Xuite, Ca3Fe2[(Al,Fe)O3(OH)]3, a new mineral of the garnet group: Implications for the wide occurrence of nanominerals
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Seungyeol Lee
Abstract
Xuite, Ca3Fe2[(Al,Fe)O3(OH)]3, is a new member of the garnet supergroup discovered in basaltic scoria from Menan Volcanic Complex, Idaho, U.S.A. Oxidation of Fe-bearing pyroclasts at high temperatures led to the formation of xuite, together with luogufengite, valleyite, and hematite. The measured crystal size of xuite ranges from ~200 to 800 nm. The empirical chemical formula of xuite is (Ca0.92Mg0.08)3(Fe0.96Ti0.04)2[(AlO4H)0.44(FeO4H)0.33 (SiO4)0.05(◻O4H4)0.18]3. Xuite has a space group of Ia3d; its unit-cell parameter refined from high-resolution synchrotron X‑ray diffraction (XRD) data is a = 12.5056(5) Å, with Z = 8 (calculated density = 3.53 g/cm3). Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy spectrum of xuite shows absorption bands at 3682 and 3579 cm−1, indicating the presence of OH– in the hydrogarnet structure. In situ high-temperature synchrotron XRD combined with thermogravimetry and differential scanning calorimetry reveals that xuite undergoes dehydroxylation to form brownmillerite (Ca2FeAlO5) from ~236 to ~396 °C. Xuite occurs in the form of nanocrystals with a soft magnetic property, which provides important insights into the origin of basaltic scoria and associated paleomagnetism. Xuite was also found in Wyoming paralava, suggesting the possibility of its wide occurrence in various geological environments. The mineral was named after Huifang Xu and Hongwu Xu in honor of their sustained contributions to mineral sciences.
Funding statement: High-resolution XRD was carried out at the Advanced Photon Source (beam-line 11-BM), Argonne National Laboratory, supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences under Contract No. DE-AC02-06CH11357. This research also used resources at beamline 28-ID-2 of the National Synchrotron Light Source II, a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science User Facility operated for the DOE Office of Science by Brookhaven National Laboratory under Contract No. DE-SC0012704. The authors gratefully acknowledge use of facilities and instrumentation supported by NSF through the University of Wisconsin Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (DMR-1720415).
Acknowledgments
The authors thank Michael Hochella and an anonymous reviewer for their helpful comments. We are grateful to Huifang Xu and Hongwu Xu for their continuous guidance and support over the years.
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- Thermal conductivity of single-crystal brucite at high pressures: Implications for thermal anomaly in the shallow lower mantle
- Magmatic volatiles and platinum-group element mineralization in the Stillwater layered intrusion, U.S.A
- Impact of fluorine on the thermal stability of phlogopite
- Ferrous hydroxychlorides hibbingite [γ-Fe2(OH)3Cl] and parahibbingite [β-Fe2(OH)3Cl] as a concealed sink of Cl and H2O in ultrabasic and granitic systems
- Chukochenite, (Li0.5Al0.5)Al2O4, a new lithium oxyspinel mineral from the Xianghualing skarn, Hunan Province, China
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