Investigation of Optical Properties of Fluorspar Using XRF, UV-Vis and FTIR Spectrometry
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70882/josrar.2025.v2i6.232Keywords:
Fluorspar, XRF, UV-Vis, FTIR, Optical PropertiesAbstract
Recently, the Nigerian Senate passed a Bill mandating 30% utilization of all mineral resources in the country before their export. This has attracted more attention to critically examine the structure and properties of the available minerals in Nigeria. In this research, the optical properties of fluorspar have been investigated using different analytical tools such as XRF, UV-Vis and FTIR. The XRF result reveals the presence of rare earth elements; Ce and Dy which may occur as substitutes for Ca in the CaF2 crystal structure due to their atomic sizes. These were found responsible for causing the fluorite’s fluorescence in different colours. The UV-Vis result has shown that absorption peaks at 225 nm and 370 nm were key aspects of fluorite's absorption characteristics. These were not expected to have had impact on the colour of the fluorspar. However, these may be linked to electronic transitions and defects within the crystal structure, which determine how fluorite absorbs light across different wavelengths. Furthermore, these peaks were specifically attributed to electrons and holes trapped in the Ca²⁺ interstitial and vacancy, respectively. The FTIR analysis revealed absorption bands corresponding to CO₂ and CO₃²⁻ stretching vibrations from CaCO₃, as well as OH stretching vibrations due to water presence in the samples. The study shows a clear effect of these impurities or inclusions on the fluorspar optical performance.
References
Akhter, P., Khan, M., & Hussain, S. (2018). Optical properties of fluorite. Journal of Minerals and Materials, 2(1),1-8.
Baatartsogt, B., Schwandt, C. S., & Foley, N. K. (2007). Fluorite from the Borundur gold deposit, eastern Mongolia. Mineralium Deposita, 42(5),523-535.
Balogun, F. A., Ojo, J. O., & Adetunji, A. R. (1996). Spectroscopic studies of fluorite. Journal of Applied Spectroscopy,60(3),456-462.
Bill, H. (1982). Fluorite colouration mechanisms. Journal of Luminescence, 25(2), 177-186.
Bill, H., & Calas, G. (1978). Color centers in fluorite. Journal of Physics C: Solid State Physics, 11(14), 2901-2908.
Bonewitz, R. L. (2012). Rocks and minerals. DK Publishing.
Emsley, J. (1991). The elements. Clarendon Press. Garrido-Cordero, J. A., Palacios, J. M., & Odriozola, J. A. (2020). Characterization of fluorite from the Sierrade Aitana, Alicante, Spain. Journal of Iberian Geology, 46 (2),167-178.
Ge, J., Li, X., & Wang, Y. (2022). Fluorescence properties of fluorite under cathode-ray and ultraviolet irradiation. Journal of Luminescence, 241,1-10.
Gidado S. & Ibrahim M. B. (2023). Mineralogical and Structural Analyses of Natural Fluorite from Yantuwaru Mining Site, Nigeria. UMYU Scientifica, 2 (1), 43 – 51. https://doi.org/10.56919/usci.2123.007
Jia, L., Liu, X., & Zhang, Y. (2019). Study on the mineralogy and spectroscopy of fluorite from the Xianghuamine, China. Journal of Mineralogy and Geochemistry,38(1),35-42.
Kim, Y., & Lee,J. (2013). Optical properties of fluorite. Journal of Mineralogy and Geochemistry, 35(1), 45-52.
Kumar, P., Singh, R., & Sharma, S. (2018). Optical properties of fluorite for photonic applications. Journal of Photonics, 6 (2),1-10.
Li, Y., Wang, J., & Chen, X. (2017). FTIR study of fluorite from the Dongshanmine, China. Journal of Chinese Rare Earths, 35(2), 123-128.
Megasari, A., Wahyudi, O., & Putra, D. (2018). Characterization of fluorite from the Panasahan area, West Sumatra, Indonesia. Journal of Geoscience and Environment, 1 (1),1-8.
Mindat.org (n.d.) Mines, Minerals and More. https://mindat.org
Miranda, J., Rodríguez, E., & García, M. (2020). Fluorite for laser technology: A review. Journal of Laser Applications,32(1), 1-15.
Mitra, S. (1981). Coloration of fluorite. Physics and Chemistry of Minerals, 7(3),115-122.
Öztürk, S. (2019). Fluorite. Springer.
Polymeris, G. S., Kitis, G., & Tsirliganis, N. C. (2006). Thermoluminescence. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B, 251 (1), 133-142.
Schumann, V. (1896). Fluorite. Zeitschrift für Kristallographie, 25 (1), 1-10.
Scouler, W. J. (1960). Optical absorption of fluorite. Physical Review,120(4), 1154-1158.
Singh, P. (2013). Optical properties of fluorite from the Ambajimine, India. Journal of Mineralogy and Geochemistry, 30 (2), 145-152.
Wenjun, L. (1999). Study on the coloration of fluorite. Journal of Chinese Rare Earths, 20(2), 123-128.
Zhifeng, L., & Hong, Z. (2015). Study on the adsorption of oleic acid on fluorite surface. Journal of Surface Science and Technology, 31(3-4), 123-130.
Zongming, L. (1990). Mineral spectroscopy. Wuhan: China University of Geosciences Press.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Shehu Gidado, Rufa’i Usman Ahmed (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
- Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
