INVESTIGATION OF A CRYSTALLOGRAPHIC PREFERRED ORIENTATION BY FIBRE GROWTH IN A FIBROUS QUARTZ VEIN FROM THE ORDOVICIAN OF BURKHAT PASS, KATON KARAGAI, ALTAI MOUNTAINS.
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Date
2024-04-26
Authors
Spanov, Alikhan
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Nazarbayev University School of Mining and Geosciences
Abstract
Forming such geological structures as quartz fibre veins is a well-known aspect of
crystallographic preferred orientation investigation. Quartz is a crucial silica polymorph and the
purest mineral in the Earth's crust due to its defective structure, making it easier to follow the
deformation pattern of minerals during crystallization under different conditions (Gotze et al.
2021).
Quartz crystals are located by crystallographers in the trapezohedral class of the trigonal
system. It also possesses three-fold symmetry about a vertical axis, however, it has no plane of
symmetry or centre of symmetry. The location of atoms and electrons in quartz was described by
(Huggins, 1922). Every silicon atom is encircled by four pairs of electrons at tetrahedron corners
(Figure 1). They operate like bonds that connect them to four equally distant oxygen atoms. In
addition, four tetrahedrally oriented electron pairs surround every oxygen atom. Two of these pairs
act as bonds that connect the oxygen with silicon atoms. Therefore, the crystal is not composed of
Si02 units. However, it is a single molecule, for every bond around each silicon and oxygen atom,
there is the same type of bond that connects the atoms in a molecule.
Description
Keywords
Crystallographic preferred orientation, Altai mountain range, Thin section, Quartz veins, Type of access: Restricted
Citation
Spanov, A. (2024). Investigation of a Crystallographic preferred orientation by fibre growth in a fibrous quartz vein from the Ordovician of Burkhat pass, Katon Karagai, Altai mountains. Nazarbayev University School of Mining and Geosciences