Phosphoinnelite, Ba4Na3Ti3Si4O14(PO4,SO4)2(O,F)3, a new mineral species from peralkaline pegmatite of the Kovdor pluton, Kola Peninsula

Phosphoinnelite, an analogue of innelite with P > S, has been found in a peralkaline pegmatite vein crosscutting calcite carbonatite at the phlogopite deposit, Kovdor pluton, Kola Peninsula. Cancrinite (partly replaced with thomsonite-Ca), orthoclase, aegirine-augite, pectolite, magnesioarfvedsonite, golyshevite, and fluorapatite are associated minerals. Phosphoinnelite occurs as lath-shaped crystals up to 0.2 × 1 × 6 mm in size, which are combined typically in bunch-, sheaf-, and rosettelike segregations. The color is yellow-brown, with vitreous luster on crystal faces and greasy luster on broken surfaces. The mineral is transparent. The streak is pale yellowish. Phosphoinnelite is brittle, with perfect cleavage parallel to the {010} and good cleavage parallel to the {100}; the fracture is stepped. The Mohs hardness is 4.5 to 5. Density is 3.82 g/cm³ (meas.) and 3.92 g/cm³ (calc.). Phosphoinnelite is biaxial (+), α = 1.730, β = 1.745, and γ = 1.764, 2V (meas.) is close to 90°. Optical orientation is Z^c ∼ 5°. Chemical composition determined by electron microprobe is as follows (wt %): 6.06 Na₂O, 0.04 K₂O, 0.15 CaO, 0.99 SrO, 41.60 BaO, 0.64 MgO, 1.07 MnO, 1.55 Fe₂O₃, 0.27 Al₂O₃, 17.83 SiO₂, 16.88 TiO₂, 0.74 Nb₂O₅, 5.93 P₂O₅, 5.29 SO₃, 0.14 F, −O=F₂ = −0.06, total is 99.12. The empirical formula calculated on the basis of (Si,Al)₄O₁₄ is (Ba_3.59Sr_0.13K_0.01)_Σ3.73(Na_2.59Mg_0.21Ca_0.04)_Σ3.04(Ti_2.80Fe _0.26 ³⁺ Nb_0.07)_Σ3.13[(Si_3.93Al_0.07)_Σ4O₁₄(P_1.11S_0.87)_Σ1.98O_7.96](O_2.975F_0.10)_Σ3.075. The simplified formula is Ba₄Na₃Ti₃Si₄O₁₄(PO₄,SO₄)₂(O,F)₃. The mineral is triclinic, space group P or P1. The unit cell dimensions are a = 5.38, b = 7.10, c = 14.76 ?; α = 99.00°, β = 94.94°, γ = 90.14°; and V = 555 ?³, Z = 1. The strongest lines of the X-ray powder pattern [d, ? in (I)(hkl)] are: 14.5(100)(001), 3.455(40)(103), 3.382(35)(0 2), 2.921(35)(005), 2.810(40)(1 4), 2.683(90)(200, 01), 2.133(80)( 2), 2.059(40)(204, 1 3, 221), 1.772(30)(0 1, 1 7, 2 2, 2 3). The infrared spectrum is demonstrated. An admixture of P substituting S has been detected in the innelite samples from the Inagli pluton (South Yakutia, Russia). An innelite-phosphoinnelite series with a variable S/P ratio has been discovered. The type material of phosphoinnelite has been deposited at the Fersman Mineralogical Museum, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow. Original Russian Text ? I.V. Pekov, N.V. Chukanov, I.M. Kulikova, D.I. Belakovsky, 2006, published in Zapiski Rossiiskogo Mineralogicheskogo Obshchestva, 2006, No. 3, pp. 52–60. Considered and recommended by the Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names, Russian Mineralogical Society, May 9, 2005. Approved by the Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names, International Mineralogical Association, July 4, 2005 (proposal 2005-022).     

Britvinite, Pb15Mg9(Si10O28)(BO3)4(CO3)2(OH)12O2, a new mineral species from Långban, Sweden

Britvinite, a new mineral species, has been found in manganese ore at the Långban deposit, Bergslagen ore district, Filipstad, Värmland County, Sweden. Calcite, barytocalcite, brucite, cerussite, and hausmannite are associated minerals. Britvinite occurs as pale yellow to colorless transparent plates with a white streak up to 0.2 × 0.5 × 0.5 mm in size, which are flat parallel to {001}; the luster is adamantine. Thin lamellae are flexible, whereas thick ones are brittle; the Mohs hardness is 3. The cleavage is eminent parallel to {001}. The calculated density is 5.51 g/cm³. In the infrared spectrum of the new mineral, the bands of (OH)?, (CO₃)^2?, and (BO₃)^3? are recorded, whereas those corresponding to water molecules are absent. Britvinite is optically biaxial and negative, α = 1.896(2), β = 1.903(2), γ = 1.903(2), 2Vmeas = 20(10), Z≈c. Dispersion is strong, r<v. The chemical composition (electron microprobe; H₂O determined with the Alimarin method, CO₂, with selective sorption) is (wt %) 7.95 MgO, 71.92 PbO, 0.41 Al₂O₃, 12.77 SiO₂, 2.2 H₂O, 2.1 CO₂, 2.67 B₂O₃ (calculated on the basis of structural data); total 100.02. The empirical formula calculated on the basis of 59 anions (O + OH) (Z = 1) is as follows: Pb_14.75Mg_9.03Si_9.73Al_0.37O_30.76(BO₃)_3.51(CO₃)_2.18(OH)_11.7. The simplified formula (Z = 2) is Pb_{7 + x} Mg_4.5(Si₅O₁₄)(BO₃)₂(CO₃)(OH,O)₇ (x < 0.5). The crystal structure of britvinite has been studied on a single crystal at 173 K; R = 0.0547. The new mineral is triclinic, space group P $ \bar 1 Britvinite, a new mineral species, has been found in manganese ore at the L?ngban deposit, Bergslagen ore district, Filipstad, V?rmland County, Sweden. Calcite, barytocalcite, brucite, cerussite, and hausmannite are associated minerals. Britvinite occurs as pale yellow to colorless transparent plates with a white streak up to 0.2 × 0.5 × 0.5 mm in size, which are flat parallel to {001}; the luster is adamantine. Thin lamellae are flexible, whereas thick ones are brittle; the Mohs hardness is 3. The cleavage is eminent parallel to {001}. The calculated density is 5.51 g/cm³. In the infrared spectrum of the new mineral, the bands of (OH)−, (CO₃)²⁻, and (BO₃)³⁻ are recorded, whereas those corresponding to water molecules are absent. Britvinite is optically biaxial and negative, α = 1.896(2), β = 1.903(2), γ = 1.903(2), 2Vmeas = 20(10), Z≈c. Dispersion is strong, r<v. The chemical composition (electron microprobe; H₂O determined with the Alimarin method, CO₂, with selective sorption) is (wt %) 7.95 MgO, 71.92 PbO, 0.41 Al₂O₃, 12.77 SiO₂, 2.2 H₂O, 2.1 CO₂, 2.67 B₂O₃ (calculated on the basis of structural data); total 100.02. The empirical formula calculated on the basis of 59 anions (O + OH) (Z = 1) is as follows: Pb_14.75Mg_9.03Si_9.73Al_0.37O_30.76(BO₃)_3.51(CO₃)_2.18(OH)_11.7. The simplified formula (Z = 2) is Pb_{7 + x} Mg_4.5(Si₅O₁₄)(BO₃)₂(CO₃)(OH,O)₇ (x < 0.5). The crystal structure of britvinite has been studied on a single crystal at 173 K; R = 0.0547. The new mineral is triclinic, space group P ; the unit-cell dimensions are a = 9.3409(8), b = 9.3597(7), c = 18.8333(14) ?, α = 80.365(6)°, β = 75.816(6)°, γ = 59.870(5)°, V = 1378.74(19) ?³. The structure consists of alternating TOT stacks (containing octahedral brucite-like and discontinuous tetrahedral (Si₅O₁₄)_∞∞ layers) and multilayered [Pb_7.1(OH)_3.6(CO₃)(BO₃)_1.75(SiO₄)_0.25]_∞∞ blocks. The strongest reflections in the X-ray powder diffraction pattern [d, ? (I, %)(hkl)] are 18.1(100)(001), 3.39(30)(12, 14, 015), 3.02(90)(006, 130, 106, 20, 11), 2.698(70)(332, 134, 030, 1), 2.275(30)(008, 420, 424), 1.867(30)(446, 239, 2.1.10, 18), 1.766(40)(151, 31, 10, 453, 542, 512, 42), 1.519(40)(0.0.12). The mineral has been named in honor of Sergei Nikolaevich Britvin (b. 1965), a Russian mineralogist. The type material of britvinite is deposited in the Fersman Mineralogical Museum, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow. The registration number is 3458/1. Original Russian Text ? N.V. Chukanov, O.V. Yakubovich, I.V. Pekov, D.I. Belakovsky, W. Massa, 2007, published in Zapiski Rossiiskogo Mineralogicheskogo Obshchestva, 2007, Pt CXXXVI, No. 6, pp. 18–25. The new mineral britvinite and its name were accepted by the Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names, Russian Mineralogical Society, June 7, 2006, and approved by the Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names, International Mineralogical Association, October 17, 2006.     

The origin of the high-K latites from Camp Creek,Arizona: constraints from experiments with variable fO2 and a_{{\text{H}}_{\text{2}} {\text{O}}}

Near-liquidus melting experiments were performed on a high-K latite at fO₂'s ranging from iron-wustite-graphite (IWG) to nickel-nickel oxide (NNO) in the presence of a C-O-H fluid phase. Clinopyroxene is a liquidus phase under all conditions. At IWG , the liquidus at 10 kb is about 1,150° C but is depressed to 1,025° C at NNO and . Phlogopite and apatite are near-liquidus phases, with apatite crystallizing first at pressures below 10 kb. Phlogopite is a liquidus phase only at NNO and high . Under all conditions the high-K latites show a large crystallization interval with phlogopite becoming the dominant crystalline phase with decreasing temperature. Increasing fO₂ affects phlogopite crystallization but the liquidus temperature is essentially a function of . The chemical compositions of the near-liquidus phases support formation of the high-K latites under oxidizing conditions (NNO or higher) and high . It is concluded from the temperature of the H₂O-saturated liquidus at 10 kb, the groundmass: crystal ratio and presence of chilled latite margins around some xenoliths that the Camp Creek high-K latite magma passed thru the lower crust at temperatures of 1,000° C or more.     

Fe-Mg cordierite stability in high-grade pelitic rocks based on experimental,theoretical, and natural observations

Stability relations of Fe-Mg cordierite with K feldspar have been determined for conditions of muscovite-quartz instability, applicable to highgrade metamorphism of pelitic rocks. Fe cordierite, K feldspar, and water break down to Fe biotite, sillimanite, and quartz at pressures above a line through 640 ° C, 2kbar and 710 ° C, 2.7 kbar. A P-X diagram for the Fe-Mg analogue of this reaction at 675 ° C is consistent with a naturally occuring cordierite-biotite K _D value of 0.53 if Al content of biotite and cordierite water of hydration are taken into account.At higher temperatures Fe cordierite breaks down alone to almandine, sillimanite, quartz and water at pressures above a line through 650 ° C, 3.41 kbar and 760 ° C, 2.9 kbar. For the Fe-Mg reaction, P-X data up to 4 kbar may be extrapolated with use of natural K _D values increasing toward one with increasing temperatures.Lines of constant cordierite composition for the two reactions intersect in an Fe-Mg univariant reaction of sillimanite-biotite-quartz to cordieritealmandine-K feldspar-water which is metastable relative to melt at = P _tot Reduced water pressure and impurities in the garnet and K feldspar greatly reduce the temperature of this reaction so that it becomes a reasonable reaction for upper amphibolite and granulite facies conditions.The results demonstrate that (1) cordierite may be used as a geobarometer if temperature and approximate can be estimated, (2) almandine low in Mn and Ca does not participate in cordierite reactions where muscovite is present, and (3) the reaction which forms cordierite, almandine, and K feldspar is a possible melt-forming reaction which, under reduced , occurs about 50 ° C above the muscovite melting reaction.     

Partition of Ni between olivine and sulfide: equilibria with sulfide-oxide liquids

The partition of Ni between olivine and monosulfide-oxide liquid has been investigated at 1300–1395° C, =10^–8-9–10^–6.8, and =10^–2.0–10^–0.9, over the composition range 20–79 mol. % NiS. The product olivine compositions varied from Fo98 to Fo59 and from 0.06 to 3.11 wt% NiO. The metal/sulfur ratio of the sulfide-oxide liquid increases with increase in , decrease in , and increase in NiS content. The Ni/Fe exchange reaction has been perfectly reversed using natural olivine and pure forsterite as starting materials. The FeO and NiO contents of olivine from runs equilibrated at the same and form isobaric distributions with NiS content, which, to a first approximation, are dependent at constant temperature and total pressure on a variable term, –0.5 log ( / ). The Ni/Fe distribution coefficient (K _D3) exhibits only a weak decrease from 35 to 29 with increase in from the IW buffer to close to the FMQ buffer. At values higher than FMQ, the sulfide-oxide liquid has the approximate composition (Ni,Fe)₃±_xS₂K _D358. The present K _D3 vs O/(S+O) data define a trend which extrapolates to K _D320 at 10 wt% oxygen in the sulfide-oxide liquid. The compositions of olivine and Ni-Cu sulfides associated with early-magmatic basic rocks and komatiites are consistent, at 1400° C, with a value of -log ( / ) of about 7.7, which is equivalent to 0.0 wt% oxygen in the hypothesized immiscible sulfide-oxide liquid. Therefore, K _D3 would not be reduced significantly from the 30 to 35 range for sulfide-oxide liquids with low oxygen contents.     

Fluid regime and the behavior of ore, trace, and rare-earth elements during granitization of metagabbro-norites of the Belomorian Group (Gorelyi Island, Kandalaksha Bay)

The study of metagabbro-norites of the Belomorian Group metamorphosed under the amphibolite-lower granulite facies conditions (Gorelyi Island, Kandalaksha Bay) showed that at contact with Bt-Hbl-Kfs-Pl-Qtz gneiss-granites they were affected by silicic-alkaline H₂O-Cl-CO₂ brines, which caused the enrichment in alkalis, silica, Rb, Ba, Pb, Zr, LREE and redistribution of Cu, Zn, Cr, Co, V, and Ni along the filtration pathway. The granitization of metagabbro-norite proceeded simultaneously with increase in fluid oxygen fugacity from one log unit below to four log units above QFM. The microprobe determinations of Cl content in biotites and apatites made it possible to calculate variations in the $ f_{H_2 O} The study of metagabbro-norites of the Belomorian Group metamorphosed under the amphibolite-lower granulite facies conditions (Gorelyi Island, Kandalaksha Bay) showed that at contact with Bt-Hbl-Kfs-Pl-Qtz gneiss-granites they were affected by silicic-alkaline H₂O-Cl-CO₂ brines, which caused the enrichment in alkalis, silica, Rb, Ba, Pb, Zr, LREE and redistribution of Cu, Zn, Cr, Co, V, and Ni along the filtration pathway. The granitization of metagabbro-norite proceeded simultaneously with increase in fluid oxygen fugacity from one log unit below to four log units above QFM. The microprobe determinations of Cl content in biotites and apatites made it possible to calculate variations in the -f _HCl relations in fluid during its percolation through the rock. It was shown that biotite was formed at metamorphic peak in the presence of highly aggressive high-f _HCl fluids (log /f _HCl ≈ 0.8–1.2). Apatite was formed in the presence of less acid and more aqueous residual solutions (log /f _HCl ≈ 2.98−3.91), which presumably lost their salt components at metamorphic peak. The calculations showed that the flux of fluid that percolated through the rock during granitization accounted for q ≈ 4 × 10² to 2 × 10³ cm³/cm². Due to insignificant volume of the fluid, the transformations spanned only marginal part of the metagabbro-norites on Gorelyi Island. Original Russian Text ? L.I. Khodorevskaya, 2009, published in Petrologiya, 2009, Vol. 17, No. 4, pp. 397–414.     

Fe2+-Mg2+ partition between coexisting cordierite and garnet — a discussion of the experimental data

The partition of iron and magnesium between cordierite and garnet depends on as well as temperature. The apparently conflicting experimental data on the values of K _D may be reconciled by considering the pertaining during the different experiments.     

Spontaneous strain below the I\bar 1 - P\bar 1 transition in anorthite at pressure

The phase transition between the and phases of anorthite has been studied at elevated pressure by single-crystal X-ray diffraction in a diamond-anvil cell. The phase transition is shown to be first-order in character for both end-member anorthite (CaAl₂Si₂O₈) and for an anorthite with a small amount of albite component (NaAlSi₃O₈) in solid solution. Reversals of the transition across the phase boundary at three other compositions show that the transition pressure (P _Tr) increases with increasing albite content. This behaviour is compared with that observed at elevated temperatures, and is analysed in terms of Landau theory.     

H,O,S and Pb isotope studies of uranium ore deposits in granitoid rocks of South China

Most altered clay minerals in uranium ore deposits in granites in the selected provinces of South China haveδ ¹⁸O _m values ranging from 6.22 to 7.24,δD_m from −60 to −70,δ ¹⁸O from +3.05 to −3.07, and from −20.2 to −37.5‰. Relative enrichment of³²S in the uranium ore deposits and greater variations in Pb isotopic composition of galenas from them show that uranium ores in the granites were formed in such a way that uranium in shallow-source granites had been mobilized by heated meteoric waters and then migrated to local favourable locations along great faults to form uranium ore deposits. Zhang Shaoli, Yang Wenjin, Tang Chunjing and Xu Wenxin did part of this work.     

The graphite-COH fluid equilibrium in P,T, f_{O_2 } space

The oxygen fugacity ( ) of a C-O-H fluid in equilibrium with graphite has been determined in the range 10–30 kbar by equilibrating solid -buffer assemblages in graphite capsules containing C-O-H fluid. By using different buffers (Fe_xO-Fe₃O₄, Ni-NiO, Co-CoO, Mo-MoO₂), the of the graphite-saturated fluid is bracketed within a narrow range. This technique produces a calibration for the imposed on a sample contained within a graphite capsule. To achieve a thermodynamically-invariant system at fixed P and T, the was imposed on the system with an external buffer and the double-capsule technique. The experiments were performed in solid-media, high pressure apparatus with 19 mm tale-pyrex assemblies. A series of experiments at 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 kbar, 800–1600° C, with imposed by the Fe₂O₃-Fe₃O₄-H₂O equilibrium were conducted. The experimental results have been fitted to the following equation:

Cordierite gneisses and associated lithologies of the Guri area,Northwest Guayana Shield,Venezuela

Gneisses in the Guri area of the Venezuelan Guayana Shield contain mineral assemblages with cordierite, garnet, sillimanite, hypersthene, biotite and Fe-Ti oxide intergrowths.Analysis of mineral assemblages and compositional relationships in the light of experimental data indicate metamorphic conditions of 725–800° C, 5–6 kb P _T , <P _T for the highest grade rocks and 650–700° C, 5–7 kb P _T , approximating P _T for the lowest grade rocks. Oxygen fugacities in different lithologies ranged between those of the MH and QFM buffers.The distribution coefficient K _D (Mg-Fe) (gar-bio), decreases by 0.006 per atom percent increase in (Mn/Mn+Mg+Fe)gar, falls in the range of K _D typical of the sillimanite-K feldspar zone and granulite facies, and is systematically lower in lower grade rocks-all in accord with observation in other localities. K _D (Mg-Fe) (cord-bio) ranges from 3.0 in the highest grade rocks to 10.0 in the lowest grade rocks, appears independent of FeO/MgO of cordierite or biotite, and varies systematically with grade. In contrast with conclusions based on observation in other localities, data from the Guri area suggest -K_D(cord-bio) may be a sensitive index of grade.A number of mineralogic and geologic observations are difficultly reconciled with existing experimental data.     

Do carbonate liquids become denser than silicate liquids at pressure? Constraints from the fusion curve of K<Subscript>2</Subscript>CO<Subscript>3</Subscript> to 3.2 GPa

Brackets on the melting temperature of K₂CO₃ were experimentally determined at 1.86 ± 0.02 GPa (1,163–1,167°C), 2.79 ± 0.03 GPa (1,187–1,195°C), and 3.16 ± 0.04 GPa (1,183–1,189°C) in a piston-cylinder apparatus. These new data, in combination with published experiments at low pressure (<0.5 GPa), establish the K₂CO₃ fusion curve to 3.2 GPa. On the basis of these experiments and published thermodynamic data for crystalline and liquid K₂CO₃, the high-pressure density and compressibility of K₂CO₃ liquid were derived from the fusion curve. The pressure dependence of the liquid compressibility (K′₀ = dK ₀/dP, where K ₀ = 1/β₀) is between 16.2 and 11.6, with a best estimate of 13.7, in a third-order Birch–Murnaghan equation of state (EOS). This liquid K′₀ leads to a density of 2,175 ± 36 kg/m³ at 4 GPa and 1,500°C, which is ∼30% lower than that reported in the literature on the basis of the falling-sphere method at the same conditions. The uncertainty in the liquid K′₀ leads to an error in melt density of ± 2% at 4 GPa; the error decreases with decreasing pressure. With a K′₀ of 13.7, the compressibility of K₂CO₃ at 1,500°C and 1 bar (K ₀ = 3.8 GPa) drops rapidly with increasing pressure ( ), which prevents a density crossover with silicate melts, such as CaAlSi₂O₈ and CaMgSi₂O₆, at upper mantle depths.     

Petrology, geothermobarometry and C-O-H-S fluid compositions in the environs of Rampura-Agucha Zn-(Pb) ore deposit, Bhilwara District, Rajasthan

The massive Zn-(Pb) sulfide ore body at Rampura-Agucha in Bhilwara district, Rajasthan, occurs within graphitic metapelites surrounded by garnet-biotite-sillimanite gneiss containing concordant bodies of amphibolite. These rocks and the sulfide ores have been studied to estimate the pressure, temperature and fluid composition associated with upper amphibolite facies metamorphism. Geothermobarometric calculations involving garnet-biotite and garnet-hornblende pairs, as well as sphalerite-hexagonal pyrrhotite-pyrite and garnet-plagioclase-sillimanite-quartz assemblages indicate that the most pervasive P-T condition during peak of regional metamorphism was 650°C and 6 kb, and was attained between the first and second deformations in the region. Some temperature-pressure estimates also cluster around 500°C–5.1 kb which probably represent retrograde cooling during unloading. Consideration of devolatilization equilibria in the C-O-H-S system at the pervasive metamorphic conditions mentioned above shows that the metamorphic fluid was H₂O-rich ( ) but also had a substantial component of . and were the other important phases in the fluid. CO (X_CO = 0.002) and were the minor phases in the fluid. It is probable that a part of this aqueous fluid was consumed by re-/neocrystallization of hydrous silicate phases like chlorite during the retrogressive metamorphic path, so that fluid entrapped in quartz below 450°C was rendered CO₂-rich (Holleret al 1996).     

Phase equilibria in carbonic systems,and their application to freezing studies of fluid inclusions

Addition of CH₄ to CO₂ lowers the temperatures at which phase changes occur with respect to those in the unary system CO₂. At high density and high a melting interval of solid CO₂ can be expected. Rearrangement of currently available theoretical and experimental data permits bulk compositions of carbonic fluid inclusions to be determined from the final melting temperature of CO₂ and the degree of filling at that temperature. Homogenization temperatures of CO₂-CH₄ inclusions can be expressed in terms of equivalent CO₂-densities, permitting estimates of P-T relations using isochores in the unary system CO₂.     

Middendorfite,K<Subscript>3</Subscript>Na<Subscript>2</Subscript>Mn<Subscript>5</Subscript>Si<Subscript>12</Subscript>(O,OH)<Subscript>36</Subscript> · 2H<Subscript>2</Subscript>O,a new mineral species from the Khibiny pluton,Kola Peninsula

Middendorfite, a new mineral species, has been found in a hydrothermal assemblage in Hilairite hyperperalkaline pegmatite at the Kirovsky Mine, Mount Kukisvumchorr apatite deposit, Khibiny alkaline pluton, Kola Peninsula, Russia. Microcline, sodalite, cancrisilite, aegirine, calcite, natrolite, fluorite, narsarsukite, labuntsovite-Mn, mangan-neptunite, and donnayite are associated minerals. Middendorfite occurs as rhombshaped lamellar and tabular crystals up to 0.1 × 0.2 × 0.4 mm in size, which are combined in worm-and fanlike segregations up to 1 mm in size. The color is dark to bright orange, with a yellowish streak and vitreous luster. The mineral is transparent. The cleavage (001) is perfect, micalike; the fracture is scaly; flakes are flexible but not elastic. The Mohs hardness is 3 to 3.5. Density is 2.60 g/cm³ (meas.) and 2.65 g/cm³ (calc.). Middendorfite is biaxial (?), α = 1.534, β = 1.562, and γ = 1.563; 2V (meas.) = 10°. The mineral is pleochroic strongly from yellowish to colorless on X through brown on Y and to deep brown on Z. Optical orientation: X = c. The chemical composition (electron microprobe, H₂O determined with Penfield method) is as follows (wt %): 4.55 Na₂O, 10.16 K₂O, 0.11 CaO, 0.18 MgO, 24.88 MnO, 0.68 FeO, 0.15 ZnO, 0.20 Al₂O₃, 50.87 SiO₂, 0.17 TiO₂, 0.23 F, 7.73 H₂O; ?O=F₂?0.10, total is 99.81. The empirical formula calculated on the basis of (Si,Al)₁₂(O,OH,F)₃₆ is K_3.04(Na_2.07Ca_0.03)_Σ2.10(Mn_4.95Fe_0.13Mg_0.06Ti_0.03Zn_0.03)_Σ5.20(Si_11.94Al_0.06)_Σ12O_27.57(OH)_8.26F_0.17 · 1.92H₂O. The simplified formula is K₃Na₂Mn₅Si₁₂(O,OH)₃₆ · 2H₂O. Middenforite is monoclinic, space group: P2₁/m or P2₁. The unit cell dimensions are a = 12.55, b = 5.721, c = 26.86 Å; β = 114.04°, V = 1761 ų, Z = 2. The strongest lines in the X-ray powder pattern [d, Å, (I)(hkl)] are: 12.28(100)(002), 4.31(81)(11\(\overline 4 \)), 3.555(62)(301, 212), 3.063(52)(008, 31\(\overline 6 \)), 2.840(90)(312, 021, 30\(\overline 9 \)), 2.634(88)(21\(\overline 9 \), 1.0.\(\overline 1 \)0, 12\(\overline 4 \)), 2.366(76)(22\(\overline 6 \), 3.1.\(\overline 1 \)0, 32\(\overline 3 \)), 2.109(54)(42–33, 42–44, 51\(\overline 9 \), 414), 1.669(64)(2.2.\(\overline 1 \)3, 3.2.\(\overline 1 \)3, 62\(\overline 3 \), 6.1.\(\overline 1 \)3), 1.614(56)(5.0.\(\overline 1 \)6, 137, 333, 71\(\overline 1 \)). The infrared spectrum is given. Middendorfite is a phyllosilicate related to bannisterite, parsenttensite, and the minerals of the ganophyllite and stilpnomelane groups. The new mineral is named in memory of A.F. von Middendorff (1815–1894), an outstanding scientist, who carried out the first mineralogical investigations in the Khibiny pluton. The type material of middenforite has been deposited at the Fersman Mineralogical Museum, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow.     

Microscopic dynamic and macroscopic thermodynamic character of the I\bar 1 - P\bar 1 phase transition in anorthite

The dynamic character of the phase transition in anorthite from Monte Somma has been studied by high-temperature hard mode infrared spectroscopy. The mean local order parameter, as revealed by the temperature evolution of the frequencies of absorption bands between 540 and 620 cm_-1, follows classical second-order Landau behaviour with a critical exponent β = 1.. There is no observable first-order step. Anomalous line broadening of the 582 cm_-1 band indicates that dynamic fluctuations with a relaxation time τ ≈ 10⁻¹⁰ s exist over a limited temperature interval of approximately 150 K about T_c, and decay rapidly as T becomes greater than T_c. Previous order-disorder models of the high-temperature phase are not supported by these results. The Ca-flip motions, which we link to the line broadening, stabilize the driving soft mode of the transition. These flip motion fluctuations do not give rise to departures from the classical Landau theory because of the essential co-elastic nature of the phase transition. In the light of these results the structural instability can be described as an essentially displacive transition.     

Age and interstellar absorption in young star-formation regions in the galaxies NGC 1068, NGC 4449, NGC 4490, NGC 4631, and NGC 4656/57 derived from multicolor photometry

We have compared the results of multicolor U BV R and Hα photometry for 169 young star-formation complexes in five galaxies using a grid of evolutionary models for young star clusters. The ages and interstellar absorptions are estimated for 102 star-formation complexes with the standard uncertainties σ _t = 0.30 dex and $ \sigma _{A_V } = 0.45^m We have compared the results of multicolor U BV R and Hα photometry for 169 young star-formation complexes in five galaxies using a grid of evolutionary models for young star clusters. The ages and interstellar absorptions are estimated for 102 star-formation complexes with the standard uncertainties σ _t = 0.30 dex and . The accuracies of these parameters were verified using numerical simulations. Original Russian Text ? A.S. Gusev, V.I. Myakutin, A.E. Piskunov, F.K. Sakhibov, M.S. Khramtsova, 2008, published in Astronomicheskiĭ Zhurnal, 2008, Vol. 85, No. 9, pp. 794–809.     

The role of oxidation-reduction and C-H-O fluids in determining melting conditions and magma compositions in the upper mantle

High pressure experimental studies of the melting of lherzolitic upper mantle in the absence of carbon and hydrogen have shown that the lherzolite solidus has a positive dP/dT and that the percentage melting increases quite rapidly above the solidus. In contrast, the presence of carbon and hydrogen in the mantle results in a region of ‘incipient’ melting at temperatures below the C,H-free solidus. In this region the presence or absence of melt and the composition of the melt are dependent on the amount and nature of volatiles, particularly the CO₂, H₂O, and CH₄ contents of the potential C-H-O fluid. Under conditions of low (IW to IW + 1 log unit atP ∼ 20–35kb), fluids such as CH₄+H₂O and CH₄+H₂ inhibit melting, having a low solubility in silicate melts. Under these conditions, carbon and hydrogen are mobile elements in the upper mantle. At slightly higher oxygen fugacity (IW+2 log units,P∼20–35 kb) fluids in equilibrium with graphite or diamond in peridotite C-H-O are extremely water-rich. Carbon is thus not mobile in the mantle in this range and the melting and phase relations for the upper mantle lherzolite approximate closely to the peridotite-H₂O system. Pargasitic amphibole is stable to solidus temperatures in fertile lherzolite compositions and causes a distinctive peridotite solidus, the ‘dehydration solidus’, with a marked change in slope (a ‘back bend’) at 29–30kb due to instability of pargasite at high pressure. Intersections of geothermal gradients with the peridotite-H₂O solidi define the boundary between lithosphere (subsolidus) and asthenosphere (incipient melt region). This boundary is thus sensitive to changes in [affecting CH₄:H₂O:CO₂ ratios] and to the amount of H₂O and carbon (CO₂, CH₄) present. At higher conditions (IW + 3 log units), CO₂-rich fluids occur at low pressures but there is a marked depression of the solidus at 20–21 kb due to intersection with the carbonation reaction, producing the low temperature solidus for dolomite amphibole lherzolite (T∼925°C, 21 to >31kb). Melting of dolomite (or magnesite) amphibole lherzolite yields primary sodic dolomitic carbonatite melt with low H₂O content, in equilibrium with amphibole garnet lherzolite. The complexity of melting in peridotite-C-H-O provides possible explanations for a wide range of observations on lithosphere/asthenosphere relations, on mantle melt and fluid compositions, and on processes of mantle metasomatism and magma genesis in the upper mantle.     

An experimental study of Fe-Mg partitioning between olivine and orthopyroxene at 1173, 1273 and 1423 K and 1.6 GPa

The partitioning of Mg and Fe²⁺ between coexisting olivines and orthopyroxenes in the system MgO-FeO-SiO₂ has been investigated experimentally at 1173, 1273, 1423 K and 1.6 GPa over the whole range of Mg/Fe ratios. The use of barium borosilicate as a flux to promote grain growth, and the identification by back-scattered electron imaging of resulting growth rims suitable for analysis by electron microprobe, results in coexisting olivine and orthopyroxenene compositions determined to a precision of±0.003 to 0.004 in molar Fe/(Mg+Fe). Quasi-reversal experiments were performed starting with Mg-rich olivine and Fe-rich orthopyroxene (low K_D) and vice versa (high K_D), which produced indistinguishable results. The distribution coefficient, K_D, depends on composition and on temperature, but near Fe/(Mg+Fe)=0.1 (i.e. mantle compositions) these effects cancel out, and K_D is insensitive to temperature. The results agree well with previous experimental investigations, and constrain the thermodynamic mixing properties of Mg-Fe olivine solid solutions to show small near-symmetric deviations from ideality, with between 2000 and 8000 J/mol. Multiple non-linear least squares regression of all data gave a best fit with (implying 5450 J/mol at 1 bar) and , but the two W _G parameters are so highly correlated with each other that our data are almost equally well fit with , as obtained by Wiser and Wood. This value implies , apparently independent of temperature. Our experimental results are not compatible with the assessment of olivine-orthopyroxene equilibria of Sack and Ghiorso.     

Shlykovite KCa[Si4O9(OH)] · 3H2O and cryptophyllite K2Ca[Si4O10] · 5H2O, new mineral species from the Khibiny alkaline pluton, Kola Peninsula, Russia

New minerals, shlykovite and cryptophyllite, hydrous Ca and K phyllosilicates, have been identified in hyperalkaline pegmatite at Mount Rasvumchorr, Khibiny alkaline pluton, Kola Peninsula, Russia. They are the products of low-temperature hydrothermal activity and are associated with aegirine, potassium feldspar, nepheline, lamprophyllite, eudialyte, lomonosovite, lovozerite, tisinalite, shcherbakovite, shafranovskite, ershovite, and megacyclite. Shlykovite occurs as lamellae up to 0.02 × 0.02 × 0.5 mm in size or fibers up to 0.5 mm in length usually combined in aggregates up to 3 mm in size, crusts, and parallel-columnar veinlets. Cryptophyllite occurs as lamellae up to 0.02 × 0.1 × 0.2 mm in size intergrown with shlykovite being oriented parallel to {001} or chaotically arranged. Separate crystals of the new minerals are transparent and colorless; the aggregates are beige, brownish, light cream, and pale yellowish-grayish. The cleavage is parallel to (001) perfect. The Mohs hardness of shlykovite is 2.5–3. The calculated densities of shlykovite and cryptophyllite are 2.444 and 2.185 g/cm³, respectively. Both minerals are biaxial; shlykovite: 2V _meas = −60(20)°; cryptophyllite: 2V _meas > 70°. The refractive indices are: shlykovite: α = 1.500(3), β = 1.509(2), γ = 1.515(2); cryptophyllite: α = 1.520(2), β = 1.523(2), γ = 1.527(2). The chemical composition of shlykovite determined by an electron microprobe (H₂O determined from total deficiency) is as follows, wt %: 0.68 Na₂O, 11.03 K₂O, 13.70 CaO, 59.86 SiO₂, 14.73 H₂O; the total is 100.00. The empirical formula calculated on the basis of 13 O atoms (OH/H₂O calculated from the charge balance) is (K_0.96Na_0.09)_Σ1.05Ca_1.00Si_4.07O_9.32(OH)_0.68 · 3H₂O. The idealized formula is KCa[Si₄O₉(OH)] · 3H₂O. The chemical composition of cryptophyllite determined by an electron microprobe (H₂O determined from the total deficiency) is as follows, wt %: 1.12 Na₂O, 17.73 K₂O, 11.59 CaO, 0.08 Al₂O₃, 50.24 SiO₂, 19.24 H₂O, the total is 100.00. The empirical formula calculated on the basis of (Si,Al)₄(O,OH)₁₀ (OH/H₂O calculated from the charge balance) is (K_1.80Na_0.17)_Σ1.97Ca_0.99Al_0.01Si_3.99O_9.94(OH)_0.06 · 5.07H₂O. The idealized formula is K₂Ca[Si₄O₁₀] · 5H₂O. The crystal structures of both minerals were solved on single crystals using synchrotron radiation. Shlykovite is monoclinic; the space group is P2₁/n; a = 6.4897(4), b = 6.9969(5), c = 26.714(2)?, β = 94.597(8)°, V = 1209.12(15)?³, Z = 4. Cryptophyllite is monoclinic; the space group is P2₁/n; a = 6.4934(14), b = 6.9919(5), c = 32.087(3)?, β = 94.680(12)°, V= 1451.9(4)?, Z = 4. The strongest lines of the X-ray powder patterns (d, ?-I, [hkl] are: shlykovite 13.33–100[002], 6.67–76[004], 6.47–55[100], 3.469–45[021], 3.068–57[$ \bar 1 $ \bar 1 21], 3.042–45[121], 2.945–62[ 23], 2.912–90[025, 12, 211]; cryptophyllite 16.01–100[002], 7.98–24[004], 6.24–48[101], 3.228–22[$ \bar 1 $ \bar 1 09], 3.197–27[0.0.10], 2.995–47[122], 2.903–84[123, 204, $ \bar 1 $ \bar 1 24, 211], 2.623–20[028, 08, 126]. Shlykovite and cryptophyllite are members of new related structural types. Their structures are based on a two-layer packet consisting of tetrahedral Si layers linked with octahedral Ca chains. Mountainite, shlykovite and cryptophyllite could be combined into the mountainite structural family. Shlykovite is named in memory of Russian geologist V. G. Shlykov (1941–2007); the name cryptophyllite is from the Greek words meaning concealed and leaf that allude to its layered structure (phyllosilicate) in combination with a lamellar habit and intimate intergrowths with visually indistinguishable shlykovite. Type specimens of the minerals are deposited at the Fersman Mineralogical Museum of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow.