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Sericitization
Sericitic alteration or sericitization is a process of mineral alteration caused by hydrothermal fluids invading permeable country rock. Plagioclase feldspar within the rock is converted to sericite (sericite is not a mineral; it is a term that is used to describe any fine-grained white phyllosilicate when a distinction cannot be determined), which typically consists of fine-grained white mica and related minerals. Sericitic alteration occurs within the phyllic alteration Phyllic alteration is a hydrothermal alteration zone in a permeable rock that has been affected by circulation of hydrothermal fluids. It is commonly seen in copper porphyry ore deposits in calc-alkaline rocks. Phyllic alteration is characterise ... zone. Geochemical processes Phyllosilicates {{geology-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rock Cycle
The rock cycle is a basic concept in geology that describes transitions through geologic time among the three main rock types: sedimentary, metamorphic, and igneous. Each rock type is altered when it is forced out of its equilibrium conditions. For example, an igneous rock such as basalt may break down and dissolve when exposed to the atmosphere, or melt as it is subducted under a continent. Due to the driving forces of the rock cycle, plate tectonics and the water cycle, rocks do not remain in equilibrium and change as they encounter new environments. The rock cycle explains how the three rock types are related to each other, and how processes change from one type to another over time. This cyclical aspect makes rock change a geologic cycle and, on planets containing life, a biogeochemical cycle. The rock cycle Transition to igneous rock When rocks are pushed deep under the Earth's surface, they may melt into magma. If the conditions no longer exist for the magma to stay ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hydrothermal Alteration
Metasomatism (from the Greek μετά ''metá'' "change" and σῶμα ''sôma'' "body") is the chemical alteration of a rock by hydrothermal and other fluids. It is the replacement of one rock by another of different mineralogical and chemical composition. The minerals which compose the rocks are dissolved and new mineral formations are deposited in their place. Dissolution and deposition occur simultaneously and the rock remains solid. Synonyms to the word metasomatism are metasomatose and metasomatic process. The word metasomatose can also be used as a name for specific varieties of metasomatism (for example '' Mg-metasomatose'' and '' Na-metasomatose''). Metasomatism can occur via the action of hydrothermal fluids from an igneous or metamorphic source. In the igneous environment, metasomatism creates skarns, greisen, and may affect hornfels in the contact metamorphic aureole adjacent to an intrusive rock mass. In the metamorphic environment, metasomatism is created by mass ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hydrothermal Fluid
Hydrothermal circulation in its most general sense is the circulation of hot water (Ancient Greek ὕδωρ, ''water'',Liddell, H.G. & Scott, R. (1940). ''A Greek-English Lexicon. revised and augmented throughout by Sir Henry Stuart Jones. with the assistance of. Roderick McKenzie.'' Oxford: Clarendon Press. and θέρμη, ''heat'' ). Hydrothermal circulation occurs most often in the vicinity of sources of heat within the Earth's crust. In general, this occurs near volcanic activity, but can occur in the shallow to mid crust along deeply penetrating fault irregularities or in the deep crust related to the intrusion of granite, or as the result of orogeny or metamorphism. Seafloor hydrothermal circulation Hydrothermal circulation in the oceans is the passage of the water through mid-oceanic ridge systems. The term includes both the circulation of the well-known, high-temperature vent waters near the ridge crests, and the much-lower-temperature, diffuse flow of water through sedim ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Country Rock (geology)
In geology, country rock is the rock native to an area, in contrast to any intrusion of viscous geologic material, commonly magma, or perhaps rock salt (in salt domes) or unconsolidated sediments. Magma is typically less dense than the rock it intrudes, widening and filling existing cracks, sometimes melting the already-existing country rock. The term "country rock" is similar to, and in many cases interchangeable with, the terms basement and wall rocks. Country rock can denote the widespread lithology of a region in relation to the rock which is being discussed or observed. Geologic settings Settings in geology when the term ''country rock'' is used include: Igneous intrusions When describing a pluton or dike, the igneous rock can be described as intruding the surrounding ''country rock'', the rock into which the pluton has intruded.Newfoundland and LabradorGlossary of Geological Terms Accessed June 2018. When country rock is intruded by a dike, perpendicular to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Plagioclase
Plagioclase is a series of tectosilicate (framework silicate) minerals within the feldspar group. Rather than referring to a particular mineral with a specific chemical composition, plagioclase is a continuous solid solution series, more properly known as the plagioclase feldspar series. This was first shown by the German mineralogist Johann Friedrich Christian Hessel (1796–1872) in 1826. The series ranges from albite to anorthite endmembers (with respective compositions NaAlSi3O8 to CaAl2Si2O8), where sodium and calcium atoms can substitute for each other in the mineral's crystal lattice structure. Plagioclase in hand samples is often identified by its polysynthetic crystal twinning or 'record-groove' effect. Plagioclase is a major constituent mineral in the Earth's crust, and is consequently an important diagnostic tool in petrology for identifying the composition, origin and evolution of igneous rocks. Plagioclase is also a major constituent of rock in the highlan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Feldspar
Feldspars are a group of rock-forming aluminium tectosilicate minerals, also containing other cations such as sodium, calcium, potassium, or barium. The most common members of the feldspar group are the ''plagioclase'' (sodium-calcium) feldspars and the ''alkali'' (potassium-sodium) feldspars. Feldspars make up about 60% of the Earth's crust, and 41% of the Earth's continental crust by weight. Feldspars crystalize from magma as both intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks and are also present in many types of metamorphic rock. Rock formed almost entirely of calcic plagioclase feldspar is known as anorthosite. Feldspars are also found in many types of sedimentary rocks. Compositions The feldspar group of minerals consists of tectosilicates, silicate minerals in which silicon ions are linked by shared oxygen ions to form a three-dimensional network. Compositions of major elements in common feldspars can be expressed in terms of three endmembers: * potassium feldspar (K-spar) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sericite
Sericite is the name given to very fine, ragged grains and aggregates of white (colourless) micas, typically made of muscovite, illite, or paragonite. Sericite is produced by the alteration of orthoclase or plagioclase feldspars in areas that have been subjected to hydrothermal alteration typically associated with copper, tin, or other hydrothermal ore deposits. Sericite also occurs as the fine mica that gives the sheen to phyllite and schistose metamorphic rocks. The name comes from Latin ''sericus'', meaning "silken" in reference to the location from which silk was first utilized, which in turn refers to the silky sheen of rocks with abundant sericite. File:Granite pmg ss 2006.jpg, Granite in thin section under cross-polarized light in which feldspar crystals exhibit sericite alteration. File:Staurolite garnet schist 3mm xp 2007.jpg, Staurolite-garnet schist in thin section under cross-polarized light with sericite. References External linksMindat [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mica
Micas ( ) are a group of silicate minerals whose outstanding physical characteristic is that individual mica crystals can easily be split into extremely thin elastic plates. This characteristic is described as perfect basal cleavage. Mica is common in igneous and metamorphic rock and is occasionally found as small flakes in sedimentary rock. It is particularly prominent in many granites, pegmatites, and schists, and "books" (large individual crystals) of mica several feet across have been found in some pegmatites. Micas are used in products such as drywalls, paints, fillers, especially in parts for automobiles, roofing and shingles, as well as in electronics. The mineral is used in cosmetics and food to add "shimmer" or "frost." Properties and structure The mica group is composed of 37 phyllosilicate minerals. All crystallize in the monoclinic system, with a tendency towards pseudohexagonal crystals, and are similar in structure but vary in chemical composition. Micas are ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Phyllic Alteration
Phyllic alteration is a hydrothermal alteration zone in a permeable rock that has been affected by circulation of hydrothermal fluids. It is commonly seen in copper porphyry ore deposits in calc-alkaline rocks. Phyllic alteration is characterised by the assemblage of quartz + sericite + pyrite, and occurs at high temperatures and moderately acidic (low pH) conditions. Hydrogen-ion metasomatism is the process that causes phyllic alteration. While the mineralogy of the rock is altered throughout, texture is preserved and primary porphyry structure (including position of original veins) may still be visible. If a rock undergoes phyllic alteration, then orthoclase feldspar, biotite and various silicates are altered in addition to plagioclase. Plagioclase will be altered to sericite (a fine-grained white mica) by sericitic alteration, and mafic minerals are replaced by quartz. Tourmaline may appear as radiating aggregate or prismatic crystals between the quartz-sericite assemblage ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geochemical Processes
Geochemistry is the science that uses the tools and principles of chemistry to explain the mechanisms behind major geological systems such as the Earth's crust and its oceans. The realm of geochemistry extends beyond the Earth, encompassing the entire Solar System, and has made important contributions to the understanding of a number of processes including mantle convection, the formation of planets and the origins of granite and basalt. It is an integrated field of chemistry and geology. History The term ''geochemistry'' was first used by the Swiss-German chemist Christian Friedrich Schönbein in 1838: "a comparative geochemistry ought to be launched, before geognosy can become geology, and before the mystery of the genesis of our planets and their inorganic matter may be revealed." However, for the rest of the century the more common term was "chemical geology", and there was little contact between geologists and chemists. Geochemistry emerged as a separate discipline aft ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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