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XRPD patterns of opals: A brief review and new results from recent studies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 February 2012

C. Ghisoli ,
F. Caucia  and
L. Marinoni
C. Ghisoli
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Pavia, via Ferrata, 1-27100 Pavia, Italy
F. Caucia*
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Pavia, via Ferrata, 1-27100 Pavia, Italy
L. Marinoni
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università di Pavia, via Ferrata, 1-27100 Pavia, Italy
*
a)Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. Electronic mail: caucia@crystal.unipv.it
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Abstract

A new classification of opals through X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) methodology, by analysing 75 new samples of opal came from different worldwide areas, is introduced. A brief historical summary of the application of XRPD analysis on opals and the most important XRPD results reported in literature were compared with the newly obtained XRPD data. A simple method for the classification of opals on the basis of their degrees of structural order-disorder calculated from the diffraction data is proposed. In addition, a clear boundary, which has not been previously described by others in literature, related to the presence (or absence) of two-peak characteristic of the cristobalite phase is identified. This boundary allows for a discrimination of opals C from CT.

Keywords

cristobalitetridymiteopal Copal CTopal Aorder-disordersepiolitepalygorskite
Type
Review Article
Information
Powder Diffraction , Volume 25 , Issue 3 , September 2010 , pp. 274 - 282
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

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