Imaging Spectrometers

The Canadian Foundation for Innovation and the Alberta Advanced Education and Technology in conjunction with funding from private industry have enabled the purchase of two spectral imaging systems designed for imaging boxes of drill core but also use for a variety of other samples. The SisuROCK system has its own light source, and spans the 400-2500nm spectral range at a nominal spectral resolution of 8nm. These properties imply that key spectral features of minerals (e.g. iron oxide, clay, amphibole) can be captured. With this imaging capability, targets (e.g. silicate minerals, oxides, bitumen, water) can be examined in the context of their surroundings (e.g. spatial associations, distribution), allowing for the examination of meters of core per minute. SisuROCK is a unique imaging system in many respects: 1) it is an imager which can be configured for rapid core scanning or for detailed textural and spectral investigations, and 2) it can scan 25 feet of core in less than a minute. A second imaging system provides spectral imagery over 30 bands spanning the long wave infrared spectrum of 8-12 mm. Combined with SisuRock this system results in a unique geological spectral imaging capability in Canada.