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GEOREF RECORD

Brownleeite; a new manganese silicide mineral in an interplanetary dust particle

Keiko Nakamura-Messenger, Lindsay P. Keller, Simon J. Clemett, Scott Messenger, John H. Jones, Russell L. Palma, Robert O. Pepin, Wolfgang Kloeck, Michael E. Zolensky and Hirokazu Tatsuoka
Brownleeite; a new manganese silicide mineral in an interplanetary dust particle
American Mineralogist (February 2010) 95 (2-3): 221-228

Abstract

Brownleeite, ideally stoichiometric MnSi, is a manganese silicide not previously observed in nature that was discovered within an interplanetary dust particle that likely originated from a comet. Three submicrometer brownleeite grains were found, with one of them poikilitically enclosed by Mn-bearing forsterite. Owing to the small size of the brownleeite grains, it was not possible to determine conventional macroscopic properties of this mineral; however, the chemical composition and crystal structure were well constrained by extensive quantitative energy dispersive X-ray analysis and electron diffraction using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The crystal system for brownleeite is cubic (a = 4.557 Aa) with space group P2 (sub 1) 3, cell volume = 94.63 Aa (super 3) , Z = 4, density (calculated) = 2.913 g/cm (super 3) , and empirical formula: (Mn (sub 0.77) Fe (sub 0.18) Cr (sub 0.05) )Si. These brownleeite grains likely formed as high-temperature condensates either in the early Solar System or in the outflow of an evolved star or supernova explosion.


ISSN: 0003-004X
EISSN: 1945-3027
Coden: AMMIAY
Serial Title: American Mineralogist
Serial Volume: 95
Serial Issue: 2-3
Title: Brownleeite; a new manganese silicide mineral in an interplanetary dust particle
Affiliation: NASA, Johnson Space Center, Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science Directorate, Houston, TX, United States
Pages: 221-228
Published: 201002
Text Language: English
Publisher: Mineralogical Society of America, Washington, DC, United States
References: 33
Accession Number: 2010-022507
Categories: Mineralogy of non-silicatesExtraterrestrial geology
Document Type: Serial
Bibliographic Level: Analytic
Illustration Description: illus. incl. 3 tables
Secondary Affiliation: Jacobs Technology, USA, United StatesERC, USA, United StatesMinnesota State University, USA, United StatesUniversity of Minnesota, USA, United StatesRoentgenanalytik Messtechnik, DEU, Federal Republic of GermanyShizuoka University, JPN, Japan
Country of Publication: United States
Secondary Affiliation: GeoRef, Copyright 2017, American Geosciences Institute. Abstract, copyright, Mineralogical Society of America. Reference includes data from GeoScienceWorld, Alexandria, VA, United States
Update Code: 201014
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