scholarly journals A mineralogical study in contrasts: highly mineralized whale rostrum and human enamel

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhen Li ◽  
Maisoon AI-Jawad ◽  
Samera Siddiqui ◽  
Jill D. Pasteris

Abstract The outermost enamel of the human tooth and the rostrum of the whale Mesoplodon densirostris are two highly mineralized tissues that contain over 95 wt.% mineral, i.e., bioapatite. However, the same mineral type (carbonated hydroxylapatite) does not yield the same material properties, as revealed by Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, electron microprobe analysis and synchrotron X-ray diffraction analysis. Overall, the outermost enamel of a tooth has more homogeneous physical and chemical features than the rostrum. Chemical comparison of rostrum and enamel shows bioapatite in the rostrum to be enriched in Na, Mg, CO3 and S, whereas the outermost enamel shows only a slightly enriched Cl concentration. Morphologically, mineral rods (at tens of μm scale), crystallites and prisms (at μm and sub-μm scale) and platelets (at tens of nm scale) all demonstrate less organized texture in the rostrum than in enamel. Such contrasts between two mineralized tissues suggest distinct pathways of biomineralization, e.g., the nature of the equilibrium between mineral and body fluid. This study illustrates the remarkable flexibility of the apatite mineral structure to match its chemical and physical properties to specific biological needs within the same animal or between species.

1987 ◽  
Vol 113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Schlorholtz ◽  
Ken Bergeson ◽  
Turgut Demirel

ABSTRACTThe physical and chemical properties of fly ash produced at Ottumwa Generating Station have been monitored since April, 1985. The fly ash is produced from burning a low sulfur, sub-bituminous coal obtained from the Powder River Basin near Gillette, Wyoming. One-hundred and sixty samples of fly ash were obtained during the two year period. All of the samples were subjected to physical testing as specified by ASTM C 311. About one-hundred of the samples were also subjected to a series of tests designed to monitor the self-cementing properties of the fly ash. Many of the fly ash samples were subjected to x-ray diffraction and fluorescence analysis to define the mineralogical and chemical composition of the bulk fly ash as a function of sampling date. Hydration products in selected hardened fly ash pastes, were studied by x-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The studies indicated that power plant operating conditions influenced the compressive strength of the fly ash paste specimens. Mineralogical and morphological studies of the fly ash pastes indicated that stratlingite formation occurred in the highstrength specimens, while ettringite was the major hydration product evident in the low-strength specimens.


2003 ◽  
Vol 807 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Advocat ◽  
F. Jorion ◽  
T. Marcillat ◽  
G. Leturcq ◽  
X. Deschanels ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTZirconolite is a potential inorganic matrix that is currently investigated in France, in the framework of the 1991 radioactive waste management law, with a view to provide durable containment of the trivalent and tetravalent minor actinides like neptunium, curium, americium and small quantities of unrecyclable plutonium separated from other nuclear waste. To confirm the actinide loading capacity of the zirconolite calcium site and to study the physical and chemical stability of this type of ceramic when subjected to alpha self-irradiation, zirconolite ceramic pellets were fabricated with 10 wt% plutonium oxide (isotope 239 or 238). The 55 pellets are dense (> 93.3% of the theoretical density on average) and free of cracks. They are characterized by a grain size of between 10 and 20 micrometers. X-ray diffraction analyses confirmed the presence of the zirconolite 2M crystalline structure.


2017 ◽  
Vol 81 (6) ◽  
pp. 1287-1302
Author(s):  
Ferdinando Bosi ◽  
Andrew G. Christy ◽  
Ulf Hålenius

AbstractFour specimens of the roméite-group minerals oxyplumboroméite and fluorcalcioroméite from the Långban Mn-Fe deposit in Central Sweden were structurally and chemically characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, electron microprobe analysis and infrared spectroscopy. The data obtained and those on additional roméite samples from literature show that the main structural variations within the roméite group are related to variations in the content of Pb2+, which is incorporated into the roméite structure via the substitution Pb2+→A2+ where A2+ = Ca, Mn and Sr. Additionally, the cation occupancy at the six-fold coordinated B site, which is associated with the heterovalent substitution BFe3+ + Y☐→BSb5++YO2-, can strongly affect structural parameters.Chemical formulae of the roméite minerals group are discussed. According to crystal-chemical information, the species associated with the name ‘kenoplumboroméite’, hydroxycalcioroméite and fluorcalcioroméite most closely approximate end-member compositions Pb2(SbFe3+)O6☐, Ca2(Sb5+Ti) O6(OH) and (CaNa)Sb2O6F, respectively. However, in accord with pyrochlore nomenclature rules, their names correspond to multiple end-members and are best described by the general formulae: (Pb,#)2(Sb,#)2O6☐, (Ca,#)2(Sb,#)2O6(OH) and (Ca,#)Sb2(O,#)6F, where ‘#’ indicates an unspecified charge-balancing chemical substituent, including vacancies.


2017 ◽  
Vol 89 (4) ◽  
pp. 523-533 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Asabina ◽  
Vladimir Pet’kov ◽  
Pavel Mayorov ◽  
Dmitriy Lavrenov ◽  
Igor Schelokov ◽  
...  

AbstractThe phosphates M0.5+x M′x Zr2−x (PO4)3 (M–Ca, Mn, Co, Sr, Cd, Ba, Pb; M′–Mg, Mn, Co) were synthesized by sol-gel method with the following thermal treatment of reaction mixtures. X-ray diffraction, IR spectroscopy and electron microprobe analysis showed that the obtained phosphates crystallized in Sc2(WO4)3 (SW) and NaZr2(PO4)3 (NZP) structural types. Both types of crystal structures are based on a framework comprised of octahedra and tetrahedra, the difference between them is fragments orientation. Thermal expansion of the phosphates was studied in the temperature range 20–800°C. Some compounds were found to belong to low-expanding materials (αav ~2·10−6°C−1).


1991 ◽  
Vol 05 (21) ◽  
pp. 1447-1456 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. R. HARUTUNYAN ◽  
L. S. GRIGORYAN ◽  
A. S. KUZANYAN ◽  
A. A. KUZNETSOV ◽  
A. A. TERENTIEV ◽  
...  

Two samples of benzene-treated Bi–Pb–Sr–Ca–Cu–O powder exhibited at 300 K magnetic field dependent diamagnetism and magnetization irreversibility. The treatment with benzene resulted also in the appearance of microwave absorption at low magnetic fields, while is sensitive to magnetic history of the sample. From X-ray diffraction data one can see that upon benzene treatment the reflections of 85 K and 110 K phases do not change practically, but a series of new reflections appeared, indicating a lattice modulation with 4.9 nm periodicity. A microprobe analysis revealed substantial inhomogeneity of chemical composition across the samples. The room temperature anomalies were weakened in one sample and vanished in the second upon thermal cycling.


1962 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 62-73 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. N. Rhines ◽  
R. W. Gould

AbstractBy means of a combined X-ray diffraction and metallographic study, two heretofore unrecognized phases, Zr4Fe and Zr2Fe, have been identified. Approximate verification of this finding has been made by Dr. David Levinson, using microprobe analysis. A tentative revision of the Zr-Fe phase diagram is proposed.


Minerals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 871
Author(s):  
Teresa Pi-Puig ◽  
Jesús Solé ◽  
Adriana Gómez Cruz

The mineralogy of surface crusts and efflorescent salts of two old abandoned tailings (Xochula and Remedios) of the mining district of Taxco, Guerrero, was studied by short-wave infrared spectroscopy (SWIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The chemistry of the selected samples was studied with induced coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP–MS). Principal mineralogy is composed of hydrated sulfates of iron (di-trivalent), other less-soluble sulfates such as gypsum and jarosite, and oxides–hydroxides of iron, all of which are the result of the weathering of sulfides (mainly pyrite) accumulated in mining waste. Using quantitative X-ray diffraction (Rietveld method) and the spatial distribution of secondary minerals, two main zones (lateral and central) have been established in both tailings. The genetic model for their formation shows that the secondary iron minerals (sulfates, oxides, and hydroxides) in these deposits have been formed at least in three different stages, mainly by oxidation, dissolution, and precipitation processes in combination with dehydration and primary sulfides neutralization reactions. The chemical analyses of some salts confirm the presence of potentially toxic elements (PTE) in their structure and therefore indicate that the dissolution of the efflorescences in these deposits is a potential source of contamination during the wet season.


Catalysts ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (10) ◽  
pp. 436
Author(s):  
Denis Leybo ◽  
Dmitry Arkhipov ◽  
Konstantin Firestein ◽  
Denis Kuznetsov

Chemical and morphological transformations during Ni2Mo3N synthesis were studied in this work. Nitride samples were synthesized from oxide precursors in H2/N2 flow and were analyzed by thermogravimetry, X-ray diffraction analysis, scanning electron microscopy, and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy methods. In addition, physical and chemical adsorption properties were studied using low-temperature N2 physisorption and NH3 temperature-programmed desorption. It was shown that nitride formation proceeds through a sequence of phase transformations: NiMoO4 + MoO3 → Ni + NiMo + MoO2 → Ni + NiMo + Mo2N → Ni2Mo3N. The weight changes that were calculated from the proposed reactions were in agreement with the experimental data from thermogravimetry. The morphology of the powder changed from platelets and spheres for the oxide sample, to aggregates of needle-like particles for the intermediate product, to porous particles with an extended surface area for the nitride final product. The obtained results should prove useful for subsequent Ni2Mo3N based catalysts production process optimization.


2019 ◽  
Vol 942 ◽  
pp. 40-49
Author(s):  
Yulia Murashkina ◽  
Olga B. Nazarenko

Natural zeolite of Shivirtui deposit (Russia) was modified with nanofibers of aluminum oxyhydroxide AlOOH. Aluminum oxyhydroxide nanofibers were produced at the heating and oxidation of aluminum powder with water. The properties of modified zeolite were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction, transmission electronic microscopy, scanning electronic microscopy, low-temperature nitrogen adsorption, thermal analysis, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. It was found that water content in the modified sample of zeolite was about 15 %. Based on the study of the physical and chemical properties, shivirtui zeolite modified with nanofibers of aluminum oxyhydroxide can be proposed for use as a flame-retardant additive to polymers.


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