ALBERT

Description: Kroupaite (IMA 2017-031), ideally KPb0.5[(UO2)8O4(OH)10]·10H2O, is a new uranyl-oxide hydroxylhydrate mineral found underground in the Svornost mine, Jáchymov, Czechia. Electron-probe micro-analysis (WDS) provided the empirical formula (K1.28Na0.07)Σ1.35(Pb0.23Cu0.14Ca0.05Bi0.03Co0.02Al0.01)Σ0.48 [(UO2)7.90(SO4)0.04O4.04(OH)10.00]·10H2O, on the basis of 40 O atoms apfu. Sheets in the crystal structure of kroupaite adopt the fourmarierite anion topology, and therefore kroupaite belongs to the schoepite-family of minerals with related structures differing in the interlayer composition and arrangement, and charge of the sheets. Uptake of dangerous radionuclides (90Sr or 135Cs) into the structure of kroupaite and other uranyl-oxide hydroxy-hydrate is evaluated based on crystal-chemical considerations and Voronoi-Dirichlet polyhedra measures. These calculations show the importance of these phases for the safe disposal of nuclear waste.

Description: Smamite, Ca2Sb(OH)4[H(AsO4)2]·6H2O, is a new mineral species from the Giftgrube mine, Rauenthal, Sainte-Marie-Aux-Mines ore-district, Haut-Rhin department, France. It is a supergene mineral found in quartz-carbonate gangue with disseminated to massive tennantite-tetrahedrite series minerals, native arsenic, Ni-Co arsenides, and supergene minerals picropharmacolite, fluckite, and pharmacolite. Smamite occurs as lenticular crystals growing in aggregates up to 0.5 mm across. The new mineral is whitish to colorless, transparent with vitreous luster and white streak; non-fluorescent under UV radiation. The Mohs hardness iŝ3½; the tenacity is brittle, the fracture is curved, and there is no apparent cleavage. The measured density is 2.72(3) g/cm3; the calculated density is 2.709 g/cm3 for the ideal formula. The mineral is insoluble in H2O and quickly soluble in dilute (10%) HCl at room temperature. Optically, smamite is biaxial (–), α = 1.556(1), β = 1.581(1), γ = 1.588(1) (white light). The 2V (meas) = 54(1)°; 2V (calc) = 55.1°. The dispersion is weak, r > ν. Smamite is non-pleochroic. Electron microprobe analyses provided the empirical formula Ca2.03Sb0.97(OH)4[H1.10(As1.99Si0.01O4)2]·6H2O. Smamite is triclinic, P1–, a = 5.8207(4), b = 8.0959(6), c = 8.21296(6) Å, α = 95.8343(7)°, β = 110.762(8)°, γ = 104.012(7)°, V = 402.57(5) Å3, and Z = 1. The structure (Robs = 0.027 for 1518 I>3σI reflections) is based upon {Ca2(H2O)6Sb(OH)4[H(AsO4)2]} infinite chains consisting of edge-sharing dimers of Ca(H2O)3O2(OH)2 polyhedra that share edges with Sb(OH)4O2 octahedra; adjacent chains are linked by H-bonds, including one strong, symmetrical H-bond with an O–H bond-length of ∼1.23 Å. The name “smamite” is based on the acronym of the Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines district.

Description: Gadolinite [REE2Fe2+Be2Si2O10] is a common mineral in certain types of rare element and rare earth element (REL-REE) pegmatites. Changes in pegmatite environment during and after gadolinite formation may be devised by studying its crystal-chemical properties and a thorough observation of microfeatures in the mineral matrix. Post-crystallization processes in pegmatite might trigger alteration mechanisms in gadolinite like in other REE-rich pegmatite minerals, whereby various late-magmatic or metasomatic events may affect mineral chemistry. Three gadolinite samples originating from various pegmatite occurrences in southern Norway offer an excellent opportunity in studying post-crystallization evolution of the pegmatites; by determining their crystallographic, chemical, and micro-textural features, imprints of the related processes in the pegmatites have been characterized in this study. Relevant mineral information was collected in recrystallization experiments of fully or slightly metamictized gadolinite samples and subsequent XRD analyses. Micro-Raman spectroscopy, electron microprobe analysis (EMPA), and scanning electron microscope–backscattered electron–energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-BSE-EDS) analyses were employed to retrieve micro-chemical properties and related micro-textural features of the mineral matrix. With a reference to the gadolinite supergroup, a general alteration path can be envisaged outlining the pegmatite evolution and suggesting the occurrence of the secondary REE mineral phases: altered gadolinite domains prove Ca enrichment with a tendency toward the hingganite composition, while a slight fluorine increase and sporadic secondary fluorite occurrence imply a significant role of fluorine as a complexing agent in the dissolution-reprecipitation mechanism of metasomatic alteration in the mineral. Micro-Raman spectra show improved vibration statistics for the altered gadolinite domains, which could be linked to the substitution of rare earth elements (REE) by Ca and a possible increase of structural ordering within the gadolinite structure, being at the same time an indication of structural healing of metamictized domains by metasomatic processes. A study of microfeatures in the complex silicates like gadolinite proves to be an excellent tool to trace post-crystallization processes in a pegmatitic environment. With a slight redistribution of radionuclides during an alteration in gadolinite, a moderate precaution has to be taken when selecting gadolinite for U-Th-Pb dating.