Stability of Minerals

• Minerals formed at specific T and P conditions à

become unstable under a different environment

• High P&T unstable at surface and vice versa à

changes used to infer history of mineral deposit

• Exception: persistent minerals (e.g. pyrite, gold);

less sensitive minerals (e.g. diamond, cassiterite)
GEOTHERMOMETRY

Stability of Minerals Stability of Minerals

• Example: Iron (formed under high T), when exposed to • Hypogene minerals susceptible to weathering; alters to
surface, rusts and produce limonite oxides, carbonates, sulfates, chlorides, silicates, etc.

• Surface conditions: Oxides suffer least, sulfides suffer most

• Temperature-dependent polymorphs (e.g. pyrite &

marcasite - 400°C; enargite & luzonite - 320°C)
• Feldspar & mica change to clay by hydrothermal alteration;
Clays change to (garnet) mica schist by metamorphism

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 Geothermometers Geothermometers
• Minerals that yield information as to the • Direct measurement – the measurement of lavas,
temperature of their formation fumaroles, hot springs

- Bowen: minerals of basic rocks form ~600-870°C

• Important in the understanding the origin of
mineral deposits and their classification
- Hot spring measurements – opal, gypsum,
stibnite
• Obtained through several methods

Geothermometers Geothermometers
• Melting points – indicate the maximum • Inversion points
crystallization temperatures
e.g. quartz/silica geothermometer
- e.g. albite - 1104ºC, stibnite - 546ºC, bismuth - 271ºC
870ºC – upper limit of quartz formation
• Inversion points – transformation of some
minerals’ crystal system to another is temperature 573ºC – high quartz converts to low quartz
dependent

- e.g. isometric argentite (Ag2S) transforms to Below 250ºC – chalcedony; amorphous silica from
orthorhombic acanthite, with an inversion point of precipitation of silica in geothermal systems
175ºC

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 Geothermometers
• Exsolution – minerals that form solid solutions unmix
at specific temperatures to yield distinguishable
intergrowths
e.g. Chalcopyrite – bornite: 475ºC
Cubanite – chalcopyrite: 450ºC
Bornite – chalcocite: 175-225ºC
Geothermometers
• Fluid inclusions – fluid inclusions in cavities of
crystals indicate the approximate temperature of
formation of the crystals by the amount of
contraction of the liquid, assuming that the liquid
originally filled the cavity
Geothermometers
• Recrystallization – similar to inversion and exsolution
but applies more specifically to native metals
e.g. copper recrystallizes at 450ºC; silver at 200ºC
• Changes in physical properties
e.g. smoky quartz & amethyst lose color ~240-260ºC;
Color of fluorite disappears at 175ºC
Geothermometers
• Two-phased; multiple-phased
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 Geothermometers Fluid inclusions
• Primary – formed during crystal growth; Homogenization temperature – represent
represent original formation conditions of mineral temperature of formation of crystal; plotted in a
histogram to determine temperature mode
- most accurate geologic thermometer,
determined by microthermometric analysis (Craig & e.g. In figure – 151.4 °C:
Vaughan, 1994)

• Secondary – formed when fluid enters post-

growth fractures in the crystal; trapped after
crystal growth is complete

120°C 140°C 150°C 151.3°C 151.4°C

Fluid inclusions Fluid Inclusions

• Salinity – composition of inclusion during
formation; measured from melting temperature
of ice in the inclusion

a) Freezing

= -36°C

a) Melting

= -0.1°C

Wilkinson (2001)

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Fluid Inclusions Fluid Inclusions

Wilkinson (2001)

Fluid Inclusions Stable Isotopes

• Stable isotope research is based on the study

of elements having more than one stable
isotope due to a variable number of neutrons
occurring in the nucleus

• Small mass differences may result in

fractionation of isotopes during chemical
reactions or physical processes

• H, C, O, S isotopes typically used in stable

isotope studies
Pudack et al. (2009)

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Stable isotope composition is expressed in δ (del) notation:
Stable Isotopes
δ in ‰ =
Rsample 16O
–1 x 1000 1H = % 99.9852 = % 99.76
Rstandard 17O
2H (D) = % = % 0.04
0.0148 18O
R is the isotope ratio of the HEAVY / LIGHT isotopes in either = % 0.20
your sample or a standard
(D/H)sample- (D/H)standard
i.e. D/H, 13C/12C , 15N/14N , 18O/16O
d D (‰) = ----------------------------------- x 103
(D/H)standard
Delta notation indicates the isotope ratio in your sample
relative to a standard.
If the isotope ratio in your sample equals the standard, (18O/16O)sample- (18O/16O)standard
Rsample/Rstandard = 1 and δ = 0‰ d 18O (‰) = -------------------------------------------- x 103
(18O/16O)standard

Isotope Standards
• VSMOW – Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water –
bunch of ocean water kept in Austria – O and H
standard

• PDB – Pee Dee Belemnite – fossil of a belemnite

from the Pee Dee formation in Canada – C and O

• CDT – Canyon Diablo Troilite –meteorite fragment

from meteor crater in Arizona, contains FeS mineral
Troilite – S

• AIR – Atmospheric air - N

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 Sulfur isotopes
The stable sulfur isotopes are: 32S, 33S, 34S, 35S, but
fractionation between 32S and 34S is the most studied.

d 34S =
( 34
S 32
S )sample - (34 S 32
S )standard
´ 103
( 34
S 32
S )standard

The extent of fractionation of S-isotopes between

sulfate and sulfide depends on:
1) The rate of metabolism by bacteria.
2) Composition and abundance of food supply.
3) Size of sulfate reservoir.
4) Temperature.
5) The rate of removal of H2S.

Cooke (2011)