If you no longer need this publication write to the Geological Survey in Washington for an official mailing label to use in returning it UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR RELATIVE ABUNDANCE OF NICKEL IN THE EARTH'S CRUST GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 205-A UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERI6& Harold L. Ickes, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY W. E. Wrather, Director Professional Paper 205-A RELATIVE ABUNDANCE OF NICKEL IN THE EARTH'S CRUST BY ROGER CLARK WELLS Shorter contributions to general geology, 1943 (Pages 1-21) UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON : 1943 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C. Price 10 cents CONTENTS Page Page Abstract ___ ___-_____-_-_-_____-___-__--___---_____ 1 Nickel content of different rocks and minerals — Con. Introduction _____________________________________ 1 Sedimentary rocks__----------__------------- 10 General properties "of nickel. ____________________ 1 Sandstone. _ _ .___-_______-_-.__-__---__- 10 Associations and distribution of nickel_.___ ______ 2 Shale and clay____-__-___-_---_-------__- 10 Methods for the separation and determination of nickel. 2 • Limestone __________________-__-_---___- 11 General considerations __ . _______-_______-._-_-_ 2 Metamorphic rocks _ _____-..___________---____ 11 Basic acetate method._ _ .____'____.____________ 3 Gneiss _ ________________________________ 11 Ordinary procedure ___---___--_-.__________ 3 Schist. __ -,-.-_-- _ _ ____ ___________ 11 Brunk-Funk modification. _________________ 3 11 Mittasch procedure ----____________________ 3 Minerals _ ________-_____-_______-_-___---_-____ 11 Barium carbonate method. ________________ _____ 4 Anthophyllite ______________________________ 11 Blum's method. _.___. _________________________ 4 Chromite_ ________ _________--_-_-_-___-_-_. 11 Ardagh-Broughall method. .___.._____-________ 4 Iron ore minerals ___-___--_-_--_______.___-_- 12 Fairchild's method_ ___________________________ 4 Kryptomelane _ _____________ _______________ 12 Ether method. -__.-_-_-_--________-_______-__ 5 Lignite _____________________________________ 12 Dimethylglyoxime method. _-_-_____-_-_______. 5 Nontronite _ ___ ___________________________ 12 Rollet's method _ ___-___-_-_-_____-_____-_____ 5 Olivine_ ______ _ _-_.___-.__-_-_--__ _ _ _ 12 Sandell-Perlich method. _________________________ 5 Polianite. __ _____-_-__-____-- __ _.._..._. 12 Electrolytic method. __________________________ 6 Pyrite— -_-------------_- .______-_-_-______ 12 Nickel content of different rocks and minerals. _______ 6 Serpentine __________-__-__----____---___--- 12 Igneous rocks _________________________________ 7 Talc. _.__-____-__---___------_--_--------- 13 7 Nickel content of the earth's crust _-----___---________ 13 Granite _ __ 7 Methods of calculation _______ ___________________ 13 Dacite __ __ 7 Results by older methods _-__--___-_--______- 13 Granodiorite 7 Factors influencing new calculations _ ________ 14 Trachyte _-- 7 Density of rocks and nickel content__-____ 14 Syen ite _____ Distribution of different kinds of mate­ Latite ______ rial in the earth's crust ____________ 14 Monzonite_ _ Evidence from earthquake wave3.. 15 Andesite_ _ __ Evidence from isostasy___ _______ 15 Diorite _____ Uncertainties of extrapolation-...,..- 15 Phonolite_ __ 9 Altitude and nickel content. _____________ 16 Shonkinite_ _ 9 Distribution of sedimentary and igneous Basalt _ ___ 9 rocks at different altitudes. _ _...____ 17 Diabase ____ 9 New calculations for the relative abundance of Gabbro _ ._ 10 nickel in the 10-mile crust_________________ 17 Pyroxenite. _ 10 Summary and conclusions_______.________________ 18 Peridotite — 10 Index. _ ________ _ ____.-_--_.__ ____ _ _ _ __ . _ 21 ILLUSTRATIONS Page FIGURE 1. Relation of nickel content to density of rock. ._____________________.-___-._-___-___-____-__-_-_--_-_-___ 14 2. Density-altitude gradients _____ ____.__..__ ._______-__________-_________-_-_-_-_-____-_--__---_--___---_ 15 3. Curve showing increase of nickel content with decrease of altitude, assuming a uniformly increasing density gradient._-.______-___________.__-_.____-_.__-__________. .._-______________I__-___-_____-_-__.-_— 16 4. Curve showing increase of nickel content with decrease of altitude, assuming an S-shaped density gradient-— . 17 n SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEOLOGY, 1943 RELATIVE ABUNDANCE OF NICKEL IN THE EARTH'S CRUST By KOGEE CLARK WELLS ABSTRACT crust,1 recent advances in the analytical chemistry of Nickel has heretofore been considered to be about the twenty- nickel have cast some doubt on the older figures for the second element in order of abundance in the earth's crust, but percentage of nickel in many of the rocks used in com­ the results of improved analytical methods have raised some puting its relative abundance, so that a revaluation seems doubts about the accuracy of earlier estimates. The excellent method of Sandell and Perlich, using dimethylglyoxime as a appropriate. reagent and solution of the nickel salt in chloroform as an es­ The element nickel is of interest for several reasons. sential step, makes it possible to determine nickel to ten-thou­ Based on analogy to meteorites, the core of the earth is sandths of a percent with a gram or less of material in a rela­ supposedly rich in nickel, yet this element does not seem tively short time. This method compares very well with the to have worked outward as far as the crust to any marked spectrographic method. extent. Even stony meteorites, which are believed to More than 150 new determinations of nickel were made on samples of rocks previously analyzed in the chemical laboratory have contributed to the earth's surface to some extent, of the Geological Survey, and they accordingly supplement the contain far more nickel than the earth's crust. It is previous analyses in respect to nickel, an element that is of therefore evident that the processes that have produced interest as one of the so-called strategic metals. the rocks of the crust have tended to leave nickel behird, Nickel was determined in all the common types of rock, includ­ presumably at depths in the earth. ing the more silicic as well as the highly ferroniagnesian, but it is decidedly more abundant in the ferroniagnesian rocks, the content So far as known nickel consists of a mixture of five being markedly high in dunite, peridotite, and other rocks con­ isotopes whose mass numbers are 58, 60, 61, 62, and f4, taining olivine. It is present in most shales and in many silts giving a mean atomic weight of 58.69. This atomic and clays, including abyssal oceanic red clay. It is also found in weight is slightly less than that of cobalt, 58.94, although sea water, in some peat and petroleum, and in minor quantities in its properties nickel falls in the periodic arrangement in several minerals not generally classified as nickel minerals. The new analyses usually showed the nickel content to be less beyond cobalt. It is the third element in the triad, ircn, than that indicated in the older determinations for the lighter cobalt, and nickel. The atomic number of nickel is 28, rocks but of the same order for the heavier rocks. In general the and accordingly the element is neither very common nor percentage of nickel increases with the density of the rock. very rare. The atomic radius of the nickel ion is 0.78 These new data afford a basis for recalculating the amount of Angstrom units, which is identical with that of mag­ nickel in the crust. The average of all new determinations of nickel in igneous rocks is about 0.008 percent, disregarding the nesium and comparable with 0.83 A. for iron and 1.06 A. probable increase in density of rocks with depth. This figure for calcium. is believed to be a decided minimum. Instead of merely averaging In analytical operations nickel falls in the "ammonium the results, however, the nickel content has been correlated with sulfide group" with cobalt, manganese, and zinc, which density of the rock, and the distribution of ocean, sedimentary for the most part remain in solution after the hydroxides material, and igneous rock in the 10-mile crust has been given consideration. If the density of rocks in the 10-mile crust in­ of aluminum, iron, and several other elements are pre­ creases rapidly with depth, as indicated by Washington, the cipitated by ammonium hydroxide. The failure to ob­ nickel content may possibly be as high as 0.033, although this tain a good separation in such analyses is one reason for figure is believed to be a maximum. It is difficult to make an the present contribution and will be discussed more fully accurate estimate under present limitations of knowledge, but later. 0.016 percent of nickel is considered a reasonable figure for the relative abundance of this element in the whole 10-mile crust. A second doubt as to the correctness of the figures for the relative abundance of nickel now in current use aris?s INTRODUCTION from the fact that estimates have been obtained chiefy by averaging available analyses without giving any -con- GENEEAL PEOPEETIES OF NICKEL Although nickel has been found to be about the twenty- 1 Clarke, F. W., and Washington, H. S., The composition of the earth's crust: U. S. Geol. Survey Prof. Paper 127, p. 34, 1924. Fersman, second element in order of abundance in the earth's A. E., Geokhimiiit, tome 1, p. 145, Leningrad, 1933. SHORTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO GENERAL GEiOLOGY, 1943 sideration to the volumes of the earth's crust occupied by Spain. In New Caledonia a serpentine is capped with the rocks analyzed—that is, to the actual relative abun­ red "clay" containing from 1.64 to 3.14 percent c f nickel dance of nickel.