Mineraleslab, S.A. de C.V.

Sample preparation

Any sample that arrives at our laboratory (sample reception room), either if it is via our pick up services or directly from the customer, receives a batch number that refers to the customer itself and the date of arrival. Samples are placed in numerical order or at the customer request (rush orders) and transferred into aluminum pans to allow for drying in our temperature controlled sample dryer.

 

Once the samples are dried, they are taken into the sample preparation room. Samples are first crushed down to 4 mesh or ¼’’. They are later crushed a second time using another crusher down to minus 10 mesh or 0.25 cm.  The crushed sample is thoroughly mixed prior to its division into a splitter riffle of a 250 grams portion. The reject is identified and stored into an indentified box which is later send to our warehouse (in the same building of the laboratory).

 

The 250 grams portion of the crushed sample is transferred into a ring pulverizer for at least 2 minutes in order to assure a fineness of 90% passing 200 mesh or 74 microns or better. The bowl content of the ring pulverizer is overturned onto a kraft paper sheet and rings are taken out of the finely pulverized sample. The sample is again thoroughly mixed and transferred into an identified kraft paper sample bag. The bag is sealed for integrity of the sample.

 

The greatest cares are taken for the preparation of the samples in order to avoid any contamination. Only one sample is crushed at a time until splitting a sub-sample for further treatment. The jaws of the crushers, the sample pans, the sample drawers and splitter are cleaned with compressed air in between each sample. Working areas and splitting area are cleaned in between each sample. Pulverizer bowls are cleaned with compressed air and a portion of 30 grams of silica sand is pulverized for 30 seconds to avoid any carryovers or cross contamination. The bowls and rings are cleaned once again with compressed air. The kraft paper sheets are discarded after a single use and a new sheet is used for each sample.

 

The samples of only one customer are treated at a time in the sample preparation room.

Mining Analytical Laboratory fire assay and atomic absorption spectrophotometry