Phase equilibria in the silica-undersaturated part of the KAlSiO4– Mg2SiO4– Ca2SiO4– SiO2– F system at 1 atm and the larnite-normative trend of melt evolution

The evolution of nephelinitic melts in equilibrium with mica-bearing liquidus assemblages and melting relations have been studied on two silica-undersaturated joins of the KAlSiO₄– Mg₂SiO₄– Ca₂SiO₄– SiO₂– F system at atmospheric pressure by quench runs in sealed platinum capsules. Fluorine has been added to the batch compositions by the direct exchange of fluorine for oxygen (2F⁻ = O²⁻). The first join is the pseudo-ternary Forsterite – Diopside – KAlSiO₃F₂ system. Forsterite, diopside, F-phlogopite and leucite crystallisation fields and a fluoride-silicate liquid immiscibility solvus are present on the liquidus surface of the join. Sub-liquidus and sub-solidus phases include akermanite, cuspidine, spinel, fluorite and some other minor fluorine phases. The second system is the pseudo-binary Akermanite – F-phlogopite join that intersects the Forsterite – Diopside – KAlSiO₃F₂ join. Akermanite, forsterite, diopside, F-phlogopite, leucite and cuspidine are found to crystallise on the join. Forsterite (fo) and leucite (lc) are related to F-phlogopite (phl) by a reaction with the fluorine-bearing liquid: fo + lc + l = phl, and the reaction proceeds until forsterite or leucite are completely consumed. The reaction temperature and resulting phase association depend on batch composition. Thus, leucite is not stable in the sub-solidus of the Akermanite – F-phlogopite join, but is preserved in a part of the Forsterite – Diopside – KAlSiO₃F₂ system where forsterite reacts out, or does not crystallise at all. The phlogopite-in reaction has an important effect on the composition of the coexisting liquid. The liquids initially saturated in forsterite evolve to extremely Ca rich, larnite-normative residuals. The experimental data show that larnite-normative melilitolites can crystallise from evolved melilititic melts generated from “normal” melanephelinitic parental magmas with no normative larnite. The evolution towards melilitites requires fractionation of phlogopite-bearing assemblages under volatile pressure. Received: 3 June 1997 / Accepted: 5 January 1998     

Mechanisms of the transformations between the α, β and γ polymorphs of Mg2SiO4 at 15 GPa

Data on the mechanisms of mantle phase transformations have come primarily from studies of analogue systems reacted experimentally at low pressures. In order to study transformation mechanisms in Mg₂SiO₄ at mantle pressures, forsterite () has been reacted in the stability field of -phase, at 15 GPa and temperatures up to 900° C, using a multianvil split-sphere apparatus. Transmission electron microscope studies of samples reacted for times ranging from 0.25–5.0 h show that forsterite transforms to -phase by an incoherent nucleation and growth mechanism involving nucleation on olivine grain boundaries. This mechanism and the resultant microstructures are very similar to those observed at much lower pressures in analogue systems (Mg₂GeO₄ and Ni₂SiO₄) as the result of the olivine to spinel () transformation. Metastable spinel () also forms from Mg₂SiO₄ olivine at 15 GPa, in addition to -phase, by the incoherent nucleation and growth mechanism. With time, the spinel progressively transforms to the stable -phase. After 1 h, spinels exhibit a highly striated microstructure along {110} and electron diffraction patterns show streaking parallel to [110] which indicates a high degree of structural disorder. High resolution imaging shows that the streaking results from thin lamellae of -phase intergrown with the spinel. The two phases have the orientation relationship [001]//[001] and [010]//[110] so that the quasi cubic-close-packed oxygen sublattices are continuous between both phases. These microstructures are similar to those observed in shocked meteorites and show that spinel transforms to -phase by a martensitic (shear) mechanism. There is also evidence that the mechanism changes to one involving diffusion-controlled growth at conditions close to equilibrium.     

FeMgMn relations of ureilite olivines and pyroxenes and the genesis of ureilites

The Fe/Mn-Fe/Mg relations of published microprobe analyses of ureilite olivine cores suggest that FeO reduction in the magmatic stage was important in the genesis of some of these meteorites. Consideration of Mg/Mn and Fe/Mn partitioning between olivine and pigeonite cores shows that these two phases are not in equilibrium. The data are consistent with combined fractional crystallization and FeO reduction being the major processes of ureilite genesis. Few, if any, of the analyzed ureilites are consistent with a partial melting residue model.     

Calculation of the effect of deprotonation on the Si NMR shielding for the series Si(OH)4 to SiO 4 4−

²⁹Si NMR shieldings have been calculated by ab initio coupled Hartree-Fock perturbation theory for the orthosilicate species Si(OH)₄, Si(OH)₃O^-, Si(OH)₂O ₂ ^2- , Si(OH)O ₃ ^3- and SiO ₄ ^4- using energy optimized geometries from ab initio Hartree-Fock calculations. The shielding of Si(OH)₃O^- is smaller than that of Si(OH)₄ by 2.7 ppm and the shielding trend along the Si(OH)₄ to SiO ₄ ^4- series is decidedly nonlinear. The unprotonated O in Si(OH)₃O^- is more shielded and has a much smaller electric field gradient than do the protonated oxygens. Calculated anisotropies show the largest components of the shielding to lie along or near the short Si-O bonds. Calculations employing point charges in place of H reproduce the shielding trends in T _d and S ₄ symmetry Si(OH)₄ semiquantitatively. The calculated trends in shielding with < si-o-h=" can=" also=" be=" correlated=" with=" the=" energies=" of=" the=" si3p,o2p="> bonding orbitals.     

Mineralogical characterization of the Nkamouna Co–Mn laterite ore, southeast Cameroon

The Nkamouna property is an oxide laterite deposit developed on serpentinized peridotite in southeast Cameroon. It is enriched in Co and Mn, has sub-economic Ni grades and will be mined primarily for Co. The ore zone is ca. 10 m thick and comprises the lower breccia (～3 m thick) and ferralite (7–8 m thick) units sandwiched between an 8-m-thick ferricrete overburden and a barren hydrated Mg–silicate saprolite. The ore mineral assemblage includes Mn oxyhydroxides, magnetite, maghemite, ferritchromite, goethite, hematite, kaolinite and gibbsite. Lithiophorite is the most common Mn mineral and is the main host of Co, Mn and a significant proportion of Ni. It occurs as coatings in pores and on other mineral grains and as concretions and impregnations in the matrix. It is invariably associated with gibbsite in the lower breccia and with magnetite and ferritchromite in the ferralite. Although ore in the lower breccia is volumetrically less important than the ferralite, it has the highest grade and Co/Ni ratio. The lithiophorite in the ore zone is authigenic, and its formation was enhanced by influx of Al³⁺ from the overlying ferricrete. Magnetite and ferritchromite in the ferralite are relicts and contributed to mineralization by enhancing the permeability of the ferralite and providing substrates for the precipitation of the Mn oxyhydroxides. The structure and mode of occurrence of the lithiophorite makes Nkamouna ore amenable to physical beneficiation, producing a concentrate with Co grades 2.3–4.5 times higher than the run-of-mine ore.     

Modeling of deep-seated high-alumina parageneses on the basis of the stability fields of corundum- and spinel-normative assemblages of the system CaO–MgO–Al2O3–SiO2

To elaborate physicochemical models for the origin of crystalline rocks, experimental studies of the field of high-alumina assemblages of the system CaO–MgO–Al₂O₃–SiO₂ were carried out at 10–30 kbar and 1250–1535 °C. We have determined the phase relations between the melt (L) and An, Sp, Cpx, Cor, and Ga, the slope of the rays of the monovariant reactions An + Sp = Cpx + Cor + (Ga) and L = Cpx +Ga + Cor + Sp, the position of the nonvariant point (An, Sp, Cpx, Cor, Ga, L), and the compositions of phases participating in these reactions. Based on a topological analysis of the studied segment of the system CaO–MgO–Al₂O₃–SiO₂, we have substantiated that “eclogitization” must follow the reaction Opx + An + Sp = Cpx + Ga. A fundamental continuous series of eutectic monovariant equilibria was observed: L = Cpx + Opx + Fo + An, L = Cpx + Opx + An + Sp, L = Cpx (+ Ga) + An + Sp, and L = Cpx + Cor (+ Ga) + An. A change in the melt composition in this series of eutectic reactions depending on pressure must reflect the most likely magma genesis trend in nature. Comparision of the composition fields in which the above series of reactions is observed with the composition fields of the rocks of magmatic formations showed that this series is most similar to the alkali-earth series of rocks. The mineralogical compositions of cumulates and phenocrysts found in the effusive and dike varieties of these rocks correspond to unique sets of subsolidus phase associations and individual subsolidus phases crystallizing in this fundamental eutectic series.     

High-pressure phases in the Al2SiO5 system and the problem of aluminous phase in the Earth's lower mantle: ab initio calculations

 One of the main uncertainties in mineralogical models of the Earth's lower mantle is the nature of the aluminous mineral: it is not clear whether Al forms its own minerals or is mainly contained in (Mg,Fe)SiO₃-perovskite. This question is very important, since it is known that if Al were mainly hosted by perovskite, it would radically change Fe/Mg-partitioning and phase equilibria between mantle minerals, and also alter many physical and chemical properties of perovskite, which is currently believed to comprise ca. 70% of the volume of the lower mantle. This, in turn, would require us to reconsider many of our geochemical and geophysical models for the lower mantle. This work considers the possibility of a V₃O₅-type structured modification of Al₂SiO₅ to be the main host of Al in the lower mantle, as proposed by previous workers. We report ab initio calculations, based on density functional theory within the generalised gradient approximation (GGA) with plane wave basis set and nonlocal pseudopotentials. We consider polymorphs of Al₂SiO₅ (kyanite, andalusite, sillimanite, and hypothetical V₃O₅-like and pseudobrookite-like phases), SiO₂ (stishovite, quartz) and Al₂O₃ (corundum). Computational conditions (e.g., plane-wave energy cutoff, Brillouin zone sampling) were carefully chosen in order to reproduce small energy changes associated with phase transitions between the Al₂SiO₅ polymorphs. Good agreement of crystal structures, bulk moduli, atomisation energies and the phase diagram of Al₂SiO₅ with experimental data was found. Strong disagreement between the calculated lattice parameters and density of V₃O₅-like phase of Al₂SiO₅ and experimental values, assigned to it by previous workers, suggests that a V₃O₅-structured phase of Al₂SiO₅ was never observed experimentally. In addition, we found that the most stable high-pressure assembly in Al₂SiO₅ system is corundum+stishovite, and the value of the transition pressure at T = O K (113 kbar) is in excellent agreement with experimental estimates (95–150 kbar). We explain the instability of octahedrally coordinated silicates of Al to decomposition on the basis of Pauling's second rule. Received: 18 May 1999 / Accepted: 5 November 1999     

First Determination of the Isotope Age of the Andesite–Dacite Complex of the Eastern Zone of the Middle Urals

Doklady Earth Sciences - This paper reports on the first U–Pb dating of zircons from dacites of the volcanic paleo-edifice of the andesite–dacite complex of the Eastern Zone of the...     

Analysis of the degree of contamination and evolution in the last 100 years of the composition of the bed sediments of the Anllóns Basin

In this study, five cores of the Anllóns River bed sediments were analyzed in order to evaluate the downcore and downstream variations in their chemical composition. The first step was the evaluation of the metal distribution in the bulk (<2 mm) and fine fractions (<63 μm). The analysis revealed that most of the metals followed the same trend in both fractions, although the fine fraction presented usually higher concentrations. However, the concentration of both fractions tended to equalize with increasing contamination. No general increase was observed in the metal concentrations toward the surface which could be attributed to recent anthropogenic contributions. Instead, the distributions were homogeneous or peaked at various depths downcore. The most important historical feature was observed at the mouth of the river, at 96-cm depth, corresponding to the end of the eighteenth century. Upcore increased metal concentrations in parallel with increased fine fraction occurred from this depth, which were attributed to a bridge construction and consequent changes in sediment dynamics. As the metal concentrations can be influenced by variations in texture or other sediment characteristics, the second step was to evaluate the efficiency of several normalized indexes in the assessment of the degree of contamination, by calculating the enrichment factor (EF), the geoaccumulation index (I _GEO) and the pollution load index (PLI). The EFs obtained were <10, thus revealing little anthropogenic inputs to the basin. The I _GEO produced higher values when compared with the EFs. Instead of absolute EF or I _GEO absolute values, the use of cumulative probability plots allowed identifying more accurately potential outliers indicating contamination. Only one population was identified for Zn and Pb, with a reduced number of outliers at the highest concentrations for Pb. As shown, a more complex plot with the outliers identified at C4 and C5. Finally, the PLI allowed determining the absence of a significant contamination in the bed sediments. The bioavailable and non-geogenic fractions contribute up to a 90% of the total concentrations in the case of As and Cu, and showed similar (dissimilar) profiles in comparison with total metals. Also, the quality guidelines were surpassed, so the high solubility of As, Zn, Pb and Ni in the sediments revealed the need to monitor the bed sediment quality of the Anllóns River.     

Present-day tectonics of the western part of the Dzhugdzhur–Stanovoi Terrane of the southeastern frame of the North Asian Craton

The first results on current movements are presented for the western part of the Dzhugdzhur–Stanovoi Terrane based on GPS geodesy of a geodynamic survey area of the Upper Amur region. Processing of the GPS data resulted in a vector field of the displacement rates of points of the geodynamic survey area with zones of intense deformations. It was concluded from a comprehensive analysis of geological–geophysical data and estimates of the displacement rates that the terrane is characterized by kinematic integrity and was subjected to a complex of tectonic factors related to the evolution of the eastern segment of Baikal Rift Zone in the area of transpression interaction of the Eurasian and Amur plates.     

Bursting the limits of time： the reconstruction of geohistory in the age of revolution

Bursting the Limits of Time by the distin- guished historian of geology Martin Rudwick is a massive, two-part book. The first part contains what he calls a synchronous history of what eventually became historical geology in western Europe between the time of de Sans- sure＇s epoch-making ascent of Mont Blanc in 1787 and the discovery of the Kirkdale hyaena cave by Buckland in the winter of 1821-1822,     

Features of the Influence of Weather Conditions on the Deformation Processes of the Upper Layer of the Earth’s Crust

Doklady Earth Sciences - The influence of the temperature and moisture content of the near-surface soil layer on variations of the barodeformation interaction of the boundary layer of the...     

Numerical Modeling of the Effects of Major Elements on the Solubility of Chrome–Spinel and a Likely Solution of the Problem of the Origin of Chromitite

Doklady Earth Sciences - The influence of variations in fo-, fa-, en-, fs-, di-, an-, and ab-components in a high-Mg basaltic melt on the topology of the spinellide liquidus was analyzed using the...     

Partitioning of Fe and Mn between ilmenite and olivine at 1100 °C: constraints on the thermodynamic mixing properties of (Fe, Mn)TiO3 ilmenite solid solutions

The partitioning of Fe²⁺ and Mn²⁺ between (Fe, Mn)TiO₃ and (Fe, Mn)₂SiO₄ solid solutions in the system FeO-MnO-TiO₂-SiO₂ has been experimentally investigated at 1100 ^∘C and pressures of 1 bar and 25 kbar, over a wide range of Fe/Mn ratios, using electron microprobe analysis of quenched run products. The ilmenite solid solution in this system is within analytical uncertainty a simple binary between FeTiO₃ and MnTiO₃, but the olivine solid solution appears to contain up to 2.5 wt% TiO₂. The Fe-Mn partitioning results constrain precisely the difference in the thermodynamic mixing properties of the two solid solutions. If the mixing properties of (Fe, Mn)₂SiO₄ solid solutions are assumed to be ideal, as experimentally determined by Schwerdtfeger and Muan (1966), then the ilmenite is a regular, symmetric solution with W ^ilm _Fe-Mn=1.8±0.1 kJ mol⁻¹. The quoted uncertainty does not include the contribution from the uncertainty in the mixing properties of the olivine solution, which is estimated to be ±1.8 kJ mol⁻¹, and which therefore dominates the uncertainty in the present results. Nevertheless, this result is in good agreement with the previous experimental study of O'Neill et al. (1989), who obtained W ^ilm _Fe-Mn=2.2±0.3 kJ mol⁻¹ from an independent method. The results provide another item of empirical evidence supporting the proposition that solid solutions between isostructural end-members, in which order-disorder effects are not important, generally have simple thermodynamic mixing properties, with little asymmetry, modest excess entropies, and excess enthalpies approximately proportional to the difference in the molar volumes of the end-members. Received: 11 February 1998 / Accepted: 29 June 1998     

On the Origin of the Carat as the Unit of Weight for Gemstones

The carat is the unit of weight for diamonds and other gemstones.It corresponds to the average weight of the seeds of a leguminous tree.What kind of tree is this?We have studied the samples from Ethiopia,Egypt,Cyprus and the United States.The tree is neither“Kuara“nor“Locust“（Robina pseudoacacia Linn.）,but rather Carob(Ceratonia Siliqua).In Ethiopia,as called by local inhabitants,“Kuara“is a species of Erythrina-E.brucei rather than E.abyssinica.As might be expected,using the seeds as a means of weighing an extremely valuable commodity is not very scientific.Before 1907,at various times and in various countries,there were at least twenty-three stan-dards for the carat ranging from 187.00mg to 215.990mg.The metric carat equal to 200mg was proposed in Paris in 1907.It was adopted in the United States on July1,1913 and now is the world-accepted standard.But in reality,the standard of the carat is still confused with respect to its usage throughout the world .This is why the author reiterates that the standard of the car-at should be integrated with the metric system.     

Estimation of the stress state of the Earth’s crust and the upper mantle in the area of the Southern Kuril Islands

The catastrophic Shikotan earthquake of October 4 (5), 1994, occurred in the Pacific Ocean. Its focus was located 80 km eastward of Shikotan Island. The stress state of the Earth’s crust in this area was estimated by the method of the cataclastic analysis of the whole range of the earthquake mechanisms. The performed reconstruction of the parameters of the current stress state of the Earth’s crust and the upper mantle in the area of the Southern Kuril Islands made it possible to establish that this area is characterized, on the one hand, by the presence of extensive areas of steady behavior of the stress tensor parameters and, on the other hand, by the presence of local sections of anomalously fast changes in these parameters.     

The Nature of the “Voice of the Sea”

Strong vibrations of the Earth’s crust in the frequency range of 7–9 Hz, referred to as the “voice of the sea,” have been recorded in the course of processing synchronous experimental data obtained during recording of variations in the deformation of the Earth’s crust using a shore laser strainmeter, atmosphere pressure variations using a laser nanobarograph, and hydrosphere pressure variations using a laser meter for hydrospheric pressure and wind velocity variations. The nature of these vibrations and their transformation to adjacent geospheres have been discussed.     

The Principles for Discrimination of the Source Composition of Mantle-Derived Igneous Rocks and the Nature of the Mantle Source Region of the Emeishan Basalts

This paper discusses the discrimination principles. deduction and methods for probing into the source composition of mantle-derived magma. The magmatophile (incompatible) source elements are not all optimal tracers for mantle source composition. The ratios of two strong magmatophile elements (D<1) or the ratios of two trace elements with the same D value are not controlled by the formation mode and evolution degree of a magma, but maintain the characteristics of their composition in mantle source region prior to the magma formation. The ratios are related to different mantle-crust structures and dynamics. The mantle source composition of the Emeishan Basalt series is similar to that of the South Atlantic Rio Grande Rise-Walvis Ridge Basalts and Brazil continental-margin basalts. This may indicate that these basalt series might have similar source regions and tectonic environments.     

Possibility of the reconstruction of the real dynamics of the Earth’s crust (The example of the southern regions of Sakhalin and Kuril Islands)

Doklady Earth Sciences -