SIROQUANT

Siroquant is a unique software package used for the quantification of crystalline compounds. Importantly Siroquant does not require specialist crystallographic knowledge to obtain reliable mineral/phase analysis

Siroquant is currently being used by many industrial, scientific and academic organisations around the world. It has a logical user friendly Windows interface including extensive on-line help.  The system is equally useful for industrial and research applications.

Siroquant is compatible with Microsoft Windows NT, 2000, XP and Vista.

A comprehensive database contains over 1800 common minerals and compounds.

Click here for the download page.  Please note that this program will not work without the hardware dongle and so only legitimate Siroquant users should download the program.

Some SIROQUANT Applications

Siroquant is commonly used for quantitative mineral analysis for:

  • Geological materials
    • Mineralogy of Sedimentary rocks in oil exploration
    • Limestones
    • Iron Ores
    • Bauxite
    • Base Metals
    • Hydrothermally altered minerals in mineral exploration
    • Deleterious minerals such as sulphates, sulphides, zeolites etc in aggregates
    • Clay minerals
  • Mineral Processing
    • Cement Industry
    • Pigments
    • Heavy metals, rutile, zircon etc
    • Mineralogy of concentrates, middlings and tails from concentration plants
    • Mineralogy of inorganic material in coal
  • Environmental analysis
    • Mineralogy of contaminated lands sites and speciation of elements eg arsenic etc
    • Identification and quantification of free silica in dust samples
    • Quantification of amorphous compond

 

Compatibility

Siroquant is compatible with XRD scans from most manufacturers, including:

  • Bruker
  • ThermoFisher/ARL
  • Panalytical
  • Rigaku
  • Shimadzu
  • Unisantis
  • GBC
  • And more ...

 

Please contact us if your instrument is not listed.

Note: Converter files for compatibility with Siroquant can be prepared for other formats if required.

Minerals/Phase Database

There are around 1800 industrially important minerals in the Siroquant data base. 

Additional phases can be added by users with a knowledge of crystallography, or Sietronics can also add minerals to the database for a small fee. 

We are also working on an additional add-package that will allow users without crystallographic knowledge to add phases.

Technical details:

Profile Functions:
Siroquant supports Gaussian and Lorentzian (and any mixture of the two) peak shapes using the Pearson VII and Pseudo-Voigt profile functions. The March preferred orientation parameter is also refinable.

Refinable Profile Parameters:

  • Phase Rietveld scales
  • Line asymmetry
  • Preferred orientation
  • Line-width parameters, U1, V1, W1 & U2, V2, W2. (Note: Two line-width functions are allowed for each phase)
  • Instrument zero
  • Pearson M or Pseudo Voigt shape functions
  • Unit cell dimensions (a, b, c, alpha, beta, gamma).

Refinements can be performed in several stages with different combinations of varied parameters.An automatic refinement procedure (Auto-prescale) is also available and produces good ball park estimates for most samples as well as a providing a basis for further refinements.

Siroquant contains an absorption/contrast correction which is essential for quantitative phase analysis.

The software uses Bragg-Brentano geometry calibration curves, this is essential where strong low-angle XRD peaks are present. Corrections of 2 x peak height are common at low angles. Siroquant allows Rietveld analysis on minerals without a published crystal structure using a unique program structure featuring observed HKL files. This allows the analysis of poorly crystalline clays.

The program can be used to analyse mixtures of up to 25 minerals. (Cement analysis requires >15 phases). The program has includes "Anomalous Dispersion" corrections for the correction of resonance effects in the absorption of x-rays.

Siroquant has a robust least squares refinement scheme. Automatically staged refinement has been recommended by industrial users to allow automatic plant analysis using a sequence of various refinements from a poorly defined starting point. Up to 100 variables can be refined in each cycle.

Siroquant includes a comprehensive technical manual that has been assembled by users and technical experts to provide an easy to follow reference and a strong technical reference guide including a comprehensive list of references.

For more technical information, please see the manuals which can be found below:

 

Training

Sietronics can offer comprehensive training packages covering all aspects of the use of Siroquant.  Training can be conducted in our Canberra office, or on site if the customer requires.  Courses can also be customized to suit the customers particular application.

Please contact us for more information.

Rietveld Made Easy

This book is designed as a practical guide to the fundamentals of crystallography as applied to Rietveld analysis and is a essential companion to the User Guide supplied with Siroquant.  The table of contents and introduction are available here.

 

 

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