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3D electron diffraction study of terrestrial iron oxide alteration in the Mineo pallasite

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 March 2022

Enrico Mugnaioli Open the ORCID record for Enrico Mugnaioli [Opens in a new window] ,
Azzurra Zucchini Open the ORCID record for Azzurra Zucchini [Opens in a new window] ,
Paola Comodi Open the ORCID record for Paola Comodi [Opens in a new window] ,
Francesco Frondini Open the ORCID record for Francesco Frondini [Opens in a new window] ,
Luca Bartolucci ,
Alessandro Di Michele Open the ORCID record for Alessandro Di Michele [Opens in a new window] ,
Paola Sassi Open the ORCID record for Paola Sassi [Opens in a new window]  and
Mauro Gemmi Open the ORCID record for Mauro Gemmi [Opens in a new window]
Enrico Mugnaioli
Affiliation:
Department of Earth Sciences, University of Pisa, via S. Maria 53, I–56126 Pisa, Italy Center for Nanotechnology Innovation@NEST, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Piazza San Silvestro 12, I–56127 Pisa, Italy
Azzurra Zucchini*
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Geology, University of Perugia, via A. Pascoli, I–06123 Perugia, Italy INFN, Section of Perugia, via A. Pascoli, I–06123 Perugia, Italy
Paola Comodi
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Geology, University of Perugia, via A. Pascoli, I–06123 Perugia, Italy
Francesco Frondini
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Geology, University of Perugia, via A. Pascoli, I–06123 Perugia, Italy INFN, Section of Perugia, via A. Pascoli, I–06123 Perugia, Italy
Luca Bartolucci
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Geology, University of Perugia, via A. Pascoli, I–06123 Perugia, Italy
Alessandro Di Michele
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Geology, University of Perugia, via A. Pascoli, I–06123 Perugia, Italy
Paola Sassi
Affiliation:
Department of Chemistry, Biology and Biotechnology, University of Perugia, via Elce di sotto 8, I–06123 Perugia, Italy
Mauro Gemmi
Affiliation:
Center for Nanotechnology Innovation@NEST, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Piazza San Silvestro 12, I–56127 Pisa, Italy
*
*Author for correspondence: Azzurra Zucchini, Email: azzurra.zucchini@unipg.it
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Abstract

The Mineo pallasite is a relatively poorly known meteorite, which shows interesting features that are not fully understood, such as the occurrence of iron oxide regions bordering both the olivine grain boundaries and the (Fe,Ni) metal. In this study, the Fe oxides have been characterised by Raman spectroscopy, electron microprobe analysis, field emission scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and 3D electron diffraction (3D ED). The combination of TEM–EDS and 3D ED yields a reliable identification of the chemical and crystallographic features of the cryptocrystalline portion of the sample investigated, enabling the Fe-oxide regions to be positively identified as goethite, FeO(OH).

The occurrence of goethite was unambiguously associated with terrestrial alteration, also confirmed by the presence of calcite, detected by TEM-EDS and 3D ED. Goethite contains minor elements such as Na, Si and Ca, probably coming from alumino-silicates in the terrestrial environment, and Ni associated with the (Fe,Ni) metal. The observation of goethite along olivine grain boundaries, as an alteration product of the (Fe,Ni) metal diagenesis, is also very intriguing as it might be related to the (Fe,Ni) metal intruded into the sub-micrometric olivine fragments during pallasite formation. Further work is needed to extensively analyse the texture and composition of olivine/metal boundaries.

Keywords

meteoritesMineo pallasiteFe oxyhydroxidesgoethiteelectron diffractionterrestrial alteration
Type
Article
Information
Mineralogical Magazine , Volume 86 , Issue 2 , April 2022 , pp. 272 - 281
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Mineralogical Society of Great Britain and Ireland

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Footnotes

Associate Editor: Daniel Atencio

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