TY - JOUR

T1 - Copper in natural oxide spinels

T2 - The new mineral thermaerogenite CuAl2O4, cuprospinel and cu-enriched varieties of other spinel-group members from fumaroles of the tolbachik volcano, Kamchatka, Russia

AU - Pekov, Igor V.

AU - Sandalov, Fedor D.

AU - Koshlyakova, Natalia N.

AU - Vigasina, Marina F.

AU - Polekhovsky, Yury S.

AU - Britvin, Sergey N.

AU - Sidorov, Evgeny G.

AU - Turchkova, Anna G.

PY - 2018/11/1

Y1 - 2018/11/1

N2 - This paper is the first description of natural copper-rich oxide spinels. They were found in deposits of oxidizing-type fumaroles related to the Tolbachik volcano, Kamchatka, Russia. This mineralization is represented by nine species with the following maximum contents of CuO (wt.%, given in parentheses): a new mineral thermaerogenite, ideally CuAl2O4 (26.9), cuprospinel, ideally CuFe3+ 2O4 (28.6), gahnite (21.4), magnesioferrite (14.7), spinel (10.9), magnesiochromite (9.0), franklinite (7.9), chromite (5.9), and zincochromite (4.8). Cuprospinel, formerly known only as a phase of anthropogenic origin, turned out to be the Cu-richest natural spinel-type oxide [sample with the composition (Cu0.831Zn0.100Mg0.043Ni0.022)Σ0.996(Fe3+ 1.725Al0.219Mn3+ 0.048Ti0.008)Σ2.000O4 from Tolbachik]. Aluminum and Fe3+-dominant spinels (thermaerogenite, gahnite, spinel, cuprospinel, franklinite, and magnesioferrite) were deposited directly from hot gas as volcanic sublimates. The most probable temperature interval of their crystallization is 600–800◦C. They are associated with each other and with tenorite, hematite, orthoclase, fluorophlogopite, langbeinite, calciolangbeinite, aphthitalite, anhydrite, fluoborite, sylvite, halite, pseudobrookite, urusovite, johillerite, ericlaxmanite, tilasite, etc. Cu-bearing spinels are among the latest minerals of this assemblage: they occur in cavities and overgrow even alkaline sulfates. Cu-enriched varieties of chrome-spinels (magnesiochromite, chromite, and zincochromite) were likely formed in the course of the metasomatic replacement of a magmatic chrome-spinel in micro-xenoliths of ultrabasic rock under the influence of volcanic gases. The new mineral thermaerogenite, ideally CuAl2O4, was found in the Arsenatnaya fumarole at the Second scoria cone of the Northern Breakthrough of the Great Tolbachik Fissure Eruption. It forms octahedral crystals up to 0.02 mm typically combined in open-work clusters up to 1 mm across. Thermaerogenite is semsitransparent to transparent, with a strong vitreous lustre. Its colour is brown, yellow-brown, red-brown, brown-yellow or brown-red. The mineral is brittle, with the conchoidal fracture, cleavage is none observed. D(calc.) is 4.87 g/cm3 . The chemical composition of the holotype (wt.%, electron microprobe) is: CuO 25.01, ZnO 17.45, Al2O3 39.43, Cr2O3 0.27, Fe2O3 17.96, total 100.12 wt.%. The empirical formula calculated on the basis of 4 O apfu is: (Cu0.619Zn0.422)Σ1.041(Al1.523Fe3+ 0.443Cr0.007)Σ1.973O4 . The mineral is cubic, Fd-3m, a = 8.093(9) Å, V = 530.1(10) Å3 . Thermaerogenite forms a continuous isomorphous series witsh gahnite. The strongest lines of the powder X-ray diffraction pattern of thermaerogenite [d, Å (I, %) (hkl)] are: 2.873 (65) (220), 2.451 (100) (311), 2.033 (10) (400), 1.660 (16) (422), 1.565 (28) (511) and 1.438 (30) (440).

AB - This paper is the first description of natural copper-rich oxide spinels. They were found in deposits of oxidizing-type fumaroles related to the Tolbachik volcano, Kamchatka, Russia. This mineralization is represented by nine species with the following maximum contents of CuO (wt.%, given in parentheses): a new mineral thermaerogenite, ideally CuAl2O4 (26.9), cuprospinel, ideally CuFe3+ 2O4 (28.6), gahnite (21.4), magnesioferrite (14.7), spinel (10.9), magnesiochromite (9.0), franklinite (7.9), chromite (5.9), and zincochromite (4.8). Cuprospinel, formerly known only as a phase of anthropogenic origin, turned out to be the Cu-richest natural spinel-type oxide [sample with the composition (Cu0.831Zn0.100Mg0.043Ni0.022)Σ0.996(Fe3+ 1.725Al0.219Mn3+ 0.048Ti0.008)Σ2.000O4 from Tolbachik]. Aluminum and Fe3+-dominant spinels (thermaerogenite, gahnite, spinel, cuprospinel, franklinite, and magnesioferrite) were deposited directly from hot gas as volcanic sublimates. The most probable temperature interval of their crystallization is 600–800◦C. They are associated with each other and with tenorite, hematite, orthoclase, fluorophlogopite, langbeinite, calciolangbeinite, aphthitalite, anhydrite, fluoborite, sylvite, halite, pseudobrookite, urusovite, johillerite, ericlaxmanite, tilasite, etc. Cu-bearing spinels are among the latest minerals of this assemblage: they occur in cavities and overgrow even alkaline sulfates. Cu-enriched varieties of chrome-spinels (magnesiochromite, chromite, and zincochromite) were likely formed in the course of the metasomatic replacement of a magmatic chrome-spinel in micro-xenoliths of ultrabasic rock under the influence of volcanic gases. The new mineral thermaerogenite, ideally CuAl2O4, was found in the Arsenatnaya fumarole at the Second scoria cone of the Northern Breakthrough of the Great Tolbachik Fissure Eruption. It forms octahedral crystals up to 0.02 mm typically combined in open-work clusters up to 1 mm across. Thermaerogenite is semsitransparent to transparent, with a strong vitreous lustre. Its colour is brown, yellow-brown, red-brown, brown-yellow or brown-red. The mineral is brittle, with the conchoidal fracture, cleavage is none observed. D(calc.) is 4.87 g/cm3 . The chemical composition of the holotype (wt.%, electron microprobe) is: CuO 25.01, ZnO 17.45, Al2O3 39.43, Cr2O3 0.27, Fe2O3 17.96, total 100.12 wt.%. The empirical formula calculated on the basis of 4 O apfu is: (Cu0.619Zn0.422)Σ1.041(Al1.523Fe3+ 0.443Cr0.007)Σ1.973O4 . The mineral is cubic, Fd-3m, a = 8.093(9) Å, V = 530.1(10) Å3 . Thermaerogenite forms a continuous isomorphous series witsh gahnite. The strongest lines of the powder X-ray diffraction pattern of thermaerogenite [d, Å (I, %) (hkl)] are: 2.873 (65) (220), 2.451 (100) (311), 2.033 (10) (400), 1.660 (16) (422), 1.565 (28) (511) and 1.438 (30) (440).

KW - Copper oxide

KW - CuAlO

KW - CuFeO

KW - Cuprospinel

KW - Fumarole sublimate

KW - Gahnite

KW - Kamchatka

KW - Magnesioferrite

KW - New mineral

KW - Spinel supergroup

KW - Thermaerogenite

KW - Tolbachik volcano

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85056212660&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.3390/min8110498

DO - 10.3390/min8110498

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85056212660

VL - 8

JO - Minerals

JF - Minerals

SN - 2075-163X

IS - 11

M1 - 498

ER -