Articles tagged with Mineralogy
A new study from Washington State University sheds light on the formation of mineral deposits in Idaho's Silver Valley and the Idaho Cobalt Belt. Ancient brines helped concentrate metals and transport them to the surface, where they formed rich veins of ore.
The study found that carbonation occurred during shallow crustal extension, challenging earlier interpretations of deep subduction environments. Naturally carbonated ultramafic rocks provide a valuable natural analogue for long-term carbon storage in solid minerals.
Researchers at ISTA discover perovskites' unique photovoltaic properties rely on structural defects, enabling long-range charge transport. This finding accelerates the transition of next-gen perovskite solar cells to real-world applications.
A new study led by University of Liverpool scientists used advanced electron microscopy techniques to analyze olivine crystals. The research found that a significant proportion of the crystals showed evidence of 'b' dislocation slip, challenging previous understanding and improving our understanding of Earth's mantle deformation.
Deformation mechanisms of serpentinite, a key research target for understanding plate boundaries, have been investigated. Grain boundary sliding dominates deformation, producing 'B-type' CPO patterns, which contribute to seismic activity and earthquakes.
Researchers discovered that a significant drop in calcium levels in the ocean led to a massive decrease in carbon dioxide, driving global cooling and ending the planet's greenhouse era. The study suggests that changes in seawater chemistry played a key role in shaping climate history.
Scientists have developed a new way to track landscape development over millions of years using cosmogenic krypton in zircon minerals. This method reveals how climate, tectonics, and sediment transport are linked, providing insights into the Earth's surface history.
Dr. Kelley's discovery of the Lost City Hydrothermal Field revolutionized scientific understanding of fluid–rock interactions and chemosynthetic ecosystems. Her work has also transformed ocean observation through the NSF's Ocean Observatories Initiative Regional Cabled Array.
The study found that organic materials in sediments decompose under supercritical conditions, releasing hydrogen molecules. This process is a more significant source of dissolved hydrogen in the ocean than previously believed.
Researchers discovered that bridgmanite acts like a microscopic 'water container', allowing early Earth to retain substantial amounts of water in the mantle as it solidified. This retained water played a crucial role in transforming the planet from an inferno into a habitable world.
A team of scientists simulated high-pressure conditions and found that onion-like layering in iron alloys can explain seismic anomalies in the Earth's inner core. This discovery suggests a compositional gradient with increasing core depth, linking anisotropy to chemical stratification.
Wiley has expanded its spectral libraries with major updates to IR, Raman, and LC-MS collections, delivering researchers enhanced capabilities for faster and more confident compound identification. The expansion brings over 9.5 million high-quality spectra, including 1 million IR spectra and 161,000 Raman spectra.
Researchers have discovered that sudden shifts in the Southern Westerly Winds 15,000 years ago triggered a massive growth of ancient bogs across the Southern Hemisphere. The study found that the shifting winds created an ideal climate for the swamps to form, and now believe they play a crucial role in regulating carbon stores in peatland.
Researchers have developed a halide perovskite volatile unipolar nanomemristor that achieves energy-efficient switching with minimal power consumption. The device uses a monocrystal nanocube with chemical composition CsPbBr3, placed between chemically inert contacts, to enable fast computation and readable memory states.
A team of researchers developed a new manufacturing process using bio-based solvents to reduce the production cost of perovskite solar cells by half and decrease climate impact by over 80%. AI-based reverse engineering technology was used to identify optimal conditions for efficiency and sustainability.
A University of Michigan study reveals that the sudden loss of dinosaurs allowed forests to flourish, stabilizing sediments and creating broad meanders in rivers. This change had a profound impact on landscapes, demonstrating how life can alter its environment through catastrophic events.
MIST uses a hierarchical, rules-based classification system grounded in verified mineral formulas from the RRUFF mineral database. It accurately identifies hundreds of different mineral species from their chemical composition, even accounting for natural imperfections and vacancies found in real minerals.
Scientists at Kyushu University have created a solid oxide fuel cell that operates at a low temperature of 300°C, overcoming a major hurdle in their development. The breakthrough uses scandium to create a 'ScO6 highway' for protons to travel efficiently, enabling the production of affordable hydrogen power.
A large region of unusually hot rock deep beneath the Appalachian Mountains in the United States could be linked to Greenland and North America splitting apart 80 million years ago. The 'mantle wave' theory suggests that hot, dense rock slowly peels away from the base of tectonic plates after continents break apart.
The Fraunhofer Institute's miniaturized quantum magnetometer provides precise measurements of magnetic fields with minimal interference. This technology enables new possibilities in biochemical measurements, microelectronics, and navigation systems, including GNSS-safe navigation without GPS.
Researchers have developed innovative composite nanotechnology that removes excess nutrients from wastewater, converting them into agricultural fertilizers. The technology reduces ammonia and phosphate concentrations by up to 60% and 91%, respectively, effectively preventing harmful algal blooms and associated toxins.
Researchers studying ancient rhino teeth found at Nebraska's Ashfall Fossil Beds State Historical Park discovered that prehistoric rhinos lived in large herds. The animals' limited mobility suggests they didn't respond to the volcanic eruption or migrate seasonally, instead likely dying from prolonged exposure to ash and lack of food.
A new study by researchers at the Institute of Science Tokyo hints that calcium ions played a crucial role in shaping life's earliest molecular structures. The team discovered that calcium dramatically alters how tartaric acid molecules link together, favoring homochiral polymers and potentially influencing the emergence of life.
Scientists have discovered complex structures and compounds in asteroid Bennu samples that suggest extraterrestrial brines played a crucial role in the development of organic compounds. The findings indicate that similar brines may still exist on other asteroids and dwarf planets, holding secrets to understanding life's origins.
Two large 'islands' with the size of a continent have been found in the Earth's mantle, showing they are at least half a billion years old. Seismologists discovered these regions by studying the tones and sound volume of seismic waves, finding little damping in the islands, but high damping in nearby cold slab graveyard.
A new electrokinetic mining technology developed by Chinese researchers enables sustainable and efficient recovery of rare earth elements from ion-adsorption deposits. The technology reduces leaching agent usage by 80%, mining time by 70% and energy consumption by 60%.
Researchers used muscovite mica to quantify chemomechanical weakening in materials. The study found that the surface condition of muscovite affects its degradation and failure, with dry conditions causing more deformation before failure.
Researchers found that rising temperatures accelerate weathering of rocks in the Canadian Arctic, leading to increased CO2 release and a positive feedback loop. This process could contribute significantly to climate change, with predicted emissions doubling by 2100 under moderate emission scenarios.
A study by University of Michigan researcher Chris Emproto found that 94% of minerals are named after men, while just 2.8% are named after women. The researchers analyzed nearly 6,000 mineral names and found that growth in the proportion of women among new minerals named for people stalled decades ago.
Researchers from Göttingen University identified the low crystallisation temperatures and groundwater origin of amethyst geodes in northern Uruguay. The study proposes a new model explaining their formation, which could improve exploration techniques and lead to sustainable mining strategies.
Researchers found inorganic nanostructures surrounding deep-ocean hydrothermal vents that mimic molecules essential for life. These structures can harness energy and convert it into electricity, sparking interest in applying this technology to industrial blue-energy harvesting.
Researchers at Heidelberg University found that millimeter-sized sapphire grains formed in association with volcanism in the Eifel region. The crystals inherited isotopic signatures from mantle melts and were deposited in rivers through weathering, supporting a new theory on their formation.
A new study reveals the Jøtul hydrothermal field in the Arctic Ocean, which is rich in minerals and metals. The discovery of high concentrations of methane indicates a significant interaction with magma, contributing to ocean acidification and climate change.
Researchers developed a displacement-type ferroelectric material with high dielectric constant by incorporating rubidium ions into perovskite compounds. The material exhibits unique distortions and phase transitions across a broad temperature range.
Researchers found that weathering in the region leads to an overall CO2 uptake, but near-surface processes only determine the CO2 balance in areas with a thick and cold crust. In contrast, the western side of the Central Apennines is a significant CO2 emitter due to deep-seated outgassing from carbonate rocks.
Researchers from Shibaura Institute of Technology develop new methodology to accurately simulate soil behavior in rigid state, leveraging MSP method and Bingham fluid biviscosity model. The study highlights the impact of parameters on simulation accuracy and computational costs.
The UK is launching four new PhD training centers to boost expertise in environmental science, focusing on flood management, freshwater quality, sustainable mineral resources, and wetland conservation. These centers will support the next generation of researchers who will go on to build careers in research, business, and public service.
New research by Oregon State University suggests the Ontong Java Plateau is younger and its eruption was more protracted than previously believed. The findings contradict long-held assumptions about the formation of the plateau being linked to a global oxygen-depletion event that formed black shale deposits worldwide.
Daniel Herwartz receives 2 million euros funding from ERC Consolidator Grant for his project KinO, which explores temperature fluctuations associated with mass extinction and improves temperature reconstructions of ancient ocean temperatures.
A team of researchers analyzed stone artefacts from Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, and Caroline Islands to understand relationship between western Pacific Polynesian societies. Geochemical analysis revealed six adzes sourced from a single fortified quarry complex in American Samoa, indicating long-distance mobility.
Researchers found that simultaneous learning of two tasks enhances a deep-learning model's performance on retrieving precipitation information from satellite data. The new framework uses multi-task learning to improve current estimates of precipitation, outperforming existing approaches.
Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin are developing a new mining technology that uses CO2 to weaken rock containing critical minerals, reducing energy needed for mining. The goal is to make mining carbon negative by storing more carbon than produced.
Scientists have discovered a new type of solid crystal that forms when water and table salt combine in cold and high-pressure conditions, potentially existing on the surface of Jupiter's moons. This finding has significant implications for planetary science and the search for extraterrestrial life, as it could explain the mysterious ch...
Researchers use heavy hydraulic presses to mimic early Earth's conditions and recreate the differentiation process in miniature. They found that iron melts could pass through grain boundaries, exchanging chemical elements like oxygen and sulfur with the surrounding mantle.
The Martian meteorite Tissint has revealed a rich inventory of organic compounds, offering insights into Mars' habitability. The study, published in Science Advances, discovered an unprecedented diversity of organic molecules, including magnesium compounds not previously seen on the planet.
Researchers discovered trapped seawater sealed in North American rock for 390 million years, shedding light on ancient oceans' chemistry and potential for storing carbon-free fuel. The study's findings could inform geologic studies and help identify subsurface locations to safely store hydrogen.
Researchers from Osaka University have successfully detected carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen in samples from near-Earth asteroid Ryugu using muon non-destructive analysis. The findings suggest that CI chondrites may be contaminated with terrestrial materials, challenging previous understanding of the solar system's chemical compositions.
Researchers at Osaka Metropolitan University used Mössbauer spectroscopy to study monoclinic pyroxenes, a type of calcium-rich mineral. They found that the tensor determining iron ion intensity ratios is independent of iron content but dependent on calcium content.
Researchers at the University of Illinois used single calcite crystals with varying surface roughness to simplify the physics of fault movement. The study found that friction can increase or decrease with sliding velocity depending on mineral types and environment, providing a fundamental understanding of rate-and-state equations.
A massive volcanic eruption at the end of the Triassic period caused a global cooling effect, leading to the mass extinction. The event paved the way for the rise of dinosaurs as their natural predators went extinct.
Researchers used lab-based mimicry to reveal a new crystal structure that has major implications for our understanding of the interiors of large, rocky exoplanets. This discovery could have revolutionary implications for how we think about the dynamics of exoplanet interiors.
The study reveals that asbestos minerals undergo changes that resemble self-defense when internalized by human lung cells. These changes include the formation of an iron-rich layer on the minerals, which may be a mechanism to protect the cell from toxicity.
A study found that thawing permafrost in the Arctic releases large amounts of previously unaccounted-for carbon dioxide, amplifying global warming. The research team determined that up to 80% of this CO2 comes from ancient organic matter and 18% from inorganic sources.
Researchers successfully reproduced the formation of methane from diamonds under high-pressure conditions, shedding light on the deep Earth's carbon cycle. This finding suggests that hydrocarbons like methane can be created without biological activities, which has significant implications for our understanding of the planet's climate.
Researchers have synthesized a new form of carbon glass with three-dimensional bonds, the hardest known glass material. The discovery has potential for mass production and opens up new possibilities in devices and electronics.
MARUM researchers simulate alternative hydrocarbon formation through reduction of acetic acid, proposing a new explanation for unusual isotope patterns. The findings provide insight into the rapid thermal alteration of sedimentary organic matter and its role in the global carbon cycle.
Researchers found that dough mixing vats and millstones from Roman-era ruins were made from specific rock types that improved each tool's function. The stones were sourced locally, challenging a theory that some millstones were imported from Italy.
Scientists recreated Titan's conditions, studying properties of organic molecules ACN and PCN on the moon's surface. The findings could provide insights into Titan's surface cracking and confirm its mineral composition.
Scientists discovered that volcanic arcs, including chains like the Andes and Cascades, played a crucial role in regulating atmospheric CO2 levels over the past 400 million years. This natural feedback mechanism helped maintain a stable climate, but recent human-driven emissions have disrupted this balance.
A study of Mytilus californianus shells reveals a shift in mineralogical composition over the past 60 years, from aragonite to calcite. Ocean acidification is likely responsible for this change, indicating potential impacts on marine ecosystems.