September 2018 Bulletin of the New York Mineralogical Club, Inc

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

September 2018 Bulletin of the New York Mineralogical Club, Inc The BULLETIN OF THE NEW YORK MINERALOGICAL CLUB, INC Volume 132 No. 9 September 2018 PETER KELEMEN HAWAIIAN GEMSTONE RAIN Art of Orra White Hitchcock MOON MOGANITE See page 11! BLUE DIAMOND SOURCES SPHALERITE BANQUET RESERVATION FORM America’s Oldest Gem & Mineral Club Founded 1886 Incorporated 1937 Bulletin of the New York Mineralogical Club Founded 1886 Ë New York City, New York Ë Incorporated 1937 Volume 132, No. 9 America’s Oldest Mineral & Gem Club September 2018 September 5th Meeting: Dr. Peter B. Kelemen: “Carbon Carnelian (& Halloween) Theme Mineralization in Peridotite” Featured at 2018 Annual Banquet The rocks in Oman are special, says Dr. Peter B. Kelemen. They remove planet- By Mitch Portnoy Banquet Gifts warming carbon dioxide from the air and This year’s banquet, which is taking Banquet Games & Prizes turn it to stone. In theory, these rocks could place on Wednesday, October 17, 2018 at Video Entertainments store hundreds of years of human emissions the Watson Hotel, will center on the theme Banquet Song Special Note Card Sets of CO2. of “Carnelian” (but also have a hint of Halloween). Silent Auction Offerings Other Surprises! The registration form for this year’s banquet can be found on page 12 in this Peter and other scientists say that if this issue. Get it to me as soon as possible – it natural process, called carbon helps enormously in the event planning. mineralization, could be harnessed, See you at the banquet! accelerated and applied inexpensively on a huge scale — admittedly some very big “ifs” — it could help fight climate change. Rocks could remove some of the In the past, the banquet’s gemstone billions of tons of heat-trapping carbon themes have included colored diamonds dioxide that humans have pumped into the (2011), tanzanite (2012), jade (2013), ruby air since the beginning of the Industrial (2014), garnet (2015), opal (2016) and most Age. recently, amethyst (2017). And by turning that CO2 into stone, the rocks in Oman — or in a number of other places around the world that have similar geological formations — would ensure that the gas stayed out of the atmosphere Issue Highlights forever. Peter B. Kelemen is the Arthur D. President’s Message . 2 Storke Memorial Professor, Department of Meeting Minutes. 2 Earth and Environmental Sciences, Blue Diamond Sources. 3 Columbia University. His geological Hawaiian Gemstone “Rain” . 4 interests are wide and his writings prolific. Moon Moganite. 5 Peter last spoke to the NYMC in May Killing Watches . 6 of 2006 about steep terrain mineral Yellowcake Uranium . 6 exploration. We are glad to have him back! Medieval Birthstones . 7 As a result, you can expect to see All are encouraged to attend this Topics in Gemology: Sphalerite. 10 orange carnelian galore in the: meeting and hear Peter’s talk about this The Art of Orra White Hitchcock. 11 Room Decorations extremely relevant and timely topic. This is Banquet ‘18 Reservation Form . 12 Banquet Posters & Banners surly a presentation not to be missed! Club & Show Calendars. 13 Food & Drink Table Centerpieces 2 Bulletin of the New York Mineralogical Club, Inc. September 2018 President’s Message Club Meeting “Minutes” for Members in the News By Mitch Portnoy August 5, 2018 Joseph A. Freilich, controversial By Vivien Gornitz, Secretary mineral collector and dealer, passed October Banquet RSVP Attendance: 30+ away in June 2018. Joe was our banquet You will find the 2018 banquet reservation Location: Upper West Side, NYC speaker on November 8, 2000. form on page 12 of this issue. I IMPLORE President Mitch Portnoy “presided” The Speaker-in-Residence for the fall you to get your banquet forms or at least Announcements: Wildacres session will be noted member your RSVP’s in to us. Knowing the All Special Sale attendees received an Alfredo Petrov. attendance count is extremely important to Arizona glauberite pseudomorph: Demetrius Pohl (past president) co- everyone involved in making this event run authored an article about a mine in the smoothly. If you do not tell us you are Congo Republic in the July/August 2018 coming, you will lose the subsidy provided Mineralogical Record; the late Larry by the Club and have to pay full price at Conklin was mentioned in a letter about the door. the Newmont Azurite in the same issue. Mindat.org Page Sponsorship Coming In November Donated books were given quite freely, if a purchase was made. Thanks to Diane Beckman for coming over on Saturday and spending MANY hours setting up the event. Special Event: Benefit Mineral & Gem Sale “Generous Donations by Blackman, Horowitz, Joseph, Walter & Others” The Mindat.org website is perhaps the most important mineral informational tool that most of us access every day in the United States. It is a non-profit entity. In order to keep it running and available, the NYMC has decided to sponsor the kunzite page on the site. Have an idea for a story? Write for the Bulletin of the NYMC. You’ll be glad you did! Mineral News More than 30 NYMC members found their The Mineral Collector’s way to Mitch’s apartment on a hot, humid, Newsletter Sunday to make purchases from the many A monthly publication filled with recent donations of minerals, books, descriptive articles, historical tidbits, supplies, jewelry and lapidary rough. new mineral finds and more! All in full color! The highlight for all were splendid specimens of quartz collected by Michael Subscriptions are just $30 per year Walter many years ago in Ellenville, NY. (12 issues) in the USA. Checks and Everyone was encouraged to select several major credit cards accepted. Order pieces and not miss this once-in-a-lifetime from: opportunity to add something special to Mineral News their mineral collections. 1885 Seminole Trail—Suite 202 Charlottesville, VA 22901-1160 100% of the monies from these purchases www.mineralnews.com will benefit the Club and especially help to [email protected] make this year’s Carnelian Banquet in October a memorable event and a little cheaper for us all! September 2018 Bulletin of the New York Mineralogical Club, Inc. 3 The World of Minerals The World of Minerals is a monthly column written by Dr. Vivien Gornitz on timely and interesting topics related to geology, gemology, mineralogy, mineral history, etc. Vivien is on a summer break – She’ll be back next month! We Finally Know Where Extremely Rare Blue The vast majority of Earth’s diamonds were forged Diamonds Come From somewhere in the mantle. Most diamonds formed between 1 and By Robin Andrews 3 billion years ago, at depths of around 150 kilometers (93 miles) beneath the continental crust, or 200 kilometers (124 Diamonds aren’t always pristine. In fact, most of the time miles) beneath the oceanic crust. they contain inclusions – trapped chemical compounds they’ve It’s likely that carbon dioxide, a major component of picked up along the way – which can give them a welcome or magmatic bodies, is buried at extreme depth, where the high unwanted hue. Take blue diamonds, for example: although rare, temperature and very high pressures there compress it into a it’s well known that it’s the element boron that gives them their diamond. It seems that they can only form in a very narrow famous shade. sliver of the upper mantle. There’s no way we’d be able to mine diamonds at their formation depth, though, so how the hell do they get to the shallow crust where we can dig them out? That took the most bonkers form of volcanic process known to science: kimberlite eruptions. Kimberlites are essentially cone-shaped pipes, and they only seem to appear in ancient continental crust. Their magma source was once exceedingly hot, very runny, and full of dissolved gases. When the internal pressure got a bit too much for the surrounding crust, it rushed up through the crust. There was likely a froth of carbon dioxide at the front, which was so buoyant that it moved at speeds of 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) The Hope Diamond, a particularly storied example per hour until it reached the surface. These eruptions no longer happen. It’s thought that they As explained by a new Nature study, precisely where this could only take place many millions of years ago, when Earth’s boron comes from has been something of a mystery for some innards were far hotter. time now. Fortunately, after tinkering with the geochemistry of dozens of these blue diamonds, the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has provided us with an answer. Boron is near-ubiquitous in the crust, both oceanic and continental. Clearly, this is getting sucked down deep below to depths where diamond-forming fluid accumulates, but it’s not been clear how it got there. Taking a closer look at the mineral inclusions in these diamonds – many of which hadn’t been seen before – using X-rays and lasers, the team matched them with mineral ancestors, geochemical precursors if you like, found in oceanic crust segments. Specifically, these were segments that trapped seawater and A kimberlite mine in Siberia dragged it into the mantle – the superheated, colossal, solid layer that hides beneath the crust. As these broken crustal giants It’s a good thing they did, though. Their deep-seated magma headed through this layer, the seawater-enriched rocks were often included “alien rocks” from the mantle, named xenoliths “cooked”, and boron-rich fluids were released. – and those xenoliths frequently contained those elusive The physical structure of these mineral inclusions also diamonds. The speed of the eruptions was key: if these eruptions betray just how deep these blue diamonds form: in the lowest were any slower, the diamonds would transform into other, more parts of the mantle, at depths of at least 660 kilometers (410 commonplace forms of carbon.
Recommended publications
  • Understanding the Art of Quartz
    AIA & IDCEC Continuing Education Program UNDERSTANDING THE ART OF QUARTZ PRESENTED BY: AND 1 Hanwha L&C | Surfaces is a Registered Provider with The American Institute of Architects Continuing Education Systems (AIA/CES) and Interior Designers Continuing Education Council (IDCEC). Credit(s) earned on completion of this program will be reported to AIA/CES for AIA members or to IDCEC for IIDA, ASID or IDC members. Certificates of Completion for both members and non- members are available upon request. This program is registered with AIA/CES and IDCEC for continuing professional education. As such, it does not include content that may be deemed or construed to be an approval or endorsement by the AIA or the IDCEC of any material of construction or any method or manner of handling, using, distributing or dealing in any material or product. Questions related to specific materials, methods and services will be addressed at the conclusion of this presentation. This presentation is protected by US and International copyrights laws. Reproduction, distribu- tion, display and use of the presentation without written permission of the speaker is prohibited. Hanwha L&C | Surfaces 2016. 2 AIA & IDCEC Continuing Education Program ∆ Format: Presented f2f in real-time ∆ Course Credit: ◊ AIA: 1 Learning Unit (LU) ◊ Course #: 004QS ◊ IDCEC: .1 Health & Safety ◊ Course #: 40276 ◊ RAIC: 1 Self-Reporting Hour Δ Completion Certificate: ◊ A copy will be provided to you by email, fax, or mail upon request. 3 Learning Objectives ∆ Gain knowledge about natural quartz surfacing: ◊ Composition and Uses ◊ Product Characteristics ◊ Manufacturing and Fabrication ◊ Application and Design Options 4 INTRODUCTION TO QUARTZ Quartz Facts ∆ Quartz is the 4th hardest crystalline mineral on Earth, and it is found abundantly all over the world in a variety of forms.
    [Show full text]
  • Fall 2015 Gems & Gemology
    FALL 2015 VOLUME LI THE UARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE GEMOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF AMERICA Colombian Trapiche Emeralds Large Colorless HPHT-Grown Synthetic Diamonds Diamonds from the Letšeng Mine Fall 2015 VOLUME 51, No. 3 EDITORIAL 221 Trapiche and More... Duncan Pay FEATURE ARTICLES 222 Colombian Trapiche Emeralds: Recent Advances in Understanding Their Formation Isabella Pignatelli, Gaston Giuliani, Daniel Ohnenstetter, Giovanna Agrosì, pg. 254 Sandrine Mathieu, Christophe Morlot, and Yannick Branquet Proposes a model for trapiche emerald formation based on petrographic, spectroscopic, and chemical examination. 260 Large Colorless HPHT-Grown Synthetic Gem Diamonds from New Diamond Technology, Russia Ulrika F.S. D’Haenens-Johansson, Andrey Katrusha, Kyaw Soe Moe, Paul Johnson, and Wuyi Wang pg. 270 Examines a new source of colorless and near-colorless gem-quality HPHT synthetic diamonds using spectroscopic and gemological analysis. 280 Letšeng’s Unique Diamond Proposition Russell Shor, Robert Weldon, A.J.A. (Bram) Janse, Christopher M. Breeding, and Steven B. Shirey Explores the history, geology, and current production of this unique source of large diamonds. NOTES AND NEW TECHNIQUES 300 Origin Determination of Dolomite-Related White Nephrite through Iterative-Binary Linear Discriminant Analysis Zemin Luo, Mingxing Yang, and Andy H Shen A technique for origin identification based on statistical analysis and LA-ICP-MS spectrometry. pg. 293 REGULAR FEATURES 312 Lab Notes Unusual graining structure in pink diamond • Yellow HPHT-treated rough diamond
    [Show full text]
  • Symposium on Agate and Cryptocrystalline Quartz
    Symposium on Agate and Cryptocrystalline Quartz September 10 – 13, 2005 Golden, Colorado Sponsored by Friends of Mineralogy, Colorado Chapter; Colorado School of Mines Geology Museum; and U.S. Geological Survey 2 Cover Photos {top left} Fortification agate, Hinsdale County, Colorado, collection of the Geology Museum, Colorado School of Mines. Coloration of alternating concentric bands is due to infiltration of Fe with groundwater into the porous chalcedony layers, leaving the impermeable chalcedony bands uncolored (white): ground water was introduced via the symmetric fractures, evidenced by darker brown hues along the orthogonal lines. Specimen about 4 inches across; photo Dan Kile. {lower left} Photomicrograph showing, in crossed-polarized light, a rhyolite thunder egg shell (lower left) a fibrous phase of silica, opal-CTLS (appearing as a layer of tan fibers bordering the rhyolite cavity wall), and spherulitic and radiating fibrous forms of chalcedony. Field of view approximately 4.8 mm high; photo Dan Kile. {center right} Photomicrograph of the same field of view, but with a 1 λ (first-order red) waveplate inserted to illustrate the length-fast nature of the chalcedony (yellow-orange) and the length-slow character of the opal CTLS (blue). Field of view about 4.8 mm high; photo Dan Kile. Copyright of articles and photographs is retained by authors and Friends of Mineralogy, Colorado Chapter; reproduction by electronic or other means without permission is prohibited 3 Symposium on Agate and Cryptocrystalline Quartz Program and Abstracts September 10 – 13, 2005 Editors Daniel Kile Thomas Michalski Peter Modreski Held at Green Center, Colorado School of Mines Golden, Colorado Sponsored by Friends of Mineralogy, Colorado Chapter Colorado School of Mines Geology Museum U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Long Suspected Theory About the Moon Holds Water 14 June 2018
    Long suspected theory about the moon holds water 14 June 2018 Moganite was found in only one of those 13 samples, confirming the team's theory that it could not have formed in the African desert. "If terrestrial weathering had produced moganite in the lunar meteorite, there should be moganite present in all the samples that fell to Earth around the same time. But this was not the case," says Kayama. Photograph of lunar meteorite NWA 2727. Credit: Masahiro Kayama, Tohoku University A team of Japanese scientists led by Masahiro Kayama of Tohoku University's Frontier Research Institute for Interdisciplinary Sciences, has discovered a mineral known as moganite in a lunar Sectional photograph of lunar meteorite NWA 2727. meteorite found in a hot desert in northwest Africa. Credit: Masahiro Kayama, Tohoku University This is significant because moganite is a mineral that requires water to form, reinforcing the belief that water exists on the Moon. He adds that part of the moganite had changed into the high-pressure SiO2 minerals stishovite and "Moganite is a crystal of silicon dioxide and is coesite, which he believes was most likely formed similar to quartz. It forms on Earth as a precipitate through heavy impact collisions on the Moon when alkaline water including SiO2 is evaporated under high pressure conditions," says Kayama. This is the first time that moganite has been "The existence of moganite strongly implies that detected in lunar rocks. The researchers say the there is water activity on the Moon." meteorites probably came from an area of the Moon called Procellarum Terrane, and that the Kayama and his team analyzed 13 of the lunar moganite was formed through the process of water meteorites using sophisticated methods to evaporation in strong sunlight.
    [Show full text]
  • Origin of Fibrosity and Banding in Agates from Flood Basalts: American Journal of Science, V
    Agates: a literature review and Electron Backscatter Diffraction study of Lake Superior agates Timothy J. Beaster Senior Integrative Exercise March 9, 2005 Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a Bachelor of Arts degree from Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota. 2 Table of Contents AGATES: A LITERATURE REVEW………………………………………...……..3 Introduction………………....………………………………………………….4 Structural and compositional description of agates………………..………..6 Some problems concerning agate genesis………………………..…………..11 Silica Sources…………………………………………..………………11 Method of Deposition………………………………………………….13 Temperature of Formation…………………………………………….16 Age of Agates…………………………………………………………..17 LAKE SUPERIOR AGATES: AN ELECTRON BACKSCATTER DIFFRACTION (EBSD) ANALYSIS …………………………………………………………………..19 Abstract………………………………………………………………………...19 Introduction……………………………………………………………………19 Geologic setting………………………………………………………………...20 Methods……………………………………………………...…………………20 Results………………………………………………………….………………22 Discussion………………………………………………………………………26 Conclusions………………………………………………….…………………26 Acknowledgments……………………………………………………..………………28 References………………………………………………………………..……………28 3 Agates: a literature review and Electron Backscatter Diffraction study of Lake Superior agates Timothy J. Beaster Carleton College Senior Integrative Exercise March 9, 2005 Advisor: Cam Davidson 4 AGATES: A LITERATURE REVEW Introduction Agates, valued as semiprecious gemstones for their colorful, intricate banding, (Fig.1) are microcrystalline quartz nodules found in veins and cavities
    [Show full text]
  • Thirty-Fourth List of New Mineral Names
    MINERALOGICAL MAGAZINE, DECEMBER 1986, VOL. 50, PP. 741-61 Thirty-fourth list of new mineral names E. E. FEJER Department of Mineralogy, British Museum (Natural History), Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD THE present list contains 181 entries. Of these 148 are Alacranite. V. I. Popova, V. A. Popov, A. Clark, valid species, most of which have been approved by the V. O. Polyakov, and S. E. Borisovskii, 1986. Zap. IMA Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names, 115, 360. First found at Alacran, Pampa Larga, 17 are misspellings or erroneous transliterations, 9 are Chile by A. H. Clark in 1970 (rejected by IMA names published without IMA approval, 4 are variety because of insufficient data), then in 1980 at the names, 2 are spelling corrections, and one is a name applied to gem material. As in previous lists, contractions caldera of Uzon volcano, Kamchatka, USSR, as are used for the names of frequently cited journals and yellowish orange equant crystals up to 0.5 ram, other publications are abbreviated in italic. sometimes flattened on {100} with {100}, {111}, {ill}, and {110} faces, adamantine to greasy Abhurite. J. J. Matzko, H. T. Evans Jr., M. E. Mrose, lustre, poor {100} cleavage, brittle, H 1 Mono- and P. Aruscavage, 1985. C.M. 23, 233. At a clinic, P2/c, a 9.89(2), b 9.73(2), c 9.13(1) A, depth c.35 m, in an arm of the Red Sea, known as fl 101.84(5) ~ Z = 2; Dobs. 3.43(5), D~alr 3.43; Sharm Abhur, c.30 km north of Jiddah, Saudi reflectances and microhardness given.
    [Show full text]
  • 19, 2017 Namibia IGC 2017 N Amibia 35 TH IG C 2017 INTERNATIONAL GEMMOLOGICAL CONFERENCE NAMIBIA October 8 - 19, 2017 Namibia
    35 TH IG C 2017 INTERNATIONAL GEMMOLOGICAL CONFERENCE NAMIBIA October 8 - 19, 2017 Namibia IGC 2017 N 35 TH IG C 2017 INTERNATIONAL GEMMOLOGICAL amibia CONFERENCE NAMIBIA October 8 - 19, 2017 Namibia www.igc-gemmology.org 35th IGC 2017 – Windhoek, Namibia Introduction 35th International Gemmological Conference IGC October 2017 Windhoek, Namibia Dear colleagues of IGC, It is our great pleasure to host the 35th International Gemmological Conference in Windhoek, Namibia. The spectacu- lar landscape, the species-richness of wildlife and the variety of cultures and traditions make Namibia a very popular country to visit. For gemmologists Namibia is of highest interest because of its unique geology, mineral resources and gemstone potential. IGC is an important platform for distinguished gemmologists from all over the world to present and discuss their latest research works but also to cultivate friendship within the gemmological family. It is our great desire to thank the local organizer Andreas Palfi for his extraordinary work to realize the IGC in Namibia. The organizers of 35th International Gemmological Conference wish you an exciting and memorable conference. Dr. Ulrich Henn, Prof. Dr. Henry A. Hänni, Andreas G. Palfi MSc The organizers of the 35th International Gemmological Confe- rence in Namibia. From the left: Andreas Palfi, Ruth Palfi, Ulrich Henn, Annamarie Peyer, Henry A. Hänni at Okapuka Ranch, Namibia in 2016. 1 35th IGC 2017 – Windhoek, Namibia Introduction Organization of the 35th International Gemmological Conference Organizing Committee Dr. Ulrich Henn (German Gemmological Association) Prof. Dr. Henry A. Hänni (Swiss Gemmological Institute SSEF) Andreas G. Palfi MSc (local organizer, Consulting Exploration Geologist, Palfi, Holman and Associates, Geo Tours Namibia and Namibia Minerals) Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • MINERALOGY for PETROLOGISTS Comprising a Guidebook and a Full Color CD-ROM, This Reference Set Offers Illustrated Essentials to Study Mineralogy, Applied to Petrology
    MINERALOGY for PETROLOGISTS for MINERALOGY Comprising a guidebook and a full color CD-ROM, this reference set offers illustrated essentials to study mineralogy, applied to petrology. While there are some excellent reference works available on this subject, this work is unique for its data richness and its visual character. MINERALOGY for PETROLOGISTS With a collection of images that excels both in detail and aesthetics, 151 minerals are presented in more than 400 plates. Different facies and paragenesis, both in natural polarized light, are shown for every mineral and optical data, sketches of the crystal habitus, chemical composition, occurrence and a brief description are Optics, Chemistry and Occurrences included. The accompanying user guide gives a general introduction to microscope mineral observation, systematic mineralogy, mineral chemistry, occurrence, of Rock-Forming Minerals stability, paragenesis, structural formula calculation and its use in petrology. This compact set will serve as a field manual to students, researchers and Michel Demange professionals in geology, geological, mining, and mineral resources engineering to observe and determine minerals in their studies or field work. Dr. Michel Demange has devoted his career to regional geology and tectonics of metamorphic and magmatic terranes and to ore deposits. Graduated from the École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris and holding a Docteur-es-Sciences from the University Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris VI, he has been active in a rich variety of geological projects and investigations around the world. In combination with his teaching and research activities at the École des Mines in Paris, France, he headed various research studies. This book benefits from the great experience in field M.
    [Show full text]
  • Metamorphic Effects on Agate Found Near the Shap Granite, Cumbria, England: As Demonstrated by Petrography, X-Ray Diffraction and Spectroscopic Methods
    Mineralogical Magazine, August 2007, Vol. 71(4), pp. 461–476 Metamorphic effects on agate found near the Shap granite, Cumbria, England: as demonstrated by petrography, X-ray diffraction and spectroscopic methods 1, 2 2 T. MOXON *, S. J. B. REED AND M. ZHANG 1 55 Common Lane, Auckley, Doncaster DN9 3HX, UK 2 Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EQ, UK [Received 18 June 2007; Accepted 18 December 2007] ABSTRACT Agates from a 430 Ma host at Stockdale Beck, Cumbria, England have been characterized. The crystallite size of the Stockdale Beck agates was found to be ~60% greater than any other agates from five regions aged 400À1100 Ma. Raman spectroscopy identified moganite in all agates tested except those from Stockdale Beck. Infrared spectroscopy showed that the silanol content of the Stockdale Beck agates was near zero. The properties of agates from Stockdale Beck and the 1.84À3.48 Ga metamorphosed hosts found in Western Australia were similar but different from agates found in other hosts aged 400À1100 Ma. Cathodoluminescence demonstrates further differences between agates from hosts aged 13À1100 Ma and those from Stockdale Beck and Western Australia. Agates from the latter areas have a lower proportion of defects causing a red emission band (~660 nm) but an increased proportion of defects causing blue (~470 nm) and orange (~640 nm) emission bands. Agates found in hosts aged 13À1100 Ma are also differentiated from the Stockdale Beck and Western Australian agates in a ternary plot of the relative intensities of violet to blue to orange emission bands.
    [Show full text]
  • Laser Raman Identification of Silica Phases Comprising Microtextural
    Mineralogical Magazine, February 2003, Vol. 67(1), pp. 1–13 LaserRaman identification of silica phases comprisingmicrotexturalcomponents of sinters 1 2, K. A. RODGERS AND W. A. HAMPTON * 1 Research Associate, Australian Museum, College Street, Sydney, NSW,Australia 2 Department of Geology, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, NewZealand ABSTRACT LaserRaman spectroscopy is particularly well suited for routine characterization of the crystalline and thebetter ordered paracrystalline silica phases occurring in silica sinters: opal-C, quartz and moganite. Thenon-crystalline and poorly ordered paracrystalline silica phases (opal-CT and opal-A) are identified withdifficulty, partly as a resultof the high level of fluorescence exhibited by the younger sinters that aredominated by these phases, and partly as a resultof the ill-defined nature of the broad phonon scatteringbands produced by them. Nonetheless, given the limited number of phases present and the highlevel of phonon scattering from the better ordered phases, judicious use of a Ramanmicroprobe enablesthe character of most siliceous microtextural sinter components to be determined readily. Microprobeexamination of a seriesof New Zealandsinters, ranging from Late Quaternary to Pliocene inage shows that a silicaphase inhomogeneity that exists in some outcrops reflects an underlying phaseheterogeneity obtaining in the microstructure of the sinter; it is a consequenceof the phase transformationprocess. In the older sinters, quartz, moganite and opaline cristobalite may be present in asinglefabric element but in quite different proportions to their abundance in adjacent elements. Identificationof opaline lepispheres partially pseudomorphed by quartz+moganite and the association ofquartz+moganite in microcrystals exhibiting common quartz forms, cautions against the use of morphologyas a meansof identifying silica phases at the microstructural level.
    [Show full text]
  • Agate Recrystallisation: Evidence from Samples Found in Archaean and Proterozoic Host Rocks, Western Australia
    Australian Journal of Earth Sciences (2006) 53, (235 – 248) Agate recrystallisation: evidence from samples found in Archaean and Proterozoic host rocks, Western Australia T. MOXON1*, D. R. NELSON2 AND M. ZHANG3 155 Common Lane, Auckley, Doncaster DN9 3HX, UK. 2Department of Applied Physics, Curtin University of Technology, GPO Box U1987, Perth, WA 6001, Australia. 3Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EQ, UK. The crystallite size and density of agates from three Western Australian host rocks aged 1.84, 2.72 and 3.48 Ga have been determined. Infrared and Raman spectra from these ancient agates have respectively shown minimal water and zero moganite content. Data comparison of agates from Western Australian and younger hosts showed an advanced crystallisation in the Western Australian samples with, in some instances, the crystallite size comparable to macrocrystalline quartz. Low-grade metamorphism is present in the host rocks and localised heating is one possible cause of the increased crystallite growth. Micrographs of one agate sample from the Warrawoona Group (3.48 Ga) show a breakdown in the fibrous chalcedony; regional variations within the agate were supported by data from infrared and X-ray diffraction. It has been shown that part of the sample had undergone a transformation of the fibrous chalcedony to granular microcrystalline quartz. The Crystallinity Index for microcrystalline quartz, based upon the degree of resolution of the (212) quartz reflection, offers a rapid method to identify abnormal crystallite growth that could serve as a palaeoindicator of host-rock metamorphism. KEY WORDS: agate, Archaean, Crystallinity Index, infrared, moganite, Raman spectroscopy, recrys- tallisation, water, X-ray diffraction.
    [Show full text]
  • Spectroscopic Studies on Natural Gem- Agate in Sedimentary and Volcanic Host Rocks from (Bellesa, Addis Zemen and Bure), in Amhara National Regional State (Ethiopia)
    International Journal of Advanced Research in Chemical Science Volume 7, Issue 7, 2020, PP 13-26 ISSN No.: 2349-0403 DOI: https:// doi.org/10.20431/2349-0403.0707002 www.arcjournals.org Spectroscopic Studies on Natural Gem- Agate in Sedimentary and Volcanic Host Rocks from (Bellesa, Addis Zemen and Bure), in Amhara National Regional State (Ethiopia) Belaienesh Tesfa1, Walelign Wubet2, Meselu Eskezia1* 1Department of Chemistry, College of Natural and computational science, Oda Bultum University, Chiro, Ethiopia 2Department of Chemistry, College of Natural and computational science, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia *Corresponding Author: Meselu Eskezia, Department of Chemistry, College of Natural and computational science, Oda Bultum University, Chiro, Ethiopia Abstract: The representative samples of gem-agate were collected from bellesa, addis zemen and bure. The samples were identified and characterized by different physical property measuring devices and advanced spectroscopic techniques. In order to verify that the samples were indeed agate a refractometer, heavy liquid method and "MOHS HARDNESS PENCILS" were used. The performed physical analysis shows that the hardness value of addis zemen and bure agate are in the range of 6.5-7 and that of bellesa agate is 7 while the refractive index and specific gravity of both agate samples are similar and in the range of 1.53-1.54 and 2.4- 2.7 respectively. The XRD and FTIR spectral data of agate samples from three zones of the Amhara National Regional state have a significant contribution in their identification and characterization. The content of different trace elements (Ca, Mg, Fe, Cu, Cd and Mn) was analyzed by FAAS technique.
    [Show full text]