The Kaidun meteorite: Clasts of alkaline‐rich fractionated materials

Abstract— Clasts of alkaline (the second find in meteorites) and subalkaline rocks were found in the Kaidun meteorite. One of them (#d4A) is a large crystal of albite with inclusions of fluorapatite, arfvedsonite, aenigmatite, and wilkinsonite. The two latter minerals were previously unknown in meteorites. Another clast (#d[3–5]D) has a melt crystallization texture of mainly feldspar (oligoclase) composition and contains relict grains of both high‐Ca and low‐Ca pyroxene and fluorapatite. The mineralogical characteristics of these clasts suggest a genetic relationship and an origin from the same parent body. The textural and mineralogical characteristics of the clasts indicate origin by extensive igneous differentiation. Such processes most likely took place in a rather large differentiated body. The material of clast #d(3–5)D is similar in some mineralogical respects to basaltic shergottites.     

Microtexture,nanomineralogy, and local chemistry of cryptocrystalline cosmic spherules

The paper reports scanning electron microscopy (FEG-SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) data on three cryptocrystalline (CC) cosmic spherules of chondritic composition (Mg/Si ≈ 1) from two collections taken up at glaciers at the Novaya Zemlya and in the area of the Tunguska event. The spherules show “brickwork” microtextures formed by minute parallel olivine crystals set in glass of pyroxene–plagioclase composition. The bulk-rock silicate chemistry, microtexture, mineralogy, and the chemical composition of the olivine and the local chemistry of the glass in these spherules testify to a chondritic source of the spherules. The solidification of the spherules in the Earth’s atmosphere was proved to be a highly unequilibrated process. A metastable state of the material follows, for example, from the occurrence of numerous nanometer-sized SiO₂ globules in the interstitial glass. These globules were formed by liquid immiscibility in the pyroxene–SiO₂ system. Troilite FeS and schreibersite (Fe,Ni)₃P globules were found in the FeNi metal in one of the spherules, which suggests that the precursor was not chemically modified when melted in the Earth’s atmosphere. Our results allowed us to estimate the mineralogy of the precursor material and correlate the CC spherules with the chondrule material of chondrites. The bulk compositions of the spherules are closely similar to those of type-IIA chondrules.     

Formation of ferriolivine and magnesioferrite from Mg — Fe-olivine: Reactions and kinetics of oxidation

Olivine samples (Fa 11) have been oxidized in air (f _O2 = 0.2 atm) at temperatures ranging from 350–700 °C and examined by Mössbauer spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray powder diffraction and thermomagnetic analysis. Oxidation of olivine was found to result in ferriolivine, magnesioferrite (major oxide phase) and magnetite (minor oxide phase) formation. Ferriolivine forms planar (001) precipitates, 0.6 nm in thickness, in the olivine host; the composition is likely to be Mg_0.5 v _0.5(Fe³⁺)_1.0SiO₄. Magnesioferrite MgFe₂O₄ exsolves as fine-grained precipitates (5–6 nm in size) filling interstices between the ferriolivine planar precipitates. Oxidation kinetic data at 700 °C show two stages of oxidation corresponding to formation of ferriolivine in the first stage and magnesioferrite in the second stage. The linear rate law with a rate constant k _Fol = 1.23 · 10^-3 s^-1 was found for the first stage whereas a parabolic rate-law with a constant of k _oxi = 3.28 · 10^-3 s^-1 was determined for the second stage of oxidation. It was found that ferriolivine is not an intermediate metastable phase in the oxidation process, terminated by magnesioferrite formation. The ferriolivine and magnesioferrite are considered to have formed by independent reactions which do not necessarily proceed simultaneously.     

Numerical modelling of stratified tidal flow over a fjord sill

Field observations of tidally driven stratified flow in the sill area of Knight Inlet (British Columbia) revealed a very complicated structure, which includes solitary waves, upstream bifurcation, hydraulic jump and mixing processes. Recent observations suggest that the flow instabilities on the plunging pycnocline at the lee side of the sill may contribute to solitary wave generation through a subharmonic interaction. The present study reports on a series of numerical experiments of stratified tidal flow in Knight Inlet performed with the help of a fine resolution fully non-linear non-hydrostatic numerical model. The model reproduces all important stages of the baroclinic tidal dynamics observed in Knight Inlet. Results demonstrate that solitary waves are generated apart from the area of hydrodynamic instability. Accelerating tidal flux forms a baroclinic hydraulic jump just above the top of the sill, whereas the bifurcations and zones of shear instabilities are formed downstream of the sill. The first baroclinic mode having the largest velocity escapes from the generation area and propagates upstream, disintegrating further into a packet of solitary waves reviling the classical “non-subharmonic” mechanism of generation. The remaining part of the disturbance (slow baroclinic modes) is arrested by tidal flow and carried away to the lee side of the obstacle, where shear instability, billows and mixing processes are developed. Some sensitivity runs were performed for different value of tidal velocity.     

Effect of Fe3+-bearing point defects on the UV-spectra of two natural olivines

Polarized near-UV spectra have been recorded on 20 μm diameter spots on oriented crystals of microprobe-analyzed olivines from Baikhal Rift, Fa_8.8 (I) and Seberget, Fa_9.3 (II), which have formed under different fO₂ and, therefore, are expected to contain Fe³⁺-bearing point defects in different concentrations. These should be reflected in the UV-spectra of such minerals (Cemic et al. 1986). The spectra obtained confirm these predictions: The difference in α _{Y, 26500} in both samples indicates a difference in Fe³⁺-site fractions of ΔX_Fe. = 1.78-10⁻⁴, which may be related to an fO₂ about ten times higher for the formation of olivine II compared to I.     

Hydrous olivine (Mg1? y? Fe2+y)2? x ?v x ? SiO4H2 x – a new DHMS phase of variable composition observed as nanometer-sized precipitations in mantle olivine

 An olivine grain from a peridotite nodule 9206 (Udachnaya kimberlite, Siberia) was investigated by TEM methods including AEM, HRTEM, SAED and EELS techniques. A previous study of the 9206 olivine sample revealed OH absorption bands in the IR spectrum and abundant nanometer-sized OH-bearing inclusions, of hexagonal-like or lamellar shape. Inclusions, which are several hundred nm in size, consist of 10 ? phase, talc and serpentine (chrysotile and lizardite). The lamellar (LI) and hexagon-like small inclusions of several ten nm in size (SI) are the topic of the present paper. AEM investigations of the inclusions reveal Mg, Fe and Si as cations only. The Mg/Si and Fe/Si atomic ratios are lower in the inclusions than in the host olivine. The Si concentration in the olivine host and both lamellar inclusions and small inclusions is the same. A pre-peak at 528eV was observed in EEL spectra of LI and SI, which is attributed to OH⁻ or Fe³⁺. From these data it is concluded that there is a OH⁻- or Fe³⁺-bearing cation-deficient olivine-like phase present. HRTEM lattice fringe images of LI and SI exhibit modulated band-like contrasts, which are superimposed onto the olivine lattice. Diffraction patterns (Fourier-transforms) of the HREM images as well as SAED patterns show that the band-like contrasts in HRTEM images of the inclusions are caused by periodic modulations of the olivine lattice. Three kinds of superperiodicity in the olivine structure such as 2a, 3a and 3c, were observed in SAED patterns. The corresponding olivine supercells labelled here as Hy-2a, Hy-3a and Hy-3c were derived. The M1-vacancies located in the (100) and (001) octahedral layers of the olivine lattice are suggested to form ordered arrays of planar defects (PD), which cause the band-like contrasts in HRTEM patterns as well as the superperiodicity in the SAED patterns. The vacancy concentrations as well as the chemical composition of Hy-2a, Hy-3a and Hy-3c olivine supercells were calculated using crystal chemical approaches, assuming either {(OH)^< _O−V^" _Me−(OH)^< _O}^↔, or {F e ^< _Fe −H _Me ^′}^↔ or {2F e ^< _Fe −V _Me ^"}^↔ point defect associates. The calculated theoretical compositions Mg_1.615Fe⁺² _0.135v_0.25SiO₄H_0.5 (Hy-2a) and Mg_1.54Fe²⁺ _0.12v_0.33SiO₄H_0.66 (Hy-3a and Hy-3c) are in a good agreement with the AEM data on inclusions. Hy-2a, Hy-3a and Hy-3c are considered to be a hydrous olivine with the extended chemical formula (Mg_1-yFe²⁺ _y)_2−xv_xSiO₄H_2x. The crystal structure of hydrous olivine is proposed to be a modular olivine structure with Mg-vacant modules. The crystal chemical formula of hydrous olivines in terms of a modular structure can be written as [MgSiO₄H₂] · 3[Mg_1.82Fe_0.18SiO₄] for Hy-2a, [MgSiO₄H₂] · 2[Mg_1.82Fe_0.18SiO₄] for Hy-3a and Hy-3c. Hydrous olivine is suggested to be exsolved from the olivine 9206, which has been initially saturated by OH-bearing point defects. The olivine 9206 hydration as well as the following exsolution of hydrous olivine inclusions is suggested to occur at high pressure-high temperature conditions of the upper mantle. Received: 15 January 2001 / Accepted: 2 July 2001     

Experimental studies of Ta2O5 and columbite–tantalite solubility in fluoride solutions from 300 to 550°C and 50 to 100 MPa

It is well established that the fractionation of Li–F granitic magmas at depth leads to the accumulation of flux elements such as F and Li, and metal cations such as Ta and Nb in residual melts. However, it remains to be determined whether magmatic fractionation is sufficient to concentrate Nb and Ta into economically significant quantities, and what role hydrothermal–metasomatic processes play in the formation of such ore deposits. In the literature, reliable data about the solubility of Ta and Nb in hydrothermal solutions is missing or incomplete. This study provides a quantitative experimental estimation of the possible contribution from hydrothermal processes in Ta enrichment in cupolas of albitized and greisenized Li–F granite. Experimental studies of Ta₂O₅ and columbite–tantalite (Mn,Fe)(Nb,Ta)₂O₆ solubility were carried out in fluoride solutions consisting of HF, NaF, KF, and LiF. At low fluoride concentrations (0.01 and 0.1 m), Ta₂O₅ solubility at 550°C and 100 MPa under Co–CoO oxidizing conditions is low (near 10^?5–10^?4 m) in all fluoride solutions (HF, NaF, KF, LiF). At high fluoride concentrations (1 and 2 m) the highest Ta₂O₅ concentrations (10^?1 m) were detected in HF solutions. In KF, NaF, and LiF solutions, the Ta₂O₅ solubility is also high (10^?3–10^?2 m). The dependence of columbite–tantalite (Nb₂O₅-59 wt. %, Ta₂O₅-18 wt. %) solubility as a function of solution composition, T, and P has also been investigated. Tantalum and Nb concentrations have the highest values in HF solutions at reduced conditions (up to 10^?3 to 10^?2 m Ta in 1 m HF). In 1 m NaF solutions, the concentrations of Nb and Ta are, respectively, 2.5 and 3 orders of magnitude less than those in the 1 m HF solutions. Solubility of Ta and Nb in KF solutions has intermediate values. It is established that in NaF and KF solutions the dependence of solubility on pressure is distinctly negative. The Nb and Ta contents increase with increasing concentrations of HF and KF in solution, however, they do not change with increasing NaF concentration. In NaHCO₃, Na₂CO₃, and HCl solutions columbite–tantalite solubility is low. Even in 1 m chloride solutions the content is within the limits of 10^?5 m for Nb and 10^?6 to 10^?8 m for Ta. We conclude that hydrothermal transport of Ta and Nb is possible only in concentrated fluoride solutions.     

The NLTE Formation of Iron Lines Used in Solar Polarimetry

We study in some detail one-dimensional NLTE effects in solar Fei lines. The lines selected are frequently used in solar polarimetry, and also in studies of line asymmetries and for abundance determinations. Our model atom for Fei–Feii–Feiii is realistic: it takes account of multiplet structure and it includes over 200 bound–bound and bound–free transitions in detail. We use very efficient iterative methods for the self-consistent solution of the kinetic and radiative transfer equations (Auer, Fabiani Bendicho, and Trujillo Bueno, 1994). We have applied these fast methods of solution because they are suitable for the investigation of 2D and 3D NLTE transfer effects with multilevel atoms, which constitutes the next step of our ongoing research project on the iron line formation problem.     

Carbon-bearing phases in shock-induced melt zones of the Elga meteorite

The mineralogy and texture of shock-induced melt veinlets and melt pockets in silicate inclusions in the Elga IIE iron meteorite have been studied by reflected-light optical microscopy, EMPA, SEM, Raman spectroscopy and TEM. The results suggest that Elga experienced two discrete impact events. The earlier event involved the collision of a metallic projectile with a silicate target and resulted in partial melting and recrystallization of the silicate material, forming schreibersite and oxide rims between the metal and silicate. The later impact event resulted in melt pockets in the silicate inclusions and was associated with fragmentation, melting, and brecciation of the rims and displacement of some fragments into the melt pockets. These fragments are shown to contain carbon-bearing phases: siderite and amorphous sp ² carbon, which form carbon–oxide, siderite–oxide, and siderite–schreibersite associations. The fact that the carbon-bearing fragments are spatially constrained to shock breccia and melt zones indicates that these fragments are genetically related to the impact process and that their carbon-bearing phases are of cosmic origin.