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Aerial Gamma-Ray Surveys in Alaska
by
Joseph S. Duval
U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 01-128
Radioactive Rock-Forming Minerals
The following definitions were taken from the second edition of
the Glossary of Geology.
adularia A
moderate to low-temperature mineral of the alkali feldspar group: KAlSi3O8.
It is weakly triclinic (formerly regarded as apparently monoclinic) and
typically occurs in well-developed, usually transparent, and colorless to milky
white (and often opalescent) pseudo-orthorombic crystals in fissures in
crystalline schists, esp. in the region of the Swiss Alps. Adularia
displays pearly internal reflections and a fascinating variety of optical
behavior between crossed nicols. It typically has a relatively high
content of barium.
alkali feldspar (a)
A group of feldspars composed of mixtures, or mixed crystals, of potassium
feldspar (Or, or KAlSi3O8) and sodium feldspar (Ab, or
NaAlSi3O8) in any ratio; a group of feldspars containing
alkali metals but little calcium. (b) A mineral of the alkali feldspar group,
such as microcline, orthoclase, sanidine, adularia, albite, anorthoclase, and
plagioclase in which the proportion of the An molecule is less than 20%.
Synonym: alkalic feldspar.
allanite A
monoclinic, cerium-bearing mineral of the epidote group: (Ce, Ca, Y)(Al,
Fe)3(SiO4)3(OH). It is typically an accessory mineral in igneous rocks
(granite, syenite, diorite, pegmatite) and their metamorphic equivalents.
Synonyms: orthite; cerine; bucklandite; treanorite.
apatite (a) A
group of variously colored hexagonal minerals consisting of calcium phosphate
together with fluorine, chlorine, hydroxyl, or carbonate in varying amounts and
having the general formula: Ca5(PO4, CO3)3(F,
OH, Cl). Also, any mineral of the apatite group, such as fluorapatite,
chlorapatite, hydroxylapatite, carbonate-apatite, and francolite; when not
specified, the term usually refers to fluorapatite. The apatite minerals
occur as accessory minerals in almost all igneous rocks, in metamorphic rocks,
in veins and other ore deposits; and most commonly as fine-grained and often
impure masses as the chief constituent of phosphate rock and of most or all
bones and teeth. Synonym: calcium phosphate. (b) A group of hexagonal
minerals having the general formula: A5(RO4)3(F,
OH, Cl), where A = Ca, SR, or Pb, and R = P, As, V, or less commonly Si.
Examples include svabite, hedyphane, mimetite, pyromorphite, vanadite.
biotite (a) A
widely distributed and important rock-forming mineral of the mica group: K(Mg,
Fe+2)3(Al, Fe+3)Si3O10(OH)2.
It is generally black, dark brown, or dark green, and forms a constituent of
crystalline rocks (either as an original crystal in igneous rocks of all kinds
or a product of metamorphic origin in gneisses and shists) or a detrital
constituent of sandstones and other sedimentary rocks. Biotite is useful
in the potassium-argon method of age determination. (b) A general term to
designate all ferromagnesian micas. Synonyms: black mica; iron mica;
magnesia mica.
carnallite A
milk-white to reddish orthorhombic mineral: KMgCl36H2O.
It occurs as a saline residue and is a raw material of fertilizer manufacture in
some European districts.
feldspar (a) A
group of abundant rock-forming minerals of general formula: MAl(SiAl)3O8,
where M = K, Na, Ca, Ba, Rb, Sr, and Fe. Feldspars are the most widespread
of any mineral group and constitute 60% of the Earth's crust; they occur as
components of all kinds of rocks (crystalline shists, migmatites, gneisses,
granites, most magmatic rocks) and as fissure minerals in clefts and druse
minerals in cavities. Feldspars are usually white or nearly white and
clear and translucent (they have no color of their own but are frequently
colored by impurities), have a hardness of 6 on the Mohs scale, frequently
display twinning, exhibit monoclinic or triclinic symmetry, and possess good
cleavage in two directions intersecting at 90o as in orthoclase and
at about 80o as in plagioclase). On decomposition, feldspars
yield a large part of the clay of soil and also the mineral kaolinite. (b) A
mineral of the feldspar group, such as alkali feldspar (orthoclase, microcline),
plagioclase (albite, anorthite), and celsian. Synonyms: felspar, felspath.
glauconite (a)
A dull-green earthy or granular mineral of the mica group: (K, Na)(Al, Fe+3,
Mg)2(Al, Si)4O10(OH)2. It has often been regarded as the iron-rich
analogue of illite. Glauconite occurs abundantly in greensand, and seems
to be forming in the marine environment at the present time; it is the most
common sedimentary (diagenetic) iron silicate and is found in marine sedimentary
rocks from the Cambrian to the present. Glauconite is an indicator of very
slow sedimentation. (b) A name applied to a group of green minerals
consisting of hydrous silicates of potassium and iron.
kainite A
usually whitish monoclinic mineral: MgSO4Kcl3H2O. It is a natural salt
occurring in irregular granular masses, and is used as a source of potassium and
magnesium compounds.
leucite A
white or gray mineral of the feldspathoid group: KAlSi2O6.
It is an important rock-forming mineral in alkalic rocks (esp. lavas), and
usually occurs in trapezohedral crystals with a glassy fracture. Synonyms:
amphigene; grenatite; white garnet; Vesuvian garnet; vesuvian.
microcline A
clear, white to gray, brick-red, or green mineral of the alkali feldspar group:
KAlSi3O8. It is the fully ordered, triclinic
modification of potassium feldspar and is dimorphous with orthoclase, being
stable at lower temperatures; it usually contains some sodium in minor
amounts. Microcline is a common rock-forming mineral of granitic rocks and
pegmatites, and is often secondary after othoclase. It is generally
characterized by cross-hatch twinning.
monazite A
yellow, brown, or reddish-brown monoclinic mineral: (Ce, La, Nd, Th)(PO4,
SiO4). It is a rare-earth phosphate with appreciable
substitution of thorium for rare earths and silicon for phosphorous;
thorium-free monazite is rare. It is widely disseminated as an accessory
mineral in granites, gneisses, and pegmatites, and it is often naturally
concentrated in detrital sand, gravel, and alluvial tin deposits. Monazite
is a principal ore of the rare earths and the main source of thorium.
Synonym: cryptolite.
muscovite (a)
A mineral of the mica group: KAl2(AlSi3)O10(OH)2.
It is colorless to yellowish or pale brown, and is a common mineral in gneisses
and schists, in most acid igneous rocks (such as granites and pegmatites), and
in many sedimentary rocks (esp. sandstone). Synonyms: white mica; potash
mica; common mica; Muscovy glass; mirror stone.
orthoclase
(a) A colorless, white, cream-yellow, flesh pink, or gray mineral of the alkali
feldspar group: KAlSi3O8. It is the partly ordered,
monoclinic modification of potassium feldspar and is dimorphous with microcline,
being stable at higher temperatures; it usually contains some sodium in minor
amounts. Ordinary or common orthoclase is a common rock-forming mineral;
it occurs esp. in granites, acid igneous rocks, and crystalline schists, and is
usually perthitic. Synonyms: common feldspar, orthose, pegmatolite.
(b) A general term applied to any potassium feldspar that is or appears to
be monoclinic; e.g. sanidine, submicroscopically twinned microcline, adularia,
submicroscopically twinned analbite.
pyrochlore
(a) A pale-yellow, red, brown, or black isometric mineral: (Na, Ca)2(Nb,
Ta)2O6(OH, F). It is isomorphous with microlite,
with Nb greater than Ta, and it usually cerium and titanium. Pyrochlore
occurs in pegmatites derived from alkalic igneous rocks and constitutes an ore
of niobium. Synonym: pyrrhite. (b) An group of minerals of the
general formula: A2B2O6(O, OH, F), where A =
Na, Ca, K, Fe+2, U+4, Sb+3, Pb, Th, Ce, or Y,
and B = Nb, Ta, Ti, Sn, Fe+3, or W. It includes minerals such
as pyrochlore, microlite, betafite, obruchevite, and pandaite.
sanidine A
high-temperature mineral of the alkali feldspar group: KAlSi3O8.
It is a highly disordered monoclinic form, occurring in clear, glassy, often
tabular crystals embedded in unaltered acid volcanic rocks such as trachyte; it
appears to be stable under equilibrium conditions above approximately 500o
C. Sanidine forms a complete solid-solution series with high albite, and
some sodium is always present. Synonyms: glassy feldspar, ice spar,
rhyacolite.
sericite A
white, fine-grained potassium mica occurring in small scales and flakes as an
alteration product of various aluminosilicate minerals, having a silky luster,
and found in various metamorphic rocks (esp. in schists and phyllites) or in the
wall rocks, fault gouge, and vein fillings of many ore deposits. It is
usually muscovite or very close to muscovite in composition, and may also
include much illite.
sphene A
usually yellow or brown mineral: CaTiSiO5. It often contains
other elements such as niobium, chromium, fluorine, sodium, iron, manganese, and
yttrium. Sphene occurs in wedge-shaped or lozenge-shaped monoclinic
crystals as an accessory mineral in granitic rocks and in calcium-rich
metamorphic rocks. Synonyms: titanite, grothite.
sylvite A
white or colorless isometric mineral: KCl. It is the principal ore mineral
of potassium compounds. Sylvite occurs in beds as a saline residue with
halite and other evaporites. It has a sharper taste than that of
halite. Synonyms: sylvine; leopoldite.
thorite A
brown, black, or sometimes orange-yellow tetragonal mineral: ThSiO4.
It is isostructural with thorogummite, strongly radioactive, and usually
metamict, and may contain as much as 10% uranium. Thorite resembles zircon
and occurs as a minor accessory mineral of granites, syenites, and pegmatites.
It is dimorphous with huttonite.
uraninite A
black, brown, or steel-gray octahedral or cubic mineral, essentially UO2,
but usually partly oxidized. It is strongly radioactive, and is the chief
ore of uranium. It is isomorphous with thorianite. Uraninite often
contains impurities such as thorium, radium, the cerium and yttrium metals, and
lead; when heated, it yields a gas consisting chiefly of helium. It occurs
in veins of lead, tin, and copper minerals and in sandstone deposits, and is a
primary constituent of granites and pegmatites. Synonyms: ulrichite;
coracite.
xenotime A
brown, yellow or reddish tetragonal mineral: YPO4. Is is isostructural
with zircon, and often contains erbium, cerium, and other rare earths, as well
as thorium, uranium, aluminum, calcium, beryllium, zirconium, or other
elements. Xenotime occurs as an accessory mineral in granites and
pegmatites.
zircon A
mineral ZrSiO4. It occurs in tetragonal prisms, has various colors, and is
a common accessory mineral in siliceous igneous rocks, crystalline limestones,
schists, and gneisses, in sedimentary rocks derived therefrom, and in beach and
river placer deposits. It is the chief ore of zirconium, and is used as a
refractory; when cut and polished, the colorless varieties provide exceptionally
brilliant gemstones. Synonyms: zirconite, hyacinth, jacinth.
