0000000000602894
AUTHOR
John M. Hanchar
Effects of natural radiation damage on back-scattered electron images of single crystals of minerals
Generally, it has been assumed that signal intensity variations in back-scattered electron (BSE) images of minerals are mainly controlled by chemical heterogeneity. This is especially true for images of single crystals, where effects of different crystal orientations with respect to the incident beam on the observed BSE are excluded. In contrast, we show that local variations of the structural state within single-crystals (i.e., degree of lattice order or lattice imperfectness) may also have dramatic effects on the back-scattering of electrons. As an example, we present BSE images of single-crystals of natural zircon, ZrSiO 4 , whose intensity patterns are predominantly controlled by struct…
Low-temperature Zr mobility: An in-situ synchrotron-radiation XRF study of the effect of radiation damage in zircon on the element release in $H_{2}O+HCl\pm SiO_{2}$ fluids
The release of Zr, U, and Pb from nearly metamict zircon and its recrystallized analog and of Zr from fully crystalline and slightly radiation-damaged zircon in H 2 O + HCl ± SiO 2 fluids was investigated in situ at temperatures between 200 and 500 °C using a hydrothermal diamond-anvil cell and time-resolved synchrotron-radiation XRF analyses. Dissolution of nearly metamict zircon proceeded much faster than that of zircon with little or no radiation damage and resulted in a 1.5 to 2 log units higher Zr molality in 6 to 7 m HCl fluids. Extensive recrystallization of the almost fully amorphous material started at 260 to 300 °C in H 2 O + HCl, and at about 360 °C if quartz was added, and was c…
Long-term stability of alpha particle damage in natural zircon
Abstract We report the first discovery of radiation damage haloes generated by alpha particles in zircon. Proterozoic zircon crystals from a potassium-rich leucogranite from the Adirondack Mountains, New York State, have interior regions that are generally low in actinide elements (UO 2 + ThO 2 ≤ 0.02 wt.%) but show a remarkable pattern of heterogeneous metamictisation. The degree of radiation damage in these regions is not uniformly low, as would be expected if it corresponded to the observed actinide distribution patterns and age of the crystals. Rather, radiation damage is significantly increased in the outermost micro-areas of the low-actinide regions. The additional radiation damage …
Further characterisation of the 91500 zircon crystal
This paper reports the results from a second characterisation of the 91500 zircon, including data from electron probe microanalysis, laser ablation inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) and laser fluorination analyses. The focus of this initiative was to establish the suitability of this large single zircon crystal for calibrating in situ analyses of the rare earth elements and oxygen isotopes, as well as to provide working values for key geochemical systems. In addition to extensive testing of the chemical and structural homogeneity of this sample, the occurrence of banding in 91500 in both backscattered electron and cathodolumines…