In the year 1888 I gave before the Mineralogical Society an account of the forms and optical characters of some minute crystals of kaolinite from Anglesey. At that time I was unable to ascertain whether the mineral was optically positive or negative, and it was stated that the axial angle 2V would approximate to 90°. Subsequently, by the aid of oil-immersion lenses and condensers of high angular aperture (numerical aperture=1.25), it was found that the mineral is optically positive and that the acute bisectrix is normal to the clinopinacoid (the obtuse negative bisectrix emerging through the basal plane). The optic axial angle in air was determined with an eyepiece micrometer to be 2E = 121°, with a possible error of one or two degrees, due to the small size of the crystals and the consequent weak interference-figures.

In a paper communicated to this Society in March, 1903, it was shown that antimonite is fairly transparent to radiations of long wave-length and that its behaviour between crossed nicols is consistent with orthorhombic symmetry. At the same time it was pointed out that it would be of interest to determine the wave-lengths of the radiations transmitted and the principal indices of refraction of antimonlte for these radiations. On undertaking this investigation it was soon found that antimonite was quite sufficiently transparent to the rays at the extreme red end of the visible spectrum to enable visual observations to, be made, and in a verbal communication to the Society on March 22, 1904, it was stated that the indices of refraction for red light were 4.129 for rays vibrating parallel to the axis Z and 3.873 for rays vibrating parallel to the axis X.

During the last twelve years I have communicated to this Society, often in collaboration with Dr. G. T. Prior, several papers descriptive of Bolivian minerals. These papers have dealt primarily with the species augelite, andorite, argyrodite, stannite, and chaleostibite, though many others have been examined and in some cases incidentally mentioned. The latter, as being of lesser general interest, or as not having led to sufficiently important results for separate publication, are now collected together in the present notes.

When in 1870 Nordenskjöld had made the discovery at Blaafjeld (Ovifak) on the Isle of Disco of the remarkable large iron blocks, there soon, as will be remembered, arose a whole literature on the occurrence and origin of this iron. Although the Danish naturalists had, from the first raised a series of objections against the theory of the meteoric origin of these iron-blocks, the problem of their existence could not be satisfactorily solved without careful geological investigations having been first made into the nature of the whole of the Greenland basalt-formation. Such investigations having been made by Mr. K. J. V. Steenstrup, I was directed by the Danish Commission for the Geological and Geographical Survey of Greenland to make a chemical examination of the materials collected.

New generalized extinction curves, derived from wave-normals located on a circular cone, are presented. They may be used with the universal stage for the accurate location of up to all three of the indicatrix axes, α, β, γ, of any biaxial crystal, or the optic axis of any uniaxial crystal.

The crystal structure of ‘minasgeraisite-(Y)’, triclinic P1, a = 9.994(4), b = 7.705(3), c = 4.764(2) Å, α = 90.042(9), β = 90.218(14), γ = 90.034(9) (°), V = 366.8(5) Å3 and Z = 1, has been refined to an R1 index of 2.86% for 4170 observed (|Fo| > 4σF) reflections. Significant observed (|Fo| > 40–60 σF) reflections violate the presence of a 21-screw axis and an a-glide plane, negating the space group P21/a previously found for minerals of the gadolinite–datolite group. Averaging of the X-ray data in Laue groups 2/m and $\bar 1$ gives the following agreement indices: 2/m (9.68%) and $\bar 1$ (5.68%). The internal agreement index from averaging of identical reflections collected at multiple positions along the diffraction vector is significantly lower than that for the Laue group $\bar 1$: Rpsi = 2.40%, where 13,109 reflections were collected, 4288 are unique for P1 symmetry, and Rpsi is based on a mean data redundancy factor of > 3. Both the data merging and an |E2–1| value of 0.773 indicate that P1 is the correct space group. The general formula for the gadolinite–datolite group is W2XZ2T2O8V2 (Z = 2) which we have expanded to 20 anions (Z = 1) to show the W-site cation ordering present in ‘minasgeraisite-(Y)’. Bismuth, Ca and REE are ordered over four W sites, with Bi dominant at W1, Ca dominant at W2, and Y dominant at W3 and W4. The dominant constituent at the X sites is a vacancy, and Ca does not occur at the X sites. Significant B and Si are assigned to the Be-dominant Z sites, and the T sites are occupied by Si. The simplified ‘minasgeraisite-(Y)’ formula (Z = 1) is BiCa(Y,Ln)2(□,Mn)2(Be,B,Si)4Si4O16 [(OH),O]4. ‘Minasgeraisite-(Y)’ should be assigned to a triclinic subgroup of the gadolinite–datolite group, and its lower symmetry suggests that Ca-substituted gadolinites and hingganites should be examined for evidence of triclinic symmetry associated with cation order at the W sites.

A re-examination of the mineral scolecite has shown that the previously published monoclinic (pseudo-orthorhombic) unit cell is face-centred and that the Hermann-Mauguin spacegroup symbol has been incorrectly assigned. The reduced monoclinic cell yields a 9·85 Å, b 18·98 Å, c 6·52 Å, β 110° 61; space group Aa. New indexed powder data are included.

Anorthosite country rocks near the fissure vents of an andesitic resurgent caldera contain coexisting crystalline plagioclase, pseudomorphous plagioclase glass, and anomalously dense, massive plagioclase glass. Glass pseudomorphous after labradorite (An 53) has the composition of oligoclase (An 17). Large masses of dense plagioclase glass have compositions near An 53, but relict crystalline plagioclase within them has compositions near An 80. Devitrification products of this glass have potassium-rich compositions. These compositions are compatible with partial thermal melting in a high-temperature, moderate-pressure pulse. Such a pulse might be asscciated with a confined chemical explosion.

This study presents the first crystal-structure determination of natural MgCO3·5H2O, mineral lansfordite, in comparison with previous structural works performed on synthetic analogues. A new prototype single-crystal X-ray diffractometer allowed us to measure an extremely small crystal (i.e. 0.020 mm × 0.010 mm × 0.005 mm) and refine anisotropically all non-hydrogen atoms in the structure and provide a robust hydrogen-bond arrangement. Our new data confirm that natural lansfordite can be stable for several months at room temperature, in contrast with previous works, which reported that such a mineral could be stable only below 10°C.

Chromite occurs together with olivine as phenocrysts in basalts of the Kanakasu greenstone body. Chromite forms inclusions within olivine phenocrysts; it also constitutes discrete phenocrystic grains scattered in the groundmass. The Cr and Ni contents of chromite-bearing olivine basalts are unusually high relative to the MgO content. This is probably due to the presence of phenocrystic chromite and olivine. The mineralogy suggests that the groundmass of the basalts is hawaiitic in composition. Chromite, generally, is unlikely to crystallize from differentiated magma such as hawaiite melt. The chromite and associated olivine phenocrysts are probably xenocrysts. Discrete chromite commonly shows compositional zoning that resulted from reaction with host magma; some chromite evidently changed in composition. Chromite embedded in olivine was shielded from reaction with host magma, and has preserved the original chemical composition. The composition of embedded chromite ranges: Mg/(Mg+Fe2+) 0.37–0.58, Cr/(Cr+Al) 0.47–0.64, Fe3+ 0.16–0.47 p.f.u., and Ti 0.034–0.13 p.f.u. The relatively high Ti and Al contents suggest that chromite crystallized from an alkalic basalt magma. The Cr/(Cr+Al) ratio is relatively high when compared to those of chromite in mid-oceanic ridge and island-arc alkalic basalts; the Kanakasu embedded chromite is chemically identical to chromite from Hawaiian alkalic basalts. The Kanakasu chromite was probably formed in an intraplate oceanic island.

The new minerals d'ansite-(Mn), Na21Mn2+(SO4)10Cl3, and d'ansite-(Fe), Na21Fe2+(SO4)10Cl3, occur as encrustations in fumaroles at Vesuvius, Naples, Italy and La Fossa crater,Vulcano, Aeolian Islands, Italy, respectively. Both minerals are cubic and crystallize in space group I 3d. D'ansite-(Mn) forms colourless translucent tristetrahedral crystals up to 0.2 mm on edge; d'ansite-(Fe) forms aggregates of colourless to white complex isometriccrystals of about the same size. Chemical analyses obtained by energy-dispersive spectrometry on an electron microprobe gave the following mean compositions: d'ansite-(Mn), Na2O 39.37, MnO 3.46, MgO 0.13, SO3 49.99, Cl 6.36, O=Cl–1.44, total 97.87 wt.%, correspondingto an empirical formula, on the basis of 43 anions, of Na20.61 (Mn2+ 0.79Mg0.05)Σ0.84S10.13O40.09Cl2.91; and d'ansite-(Fe), Na2O 39.12, FeO 4.18, MgO 0.12, SO3 49.91, Cl 6.81,O=Cl –1.54, total 98.60 wt.%, corresponding to an empirical formula of Na20.42(Fe2+ 0.94Mg0.05)Σ0.99S10.08O39.89Cl3.11. The six strongest reflections in the X-ray powder diffraction pattern ofd'ansite-(Fe) [listed as dobs(Å) (I) (hkl)] are as follows: 2.807(100)(044), 2.570(37)(235), 1.714(29)(129), 3.384(27)(233), 3.113(26)(134), 2.108(15)(237). The unit-cell parameters obtained from single-crystal data are 15.9291(9) and 15.882(3) Åfor d'ansite-(Mn) and d'ansite-(Fe), respectively. The structure of both minerals was refined, using single-crystal diffraction data, to final R parameters of 0.0309 and 0.0336 on reflections with I > 2σ(I). The structure contains three independent Na sites, oneof which is partially occupied by Mn2+ or Fe2+, two independent sulfate anions and one chlorine site.

Corrosion of steel canisters, disposed of in a repository for high-level waste (HLW), leads to generation of hydrogen gas for a long period after the repository's closure. The accumulation of hydrogen gas may lead to significant desaturation and unacceptable build-up of pressure in the backfilled disposal tunnels if the gas cannot escape through the low-permeability host rock. Consequently, the investigation of gas migration is of high relevance in the assessment of the repository's performance.

In this paper, the results of numerical investigations on gas migration performed using the computer code TOUGH2 (USA) are presented. The objective was to investigate migration of gas generated in a single disposal tunnel of a conceptual geological repository in a clay formation, which was suggested for benchmark studies in the European Commission project FORGE (Fate Of Repository GasEs). The analysis was focused on evaluation of the impact of an initial temperature in the repository and of different tortuosity models on gas migration. It was revealed that gas migration results were dependent on tortuosity model, while temperature variation in the repository had minor impact.

Six natural crystals from the Sludyanka crystalline complex belonging to the eskolaite (Cr2O3)–karelianite (V2O3)–hematite (Fe2O3) solid solution were studied by means of X-ray diffraction and electron microprobe. The Fe3+-poor samples show a general increase in a and c cell parameters with increasing mean cationic radius (MCR), consistent with that shown by the synthetic crystals along the eskolaite–karelianite join. The Fe3+-richer sample deviates significantly from the behaviour shown by the Fe3+-poor ones, similar to synthetic and natural hematites; with increasing MCR, the a and c cell parameters increase linearly along the eskolaite-karelianite join. However, for the samples rich in Fe3+, from karelianite to hematite, a shows a slightly steeper slope whereas the c parameter decreases strongly. The octahedral distortion increases slightly as a function of MCR along the eskolaite-karelianite join, whereas it increases markedly for Fe3+-rich samples. The evolution of the octahedral edges and of the octahedral distortions as a function of MCR are responsible for the behaviour of the unit-cell parameters along the eskolaite-karelianite-hematite join.

Radial and longitudinal temperature gradients within cold-seal pressure vessels can contribute significantly to the total temperature unccrtainty in any one experiment and it is important to calibrate such gradients before experiments are undertaken. We have measured temperature gradients in vertically mounted large cold-seal vessels at 1 atm and 1 kbar and in the temperature range 500–800°C Radial gradients were measured with the vessel at various positions within the furnace by recording the temperature difference between a thermocouple in the internal bore of the vessel and one in a well in the top of the vessel. We find that when the vessel is at a certain position in the furnace, the temperatures read by these two thermocouples are equivalent to within 1°C. The contribution of radial gradients to temperature uncertainty can be thus be substantially minimized if experiments are undertaken with the vessel in this position. Longitudinal gradients of 2.8°C/cm at 500°C and 3°C/cm at 800°C were recorded at 1 kbar. These profiles are significantly steeper than those recorded at 1 atm. Not to calibrate temperature gradients at the experimental conditions or failure to calibrate vessels at all could lead to large temperature uncertainties.

Well-Crystallized icositetrahedral garnets from Botallack, Cornwall, are preserved in most British mineral collections, but they have previously not been systematically examined. The original specimens were discovered in 1821 by a St. Just miner who dealt in minerals, and the occurrence is first referred to by Carne in his paper 'On the mineral productions and the geology of the parish of St. Just' as follows : 'About six months ago, a mass of beautiful garnets, of a deep red colour, was found imbedded in the rock, not far from low water mark at the foot of Chycornish Carn, about a quarter of a mile south of Botallack. Some of the crystals were larger than hazel-nuts, and most of them were twenty-four sided. Some specimens of a very superior order were procured, each having from one to two hundred crystals on its face.'

In the classification proposed by the author in a previous paper meteorites are divided into five groups according to the ratio of iron to nickel in the nickeliferous iron they contain. In the case of the meteoric irons such a classification, as shown by Farrington's list of analyses, is a natural one, since the structure of the irons, as revealed by etching, varies with the amount of nickel they contain. Thus Group 1, in which the metal is poor ill nickel, with a ratio of Fe to Ni of 13 upwards, includes nickel-poor ataxites, hexahedrites, and Coarsest and coarse octahedrites ; Group 2, in which Fe : Ni =8-13, the rest of the octahedrites from medium to finest ; Group 8, in which Fe : Ni = 5-8, nickel-rich ataxites; Group 4, in which Fe: Ni = 2-5, ataxites still richer in nickel; while Group 5 may include the doubtful Oktibbeha meteorite in which the ratio of iron to nickel is even less than one.

The dissolution rates of natural well-crystallized variscite (AlPO4.2H2O) were measured from the evolution of aqueous Al and P concentrations in closed and mixed-flow through reactors at 25°C and from 1.5 to 9 pH. Measured dissolution rates decrease with increasing pH from 5.05x10-16 mol/cm2/s at pH = 1.51 to 4.92x10-17 mol/cm2/s at pH = 5.89 and then increase with increasing pH to 1.64x10-17 mol/cm2/s at pH = 8.99. Estimates of the time required to equilibrate a mildly acidic, initially Al- and P-free solution with variscite based on measured dissolution rates and solubility products suggests it takes no more than several weeks to equilibrate this mineral with soil pore fluids. This result suggests that variscite can buffer aqueous phosphate concentrations in a significant number of near surface environments.

The Neoproterozoic, epidote-bearing Mons Claudianus Batholith (MCB), Egypt, consists of tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite (TTG) lithologies, containing variable contents of quartz, feldspars, amphiboles, biotite, and magmatic epidote, with accessory titanite, zircon, allanite, apatite, opaque magnetite and ilmenite. Plagioclase varies from An49 to An19, and K-feldspars possess near end-member compositions (Or97 to Or91). Amphiboles are calcic (Ca = 1.88–1.92 atoms per formula unit (apfu)), Al-rich (average AlT = 1.84 apfu), having an average Fe/(Fe + Mg) ratio of 0.50, and are edenite, ferro-edenite and ferropargasite. The Al-in-Hb barometer produced an average crystallization pressure of 5.5 kbar, consistent with the presence of magmatic epidote; the association epidote – Al-rich-Hb suggests mesozonal crustal levels, and thus a possible average rate of regional uplift for the Nubian Shield would have been in the order of 0.03 mm/yr. Calculated temperatures (using the Hb-Plag geothermometer) range from 729 to 754°C (average 747°C). The calculated P / T values of epidote-bearing MCB rocks fall within the experimentally-determined P-T range of stability of magmatic epidote with fO2 buffered from NNO to HM. Biotites in the MCB are moderately Mg-rich (Fe/(Fe + Mg) = 0.42 to 0.50), and are type 'C'-biotite, typical of calcalkaline orogenic suites, which are distinct from types 'A' and 'P' biotites occurring in anorogenic alkaline, and peraluminous lithologies, respectively. The minor secondary chlorite phases, with their Fe/(Fe + Mg) ratios of 0.37–0.52, are pycnochlorite and ripidolites, and belong to group 'c' chlorites. Minerals of the MCB reflect a petrogenetic history involving a wet, subsolvus, typically orogenic magmatic system. Results of this study could have wide implications for mineralogical characterization, level of emplacement and evolution of magmatic systems of TTG suites occurring in other orogenic belts.