Morphology of ettringite crystal of sulfoferrite clinker

This paper deals with the composition and properties of solid solution of calcium sulfoferrite. It was studied an influence of calcium s sulfoferrite on structure and properties cement phases. Study of the hydration processes of the calcium sulfoferrite mineral are observed only short prismatic crystals. Prismatic crystals of ferruginous ettringite are always formed from sulfoferrite mineral of any fraction. it was found that the smaller the initial hydrating grains of minerals, the faster they are hydrated. Analyse polyfractional compound hydration showed that fine fractions provide formation of crystallization centres, and particles less than 45 microns, with constant interaction with the liquid phase, cause a gradual growth of crystals. Expansion of hydrated minerals of certain fractions was analysed to check the dependence of the expansion on the morphology of ettringite crystal hydrates. During the hardening of the samples, expansion was observed along with a drop in strength.

Behavior of the clinopyroxenes trace elements in spinel-lherzolite xenoliths from Liri (Kapsiki plateau, Cameroon line)

Spinel-lherzolite xenoliths trapped within the alkali basalts flow in the Liri region (Kapsiki Plateau) have a protogranular texture and consist of olivine, orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene and spinel crystals. These xenoliths are residues of partial melting of the primitive mantle, with the low titanium content in clinopyroxene crystals (TiO2 < 0.5 wt.%). The clinopyroxene of the spinel-lherzolite xenoliths from Liri, are divided into two distinct groups according to their trace element characteristics. The variations in the rare earths elements make it possible to classify the different clynopyroxenes in two groups: the first group consisting of the samples of Liri (Liri 1, Liri 02, Liri 3, Liri 05 and Liri 5) rich in light rare earths elements (LREEs), with ratios (Ce/Yb)N normalized which vary between 3.00 and 7.78. It is probably a cryptic metasomatism due to the absence of hydrated minerals (such as amphibole) which caused these enrichments. The second group comprises samples of Liri (Liri 01, Liri 2, Liri 04, Liri 4) depleted in light rare earths elements, with the ratio in (Ce/Yb) N < 1.2. This depletion in rare earths elements results from the extraction of the melting liquid.

Testing correspondence between areas with hydrated minerals, as observed by CRISM onboard MRO, and spots of enhanced subsurface water content, as found by DAN along the traverse of Curiosity

&lt;p&gt;The Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons (DAN) instrument designed to detect neutrons in order to determine hydrogen abundance in the Martian subsurface (down to 1 m deep) is successfully working onboard Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity rover for more than seven years. The Curiosity rover covered more than 20 km on the Martian surface and crossed a range of terrain types and geological structures of different mineralogical composition.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;We investigate the possible correlation between the water equivalent hydrogen (WEH) value, as measured by DAN along the Curiosity traverse, and the presence of hydrated minerals, as observed from the orbit by Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) onboard Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. &amp;#160;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Our analysis of the WEH value from DAN measurements in Gale crater and the CRISM data, reflecting the distribution of hydrated/hydroxylated minerals on the surface of this crater, shows a confident increase of the average WEH values for the surface elements, containing certain types of minerals, in comparison with surface elements, that do not contain any of them. This increase is shown to become higher for surface with more prominent spectral features of hydrated/ hydroxylated minerals on the surface. Thus, certain types of minerals being parts of the sedimentary deposits composing Gale crater, should have considerable thickness, which is sufficient for active neutron sensing in DAN measurements. To explain the correspondence, one may assume that large blocks of certain mineral composition are distributed over the traverse, the tops of which are observed by CRISM from the Martian orbit, and the volumes of which are detectable by DAN on the Martian surface.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The bottom of the crater is thought to be a composition of a uniform regolith and sedimentary blocks of minerals with different level of hydration. The fraction of the regolith contains a standard value of WEH, about 2.6 wt.%, and the &amp;#160;fraction of minerals, provided they are there, might contribute to some increase of the mean WEH values, up to 3.8 wt.%, as they are obtained at some spots from the DAN neutron sensing.&lt;/p&gt;

Scientists, Explorers Keen to Locate Water-Bearing Asteroids

Hydrated minerals on near-Earth asteroids offer both scientific revelations and economic incentives for companies looking to refuel satellites with material from nearby space.