Synchrotron Data - Lintern M4202 (Oct 2011) - gold in gum leaves

Australian Synchrotron experiment 4202 with abstract: Understanding fundamental metal dispersion processes that lead to geochemical anomalies in soil and vegetation from deeply weathered gold deposits is important for mineral exploration in Australia. We aim to further progress our understanding of these processes by analysing the distribution of gold in natural and experimentally-doped foliage from Australian native plants. The results will assist us in visualising uptake pathways by plants, mechanisms used to compartmentalise the potentially toxic metals in the plants and the relationship between Au accumulation in vegetation and anomalies found in the soil. This work will assist exploration for buried mineral deposits in Australia's deeply weathered landscapes.\r\n\r\nThe results show gold exudates on leaves from eucalypts and acacia trees imaged on the XFM beamline of the Australian Synchrotron using the Maia detector system. \nLineage: Data was produced using the Maia 384 element detector array on the XFM X-ray microprobe beamline of the Australian Synchrotron and processed using the GeoPIXE software package.

澳大利亚同步加速器（Australian Synchrotron）4202号实验研究摘要：探究深部风化金矿床引发土壤与植被出现地球化学异常的金属分散基础过程，对澳大利亚的矿产勘查至关重要。本研究旨在通过分析澳大利亚本土植物的天然叶片与实验掺杂叶片中的金元素分布，进一步推进对该类过程的认知。研究成果将助力阐明植物吸收金的路径、植物分隔潜在毒性金属的机制，以及植被中金富集与土壤异常之间的关联。本项工作将为澳大利亚深部风化景观中的隐伏矿产勘查提供支撑。

实验结果显示，研究团队借助澳大利亚同步加速器XFM光束线（XFM beamline）的Maia探测器系统（Maia detector system），完成了桉树与金合欢树叶片表面金渗出物的成像观测。

数据谱系：本实验采用澳大利亚同步加速器XFM X射线微探针光束线（X-ray microprobe beamline）的Maia 384元素探测器阵列采集数据，并通过GeoPIXE软件包（GeoPIXE software package）完成数据处理。