Spectral geoscience

The Geological Survey of South Australia (GSSA) uses non-destructive technologies to digitise geological samples and make them available via the South Australian Resources Information Gateway (SARIG). Our various technologies are housed at the South Australia Drill Core Reference Library, working together to allow for cross-correlation of spectral mineralogy and geochemistry, giving better data and results.

Spectral technologies

HyLogger^TM

Developed by CSIRO, the HyLogger-3^TM core scanner rapidly measures drill core or chip samples using visible and infrared spectroscopy and high-resolution imagery. The system uses semi-automated core tray handling, continuous visible and infrared spectroscopy (wavelength range 300–2500 nm and 6000–14500 nm), and digital imaging (~0.1 mm resolution), to characterise and identify the dominant mineral species present, at a spatial resolution of ~0.8 cm. Mineralogy is interpreted using The Spectral Geologist (TSG) software. Our HyLogger data contributes to the National Virtual Core Library (NCVL).

We are anticipating the arrival of the HyLogger-4^TM later in 2024, a new instrument that will produce Mid-Infrared (MIR) hyperspectral data as well as the previous VNIR, SWIR and TIR wavelength ranges. This will be the first of its kind globally to produce continuous hyperspectral data from the visible wavelengths through to the TIR.

Download HyLogger data:

TSG^TM Viewer software for data viewing is available via a free demonstration licence from The Spectral Geologist.

Raman Spectroscopy

A recent addition to our mineralogical analyses is the i-Raman Ex® portable instrument providing raman spectroscopy on various sample types such as hand samples and thin sections. The i-Raman Ex® uses a near infrared 1064 nm monochromatic laser which can be focused down to 21 µm for detailed mineralogical analysis of fine-grained materials.

Raman spectroscopy has many benefits:

non-destructive
unambiguous mineral discrimination
polymorph differentiation
mineral phase identification
no sample preparation
efficient and easy to use in real time
solids, liquids or gases, glass vials, aqueous solutions and wet samples can be used.

More information about the Raman

Gold Sniffer (Mineral Insights)

The non-destructive Gold Sniffer (Mineral Insights) equipment is a portable field instrument which rapidly gives estimated gold, copper, lithium, cobalt or other metallic mineral grades from the surface of unpolished samples in approximately 90 seconds. The data is produced in various image formats.

A study testing the accuracy of the system was conducted for the Tunkillia LED holes and is available for download Gold in South Australia: an example from Tunkillia using a rapid and non-destructive analytical method (PDF 1.1 MB).

More information about the Gold Sniffer

Spectral geoscience data

We have an extensive collection of high-quality digitised drill core from a wide range of mineral systems, allowing explorers to access high resolution imagery and spectral mineralogy online before visiting the South Australia Drill Core Reference Library.

Available data includes:

High-quality core tray images (higher resolution imagery can be obtained upon request)
Hyperspectral reflectance data (VNIR, SWIR and TIR)
Summary plots of interpreted minerals down hole
Dynamic down hole scalar plots

A demonstration dataset for the TSG^TM Viewer software is available for download and includes a guided tutorial and instruction file.

Our services

Drillcore scanning

HyLogger^TM core and chip scanning services are available to industry and researchers. Samples must be clean, dry and well labelled prior to analysis. The scanning request form below outlines the requirements and is available for download.

HyLogger scanning request form (PDF, 851.9 KB)

Spectral Geology workshops

We also run spectral geology workshops in conjunction with the NVCL and CSIRO for new or advanced users across industry and research. These workshops are 1-2 days in length and typically cover both theory and practical examples using HyLogger and ancillary data of interest to participants.