Geostatistical estimation of multi-phase structures

A method is proposed for the characterization of the disjoint shapes of a multi-phase set. The method uses a global structural function and provides estimates of the complete mosaic of phases, honoring the individual volume proportions inferred from the experimental samples. The estimates of shapes can be improved by local conditioning to the covariance of each phase and to geometrical characteristics such as spatial orientation of the different strata. The mapping of uncertainty zones for individual phases is one advantage of using a geostatistical approach to characterize the morphology of qualitative (non-numerical) variables.