Marbles containing high-pressure mineral assemblage was found from the Sanandaj-Sirjan metamorphic belt in the Nahavand area in western Iran.  The high-pressure marbles occur as small bodies or lenses within pelitic schist layers and show compositional banding of carbonate- and silicate- rich bands.  Textural analysis revealed two metamorphic stages.  The early stage is testified by relicts of ...

Asbestos is the generic commercial designation for a group of naturally occurring mineral silicate fibres of the serpentine and amphibole series. These include the serpentine mineral chrysotile (also known as ‘white asbestos’), and the five amphibole minerals – actinolite, amosite (also known as ‘brown asbestos’), anthophyllite, crocidolite (also known as ‘blue asbestos’), and tremolite (IARC, ...

Based on lithological, structural and geophysical characteristics, the Proterozoic Grenville Orogen of southern Ontario and New York has been divided into domains that are separated from each other by ductile shear zones. In order to constrain the timing of metamorphism, U-Pb ages were determined on metamorphic and igneous sphenes from marbles, calc-silicate gneisses, amphibolites, granitoids, ...

The rate of K+ leaching from soil minerals such as K-feldspar is believed to be too slow to provide agronomic benefit. Currently, theories and methods available to interpret kinetics of mineral processes in soil fail to consider its microfluidic nature. In this study, we measure the leaching rate of K+ ions from a K-feldspar-bearing rock (syenite) in a microfluidic environment, and demonstrate ...

Attapulgite (ATP), not only as a type of natural and low cost silicate clay mineral but also as a high quality nanosized material with large surface area, layered and lath-like structure, has been found to have a wide variety of industrial applications. The ideal composition of ATP is Mg5Si8O20(OH)2(OH2)4. However, according to previous reports from different countries in the world, it is very ...

The impact of actinides on the environment is mitigated by their interaction with particle surfaces and by incorporation into suitable waste forms. In both cases, a fundamental knowledge of the local co-ordination environment of actinide ions is essential for understanding their stability in various near-surface environments under a range of conditions. When actinide ions are sorbed on mineral ...

Introduction: The NEAR Shoemaker spacecraft that orbited and eventually landed on asteroid 433 Eros carried two experiments to determine the chemistry of the surface layer: an x-ray spectrometer (XRS) and a gamma ray spectrometer (GRS). Arguably the most surprising result obtained by these instruments was the discovery that, in spite of an otherwise chondritic chemistry, the sulfur content of E...

The particle growth of silica below the isoelectric point plays a key role in oil well cements, production of silica gels and production of nanosilica by dissolving silicates. In this article, we study the particle growth of silica below the isoelectric point using olivine, a silicate mineral, and sodium silicate solutions as silica sources in acid, where the particle size, soluble silica conce...

CO2 sequestration may be an avenue to mitigate climate change. CO2 sequestration by mineral carbonation can be achieved by the reaction of CO2 with alkaline silicates. Here, we evaluate how alkaline silicate mineral-based CO2 sequestration can be achieved using environmental biotechnological processes. Several biotechnological processes rely on the sequence of (i) an acid-producing reaction suc...

The effect of demineralization on Indian bituminous coal by filamentous fungus Aspergillus niger has been investigated. X-ray diffraction profile reveals the presence of inorganic components in the sample. Biosolubilised products were characterized by FT-IR, SEM-EDS and XRD. The study reveals that coal consist of a semi-crystalline turbostratic structure. The broad diffraction peak at 20~25.5 a...