New Galilee, Pennsylvania
Clay was an abundant resource in Beaver county. According to the 1955 circular of the Pennsylvania Geological Survey, In 1955 Beaver County produced 13.7% of Pennsylvania's total clay output. There were 13 companies that mined clay in Beaver county at that time. Two of these companies, The Negley Fire Clay Co. and Ralph A. Veon, Inc. mined fire clay of the plastic variety from open pits and marketed the output for use in manufacturing fire brick and block, foundries, and heavy clay products. In addition, Ralph A. Veon, Inc., mined and sold fire clay of the burley variety. In 1955, New Castle Refractories mined stoneware clay from an underground mine near New Galilee for use locally in manufacturing pouring channels
Clay mineral X-ray diffraction
Well-crystallized and pure samples are ideal for x-ray diffraction, but this is rarely the case for clay. Clay minerals are almost always mixed with very small amounts of nonclay minerals which can produce intense peaks, even when there is very little of the sample is not a clay. If additional minerals are known to be presents, attempts should be made to separate clays from nonclays otherwise additional peaks should be expected. Some common minerals associated with naturally occurring clays are; quartz, feldspars, zeolites, and carbonates organic matter is sometimes present. Synthesis of clays can reduce the presence of some of these associated materials but does not guarantee pure samples as quartz or other associated materials are still commonly produced alongside synthetic clays.