a trace of quartz. Neither the water nor the quartz is very efficient alone, but the combination is very effective.
--
Rex Couture, Ph. D.
Dept. of Earth, Planetary, and Environmental Sciences
MSC 1169-204-110
Washington University in St. Louis
1 Brookings Dr.
St. Louis MO 63130
Voice: (314) 935-4194
Fax: (314) 935-7361
rex@wustl.edu<mailto:rex@wustl.edu>
--------------------------------------
Information gemaess UGB Par. 14 Abs. 1
Naturhistorisches Museum
1010 Wien, Burgring 7
Firmenbuchnummer: FN 236724z
Firmenbuchgericht: Handelsgericht Wien
UID: ATU 38020609
Rechtsform: Wissenschaftliche Anstalt
oeffentlichen Rechts des Bundes
--------------------------------------
KL
KEN Livi
Thu, Jan 27, 2022 3:03 PM
I found that for the small batches that we use for TEM, using cover slip glass was good since contamination of crystalline quartz was undesirable. The silica glass was easier to avoid when getting electron diffraction patterns. The small agate mortars were easy to ultrasound also.
Ken Livi
JHU
On Jan 27, 2022, at 9:35 AM, Nicholas Castle via MSA-talk msa-talk@minlists.org wrote:
External Email - Use Caution
My experience has been that how you clean depends a lot on what contamination you're concerned with. When I was making basalt powders for elemental chemistry (i.e. not isotopic analysis, nor trace-element analysis), I washed the mortar and pestle with water and soap, then ground with quartz-rich sand three times, then washed it again with soap and water. Before I would use it again, I would pre-grind the basalt material in the mortar and pestle, then wash it out with DI water and allow it to air dry before using it for the sample that I care about. This is labor intensive, but the process seemed to eliminate contamination from whatever my lab-mates had ground before me and the pre-grind of the sample helped eliminate the leftover quartz sand from cleaning.
Just my 2¢.
Nick
On Wed, Jan 26, 2022 at 7:37 AM Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk <msa-talk@minlists.orgmailto:msa-talk@minlists.org> wrote:
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://secure-web.cisco.com/1am2Ucd8ub33C9vhqxE1v5zLrBuVUBgxjFqmbidYJz5MSPA5SXT7etZ20yB6QcMlUQgnXN1kXzN-POCj9WhhixIEJpUMYNOXL10fKkaFl7z2bvGjO8tdoLg41GqhaLhf7CfrKvXyzlIBIp1JQGQfKhaGbu0rY4X-onuDwo6R5RV52GrFsKIWNSNpwr3o_TadFIheUsgel31p0D-7vyHQLTtbH_QTAhj2g-_sLFg-PCbylzAjeB2lXs9jbtalIihaZ7OlXHoTA1R8c1i9_jJPm6lmOTEut-kqzUxGYZ_k4-Y_d_1iOP6qfEXhArgkJn_ahyEEEgU_dNQI35Hpz6Ul6yw/http%3A%2F%2Fwww.richardgaschnig-geology.comhttp://secure-web.cisco.com/1FJRET4iVb7TufngVKMrUnc6w8uzqhOWLKwGWsbhA4JH5mhLjn7bekiZ2_QUFKlxcTatEa9ZFUE4BmMujBjEKXnhXWwrDKtMIZpChwnwyPc6OpcqRAKGtd4zrndirK74yyt_pPHN1MpaGqHA8E3Ph4UQAguCPj8-JcjR6dH_UvHi7SQ8NOpunbmVLIPymRQvpR5egNt_-3a2NsfLR0OgwpbdLSE5vxx1mHxO31pqYaQqny8HWO2gQJEyiN7oTRy4cl_AsyPZ-L63--57X650UL0RFND0mXeCyDEYKJ_lKa_17fUSEe7-gSPTmdNDiZdlLvrG0z-tL8I9-HpY1MnWVSw/http%3A%2F%2Fwww.richardgaschnig-geology.com%2F
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I found that for the small batches that we use for TEM, using cover slip glass was good since contamination of crystalline quartz was undesirable. The silica glass was easier to avoid when getting electron diffraction patterns. The small agate mortars were easy to ultrasound also.
Ken Livi
JHU
On Jan 27, 2022, at 9:35 AM, Nicholas Castle via MSA-talk <msa-talk@minlists.org> wrote:
External Email - Use Caution
My experience has been that how you clean depends a lot on what contamination you're concerned with. When I was making basalt powders for elemental chemistry (i.e. not isotopic analysis, nor trace-element analysis), I washed the mortar and pestle with water and soap, then ground with quartz-rich sand three times, then washed it again with soap and water. Before I would use it again, I would pre-grind the basalt material in the mortar and pestle, then wash it out with DI water and allow it to air dry before using it for the sample that I care about. This is labor intensive, but the process seemed to eliminate contamination from whatever my lab-mates had ground before me and the pre-grind of the sample helped eliminate the leftover quartz sand from cleaning.
Just my 2¢.
Nick
On Wed, Jan 26, 2022 at 7:37 AM Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk <msa-talk@minlists.org<mailto:msa-talk@minlists.org>> wrote:
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://secure-web.cisco.com/1am2Ucd8ub33C9vhqxE1v5zLrBuVUBgxjFqmbidYJz5MSPA5SXT7etZ20yB6QcMlUQgnXN1kXzN-POCj9WhhixIEJpUMYNOXL10fKkaFl7z2bvGjO8tdoLg41GqhaLhf7CfrKvXyzlIBIp1JQGQfKhaGbu0rY4X-onuDwo6R5RV52GrFsKIWNSNpwr3o_TadFIheUsgel31p0D-7vyHQLTtbH_QTAhj2g-_sLFg-PCbylzAjeB2lXs9jbtalIihaZ7OlXHoTA1R8c1i9_jJPm6lmOTEut-kqzUxGYZ_k4-Y_d_1iOP6qfEXhArgkJn_ahyEEEgU_dNQI35Hpz6Ul6yw/http%3A%2F%2Fwww.richardgaschnig-geology.com<http://secure-web.cisco.com/1FJRET4iVb7TufngVKMrUnc6w8uzqhOWLKwGWsbhA4JH5mhLjn7bekiZ2_QUFKlxcTatEa9ZFUE4BmMujBjEKXnhXWwrDKtMIZpChwnwyPc6OpcqRAKGtd4zrndirK74yyt_pPHN1MpaGqHA8E3Ph4UQAguCPj8-JcjR6dH_UvHi7SQ8NOpunbmVLIPymRQvpR5egNt_-3a2NsfLR0OgwpbdLSE5vxx1mHxO31pqYaQqny8HWO2gQJEyiN7oTRy4cl_AsyPZ-L63--57X650UL0RFND0mXeCyDEYKJ_lKa_17fUSEe7-gSPTmdNDiZdlLvrG0z-tL8I9-HpY1MnWVSw/http%3A%2F%2Fwww.richardgaschnig-geology.com%2F>
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RC
Rex Couture
Thu, Jan 27, 2022 9:08 PM
On 1/26/22 8:30 AM, Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk wrote:
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between
samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
It might be worth mentioning that mortar and pestle materials can
be porous, and can thus be contaminated by liquids. I discovered that
when grinding solids in agate with a little potassium permanganate added.
--
Rex Couture, Ph. D.
Dept. of Earth, Planetary, and Environmental Sciences
MSC 1169-204-110
Washington University in St. Louis
1 Brookings Dr.
St. Louis MO 63130
Voice: (314) 935-4194
Fax: (314) 935-7361
rex@wustl.edu
On 1/26/22 8:30 AM, Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk wrote:
>
> Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
> mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between
> samples?
>
> Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
>
> Assistant Professor
>
> Graduate Coordinator
>
> Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
>
> University of Massachusetts Lowell
>
> Lowell, MA 01854
>
> http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
>
It might be worth mentioning that mortar and pestle materials can
be porous, and can thus be contaminated by liquids. I discovered that
when grinding solids in agate with a little potassium permanganate added.
--
Rex Couture, Ph. D.
Dept. of Earth, Planetary, and Environmental Sciences
MSC 1169-204-110
Washington University in St. Louis
1 Brookings Dr.
St. Louis MO 63130
Voice: (314) 935-4194
Fax: (314) 935-7361
rex@wustl.edu
SS
Steve Shirey
Fri, Jan 28, 2022 12:06 PM
Hi Rich-
We always clean all our grinding apparatus with bull quartz or single
crystal quartz. It's much cleaner than beach or sea sand (no feldspar,
monazite, or zircon) for all trace elements. We treat it like you would
chips of rock and put it through every step of the process: ceramic jaw
crusher, ceramic disk mill, and finally mixer mill, shatterbox, or mortar
and pestle. It will add a small amount of silica to a whole rock analysis
(<0.5 wt%) but little else. If you have enough sample you can eliminate the
silica effect by pregrinding a small aliquot of the rock you are crushing
and discard it. Then go immediately to grind the aliquot you will keep of
the rock. This step will contaminate the apparatus with the rock you
already have and completely eliminate cross contamination or added silica.
Afterward go back to the quartz to clean the apparatus.
With best regards,
Steve
On Wed, Jan 26, 2022 at 9:38 AM Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk <
msa-talk@minlists.org> wrote:
Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
Assistant Professor
Graduate Coordinator
Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Massachusetts Lowell
Lowell, MA 01854
http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
MSA-talk mailing list -- msa-talk@minlists.org
To unsubscribe send an email to msa-talk-leave@minlists.org
Hi Rich-
We always clean all our grinding apparatus with bull quartz or single
crystal quartz. It's much cleaner than beach or sea sand (no feldspar,
monazite, or zircon) for all trace elements. We treat it like you would
chips of rock and put it through every step of the process: ceramic jaw
crusher, ceramic disk mill, and finally mixer mill, shatterbox, or mortar
and pestle. It will add a small amount of silica to a whole rock analysis
(<0.5 wt%) but little else. If you have enough sample you can eliminate the
silica effect by pregrinding a small aliquot of the rock you are crushing
and discard it. Then go immediately to grind the aliquot you will keep of
the rock. This step will contaminate the apparatus with the rock you
already have and completely eliminate cross contamination or added silica.
Afterward go back to the quartz to clean the apparatus.
With best regards,
Steve
On Wed, Jan 26, 2022 at 9:38 AM Gaschnig, Richard M via MSA-talk <
msa-talk@minlists.org> wrote:
> Hi all. For those of you that make powders by hand grinding with a
> mortar/pestle set, how do you go about cleaning the media between samples?
>
>
>
> Dr. Richard (Rich) M. Gaschnig
>
> Assistant Professor
>
> Graduate Coordinator
>
> Department of Environmental, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
>
> University of Massachusetts Lowell
>
> Lowell, MA 01854
>
> http://www.richardgaschnig-geology.com
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> MSA-talk mailing list -- msa-talk@minlists.org
> To unsubscribe send an email to msa-talk-leave@minlists.org
>
--
Steven B Shirey
, PhD
Earth and Planets Laboratory
Carnegie Institution for Science
Washington, DC 20015 USA
www.carnegiescience.edu/stevenbshirey
<https://sites.google.com/carnegiescience.edu/stevenbshirey/home>
(301) 792-9083
<sshirey@carnegiescience.edu>sshirey@carnegiescience.edu
<sshirey@carnegiescience.edu>
