Newly obtained near-infrared reflectance spectra for features on or near the Aristarchus Plateau demonstrate he diversity of compositions in the region. t!ighland units are of three probable compositions: a feldspar and elinopyroxene assemblage; a probable clinopyroxene, olivine, and possibly feldspar assemblage; and an assemblage composed of olivine or olivine and feldspar. The feldspar-elinop...

Mineral dusts originating from Earth's crust are known to be important atmospheric ice nuclei. In agreement with earlier studies, feldspar was found as the most active of the tested natural mineral dusts. Here we investigated in closer detail the reasons for its activity and the difference in the activity of the different feldspars. Conclusions are drawn from scanning electron microscopy, X-ray...

Cation exchange experiments between gem quality sanidine [Formula: see text] and KCl melt produced chemical alteration of alkali feldspar starting at the grain surface and propagating inwards by highly anisotropic Na-K interdiffusion on the alkali sublattice. Diffusion fronts developing in b-direction are very sharp, while diffusion fronts within the a-c-plane are comparatively broad. Due to th...

Fibrous tremolite is a mineral species belonging to the amphibole group. It is present almost everywhere in the world as a natural contaminant of other minerals, like talc and vermiculite. It can be also found as a natural contaminant of the chrysotile form of asbestos. Tremolite asbestos exposures result in respiratory health consequences similar to the other forms of asbestos exposure, includ...

Feldspar minerals are the most common rock formers in Earth's crust. As such they play an important role in subjects ranging from geology to climate science. An atomistic understanding of the feldspar structure and its interaction with water is therefore desirable, not least because feldspar has been shown to dominate ice nucleation by mineral dusts in Earth's atmosphere. The complexity of the ...

A significant tin deposit has been identified in the northeast part of the Late Proterozoic Arabian Shield. Cassiterite-topaz-quartz greisens are distributed over 16 km2 in flat-topped cupolas of a highly evolved, zinnwaldite-bearing alkali-feldspar granite which composes part of the silsilah ring complex (lat 26"06'N, long 4240'E). The 587 m.y. old alkali-feldspar granite is overlain by a cara...

Ice formation on aerosol particles is a process of crucial importance to Earth's climate and the environmental sciences, but it is not understood at the molecular level. This is partly because the nature of active sites, local surface features where ice growth commences, is still unclear. Here we report direct electron-microscopic observations of deposition growth of aligned ice crystals on fel...

Ar–Ar dating of authigenic K-feldspar: Quantitative modelling of radiogenic argon-loss through subgrain boundary networks Journal Article How to cite: Mark, D. F.; Kelley, S. P.; Lee, M. R.; Parnell, J.; Sherlock, S. C. and Brown, D. J. (2008). Ar–Ar dating of authigenic K-feldspar: Quantitative modelling of radiogenic argon-loss through subgrain boundary networks. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Ac...

The wear performances of bovine tooth enamel (BTE) against translucent tetragonal zirconia polycrystals (TZP) compared to that of feldspar porcelain and the influence of surface treatments of translucent TZP were investigated by the two-body wear test. Translucent TZP and feldspar porcelain were used as hemisphere abrader specimens with a radius of curvature of 5 mm; flat BTE surfaces were used...

Preliminary results of an investigation into the possible use of glass-ceramic frits from fly ash and glass cullet in terracotta (stoneware) tile manufacture are reported. Two new ceramics were studied and compared with a plant composition, containing 45 wt.% sodium feldspar. In the first ceramic batch 20% of the feldspar was substituted by frits and in the second the whole amount of feldspar w...