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ABSTRACT Understanding the effects of particle size is necessary for quantifying minerals in mixtures using Raman spectroscopy. Raman signal intensity is evaluated using six common silicate minerals (two olivines, two pyroxenes, and two feldspars) at 10 particle size ranges. For olivines and feldspars, the highest peak intensities are observed in samples with 38–63 and 63–106 μm particle sizes. There is no such consistent trend for the pyroxene samples, although the overall low signal strength complicates those measurements. Raman spectra of samples with varying particle sizes appear to be influenced by two competing effects: scattering from particle boundaries and effective sampling volume. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solfataric alteration at the South Sulfur Bank of the former Kilauea caldera produced opal, Mg- and Fe-rich smectites, gypsum, and jarosite through silica replacement of pyroclastic Keanakako'i ash and leaching of basaltic lavas. This site on the island of Hawaii serves as an analog for formation of several minerals found in altered deposits on Mars. Two distinct alteration environments were characterized in this study, including a light-toned, high-silica, friable outcrop adjacent to the vents and a bedded outcrop containing alternating orange/tan layers composed of smectite, gypsum, jarosite, hydrated silica, and poorly crystalline ferric oxide phases. This banded unit likely represents the deposition of pyroclastic material with variations in chemistry over time that was subsequently altered via moderate hydrothermal and pedogenic processes and leaching of basaltic caprock to enhance the Si, Al, Mg, Fe, and Ca in the altered layers. In the light-toned, friable materials closest to the vents along the base of the outcrop, glassy fragments were extensively altered to opal-A plus anatase. Lab measurements of samples returned from the field were conducted to replicate recent instruments at Mars and provide further characterization of the samples. These include elemental analyses, sample texture, XRD, SEM, VNIR/mid-IR reflectance spectroscopy, TIR emittance spectroscopy, and Mössbauer spectroscopy. Variations in the chemistry and mineralogy of these samples are consistent with alteration through hydrothermal processes as well as brines that may have formed through rain interacting with sulfuric fumes. Silica is present in all altered samples, and the friable pyroclastic ash material with the strongest alteration contains up to 80 wt% SiO2. Sulfate mineralization occurred at the South Sulfur Bank through fumarolic action from vents and likely included solfataric alteration from sulfuric gases and steam, as well as oxidation of sulfides in the basaltic caprock. Gypsum and jarosite are typically present in different layers of the altered wall, likely because they require different cations and pH regimes. The presence of both jarosite and gypsum in some samples implies high-sulfate concentrations and the availability of both Ca2+ and Fe3+ cations in a brine percolating through the altered ash. Pedogenic conditions are more consistent with the observed Mg-smectites and gypsum in the tan layers, while jarosite and nontronite likely formed under more acidic conditions in the darker orange layers. Assemblages of smectite, Ca-sulfates, and jarosite similar to the banded orange/tan unit in our study are observed on Mars at Gale crater, Noctis Labyrinthus, and Mawrth Vallis, while high-silica outcrops have been identified in parts of Gusev crater, Gale crater, and Nili Patera on Mars. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ilmenite (Fe2+TiO3) and geikielite (MgTiO3) are important terrestrial minerals relevant to the geology of the Earth, the Moon, Mars, and meteorite samples. Raman spectroscopy is a powerful technique that allows for mineral cation determination for the ilmenite-geikielite solid solution. We report on a suite of nine samples within the ilmenite-geikielite solid solution and provide context for their quantitative interpretation. We compare a univariate Raman peak position model for predicting ilmenite composition with a multivariate machine learning model. The univariate model is currently recommended, though the multivariate model may become superior if the data set size is increased. This study lays the groundwork for quantifying Fe (ilmenite) and Mg (geikielite) within oxide minerals using a cheap, portable, and efficient technology like Raman spectroscopy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemical, structural, infrared, optical, and Mossbauer spectroscopic data were obtained on tourmalines from gem pockets in the Himalaya mine, San Diego County, California, including a strongly color-zoned crystal. Calcium and Li abundances increase from core to rim, whereas [Mn.sup.2+] and F increase, reach a maximum, and then decrease. Upon initiation of crystallization of lepidolite, F contents in tourmaline decrease. The black core is a Mn-bearing 'oxy-schorl.' The grayish-yellow, intermediate zone is Mn-rich 'fluor-elbaite' that contains a relatively high Mn content with ~6 wt% MnO. The nearly colorless 'fluor-elbaite' rim has the highest Li content of all zones. There is an inverse correlation between the lattice parameter a (for values [greater than or equal to] 15.84 [Angstrom]) and the Li content ([r.sup.2] = 0.96). Mossbauer studies from the different zones within this crystal show that the [Fe.sup.3+]/Fe(total) ratio increases continuously from the Fe-rich core to the Fe-poor near-tim zone, consistent with increasing oxygen fugacity during pegmatite pocket evolution. There is a high positive correlation between lattice parameter a (for values [greater than or equal to] 15.84 [Angstrom]) and ([Fe.sup.2+] + [Mn.sup.2+]) content in tourmalines from the elbaite-schorl series ([r.sup.2] = 0.99). Values lower than 15.84 [Angstrom] for a are likely a consequence of greater [sup.[4]]B contents in samples that usually have a ([Fe.sup.2+] + [Mn.sup.2+]) content of To obtain the most accurate OH data, different analytical methods were used: SIMS, hydrogen manometry, continuous-flow mass spectrometry, and IR overtone spectroscopy. Some elbaites contain a mixed occupation of F, OH, and O at the W site. Based on these data, the assumption OH = 4 - F appears to be valid only for elbaitic tourmalines with FeO+MnO < 8 wt%. In terms of the conditions of formation, whether gel or glass, the transition from low to high viscosity of the pocket-forming medium occurs before primary crystallization within the pockets ceased. At the pocket stage, Li contents of residual hydrosilicate melt were evidently high enough to promote a continuous transition from schorl-foitite at the pegmatite margin to elbaite-rossmanite-liddicoatite in the final stages of consolidation of the pegmatite interior. Keywords: Tourmaline, elbaite, schorl, crystal structure, Himalaya Mine, Mesa Grande, spectroscopy DOI: 10.2138/am.2010.3271

Combined experimental, modeling, and analytical results indicate that the rapid acidification of dilute waters in contact with nominally [Fe.sup.2+]-sulfate minerals (FeS[O.sub.4] x n[H.sub.2]O) is caused by [Fe.sup.3+] hydrolysis, which occurs when low levels ( Keywords: Mars, AMD, melanterite, pH, Mossbauer