NEPHELINE: STRUCTURE OF THREE SAMPLES FROM THE BANCROFT AREA, ONTARIO, OBTAINED USING SYNCHROTRON HIGH-RESOLUTION POWDER X-RAY DIFFRACTION

Abstract

The crystal structure of three samples of nepheline (ideally, K{sub 2}Na{sub 6}[Al{sub 8}Si{sub 8}O{sub 32}]) from the Bancroft area of Ontario (1a, b: Egan Chute, 2: Nephton, and 3: Davis Hill), each with different types of superstructure reflections, has been studied using synchrotron high-resolution powder X-ray diffraction (HRPXRD) data and Rietveld structure refinement. The samples have different origins. The structure was refined in space group P6{sub 3}. The R{sub F}{sup 2} index, number of unique observed reflections, pseudohexagonal subcell parameters, and site-occupancy factor (sof) for the K site are as follows: Sample 1b: R{sub F}{sup 2} = 0.0433, N{sub obs} = 1399, a = 9.99567(1), c = 8.37777(1) {angstrom}, V = 724.907(2) {angstrom}{sub 3}, and K (sof) = 0.716(1). Sample 2: R{sub F}{sup 2} = 0.0669, N{sub obs} = 1589, a = 10.00215(1), c = 8.38742(1) {angstrom}, V = 726.684(1) {angstrom}{sub 3}, and K (sof) = 0.920(1). Sample 3: R{sub F}{sup 2} = 0.0804, N{sub obs} = 1615, a = 9.99567(1), c = 8.37873(1) {angstrom}, V = 724.991(1) {angstrom}{sub 3}, and K (sof) = 0.778(2). Sample 2 has the largest sof for K and the largest volume. The satellite reflections in the three nepheline samples were observed in the HRPXRDmore » traces and give rise to different incommensurate superstructures. The Al and Si atoms in the T{sub 3} and T{sub 4} sites are ordered differently in the three samples, which may indicate the presence of a domain structure based on Al-Si order. The positions for the Al and Si atoms were interchanged in two samples because of the resulting distances. The slight excess of Si over Al atoms, characteristically encountered in well-analyzed samples of nepheline, is reflected in the distances.« less