The peaks represent positions where the X-ray beam has been diffracted by the crystal lattice. The angle and the d -spacings are related by Bragg's Law, as described in the text. When an X-ray beam hits a sample and is diffracted, we can measure the distances between the planes of the atoms that constitute the sample by applying Bragg's Law. Applications XRD has a wide range of applications in geology, material science, environmental science, chemistry, forensic science, and the pharmaceutical industry, among others. In studies of areas affected by acid mine drainage, the identification of secondary minerals and fine-grained precipitates is a critical element.
Acid is generated when iron sulfide minerals, such as pyrite, weather.
Elements derived from the alteration of the sulfide minerals can form secondary minerals or go into solution. Accurate mineralogical characterization of the precipitates and secondary minerals, together with hydrogeochemical data, help us to better understand the solubility, transport, and storage of metals. Ore Genesis Studies Minerals form under specific ranges of temperature and pressure. Mineralogical identification of ore minerals and associated minerals, including fine-grained hydrothermal alteration minerals, provides evidence used to deduce the conditions under which ore deposits formed and the conditions under which, in many cases, they were subsequently altered. They have been the key to quantifying the paleolatitudinal climate gradient in North America during the late Middle Pennsylvanian.