Analytical electron microscopy study of the plessite structure in four IIICD iron meteorites

Electron optical techniques were employed to investigate the plessite structure and composition of four IIICD fine octahedrites. These meteorites have a similar thermal history and differences in plessite structure can be ascribed to varying bulk Ni content and/or localized differences in carbon content. Microdiffraction patterns from regions as small as 20 nm dia. were obtained for the first time from plessite structures. It was established that transformation twins in clear taenite I have the conventional fcc twin relationship, individual kamacite and taenite cells in the cloudy zone have the Kurdjumov-Sachs orientation and fine γ rods in the decomposed martensite zone display both the Nishiyama and Kurdjumov-Sachs relation with the matrix-α. All the IIICD irons contain cloudy zone and martensitic plessite. Except for Dayton, martensitic plessite shows further decomposition into α + λ at low temperatures. Using STEM X-ray microanalysis with a spatial resolution of ~ 50 nm, Ni composition profiles in taenite from all the IIICD irons showed a maximum of ~48 wt% Ni. The structural and compositional data indicate that plessite formation occurs at quite low temperatures (~ 200–300°C) during the cooling history of the IIICD irons.