Ewingite: Earth's most complex mineral

Travis A. Olds; Jakub Plášil; Anthony R. Kampf; Antonio Simonetti; Luke R. Sadergaski; Yu Sheng Chen; Peter C. Burns

doi:10.1130/G39433.1

Ewingite: Earth's most complex mineral

Travis A. Olds, Jakub Plášil, Anthony R. Kampf, Antonio Simonetti, Luke R. Sadergaski, Yu Sheng Chen, Peter C. Burns

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

28 Scopus citations

Abstract

The newly discovered mineral ewingite is the most structurally complex mineral known. Ewingite is found in the abandoned Plavno mine in the Jáchymov ore district, western Bohemia (Czech Republic), and was studied by synchrotron X-ray diffraction. The structure of ewingite contains nanometer-scale anionic uranyl carbonate cages that contain 24 uranyl polyhedra, as well as Ca and Mg cations and H₂O groups located in interstitial regions inside and between the cages. The discovery of ewingite suggests that nanoscale uranyl carbonate cages could be aqueous species in some systems, and these may affect the geochemical behavior of uranium.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1007-1010
Number of pages	4
Journal	Geology
Volume	45
Issue number	11
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1130/G39433.1
State	Published - Nov 1 2017
Externally published	Yes

Funding

This work was funded by the Chemical Sciences, Geosciences and Biosciences Division, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Office of Science, U.S. Department of Energy, grant DE-FG02-07ER15880. The AttoM high-resolution-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry instrument used for chemical analyses is housed at the Midwest Isotope and Trace Element Research Analytical Center (MITERAC) at Notre Dame University (Indiana, USA). A portion of this study was funded by the John Jago Trelawney Endowment to the Mineral Sciences Department of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County (California, USA). Plášil is grateful for the support provided by project LO1603 under the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports National Sustainability Program I of the Czech Republic.

Funders	Funder number
John Jago Trelawney Endowment	LO1603
Midwest Isotope and Trace Element Research Analytical Center
Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports National Sustainability Program I of the Czech Republic
U.S. Department of Energy	DE-FG02-07ER15880
Office of Science
Basic Energy Sciences
University of Notre Dame
Chemical Sciences, Geosciences, and Biosciences Division

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abstract = "The newly discovered mineral ewingite is the most structurally complex mineral known. Ewingite is found in the abandoned Plavno mine in the J{\'a}chymov ore district, western Bohemia (Czech Republic), and was studied by synchrotron X-ray diffraction. The structure of ewingite contains nanometer-scale anionic uranyl carbonate cages that contain 24 uranyl polyhedra, as well as Ca and Mg cations and H2O groups located in interstitial regions inside and between the cages. The discovery of ewingite suggests that nanoscale uranyl carbonate cages could be aqueous species in some systems, and these may affect the geochemical behavior of uranium.",

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AU - Kampf, Anthony R.

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AU - Sadergaski, Luke R.

AU - Chen, Yu Sheng

AU - Burns, Peter C.

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AB - The newly discovered mineral ewingite is the most structurally complex mineral known. Ewingite is found in the abandoned Plavno mine in the Jáchymov ore district, western Bohemia (Czech Republic), and was studied by synchrotron X-ray diffraction. The structure of ewingite contains nanometer-scale anionic uranyl carbonate cages that contain 24 uranyl polyhedra, as well as Ca and Mg cations and H2O groups located in interstitial regions inside and between the cages. The discovery of ewingite suggests that nanoscale uranyl carbonate cages could be aqueous species in some systems, and these may affect the geochemical behavior of uranium.

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Ewingite: Earth's most complex mineral

Abstract

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