Clay Assay

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Placer Paul

Active member
Joined
Nov 9, 2017
Messages
33
I'm a placer gold miner in the Cariboo of BC Canada. I have a very blue clay layer that I would like to have assayed for gold, silver, platinum, and palladium.

I've had other ores assayed by labs before but I'm unclear if clay is in a different category for assaying? Do I need to ask for a specific type of assay to be done in order to get accurate results for all the precious metals?

Another sort of related question is about my back sands. I've had my black sands concentrates assayed for gold. But If I get them assayed for all the other precious metals is there also a specific assay test I should ask for with regards to the black sands for other precious metals? Seems to me there are 1000 different assay types listed in the pamphlets they gave me and I'm no geologist to figure out which test I should ask for.

If there is a particular lab you guys would recommend in Canada that comes highly recommended please advise me as such. I have used Acme and Met Solve in the past here in BC.
Or if anyone here would like to do the assays I could also do that too. Someone in Canada may be best if there are issues mailing ore over the border. But if not I'd be happy to mail samples to the USA also.

Clay8.jpg

Clay7.jpg

Clay5.jpg

BlueClay.jpg
 
That's some crazy blue clay.

If that was azurite it would contain crazy amounts of copper. My guess is more on organic residues, vivianite can form if there is a lot of phosphates in the clay.

A classical example is blue babe, https://www.alaska.edu/uajourney/history-and-trivia/blue-babe-a-messenger-fro/

Göran
 
Why not contact the company and explain what you want to know. They could probably tell you which one of their assays is the best for what you want to find out.

Göran
 
If I saw that in a populated industrial area I would be convinced someone dumped a load of hazardous waste and covered it up!

But seriously, I would send a sample to a lab with an AA and ask for 2 things. A dore fire assay to give you total precious metals, and an AA for base line gold platinum and palladium. If a sample is digested in Aqua regia it will give you semi quantitative and at worst qualitative results, and depending on those results you can furnish any specifics on the mineral types you expect in there so a proper fire assay can be performed. But to start no sense beating yourself up when it is nothing more than blue clay for now, you need qualitative results first which should be cheaper and faster at this point.
 
4metals said:
If I saw that in a populated industrial area I would be convinced someone dumped a load of hazardous waste and covered it up!

But seriously, I would send a sample to a lab with an AA and ask for 2 things. A dore fire assay to give you total precious metals, and an AA for base line gold platinum and palladium. If a sample is digested in Aqua regia it will give you semi quantitative and at worst qualitative results, and depending on those results you can furnish any specifics on the mineral types you expect in there so a proper fire assay can be performed. But to start no sense beating yourself up when it is nothing more than blue clay for now, you need qualitative results first which should be cheaper and faster at this point.

lol ya it's a very deep bright blue. Some of the areas of the clay vein look painted it is so blue. Some of it fades to lighter blue/grey. And some of the rock in it are very blue but I'm not sure if they are stained from the clay minerals or if the rocks themselves are what is leaching their minerals into the clay.

The area is 3000 meters up in virgin ground. Never has been mined before. The roads just got cut up the mountain a couple years ago.
Thank you for the info. That's exactly what I was wondering cause I've gotten assays before only to be told afterwards by someone else that I got the wrong kind of assay. I gather not all labs are as helpful as they could be in recommending what type of test is best.
 
4metals said:
If I saw that in a populated industrial area I would be convinced someone dumped a load of hazardous waste and covered it up!

But seriously, I would send a sample to a lab with an AA and ask for 2 things. A dore fire assay to give you total precious metals, and an AA for base line gold platinum and palladium. If a sample is digested in Aqua regia it will give you semi quantitative and at worst qualitative results, and depending on those results you can furnish any specifics on the mineral types you expect in there so a proper fire assay can be performed. But to start no sense beating yourself up when it is nothing more than blue clay for now, you need qualitative results first which should be cheaper and faster at this point.

If I wanted to also get a 48 element assay would you recommend giving a separate sample in for that assay on it's own or get them to use the same sample as for the precious metals as for the other 48 element assay?
I've been told that by the looks of the clay there may also be silver and copper in it but who knows I want it in writing from a reputable lab.
 
I agree 100% that a small chemistry set and the ability to test samples of ore in the field is invaluable. These qualitative tests are specific and easy to perform. The 48 element testing is nowhere near as valuable as what you will learn doing it in the field. And for the money you spend on the lab scan you can probably set yourself up with the little lab described in the link.

Good call Platdigger!
 
Platdigger said:
I am curious if you found cobalt.
Did you see this? http://goldrefiningforum.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=44&t=10932
That is awesome!!!

Wish I had such a thing when I was in geology classes.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Platdigger said:
I am curious if you found cobalt.
Did you see this? http://goldrefiningforum.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=44&t=10932
Wow that is some great info in that link!

4metals said:
I agree 100% that a small chemistry set and the ability to test samples of ore in the field is invaluable. These qualitative tests are specific and easy to perform. The 48 element testing is nowhere near as valuable as what you will learn doing it in the field. And for the money you spend on the lab scan you can probably set yourself up with the little lab described in the link.
Good call Platdigger!

I wish I had the time to experiment around with this kind of thing in the field but I'm in a remote area and every second I have up there needs to be spent on running material through the trommel to advance my findings on proving up the placer gold ground. For now I'll have to rely on lab assay's for analyzing other materials.
 
By a coincident I found an old Swedish report about a place up in the mountains where there is a 4 inch thick layer of blue dirt all across a valley, so blue that it was used in paint back at that time.
The analysis showed a layer enriched in phosphorus and iron, or in other words, the mineral vivianite.

Göran
 
Platdigger said:
I have used these guys. http://www.reedlab.altervista.org/price.html#arc
Thank you Platdigger. I have decided to stay within Canada for my assay's though. Just in case there's issues with samples going across the border.

g_axelsson said:
By a coincident I found an old Swedish report about a place up in the mountains where there is a 4 inch thick layer of blue dirt all across a valley, so blue that it was used in paint back at that time.
The analysis showed a layer enriched in phosphorus and iron, or in other words, the mineral vivianite.
Göran
Goran I've also read that people from way back in time have sought out the blue clay for artistic, religious, and healing properties. Very cool! Wow that Vivianite is a very impressive looking mineral!
 
2017 mining season was horrible for us as there were forest fires all around our area and the government kicked us out of the bush leaving us very little time to do exploration.

This past 2018 season was much more productive. Got lot's of exploration done, new trails/roads built and brought home a lot of concentrates to process as well as 5 buckets of the blue clay to have assayed and to inspect further at home.
I sent some samples off for 60 element assay as well as precious metals assay and heavy metals assay.
I also dissolved some samples of the clay in water at home then panned them out and put the heavies left in the pan under microscope. Depending on the assay results I may also get a full mineralology report on the clay for further testing.
All my best gold found so far on my claims have been test samples from right above the blue clay layer. The old river channel gravel laying on the blue clay is where my best gold is. There is glacial till above the old river channel gravels which also has gold but much finer gold in those layers and much less gold/yard than what is in the river channel gravel sitting on the blue clay. Under the blue clay is very hard to dig with my 130 excavator and I dug into Schist bedrock right under the blue clay in one area of my claim and I suspect there is a wide long bedrock dyke running under the blue clay as I had a 2D Resistivity survey done years ago which showed this bedrock dyke coming up not far from where I hit the Schist dyke under the blue clay.

Some pictures from my exploration and sampling this season. Will have to post them 5 pictures at a time as I think that's all the forum allows per post.
 

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Placer Paul said:
4metals said:
If I saw that in a populated industrial area I would be convinced someone dumped a load of hazardous waste and covered it up!

But seriously, I would send a sample to a lab with an AA and ask for 2 things. A dore fire assay to give you total precious metals, and an AA for base line gold platinum and palladium. If a sample is digested in Aqua regia it will give you semi quantitative and at worst qualitative results, and depending on those results you can furnish any specifics on the mineral types you expect in there so a proper fire assay can be performed. But to start no sense beating yourself up when it is nothing more than blue clay for now, you need qualitative results first which should be cheaper and faster at this point.

If I wanted to also get a 48 element assay would you recommend giving a separate sample in for that assay on it's own or get them to use the same sample as for the precious metals as for the other 48 element assay?
I've been told that by the looks of the clay there may also be silver and copper in it but who knows I want it in writing from a reputable lab.

https://www.src.sk.ca/labs/geoanalytical-laboratories
 
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