X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), is an instrumental technique that is used to identify minerals and other crystalline materials. XRE provides data used to determine the rock composition in regard to mineral present, clay mixtures or intergrowths of minerals that may not be identified by other methods.. XRD values are used determine and calibrate mineral volume calculations derived from well log data.
XRD is based on the scattering of X-rays from atoms that produce a diffraction pattern, which contains information about the atomic arrangement within the sample. The technique is based on Bragg’s Law. It is more a qualitative analysis by determining the relative amount of phase differentials in a substance by referencing relative peak intensities.