XLSTAT: Ternary Diagrams in Excel

 

Background

A ternary diagram represents a set of points within a triangle that have their coordinates in a three-dimensional space, with the constraint that the sum of the coordinates is constant.

 

Dataset for Example

The (attached) data correspond to 3 chemical components and the yield obtained for a fourth component that is being tested. Setting up a ternary diagram

 

Setting Up

• Open XLSTAT.

• Click on the Visualizing data menu and select the Ternary diagrams feature:

• Once you have clicked on the button, the dialog box appears. 

In the General tab:

• Select the B column in the X1 field.

• Select the C column in the X2 field.

• Check the X3 field and select the D column.

• Check the Object labels and select the E column.

• The Groups option could be used to color observation points based on the group they belong to. 

In the Options tab:

• Enter the value of the constant sum. Note: In this case, the third column D does not need to be entered as the values are known from the 2 other dimensions (X1 and X2).

In the Charts tab:

• Left the default values with all minimum values set to 0 and all maximum values set to 1. 

• Enter 5 in the Number of segments. This determines how many tick marks and values are displayed along the axes. 

• Check the Projection lines, the Lines between the axes as well as the Labels.

• The Link the chart to the input data option can be used to update the diagram in real time when the input data is modified.

• Click on the OK button to launch the computations.

• The results are displayed on a new Excel sheet.

 

Interpreting the Results

The Ternary Diagram is displayed. It allows to see how the points cover the space and to detect potential zones that should be explored in further experiments.