Developments and applications of quantitative analysis to clay-bearing materials, incorporating ‘The Reynolds Cup School’

Because of their effects on the physical and chemical properties of rocks, soils, clays, and industrial materials, and because of the genesis and history information they record, knowledge of the types and relative amounts of clay minerals and other poorly ordered minerals is essential in many academic and industrial endeavours. Methods of quantitative phase analysis (QPA) represent, therefore, important tools e.g. in mineral exploration and processing, in clay science, and material science to name a few. This session invites contributions on QPA by any available method such as diffraction, spectroscopy, chemical analysis, or microscopy or combination of methods and approaches.  Papers on methods and procedures as well as applications of QPA procedures, in soil, geological and materials science are encouraged.  The session will conclude with ‘The Reynolds Cup School’, a series of invited presentations and extended discussion outlining best practice in procedures and strategies to obtain QPA of ‘state of the art’ quality with today’s most widely available tools and to discuss ways to address the many challenges that still remain.