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Title: Iron-sulfur mineralogy of Mars: Magmatic evolution and chemical weathering products

Abstract

Models for the evolution of sulfide minerals on Mars and reaction pathways to their oxidative weathering products in Martian regolith have been proposed based on petrogenetic associations between komatiitic rock types, Viking geochemical data, SNC meteorites, and terrestrial Fe-Ni sulfide deposits. To test the weathering model, komatiitic pyrrhotites and olivines were exposed to sulfuric acid solutions, with and without dissolved ferric iron added to simulate deep-weathering processes, and the reaction products were identified by Mossbauer spectroscopy. Secondary FeS{sub 2} (pyrite or marcasite), FeOOH (goethite), and possibly jarosite were formed from pyrrhotite, while olivine was oxidized to nanophase goethite. These results suggest that on Mars, acidic groundwater induced pyrrhotite {yields} FeS{sub 2} {yields} FeOOH (+jarosite) oxidative weathering reactions, particularly in the presence of dissolved Fe{sup 3+}. Such gossaniferous materials occurring in Martian regolith were derived mainly from Fe-Ni sulfides associated with komatiitic basalts and not from sulfides occurring in calc-alkaline porphyry copper deposits, granitic hydrothermal veins, sediment-hosted PbS-ZnS ores, etc., which presumably did not evolve on Mars due to the virtual lack of plate tectonic activity there.

Authors:
;  [1]
  1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge (USA)
Publication Date:
OSTI Identifier:
5445407
Report Number(s):
CONF-9001119-
Journal ID: ISSN 0148-0227; CODEN: JGREA; TRN: 91-023772
Resource Type:
Conference
Journal Name:
Journal of Geophysical Research; (United States)
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 95:B9; Conference: 4. international conference on Mars, Tucson, AZ (United States), 10-13 Jan 1990; Journal ID: ISSN 0148-0227
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSICS; IRON SULFIDES; MINERALOGY; MARS PLANET; GEOLOGY; BASALT; CHEMICAL COMPOSITION; CHEMICAL REACTION YIELD; CHEMICAL REACTIONS; MAGMA; MATHEMATICAL MODELS; OLIVINE; OVERBURDEN; PLANETARY EVOLUTION; ROCKS; SPECTROSCOPY; WATER; WEATHERING; ALKALINE EARTH METAL COMPOUNDS; CHALCOGENIDES; HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS; IGNEOUS ROCKS; IRON COMPOUNDS; IRON SILICATES; MAGNESIUM COMPOUNDS; MAGNESIUM SILICATES; MINERALS; OXYGEN COMPOUNDS; PLANETS; SILICATE MINERALS; SILICATES; SILICON COMPOUNDS; SOLAR SYSTEM EVOLUTION; SULFIDES; SULFUR COMPOUNDS; TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPOUNDS; VOLCANIC ROCKS; YIELDS; 640107* - Astrophysics & Cosmology- Planetary Phenomena

Citation Formats

Burns, R G, and Fisher, D S. Iron-sulfur mineralogy of Mars: Magmatic evolution and chemical weathering products. United States: N. p., 1990. Web.
Burns, R G, & Fisher, D S. Iron-sulfur mineralogy of Mars: Magmatic evolution and chemical weathering products. United States.
Burns, R G, and Fisher, D S. 1990. "Iron-sulfur mineralogy of Mars: Magmatic evolution and chemical weathering products". United States.
@article{osti_5445407,
title = {Iron-sulfur mineralogy of Mars: Magmatic evolution and chemical weathering products},
author = {Burns, R G and Fisher, D S},
abstractNote = {Models for the evolution of sulfide minerals on Mars and reaction pathways to their oxidative weathering products in Martian regolith have been proposed based on petrogenetic associations between komatiitic rock types, Viking geochemical data, SNC meteorites, and terrestrial Fe-Ni sulfide deposits. To test the weathering model, komatiitic pyrrhotites and olivines were exposed to sulfuric acid solutions, with and without dissolved ferric iron added to simulate deep-weathering processes, and the reaction products were identified by Mossbauer spectroscopy. Secondary FeS{sub 2} (pyrite or marcasite), FeOOH (goethite), and possibly jarosite were formed from pyrrhotite, while olivine was oxidized to nanophase goethite. These results suggest that on Mars, acidic groundwater induced pyrrhotite {yields} FeS{sub 2} {yields} FeOOH (+jarosite) oxidative weathering reactions, particularly in the presence of dissolved Fe{sup 3+}. Such gossaniferous materials occurring in Martian regolith were derived mainly from Fe-Ni sulfides associated with komatiitic basalts and not from sulfides occurring in calc-alkaline porphyry copper deposits, granitic hydrothermal veins, sediment-hosted PbS-ZnS ores, etc., which presumably did not evolve on Mars due to the virtual lack of plate tectonic activity there.},
doi = {},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/5445407}, journal = {Journal of Geophysical Research; (United States)},
issn = {0148-0227},
number = ,
volume = 95:B9,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Aug 30 00:00:00 EDT 1990},
month = {Thu Aug 30 00:00:00 EDT 1990}
}

Conference:
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